Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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“What is this?”
Inside the closet…the wall separating it from the next room had a view of the outdoors.
What surprised me most was that it wasn’t raining there.
There was a calm moonlit night. With a starry sky spreading out quietly.
I was not sure if I could call it outdoors, but I was curious about what kind of place it was. However, there didn’t seem to be any streetlights, so it seemed dangerous to walk around at night. Also, this wasn’t realistic.
So I closed the closet door, pretended I didn’t see it, and went to sleep.
It would be a lie to say that it didn’t bother me, but maybe this was just a dream. And when I woke up tomorrow morning, the strange phenomenon in the closet would be completely gone and I would be able to return to my normal daily life as usual.
Yes, there was as little need for danger and adventure in life as possible.
For example, if you get into a fight in the street, you may win, but it’s meaningless if you end up losing an eye or a finger.
The most important thing was to stay away from danger, to avoid creating situations where danger was imminent, and I believe that the most wonderful thing is to live peacefully, cherishing your family and those around you.
So I decided to go to sleep.
Now that the unfamiliar scenery is no longer relevant, I’ll look for another part-time job, even if it’s just for a short period, to make some extra income.
A world I don’t understand? I’m not going!
All right! Part 1 is complete!!
…There was a time when I thought that way…
“Seriously?… It wasn’t over.”
….
The next morning, after breakfast, when I opened the closet, the view of the grassland was exactly the same as it had been the night before.
Today is Saturday, so I don’t have any classes and I don’t have a part-time job.
It was not raining heavily outside, but it was drizzling. I didn’t have anything else to do…
So as a test to see if the view from the back of the closet is projected, I touched a part of the wall where I would normally feel the wall with my fingertip. Ripples spread around the area where I touched it, just like touching the surface of water. However, my fingertip did not get wet.
So I touched it a little more firmly with the whole palm of my hand. I didn’t feel like I was touching anything, but the wall reacted.
I pushed my hand in a little further and my palm came out on the other side of the wall. I was relieved that I wasn’t being pulled in. I took a step forward and put half my body on the other side and came out without any problems.
Next, I quietly poked my face into the boundary I could see beyond. Like the famous housekeepers who secretly peeked inside the homes they work in, I peeked one eye out and looked around, and I could see a vast grassland all around, a forest in the distance, and mountains in the distance.
Hmm. What should I do… Should I go to this unfamiliar grassland or not? Choices popped into my head.
* “Would you like to step into this world?”
Yes No
What should I do… I don’t have any particular reason to go… I had already decided not to go.
Yes ▶ No
* “That’s… so terrible…”
That being said…
*’I’ll ask again.
Would you like to step into this world?
Yes ▶ No
* “That’s… so terrible…”
It feels as though some spirit, like Ruth, is asking questions in the hero’s head. “You’re going, right? You’re definitely going, aren’t you? There’s no option to not go, right?” Something like that. “We won’t fix the closet wall until you go, you have no choice but to go, you know?”
If I continue like this, it seems like I’ll just be stuck in a loop of “No” followed by “That’s terrible” forever, so I guessed I had no choice but to go.
Since there was nothing I coule do, I gave up and just took a step inside. I put some newspaper in the closet and put my shoes there. Then I picked up my backpack.
Inside were over 20 sweet and savory buns I’d bought yesterday. I don’t think I can take all of them… so I’ll cut it down to about 10… and put some bottled drinks in them instead and also bring a light and a towel. And also… an umbrella, so I can survive if it rains. They say staying wet drains your energy…
I really didn’t want to go, but I felt as though I was being driven by some great will of the universe, caught up in a flow that would only go the way it was meant to, so I made a decision that was almost like giving up.
I put on my shoes on the newspaper laid out in the closet and stepped out into the unfamiliar grassland.
The moment I stepped out of my room onto the grassland, I instinctively stiffened, but there was nothing in particular there, so I was relieved. I also turned around to see if the entrance to the room was safe, and for some reason there was a familiar closet door facing in my direction, which I was able to open and step inside.
It seemed I could return to my room anytime, so I started walking.
….
The grassland was not just a flat area with short grass. The grass was taller than waist height and the terrain was uneven in various places, making it a challenging field for modern people who usually walked on asphalt.
When I stepped onto the grassland, I was fortunate to find a path nearby, which I could follow. However, it was not well-maintained, and there were times when there were tough barriers. It is said that in the past, people were praised for returning from a journey feeling a bit more mature, and this is certainly true.
Just getting to your destination and returning safely should have been enough to strengthen your mind and body from the roughness of the road. If you leave your hometown, you will be traveling on your own responsibility, without knowing anyone, and you will have to rely on your own strength and self-reliance to get ahead.
There are no chain stores that offer the same level of service wherever you go in Japan, and even in Edo-period Japan, it was not uncommon for people to run out of money or become ill and collapse on the road, so this area, where nothing but nature can be seen, must be quite a tough environment.
But my troubles didn’t last long.
Because I could now see a building in the distance.
The tall grass and the slight undulations of the land must have covered the view more than I had imagined, because I had just set out on the road and was walking along aimlessly when I saw what looked like a building in the distance.
With my destination decided for the time being, I tried to confirm the location of the closet I had to go back to. Then, the door of the closet appeared in front of me, which suggested that if I think about it, it will appear in front of me. I tried opening the door and it led to a familiar room. There didn’t seem to be any worries on the way back, so I started walking again.
Let’s first head towards the building I can see at the end of the road.
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