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START OF THE FIRST DAY: 09/10/2030, 06:19 Now, this chapter is probably going to perfectly encapsulate Route Before, especially the early part of it. Slow-paced, slice-of-life as all hell, and then suddenly intriguing. But I'm getting ahead of myself.    Which was only to be expected. He had always slept and woken up in this room for as long as he could remember. He got up, put on his glasses he had set aside, and stretched his arms out wide. ♪ BGM: Quiet Days of Rokumei City ♫  Hwaaahh~aah...He felt as though he had awoken from a worrying dream-- but he couldn't remember what it was.  His watch was perfectly measuring the flow of time today, as usual. Not even once had it broken these past ten years. He climbed out of bed, changed into his uniform, and left his room.   ???: Hmhmhmhmm~mm... Good morning.Once he called out to her, ???: Ah, good morning! the one humming cheerfully replied. The newscaster on TV was rambling on in a matter-of—fact tone of voice. Newscaster: --Next on the news. Early this morning, Rokumei City's 'BC Training Center' received objectionable literature from an extremist group. A connection to the recently held BC seminar was also identified. The police are now working with the city security department to-- Natsuhiko casually let the news in one ear and out the other, thinking to himself. (Almost time for her to wake up, huh...)As soon as that thought crossed his mind, he heard the living room door open.   Mnyu mnyu~... Good morning, Yuuri. Mnyu... Hikorin, Mashiron, good... morning...Yuuri sank onto the table as she muttered the nicknames she had for those two. And right around that time, the other girl came out of the kitchen.   Good morning, Yuuri! Breakfast is just about done~Brightly sounding the morning meal call was ''Mashiro''-- Natsuhiko’s childhood friend. Yuuri was about to fall back to sleep before Mashiro's voice woke her up. ... Nu--? Yay, food time, food time~ What's on the menu today? A classic all-American breakfast. Wow, starting the day off with a full meal, huh. Looks delicious~ Thanks for the food~And thus, they began their breakfast as usual. Yup~ it's delicious~ Just like you'd expect from Mashiron~ Yeah, it's amazing how you can make all of this in such a short amount of time. Hahah, I'm just used to it. I mean, I -have- been doing this for over half a year now.Mashiro gave an embarrassed grin upon being complimented. Just another typical breakfast at the Tenkawa residence. (Now that I think about it, it's a little strange, huh... We're not even family.)Though they were all sharing a meal at the same table, none of the people here were related.  His father passed away before Natsuhiko could remember. His mother worked hard to support them, to the point she became a serious workaholic. She spent most of her time at work, seldom returning home. As Natsuhiko sat lost in thought, a concerned voice called out to him. Huh? Hikorin, you've barely touched your food. Does your tummy hurt? Ah, no, I'm fine. I just wanted to savor the food as I ate. Really? That's good. ... I might not look it, but I've got a sturdy body. I've always got a healthy appetite.And with that declaration, he stuffed his cheeks with bread, causing a different cheerful voice to chime in this time. Oh, I like how you eat, Natsuhiko. Makes all that effort worth it. Prior to Natsuhiko entering high school, a commuting housekeeper had prepared his meals, but since spring, she had to resign for personal reasons. And that's when Natsuhiko's mother asked Mashiro to help prepare breakfast and dinner since they lived in the same neighborhood. --Natsuhiko bowed his head to Mashiro's words and muttered softly. But still... sorry for making you do this all the time, Mashiro. Whaddaya mean? Your mother pays me after all, so it's kinda like a part-time job. And besides, it's not like I do it for you or anything. If I had to say, I do it more for Yuuri. Right, Yuuri? Hmm, I'm happy to hear that, but... Ah, I see how it is. Well, I don't care either way as long as I get to eat delicious food.And then, as if to interrupt their peaceful chit-chat, an unsettling voice rang out. Newscaster: Next on the news. Last night, a fire broke out at the 'BC Development Center', a research facility in Rokumei City. Six research buildings burned down. A fire...?♪ BGM: Silence ♫ Suddenly, silence spread across the dining table, but the newscaster continued matter-of-factly. Newscaster: At the time of the fire, several staff members and researchers were inside the facility-- But the fire department rescue squad was dispatched and fortunately brought everyone out alive. Everyone was saved. That's great~ Hm? Ah, yeah, I guess. Huh? Now that's an uncaring thing to say. You're so cold, Natsuhiko. You think so? Nothing really productive happens if you let things on the other side of the TV screen get to you, does it? Hmm... but it did happen in this town, so you can't really say we're completely uninvolved... Things have gotten dangerous around here lately. Like some sort of incident's just waiting to happen... You're overthinking things. I'm sure this town's safe.The town they lived in was quite good about public order. It was unthinkable that any of them would get caught up in an incident.   Yuuri shook her head and quietly spoke. ...Hikorin, you shouldn't let yourself become too careless.♪ BGM: Anxious Times of Rokumei City ♫ Huh? Dreadful incidents don't just happen on the other side of the TV screen, you know. After all, something completely unexpected could happen to you too, Hikorin...Natsuhiko's expression stiffened upon hearing such an ominous prediction. (No way...)He tried to say that, but his voice wouldn't come out.  (...??) His prized watch from years ago-- --had broken sometime when he wasn't looking. (Why...? When did it...?)     So, after that, we are dropped straight into Senses Sympathy Tutorial. This tutorial is exactly the same as it was back during Route After, so if you need a refresher, head back to the first post in the thread and find it from there. The only difference is that at the end...  However, the girls' favor towards the boy is very important to him. A tragic result may be awaiting in the worst-case scenario. Please look over the situation calmly and select your Senses carefully. We are expecting your feelings to have a good effect on this world. ...we have a different color for the upcoming Senses input. Now, the chapter ends there, and afterwards, we have a new chapter, so let's just cut things here. However, we're not quite done yet... VOTING Now, we have a bit of a decision to make. Early Senses inputs will be focusing pretty much entirely on Yuuri and Mashiro. As such, I'm going to hold a bit of voting right away for those two. So, with nothing much to go on, pick between Top, High, Middle, Low and Bottom for Yuuri and Mashiro. Don't worry about it. Just trust in your instincts. Do you want to trust these people?
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| ← # ? Jan 2, 2017 22:08 |
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