Satoru Fujinuma is a shut-in manga artist (or so he insists) with a weird power called 'Revival,' which sends him back in time just before something terrible happens.
One day, his mother Sachiko realizes the identity of the kidnapper behind a series of child abductions in Satoru's old Hokkaido hometown. Satoru dismisses it as paranoia. That night, he comes home to find his mother stabbed and dying. Wrongly accused of her murder, Satoru's panic triggers Revival—but this time it's different. He'
Erased IF: The Day I Didn't Open the Door - Secret Strategy Meeting and First Smile
Monday.
The air in the classroom felt heavier than usual. No, that was probably just my own state of mind.
Fujinuma Satoru was slumped over his desk by the window. His messy bangs hung over his eyes. With sleep-deprived brown eyes, he glanced toward the back of the classroom.
Kaya Michi's seat was empty again today.
Would she come on Wednesday? Would she show up at the children's center?
I remembered the man in the black coat walking behind her on the embankment path over the weekend. That wasn't a coincidence. My instincts told me so. But in this elementary schooler's body, there was no way I could beat a grown man.
"What a pain."
The words slipped out naturally.
That's when it happened.
"[sarcastic] You look like you're having a great time, Fujinuma-kun."
I turned toward the voice. Hiromi, in the seat next to me, was staring at me intently, pushing up his thick silver-rimmed glasses with his middle finger. His narrow eyes always seemed to be measuring something.
"Not really. I don't look like I'm having fun, do I?"
"You don't. That was sarcasm."
Hiromi spread his textbook on his desk and lowered his voice.
"Last Friday, you lost to Susukida on purpose. Your movements weren't instinctive. You thought it through with your head, calculated it, and decided to lose from the very beginning."
I sighed.
This kid was way too sharp after all.
"And?"
"[serious] That's all. But let me say this much. I don't really understand you. The look in your eyes sometimes seems like an adult's. No, like an ossan's."
An ossan.
You hit the nail on the head, damn it.
I'll make you take responsibility for that.
"[serious] Hiromi, I need to talk to you after school. Come to the back seats in the library."
I lifted my head and looked Hiromi straight in the eye.
For a moment, Hiromi's narrow eyes behind his glasses widened slightly. But he quickly returned to his composed expression.
"[cold] Hmm. Fine."
He'd probably already sensed something.
He must have realized long ago that I wasn't just an ordinary elementary schooler.
That was exactly why it was worth talking to him.
I need your help.
This time, I can't do it alone.
After school.
Ishikari Misono Town Library.
A small library next to the elementary school, renovated from the old town hall building. The collection was only about fifteen thousand books, but you could also browse newspaper archives and local materials. The librarian, Morikawa-san, was silently repairing books behind the counter.
The window seat at the very back of the library.
Outside, snow was fluttering down. The heated room was quiet; if you strained your ears, you could only faintly hear the wind outside.
"[sarcastic] So, what's this about? Don't tell me it's a confession or something?"
Hiromi sat down across from me and immediately started with the sarcasm.
"No."
"Didn't think so."
I took a deep breath.
Honestly, I didn't know how to explain this. But with this guy, it was better to be completely open.
"I came from the future."
I said it.
Hiromi froze for a moment.
Then he laughed through his nose.
"[laughing] Hah... That's an interesting delusion. Fujinuma-kun, you really are strange."
"I figured you wouldn't believe me."
"[sarcastic] Obviously. Coming from the future, there's no way I could believe something like—"
"Tomorrow's Japanese test."
I cut Hiromi off.
"Miyazawa Kenji's 'Ame ni mo Makezu' will be on it. The last question will be: 'Write the protagonist's feelings in two lines.' The correct answer is: 'A strong desire to help others without succumbing to any hardship.'"
The smile vanished from Hiromi's face.
His narrow eyes widened in shock. Behind the thick lenses, something was calculating.
"...What did you just say?"
"You'll know tomorrow."
I placed a memo on the desk.
A paper with all the questions and answers written on it.
"Want to test it?"
Hiromi silently picked up the memo. The fingertips holding the paper trembled slightly.
"[surprised] ...You..."
"Show me the results tomorrow. Then, will you hear the rest of the story?"
Hiromi kept staring at the memo, not lifting his head.
A long silence.
Outside the window, the wind howled. The faint sound of snow hitting the glass could be heard.
"[serious] ...Fine. If everything is correct tomorrow, I'll listen."
Saying that, Hiromi neatly folded the memo and put it in his pocket.
"But if even one thing is wrong, I'm going to assume you're insane."
"Fine by me."
I stood up.
"See you tomorrow, then."
I turned my back and started walking.
"[serious] Hey, Fujinuma-kun."
Hiromi's voice hit my back.
I turned around. Hiromi was looking at me with a serious expression.
"If you came from the future, what did you come for? What are you trying to do?"
I hesitated for a moment, then answered.
"[serious] To save someone."
I said just that and left the library.
The next day, Tuesday.
The Japanese test began.
Our homeroom teacher, Yotsuya-sensei, handed out the test papers around the classroom. The moment the papers hit the desks, small sighs and murmurs of "oh no" could be heard throughout the room.
From my seat, I looked at Hiromi next to me.
Hiromi was frozen, staring at the question sheet on his desk.
He was pale.
His narrow eyes behind the thick lenses were wide open, as if he'd seen something impossible.
Because the questions were exactly, word for word, what I had written on the memo yesterday.
Hiromi slowly lifted his head and looked at me.
I gave a small nod.
Hiromi let out a long, deep breath. He looked like he'd given up trying to figure it out.
During the break after the test.
Hiromi immediately came over to my seat.
"[scared] ...You... did you really come from the future?"
His voice was quiet, but it wasn't his usual cool tone. His voice was trembling.
I nodded silently.
"[surprised] I can't believe it... but I have to. With the memo yesterday and today's test matching this perfectly, there's no way to deny it."
Hiromi pushed up his glasses and closed his eyes, as if organizing his thoughts.
Then, when he opened them, he was back to his usual calm self.
"[serious] Fine. I'll listen. Everything."
"Thanks."
"[sarcastic] It's too early for thanks. I'll decide whether to cooperate after I hear it. I don't do things that don't make logical sense."
"That's fine."
I nodded.
Knowing his personality, he wouldn't move unless I laid out the logic properly. Emotions alone wouldn't convince him. But once he was convinced, he'd be absolutely reliable.
I'd learned last week that he was that kind of guy.
Tuesday after school.
The equipment shed behind the elementary school.
An old shed tucked away in the corner of the schoolyard, hidden in the shadow of the gymnasium. Vaulting boxes, mats, and disused equipment were piled up haphazardly. It was dusty, and you could faintly hear the sound of snow piling up on the roof outside.
Three of us gathered here.
Me, Hiromi, and Kenta.
Kenta's short black hair, cropped with clippers, was sticking up, and his small black eyes were sparkling. When he laughed, you could see his double tooth. On the fist of his left hand, there was a fresh scrape again today.
This guy was only here because Hiromi called him.
"[excited] Hey, why was I called here?"
"[sarcastic] Kenta, don't ask questions later. Just listen to everything. First, shut up."
"Hah!? You bastard, you call me here and that's what you say!"
"[cold] Shut up. This is important."
Watching the two of them go back and forth, I couldn't help but crack a smile.
They really were an odd couple.
But this was fine. This was good.
Instead of shouldering everything alone, I'd fight alongside someone else. That's what I'd decided.
"[serious] Kenta, listen to me."
I looked Kenta straight in the eye.
I'd lost to him in that duel and become his underling. But Kenta had taken my words back then—"I need your help"—completely seriously.
So this time, I'd tell him everything.
"What I'm about to say might be hard to believe. But it's the truth. I came from eighteen years in the future. In this town, children are going to be kidnapped and killed. The first victim will be Kaya Michi."
Silence fell over the shed.
Only the sound of the wind outside could be heard.
The usual cheerful grin vanished from Kenta's face.
Instead, he clenched his fist tightly.
"[angry] From the future? Kaya's... gonna be killed? Don't screw with me!! Then we just have to protect her, right?!"
Kenta shouted loudly and stood up.
"Let's go to Kaya's house right now!!"
"[cold] Too simplistic."
Hiromi stated coldly.
"Huh!? What's simplistic about it!"
"Who's the culprit? It's someone in this town right now. How do we protect her without knowing who that is? On the contrary, if they find out we're trying to protect her, they might make a move first. If that happens, we lose."
Kenta bit his lip in frustration.
"Then what the hell are we supposed to do..."
"Gather information."
I looked at both of them.
"First, we identify the culprit. Until then, we watch over Michi so she's never alone. Hiromi, what do you think?"
Hiromi folded his arms and thought for a moment.
"[serious] If your story is true, the person who killed your mother in 2006 should be in this town right now. If they were an adult man in 2006, they'd be a young man in his twenties now. In other words, a young man who recently moved near this town and lives alone is suspicious."
I nodded.
This guy's quick thinking was reassuring.
"[surprised] Whoa, awesome! As expected of Hiromi!"
"[sarcastic] You don't need to flatter me. More importantly, Kenta, you don't move. First, we gather information. We act after that."
Kenta looked dissatisfied but reluctantly nodded.
"Fine. So what should I do now?"
"Wait. I'll gather information at the library. I'll look into the town circulars and residency registration info."
"I'll keep talking to Michi."
"Talking? She just runs away."
"Even so, I'll do it every day. If I don't stop talking to her, she might open up someday."
Kenta let out a small sigh.
"I don't really get it, but if you guys are doing it, I'll do it too. So, what should I do?"
"Kenta, starting next week, gather friends to watch over Michi. Ask the guys from the baseball team, people you can trust."
"Alright, leave it to me! My friends are all strong!"
Kenta thrust his fist out.
I smiled a little and bumped my fist against his.
Two small fists made a faint sound in the cold shed.
Wednesday after school.
Ishikari Children's Center "Yukimaru."
A public facility located a five-minute walk north from the elementary school. The manager, Takahashi-obasan, was always sitting at the counter. There were board games and books, the heating was on in the winter, and there weren't many kids.
Outside, light snow was dancing, but inside it was warm and cozy.
I pretended to pick up a manga volume from the bookshelf in the corner of the children's center.
On Monday and Tuesday, I'd spoken to her briefly too.
"Cold, huh."
"Today's school lunch was bad."
But Michi always ran away.
She'd glance at me, then immediately look down, shrink into herself, and go somewhere else.
Today might be the same. It might be no good.
But I couldn't stop talking to her.
Then I noticed a small shadow standing in front of the next shelf.
Shoulder-length, silvery light brown hair, pale as snow. Twin tails of uneven height. Large dark brown eyes like a puppy's, following the spines of the books.
It was Kaya Michi.
Today, she hadn't run away.
From the other side of the bookshelf, I casually spoke to her.
"I like drawing manga."
Michi's shoulders twitched slightly.
But she didn't turn her face toward me. She was still looking at the spines of the books.
"I'm drawing a story about flying off into space. A story about leaving all of Earth's troubles behind and arriving on an unknown planet."
Silence.
But Michi still didn't run.
She was listen
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