“You don’t often find a listing like this at this price... no, I’d even say you won’t find one at all.”
What I had been expecting was something like an officetel, but the place we arrived at was a detached house. Three rooms, two bathrooms, a modern home suited for a family of four.
“A place like this... for this price?”
I could only ask back, dubious, at the unbelievably cheap rent. A bigger house meant more cleaning and more upkeep. Still, if it was about the same price as an officetel, it was hard not to be tempted. The distance from Tracen was also very appealing.
“You can use all the furniture as is.”
I saw an all-in-one washer and dryer. It was the exact model my mother had wanted, the one I had planned to buy her as a birthday present. TV, bed, cooking appliances, dryer and washer, a large desk, bookshelves, and more. They were listed as optional furnishings, but this was more than enough.
“Did someone maybe... commit suicide here or something?”
The realtor frowned. I hurriedly apologized.
“I’m sorry. It’s just absurdly cheap...”
“Well... the owner has some ties to a Tracen Trainer, so they’ve been putting it out for cheap rent. Every now and then, a Trainer lucky enough to grab it comes along.”
Even so, it was too cheap. I liked it too much, but a price that could only be described as absurd was suspicious all the same.
“Is there anywhere else?”
“I can assure you there isn’t a better listing than this one...”
The realtor looked at me as if he couldn’t understand me. I couldn’t bring myself to say it was because I had a bad feeling, so I could only scratch my cheek apologetically.
“Hmm...”
The realtor let out a groan, then said he’d check another listing and stepped outside with his phone, asking me to look around the house a little more. Through the wide window facing the yard, I could see him bowing his head repeatedly as he made the call.
There were lilacs blooming in the yard. I stared, almost spellbound, at the small flowerbed that looked as if it had only recently been planted. Then I looked around the house again. For some reason, it felt familiar. Even though this was definitely my first time here.
A sofa appeared in the empty living room. A wooden table with a glass top appeared. There were dolls on top of the dresser. I found myself imagining those scenes as if under a spell, as if I were dreaming.
“This is the first time I’ve had conditions like this while working in real estate, but are you really going to look at another place? If I were a Tracen Trainer, I’d definitely have come here.”
The realtor’s voice snapped me back to my senses. The space that had been full of furniture and signs of life was empty again. Before I knew it, a disappointed “Ah...” slipped from my mouth.
“I won’t charge a brokerage fee. If there are any defects or problems, I’ll take care of them right away. Let’s just draw up a new contract.”
“...You’d go that far?”
“The person I owe so much to insisted it had to be a Tracen Trainer, after all.”
There’s a bit more to the story, if you’d like to hear it. That was what the realtor seemed to imply, but he also looked reluctant to say more.
“Then I guess I can trust you and sign the contract.”
“Yes, yes, thank you! Thank you so much!”
He grabbed my hand as if I were his savior and shook it up and down several times. I compared the contract form he had added a few clauses to with a standard template I could easily find online. I wasn’t an expert, but I couldn’t spot anything strange or any poisonous clauses.
If anything came up, I could just move out.
I stood in front of the newly rented house and stared blankly at the sky. I’d sent my sister a photo of the signed contract, so she’d check for any problems today or tomorrow. I really hoped there wouldn’t be any. Thinking that, I looked down the quiet alley.
“Hello, big brother.”
“Oh? It’s Dia-chan. Hello.”
Dia, with her randoseru on her back, was smiling brightly.
“Big brother, do you live here? It’s pretty close to our house.”
“Oh, really? Having a neighbor like Dia-chan is a relief.”
It was just flattery, but Dia covered her mouth with her hand and let out a delighted little “kik-kik-kik” laugh. Then she noticed a black Uma Musume watching us from farther back.
“Is that girl your friend?”
“Huh? Friend... Kita-chan, you followed me all the way here...? Big brother, I’m sorry. She’s my friend. I think she chased after me to surprise me. Just a moment.”
Dia dashed over to the black-haired Uma Musume girl hiding behind a utility pole and said something to her. I couldn’t hear the details, but it looked like Dia was scolding her friend.
Not long after, the girl came back holding Dia’s hand and bowed as she introduced herself.
“I-I’m! My name is Kitasan Black! Hello!”
She had a loud, spirited voice. I returned the greeting casually. I wanted to treat them to something, but I hadn’t even moved the luggage from my old place yet, so there was nothing to eat in the house, let alone a place to sit and relax.
“Big brother, big brother! I want to look around the house!”
“I just signed the contract, and there’s nothing inside.”
“Even so~!”
Dia grabbed my hand with both of hers and shook it back and forth like she was acting cute. The girl she had introduced as Kitasan stared at Dia with wide eyes, saying nothing.
“Kita-chan wants to see it too, right?”
“Uh, um...? Y-yeah, I want to see it.”
Humoring the curiosity of little kids wasn’t a bad thing. There was almost nothing to show them anyway, so I could let them look around a bit, and if my sister contacted me, I’d just report it to the authorities and get insurance and the like sorted out.
“There really is nothing here.”
The girl named Kitasan said that after looking at the bleak interior.
“Did you check the contract carefully?”
Dia suddenly asked that. I answered casually that my sister worked in the field, so she knew all about it. The girls seemed to find something about it hilarious, giggling and chattering away about this and that.
Dia walked to the center of the room and suddenly spread both arms wide. I stared at her blankly, feeling a strange prickling sensation. She was much younger, so small, and yet she gave off a prickling feeling similar to Scarlet. Dia had her arms open wide as if she were about to hug something far larger than what I was seeing.
Our eyes met.
“Do you remember something?”
Maybe I’d been especially tired lately. Something that felt like it was about to surface, but never quite did, kept flickering around me.
“It reminds me of when I first met Dia.”
She looked at me as if I’d struck her, then quickly gave a small laugh.
“Yes, well... shall we go with that?”
At her words, which sounded almost like giving up, I felt a strange sadness.
Paperwork was a pain too. If not for my sister, I would have had to go around in person several more times. The furniture could be brought in slowly, and for now the most important issue of housing was half solved. With both hands held by chattering elementary-school Uma Musume, I wandered the streets until, before I knew it, evening was drawing near.
The girl named Kitasan Black was very spirited, open, kind, and sincere. The kind of girl anyone would have no choice but to love, I supposed. Dia listened attentively, responding to Kitasan’s nonstop chatter and keeping the conversation going.
They called each other friends, but the way Dia and Kitasan looked together felt more like an older sister taking care of a younger sibling. By the time Kitasan, saying she had to go home, had gone off into the distance, Dia spoke first.
“Kita-chan wants to go to Tracen too. What do you think, big brother?”
At Dia’s question, I slowly thought about what words I should use. It sounded like a casual question tossed out in passing, but for some reason the atmosphere felt heavy, as if I were being tested, and I recalled Kitasan Black’s face.
Even in the middle of speaking, her fighting spirit stood out. What could summon miracles even when skill was lacking was a fighting spirit that burned even its own body in the moment it was fading. In that sense, Kitasan had talent.
“At the very least... I think she’s the late-bloomer type.”
Dia smiled. It was an extremely mature smile, one that didn’t suit a child at all. She stared at me as if to say, go on. When I hesitated, she whispered in a very gentle voice.
“Please tell me honestly. I’ll keep it a secret from Kita-chan.”
“It’s weird to talk about it as a feeling, though...”
“Even so.”
Speak. I got the feeling she was ordering me. To think I’d get that feeling from a little kid... my self-esteem really had taken a beating lately.
“Either she becomes a legend, or she disappears without a sound. No, I mean, like... she’ll do well!”
What was I even saying in front of a child? I regretted blurting that out so hastily and wrapped up my answer as best I could. Talking to a child like she was a friend... I really should go home early and sleep today.
“That’s true. If there’s someone who believes in you, you become a legend. If there isn’t, you quietly fade away... yes, exactly. Big brother is big brother, after all.”
Dia answered as if agreeing with me. I brushed off the last line lightly. Before I knew it, my feet were carrying me toward the restaurant run by the familiar old man. As if by agreement, neither of us said anything more about Kitasan.
As Dia leaned in slightly, closing the distance between us, the scent of lilacs drifted strongly from her.
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