Chapter 1,

Yae hurried to the teleportation station to visit his grandfather's house. April of his third year in middle school had arrived, and the word "high school entrance exam" was becoming a tangible reality. Amidst this, Yae found himself separated from the limited number of friends he had and, being somewhat unsociable to begin with, declined the invitation from Nakayama-kun from the back row, who asked, "Wanna hang out?" He had deemed it more interesting to play the new game his grandfather had acquired.

Nakayama-kun responded with, "Okay, see you," but Yae couldn't decipher the true intent behind those words. Was he genuinely planning to invite him again, or was it just a formality? Even if he was told to understand without words, Yae thought, if you don't know, you don't know.

Adding to that, there was a sense of unease that he wouldn't be able to get along well with them. His awareness that he was a bit more mature in his thinking than the other boys and girls around him was likely the cause. However, he knew that if he flaunted this awareness at his age, he'd be seen as childish by others. He also knew that if he took a step forward and played along, he could get along reasonably well with his peers.

However, even if he overcame this conflict, he felt that with the exams coming up in the summer, he wouldn't have time to play. This made taking that step seem daunting. Thinking about all this made him wonder if he was going through puberty, which in itself was awkward and led to a vicious cycle. Based on his fourteen years of experience, he knew that the best way to dispel this unease was to hang out with his grandfather. Yae's grandfather, Aoi, who was his playmate, was turning seventy this year. Despite his age, he had an unyielding curiosity for new things and thoroughly enjoyed his hobbies. Since losing his wife five years ago, this tendency seemed to have only grown stronger. Yae often wondered if his grandfather knew more about the latest music hits than he did.

"Please select your destination."

As Yae approached the teleportation station, the artificial voice from his tablet in his pocket reached him through his earphones. Despite being an artificial voice, it was now indistinguishable from a human for routine sentences like this. It's a classic joke among their generation to laugh about how, as children, they used to wonder why the voice on the other end always seemed to be so aware of their actions.

Yae took out his tablet from his pocket, selected the teleportation station closest to his grandfather's house from the history screen, and passed through the ticket gate. He heard a beep indicating the payment and checked the displayed balance on the screen. He felt relieved knowing he could get home without recharging. Once, when his balance was insufficient, his grandfather had made a particularly displeased face when he had to ask him for money. Despite Aoi's love for new things, he never seemed to approve of the teleportation machine. Yae thought his grandfather might be the only one nowadays who relied solely on trains and buses for transportation. Even hardcore train enthusiasts used the teleportation to visit regional train lines.

In the early days of the teleportation machine, there was an incident where the child of one of the developers went missing, and the case remained unsolved.

Back then, when internet morality was even lower than it is now, conspiracy theories blaming the teleportation machine for the incident flooded in. However, police investigations revealed that the child's image was not captured by any surveillance camera near the teleportation machine and that the parent and child had frequent arguments. These groundless

speculations seemed to quiet down all at once. To Yae, such a rumor from long before he was born seemed as ridiculous as the toilet paper shortage during the oil crisis. However, Aoi, who lived near the incident scene, still felt unsettled about it. Even though they weren't acquaintances with the child and, moreover, using the teleportation machine enabled him to visit his grandchild almost weekly, Aoi didn't want to hear Yae's counterarguments. He had his views, and that was that—a rather stubborn grandfather.

Sitting down in his seat and listening to the station announcements, Yae closed his eyes. He knew that whether his eyes were open or closed wouldn't make any difference, but it was a habit from his childhood to close them.

With a low rumbling sound, the seat vibrated. As the vibration ceased, Yae slowly opened his eyes and found that he had already arrived at his destination. Such loud noises and vibrations were unnecessary, but Yae had learned in class that they were deliberately included to let passengers know that the teleportation had occurred.

Looking at the trains running on the tracks in the distance, Yae thought, "Riding that every day must be tough."

The time is 4:00PM, and the train is nearly empty. However, most of Yae's generation had only seen crowded trains in textbooks or foreign news.

Thirty-two years ago, Japan established its first teleportation stations between Hokkaido and Osaka. With Japanese researchers among the groups that pioneered teleportation technology, Japan was among the first countries to adopt it. Initially, many people were apprehensive, but the convenience, affordability, and, after a few years, recognized safety led to a rapid increase in teleportation users. Then, exactly ten years ago, data was released showing that in Japan, the number of teleportation station users had surpassed.

that of train users. This was the extent of Yae's knowledge about teleportation stations, and knowing this much would secure him a passing grade on tests. Then he didn't need to remember more details such as the Japanese developer's name was Sho Hachiya and so on.

As Yae approached the ticket gate, he heard another beep from his tablet. At the same time, a train passing in the opposite direction to the one he had seen earlier was nearby, and he noticed that it was more crowded than the previous train.

"Why would anyone ride a train?" he blurted out.

Right after letting it slip from his lips, a theatrical scolding comes from beside him, "It seems you still don't understand the greatness of trains."

It's his grandfather, Aoi.

"You don't have to say it in such a sarcastic tone," Yae replied.

"Who's being sarcastic first?" Aoi retorted.

"Sorry about that. I didn't think you were already here," Yae said.

Despite their exchange, they both wore smiles.

"Mind if we stop by the convenience store downstairs. I’m of drinks," Aoi asked.

As he spoke, Aoi reached for Yae's bag to carry it, but Yae declined. Since last summer, Yae had grown taller than his grandfather. It wasn't a sight he wanted others to see, with his grandfather carrying his heavy school bag.

The teleportation station here is connected to the second floor of a three-story department store. They walked through the connecting passage and descended one floor to the exit near the convenience store. With just a nod from Yae, Aoi began filling the basket with juice and snacks—all of Yae's favorites. One of Yae's few friends had once complained that whenever he visited his grandmother's house, he was served dishes he had liked as a child, which was now embarrassing. But Yae had no such concerns. Given how often the two of them met, it was only natural that Aoi knew what Yae liked.

"You did contact Chieko, didn't you? She gave me a good scolding last week," Aoi asked as he packed the items they'd bought. Chieko was Yae's mother and Aoi's daughter.

"I told her... last night," Yae said.

"Last night? Then you might as well send it now," Aoi replied.

"It's fine. Even if I send a message now, she'll only check it at night anyway."

"In any case, should I prepare myself for another scolding?" Aoi sounded timid whenever the conversation turned to Chieko.

"She's your daughter, you know? Why are you so afraid?" Yae asked.

"Chieko has always been strict since she was a child. Once, when she was in elementary school, I skipped a school observation day to read manga. Then I was banned from reading manga for a whole month as punishment by her," Aoi said.

Yae burst into laughter at the amusing anecdote, but looking at his grandfather's expression, it seemed to be real thing. Some things never change about him.

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Yae walks the path to his grandfather's house, a route he's been familiar with since he was even younger than Chieko was at the time.

"Wasn't that place a field?" Yae pointed to a small drugstore and asked Aoi, who was walking diagonally behind him.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, that's right. There used to be a big house there. The old guy who lived there used to work on it as a hobby, but he sold the land before he passed away or something. Don't you remember? You used to play there with him when you were little," Aoi recalled. Reflecting on Aoi's words, Yae couldn't recall the memory at all. He felt sorry to forget someone.

"That was when you were about a year old."

"Then there's no way I'd remember," Yae replied. And he hopes to get back the time he spent seriously trying to remember.

Then Yae looked forward to the gradually changing cityscape. "But it's good that things have become a bit more convenient around here. There used to be hardly any shops."

"You just came out of a department store, didn't you?"

"No one can call that a department store."

"I do. Besides, if you take the train just three stations away, it's quite urban," Aoi said.

Even after being told this, Yae still has no idea how far away the three train stations are. While Yae was stunned by his grandfather’s stubbornness, he looked around with a sad look in his eyes.

"Things have disappeared, haven't they?" Aoi said.

"Now we were talking about the increase in the number of shops" Yae stared at his face, thinking that what his grandfather was saying did not make sense, and found him a little out of breath. Suddenly, Yae felt that the dissipating unease began to resurface slightly.

Upon arriving at his grandfather's house, Yae tossed his jacket and bag onto the sofa. For a single man's dwelling, it was surprisingly tidy.

It seemed Aoi had been responsible for cleaning and laundry since his wife passed away. The house was filled with furniture and trinkets from Asia, Africa, and Europe, lacking any sense of unity, yet somehow it all seemed to come together, perhaps thanks to Aoi's touch. However, Aoi wasn't good at cooking and often said he didn't even know

what he ate daily. The grilling chicken they had bought from the convenience store earlier was likely tonight's dinner.

As Yae asked Aoi in the kitchen, who was preparing a glass, "Can I start?", without waiting for an answer, he launched the game. It was a game they had eagerly anticipated since its announcement last year, featuring a cooperative story mode. Yae imagined staying here for consecutive nights during the upcoming Golden Week, progressing through the story in one go. A smirk appeared on Yae's face.

While watching the opening sequence, Aoi, now changed into his loungewear, approached carrying an open pack of snacks on a plate."I get the good controller, alright?"

"Got it," Yae replied and handed Aoi the more expensive controller. It had an auto-fire

feature, which they had agreed to disable when playing versus games together. However, once Yae started winning consecutive matches, Aoi would sneakily enable it. Just as the opening ended and the start screen appeared, game time began.

Despite feeling like they had just started, oddly enough, three hours had already passed. They had defeated the second boss. Yae savored the happiness of finding the game enjoyable as he had hoped. He thought about continuing to the next boss in one go but noticed Aoi stretching, looking a bit tired. Yae set the controller down on the floor.

"Shall we take a break?" Yae asked Aoi.

Aoi replies, "Yes," but then pauses for a moment and changes his mind when he realizes that there is nothing left on the plate he has been putting the snacks in.

"No, let's finish it a night."

"Huh?"

"It's time for you to go home."

Aoi said this in a firm, decisive tone. While his tone was strong, it always carried a hint of kindness, so Yae usually accepted it without much fuss. But today, Yae wasn't in the mood. He hesitated for a few seconds and responded with a vague "Hmm," not moving. Yet, he didn't do anything else either. He simply stared at the game screen he hadn't completely closed out of. Seeing Yae like this, Aoi let out a sigh.

"What's wrong? Something happen at home?"

"No, it's not like something specifically happened. But it's not like nothing happened either..." Aoi remains silent, turning his body towards Yae, waiting for his words.

While Yae searches desperately for the right words, Aoi doesn't interrupt. Despite occasionally getting into real fights due to Aoi's childish behavior, Yae places her trust in him in moments like this. If it were their mother, she would always interject with, "Is it this?" or "Or maybe..." disrupting the flow of thought. While Yae understands it likely

comes from a place of caring and love, it can be quite annoying.

"Grandpa,"Yae finally speaks up."Do you ever feel the world is... small?"

After saying it, Yae feels a bit embarrassed, thinking his words sounded pretentious. However, Aoi responds immediately and straightforwardly.

"What do you mean by 'small'?"

With that, Yae knows he can't just drop the subject. Hoping to choose his words carefully to avoid personal discomfort, he continues.

"Sure, I mean, if I wanted to, I could go far. We've got teleportation technology. But maybe because of that... there's no scenery that's out of reach, no world that's beyond imagination..."

Another brief silence settles in, but this time it's not because of Yae who's searching for words. Understanding this, Aoi stands up with a cheerful "aha," moving toward the living room window.

"Ah, I see..."

Approaching the window, Aoi gazes outside where only streetlights are visible— and even then, beyond the monotonous rows of houses, there's nothing much else to see— and he murmurs. "I haven't felt this in a while... small."

Though he probably didn't mean it that way, the casual tone of Aoi's words sounds too nonchalant to Yae, making him slightly irritated. And then, he blurts out words he hadn’t intended to say.

“That’s because you’re satisfied, right? Satisfied with just the range the train can take you.”

Taken aback by Yae’s sudden anger, Aoi hesitates for a moment, then lets out a light snort.

“What’s small isn’t the world, but your own world, isn’t it?”

It’s Aoi’s counterattack. Yae’s face turns slightly red, but he doesn’t erupt in rage. He starts to speak, then holds back two or three times, taking a deep breath.

“I’m going home.”

It’s the best he can manage to calm himself. Yae roughly grabs his jacket and bag from the sofa, standing up. He knows he’ll probably be calmer by next week, but he still can’t act like an adult enough to cover up his emotions in the moment.

“It’s dark, I’ll walk you to the station.”

“It’s okay. It’s close by.”

“You’ll get stopped by the police.”

“I won’t.”

Yae rushes to the entrance to avoid any further discussion, quickly puts on his shoes, and dashes outside without saying goodbye.

From behind, Aoi's voice can be heard saying, "I'll tell Chieko to pick you up at the station," but Yae ignores it. At the same time, a slight sense of fear about what he's done and guilt towards Aoi starts to bud within him, but he tries not to dwell on it.

The time is 8:00PM. Walking along the dimly lit streets that are nothing like urban city, the familiar haze that usually takes over during games swirls within Yae's mind. Perhaps because of this, he finds himself on unfamiliar streets even though his usual route only involves two left turns. However, he didn’t want Aoi to see him retracing his steps, and somehow, he felt it would be somewhat humiliating to use the tablet to check the map. So, he keeps walking in what he thinks is the right direction. Based on the number of visible buildings, he hopes he hasn’t gone too far off track and continues walking for another fifteen minutes, mistaking wishful thinking for calm analysis. Since leaving Aoi's house, he should have been able to make the round trip once and a half. Even in April, the countryside nights are chilly, and his body starts to shiver. As Yae's head cools along with his body, he decides it's finally time to check the map. Just then, he feels the familiar vibration of the Teleportation Machine up ahead. Since there doesn’t seem to be a department store within sight, he thinks he might have inadvertently walked to another Teleportation Station nearby and quickens his pace. Turning right at the dead-end T-junction, he suddenly encounters a strong brightness he hadn’t noticed before and finds the entrance to the Teleportation Machine. He has finally reached his destination.

"I'm so tired..." A careless mutter slips out, but Yae doesn't have the luxury to worry about such things right now.

Approaching the ticket gate, he takes out his tablet from his coat pocket and selects his home's nearest Teleportation Station. However, with a beep, a recorded voice announces, "Error. Please select again." Realizing he wasn’t wearing headphones, Yae hastily lowers the volume and looks around. Fortunately, apart from the station attendant sitting straight-backed in the staff gate, there's no one else around. After double-checking his remaining balance, Yae tries the same operation again but encounters the same error. He attempts the same process five more times, but the result remains unchanged. Reluctantly, he decides to ask the station attendant. The attendant has been sitting inside the gate with a hat pulled down low, giving off a gloomy vibe that makes Yae hesitant to approach. However, he figures it’s better than not being able to go home at all, so he steps up to the attendant.

"Um, the thing is, I've been getting an error since earlier," stammers Yae, showing his tablet.

The attendant takes the tablet and operates a machine at their desk. "Is this station correct?"

"Y-yes,"

Yae couldn’t read the attendant’s expression with the brim of the hat casting a shadow, but their voice is reassuringly friendly, giving him some relief. The attendant works the machine with practiced ease, with various strings of characters appearing and disappearing on Yae's tablet, which he can't make heads or tails of.

Suddenly, Yae glances at the station clock, seeing the digital minute display change. Considering the time, he worries that his parents might start to get concerned and call him. Just then, the tablet the attendant was operating appears before him.

"Yes, this should be fine now," the attendant says.

The tablet displays the familiar screen, indicating that his home's nearest station has been selected successfully.

"Thank you so much."

Yae replies politely to the station attendant's words. He then taps his tablet against the ticket gate and, as usual, sits down and closes his eyes.

Even though he had enjoyed the game, he can't shake off the feeling that today wasn't going well. As he's lost in these thoughts, the station attendant's announcement begins.

The Teleportation Machine starts to vibrate.

The vibration continues...

It doesn't stop...

By the time Yae realizes something's wrong, he's experiencing a sudden headache and nausea. His body feels incredibly heavy, and despite trying, he can't open his eyes at all. Desperately trying to at least understand the situation, he struggles with his eyelids. Then, suddenly, a strong impact strikes the left side of his body. In reality, he's fallen out of his seat, but Yae isn't in a state to make such a calm judgment. All he can do is groan from the intense pain. Overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events, tears fill his eyes from fear of death and the very real pain he's feeling. However, these tears act as lubrication, allowing him to briefly open his eyes. It might be more accurate to say they opened on their own, but through his blurry vision, he sees a stark white wall and the figure of the station attendant—unlike any Teleportation Station he's seen before.

"Ah..."

He tries to call out for help, but his voice is feeble. There's no way it would reach anyone. Shortly after, Yae loses consciousness.

When he wakes up, he doesn't imagine for a moment that he's lost his body.