Original subtitles

Asami, what are you going to do about Grandma's house next weekend?

I'm not sure.

You haven't seen her for some time, right? You should go show your face once in a while.

Okay.

- We'll go visit Grandpa's grave together. - Okay, okay.

- Haruka, what are you going to do? - I'm going, since I'm driving.

- Oh, that's right. - Thanks for breakfast.

- Are you going, Dad? - I got work to do that day.

- Oh, I see. - Asami, it's already 52 after. Are you okay for time?

Oh no. 52 after.

- Sorry, Haruka. Give me a ride. - That's fine, but I'm leaving soon.

I'll eat real quick. How soon?

- In about 10 minutes? - Okay!

Is it on its last legs?

Thinking back, this was the last day of my life

of round one.

- Would that be Sakura Nursery School? - I guess so.

They didn't have that cart when we were going, did they?

Oh... I guess they didn't.

How nice is it that they get a ride.

You're getting a ride now right now too, you know.

Oh... you're right.

Oh, the phone booth in the park is gone.

Was there a phone booth there?

There was. Although I never saw anyone using it.

Well, no one uses it anymore, right?

It's totally off topic, but Onee-chan, aren't you ever getting married?

Married?

- Actually, you're not lacking for anything in particular, right? - That's right.

I have a place to live and I have money to spend as I wish.

That's for sure.

You don't have to stash away money in secret like Dad either.

What? Is Dad stashing away money in secret?

Seems like he's saving a little at a time in his shoes.

I didn't know that. I'm going to look for it some time.

Mom said he's been doing it ever since they got married.

That's not a secret then.

- Thanks. - Okay. What about a ride home?

I'm having dinner with the girls today, so

I'll probably get a ride from Miipon.

- Okay. - See ya!

Good morning.

Kita-Kumagaya City Hall

- Good morning. - Good morning.

Since local government employees don't have uniforms, we're free to wear what we want.

A lot of male employees wear ties, but

female employees dress quite casually.

On days you don't have customer service duty, even t-shirts and hoodies are acceptable.

That being said, I don't think "Go to hell"

is quite appropriate in the National Health Insurance and Pension Section.

Local government employees have various advantages such as

good benefits and high social credibility, but

it is by no means an easy job.

Especially difficult is the customer service duty.

That's why can't you do something about it?

I'm afraid that's the rule, so you'll just have to pay for it.

What the heck. You're just stealing from taxpayers.

Forget it. Let me talk to your supervisor.

One moment please.

Regardless, we catch hell everyday.

Excuse me, Chief Taniguchi, but can you talk to that man?

Oh, okay.

Depending on the department, they may get grabbed by the shirt

and get their shirts torn, so

it seems they always have a change of shirt on hand.

Speaking of customer service, there's something that's always been bothering me somewhat.

It's how to greet those people who come.

City hall isn't a store, so

you can't very well say "Irasshaimase" (welcome).

Yet, since there are no other words that fit the situation...

- Are you No. 96? - Yes.

There's an awkward pause every time.

Generally for lunch, the three of us colleagues go out for Chinese or pasta, occasionally soba.

I wish they'd just stick with "irrashaimase," don't you?

It's not like it's wrong anyway.

I've been saying "Hello."

I was saying hello before too, but

I got yelled at once for being overly friendly.

- Overly friendly? That's normal greeting, isn't it? - I don't get it, do you?

That is terrible.

Speaking of which, I heard nursery school teachers say "okaerinasai" (greeting when someone comes home)

to parents who come to pick up their kids.

Must be because a lot of people are on their way home from work.

That's right. And in the morning, they send them off with "itterasshai" (greeting to send someone off).

Must be because they go directly to work from there.

Then shall we say "okaerinasai" too?

- That will make them angry for sure. - For sure.

- Also, isn't the greeting at the end difficult? - I know what you mean.

- Because it's not "thank you," right? - That's right.

"Otsukaresama deshita" (it was nice working with you) sounds weird too.

There isn't anything that sounds right.

Then shall we go with "itterasshai"?

- We'll get yelled at for sure. - For sure.

This is how we vent the stress we accumulate in the morning,

and move on to accumulate new stress in the afternoon.

Talk about what's a pain in the neck about this job,

it's the fact that we have to get approval every single time we do anything.

For example, even to buy one mechanical pencil,

we can only place the order with the vendor

after getting approval from our own section chief and manager, as well as

the section chief and manager of the Accounting Section.

Consequently, it may take close to a month to buy a single mechanical pencil.

I wish they'd do something about that, don't you?

- That's a real waste of time, isn't it? - It sure is.

Don't you think it's somewhat similar to asking,

- "May I use your bathroom" at a friend's house? - Bathroom?

No one would say "no" to that request, but

you ask for their permission anyway.

You can use the bathroom right away, though.

You're right about that.

Incidentally, she's using someone else's teacup now without their permission.

My childhood friends, Nacchi and Miipon.

I go out for dinner with them about twice a month.

Miipon, it's a little late, but

- Happy Birthday! - Happy Birthday!

Here. This is from the two of us.

Oh wow! Thanks. Can I open it?

- Yeah, open it, open it. - What can it be?

- Oh! I've been wanting this! - All right~.

- I'm glad. - But wasn't this expensive?

- It wasn't that expensive. - We both pitched in anyway.

Well, thank you. I'm really happy with it.

- I'll use it with pleasure. - Happy Birthday.

- Miipon. - Hm?

Did you look over there for just a second?

- Over there? - Yeah.

Maybe you thought the waitress would bring you something?

Huh? Bring what?

With the way things were going, were you expecting

- that thing with sparklers? - What, were you really?

- It crossed my mind for a minute. - I knew it.

- Normally, that's what would happen, right? - I'm sorry, we didn't plan that this time.

- I see. That's totally okay. - You don't like that soft of thing, right?

You get embarrassed every time, so we decided not to do it this year.

I see. Thanks.

Huh? Did you perhaps want us to do it?

No, no. That's not it at all.

But yes, yes... you know.

Huh? What?

I mean, we had a birthday party here for Ah-chin once, remember?

- Yeah, I remember. - At that time,

- we had those sparklers, right? - But that's because

I'm the type of person who wants things like that done for me.

We have the same waitress today as that time,

so I'm afraid she may be thinking that it's the same members

but they're not doing the sparklers for that girl.

- Aren't you being overly concerned? - I don't think she remembers us.

I know, right? Yeah.

- Should I tell the waitress just to be sure? - Eh? Tell her what?

That the reason we're not doing those sparklers this time

is because she doesn't like that sort of thing.

That it's definitely not like we're treating her poorly.

- Please don't...that would be more embarrassing. - Really?

- Please don't. - You okay with that?

We're going to end up looking weird.

By the way, when I was tidying up my desk yesterday,

- I found something that really brought back memories. - What is it?

Look at this.

Wah~ That really brings back memories.

When is this from?

It was right after Round 1 opened, so around 2nd year of middle school?

- I remember going there. - Right?

- What was it? This pose. - This pose?

- An imitation of a poster of some vocational school. - Ah~ What was that?

- Kumagaya Beauty Academy! - Oh, that's right. Those good old days.

- Back then we were doing this constantly, huh? - We sure were.

- Why did we think it was so interesting? - No one even went there either.

- That's true. - No, Misagon went there.

- She did? - As I recall, Misagon

- went to Kumagaya Beauty Academy. - I didn't know that.

But I haven't heard "Misagon" in a long time.

- "Gonmisa," right? - That's right. It turned into "Gonmisa" midway.

- Later on, it was "Gonchan". - For some, it was "Changon."

- The original name was lost by then. - Speaking of which,

- do you remember Mari-chan? - Mari-chan as in

- Uno Mari-chan? - Yes, the student council president.

- Do you know what she's doing now? - No, I don't.

- Pilot. - Eh~ Wow!

Isn't that amazing?

She's finally become someone physically out of our reach.

What's so amazing about Mari-chan is that

she was smart and athletic with a cute face,

- yet she didn't get under your skin at all... - Yeah, I know. She was a nice girl.

But you know, when she's that talented with a good personality to boot,

- I'd say she actually has a bad personality. - What do you mean?

- Cuz look, she won't even let us begrudge her. - True.

- All we can do is praise her. - That's right.

- Just praise her then. - I'm sure this life is round 2 for that girl.

It was going around, wasn't it? Rumors of Uno Mari's time travel.

Otherwise, there's no way she'd be that outstanding.

But you know, Mari-chan was a little too perfect,

- so she was hard to approach, wasn't she? - I know what you mean.

- She was a nice girl, but she made you nervous. - Yes, she did.

Isn't there like...any classmates who've turned into super losers?

- Why? - The way this conversation's going,

I feel as if I'm getting crushed by feeling of inferiority, so I want to be cheered up

- by hearing some loser's story. - You're awful.

But I can kinda understand. Aren't there any? Stories of loser classmates.

Probably not. Everyone's doing the best they can.

- What the heck~. Don't work so hard~. - Give us some nutrients.

You guys are the worst losers.

- Shall we get going? - I guess so.

Shall we stop by a purikura (photo sticker booth) on our way back?

- Oh, good idea. - Yeah, let's go, let's go.

Would Round 1 be opened?

- That place should be opened till morning. - Oh yeah? Then let's go.

- What? Is this what it's become now? - It's made a gigantic progress.

- Individually, they're all big. - Yeah.

Does this mean it can take pictures of us looking this pretty?

That's right. "Even a face like yours, can look this good."

- ...that's what it means. - Seriously?

- Let's do this. Kumagaya. - Oh, yeah. Kumagaya.

That way, that way.

- My body's forgotten how to do it. - Looks good, looks good.

- Take it with you. - I'll take it with me. - Don't leave it here.

What shall we do after this?

- Oh, it's still early. - And there's no work tomorrow.

- How about like going to karaoke? - Oh, karaoke sounds good.

- Shall we? - Let's go.

- Karaoke after purikura? - It's been a while.

Welcome. How many in your party?

There's three of us.

Fuku-chan? Isn't that Fuku-chan?

- Well, look who's here. - It's been like forever.

Long time no see. When was the last time I saw you three?

When was it? Wasn't the coming-of-age ceremony the last time?

So the last time was 13 years ago.

It's been that long, huh?

- So what's the occasion today? - It's not any special occasion, but

- just our regular get-together, right? - We just had dinner at Montagna.

I see.

- So how much time do you want? - What shall we do?

- Two to start out with? - Yeah. Give us 2 hours.

Two hours it is. It's slow right now, so I'll give you a big room.

Thanks.

- Wow, it's spacious! - It sure is.

Come of think of it, didn't we come here after the coming-of-age ceremony too?

We did. For what it's worth, we were in this room too.

Oh, that's right. And Fuku-chan

sang what was it... "Konayuki" or something, and

- everyone said he was super good. - Yeah, he sang.

- Was it "Konayuki"? - It wasn't?

- I thought it was the "Konayuki" type. That type. - It was indeed that type.

- Who wants to sing first? - Already? - Is it too soon?

- Only high schoolers sing as soon as they get here. - Is that what high schoolers do?

Can't you picture them doing that?

- Sorry to keep you waiting - Thank you.

This is on the house.

- Are you sure? Won't you get scolded? - It's fine.

- Thanks. - You're welcome. Enjoy.

- Eat up. - Yeah.

- You too, Ah-chin. - I will, I will.

Which reminds me, is Fuku-chan still doing music?

- I don't know. Isn't he still doing it? - No, he quit.

- Is that right? - Oh, how much do you two know?

All I heard was at the coming-of-age ceremony that he was going to do music.

- Me too. - Oh.

After that, he was able to get into an agency, but

he never got beyond that.

- That's a tough world, isn't it? - Yeah.

- Eat up. - Yeah.

- What about you, Ah-chin? - I will, I will.

Oh, that's right.

So after that, he quit the agency and

he tried to work on his own, but couldn't get anything going.

Well, that's what it means since we hadn't heard anything about him.

- Don't you remember? - When Fuku-chan declared in this room

that he was going to do music, wasn't everyone saying

something like "You're definitely going to make it"?

- I may have said that. - Yeah.

Nacchi, didn't you get his autograph?

- I did! - Oh, wow.

Actually, we have to bear some responsibility too, don't we?

I know, huh? We should've stopped him back then.

- Now that we think about it, huh? - Yeah, but you know,

didn't you think he'd make it when you heard that "Konayuki"?

- He was good, wasn't he? - Yes...

- Wait, was it "Konayuki"? - Actually, it was

- something like the "Konayuki" type, that type. -Let's just say it was "Konayuki."

- Eat up. - Yeah.

- Ah-chin, you eat up too. - Yeah.

- I'm just gonna say it. - Huh? What?

- We can't eat anymore, can we? - Being that we just ate dinner.

I really appreciate the thought, but I just can't eat it.

I really do appreciate the thought.

- But it's also true that we can't eat anymore. - A stone-cold fact.

What's more, these fries are on the house, so

- we feel like we have to eat it all. - That's for sure.

Look, I know I should never say this , but

- can I say it? - Go ahead.

If he was going to give us a freebie,

I wish he had given us free drinks instead of fries.

We should never say that, but it's true.

Just as a side note, we did tell him that

- we just had dinner. - I remember Miipon telling him.

- This is strictly "as a side note", okay? - It's "as a side note," right?

In this situation, it's no one's fault.

- It's no one's fault. - It's a case without an offender.

But if you were told to decide someone who was at fault,

- it would be Fuku-chan, right? - It's Fuku-chan by a narrow margin.

- Yes, an extremely narrow margin. - Fuku-chan by a nose.

Wasn't Fuku-chan, you know, that?

Wasn't he married to Shi-chan?

- He was. - That's what I thought.

- From what I heard, they divorced about 4 years ago. - What!

- So that's what happened. - I ran into Shi-chan

- just a little while ago. - Really? I didn't know.

- Why did they break up? - Uh... seems like

Shi-chan got tired of supporting him anymore.

But when Fuku-chan said he was going to do music,

wasn't Shi-chan encouraging him the most?

- She was. - She was, right?

For that matter, didn't those two fall for each other then and started dating?

Shi-chan must've started thinking about things with 30 quickly approaching.

So now, she's dating someone at work

and she said they're getting married soon.

- What about Fuku-chan? - Fuku-chan

started going out with a girl from his part-time job.

They apparently had a shotgun wedding.

- Is Fuku-chan a daddy? - Because of that,

he gave up music completely, and now he's supporting his family

by working multiple part-time jobs.

A lot has happened while we were unaware, huh?

- But he's admirable, isn't he? - Yeah.

He is. It takes courage to quit too.

We can't let the freebie fries from someone like that go to waste.

That's true.

Nacchi, you take responsibility here and eat it.

Why me? You two were making a fuss over him too.

We did, but we didn't go as far as getting his autograph.

I got one too, but I lost it right away.

- Wah~! - You lost it?

That's terrible! All the more reason you should eat it.

Or rather, I wasn't making that much of a fuss over him.

- You did too. - No, no. I admit I thought he was good, but

- I thought it was going to be tough for him. - Really?

- All three of us are equally guilty for not stopping him. - What~!

- Don't give me that "What~". Let's eat it together. - Even when it's Fuku-chan's fault by a nose?

- Don't talk about that anymore. - Okay, then for now,

- why don't we sing and burn some calories. - Yeah, let's sing, let's sing.

♫ We meet amidst a blazing journey

"Homura" by Lisa (2020)

And so, we started out by singing

a few recent songs...

♫ Enjoy, the music keeps playing

"Kokoro Odoru" by Nobodyknows (2004)

♫ It's Join, I want to deliver the throbbing of my heart

♫ Stir up an encore that makes your heart dance Dance Dance Dance

♫ Ready go!

The second half turned out to be a battle of nostalgic songs.

secret base~kimi ga kuretamono by ZONE (2001)

♫ I won't forget the big hope

♫ Believing that we'll see each other again in August 10 years from now

"Pokeberu ga Naranakute" by Kunitake Mari (1993)

♫ The pokeberu (pager) doesn't ring

♫ And love is getting stood up

"Pokeberu" was a few years before our time, wasn't it?

Pokeberu (Pager) Doesn't Ring

Kunitake Mari

My cousin used to sing it a lot.

Wasn't it around the time we were in nursery school?

- You couldn't make calls, right? - Weren't you supposed to send some number?

- Number? - Yeah. Weren't you supposed make a call

from a phone booth to the number that was sent?

- Wasn't there one where you could send words? - Words?

You know, the kind you can send katakana characters and stuff. Was that PHS?

- It was, wasn't it? - Oh, here's one that can send words.

- There is, right? - It's kinda amazing.

For example, if you want to send the word "Natsuki",

- you first press * 2 * 2. - * 2 * 2? I've heard of that.

And "5 1" gives you "na". 5 1?

The fifth column of A KA SA TA NA and the first letter of the NA column, so 5 1.

- What a pain! - Makes me shudder.

- That's the reason pokeberu doesn't ring. - It's definitely because it's a pain in the ass.

By the way, after we sang a lot, we did get hungry, and

in the end, the freebie fries weren't enough so

we ordered more fries and cleaned it up.

"Koi ni Ochitara" by Crystal Kay (2005)

♫ That smile, those tears

♫ I swore I'd protect forever When I fell in love

♫ I love you

... so what drama was this theme song from?

It was that, uh... Kusanagi-kun's drama.

- "Koi ni Ochitara." - That's it. Exactly like the title of the song.

- Then here's a quiz. - What?

- What drama is this theme song from? - Okay.

- I got it, but... - Oh, what is it?

- "Kaseifu no Mita," right? - Correct!

What do you mean "Correct!" If you're going to do it anyway,

at least quiz us on something you can sing.

I'm surprised you decided to give us a quiz with limited information like that

Say, didn't we have a teacher named Mita in middle school?

- Ah, Mita Kong, right? - I hated him.

- Mita Kong was super scary. - Right?

- He raised his voice right away. - I had my

- Advance confiscated by him. - You mean Game Boy Advance?

- Yeah. - That's because you were playing in class, right?

No, I wasn't. I just had it because I was going to play it with Peh-tan at her house

- after school. - Peh-tan, what a blast from the past.

But you were playing it during class too, weren't you?

- I was. - See? I knew it.

- But I wasn't caught red-handed. - You shouldn't have brought it to school

- in the first place. - Yes, I guess so.

But you know, Mita Kong would've been in trouble now.

For sure.

But don't you think he would've mellowed out a bit?

- But he's quit. - What? Are you serious?

- Didn't you know? - No.

That was quite a while ago. Seems he caused some kind of trouble.

Ah, that's not a surprise.

It's like it was meant to be.

What the heck. Give me back my Advance before you quit!

- He never gave it back to you? - I never got it back.

What's more, I left the "Ace Attorney" I just bought in there.

- I'm surprised you remember all that. - Sure I do.

I vividly remember that feeling of despair even now after 10 years.

- Huh? 10 years? - That was almost 20 years ago.

- It's been that long? - Yes.

That's scary!

Don't you think time goes by too fast after you hit 30?

Yes!

- I read about that in a book, but

that's because the relative length of a year becomes shorter.

Hmmm...

Sorry, I said "Hm...", but what did you mean?

For example, to a 3-year old, one year is one-third of her life, right?

But for the 30-year old, one year is

merely 1/30th of her life.

That's why as the relative length of one year gets shorter and shorter,

- it feels like time is going by faster. - It certainly feels that fast.

- But lately, don't you think one day goes by fast too? - It's fast.

The work that I did today feels like something I did yesterday already.

- I know, right? - Yeah.

Well, it's past 12:00 now, so it is actually yesterday.

- That's right. It's yesterday. - Let's not dwell on that.

I caught myself too after I said it.

Sorry, I couldn't ignore it.

- Can we stop by the convenience store? - I want to go too.

Okay~.

- About that talk of time earlier. - Yeah?

The fact that our daily life has become mundane

- may be a part of it. - That's true.

Basically, we're doing the same thing over and over.

Looks like we won't change much in 10 years.

Looks like we won't. As a matter of fact, we haven't changed in the past 10 years.

- Since all three of us are single, huh? - There's a good possibility we'd keep going on like this.

What's wrong with that? And then,

let's live together when we get old.

- What? Just the three of us? - Yeah. Doesn't that sound like fun?

It does, but what do we do if someone becomes bedridden?

- We can take care of her. - Yeah, but

- all three of us are the same age, you know. - Oh, that's right.

Furthermore, one may be manageable, but if two goes down,

- it would be a problem. - Yeah, that's bad.

- That makes me shudder. - I can never take that.

Then what about the three of us moving into the same nursing home?

- I like that idea. - Then it would be like

40 years from that that we move in, right? By that time,

don't you think they'll be like super high tech nursing homes?

The wheelchairs are floating, right?

That's the one Frieza has, right?

- The one like this... - Okay, it's settled.

- Is it settled? - Yeah, it's settled.

Shall we go?

- I'm going to walk home. - Really?

I'll walk since I ate a lot today.

- You're not gonna burn much off in this distance. - Not even a single fry.

- Thanks for the present, Ah-chin. - Happy Birthday.

Bye. Happy Birthday!

Bye~.

Hm? Eh?

Did I die?

No way...

Does it happen abruptly like this?

So what am I supposed to do?

It's not going to be like this forever, is it?

Eh? Is this a kind of hell?

Um... excuse me.

Yes?

It seems I've died, but

- what should I do? - Yes. Well then,

please enter your name and date of birth here.

Thank you.

One moment please.

- Kondo Asami-sama, right? - Yes.

Thank you for your 33 years of service.

Then I will show you the way to your new life.

- Um, you mean now, already? - Yes.

Isn't there something like, say, an interval?

- No, there is nothing like an interval. - I see.

- Are you ready? - Yes. All right.

Now then, if you would proceed straight on the left here,

you'll see a door. Please enter the next world from there.

- Have a safe journey. - Thank you.

Excuse me. It's just for my information, but

would you happen to know where I will be reborn next?

Next? Oh, I can find out..

Next, Kondo-sama would be... ah, here it is.

Kondo-sama is a giant anteater in Southeastern Guatemala.

- I'm sorry, what was that? - A giant anteater in Southeastern Guatemala.

This is it.

- Giant anteater? - Yes.

- Does that mean I won't be human? - That is correct.

Why a giant anteater?

Briefly, I believe the giant anteater is based on

the contents of your prior life.

Does that mean I didn't conduct myself well?

Well, yes. If that is not the life you desired,

it's highly possible that you were lacking the required good deeds...

- Lacking good deeds? - Yes.

Lacking good deeds... What~?

Isn't there something we can do about that?

Well, that is the rule after all.

I'm sorry.

That's why can't you do something about it?

I'm afraid that's the rule, so you'll just have to pay for it.

Talking to this man probably won't do any good.

Then... all right. So that means

from that point on, I'll be living my life as a giant anteater, right?

That is correct. Well, the other choice is uh~ not the next life, but

- whether you'd want to redo this life. - Hm? What do you mean?

It would be possible for you to redo the same life once again as Kondo Asami-sama

and not go on to a new life.

- Is that a possibility too?! - Yes. It's possible to

have you make improvements to your life there, and

increase the probability of being reborn in the life of your choice.

Hm? In short, that means

I'll be accumulating a lot of points for good deeds, right?

Yes, that's right.

- Then I like that choice better. - Would you like to do that?

- Then you'll be starting over. - Yes, yes.

Certainly. Then if you would proceed straight on the right side here,

you'll see a door. Please enter this life from there.

- Thank you very much. - Have a good day.

Brush Up Life 1

Asami-chan.

Asami-chan, you're so cute.

Thus started the second round of my life.

Thank you for being born.

Thank you~.

Doesn't this feel good?

In order to be reborn again as a human in the next world,

I have to make sure I accumulate good deeds in round 2.

Although I won't be able to do that for quite a while yet.

The only thing I can do now is grow up.

Even so, it was boring to spend time as an infant when I still had my memories.

All I got to do everyday was get put to sleep and comforted.

The sound of TV coming from the living room

was about the only entertainment I had.

To be honest, I could have talked right away, but

naturally, at this age, people would be weirded out, so

I kept quiet for the first few months.

And at 5 months after birth, I went from milk to baby food...

Yum! First taste of rice in a while.

At about 10 months after birth, I lifted the ban on talking and walking,

and gradually began to show my abilities.

And then, I entered nursery school.

Drawing little at a time on the knowledge and experience from round 1,

A S A M I

I surprised the adults.

What! Asami-chan, did you write this yourself?

- Yes. I can write your name too. - Really?

Write it, write it.

Ikewaki Yoko

That's amazing~. You write like an adult.

I know.

That's because I'm an adult.

First time in 33 years playing Sailor Moon. Even so...

I'm Mercury!

- I'm Mercury too! - Mao wants Mercury too.

For the most part, it was like playing Mercury.

- What about you, Asami-chan? - Then I'll be the bad buy.

- Bad guy? - Yeah. I'm the monster...

Mita Kong.

- What's Mita Kong? - Mita Kong is

a monster that takes things that belong to others.

In the end, it was tag for the most part.

The azalea nectar I used to suck on a lot in round 1

could affect my virtuousness because of the potential for theft or destruction of property,

so I held back for the time being.

Then one day, I realized something.

Okaerinasai!

- Rena-chan, your daddy's here. - Coming!

- She did well today too. - Thank you.

The fact that Rena-chan's daddy and Yoko Sensei were being awfully friendly lately.

I didn't notice it in the first round, but

looking at them from an adult's perspective, they're clearly conscious of each other.

I remember now. Come to think of it, around this time of the first round,

Rena-chan's last name changed suddenly, and she moved somewhere.

Furthermore, Sensei disappeared too around the same time.

In short, the two got involved in an extramarital relationship after this, and

when that got exposed, Rena-chan's parents got a divorce.

Rena-chan moved away with her mom, and

Yoko Sensei got fired from the nursery school.

Wow, that's the pits.

Seriously, what's with that guy?

Gross!

Do you get home late from work?

Apparently, they're not intimate yet, but

if left unchecked, the relationship will undoubtedly develop into an affair.

- Is that right? Really! - Sensei!

Today I played Sailor Moon with Rena-chan and other friends.

- Oh, that sounds like fun! - Yeah, it was fun!

- Then maybe I'll play with you next time. - Okay!

- All right! What shall I be ? - Rena, shall we get going?

- I'll see you tomorrow then. - Yes, see you tomorrow.

- Bye. See you tomorrow. Bye bye! - Bye bye!

- Bye, Yoko Sensei. - Go home safely!

The next day and as well as the day after next,

I tried to prevent Rena's dad and Yoko Sensei from making time to be alone together.

However, that plan proved to be in vain when...

Here.

- Later. - Okay.

If that's his cell phone number, we could be in trouble.

Ah~ Just as I thought, it's his number.

But even if I were to throw it away,

if Yoko Sensei tells Rena's dad that she lost it,

he'll probably give it to her again...

Thank you for always helping us. Please continue to take care of Rena. Moriyama

This should take care of Yoko Sensei for now.

The problem is Rena's dad.

If he doesn't hear from her after several days,

he'll most likely take some kind of action.

If that happens, Yoko Sensei will

tell him that there was no number written on the note, and

Rena's dad will give her the number again.

Which means I have to do something

to prevent Rena's dad from taking any action.

However, I can't think of a way to do that.

Oh...

Wait a minute.

Right now, cell phones and PHS aren't being widely used yet, right?

What's 020?

"Pokeberu" was a few years before our time, wasn't it?

Wasn't it around the time we were in nursery school?

It's for pokeberu.

If that's it, I may be able to use it.

For example, if you want to send the word "Natsuki",

you first press * 2 * 2.

And "5 1" gives you "na".

Asami, it's time for you to go to bed.

Okay~.

All right.

Oh...does pokeberu have caller ID?

Oh? Asami?

What's the matter? Do you have to pee?

- Yeah, but I'm done now. - Then go to bed.

Okay.

As long as there's the possibility of the number showing up on caller ID,

there's no way I can call from home.

I'll have to go use a pay phone.

Where's a pay phone?

I've never used it so I don't know.

Pay phone? Pay phone~. Pay phone...

Oh, the phone booth in the park is gone.

Was there a phone booth there?

There was.

Nice, Haruka! Even if you're not born yet.

There it is!

Excuse me for a moment.

Oh, I need money~.

Geez...

Ah, what a pain.

The steps are high because I'm little.

I made it home all right, but

I don't know where the money is. Money...

Where would the money be?

Oh!

Is Dad stashing away money in secret?

Seems like he's saving a little at a time in his shoes.

Nice, Haruka! Even if you're not born yet.

Would this make my points for good deeds go down?

But I'm doing it for Rena-chan, so even if I get deducted,

it's still a plus...isn't it?

Progress is slow because I have short strides.

Excuse me once again.

This is Tokyo Telemessage.

Please enter your message and press # twice.

Thank you very much.

Okay, let's go home.

Little girl!

Little girl, what are you doing at this hour?

Oh, no...

Little girl, wait... Little girl, wait.

Little girl. Little girl?

Oh, that was scary.

I never thought I'd be running away from the police at this age.

I'm going to have muscle pains tomorrow.

Hm? Do kids get muscle pain?

I'm sleepy... Staying up this late with this body is tough.

Well, I did everything that I could...

♫ "Pokeberu ga Naranakute"

The next day

♫ The pokeberu doesn't ring

- Hello. - Okaerinasai.

- Rena, we're going home. - What? We're going home already?

Come on. If we don't hurry home, Mommy will get worried.

Okay~!

Come on.

- Make sure you don't forget anything. - Okay~.

Okay, then. Bye bye~!

- Okay, let's go. - Bye bye~.

♫ "Pokeberu ga Naranakute"

The plan seems to have succeeded, and

even after this, the two didn't get any closer...

If you cheat on your wife, I'm telling.

- Daddy, let's go. - Oh, yeah. Let's go.

- And Rena-chan and Yoko Sensei didn't have to go away either.

In addition, I was also able to accumulate a large amount of points for good deeds,

I think...

- Wah, look at that tongue. - That's amazing.

It's disgusting how they live on ants.

But can ants be staple food when they're so small?

I swore in my heart to continue to be diligent.