When I Thought I Was Reborn, My Family Turned Out to Be a Huge Landmine - Chapter 08: Conditions for Liberation

Chapter 08: Conditions for Liberation

In a certain place, a man was holding his head in frustration.

“… Daaaaaah! I don’t get it at all!”

He exclaimed loudly, his voice echoing in the empty room.

He was struggling with the progress of a simple erotic game. In terms of gameplay, he had unlocked four scenes and six images, but no matter which options or combinations he chose, he couldn’t unlock the remaining parts.

“It’s not a bug, right? I mean, others seem to have made it, and I’ve got the latest patch… Hmm?”

He never expected to struggle so much with just an erotic game, especially on his precious day off, consuming a considerable amount of time.

He could easily resolve this by consulting a walkthrough site, but his stubbornness prevented him from doing so.

He was determined to find the hidden route on his own, a strange sort of pride he held onto.

“Let’s start over from the beginning…”

He chose to restart, quickly skipping to the choices, saving, and trying every possible option. 

There were erotic scenes along the way, but now they were just a nuisance to him. His only goal was to unlock the route he hadn’t reached yet.

At this point, even though he was playing an erotic game, the erotic scenes felt like mere extras.

“…”

Hours passed, but the man kept repeating the same endings over and over.

“I’m done… I can’t figure it out.”

“Let’s try it once more, and if that fails, I’ll look at the walkthrough,” the man decided, setting aside his pride.

He chose to start from the beginning again. The prologue began, but feeling thirsty, he stood up to get a drink. The game screen showed a scene with a view that wouldn’t change until clicked, thinking it was a good opportunity, he left the room with that scene still displayed.

Seconds and then tens of seconds passed… And just as one minute elapsed, something changed on the screen.

[Huh, what’s Aki-nii doing?]

(TLN: Akito Arisaka, the protagonist of the eroge.)

On the screen was a young boy, Takuma Yumeno, the little brother of the heroine Arika Yumeno, a character who didn’t have much of a role in the main route.

He knew the game’s protagonist, the player’s avatar, but they hadn’t had much interaction since entering high school.

With the player absent, the screen halted after that line. The story would resume only when the man returned. The conditions to unlock the hidden route were as follows:

*Complete the main story, unlocking all available galleries and scenes.*

*During the first half of the prologue in the second playthrough, during an event where only the scenery is observed without any choices or actions, wait for one minute without doing anything. This would cause Arika’s brother to appear, automatically triggering a route divergence.*

The door opened with a click, and the man returned.

He placed the café au lait he brought back on the desk and turned to the computer with a warrior-like expression, ready to re-enter the battle.

“…Huh?”

His voice sounded deflated, a reaction that was in a way, appropriate.

Monday morning, the start of a week, everyone’s favorite day.

“What’s so fun about it…”

Retracting my previous statement, perhaps ‘melancholy’ was more accurate. Nevertheless, going to school was part of a student’s duty.

Entering the classroom with brief greetings, Yumeno, as usual, greeted me.

“Good morning, Kamisato-kun.”

“Good morning, Yumeno…?”

I tilted my head, noticing that Yumeno seemed in a better mood than usual.

It’s not unusual to see her smiling at school, but there was something about the aura she exuded that made me feel this way.

“You seem to be in a good mood?”

I asked her straightforwardly, and Yumeno tilted her head, pondering.

“Ah, Maybe it’s because I exchanged contact information with Kamisato-kun.”

“That’s a nice thing to say.”

“Yes, I’m very happy about it.”

Her smile was pleasing, but I noticed her childhood friend looking at us with suspicion.

Well, it wasn’t unusual for me to talk to Yumeno, so I didn’t worry too much about it.

“See you then.”

“Yeah.”

She really did seem in a better mood today. And typically, after talking with Yumeno, that guy would usually come to bug me.

“Hey Ren! As always, I’m jealous you get to talk to Yumeno-san.”

“That’s why I keep telling you not to hit my shoulder like that…”

“Don’t be so stiff, man… It’s not like I’m jealous or anything.”

“Should I tell Shinjo-san about this?”

“Sorry, my bad.”

Well, I know it’s just a joke, obviously.

Speaking of which, Kenichi hadn’t arrived yet. He’s always just in time, so it seemed like a typical day for him.

As Sogo left the classroom for the restroom, Shinjo-san appeared, looking around as if searching for Sogo.

“Good morning, Kamisato-kun. Where’s Sogo?”

“Good morning. He just went to the restroom.”

“Oh no. Guess I’ll wait then.”

Shinjo-san borrowed a chair from a nearby desk and sat down.

“Did you need something?”

“Yeah. There’s time before the morning assembly, and I wanted to talk with Sogo.”

Shinjo-san said, blushing slightly. I’ve known since middle school that she’s truly devoted to Sogo. While Sogo sometimes glances at other girls, he always cherishes Shinjo-san the most. They really are a perfect couple.

“…?”

“What’s wrong?”

Shinjo-san suddenly started looking around anxiously. I tilted my head in confusion as she spoke with a hint of fear.

“…I wonder what it was. I felt like there was an intense hostility directed at me.”

“Hostility?”

“Yeah… like a piercing gaze.”

“What’s that about…”

Hearing that, I also looked around. I couldn’t see anyone who seemed to be watching us.

The whole idea of feeling hostility felt like something out of a manga, but as far as I could tell, there was no one who would harbor such feelings towards Shinjo-san.

“It’s probably just your imagination. As far as I know, there’s no one who has a grudge against Shinjo-san.”

“…Really? If Kamisato-kun says so, I guess I can feel relieved.”

“Well, it’s not like I’m some influential person in the class or anything.”

“That doesn’t matter. We’ve known each other since middle school, and I know you’re someone reliable.”

“I hope so.”

“Fufu, even Sogo often says it, you know? He’s glad that Kamisato-kun is his friend.”

“Really?”

Darn, that actually makes me happy. 

It’s always pleasing to hear such things from a friend you’ve been with for so long, regardless of the form it takes. 

We often tease each other, but strangely, our relationship has never soured. I guess we just get along really well.

“Phew, I’m back… Oh, Yuka’s here too.”

“Welcome back, Sogo.”

While talking with Shinjo-san, Sogo returned.

“Sogo.”

“What?”

“I’m glad you’re my friend too. Let’s keep it up, okay?”

“Uh, okay… What’s with the sudden mushy talk?”

“…Hmph!”

“Guho!”

I playfully landed a light punch on him. 

Sogo overreacted to the not-so-strong hit, and Shinjo-san conveyed something like an explanation.

“Sogo, you said the same thing, remember? On our date just the other day.”

“Hey, don’t bring that up! That’s the kind of thing you’re supposed to keep to yourself, not tell the person directly!”

“So, you admit you said it?”

“…Ughr!”

Looking at us like this, it seems like Shinjo-san and I are ganging up on Sogo. But, honestly, days like this are really nice sometimes.

Soon after, Kenichi also entered the classroom.

“Good morning… What’s going on?”

“Hey. We were just talking about how great a guy Sogo is.”

“Is that so?”

I’ll have to tell him about our conversation during lunch break. Even if I don’t, I can easily imagine Shinjo-san eagerly sharing it for fun.

Then Kenichi joined the conversation, making for a lively morning. Amidst the chatter, I suddenly reached into my desk and realized something.

“…That’s unusual. There’s none today.”

The peculiar love letter-like notes that were often there were absent today.