CHAPTER 1 ~ A new life

第1章~ 新しい人生

"Well, Ashiya-kun… the school will definitely miss you…", said my homeroom teacher. But, I doubt the students would miss me, because I don't have any friends there. "Thank you for everything, Sensei. Goodbye…". As I got into the train, I glanced back at the station. Only the teacher waved his hand to me, while the students ignored and went home. To be honest, I didn't care at all. I was considered as a prodigy, as I excelled in everything I took part in. Because of that, the other students avoided me and isolated me out of jealousy. "Out of jealousy, huh…? Seriously, the world had reached its end."

In the almost empty train, I took out my NWZ-W273 MP3 and plugged it into my ears. This MP3 was a gift from my parents, before they passed away. In Inaba, I will live together with my cousin's family and I can start anew there. I opened my wallet and look at the picture of an old friend of mine, who also lived in Inaba, but she went missing for the past 5 years. Several moments later, dizziness suddenly filled my brain, and I had a huge urge to sleep. "Maybe I was too tired….", I told myself. Before my consciousness fades, I saw a beautiful blue butterfly outside of the train, fluttering slowly and gracefully. I took a last peek at the photo and murmured, "I will…always…remember our…promise…."

The sound of musical instruments woke me up from my slumber. At first, I thought it was from my MP3, until I realized I was no longer in the same train. The interior of this train looks creepy, yet elegant , with the whole room blue and black in-color, velvets decorating the room, giving off a luxurious aura. "Where the hell am I…?" As I stood up, the lights began to dim, except for the ones nearby a bar. There, I saw a human figure, sitting while shuffling a deck of cards. Before I could even ask him, he greeted me. "Welcome to the Velvet Room, dear guest. I am Igor, a humble servant of a certain somebody that will aid you in your journey." I was quite shocked when I saw Igor because he has the appearance of a bizarre old man with a long nose, pointed ears, and bulging, bloodshot eyes.

"Ah, my apologies for being rude. You must been wondering what I was talking about. Please, take a seat." All of sudden, an expensive-looking chair appears in front of the table Igor was facing. I sat and asked, " , was it…? Could you please tell me where I am…?" Igor's creepy expression didn't change. "This is a realm that exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. And those who have made a 'contract' of some form can enter…". Contract? What contract is he talking about? "I'm sorry, but I don't think I've made anything that can be called a contract…". Igor grins at me, and replied, "Like I said, the 'contract' is in any form. It's just that you didn't realize it, or rather, the 'contract' itself is something you could never imagine." This is all making no sense to me. Before I raise my opinion, the lights at the bar counter lights up, revealing a beautiful young lady. "This is my assistant and also the bartender in here , Belle." After Igor introduced her, Belle bows a bit to me and spoke, " I am Belle, and I will also assist you in your journey." Before I could ask them what do they mean about my journey, Igor interrupts, "Pardon my intrusion, dear guest. It seems that we are running out of time, but before that, may I ask you to state your name to fully accept you as a guest of the Velvet Room?". I don't care anymore. This is straining my brain too much. This must be a dream, so what harm should I get just by stating my name? Affirming my mind, I answered, " I'm Minamoto Takeru." Igor lets off a smile, and states, "With this, the contract is sealed, and you are now an honorable guest of the Velvet Room. We shall meet again soon enough. Until then, take good care of yourself." Belle bows, "I wish you nothing but excel." The room suddenly began to zoom out, and I am losing my consciousness.

As soon as I woke up from my 'dream', I heard the announcement. "Yasoinaba Station, Yasoinaba Station." Well, I finally reached Inaba, the place where I shall spend my youthful years with. I barely remembered Inaba since I only came here when I was 5 years old. It was a peaceful and rural place, but it is not a boring place to stay, in my opinion. When I reached out of the station, I looked around my surroundings. "Inaba had changed quite a lot, I see." The Inaba now is kind of modern. Usually the shopping districts looks old-styled, but now the shops look like a normal, organized, modern-styled shop. While I was looking at the shopping district, a boy, not older than me, came to me, " Excuse me, but perhaps you would be Minamoto Takeru?" I knew this boy. We were playing together when I last visited here. He is my cousin, Aizawa Takuo. "Takuo? Long time no see…" Takuo smiled, " It is you, Take-chan! Man, you look totally different!" He smacked my back, and let out a big laugh. To me, Takuo sometimes annoys me, but that attitude of him is compensated with his kindness and loyalty. I remembered the time when I was chased by a dog, and Takuo came to rescue me. Even though he was bitten and had to stitch his wound, he still smiles and said to me, " I'm glad you're alright, buddy!"

After a brief chat, Takuo took me to his house. Along the way, he explained the difference that Inaba had gained. When I saw a big store in the opposite of the road, I asked him. "Is that a supermarket, over there?" Takuo said, "Yeah, that's Junes. You know what, Junes was the first step in modernizing Inaba . People from the old shopping district used to hate Junes, blaming their bankruptcy on Junes. However, when a new manager was appointed there, the manager started helping the shopping districts. He showed them how to diverse their products, how to attract customers, and even helped in promoting the shopping district. Since he helped everyone in here, everyone respects him now." I replied, " Is that so? No wonder Inaba had become more livelier than before." Takuo just smile, " Well, we're almost there."

A few minutes of walking, and we arrived in front of a traditional Japanese house. The house looks like a manor due to its enormous size. I still remembered that there was a dojo at the back of the house. Takuo opened the door and welcomed me, "Welcome to my house, Take-chan. Wait….no, from now on, this is going to be our home, right?" I almost forgot that Takuo's family adopted me and I would live in this house together with them. A man in his late 40's who was wearing a yukata appeared from the living room and greeted us, "Welcome home…Oh, Takeru! You're finally here?". I gave him a smile and bow down a bit, "It's been a long time, Tohru-san. I'm glad you're still as fit as ever." Tohru-san is my mother's brother, easy to say, my uncle. He was the one who met me after my parent's funeral and suggested me to live with them. Seeing me tired, Tohru-san spoke, "You must be tired from your trip. Takuo, help Takeru get his stuff to his room. I'll call your mom, telling her that Takeru is here." Takuo nods and replies, "On it, sir!". Without further delay, Takuo grabs my bag and took me to 'my room'.

After finished unloading all things, Takuo said, "You should take a rest for while. When it's time to chow down, I'll wake you up." With that, Takuo left my room. I inspected the room where I shall stay. It was a simple room with a desk and a laptop on it, a futon at the edge of the room, an antique closet, and a bookshelf full of historical and educational books. I spread the futon and lie down. Before I drift into slumber, I remembered the 'dream' I had this afternoon. "Was that all just a dream? It was too realistic to be a dream." When my eyelids were closed, I said, "Whatever…."