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“I can no longer sustain your brief vacation.”

“I don’t even know who you are.” I whispered back as the voice once again spoke directly into my head. I facepalmed into my forehead. I hadn’t heard this voice since we’d been through that backdoor in Itogutshi, so I couldn’t just ignore it. 

My head collided with the glass as the bus ran over a slight bump. We’d just left the Hakone Yuryo. I turned to the left to see my father next to me, and in the other row in front Sorah and Qawasumi. It appeared they hadn’t noticed me talking like a lunatic.  I faced the window again. 

“Hey, tell me what’s happening. Who are you? What’s up with that door?” 

“So you wish to know?”

“I wish to understand.”

There came a brief pause and the voice did not speak to me. All I heard was the squeaky brakes as the bus pedaled at each stop, and the view of the mountains changed periodically. Then the answer. 

“You will be called the Devil of the Apocrypha wherever you go next time you return. When you do, you will only have one goal in mind.”

Those were the last words I got from the voice. I didn’t know whether it would speak again. It didn’t answer my questions, but intensified my anxiety for what was to come. If it could no longer sustain this ‘brief vacation’... Did that mean the door was coming back?

Officer Guiral of the Royal Marshal called me ‘Devil of the Apocrypha’ back then. I would infer that it tied to some faith of Aquitaine, or perhaps the world. He said that I was an abnormality, an adult yet stuck at Level 0 and no Branch Class. I hit me. I still had no understanding of how the system there worked. I understood nothing of their world after staying in it for months, just doting around in Itogutshi. 

For that, my head slumped down into my seat. Just when I stated I wanted to understand, my comprehension was none. 

We got down from the bus’ entrance steps at Hakone-Yumoto Station. A dozen arches greeted us from across the street while two-story restaurants and hotels gazed down. Mountains encased the station in a dome-like shape as cars and buses flushed in and out of the local roads. 

“So uh, would any of you still like to go anywhere else? Still got half the day.” My father suggested with a hand. 

“Yes.” Sorah solemnly raised his hand, before turning to Qawasumi and I. “Is that fine with you guys?”

Qawasumi shrugged her shoulders and held her hands on the back of her neck, while I nodded just because. Perhaps if we kept away from doors, then we wouldn’t be transported back. But my logic caught me. Sorah and Qawasumi needed to return to their own world. The longer they stayed here, the more people would worry. Not to mention Sorah’s family’s status, no word from them or any knowledge of the aftermath with Guiral. Our brief vacation needed to come to an end. The longer they stayed here, the looming distress for Sorah would continue, even though he’d practically opened up about it back in the ryokan. He was just adept at hiding his stress. 

As per Makoto’s recommendation, we walked all the way to Lake Ashi southwest of Hakone.  I remembered walking here with my father who knew the routes like reading a newspaper. The path curved around Mount Hakone, buried deep in black pine and virid leaves. Eventually we saw the waterfront with ferries and small cruises bustling at the docks. A cloudy sky descended the lake a misty shroud with a smell of dew, and the vegetation seemingly grew taller compared to the humble harbor. A couple of minutes later we cut through a path of green to see a vista in the midst. 

A stone path led to the Heiwa no Torii. Colossal trees saluted the gateway guarding the lake while the sun twinkled in the glistening water. Submerged in water we approached the Heiwa no Torii as the platform extended out into Lake Ashi under the torii. 

“Kawari.”

“Hm?” I faced Sorah, whose gaze fixed onto the vast waters and vibrant wood. 

“Do you think it would be safer… If my family came here instead?”

Something I’d never thought before. His parents and siblings were on the run in the other world. The Royal Marshal would target his family if he wasn’t there. And how could they target his family if they weren’t there? I didn’t know the fine details, but it could work. I clapped my hands. “That’s a good idea, Sorah. That’s a good idea!”

“I also think so.” He agreed with me with a solemn smile. “Because I believe my dream is no longer attainable.”

“Huh?” 

“I hoped to pass the Imperial Examination in Great Zhou, thus becoming a diplomat for Aquitaine-Waqwaq relations and bringing my family to La Plage. But in the end, I…” Sorah ran his fingers through his hair, reädjusting his hachimaki headband. “I fumbled it up. But it shouldn’t end for Lyo, Yuqui, Asya and the others, they deserve a chance at life.”

“Sorah…” Qawasumi stepped forward. “Just because Officer Guiral caught you it doesn’t mean-”

“Ruri, if he knows, then the Royal Marshal knows, meaning Aquitaine knows.” He interrupted her for the first time. Qawasumi kept her mouth shut while his quivered slightly. “I only want the best for you, and everyone else.” 

Sorah then unrolled his sleeve to reveal the red charm tied around his wrist. He ripped it off, and tossed it into the lake. In front of the Heiwa no Torii, or ‘Gate of Peace’. Everyone never responded afterwards, except for my father. He moved forward and placed both of his hands on Sorah and I’s shoulders. 

“I don’t understand a word y’all saying, but I hope everything turns out okay in the end.” He leaned forward while his gaze was bright. I blew a long breath. 

After going through several other places for sightseeing, nightfall finally blanketed the town in darkness. We’d already gone home and eaten dinner, and everyone was just about to sleep. All of the lights in the house gradually turned off one by one, just before I finished brushing my teeth and changing into a white t-shirt and shorts. I made sure to keep every door I could open. My fear had predicted that the door to the parallel world would be any door at any moment. I didn’t even let the guestroom’s close, nor my father’s. My paranoia consumed me. 

I pulled the covers over me on my futon, keeping watch on the sliding glass door. I’d kept it open due to it being the only exception. How could a portalesque power activate on something that is see-through? 

Even as the crickets wallowed deeper into the night, my eyes rested but never slumbered. I periodically sat up, my anxiety doing no good for my sleep schedule. I was afraid. We’d spent over three days here after my months in the other world, but three days felt like those months. My eyes fixed to the clock in the kitchen. Ticking seconds turned into perpetual minutes, then into hours. 

Until I heard a faint thump from the walls. My back bolted straight as I looked to the left and right. Was it coming? No, the door always transported without warning. A thug? Officer Guiral? I pinched myself before attempting to pinpoint the noise. It came from the left, where the guestroom was. I sneaked over to the hallway and peeked through the open door. From the tiny crack I discovered the source of the sound. The window was open, with the curtains flailing into the dark of the night. 

I quietly walked back to the main room. If someone opened the window, then it means whoever did was outside. The sliding door was safe, so I squinted through the glass. Someone’s voice muffled through the song of crickets. A person with blonde hair and wore pajamas. Qawasumi Ruri. I slid the door open and stepped outside. I closed it without a peep. 

“What’re you doing?” I called out to her, still barefoot on the veranda. Her shoulders perked up for a moment before turning towards me. 

“Hmph. You’re still awake?”

Here we went with that harsh tone again. I sighed. “Can’t sleep. You?”

“I’m checking if I can still view my chart.” She answered softly, extending her arm out. “Zuhyo.” 

A moment later a message appeared in front her, although not her stats. It was a system message. I placed my foot into the dirt with reluctance, I’d have to wash them later, before making my way towards her. “Tahblo.”

[System Warning]

Cannot use spells in this environment.

“You too, huh.” 

“I guess it’s because we’re in this world, not yours.” I took one of the nearby chairs and sat down. “My world doesn’t work that way. There’s no visible ‘chart’. No visible numbers to go off of. Although it would be beneficial to some here that think of life as an RPG.” 

“Oh…” Qawasumi just stood there with her back to me, letting her hands return to her side. My monologue was probably too self-deprecating. “Hey, so is that really how your father is like?”

When did we start talking about me? “What do you mean?”

“Is your dad… Always like this?”

I stared at the rocks, scratching my arm. “Mostly the same. But he changed when my mom left. I want to spend more time with him, though.”

“I think, that he is a nice person.”

“Of course he’s a nice man.” I played with my fingers, pondering everything that had happened with my family. “I’m glad you came to the same conclusion.” 

“Then… Why did your mom and dad split?”

I thought about how Qawasumi didn’t understand how laws would work, given Sorah and her society in Itogutshi. “... It’s a bit complicated. Let’s just leave it at that.”

“Tell me.”

I was prepared to change the subject, but my head lifted to her response. “Come again?”

“You can tell me.” Her head turned back to reveal her attentive gaze in her eyes. No hint of the overbearing personality she showed in broad daylight. 

I explained the situation to her from my perspective. My adolescent memory didn’t remember much of the details, and everything was a faint blur. But I told her about my parents yelling at each other, my mother taking me in her arms as if to protect me. My father’s look of dejection as his shoulders slumped. My brother, Yodomi, not caring in the slightest while reading a book. The divorce laws and how my mother took custody of both my brother and I, even though I thought Qawasumi wouldn’t understand. She wanted to understand. 

Qawasumi just nodded her head and asked more pertaining questions. For a moment I didn’t even know if she was the same Qawasumi Ruri I’d come to know. This woman… was just an enigma. As I recounted my memories, the more weight was lifted off my chest. In those dark hours of the night, I became silent. The moonlight casted a soft glow on the surroundings as the cool breeze gently rustled the leaves. I was tired. My eyes became heavy.

“I think I’ll turn in for the night.” I stood from the chair and rubbed my eyebrows. I also had to clean my feet. 

She nodded, beginning to walk with me back to the sliding door. “Me too.”

We approached the veranda as I slid the door open. “You better wash your feet too and shut that window.”

“I know- Watch your step!”

My first step into the house I tripped over the sill of the door. My fatigue got the better of me. I hugged the ground yet again, expecting the tatami mat to catch me. But what caught me was gravel. It happened. “Miss Qawasumi, don’t step through the-”

Too late. She went through the sliding door. Instant sunlight beamed at us as we stood amidst the edge of a cliff. We’d already been transported.