Pieces - Rika
C103 Administration Test (Piece #01)
[Houjou Satoko's detailed examination result is required]
[Irie Kyousuke's determination is required]
The schedule of Satoko-chan's dissection is proceeding steadily.
...The feeling of not watching to make Satoshi-kun sad.
The pity for Satoko-chan's heart-breaking circumstances.
......And the thought of me having to take up that cruel responsibility for the sake of this research. All of them fought within me over and over again.
Rika: "......Irie."
Irie: "Eh? Ahh, I'm sorry, I spaced off there. What's the matter, Rika-chan?"
Rika: "......My friend has been in the hospital for a long time now, does she have the Hinamizawa Syndrome?"
Irie: "Who did you hear that from?"
Rika: "......It was just me thinking. How is it, Irie? Does Satoko have the Hinamizawa Syndrome?"
Rika-chan is already someone on our side.
There's nothing to hide from her.
In fact, to not hide anything from her has become a kind of unwritten rule of sincerity for me.
Irie: "............Yes. The poor relationship with her parents, and the sudden death of those parents.... These occurrences have been too great for her to be able to accept all at once.......Perhaps that was the trigger."
Rika: "......The exam results?"
Irie: "It's L5. Although she appears very stable on the surface, her emotions are very unstable. I have turned down Satoshi-kun's visits since a few days ago as well."
Rika: "......I heard from Satoshi. He was worried about how Satoko's wounds in her heart just can't heal....... Irie, what will happen to Satoko?"
Irie: "................................."
To Rika-chan, Satoko-chan is her best friend.
It's obviously impossible for me to tell her that a schedule for the dissection of that Satoko-chan is actually already in progress....
But, in the end, even if I try to skip through her questioning by staying silent, it only confirms that the conditions surrounding Satoko-chan is in a very bad state.
Rika: "......Didn't Irie find out a lot of things by examining my body?"
Irie: "Yes, of course..........We're in a stage of testing out various things right now, including experimental medications that are expected to suppress the symptoms."
Rika: "......Can you not give that to Satoko?"
Irie: "I thought of it once.... But it's quite dangerous. We're still at a stage where we would want to test the medication on specimens that are more fit physically and mentally, and slowly gather data as we go along....... It is not something we can try on someone like Satoko-chan, who cannot afford to lose anything more."
Rika: "......Then, Irie. If you won't try that medicine, what will to happen to Satoko?"
It was a tone as if she knew that Satoko-chan's fate was going to be dissection.
......No, maybe she knows.
I have revealed most of our research to her.
......If she's more mature than she looks, then she can probably figure out the dissection on her own too after some thinking.
Rika: "......I think, if there's even a 1% chance of saving Satoko, then we should bet on it."
Irie: "It's a very dangerous bet.... In the worst case, the terminal symptoms could act out immediately and make her mad, or she could lose her mind and turn into a vegetable that stares at walls with unfocused eyes for the rest of her life.......Either way, it would be a fate far too cruel."
Rika: "......Are you saying it's much better to tranquilize her whole body and then kill her while she's asleep then?"
Irie: "..............................."
Rika: "......Irie, it's just like Takano says all the time, medical science isn't 100%. But if we leave Satoko like this, the fate that awaits her can only be 100% death. If so, it should be clear which side we have to bet on."
Irie: "......You're right. It's just as you said."
But, as the clinic head, I understand better than anyone else.
The experimental medication C103 that's in development right now is at a stage where we're not even sure if it can be used.
There's no doubt that it's success rate, if expressed in percentages, would not even amount to one.
On top of that, I can't even imagine what kind of tragic end there might be if the test drug doesn't fit the body.
That's why.........I get tempted into thinking that maybe it would be far more merciful to give her as much of her favorites as she wants... and then after watching her fall into a gentle sleep, dissect her while she's in her dreams....
......It's shameful, but Takano-san is right.
I'm still stuck at halfway, can't come to a resolution even know.
...Just how much effect would something created by someone like that have?
......Exactly because it's a drug made by someone like me... I can't believe in a success of even 0.1%....
Rika: "......I think, if it's a drug made by Irie, it can be trusted."
I gasped at the words, as if they saw right through my heart.
Surprised, I raised my lowered head to look at her...... and on her face was a firm look that's almost unimaginable from her age.
Rika: "......Irie is enduring a very harsh job that controls people's life. Originally, it is absurd for a human being to have any say in another person's life and death. The weight of that can only be understood by those who was burdened by it."
Her voice is the same... and yet, for some reason, I feel like I'm being lectured by a Rika-chan that I don't know....
And then, that Rika-chan, sounding as if she already knew perfectly well about the weight of carrying someone's life on your back,
Rika: "......The weight of that is decided by your sense of guilt and the weight of your regret.... That's why Irie can't test a drug that's still dangerous on Satoko. Am I right?"
Irie: "..............................."
I feel like I've been told the same thing by Takano-san in the past too.... Once again, I've been lectured about that....
Rika: "But.......that's exactly why I think I can leave Satoko in your hands."
Irie: "......Eh...?"
Rika: "A person's life is a very heavy thing. To be unable to endure that weight is because you have a heart that places great importance on people's life.......... Without a heart like that, how can you save someone from illness? Do you think I'd try drugs made by someone like Takano, who thinks of people as nothing more than guinea pigs? *giggle giggle*."
Irie: "......Ha...hahahahaha...."
It's not a laughing matter at all, yet I ended up laughing somehow.
......It's because I felt it would be best to laugh there.
Rika: "If both Takano and you offered your own drugs, I think Irie's drug would be the one that works. Because, medicine is something born from one's heart....... As droplets that drip out of your own body, the feeling of wanting to save people will cure their illnesses."
Irie: "......That is exactly right.......For a doctor to be taught a lesson about medicine...."
Rika: "I gave out my own body only for Satoko's sake. Everything that was pulled out of my body with a needle are the droplets of medicine I have to offer to Satoko. If you extracted something while learning of the true weight of life from those droplets, without forgetting regret and remorse....... Then there's no reason they won't work on Satoko."
......Do shrine mikos listen to people's troubles and repentances too?
If so, then at this age, she already makes a wonderful miko of the Furude shrine.
Irie: "............This...will be a gamble.......I don't know whether Satoko-chan will accept it in the end or not...."
Rika: "There's no need to tell Satoko about it. Because for Satoko, knowing about the Hinamizawa Syndrome will do nothing other than gouge at the deep wounds of her heart once again."
The meaning of her words here.
......I will notice it afterwards, and become shocked once again at her prudence and insight.
Irie: "............Let us call off the dissection plan. We will shift to the C103 administration test for Houjou Satoko.......I will do my best, to raise that probability of things going well, even if it's only by 1%."
Rika: "......Don't worry, Irie. It will definitely go well."
Irie: "Hahahahaha.... No, we mustn't be that optimistic."
Rika: "......It's alright. Because it has already been decided."
"This is... a reliable message from Furude shrine's miko-sama."
Rika: "......Fight, O~?"
Lot For Sale Tour (Piece #33)
[Pre-requisite: Ryuguu’s move back to Hinamizawa]
[Pre-requisite: The fourth year’s curse]
Spoiler:
...Hmm, I guess I’m in a bit of a predicament here right now.
My name is Maebara Ichirou and I’m in a particularly in a great mood right now…but at the same time, I’m stuck in a jam…
I came to Hinamizawa on a tour of find a new place to build a home. After the realtor explained the details of this area to our group, he told us to enjoy a bit of free time until time.
…And so I wandered off as I experienced the wonderful nature and the smelled nice aroma of clean air. As I was attaining great inspiration from this area, I realized…well…that I was lost.
Fortunately, there is still a bit of time until the time I was supposed to be back with my group. …But, that still doesn’t change the fact that I’m lost. Okay, calm down. Even though this is a rural area, people reside here. So long as I continue walking, I’m bound to meet up with someone whom I can ask for directions.
No worries, no worries. Ha-ha-ha. …Well, except for the time I’ve gotta catch the Shinkansen…
However, my plan to meeting someone on the road seems to have backfired. ...It’s been hours, but I haven’t seen anyone passing by. …I think I really am lost. I should’ve been more careful in paying attention to my surroundings. I guess this shows how much of an urbanite I am…
So, I was very relieved when I heard voices nearby. It was the playful sounds of two little girls having fun. …Since little kids are here, this still must be safe place to be lost. I immediately turned my legs towards the direction of their voices.
As I waded through the tall pampas grass, I suddenly came to a very astonishing field filled with the beauty of nature. And there, I saw two little girls playing with each other. The portrait of the cute girls innocently dancing in the field blossoming with flowers were so spectacular, that it blew away all the great artworks that I have seen since. ...I could be over-exaggerating, but the sight was holier than any other religious art works too.
I wondered why we feel such salvations from seeing innocent girls dancing the field.
...That’s because we are all live our lives tainted with sin. Living life is not all pleasure and glory. ...We build up sins and guilt just by living life as well. That is why we sense holiness at the sight of innocence which reminds us of the time we weren’t corrupted with the sins of our world.
We grow up as a natural process of life, …in the meanwhile, we begin to realize the innocence that we lost through maturity. Henceforth, we see adoration and admiration to such cute little children which symbolizes innocence like these girls…
Rika: “…Mi-. There is a stranger who is looking at us while mumbling about difficult things.”
Hanyu: “Auauau. …Rika, that person is no stranger.”
Ichirou: “…huh? Whoa!! Oh, I…I’m so sorry!! No, no, I’m not a stranger. Wahahahaha…!”
Rika: “…Yet, his eyes are hooked to my breast and my legs. Nipa~?”
Ichirou: “No, no, I wasn’t looking in there! Please don’t tell the station officer-!! I was using this mirror to fix my hair…!!”
Hanyu: “….Ahahahahaha. I don’t understand what you are talking about, but I’m sure it’s something very funny.”
Rika: “I guess father and son really are alike.”
The two girls made fun of me for a while, but they seemed to have gotten bored with it rather quickly and began to playfully dance in the field once again.
I realized that whatever I said will backfire against me, so I left the two alone and watched them play as I rested my butt on a dead wood.
…I wonder how old they are. They look rather young, …but they probably aren’t too far apart from Keiichi.
If we’re to move here, Keiichi might be one of their schoolmates. Kids that meet each other at the school means…that they are residents of this area. …If the kids here at Hinamizawa are all like these innocent little girls….even if living a rural life may have its inconveniences….there is a good reason to move our home here.
….We were a failure as parents.
We didn’t know anything about Keiichi’s internal problems, we couldn’t grasp his disenchantment, and we practically forfeited parenting him by leaving him alone.
Any parental guidebook says that….the first signs of delinquencies in a child…are signals for help towards his or her parents. It’s not the actions itself; it is the motive to do such actions which are an emotional appeal from the child to yearn communication with his or her parents.
…Yet people are used to formal methods of communication through speech…which makes it difficult for one another to sense such subtle pleas of help. We could only hear vocal communication, and we couldn’t hear the emotional signs of distress from our own son.
Keiichi….probably thinks he is the most one at fault.
…Of course, what Keiichi did was wrong. People are different from cats and dogs. As a human being, it is one’s own responsibility to understand and differentiate between right and wrong.
…But…as parents…we too are also at fault.
It disgusts me to call myself as a parent that I let my own son spiral down to such a level to cause such an incident to make us realize his emotional pleas. If we really listened and saw Keiichi, if we hadn’t put so much pressure on him, Keiichi would never have made such an sub-conscious call for help in such a terrible manner.
So, that incident was not all Keiichi’s fault. …Everyone in the Maebara family was at fault.
…I wanted to tell Keiichi this, but Keiichi is still much too young and still hot-blooded to understand this now.
…Right now, Keiichi is at home with the guilt of what he had done crushing him. He seemingly has lost the will to live.
His mother, my wife, is also the same. …She is at home blaming herself for putting so much pressure on our son; how she only focused on his good grades and nothing else; which lead our son to cause such an incident.
…And me. I blame myself for my disinterest in my parental duties. The forfeiture of looking after my own son triggered this incident.
The crucifixion cross will forever linger on our backs even though the injured child accepted our apologies and was released from the hospital. And the coldness of society will mock at us to crush ourselves to death with our sins.
…But we continue to live. We acknowledge our sins, we carry the burden on our backs…and we continue to live.
Perhaps we can start a new life here in this village. …I sincerely began to think that way as I was watching the two girls play.
The types of friends that Keiichi needs are children like them. …I’m sure that children in this village will definitely teach Keiichi something that he has never been taught by the children whose main discussions were about cram schools and preliminary exam results.
Then, I realized that the two girls were playing near a sign post that didn’t fit in to such an open field like this. The sign read “lot for sale” and it advertised the real-estate agency that had just brought me here for a tour.
…Then…this means that…if we desire to do so, we could live in a such a beautiful scenery such as this place.
The girls then came up to me as if they had read my mind and said,
Rika: “….This is a wonderful village. There are things here that cannot be found in a big city.”
Ichirou: “Yes, that maybe right. I have a feeling that there are too.”
Rika: “…But you too will be able to bring something beneficial to the village.”
Ichirou: “I don’t know…Do you think…we have such a thing?”
Hanyu: “Yes, you do. Auau.”
Rika: “….We have lived in this village for several hundred years. And no one has come, and nothing has occurred. …That’s why nothing drastic happens, and nothing can be changed.”
Ichirou: “But isn’t having no change the best part of the village?”
Rika: “…But you came here to this village to seek change…right?”
Ichirou: “Yes, …you have a point there.”
Rika: “…And we too are eager to welcome the new people into our world. In our perspective, it is like blasting open the dike that keeps the stale water in the marsh from draining. Water purifies because it streams. A lake that has no streams leading in or out of it is just a dank marsh.
Hanyu: “Yes it’s true that this place was called a village with a ‘fuchi’ (marsh) up until recently as the Meiji era. …But, that name changed into the village as we know today - Hinamizawa. …Waters in the ‘fuchi’ (as in Oniga[i[fuchi[/i]) becomes stale because they don’t flow. But waters in ‘sawa’ (or ‘zawa’ of Hinamizawa, sawa/zawa = stream) doesn’t go stale.
Rika (Frederica-mode): “….Chuckle. And besides, you guys are gonna teach us that a dike can be, no, must be, blasted open.”
I wonder if the girls are playing riddles with me. I couldn’t understand a tiny bit of what they were saying.
But, I did understand…that these girls were eagerly waiting for a newcomer into their village, and that they wanted to build a new future for the village along with the newcomers.
I once again took a good look at the ad sign behind them, to remember this exact spot.
…My heart was already set.
Rika: “…We’ll be anxiously waiting for your family to move here. ….Maebara.”
Uncle Hiroshi: “Ahhh~!!! There you are!! Sir~~!! You shouldn’t wander off to such a far away place like this--!!”
The daydream like moment came to a sudden end as I heard the raspy voice from the distance. …It was the real-estate agent. He must’ve been looking all over for me because I hadn’t returned back in time.
Ichirou: “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…! I got kinda lost on the way…”
I apologize to the agent as I scratched my head.
…I look back to take one more glimpse of this girls…but they were nowhere to be seen….
Maebara Keiichi (Piece #36)
[Pre-requisite: Putting away the teacups from the room]
[Pre-requisite: Maebara Ichirou’s tour of Hinamizawa]
Keiichi: “…This….this is the school? Dang, I guess this really is a rural area.”
Ichirou: “Keiichi, you shouldn’t say such things. This is the beloved school for people living here.”
That was my first impression of Hinamizawa’s school. Besides, how can anyone think of this place as a school? There’s even a sign there that reads Hinamizawa Forestry Preserve.
Principal: “Wahahahaha! Well, you got me there, kiddo! We are actually borrowing this building from the forestry preserve!”
The man who introduced himself as the principal guffawed.
Chie: “Even though it doesn’t look like one, it really is a school. However, the school life here is going to be very different from what you attended previously. So, are you ready for it, Maebara-kun?”
Keiichi: “Huh…oh yes, of course!”
I’ve heard the rumors that the school life here is like a constant battle royale in which all the students who attend here are placed into one classroom. …I guess the rumors were true. From what I gathered, most of my classmates would be children younger than me, so it kinda feels like I’m going back to kindergarten again. But what the hey, that’s what interested me the most. …Beats going to a school with monotonous classmates who all look the same! This is gonna be fun!
Chie: “Maebara-kun, when you transfer here, you’re going to be the eldest boy in the school. Hence, not only will you have to keep up with your studies, you’re also going to have the responsibility to be an example for the rest of the students as well. Especially since younger students tends to be heavily influenced by the actions of older students. I will caution you when you go to far, but I want you to always be aware to not be a bad influence to the younger kids, okay?”
Keiichi: “Oh, of course. I will do my best.”
Ichirou: “Keiichi. Studying is not just reading textbooks all day. You’re gonna have to set an example to the rest of the children as an older classmate.”
Keiichi: “I know, I know…!”
After that, Chie-sensei showed me around the empty classroom and told me which one was going to be my desk. …Since we are in the stages of growing up really fast, there were bunch of desks big and small. Yet the desk total was still only around 30. But, I can already tell that this place is going to be filled with excitement with totally different age groups and sexes all jumbled up into one classroom.
The walls were covered with calligraphy and art lessons from different grade levels. Just by looking at them, I can see this classroom is always full of joy and fun…in sharp contrast to the previous schools that I attended. …It reminded me of the days when I actually enjoyed going to school.
Keiichi: “Dad, I love it. I’d rather go to this school than going to that other school in the town.”
Ichirou: “My son loves this place too. Well to tell you the truth, I actually wanted him to attend this one as well.”
Chie: “Are you sure? …But the school in Okinomiya has much more resources and better teachers…”
Despite what she just said, I could tell that Chie-sensei was delighted that she would be able to welcome in a new transfer student into this school.
My dad went into the faculty room with the principal and Chie-sensei to file some paperwork for my transfer. In the meanwhile, I decided to walk around the classroom and to look at the things plastered on the wall.
…To tell you the truth, I really wasn’t interested in moving in the first place.
I was on the verge of giving up on life for the stupid shit that I did. I practically had no will to live, and I spent my days curled up inside my bed.
So when my parents told that we were moving, I was initially unenthusiastic because it seemed like I was running away from what I’ve did…
But as soon as we moved here, my thoughts changed. I became optimistic to start a new life here from zero. …I made the decision to reconstruct my life in the way that I always wanted to live my life.
With Hinamizawa and this school, it’ll be possible. I’m never going to put myself down into such sorry state that I was then. I’m not going to be an obtuse asshole that I was back then, who childishly thought that being smart and getting good grades was all that mattered in the world. I can safely say that this school will be able to teach me all the important things of what school life should be about; this school will re-educate me on the aspects that I had thrown out the window before.
What I’m saying are probably embarrassing to say out of my own mouth. But these things are the most important lessons a person can get. …Without them, one will not be able to mature into a healthy-minded adult.
These things are probably just the norm for the kids that go to this school. …But for me, I’ve gotta re-learn everything from the start.
How to….make friends.
How to….play.
Play. And through playing activities, one learns the vital lessons of life such as opening and ways of socializing with others, etc. etc.
It probably looks easy, doesn’t it? …But I can tell that I’m going to take a bit of time in order to learn these things. It’s my own fault that I pushed these things aside to blindly focus on weightless studying.
….I’m not saying studying itself is not important. But overstudying is. People that say studying and grades are the most important thing for a child, they are completely wrong and it is just plain idiotic.
….I can start from scratch with this school.
I can finally become the Maebara Keiichi that I always wanted to become.
Keiichi: “…………?”
I saw two girls peeking through the window from the school ground.
This school ground is like a playground for the local children. There were some kids playing there a while ago. …Perhaps these two became interested in me walking around in their classroom or something.
…Well duh. To them, I’m still a stranger.
I’m gonna start seeing them from next Monday so…maybe I should say hello?
Rika: “….You’ve finally moved here. I was getting tired of waiting for you.”
Hanyu: “Auauau. But because of this, it’s going to change once again. ….That’s because Keiichi is the six of the dice.”
Rika: “…He certainly is, but the dice that Keiichi rolls himself frequently comes up with a one too.”
Hanyu: “Auauauau…, but those aren’t Keiichi’s fault.”
Rika: “…Yep, it’s all Hanyu’s fault. All your fault. Here, go and apologize to Keiichi.”
Hanyu: “Auauauauauau…”
Keiichi: “Huh? …You guys know my name?”
I thought that they said my name. …Nah, it’s probably just my imagination. It’s my first time seeing them.
Rika: “…Nipa~?. Are you a transfer student?”
Keiichi: “Huh? Oh…Yeah! Hey, wassup! My name is Maebara Keiichi. I’m gonna be coming here starting next Monday. Take good care of me, will ya!”
Hanyu: “Auauau? Of course, we’ll be the bestest of friends.”
Rika: “…Keiichi, the priestess of the Furude Shrine has a vision for you. You’d better becareful when you open the door to the classroom on your first day of school because it is cursed. And, there’s also gonna be a thumbtack stuck onto your chair, so watch your back. Oh, and there will also be a plastic frog inside your table too.”
Rika: “…Sigh, but Keiichi will always fall for them no matter how many times I caution him. Pity pity, your Monday is going to be in pity…”
Rika: “Chuckle chuckle. Oh well, I guess that’s why it makes it fun. But still, I would like to see a world where you can smash through that little fate. Will you? Chuckle chuckle chuckle. You’re gonna teach us how to do that, you know? Like the time you did in that one world out of all the hopeless ones.”
Keiichi: “Huh? ……………??????”
The prophecy that the two made that day will come true the next Monday due to the fangy and bratty little prankster who uses honorifics in the wrong way.
…Of course, I realize this too late.
But still, I fell in love with this place.
My name is Maebara Keiichi.
It’s a fresh new start for me, but I’m gonna relive my life to the fullest this time around!
I’ve gotta a lot of re-learning to do on all the things that I’ve missed out. But I’m gonna assimilate everything I can.
And I’m gonna be the Maebara Keiichi that I always wanted to be.
…It might take a bit of time to learn all of that.
But I’m gonna make it happen!