The place didn’t change. A garden filled with spider lilies, roses, sunflowers, and the regular grass filled the lawn. Thankfully, the portals didn’t reach Sara Tanaka’s and Midori’s house. There were still people roaming around the streets, wearing their corporate attire and carrying their suitcases in their hands. However, something was different. Usually, Midori’s mother was always outside, watering the plants and catering to their needs. But Miss Tanaka wasn’t there in her usual spot.
I tried gazing at the house’s interior through the window, but the glass-covered itself with stains as if someone had never cleaned it. The light was also turned off when it should’ve been on. When my feet touched the rag, the carpet looked like it wasn’t washed for days. And the roof that covered the house had spider webs all over the place and a bird’s nest that had been swatted yet.
Nevertheless, I walked forward
.
“I was in the middle of my job when someone called me out. My coworker told me that the school was calling for me. And then people gathered inside the office - in front of the TV. The news said that a portal appeared out of nowhere. I didn’t know what it was and wanted to mind my own business. But when I heard about Midori’s school, I panicked. I didn’t know what to do. They told me that my son had died from the portal. I was in denial. I refused to believe it. Of course. How could I, right? Midori’s my son. And I wouldn’t let anything happen to him. But when I went to the school, I saw his corpse. I almost couldn’t recognise my son. I asked a lot of people in the place about what happened, but they told me the same thing. ‘The portal did this to the students,’ they said. Until then, I couldn’t get over the death of my son. Even now,” Mrs. Tanaka muttered, and flashed me a faint smile. “I thought that taking my life would end my suffering. It will, but
“Everything written in this journal may have included research from the internet. But mostly… it came from me.”{Portals appeared long ago. The scientist didn’t specifically mark the time. But from what I have discovered, Egyptians were the first ones to tell that tale. It’s always them.}{Portals act like pocket dimensions, dungeons, prisons, an infinite space isolated from our own timeline and reality, and a place where matter could exist and be created. The government might say that portals are mysterious places formed from another universe or galaxy. But I believe that there is someone who could conjure them. Isn’t it cool if my guesses are correct? But, at the same time, it’s terrifying if I put it that way.}I flipped to the next page to read the texts. Midori had a lot of time writing this information for me. As it had turned out, these details about portals made it clearer for me to understand.{P
As I exited Midori’s room, Mrs. Tanaka greeted me in the dining room as she mopped the entire area. Mrs. Tanaka lowered her head and aplogised to me that she hadn’t touched the room and became an entire mess when I came to visit. But after a few seconds, the topic trailed off as Midori’s mother blamed me for not telling her I would come and visit the house. It was insane. But instead of pointing that out, I just laughed the conversation out and helped her clean the house.Mothers. Everyone should love them for who they are.When we finished cleaning the rooms, Mrs. Tanaka offered me a meal to thank me for everything I did. While we were doing our chores, Mrs. Tanaka was also preparing a dish that was both Midori and my favourite. It was curry and a burger - a classic and a cheap dish, which I describe as a decent meal.
“Where did all the food come from?” Hina asked, as she poked at the bento box and opened its lid. She whiffed the scent of spices from the lunch box, nearly eating it with her nose alone. As the aroma sank inside in her mind, vibrant colours emerged from Hina’s eyes. “It really is curry. But it doesn’t look like you bought it from a convenience store. Well, I doubt that could happen. Nobody can cook curry this perfect, not unless it’s…” A moment of silence enveloped inside the hospital room as Hina recognised the origin of this curry. As soon as she realised it, Hina gingerly glanced in my direction and hopelessly reached her hands on top of my shoulder. But before she could even rest her palm, I caught her arm and, instead, gave her a warm hug. Hina didn’t expect this to happen. I didn't either. Hina widen
Hina’s Perspective_____________________“Let their little sisters be a heavy weight for the family?”“No.”“Watching you risk yourself, while your sister worries about you everyday?”“Well, if you put it like that. I…”“Aoi…”I didn’t know what had happened to them. When I said those words, it felt as if I was cursing them out to Aoi. He was my brother. And he will always be my brother. But I had no clue if I deserved everything he had given to me. Aoi saved me and showed me the path that I should’ve taken years ago. Well I… I just conti
Hina’s Perspective ___________________ “Here we are! My office!” Doctor Maruki enthusiastically said, as he spread his arms and introduced me to the front door with a sign saying “office’ in the middle. I was not gonna lie. I expected something out of Doctor Maruki’s office, especially when he himself told me extravagant things about it. This place was at the dead last of the entire building. There were no patients or anyone roaming around the setting. Even the nurse’s station was on the other side, which was a two minutes walk from his room. Doctor Maruki narrated that his office was one of a kind, which would blow my mind. But I couldn’t help but fathom what was special about an adult’s office, let alone a physician inside the hospital. Fortunately, my
Hina’s Perspective ______________________ “Drink it? Are you nuts? I don’t even know what’s inside this bot-...” “Some rocks that I plucked out from the golems, ginger, blue crystals, salt, pepper, a little bit of faerie dust, and - the secret ingredient - mana herbs. What you lack is mana. That’s what my alchemist class tells me. When you’ve faced a life-threatening scenario, you’ve controlled your powers before. Am I correct?” I nodded. “Did you feel something when you conjured those walls?” Doctor Maruki hit the nail. When Aoi fought the Grim Reaper, I supported him at the back lines. He had a sniper, while I had just found out that I could summon walls out of nothing. An
Prime Minister of Japan - Yoshitsugu Akihiko’s Perspective (This will happen one month where we have left the main story) ______________________________ It had been days since the first time Akai and I held conferences, meetings, and conversations about portals. But no matter how hard I tried explaining it to the Crimson Guild, Akai and Kei - the guild master and the appraiser, always said the same thing. “We want power. Give me the jurisdiction to promote law and order as an official in the government of Japan, and I shall give our people protection,” Kei stated, as he pounded fist on the table. Akai hadn’t arrived yet for our meeting, so Kei was responsible for communicating with me and other officials. I g