—Darkness.
Ōshiro Kai opened his eyes, but all he could see were blurry black shadows. Instinctively, he reached for his smartphone, but his fingers brushed against something rough—straw matting. A chill ran down his spine.
(…Power outage?)
Thinking that, he moved his hand again, but all he felt was the hardness of wood and the faint dampness of fabric. Not only was his phone missing, but even the bedding felt completely unfamiliar.
(…Wait a second. Where am I?)
His mind snapped fully awake. Straining his eyes in the darkness, he focused on the sounds around him. The chirping of insects, the distant crash of waves, and the quiet breathing of someone sleeping nearby.
(No way… Am I sleeping outside!?)
No, that wasn't it. The air carried the scent of wood and earth, along with the lingering smokiness of burned charcoal. It was completely different from the world he knew—it felt like he had stumbled onto the set of a period drama.
Just as he attempted to stand up, his foot landed on something.
"Ow!"
A low, childlike voice yelped in pain.
Startled, Kai jumped back, only to slam his head against a wooden pillar behind him.
"Ah, crap! That hurts!"
Tearing up from the pain, he blinked a few times. As his eyes adjusted, he gradually made out the silhouettes of several people sleeping in the cramped wooden room.
(…What the hell? Where am I?)
Still dazed, he turned toward the boy he had apparently stepped on—a boy who now groggily rubbed his eyes.
"Anīchan, urusai…"
(Big brother, you're so noisy…)
(Big… brother!?)
Kai's confusion deepened.
He pressed his back against the rough pillar, clutching his head in disbelief.
(No way. Brother? A younger sibling? …Does that mean I'm the eldest!?)
That couldn't be right. But the boy—the one who had just called him "big brother"—was staring up at him with sleepy eyes. His hair was messy, his skin tanned, and his large eyes held no trace of modern Japan.
"…Anīchan, guai warui no?"
(Big brother, are you feeling sick?)
The boy looked up at him with concern.
"…No, it's nothing," Kai muttered, answering automatically while his mind spun in chaos.
(Calm down, me. First, I need to sort this out.)
He took a deep breath and looked around again. The dimly lit room held several thin futons spread out on the floor. He had been sleeping on one of them. The ceiling was low, exposing wooden beams, and the walls were made of plain wooden planks—just like an old traditional house.
(…Wait a second. This looks like… an Okinawan folk house?)
He had seen something similar in TV programs about Ryukyuan architecture. But this wasn't the time for casual observations.
Wherever this was, it was not the modern world.
And somehow, he was now Ōshiro Kai—a completely different version of himself, living in this strange world.
(Damn it… Is this a dream? No, it feels way too real…)
"Anīchan, kāchan ga okite'ru yo."
(Big brother, Mom's awake.)
The moment his younger brother said that, a sharp voice rang out from outside the room.
"How long do you plan on sleeping!? Get up and start working already!"
Kai's heart nearly jumped out of his chest.
With a loud clatter, a wooden sliding door was pushed open, allowing the dim morning light to spill into the room. In that light stood a thin but sharp-eyed middle-aged woman.
—His mother.
"For heaven's sake, even the girls are already working! And yet, the men are still lazing around! What are you thinking!?"
Kai was left speechless.
(Whoa, what's with this pressure…?)
Before he could say anything, his mother clicked her tongue in irritation and waved a hand.
"Hurry up and wash your face, then eat!"
With that, she turned on her heel and walked away.
Kai exchanged glances with his younger brother. The boy simply shrugged before following their mother outside, as if this was completely normal.
(…I guess I have no choice but to go too.)
When he stepped outside, the bright morning sun stung his eyes. In front of the house, a simple stove stood, emitting the faint scent of burning firewood.
Most of the family had already gathered. A young girl was tending to the fire, carefully adding small sticks of wood with her tiny hands. A little further away, his mother was handling a large wooden plate.
"Anīchan, hurry up and wash your hands and sit down!"
(Big brother, wash your hands and eat!)
His younger brother urged him along, and Kai splashed his face with water from a wooden bucket. The cold water stung his skin, jolting him further awake.
The meal before them was simple—a bowl of rice porridge, a small dried fish, and some boiled greens. The portions were small, and the food looked humble.
(…Wait, this is it?)
"Itadakimasu!"
(Thank you for the meal!)
The family joined their hands together and began eating.
Kai hastily followed suit and took a bite of the porridge. The grains of rice were sparse, and the texture was watery. However, there was a faint umami flavor, perhaps from some kind of dashi.
The dried fish was salty and a bit tough, but the more he chewed, the richer the flavor became.
(…This is actually not bad.)
However, something caught his eye.
His mother's meal was clearly different.
(…Huh?)
Unlike everyone else's humble portions, she had an extravagant spread before her—white rice, grilled fish, miso soup, and what looked like simmered vegetables.
(What the hell? Why does Mom get the fancy meal!?)
Kai widened his eyes in shock, but the rest of the family didn't react at all.
His younger sister, sitting quietly, sipped at her watery porridge with a lonely expression. And that's when he realized—
—This was just how things were.
(…I see. So that's how it is.)
His mother alone enjoyed a luxurious meal, while the rest of the family survived on the bare minimum.
As she elegantly picked at her grilled fish with her chopsticks, she sighed dramatically.
"Honestly, I nearly died giving birth to you all. I shed my blood for this family. I deserve a little luxury."
No one objected.
Kai, on the other hand, internally muttered, (Oh, great. Here we go again.)
(So she's that kind of parent—the kind who guilt-trips their children into servitude…)
He had seen this type before. A toxic parent through and through.
But—right now, there was nothing he could do.
(…Fine. I'll endure it for now.)
Looking down at his bowl of porridge, Kai let out a quiet sigh.