Chapter 10 – March 10th – Diya

I vigorously stir my ice-cold chu-hai and take a big gulp.

Note: Chu-hai is a popular Japanese alcoholic beverage that typically consists of shochu (a distilled spirit), flavored carbonated water, and lemon or other fruit flavors.

“Ah, there’s nothing better than a drink after a hard day’s work!”

I let out a sigh of relief in my self-built DIY wagon, which serves as my castle on wheels – a camping car customized to my liking.

The interior exudes warmth with its meticulously crafted wooden finish, all handmade with great attention to detail. It’s my dream vehicle, complete with a refrigerator, microwave, and even a small kitchen.

Honestly, I feel more relaxed here than in my own room.

“Diya, you sound like an old man,” a familiar voice comes from my phone, placed on the detachable table.

“Who cares? It’s not like we have an audience,” I respond.

“Well, I’m listening, you know,” the voice replies.

“It’s fine if it’s just you, Iwaro,” I say.

As I assert my response, a sigh of exasperation comes through the phone.

“But was it okay for you to just go as far as the station?” I ask.

“Yes, it’s enough. It would have taken too long to drive me home. Besides, being alone in a car with a guy at night is not good,” he replied.

Iwaro muttered the last part under his breath, almost inaudible. Why is he embarrassed about that?

“You’re overthinking it. Nothing will happen if it’s with you, Iwaro. Oh, by the way, could it be that you’re into me?” I teased him in my slightly tipsy state.

I knew I shouldn’t have said that, but it was too late now.

“I-It’s not like that! I don’t mean to say that you’re not attractive, Diya!” he hastily replied.

“Don’t worry about it so much,” I said. But in reality, what would happen if I talked about our late-night drive with Iwaro on a live stream?

“Iwaro, are you okay?” I muttered a curse under my breath, and Iwaro could sense my frustration, even through the phone.

All I could think of were negative comments from the viewers if I shared our drive on the internet. Even my friends would react in the same way. All the guys around me are so difficult to deal with!

“I’m just annoyed with everyone,” I said.

“What’s wrong?” asked Iwaro, with concern.

I could feel him trembling through his voice.

Is this how popular streamers should behave?

“By the way, have you arrived home yet?”

I glance at the clock that was mounted in the back of the front passenger seat.

It’s almost one o’clock.

After dropping off Iwaro at the station, I went back to Jin’s house, had dinner and took a bath before returning to the car and taking a breather. It was already this late. It’s a shame that I couldn’t see his older sister again today and it’s concerning, but it’s not my place to delve deeply into their family circumstances.

“I’ve arrived safely. Wow, Jin’s place was amazing. It’s surrounded by nature and the structure is impressive and sturdy. The walls were also high and it had a fortress-like feel without doing anything,” said the speaker.

“I know, right? It felt like a rich person’s villa.”

“Yeah, exactly. Um, may I ask you something?”

“What? Don’t be so formal. Oh, and just so you know, my measurements are a secret.”

“I don’t care about that, okay.”

I don’t know why, but it annoys me when I’m immediately shut down like that.

“I mean, we visited the rooftop and then you showed me the blueprints, remember?”

“Yeah, the one that Jin brought and said he found it during the big cleanup.”

It would be helpful to know the precise dimensions, piping, and wiring even for remodeling, so Jin had prepared them in advance.

“Did you feel any discomfort or strangeness when you looked at that?”

It was a serious tone, unlike the lighthearted one just a moment ago.

As expected, Iwaro had noticed it too.

“I thought so. The location of the solar panels on the rooftop, as well as the shutters and iron bars on the windows, are surprisingly easy to install… or rather, the blueprints seemed to indicate that someone knew beforehand that we would do something like this.”

Normally, various preparations and fixtures would be necessary for installation, but there was a space that seemed to say, “Please install it here.”

It would be reasonable to think that the space was originally intended for renovation work, but even so, it feels too good to be true.

“You’re right. Their parents have passed away, but were they someone who had a high level of crime prevention awareness? They may have originally planned to install these facilities, but unfortunately passed away before they could do so.”

“Probably…”

 While saying that, they were not convinced.

There were several other points that were bothering them. The walls of that house were not at a ninety-degree angle to the ground. They were slightly tilted outward.

They suspected that it might be a defective house where the entire structure was leaning, but upon reviewing the blueprints, they realized that all the walls were intentionally designed to lean outward.

Why would someone do such a thing?

While it could be attributed to the designer’s sense of style and attention to detail, the only benefits they could think of for tilting the walls were that it would make it easier for condensation and rainwater to flow off. Also, it would make it more difficult to climb the walls.

There are actually buildings that have features such as inverted slopes or tilted walls to deter pests. In this area, which is naturally rich, there should be wild animals present as well.

It would be reasonable to think that the tilt was intended to deter such animals. However, if we consider it from a security standpoint, this tilt could be problematic for humans as well.

In other words, it could also be a deterrent for thieves… or even zombies.

“Hmph, no way,” I chuckled at my own absurd idea.

Considering everything that has happened so far, could it be that this house was originally intended to have excessive security measures?

Perhaps, Jin’s parents had planned to gradually install the equipment, but they passed away due to an unfortunate accident, leaving everything untouched.

“Oh no, now we have more problems than solutions!”

“I’m sorry. Did I say something unnecessary?” came the voice over the phone, sounding apologetic.

“No, it’s me who should apologize. Well, I guess I can’t exactly pry into the client’s personal affairs. Shall we just forget about it and not worry about it?”

Even though I say that, I actually asked my uncle for help.

“Well, I suppose there’s nothing wrong with being security-conscious,” I replied to the voice on the phone.

“Anyway, I have to go now. My favorite streaming program is about to start,” I added, checking the time and bowing my head towards my phone.

“Is that the one on VTuber?” the voice on the phone asked.

“Yeah, yeah. It’s a VTuber who does fortune-telling that I’ve been obsessed with lately… Oh, it’s time for their live stream! Well, see you later!” I said excitedly.

“Okay, take your time and enjoy,” the voice on the other end replied.

Since Iwaro had shown understanding, I ended the conversation and put aside the topic.

I finished the last bit of my Chu-Hai and let out a deep sigh.

“The more I know, the more uneasy I feel…” I thought to myself.

Jin didn’t seem like a bad guy, but I’ve heard that top-class scammers often appear to be good people.

During our conversation, there were several instances where Jin seemed to hesitate to say something. When I asked about his older sister and parents, he briefly made a troubled expression.

Similarly, when I mentioned the concept of a house that can protect against zombies, he seemed uneasy as well. It made me wonder if there was more to Jin’s story, despite his friendly demeanor. Perhaps there were secrets he wasn’t sharing.

“But… I don’t get the feeling that he’s lying,”

It’s a strange feeling of mistrust despite not feeling like he’s lying.

Does he have something to hide but not necessarily lying about it?

“I just don’t get it!”

I throw myself onto the sofa bed and look up at the ceiling.

I can see the ventilation fan that I installed myself and poked a hole in the car body to install it.

“Come to think of it, I want to install an air purifier too…” Jin mentioned.

In a world overrun by zombies, if the cause of the outbreak is a virus, it could also be floating in the air. That’s why it might be important to pay attention to the air as well, Jin said.

As a joke, it’s funny. Viewers might also appreciate how dedicated he is to his preparations.

“But, going that far?”

It’s just a rich person’s hobby. He’s just a weirdo. If that’s the case, there’s no problem.

“This month’s lucky item is disaster prevention goods. It’s important to always be prepared.”

A gentle voice that soothes the heart can be heard from the smartphone. I’m interested in fortune-telling, but this storytelling is my favorite.

“Hmm, I guess I should wait for my uncle to contact me.”

　I’m tired today, so I’ll leave myself to the soothing voice and think about tomorrow.

………………..