Tantō drove for hours, no matter the henious traffic until they reached the Sendai Airport in Natori. In the plane, Chōwa pointed Haruto to her touchscreen. It was an ad for the company that hired her: OpenOcean.

After public transit, they finally arrived at the special ward the company was situated in—Shibuya. Haruto, fresh out of the boonies, witnessed a whole new world. Billboards shone bright even at day.

5:00 AM in the suburbs, they unpacked. After eating udon for breakfast cooked by Tantō, Chōwa wore her business uniform. Her smile showed she was more ready for the first day. She kissed and waved them goodbye.

After lunch, father and son did kendo in the backyard. In the afternoon, an extremely happy Chōwa returned with a hug and kiss for her husband. In one day, she made three hundred thousand yen.

Haruto walked toward her. “What exactly do you do, Mom?”

“It’s a bit difficult to explain thoroughly. But think of it as selling art online. We call them NFTs. Non-fungible tokens. Here…” she pulled up her smartphone. “We call these ‘Drowsy Darumas’ (眠い達磨). Here are the ones I made for the company.”

To Haruto, they looked practically the same. She further explained that even if they were, they still had worth. Chōwa revealed that she yearned for city life for years. Technology had enamored her ever since she got an Apple II at age ten.

She hugged him with closed eyes. “You’re all so lucky in this day and age, honey. I’ll make sure you’ll know it forever.”

One bountiful year went by for the Minagawa family. Still, a fifteen-year-old Haruto could never hope to relate with anyone but his parents.

Today at school, they introduced a transfer student from Shinjuku. Maki Kibō (希望真貴), fourteen years old. A petite girl at 149 cm. Shoulder-length black hair with bangs and a mole under her left eye.

She bowed to everyone in the class. “I swear in my godparents’ life, I’ll never be a nuisance to anyone. I hope we’ll have an amazing semester together.” She smiled with droopy eyes.

The teacher looked intently at her students. “Be very nice to her, and not just you boys. All young ladies here better treat her right, or it’s month-long detentions. Why the harsh punishment, you ask? By her voice alone, she’s a ‘cinnamon roll,’ as internet denizens would say.”

Ultimately, no one dared try to be mean to Maki. While everyone was smitten, Haruto sat by a window at the back. He had looked briefly, and she noticed. Everyone insisted Maki sit in front, but unexpectedly for them, she sat behind him.

Thirty minutes into the lecture about the cultural impact of France on the world, she tapped his shoulder from behind.

“Isn’t this fun…?” she whispered. “I see why school life anime employs this trope a lot. Looking at the clear blue sky with birds flying is so mesmerizing.” She sighed with a smile.

Haruto sighed as well but out of tiredness. “Well, I’m not the shy guy in shows like that. But if you’re wanting friends, I urge you to be disappointed now. Only Mom and Dad are.”

Maki saw no scorn in his face. It was not even of disgust but of well-meaning. Her eyes and lips frowned. “Oh… I see. Sorry….” She looked beyond the window again, now saddened.

He took notice. “Oh, no. I didn’t mean to be harsh. I wanted to be nice as—” He interrupted himself. Every other student had scowled at him. They pictured her as an innocent maiden left to drown in her eternal sorrows.

“So cruel.”, “Not cool, man. Not cool.”, “What a heartless monster.”, “I can’t even stand looking at him.”, “Fix your shitty hair, you jerk.”, “Guys, where’s the bathroom?”

As Haruto heard more actual scorn toward him, he sweated bullets and felt he shrunk to ant size.

During recess, he ran up to Maki from behind. He caught his breath. “Wait a minute….” He raised a finger and stood. “Look, I’m sorry about what I said. But I want you to know that—”

“No. Don’t be,” she shook her head. “I insist. I knew you didn’t lie back then. I would never force people, Haruto. Besides, I have friends now.” She began introduced them individually in front.

One had long straight hair and constantly had an unimpressed look at Haruto. She looked away with crossed arms. The other was a four-eyes with a ponytail that got too excited seeing him. She wrote excessively on her notepad as she eyed him. Haruto backed away, uncomfortable. Luckily, Maki told them to follow her outside.

As the three walked past a door, they heard the principal yelling at a student who got transferred recently. They had sent him back fearing the law.

The student shrugged and smirked. “C’mon, fam. They kicked me out cuz they couldn’t handle a king.” It turned into a grin.

The principal banged his office table and pointed. “No, you arrogant prick!! They expelled you because you secretly founded a deathmatch cult!”

“Exactly.” He hunched over the chair and went for his pocket. “Anyone would die for the Pikachu Illustrator card. Includin’ you.”

The rage stopped abruptly. However, he never won the bargain even when his new Subaru.

Haruto ordered udon and tonkatsu in the cafeteria. Just as he neared the first helping, his classmate ran in front.

“Haruto…! The principal’s excusing you to go home. He’s offering you a ride outside. It’s about your mom. I’m so sorry, man. I really am.” His face sullied.

Such words made his eyes light up. “What?”

Throughout the ride back home, the principal’s wife rubbed his back to calm his sweaty anxiety. Sadly, that day, the world made its first move on bringing misery to the sorry child.

Now home, Haruto saw his father outside bawling in great anguish. Authorities accompanied him. The chief-of-police walked toward him for the ill news. Chōwa was arrested and put into court with her colleagues and CEO, just as Tantō made dinner.

Haruto was offered another ride alongside his father. He heard a woman’s voice on the police car radio and sweated even more. Now, Tantō comforted him.

News broke out that the OpenOcean corporation behind “Drowsy Darumas” was a nationwide scandal. Leaks revealed they never intended to pay back their clients with the NFTs they bought. Everyone involved was charged with internet fraud and theft.

Recent investigations concluded that the company instigated foul play when a whistleblower went missing two weeks prior. As a result, the CEO was also charged with assassination and second-degree murder.

Outlets interviewed people from Kagoshima to the Hokkaido region. Many had spent their life savings on the tokens. Twenty of them were now homeless. Others reported that Chōwa was a prime candidate for lifetime imprisonment. OpenOcean secretly chose her to be the new CEO one day before.

The first trial began after three days went by. With the Minagawas present, Chōwa’s lawyer Fushichō Naruhodō (成歩堂 不死鳥) was called in to rise alongside prosecutor Renji Mitsurugi (御剣 戀次).

The former had a knack for convincing objections. However, the latter was quick on the uptake and smugly chided his performance in court 24/7. Miraculously, the defense attorney pulled through. Chōwa was allowed to go home.

Outside the courthouse, a sobbing Haruto hugged her tightly. His inner child could not help it. She cried as well, while Tantō held back tears.

“It’s okay, it’s okay… The trial’s not over yet.” She held him close.

The next day came. This time, Chōwa told both to stay home. Haruto could not take it, shaking his head. He walked toward her with frowning eyes.

She turned and held his shoulders with both. “No, honey. Please stay. I’m confident either way, even without you two. I promise I’ll come back.” She kissed his cheek and went for her car.

He shook his head again and ran. “No… No!” Chōwa said the same words alongside his name.

Just by the door, she turned abd put her foot down. “Haruto, no! Stay!!!” She looked straight in the eye and panted.

His inner child broke into pieces. He had never heard her raised voice. Tears rolled down his cheeks. “Mom… are you sure… you’ll be okay?” he asked softly.

Chōwa covered her mouth, eyes widened in shock. At that moment, she recalled what her five-year-old son looked like when he lost his pet rabbit. For the first time, she felt heartache and clutched her chest so.

She immediately hugged him longingly. “Oh, Haruto! I’m sorry. I’m so sorry! I only wanted to share my dream with all of you. But ever since they called me, I never realized for a second we were happy either way back home. Oh, what have I done. What have I done!” She repeated those words over and over as Haruto bawled. Tantō from afar could hold the waterworks no longer.

Chōwa hugged Haruto again with a smile. “I promise you, honey. We’ll be back home soon. Once we are, we’ll never be hurt again.” She kissed his cheek once more and got inside the car. He waved, and Tantō held his shoulder from behind.

Unfortunately, the world had not had its fill with misery toward the sorry child. It had so many more sadistic tricks up its sleeve.

No matter how much Haruto prayed for a miracle in bed, tragic news inevitably broke out.

An official lifetime sentence for Chōwa Minagawa, alongside her colleagues and CEO. It was partly due to her attorney’s abrupt absence. He had to be at the hospital for three weeks caused by what investigators ruled out as “self-harm via stun gun.”

None were given chances for parole, said the news. That night, father and son never touched their meal. Haruto forgot how to pray and stared blankly at the ceiling until the Witching Hour. The same went for his father.

After many sleepless nights, Tantō tried cheering him up time after time with kendo. It was fruitless. A year went by for them, never celebrating any event. To make ends meet, Tantō became the master at a nearby dōjō.

For the first time, Haruto understood loneliness. His happy-go-lucky glow only came back when visiting his mother once every month. Every time he would give her instant udon, and half the time, authorities would confiscate them. He noticed one sneakily stashing it.

Before dinner, Tantō introduced his son to an unexpected guest. Maki was given permission by her godparents to stay for the night. Throughout their meal, Haruto twiddled his fork on the bowl. Tantō decided to replace some shingles on the rooftop.

Maki walked and gave him a bento box of tempura, salmon sashimi, and onigiri. She sat at a chair nearby. “It’s my specialty from my cooking club. You never picked up the ones before.

She held his shoulder. “I know… that I can’t help you right now. But I didn’t want to abandon you in these times.” She held her upper arm and turned away. “Besides that, I have my reasons.”

Haruto saw her cleaning the table and volunteered to help. Before going to bed, Maki gave him a warm hug. He never minded as he could not feel much.

“Don’t ever get lost… little boy…” she whispered before going upstairs.

While she slept like an infant, Haruto stared blankly at the ceiling yet again. He did not want her words to be true. No matter what, his heart remained unmoving. Still, he felt an ache, and a quiet river had flowed on his side.

A sleepless night occurred for the sorry child once more. The world observed intently.