Chapter 004
Act III - The Confusing and Perplexing Choice
Update Time: 2011-OCT-10 18:32:57
During that week, Unabara came to the orphanage almost every day. Soon, he established good relationships with most of the children in the orphanage.
His personality was actually very good, and his image was also the type that was easily welcomed. Generally speaking, there was no one who disliked him, but he just didn't realize this.
However, there were exceptions. At least there was a girl named Haruue Erii who was always reluctant to talk to him.
She was not a bad-tempered girl. On the contrary, she was a type of person with a very gentle personality. Unabara just didn't understand why she always ran away when she saw him.
Later, Unabara learned that she was one of the few people in the orphanage who could be called a friend by Sorano. In her eyes, Unabara was probably like a bad person who took away her friend.
Unabara could understand her thoughts very well, because he also thought so when he first learned of his father's plan. Although he had planned to apologize, nothing had happened yet, and there seemed to be no reason. Moreover, Unabara felt that even if he apologized, he could not expect her forgiveness.
Speaking of his father's plan, today was the last day of the agreement.
It is said that when a person is hesitant, time passes the fastest. Just like rushing to finish homework, because when a person is hesitating, there is always a kind of lucky mentality, hoping that the moment of decision-making can come as slowly as possible. But there is also a saying that, just like getting a shot, the moment before the needle is inserted is when the psychological burden is the greatest. Therefore, in fact, the subjective perception of time passing during hesitation will slow down as the psychological burden increases.
The seven-day wait was also like this, it was unclear whether it was brief or long, at least for Unabara, it was so. It was quite contradictory, as he both hoped for this ending to come as soon as possible, and also had a feeling of hoping that this moment would never come.
Perhaps the same mentality applies to students waiting for their exam results.
But one thing that could be certain was that even Unabara himself was no longer sure what kind of result he hoped for.
Yes, it's a contradiction. Once this feeling arises, it becomes the dominant one.
Looking back at Sorano, who was not far away, there were some doubts. Why was she, as the first person involved, so indifferent?
It didn't seem like a girl who was facing an important choice for the first time, but rather like a traveler who had long been accustomed to parting. She was obviously slightly younger than him.
"It's about time."
Unabara cautiously probed.
"Mm, I know."
Sorano responded, but said nothing more. She was completely tight-lipped.
"Are you not troubled at all?"
Unabara couldn't believe it. Although he was somewhat used to the girl's carefree attitude.
"To be honest, I am a little bit troubled," Sorano closed the book she had been reading, "Do you believe in the concept of 'past lives'?"
This question left Unabara stunned. This was Academy City, a place where supernatural powers were not allowed. And Sorano didn't seem like the type to be interested in such vague and ethereal things.
Sorano continued saying, "If consciousness itself is a product of material accumulation, then thinking should also be a kind of computation. So, if the same information is preserved and presented through another channel, can the same consciousness be reproduced? Can this also be considered a kind of reincarnation? If so, what exactly are human consciousness and soul? What does it take to be considered real and tangible?"
Unabara realized that he couldn't follow her train of thought at all. Although it was different from what he had expected, Sorano was certainly acting strange today.
"I'm here now, but is it really me who's here? Regardless of what my future holds, is that really my reality? Hehe, I'm really..."
To be fair, she was indeed quite confused, as she had said. And as the day of the decision drew closer, her confusion became more apparent. However, her confusion was clearly not on the same level as Unabara's.
After being lost in thought for a while, Sorano shook her head. For some reason, whenever she was by Unabara's side, she was able to talk about her troubles more easily. Although Unabara usually couldn't understand her, it didn't matter. Most of the time, she just wanted someone to listen to her.
However, this time, to her surprise, Unabara asked a question in response.
"I don't quite understand. You're here, and that's real enough for us, isn't it?"
Unabara probably didn't understand the meaning behind Sorano's words at all. But his words left Sorano silent for a long time.
"Maybe... you're right," the girl finally replied, her tone subdued.
No one could say for sure whether she really believed that or not, not even herself.
In the car heading towards the orphanage, there were also two people involved discussing.
"Speaking of which, Unabara. I have always been puzzled, why did you make such a decision?" the Russian man asked from the back seat.
"To be honest, Oleg Dmitri[1], this is not my own idea," the younger man replied.
He was dressed formally, giving the impression that he was attending some kind of formal event.
"Wait, are you saying that you don't actually have any thoughts on this matter?"
"Calm down, Oleg Dmitri. I know you care a lot about your student, but please listen to me first," the man tapped his forehead, "I must admit that the driving force behind this from start to finish was not me, but my father."
"The chairman?"
"Unfortunately, I cannot reveal my father's plans, because I don't even know them myself."
"So, how did the chairman instruct you? You can tell me, right? If it doesn't satisfy me, I might have to intervene."
"'Treat her as if she were your own daughter, regardless of your own thoughts.' Oleg Dmitri, I don't know if this answer will satisfy you or not."
At that moment, the melody of "Castles in the Air"[2] stopped playing from the car stereo. The only sound left in the car was the faint sound of the engine.
"Really, what is the chairman thinking?" Kurkov sighed as if he had given up.
"If possible, I want to know the answer more than you do. It's impossible not to have doubts."
"You're quite direct..."
"We are both involved, so there's no need to hide anything. And if I'm not mistaken, the one who first introduced that child to you was the headmaster of your school Tokiwadai. But don't tell me that you were different back then compared to now. Although you only have an extra student, I might end up with an extra daughter."
"So far, I only have this one student... Unabara, let me ask you a question. Putting aside all the suspicions that we can't explain, what do you think of my student now?"
"I feel like she have already gotten used to whatever happens. There are no flaws at all, and she doesn't seem like a child who could exist in reality. Even her appearance... that girl doesn't seem entirely Japanese, nor does she seem like a Westerner like you. It's as if she has taken everyone's aesthetic views from around the world, and recreated them in the most scientifically perfect way possible. She doesn't even have flaws like 'Balzac's Hands'[3]. Do you think that's possible in reality?"
"Are you doing this on purpose? You should know that I'm not asking for your opinion on her."
"... I can't really say, there are many mysteries surrounding that girl, and it seems like she has her own concerns."
The melody of "Castles in the Air" played again in the car as Kurkov looked outside for a while without saying anything.
"Hey, Unabara. You mentioned 'Balzac's Hands' earlier, right?"
"What about it?"
"I don't know much about it, but if we consider most people as a whole, that child is those hands, right?"
"That child is worrying, although maybe it's just me overthinking. Unabara, personally, I hope you can put aside those doubts. And honestly, I don't trust anyone but you. You don't dislike her, do you?"
"No. Only after meeting that child did I feel like it was impossible to be disgusted with her."
"What about Mitsuki?"
"He doen't dislike her, either. And it seems like they get along well."
"Then there's nothing to hesitate about, right? Regardless of what's going on, it has nothing to do with her. Just consider it my request."
The man smiled bitterly. Whenever he was up against this Russian, he always felt powerless. It had been like this since their university days.
No, maybe this time was different. Because from the beginning, he had no intention of opposing him. He might truly have had some hesitation, but he had never planned to refuse after seeing that girl with his own eyes.
He always felt like that girl was the kind of character that could only appear in myths. The fact that such a girl might become his daughter made him feel that this world was too unreal.
"However, it still depends on her own decision. After all, this child is too special..."
The man muttered softly, unable to tell if he was answering or just talking to himself.
[1] Footnote by the author: The name of Sorano's teacher is Oleg Dmitrievich Kurkov, written in Russian as Олег Дмитриевич Курков. Mr. Unabara combined his given name with an abbreviated patronymic name to show respect and affection here, similar to honorifics in Japanese.
[2] Footnote by the translator: A song by American folk rock singer Don McLean, which was released as a single in 1971. This song describes a man who is weary of urban lifestyle and longs for a country life, deciding to forsake his "castles in the air" and seek romance with a like-minded woman.
[3] Footnote by the author: After Auguste Rodin completing his sculpture of Balzac, his students praised him, saying, "Teacher, these hands are too perfect." After thinking for a moment, Rodin decisively picked up an axe and chopped off the hands of the sculpture, saying, "These hands are too perfect. They have their own life and no longer belong to the whole of the sculpture."