Kyoto was the capital of this country in the past.
It might be strange why this country would choose this city as a capital, considering it wasn't the center of the economic city and was quite far from the sea. Hence, it was quite hard to access, especially in the past when the means of transportation were limited.
Then, why?
Feng shui.
This was the only answer that he got since the influence of China in this country was strong, so it also followed China, who chose Chang'an as its capital.
Naturally, it was also based on Feng Shui.
He wasn't sure about Feng Shui, but he could tell this city held various memories. The memories of the previous Shishio Oga gushed out like a geyser as he saw many things along the way. The memory he repressed broke, and he was unable to contain it.
Yet he didn't stop them and just accepted all of them.
He wouldn't forget the previous Shishio Oga since he had become part of him.
While he had said that the previous Shishio Oga had become part of him, it didn't mean they had become one. Instead, the previous Shishio Oga was part of his memory now, especially from baby to the end of middle school.
Frankly, it might be better to erase this memory since, for him, being in control was something he wanted the most.
The thought of him having a different personality or being affected by the previous Shishio Oga definitely wasn't something that he loved to see.
However, he had entered this body, and even if he didn't want to, he had to accept it since if he didn't, it would be impossible for him to accept his parents in this world so quickly.
After he arrived in Kyoto, his parents brought him to the car they had driven from the house. They didn't need to go to the parking lot. Instead, the parking valet neatly brought his father's car to their location.
"Come in."
His father said, entering the driver's seat, and his mother entered the passenger seat.
His luggage was put inside by the parking valet.
"....."
When he thought about all of this, he wondered why he was thinking about working hard when his family's situation was good.
"Come on, Roberta."
"Yes, Shishio-sama."
The two entered the car together and left the train station.
However, inwardly, he thought the service industry in this country was a bit too much. He glanced back at the parking valet, who still bowed his head, and thought the words "the customer is god" had been planted in their heads.
"How is Tokyo? I have heard that you have a girlfriend now."
"......."
He looked at his father, who didn't hold back and asked him straight to the point before looking at his mother.
His mother only stuck out her tongue and hugged his father's arm.
When this woman was in Tokyo, she acted like a cold woman, but when she was with his father, she acted like a docile and obedient woman, but part of him had gotten used to it, so he didn't say anything.
"I do."
"Well, it isn't surprising if you have a girlfriend."
His father didn't feel surprised to know his son made a girlfriend since his genes were good. As long as his son acted normal, girls would come toward him like a flock. However, it would be different if he knew his son had many girlfriends.
"Well, leave your girlfriend aside. Welcome home."
"Welcome home."
His mother rubbed his head with a smile.
"I am back."
He sighed helplessly but also showed a warm smile.
Roberta was also somehow affected by the mood and also smiled.
The four talked to each other, and their topic was mostly about his school and his life in Tokyo.
While it was his imagination, he felt that they tried to avoid the topic of his girlfriend after his father asked him whether he had a girlfriend or not. However, as of this moment, the nostalgic feeling he had with his parents were flooded in, and he was also curious about the Obon tradition held by his family.
The previous Shishio Oga might have visited the Obon tradition of the family many times.
However, it would be his first time, and he thought that this was rather a strange feeling.
The Obon was a tradition to respect the spirit of the previous ancestor.
Without a doubt, the hard work of the ancestors was something that everyone in the Oga family was grateful for since, without them, there wouldn't be this family now. This was also the most special event among the family since it was one of the times when everyone gathered.
Honestly, the Obon could be said to be one of the most important events in this country.
Even the Emperor, Empress, and many other famous families also grandly held this event in their manor or house.
Anyway, it was impossible for him to skip the Obon, but he still tried.
However, when he told his parents he wanted to stay in Tokyo, they scolded him furiously, telling him to go back or they might beat him up and force him to go back. The seriousness of their voices made him speechless, but he didn't fight back and returned home to Kyoto.
This was also part of the reason why he didn't bring his girlfriends.
"Before we go back, let's have lunch first. What do you want to eat?"
He touched his stomach and felt slightly hungry since even if the trip was only a few hours, the trip had always made him hungrier. He thought for a moment and recalled the favorite food of the previous Shishio Oga.
"How about that tonkatsu restaurant?"
"Haha, I know you will choose that restaurant, so I called it early, and they told me they caught a good wild boar today."
His father and mother agreed and seemed to know what he loved to eat.
While he felt warm, he realized that his parents seemed to dote on him more than he had thought. They might not have any intention of making a little sibling for him, so it could only be left for him to make grandchildren for him.
However, inwardly, he was thinking about how good the wild boar meat was.
Unlike regular pork, the wild boar had leaner meat, a darker red than regular pork.
Still, the reason why the previous Shishio Oga loved the wild boar had nothing to do with a taste or anything. Instead, it was because of how the wild boar was living.
The wild boar was living in the wild. It was the realm outside of humans, and they had never relied on humans, only on their animal instincts. What was even more impressive, they could still be alive and didn't go extinct, even though human greed had no bounds.
On the other hand, ordinary pork was nothing but livestock. They were bred like nothing, using machines, science, and many others. They also didn't have the fierceness of the animal, only the docile of the livestock that would become meat the moment they were born.
Maybe, it was also the reason why the previous Shishio Oga loved a wild boar.
The fighting spirit of humans slowly disappeared, along with the appearance of a machine. Their desire to dominate and rob for wealth, chicks, and authority had slowly disappeared. They were like livestock now and no longer fierce beasts that would dominate their own life.
Instead, they followed everyone uniformly, without any changes.
This uniformness was the thing that made the previous Shishio Oga hate the most. It was also why he struggled, showing that he still had the beast-like spirit ready to bite down and dominate his world.
The previous Shishio Oga was able to do that, but he died and became him after that day.
Suddenly, he fell silent and thought of many things he had tried to avoid, but that thought stopped when he arrived at his favorite restaurant.
The restaurant was built modern with a hint of traditional Japanese design that could be seen from the wooden nameplates. This restaurant might seem new, but it was an old restaurant from his grandfather's time.
Honestly, it was amazing that there were so many businesses that had existed for many centuries in this country.
If he wasn't wrong, the oldest one should have existed from 578, which still exists now.
This business was a construction business, but it was focused on the shrine and temple.
However, he didn't care about that now since he wanted to eat.
His family often visited this restaurant, so the owner, who also happened to be the chef, greeted them enthusiastically with a smile before he was dumbfounded by Shishio's change. He even glanced at him several times, thinking that boy had become a man somehow.
'How did you know I have become a man?'
He didn't ask this question out loud. Instead, his wife seemed to be more curious about him.
"..."
If his mother didn't push his wife away, he was afraid that this wife might try to ask him more questions, and one or another might lead to a scandal.
Still, unlike the previous parking valet, he could see that the relationship between his parents and the restaurant owners was similar to that of a friend, which slightly surprised him. However, he didn't feel surprised when he thought about how often they visited this restaurant.
While businesses in this country had always emphasized that a customer was a god, they knew each other well like a close friend, so instead of being overly polite, being slightly brazen was better since it made them feel close to each other.
Still, their relationship aside, his food was coming.
It might be because it was his homecoming that the portion he got was bigger.
"Please enjoy," the wife of the chef said with a gentle smile.
"Thank you." He nodded and took his chopstick, chomping down on the tonkatsu wild boar without hesitation. Crisps from the breaded batter were like a melody in his mouth. Then his teeth touched the soft meat, which gave it an intense, sweet, and nutty flavor.
Somehow it reminded him of the taste of the bear, but it was fattier and tastier.
"Yum!"
He felt that this meal was the best.
Watching him enjoy his food, his parents smiled.
"Do you need a spoon, Roberta?" Shishio asked.
"Ah, sorry..." It was still hard for her to use the chopstick, and she mostly used a spoon on the Tokyo.
"It can't be helped. I will feed you first before your spoon arrives." He took part in the meat and fed it to Roberta. "Open your mouth, ah."
Roberta blushed, but she followed his words obediently. "Ahh."
"How is it?"
"Delicious."
Roberta covered her mouth with her palm while she chewed down the meat while showing a surprised expression when she ate.
"Right? Let's try more."
"Um."
"..."
However, his parents were silent since they realized it seemed their son's growth was more outrageous than they had thought.