HPDBC Chapter 99 Summer in Kochi Prefecture
Chapter 99 Summer in Kochi Prefecture
Chapter 99 Summer in Kochi Prefecture
In Kochi Prefecture, the air is filled with the scents of sea salt and citrus fruits in the summer.
Flying here from Tokyo is like jumping from that gray concrete jungle into an overly saturated oil painting.
The sky was an unreasonable shade of blue, the clouds were so thick they looked like they were about to crash down, and the fishing boats moored in the harbor swayed lazily with the waves.
Wow—it's so wide!
As soon as she got off the filming vehicle, Rie Miyazawa couldn't help but run to the edge of the embankment and take a deep breath at the unobstructed Pacific Ocean.
The sea breeze made her pleated skirt flutter loudly, forcing her to hold down the hem. She turned and shouted at Kitahara Shin, "Senpai! The sea here is completely different from Tokyo Bay! This is the first time I've ever seen a sea this color!"
'
That was her first time traveling far from home.
From childhood, her world consisted only of the photography studio, school, and that oppressive home. This boundless sense of freedom made her briefly forget that she was there to work.
Kitahara Shin walked over with a shoulder bag slung over his shoulder and a script in his hand. He glanced at the horizon and said calmly, "It is indeed different. But once you've seen enough, focus on your work. We're here to film, not on a school trip."
Rie stuck out her tongue, her excitement dampened by half, but she still gave a playful salute: "Okay, okay, you're so long-winded, like a headmaster."
She spoke casually, but her hands behind her back secretly tightened their grip on the script.
The paper was covered with fluorescent markings, and it was wrinkled from being soaked in sweat.
Just as Kitahara Shin predicted, once she left the closed indoor scenes and entered open settings that required interaction with the environment, Rie's performance immediately became like reciting a text.
The lines were memorized, and the tone was right, but it just looked awkward. The deliberate "acting" felt too obvious, like wearing a thick mask. It didn't look like a real person at all; it was all just acting.
To make matters worse, the second male lead they're acting alongside is Hidetaka Yoshioka, who has just made a name for himself with the "Tora-san" series.
"Nice to meet you, I am Hidetaka Yoshioka. Please take good care of me, Kitahara-senpai."
The young man, a year younger than Kitahara Shin, wore black-rimmed glasses and had a gentle smile, appearing non-threatening.
But in front of the camera, his relaxed demeanor made him look like a native who grew up in Kochi Prefecture.
When he acted opposite Kitahara Shin, the two were like old classmates who had known each other for ten years. The exchange of glances and the transitions of lines were so smooth that they seemed to be breathing.
Then the camera cuts to Rie, and then freezes.
"Card!"
Mochizuki Tomomichi's voice rang out for the nth time, revealing no emotion, but that was what made it most frightening.
The entire afternoon, the crew's progress was like a snail climbing a hill.
When it was time to finish work, Rie kept her head down and barely ate any of the hot bento box.
She felt like a mediocre member who had infiltrated a professional orchestra, and every NG (no good retake) was wearing down everyone's patience for her.
Late at night, outside the side door of the hotel lobby.
Kitahara Shin went downstairs to buy cigarettes and saw a figure in pajamas muttering to himself in front of the palm tree in the garden.
Rie wasn't holding a script; she was acting against thin air.
She would cry one moment, laugh the next, and then squat on the ground, clutching her hair in frustration.
Several mosquito bites landed on her legs, but she ignored them. She simply stood up, took a deep breath, and continued reciting that inescapable line to the tree trunk.
Kitahara Shin stood in the shadows of the vending machine for a while, not bothering it, but only slightly raising the corner of his mouth.
It's alright, I'm not so stupid that I would just hide under the covers and cry.
The next morning, as soon as Rie stepped out of her room, she saw Kitahara Shin leaning against the window in the corridor waiting for her.
"S--senpai?" She was startled and subconsciously glanced at her watch. "Am I late?"
Wasn't today's announcement supposed to be at 10:00?
There are no announcements today.
Kitahara Shin tossed the can in his hand into the trash can. "I asked the director for leave. If you can't act it out, then don't keep struggling with it."
"So what are we going to do? Go practice our lines in the room?"
"What's the use of matching words? Let me take you on a trip."
The two didn't take the film crew's car or a taxi. Kitahara Shin led her leisurely to an inconspicuous bicycle rental shop.
The shop owner was an old man who was dozing off, and the shop was full of those rusty grocery carts.
Kitahara Shin rummaged around in the corner and finally dragged out a retro-styled white bicycle.
It was a Bridgestone Roadman, a legendary motorcycle from the 50s. There was some paint chipping on the crossbeams, but the chain and gears were surprisingly well-preserved.
Just as Kitahara casually touched the handlebars, that familiar light blue frame popped up.
[Item: Bridgestone Roadman (Modified Version)]
Rarity: White
【Characteristic: Tailwind Confession】
[Effect Description: When carrying one passenger, the passenger's psychological defenses are lowered by 20%, and they are more likely to reveal their true feelings during the journey. Note: That's the magic of the Showa era youth; the wind in the back seat can blow away all secrets.]
"That's it."
Kitahara Shin patted the car seat, straddled it with his long legs, and turned to look at Rie, who was still in a daze: "Get in."
"Huh? But I'm wearing a skirt—"
"Then sit sideways and hold onto my clothes tightly."
Rie hesitated for a moment, then carefully sat down in the back seat.
It was a very hard iron frame without any padding, but the moment Kitahara Shin pedaled and the wheels started turning, the sea breeze suddenly filled her shirt.
The bicycle sped along the coastal highway.
To the left is the azure Pacific Ocean, and to the right are the rolling hills of Kochi Prefecture.
Kitahara Shin rode at a moderate pace, his white shirt billowing in the wind, occasionally brushing against Rie's cheek.
"Do you know why Rikako Muto came to Kochi?"
Kitahara Shin's voice carried on the wind, sounding less stern than usual.
"Because—her parents divorced, and she had to go back to her hometown with her mother," Rie answered loudly, grabbing his clothes.
"That's in the script."
Kitahara Shin didn't turn around. "What I want to hear is your opinion, your understanding. Why did she turn herself into a hedgehog after coming here? Why, when she's clearly so outstanding, does she insist on making the whole class hate her?"
Rie remained silent.
The wheels rolled over a section of gravel road, causing a bumpy ride. She instinctively hugged Kitahara Shin's waist tighter.
Perhaps it was the "confession with the wind" that worked, or perhaps the sea breeze was just too gentle, but Rie pressed her face against Kitahara Shin's back and said in a muffled voice, "Because I'm not reconciled."
"Um?"
"I've never met my dad either."
This was the first time she had mentioned it to anyone.
The same trivial matters, when printed in a magazine, become topics of casual conversation, but when she spoke of them, they became bloody realities.
It doesn't sound exciting at all; it just makes you feel heavy.
"My mom said he was Dutch, but I've never even seen a picture of him. When I was little, I was like extra luggage, dragged around by her. For a while, I really hated her, and I also hated that man who never showed up."
"
Kitahara Shin didn't interrupt her, but just silently pressed the pedal.
"Rikako is the same way. She doesn't really hate this place; she just hates the feeling of being abandoned. She wants to go back to Tokyo to find her father, really because she wants to prove that she hasn't been abandoned, that someone still wants her."
At this point, Rie gave a bitter smile: "The result was truly ironic. Her father had a new family and a new life, and she felt like an intruder. That feeling—was probably more despairing than never having experienced anything before."
"And what about you?" Kitahara Shin asked. "If it were you, what would you do?"
"I?"
Rie looked up at the broad back of the man before her.
"If it were me in the past, I probably would have cried. But now—" She remembered the press conference where they severed ties, and her mother who wouldn't let go even when she knelt down and begged her. "Now I think I might not be able to empathize, but I understand that feeling of wanting to do something stupid to vent."
"for example?"
"For example—borrowing money to go to Tokyo, even if it means cheating classmates. For example, even when you're heartbroken, you still say hurtful things to those who care about you."
Kitahara Shin chuckled.
"That's right."
He suddenly sped up, and the bicycle rushed down a long slope as if it were about to take off.
"Rikako Muto isn't some innocent goddess; she's just an awkward, selfish, prickly, yet incredibly fragile child. If you grasp that, you've grasped her."
That noon, they did not go to the seafood restaurant that caters to tourists.
Kitahara Shin parked the car at the entrance of an old commercial street and led Rie into a snack stall that only local old men frequented.
"What is this?" Rie looked at the string of dark things in her hand.
"Bonito flakes grilled by hand, a specialty of Kochi. The street vendors' version tastes better than the ones in restaurants."
Kitahara Shin took a bite himself, not caring about his image, and sat down on a bench by the roadside. "Don't stand there like that. After you finish this skewer, I'll take you to buy some things this afternoon."
Rie tentatively took a bite, and the smoky flavor mixed with the garlic aroma exploded in her mouth.
It was surprisingly delicious.
At that very moment, a peculiar sound echoed in Kitahara Shin's mind.
"bite"
The notification sound has been emitted.
"system?"
Kitahara Shin silently recited a sentence in his mind.
The translucent panel reappeared.
My gaze fell on the bottom of the equipment bar, where there was an inconspicuous gray value: [Current Maximum Load: 3/5].
At that moment, as that faint light flashed, the number in the denominator began to jump.
[Currently linked to: Rie Miyazawa (Bond depth: Trust)]
[Special character interaction detected. System upgrade progress: 15%]
[Mechanism Unlocked: An Echo of the Times]
[Note: When the host establishes a deep bond with a figure of "legendary" potential from this era, the system's capacity threshold will be greatly increased, allowing the host to simultaneously harness more "echoes of the old era."]
[Effect Update: The maximum number of items that can be equipped simultaneously has been increased from [5] to [10].]
I see.
It seems that this so-called equipment system is essentially about letting him hunt for the "starlight" of this era.
Whether it's Akina Nakamori or Rie Miyazawa now, they were the most dazzling names of the bubble economy era.
The more you interact with the stars and deepen your bonds, the more your equipment will benefit from the corresponding improvements.
"Let's go, let's digest our food."
Kitahara Shin turned off the panel and threw the bamboo skewers into the trash can.
The commercial street was bustling with activity, decorated with Qixi Festival decorations everywhere.
Kitahara Shin stopped in front of an old shop selling coral handicrafts.
Kochi is famous for its red coral, but what he was interested in was not those fancy necklaces, but a brooch with a very simple design.
The deep red coral was carved into the shape of a rose, and the red color was just like the color of the woman's lipstick.
He reached out and his fingertips gently touched the deep red coral brooch.
The moment my fingertips touched that cool yet warm touch, a familiar pale blue screen quietly appeared on my retina.
[Item: Tosa Blood Coral - Crimson Rose]
Rarity: Purple (Rare)
【Characteristic: The tranquility of the deep sea】
[Description: Top-grade Aka coral from 300 meters deep in the Kochi Prefecture sea, its color as rich as ox blood. It was meticulously hand-carved by local artisans over seven days and seven nights. Coral has been considered a calming and protective object since ancient times, embodying both the tranquility and the fury of the deep sea.]
[General Effects (Effective Immediately Upon Wear):]
[1. Concentration: When the wearer is under external mental stress (such as tension, fear, or malicious stares), emotional fluctuations are reduced by 20%, making it easier to remain calm.]
[2. Eye-catching: The rich blood red color can instantly grab the attention of others, slightly enhancing the wearer's presence and aura.]
[System Evaluation: This is a top-tier piece of jewelry that anyone can wear, but not everyone can pull off this breathtaking red. Only women who have experienced heartbreak and rebuilding, who have returned from the abyss of despair and whose souls burn with passion, can perfectly resonate with this "Crimson Rose," transforming it from a mere accessory into a commanding "battle armor."]
Kitahara Shin looked at the evaluation on the panel, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, followed by a slight upturn of the corners of his mouth.
Although the system says it's a universal piece of equipment, at this moment, it feels like it was destined for me.
In a little while, on July 13th, will be Akina Nakamori's birthday, so this is a perfect gift.
"Boss, I'll take this one."
Kitahara Shin paid the money and put the small box into his inner pocket.
Rie stood to the side, still holding the bonito skewers she hadn't finished eating.
She watched Kitahara Shin pay—the look in his eyes was completely different from when he was teaching her acting.
It was a very quiet, gentle, and even slightly cautious look in her eyes.
Who was it bought for?
It's definitely not for her, nor for anyone in the crew.
That brooch has a too mature feel to it; it doesn't suit her at all right now.
Actually, she probably knew the answer.
I'm guessing it's Nakamori Akina.
Rie took a bite of the bonito in her hand, and the originally delicious taste suddenly became somewhat astringent.
She looked at Kitahara Shin's profile and watched him carefully pat the pocket.
An unprecedented sense of crisis rose within her.
If I don't grow up quickly, if I don't smooth out those childish thorns and become someone who can stand on my own—
So in this person's eyes, she will always just be that little girl sitting on the back of a bicycle, needing him to turn around and teach her.
"What's wrong? Doesn't it taste good?"
Kitahara Shin turned his head and saw her standing there in a daze.
"no."
Rie finished the rest of the food in a few bites and threw the bamboo skewers into the trash can.
"Senior, let's go back."
She raised her head, the dazed mist in her eyes dissipating, replaced by a clarity she had never shown before: "I want to try out today's scene. This time, I won't let you down again."
"Yeah?"
"Then I'll wait and see."
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