Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes.

Chapter 43: Retreating Like the Tide (Illustrations may be disturbing)
Even if Dongshan alone cries out in despair, and even if my fate is in my own hands, the dishes that need to be washed still need to be washed.

Chiba went home after finishing her meal and didn't stay at Higashiyama's house for long.

Although Higashiyama Doku felt that he wouldn't be surprised if Chiba slept here one day.

I even kind of wish!

In that case, he would have the courage to ask his brother to let him bring his girlfriend home. His brother, who always sets a good example, can't be hypocritical!

Although we haven't reached that point yet, how can a man stand still?

The more I thought about it, the more enthusiastically I washed the dishes.

I'm going to watch it seven times!!

I've scrolled to the point where I can use my reflection as a mirror!
This scene put Higashiyama Shin's mind at ease, as he had been considering whether to buy a dishwasher.

It seems unnecessary; even a dishwasher isn't as good as Dongshan Du.

"Remember to preview the material."

"Yes~"

When Higashiyama Shin returned to his room, the computer was still playing Tom and Jerry, but today Ueda Yoshi wasn't sitting in a chair watching it with a happy smile.

Instead, the spirit was perched on the window, staring blankly at the psychedelic neon night view outside.

When he saw Higashiyama Shin enter, Ueda turned around and hesitated somewhat.

"Brother, do you think Xiaowan Village will still be as poor as before?"

"No." Higashiyama Shin was certain of this.

Even if you're poor, you shouldn't be unable to afford rice, right? Higashiyama Shin suddenly felt a little less confident, but he was pretty sure that even if you're poor, you shouldn't be unable to afford bread.

Ueda breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this confident answer.

“I’ve heard my parents mention that they weren’t originally from Xiaowan Village. They fled there when they were in trouble and received a lot of help from the villagers.”

"After my parents passed away, the people of Xiaowan Village helped me with their funeral arrangements. At that time, my family was broke, and they gave me a bite to eat. But their lives were already very difficult. If I ate one more bite, they would have to eat one less bite. So when Mr. Muto came looking for an adopted son, I was the first to volunteer."

"When I left, the people of Xiaowan Village pooled their money to buy me food and clothes. The village chief also told me to write back regularly and to find out if Mutou was a bad person, to try to escape back."

"It's a pity I found out a little too late. I wonder if the village chief is worried since he hasn't received my letter. I don't want him to worry. Anyway, no one in Xiaowan Village probably remembers me now."

Higashiyama Shin paused for a moment, then asked, "Do you remember where your parents are buried?"

“I don’t remember. My memory isn’t very complete. I can recall the things I remember very clearly, but I can’t remember the things I don’t remember at all. For example, I have no memory of what happened in the locked room.” Ueda Yasushi said somewhat dejectedly.

"Your surname is proof; if the grave still exists, it should be able to be found."

Even Shinichi Higashiyama couldn't be sure; it was now 2040, eighty-five years after 1955.

Nearly a century is enough time for human society to undergo tremendous changes.

In other words, he did check and knew that there was a Komaru Village in Mie Prefecture, but it was later merged into Komono Town. It can be considered to still exist, at least there are records of its existence.

As the birth rate has become increasingly severe, many villages and towns have long since become defunct, some of which are just place names and rows of lonely, ghostly "graves" called residences.

After speaking his mind, Ueda seemed much more relaxed, his smile returned, he scratched his head, and went back to watching Tom and Jerry in his chair.

I glanced at the time; it was 7:30.

So, he'll continue playing the game.

Based on the trial and error of the three players last night, and the clues he found, things are gradually becoming clear.
Subway, start! The familiar white light obscures the view.

buzz-

In the familiar train carriage, Higashiyama Shin opened his eyes, glanced at the bouquet and briefcase beside him, but didn't take them with him. Instead, he got off the train directly on the right side.

Soon, he arrived at the fork in the road leading to the stone tablet.

Yesterday, Iwasaki Kosuke collected three bunches of white chrysanthemums at these forks in the road, which helped him run to the stone tablet and see the words on it. Of course, he also died a terrible death.

Higashiyama carefully followed the path that Iwasaki had already paved and collected the three bunches of flowers.

Then I turned on my phone's flashlight and peered out to what appeared to be the edge of a dead end, the very edge of the surveillance camera's range.

A narrow new road appeared before us, and ahead, a new surveillance camera had been installed, and not far away, there was a bunch of flowers that looked particularly fresh.

The first three bunches were all white chrysanthemums, but this bunch in front of me is white forget-me-nots.

He quickened his pace, took the forget-me-nots, and then returned the way he came, heading towards the stone tablet.

Soon, he reached the end of the surveillance range, and ahead of him was the stone tablet.

Taking a deep breath, Higashiyama Shin started running on the slippery ground! The echoing sound of his leather shoes reverberated all around.

A foul wind blew in his face, making it hard to breathe, and the white chrysanthemums in his arms withered and died one after another at an alarming rate.

The clattering sound, like a Geiger counter, seemed to vibrate directly in his eardrums. The surroundings felt like a viscous sea of ​​blood, causing him to slow down and struggle to move. Pairs of white eyes, seemingly opened from nowhere, stared at him, filled with hatred and pain.

One bunch, two bunches... until the third bunch of flowers had completely withered, Shinya Higashiyama finally ran to the stone tablet.

The Monument to the Atomic Bomb Tuna

Behind the stone tablet, a giant, deformed tuna, composed of countless mangled fish, floated quietly.

Fish eyes sprouted from the rotting flesh on its body, lifelessly staring at Shinichi Higashiyama.

It is the source of all the fishy smell. Those beings that cause instant death to the characters are merely a part of its resentment, and it is the collection of all the tuna's resentment.

Shinichi Higashiyama did not look up; the mental power of the character he was controlling could not withstand such intense erosion.

Beside him, the white chrysanthemums had turned into clumps of wriggling ash, which, within the ash, seemed to transform into tiny fish, splashing on the waterlogged ground.

Higashiyama Shin felt a suffocating gaze, and the stench was intensifying, as if it would engulf him at any moment.

With his last ounce of strength, he held the only intact bunch of white forget-me-nots and gently placed it in front of the stone tablet.

Higashiyama Shin held his breath, feeling as if time had frozen in that instant.

The stench remained, but the malice seemed to be diminishing; the heavy, mountain-like hatred was gradually dissipating, and the gurgling sounds slowly subsided.

Only then did he dare to slowly raise his head and look straight ahead. The tuna, still terrifying as if pieced together from countless pieces of rotten flesh, was quietly staring at him.

"It hurts so much, help me!"

Countless eyes streamed down long tears of blood, dripping onto the stone tablet and slowly covering it.

Higashiyama Shin opened his mouth, but this body was too weak. The oppressive aura made his throat feel like it was being choked by something, and he couldn't say a word.

The deformed tuna seemed to have no intention of waiting for his reply. It only glanced at the bunch of forget-me-nots one last time, tears of blood streaming down its face, before slowly turning around and disappearing into the darkness.

All the gloom and terror receded like the tide.

(End of this chapter)