Chapter 15: Volume II. Chapter XV. – Is This Heaven?

It’s dark - pitch black. It’s cold. I feel like I’m floating as if submerged beneath the surface of a dark sea.

Where… am I?

I wrap my arms around my knees as I stay afloat, unmoving.

And why am I naked?

“You are far too weak of a vessel. You still have time to grow.”

A voice echoes through space. A girl’s voice, to be exact. Why does it sound so…. menacing?

“Who’s there?”

I ask calmly.

A vessel? Enough time to grow? Who is she, and what is she talking about?

“We will meet again soon enough. Sooner than you might think….”

“Wait, don’t go!”

Wanting answers, I try to stop her, but my efforts are in vain. Instead, I suddenly find myself lying in a room with my arm unintentionally reaching toward the ceiling.

“Huh…where am I? Was I dreaming?”

I’m severely confused. I slowly sit up and notice a blanket covering me and as the blanket slowly falls away, I discover I am wearing a dress. As I try to process the information, nothing comes back to me. Whose dress is this? Why am I wearing it? I let myself simmer in my confusion, sitting on a thin mattress on the floor.

The room looks like nothing I’m used to, but I recognize the style. The walls, the floors, even the ceiling! It's all tatami! A type of mat originally used in Japan back when the country was still around.

I remember reading about it in our school’s history books. So that means the dress I’m wearing is a kimono! And the homeless-looking sleeping setup is a futon! I always wanted to try this stuff out!

Glittering with excitement, I notice the room itself is pretty empty, with the exception of a bonsai tree in one of the corners and a small writing desk with a lamp in another.

But… what am I doing here? What is this place?

I attempt to stand up, but as soon as I do, a sudden mild pain becomes present as it emerges from my abdomen. Then it all came back to me.

Now I’m shocked; I’m supposed to be dead! I rapidly inspect my body with my eyes and hands, but there’s nothing wrong with it apart from some mild stinging. I see how it is; I must be in heaven. I certainly didn’t hope to die this young; What a shame.

Beams of light strike my sight, and a tatami wall differing from the rest catches my attention.

The wall is a combination of multiple parts shaped like rectangles and decorated with paintings of trees and leaves, but two sections, in particular, look different. These sections have black outer layers, and the inner space is coloured white. There are also multiple horizontal and vertical lines going through the white space that create multiple empty squares.

Those must be the doors leading outside, assuming the light coming through is produced by is from the Sun.

Curious and intrigued by the thought of what awaits me beyond the exit, I approach it, but then a thought comes up, and as my palm touches the tatami surface, I mumble to myself.

“I wonder if Hidiku has made it out….”

I slide the door open and find him sitting on the outside veranda right before me.

“Oh…”

We both go in unison. I see how it is.

“So I see they got you too.”

I say as I sit down next to him and gaze upon the forest scenery before us.

“Yuuna, are you alright? Maybe you should rest a bit more. Take it easy.”

My mouth takes the form of a light smile, and my legs start swinging up and down.

“Thanks for the concern, but you don’t have to worry. I’m feeling just fine. Actually, I’m kind of glad. I always wondered what the afterlife would be like, and I’m glad to know it’s so relaxing. I mean, I even get to wear these Japanese-style clothes!”

“Huh?”

Hidiku pauses and looks at me with this concerned look of his as I proceed to giggle.

“I hate to break it to you, Yuuna, but… we are very much alive.”

“Huh?”

My mind is, once again, sent into a state of shock. I slowly pick myself up as my brain begins to overload, and I start yelling at Hidiku.

“Are you trying to tell me God isn’t Japanese after all?!”

“Yuuna, calm down!”

He screams back at me.

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I don't want to go back to the cruel world! My dreams! They are shattering!

“For God’s sake, Hidiku! Shut the hell up!”

Another voice makes itself present. A female voice yet unknown to me. It came from behind another closed-up doorway just a bit further down the veranda.

The door bursts open, and from it jumps out a girl looking our age.

There are a few seconds of silence as the girl and I stare at one another. With watery eyes, I then grab Hidiku by his collar.

“Who is she? Why does she know your name? I thought I was your one and only!”

The sheer confusion brought up by the state of my situation throws me into panic mode.

Hidiku’s head drops low as a loud sigh escapes his lips.

He gave up.

———

“The name’s Vilia, Vilia Kurenai. Nice to meet ya.”

The mystery girl introduces herself once everything calms down.

I swiftly bow to show my gratitude as I realize this person has most likely saved our lives, though it probably came off as a little awkward.

“Bowing already? You’re getting accustomed to the culture of late Japan rather quickly. My older sister is the one that found you unconscious in the forest, so she brought you guys here. Better be grateful.”

The girl says with arms crossed and an expression of slight amazement on her face, though only half of it is visible since a large eyepatch was covering the other. The visible eye - her right eye - is bathed in crimson. From the tip of her head sprouted hundreds of scarlet strands, reaching beneath her hips and forming a messy hairstyle.

Her hair mildly blends in with a short kimono of the same colour with a skirt as its bottom, transforming into a vibrant orange at the tips. It has a pattern displaying roses. I can’t really tell from a distance of a few meters, but she looks somewhat taller than me.

So, are more people living here or is it just the two of them? And where exactly is this ‘here’?

I start to look around. As expected, the building seems to be a Japanese-style mansion shaped like the letter ‘L.’ As we stand on the shorter side of that shape, the open space before it possesses a ground covered in a layer of small rocks - gravel, if you may.

“Yuuna, do you remember anything that happened?”

Hidiku once again asks, concern evident on his face.

“Up to the point where I was supposed to die? Yeah.”

“I see…”

He then responds. Is it just me, or does he looks somewhat worried? Did something happen?

“Well, we can discuss it with the everyone else. Now come, they’re waiting for you to wake up from your beauty sleep.”

I wonder how many more people there are, and how long I’ve been out for.

We walk over to the other end of the mansion, where Vilia once again proceeds to swing the sliding tatami door open with full force.

“Guys, she’s awake.”

She says nonchalantly. Does she usually try to break all of the doors?

“Vilia, what have I told you about the doors? You have broken enough of them as it is.”

Vilia shrugs it off, but a clear, gentle voice immediately catches my attention. Before us sit two people in a big room, similar to the one I’ve been resting in. The voice came from a young girl sitting on her knees in a yukata with the same colour and pattern as Vilia’s. I’m guessing this is her older sister. The one that saved us. Before her, across a small round tea table, sits a man in a clean black - or a really dark grey - kimono with a cup of tea in his hands. He doesn’t seem too old, but he’s definitely way past our age.

“Good day, my name is Yuuna Hakryuu! It’s really nice to meet you! Also, thank you for saving us!”

I blurt out without giving it a second thought while slightly bowing down. The two initially seemed slightly surprised by my sudden introduction, but the girl gave me a gentle smile while the mister gave me a short chuckle.

“Yes, it’s nice to meet you too, Yuuna. I’m Chikao Abe, and the girl next to me is Nagi Kurenai. Would you care for a cup of black tea?”

The mister asks me after introducing the two of them. If Vilia hadn’t called him Master earlier, I would have mistaken him for their dad.

“Y-Yes, please!”

He then redirects his attention to Hidiku, standing next to me, and invites him along.

“Hidiku?”

“I suppose I could.”

They already knew each other. I guess I could have expected that. With that, the three of us barged in and joined the round tea table for a cup of black tea.

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