"I'm back, Haru." (Young Man)
I shouted before entering a small tattered house—It was well over 50 years old.
"Huh? Oh, brother, welcome back. (Girl)
Haruka Kizaki, my younger sister and only family member welcomed me into the house. She's cute, intelligent, and good at sports, but she is a bit shy and has quite a sharp tongue.
Oops, I forgot to say that my name is Touka Kizaki. Although my name sounds like a girl's, I am an ordinary man and the breadwinner of this family. I am neither a handsome man nor a pretty boy, ugly or talented.
I was just an ordinary everyday male student, who was just a little fond of Aiki. However, due to circumstances, I am no longer a student. I wondered what I was thinking about. I knew I shouldn't be left alone.
"Onii, what are you upset about? Make me dinner."
"You are already 16 years old; you should be able to cook basic meals. You've already finished your compulsory education."
"I don't know how. Anyway, I'm quitting school, so it doesn't matter."
Yes, we live together, and we should still be students in terms of age.
Haruka quit high school in the first year of high school, and I quit in the second year. Without parents, we don't have any money to pay for school. It would be normal to have the option of going to school while earning our tuition with a part-time job. However, the tuition fees of my former high school were unexpectedly high. Even if I try to transfer, I can not pay the entrance fee, and I cannot even get a scholarship since I am not that smart.
First, I want to save money even to buy study materials. That said, it was too early to start looking for a job after what had happened. We fell into this situation about one season ago.
Our mother died in a car accident last June. Of course, we were sad, but the reason for the accident was that she was drunk and ran into the driveway; I couldn't blame her. When I think about it, my parents spent very little time at home in the first place, and I don't know much about them, so I can't say for sure, but I'm not sure if they raised us with love.
We didn't have either parent at home, so my sister got along well with me despite being in her rebellious period, and my housework skills grew to the point where I might surpass most homemakers.
Both our parents were pretty good earners. Our parents gave me enough money, but I wouldn't have enough money to spend a year on convenience store food. That would have been the case if I had been told to manage my meals on the days when we weren't there. To be exact, I was given 1,500 yen a day. If it's a convenience store lunch, it's just barely enough for breakfast, lunch, and supper. We are in our growth period, so it's not enough. That's why we never ate convenience store lunch boxes.
We were also given money to buy clothes; after we had saved the money, we could pocket the difference. Well, my parents seemed to have found out about it and never gave us any money to play with.
So, I accepted my mother's death with only a feeling of sadness. Then, of course, I cried, but that was it. My younger sister seemed to have just taken it in stride.
The problem occurred four months later.
Our father disappeared in October. The passbook and my mother's small altar at home are gone, and there is a memo on the table.
"My company is going under, and I'm running away. I'm not going to run away with you. If you die, I'll have many problems with it, so don't die. Oh, I'll take the money from the house to spend on my vacation. I'll also take your mother's tablet with me. Have a good day. ~Dad"
I knew well that my father was a scumbag.
First, all furniture other than what we needed to live was sold. Sofas, dishwashers, and TVs. Even if we don't have a TV, we can find the information on our computers. As for the smartphones, the one used by my sister Haru was canceled, and I shared mine with her as the Kizaki family's cell phone. The refrigerator was also sold. Refrigerators are necessary, but it is better to sell the existing large refrigerator and buy small second-hand refrigerators for both the cost of the refrigerator itself and the electricity bill.
Then we left home. That said, it's not something that a minor can do alone, but it seems that the documents were prepared before the father left the house, and he left them in his bedroom. Unfortunately, we lived in a condominium, not a house, so the contract ended. I am relieved that there was no additional charge because there was nothin in the places we were going live was a small house in a remote area that had been used as a warehouse for some time. Inside the house was a small, dusty bathroom, a toilet, a kitchen in a narrow hallway, and a living room that had been completely turned into a warehouse. And a small basement. I heard that it was a room where they kept their liquor. But, of course, there was no alcohol in there, just a lot of garbage.
I had to renew a contract for propane gas, electricity, and water, as there was no convenient city gas line.
I had a courier carry the unsold furniture in the condominium, and soon we finished moving safely. Then came the good news. What an idiot my father is. I found 100,000 yen in my father's bedroom, which he had taken out of the bankbook when he sold the furniture. I'm going to put it to good use.
We quit high school and moved to the old warehouse in the countryside of Kanagawa Prefecture, taking the money in my bankbook from what we had left from our living expenses, such as food and clothes, which we had accumulated over the years, adding it to the 100,000 yen.
But what can I say about this former warehouse? It was old. It creaks when you walk around, and the wind blows through the walls. The window was not only broken but also missing. Therefore, I cut out a board that happened to be in the basement with a saw from the toolbox in the living room. Then, I attached it to the window frame using screws. At first, I thought about buying a window, but when I looked it up on the Internet, I found that windows are much more expensive than I thought.
I didn't want to waste and spend a lot of money, so I put up the boards as a last resort. Even though a typhoon would not come, a wall of about 2 meters surrounds a reasonably large garden with a window frame blocked with boards. It looked suspicious. The wall is broken here and there, and it's more of a pitiful situation than a suspicious one.
Finally, I sold or disposed of most of the house's large trash, which somewhat reduced my money. However, some bulky trash can only be thrown away if you pay for it. The reason for this is that there are not many things that can be sold. So, we removed the wooden furniture we couldn't sell and put them outside in a covered area. The ones that are still usable are repaired and used as they are.
Remembering such a scene from a long time ago (although it was a few months ago), I fried tofu and bean sprouts with margarine and soy sauce. Today, I have a small amount of white rice from a cheerful lady at my part-time job, so rice is possible. My cheeks relax at this once-a-week luxury. I'm ready to go. The rice should be cooked by now.
"Haru, I appreciate you are fixing the house, but the rice is ready; come here." (Kei)
"Hmm, I understand." (Haru)
Haru's hobby is remodeling and repairing things that ordinary girls would rarely do. That's why she belonged to the art club in junior high and high school, but for some reason, she didn't draw pictures but did crafts. That's what I heard from my classmates before.
In any case, her beauty and quiet personality drew a lot of attention from boys. So much so that boys from other grades even sent letters to her. As an older brother, I feel a bit awkward about it, but since we don't have many close friends at school, only a few know that we're brother and sister.
Anyway, thanks to Haru's love of crafting, she repairs broken floors with simple tools at home. She wants to repair it entirely, but we don't have the money, so we are doing our best to reduce the inconvenience. Haru can't use the hammer because she cares about other rooms, like in the previous house. It seems that she is happy to be able to get out of the dire situation.
"Thank you for the meal." (Kei)
I slowly chewed and finished the small meal that cannot be called luxury, and Haru joined and clapped her hands.
After that, I send Haru to the bath; while I put away the dishes,
This is the end of the day's work.
"Then, Haru should go to bed. I'll jog for a bit." (Kei)
I told Haru, who came out of the bath to sleep, while I put on the durable shoes I had used for a year before going out.
This jogging habit of mine started after we moved into this house. Living in the countryside was hard for me, a year-round "Go Home" club member. Now I can run for about ten kilometers around our house.
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I hadn't yet realized that running 10 kilometers on gravel roads, hills, and steps in the woods near my house was a lot harder than running 10 kilometers in the city. Fortunately or unfortunately, I haven't noticed that the heavy shoes are suitable for mountain climbing, were not running shoes.
After getting a good sweat, I returned home; I quickly took a bath since I was getting quite sticky. Then, I went to the bedroom in the basement.
I wish I could get a part-time job all day, but there's no place where I can get one. Haru doesn't like me to be away all the time, either.
I did some final stretching exercises and headed for the bedroom in the former storage room in the basement, which I turned into a bedroom since the first floor wasn't very big, and I didn't have anything to put there anyway. In addition, the basement is more relaxed in summer and warmer in winter than the first floor, making it the perfect place for a bedroom without air conditioning.
Thus, I went to the basement, the bedroom I shared with my sister, covered myself with my futon, and fell asleep.
At this time, February 7, 10:00 PM.
At that time, I had no idea that my daily life would be shattered so quickly.
"Tsu!" (Kei)
I was jolted from sleep by a sudden tremor that seemed to come from below.
My body flew through the air the next moment and fell about two meters. I was just barely able to catch myself, but the shock of falling from a high place from my sleeping position could not be erased, and I was slammed into the ground, the air leaving my lungs. I hurriedly took a deep breath to calm my lungs and opened my eyes.
The place I was in was the basement. No, more precisely, I was in the basement of this house, in a square pit over two meters deep. I had fallen into the bottom part of it. In a panic, I struggled to stand up, pushing against the pain in my body. I looked around, seeing a wall of stone and a path leading deeper into the ground beside it. Then, finally, I had an idea of what this was.
"Is it a dungeon?" (Kei)
I couldn't help but voice it out.
On August 1, there was an incident where dungeons appeared in various places. There were monsters inside, and many people were killed. Even now, six months later, ordinary people are still not allowed to enter because of the danger.
"Brother, if you don't come up here soon, it's going to be bad. This is a dungeon, right?" (Haru)
Haru calls from the entrance of the dungeon with a slightly panicked voice.
I'm sure the monsters will kill me if I stay here. No, I've heard that the entrance to the dungeon is through a part of the wall with a different material, but if the monsters find you, they will still come out of it.
Just because the range of vision when there are no enemies is limited inside the dungeon does not mean you cannot get out of the dungeon. However, I heard that it would be easier to find monsters when you enter the dungeon.
I was standing one step before the place where the material of the wall changed from brown to gray.
"That's dangerous!" (Kei)
I hurriedly leave the dungeon's gray rock area and return to the basement area. Even if I moved, I had to climb a step over two meters high, so I asked Haru to get a ladder. I can usually climb with my strength, but it was painful now that my body was slammed into the ground. I don't think there's anything broken, but it still hurts.
"What should we do?" (Haru)
I hear Haru muttering and looking into the dungeon again.
I don't see any monsters coming out, but I don't know what will happen if this happens. We would typically make a call, but if the police came, we would be kicked out of this house. We can't find a new home as we only earn enough to get by.
No law requires you to call the police if you find a dungeon. I have no intention of doing such a foolish thing. Of course, the country cannot forcibly take the land where the dungeon is located from the individual, but it will be protected because a dungeon was reported.
"For the time being, let's leave it alone. At this height, even if a dungeon monster comes here, it will not be able to go up from the basement. The other thing to consider is whether or not the house will be sealed up if we leave it like this. If it's sealed, an explosion will destroy this house." (Kei)
"I don't think that's a problem. This house is full of holes. I've heard that it's okay if there's a door in the first place. The door of this house can be broken by kicking it, so it will not be judged as a wall." (Haru)
Much information about the overflowing of dungeons has been made public because the private sector has strongly requested information for safety reasons. Even civilians are acceptable as long as they can enter the surrounding when they want to. If that's the case, well, no problem, I guess.
However, I'd still like to take a look inside the dungeon. I'm afraid there is a precedent of monsters overflowing from inside the dungeon if left unattended. However, it is also possible I might drag Haru for that reason…
"Hey, why don't we dive into the dungeon for a bit? We can get meat by defeating monsters. Savings, savings!" (Haru)
"Haha." (Kei)
Haru said as if she was reading my thoughts, with a sparkle in her eyes along her usual poker face. I gave a vague reply because of the dramatic situation we found ourselves in, but if Haru wanted to go, there should be no problem.
"Okay, it's 1:00 AM now, so let's sleep until about 6:30 AM and then go to the home improvement store using the bicycle. The store opens at 9:00 AM, so if I go out by bicycle at 7:00 AM, I arrive at the opening time." (Kei)
I remember both Haru and I got a scooter license during the previous summer vacation, but since we sold the moped before coming to this house, there are no mopeds and only one bicycle.
I used to think it was scary to get a moped license when my mother died in a car accident a month ago, but it didn't matter when I thought that she died because she was drunk. Then, however, I clearly remembered that Haru and I had vowed not to drink alcohol.
Aside from that, I pulled up my futon that had fallen into the dungeon's entrance, went up to the first floor with Haru, and laid down the futon to go back to sleep.