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[Game] Chapter 4: The Start of School
🕑 Added 2024-11-01 17:07:57 +0000 UTCAfter closing the door, Mrs. Kasumigaoka tapped her daughter lightly on the forehead and sighed, “When are you going to change this attitude of yours? Can’t you at least say a few more words?”
Rubbing her forehead, Utaha murmured, “I just got back after a long day… I’m really exhausted.”
Seeing her daughter’s weary expression, Mrs. Kasumigaoka didn’t press further. She led Utaha back to the living room and opened the food containers.
“I never expected that boy to be able to make snacks himself. That’s quite impressive. Hmm, these look really well-made. If I remember correctly, these are traditional Chinese pastries, right? Your father brought some back from a business trip once. Utaha, try one.”
Utaha nodded and picked up a golden pastry, taking a small bite. Her eyes widened in surprise.
“This is delicious!”
Mrs. Kasumigaoka tried one as well and was equally delighted. “It really is! It tastes even better than the ones your father bought. Hmm, next time we get the chance, let’s ask Ichin-kun how he made these. I’d love to learn it too. Now, go ahead and eat, while I get dinner started.”
“Okay.”
Utaha acknowledged softly and quickly devoured her snack. Before long, one pastry was gone. She then picked up a fragrant egg cake and once again got lost in its soft and sweet texture.
For a moment, the lingering frustration from her editor’s constant nagging earlier in the day melted away.
As she continued eating, Utaha recalled seeing Ichin in the morning with those bags full of groceries.
“He had so many ingredients… Do all Chinese guys cook this well?” she mused to herself before reaching for another egg cake.
---
A month flew by in the blink of an eye.
During this time, Ichin spent most of his days cooped up in his apartment, focusing on developing his game. Other than his morning runs and occasional grocery trips, he rarely stepped out.
Over the month, Ichin gradually became more acquainted with the Kasumigaoka family next door.
The head of the family, Mr. Kasumigaoka, was a mid-level employee at a trading company. He left early and returned late, frequently having to travel for work or stay overtime. Ichin only ran into him twice.
Most of his interactions were with Mrs. Kasumigaoka, whom he frequently saw while returning from his morning jogs or while out shopping.
As for Utaha, it could be said that they were somewhat familiar with each other by now. After all, she wasn’t very talkative, and like Ichin, she didn’t go out much. And when she did, she was usually gone for the entire day.
According to Mrs. Kasumigaoka, Utaha had won an award in a writing competition organized by a publishing house, and her novel was set to be published soon. Whenever she went out, it was usually to discuss her novel with her editor.
Despite all the ups and downs, it seemed the book was slated for an official release in April, after the start of the school term.
Of course, Utaha never shared any of this directly with Ichin. When they met, the most she would do was thank him for the snacks, complimenting their taste.
As for Ichin, he had no grand ambitions of building a close relationship with a beautiful girl. His mind was solely focused on completing the framework of his game and producing a demo.
Girls?
Girls would only slow down his game development.
At 7 a.m., Ichin woke up right on schedule. After his morning run, he got ready, had breakfast, and changed into the school uniform of Toyogasaki Academy. He hopped onto the bicycle he bought a couple of days ago and set off for school.
Today was the first day of the new term.
Despite being busy for the past month, Ichin never forgot his current status: a second-year high school student.
As he pedaled, he reflected, "Tsk tsk, my memory is unbelievable. Just a quick review of the books yesterday, and I remembered everything. Honestly, it wasn’t that hard. With the skills of my previous self, who was a top student in Shanghai, combined with my now ridiculously good memory, high school here in Japan is going to be a breeze. This means I can spend all the extra time making games!"
The more he thought about it, the better his mood became, and he couldn't help but hum a tune.
When he arrived at an intersection and stopped to wait for the green light, he noticed a crowd gathering diagonally across the street.
"An accident?" he wondered.
In the midst of the crowd, Ichin could vaguely see a crushed bicycle lying on the ground and a sleek black car that had collided with a streetlamp.
Two pedestrians crossed the street as the light changed, chatting as they walked.
“Man, what a tragedy. That high schooler was in such a rush that he ran the red light and got hit by the car. They said by the time the ambulance took him away, he wasn’t even breathing.”
“Really? A high schooler?”
“Yeah, apparently he was from Toyogasaki Academy. Not sure which grade, though.”
As the two pedestrians walked away, their conversation faded into the distance. Ichin swallowed hard.
"Reckless driving leads to tears and regrets... Following traffic rules is definitely the right choice," he thought.
The light turned green, and Ichin smoothly pedaled forward.
Ten minutes later, he arrived at Toyogasaki Academy, a school that looked impressive even from the outside.
He entered the gates, parked his bike in the designated area, and made his way to the teachers’ office, relying on the memory from his earlier visit.
As a transfer student, he needed to report to his teacher first, who would then guide him to his class.
Standing at the office door, Ichin knocked and said, "Excuse me, I'm the new transfer student, Ichin."
A middle-aged male teacher inside looked up and smiled, “Ah, come in, Ichin-kun. We met during your interview.”
This was the second-year head teacher. After inviting Ichin inside, he turned towards a corner of the room.
“Ms. Hiratsuka, please meet your new student.”
In the corner, a woman with long black hair, wearing a white lab coat, looked up. She removed her earphones and glanced at the head teacher and Ichin, sighing, “A transfer student? And you’re putting him in my class without telling me?”
“Well, it’s because your class had the best grades last semester, Ms. Hiratsuka. Ichin-kun was consistently at the top of his grade in China, and he even ranked high within the city. He definitely belongs in your class! And as for not telling you beforehand, well, we wanted it to be a pleasant surprise. It’s a great opportunity!”
Without giving Ms. Hiratsuka a chance to protest, the head teacher brought Ichin over and had him sit down next to the female teacher.
Faced with the sudden responsibility, Ms. Hiratsuka ran a hand through her hair and looked at Ichin. “Well, um, it’s like this—I’m your Japanese literature teacher for the next two years, and the homeroom teacher for Class 2-A. I’m Shizuka Hiratsuka. Nice to meet you.”
Another formidable character had just appeared.
...
Comments
Hrea_
Such good start, but the lack of updates is going to kill me....
