ISTHR 148

It didn’t seem like we had much time, so I hurried to the market. For some reason, Saine, Dole, and even Olphynn followed me. I should be enough to persuade Haruka, but I noticed that I was never alone recently. Saine keeps following me around and doesn’t leave me. That’s why I’ve been eating food from food stalls all this time.
Saine aside, I wondered why Dole and Olphynn are also coming along but in the end, it was good that they came. My explanation, which I gave enthusiastically as I grabbed Haruka, didn’t make much sense, and he just tilted his head.

[Is… is that even possible?]

After Olphynn’s explanation, Haruka finally understood. But his face was pale.

[It’s okay! That will never happen! I’m here with you, let’s do our best together!]

I hold Haruka’s cold hand tightly.

[If we go to the Royal Capital, cut the thread, and then connect it to Olphynn, everything will be fine. Then Haruka, you won’t have to die. We’ll be together forever.]

Haruka’s husband puts his hand on my hand that’s holding Haruka’s and pulls it with a jerk.

[I get that his soul needs to be reconnected. However, why must it be with that guy?]
[Well, there’s really no one else, is there?]

[Saine already refused and Dole is also the same. I don’t know anyone else to ask. I didn’t really understand Dole’s explanation but a Reincarnator is special and the folks here don’t seem to want to connect with multiple Reincarnators.
Thinking about it like that, Olphynn is really an amazing person. He takes responsibility for all the failures in the priest’s Ceremony as if it were his own fault. I know I can’t do that, but his determination is incredible.

[I’m his husband. If he’s to connect it with someone’s soul, it should be with mine.]

The uncle said in a sulky tone.

[You can’t do that. It may not be a burden to you, but your Reincarnator will be upset if she finds out. You’re connected to someone like me by an invisible thread, right?]

Haruka gave me a perplexed smile and asked for my agreement. I understand what he wants to say so I also nod.

[That’s right. You should probably stop. Over there they call this an invisible red thread. It’s the thread of destiny. Guys don’t care, but girls are quite concerned about that sort of thing.]

I still vividly remember how the girls in middle school would excitedly chatter away. By some small coincidence, they’d become convinced of the idea of a “red string of fate” and think, “It has to be me.” But, you know, the person they were always talking about was that student council president who was so obsessed with everything Tokyo.

As I was thinking about this, I suddenly realized something.

　そっかぁ。見えない赤い糸だと思ったのかぁ。
I see. They all have a tough appearance, but when it comes to reincarnated people, they might have a similar way of thinking to girls. That’s why it’s enough to have only one connecting thread.
As I thought, Olphynn is really cool. He will not be able to connect with only one thread but he’s still going to connect with Haruka’s should.
I see. They thought of it as an invisible red string.

Thinking about this, I saw 2 ribbons on Saine and Dole’s heads. The two of them were wearing red ribbons on their hair, wearing sailor uniforms, and chatting away. Just imagining it made me laugh out loud. (TN: Lol, this injustice is so not warranted.)
I don’t think they could see inside my head, but they glared at me, so I hastily covered my mouth with my hands.

[Don’t ask why it’s red if you can’t see it. Anyway, to the girls, it’s a special thread, and each one has one. And to have multiple threads… I can’t imagine such a cormorant fishing-like situation.]

Perhaps relieved to have found a way to save himself, Haruka’s complexion had returned to its usual state.

[What does cormorant fishing mean?]
[It’s a cormorant, a bird with a long neck. You don’t know it? Cormorants catch fish, but you put a rope around the cormorant’s neck, and when you think it has caught a fish, you pull the cormorant into a boat. It’s a way of fishing where you get the cormorant to spit out the fish before it swallows it. A person called a cormorant fisherman is on the boat, and he holds onto the rope attached to the cormorant. There are many such ropes and many cormorants.]
[Oh, so the cormorants are the souls of the Reincarnators, and the rope is the thread. And this cormorant fisherman is the husband.]

When I stamped my fist on my palm and said that, Haruka praised me and said “Well done.”

[… How should I put it, they’re a creature that is beyond my common sense.]

Dole points at me and Haruka.

[Their conversation is interesting.]
[Olphynn, you’re quite generous. Sometimes my head feels like it’s going to split open.]

Haruka’s husband heaved a sigh so long it felt like his soul left along with it.

[So, uhh, that’s how it is, hence we will have Olphynn be Haruka’s cormorant fisherman.]
[My, how wonderful. To be connected with the handsome priest’s heart.]
[Haruka, Haruka. It’s the soul, not the heart.]
[Either way is fine, isn’t it?]
[You’re right. Either way is fine.]

We both laughed. When I’m with Haruka, even serious things don’t seem so serious. This is nice. Best friends are such great people to have, I believe.
In front of us two laughing people, the four people who were born here looked troubled. The locals here are just too serious. I wonder if there’s no comedy culture here.

[But I’m glad that you said yes, Haruka. I was worried about how I was going to persuade you if you said no.]
[I’m not going to say that. I don’t think there’s any point in trying to hang on to it, but this is a second life that I’ve finally been given. I’ll try to live it out to the end.]

Haruka chuckled.

[Well then, let’s get going right away!”]
[But we need travel expenses…]
[Oh, that’s right. Umm, it’s 200,000 one way. Hey, Dole, is that the price per person? If we travel with five people, will the price per person be cheaper?]
[Well, it will probably be a little cheaper. Even just renting a boat is cheaper for each person if five people rent it than if one person does it alone.]
[That means it will cost just under 400,000 for a round trip… I’m an unemployed Reincarnator after all. I wish I could work like I did over there.]
[By the way, what kind of work did you do, Haruka?]

In that countryside, it’s either civil service or the agricultural cooperative. That’s what my parents often say. A good job with a good status.
But I can’t imagine my parents could become office workers who go to work at a set time every day, and those kinds of people must be studying really hard to get that job.
Haruka’s grandmother often said that getting a good job is a reward for working hard as a child.

[Me? A police.]
[Police……?! Police, you mean a police officer!?]

I was so surprised that I fell off my chair, but Saine grabbed me by the arm and pulled me up.

[Yes, I was a police officer. But I wasn’t on duty at the police box, I was in the First Investigative Division. It was the department that dealt with murders and stuff.]

The detective drama I watched a long time ago is running around in my head. Wow, they don’t fit at all. Haruka and a tough-looking detective.

[Wh, wh-wh-why were you doing that?]
[What do you mean “why”…… It’s because I passed the exam. Well, I took the exam thinking I’d take it safe and become a civil servant. But then due to scheduling conflicts, I could only take the exam for the prefectural police. I took the exam and passed, and while I was studying at the prefectural police academy, the chief of the First Investigation Division at the time came as a lecturer for a day and I took a liking to him.]

Haruka was quiet for a moment, then his cheeks turned red.

[Actually, it was my first time, you know? With the Section Chief.]

I hit my head on the table.

[There are a lot of people like that in the police and the Self-Defense Forces. They’re repressed and have a lot of stamina. Maybe it’s because they’re sensitive about public opinion, but they hide their sexual inclinations and marry women. But because they’re that way at heart, they soon can’t control themselves and become frustrated. At that time, if they suddenly find someone like them, they’re out of control. In no time at all, they’re down there, sucking me, and making me cry.]

Ah, I just wrote some weird kanji in my head. Cry is “泣く” , right?2

[And so, I was transferred to the First Investigation Division. It’s a rural area, so I figured murders would be a rare occurrence and thought, ‘Well, it should be fine.’ But times have changed, you know. The highway got connected. Now it’s just a three-hour drive from the bustling city packed with people. A convenient distance, isn’t it? People drive out here after committing a murder in the city, just to dump the body. They probably think no one will find it if they toss it down the cliff from a mountain road. The sheer audacity of it—it’s like illegal dumping taken to a whole new level. But with the highway, they can kill, dump the body, and be back in the city all in one night.]

My head can’t keep up with such graphic stories.

[But you know, you really can’t get away with doing bad things. Those bodies? They’re actually found quite often. People underestimate us country folk way too much. We go into the mountains all the time. Most of the bodies get discovered in the spring or autumn. You know why? Mountain vegetable picking and mushroom hunting. That’s when everything comes to light, and the case ends up on our desk.]
[What’s a case?]
[It means investigating a murder case. With bodies like that, it’s pretty obvious they aren’t locals, so we start by contacting neighboring prefectures or checking missing persons nationwide. Once it’s clear the victim is from the city, detectives from where the crime happened show up. That’s when it becomes a joint investigation.]
[Huh, I see…]
[City detectives, though—they’re intense. I mean, they come from places where murders happen all the time. And among them, there are always a few who… well, have an eye for us rural folks. In my experience, at least one in every investigation like this. And, without fail, they’re elites. What’s with that, anyway? Maybe all their pent-up emotions get channeled into their work?]
[So, Haruka, you’ve been with… someone like that, too?]
[Of course. I totally enjoy myself. Even with my plain, country look, they’re thrilled. They call me ‘simple’ or ‘genuine’… Well, it’s all in how you spin it, right? But, no matter how much I fall for them while the case is ongoing, they always toss me aside the moment the investigation wraps up. They’re all the same in that regard.]

Haruka’s eyes looked sad as they shook.

[Haruka’s a good guy. Kind and funny. The only reason things didn’t work out before was because you chose the wrong people. If you connect your soul with Olefin, you’ll be able to live forever. Olphynn is incredibly strong and durable. So Haruka, let’s find a good guy next time.]

TN:
1- Cormorant fishing is a traditional fishing technique in which fishermen use trained cormorants to catch fish in rivers. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cormorant_fishing)
泣く- naku- to cry, to weep, to sob, to howl, Haruka was using “鳴く- naku- to bark, to purr, to make sound (animal)