# Chapter 68
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s mine. Give it here.”
“Why is it Arden’s when it’s my front tooth?”
“…It fell out of your body how many years ago, and now you’re claiming ownership?”
“Then isn’t it my tooth?”
Rite blinked his eyes innocently. Arden grimaced at the sight. Where does he get off teasing me like this?
“Give it back.”
“Come and take it if you can.”
“Aren’t you going to lower your arm?”
“Why? Arden used to do this all the time too. Was it with strawberry tarts?”
Arden opened his mouth in frustration but only exhaled. Now that Rite put it that way, Arden had nothing to say. He recalled what an author had written in a parenting book. It was a phrase he had felt many times while raising Rite, but this time it was different. It wasn’t just something that came to mind—it felt like a hard slap to the back of his head.
Children are a reflection of their caregivers. Venus, you weren’t wrong. How many more times will I have to experience the truth of your words? The child has already grown up, but until when will this continue?
Arden felt an inexplicable sense of defeat as he recalled the parenting book author whose face he didn’t even know.
“That was for your… No, that’s not it. I was wrong. It was improper behavior. So don’t learn this kind of thing and lower your arm.”
Even when Arden stood on his tiptoes and stretched his arm, he couldn’t reach it. Rite kept grinning down at him, and it felt like he was being mocked, which made Arden very uncomfortable.
Am I… being made fun of by Rite?
Once that thought crossed his mind, Arden felt a sense of crisis. It seemed like just a blink of an eye since the baby who couldn’t even open his eyes had grown this much and was now teasing him. It wasn’t such an exaggeration considering he had grown at an unrealistically fast pace.
Arden gritted his teeth, thinking thoughts he wouldn’t normally entertain. He was determined to snatch that container and teach Rite a lesson.
How dare he try to get the upper hand on his caregiver already? Arden bent his knees and jumped up. He stretched one arm straight out while grabbing Rite’s arm with the other hand, pulling it down. He wasn’t short by any means, so it had been a while since he’d had to jump like this. After successfully seizing the container with the tooth, he lifted his head to look at Rite.
“Got it…!”
Rite was also staring straight at Arden. As his body had grown, the lines of his face had become more pronounced, making it a face that could no longer be called that of a boy.
Only then did Arden notice that Rite’s arm was wrapped around his waist. He could faintly feel the subtly applied pressure. Only then did he become aware of his facial muscles that had relaxed at some point. Arden gradually returned the muscles that had moved from smiling back to their original positions, but for a moment, his expression froze.
“You’re not going to throw it away?”
“…Huh? Uh…”
Rite spoke in a casual tone. Arden forgot his earlier resolve to scold Rite and nodded. Rite grinned, turned around, and continued examining the bookshelf.
Why is he… so nonchalant?
Arden glared at Rite’s back with a dumbfounded expression. When Rite turned around holding something in his hand, Arden quickly composed his face.
“What’s this?”
“Ah, that’s…”
“What is this? It’s not a book?”
“It’s not mine…”
I can’t throw it away. Arden swallowed his words and contemplated. It was Plin’s diary. There were more than ten volumes of diaries. They were thin compared to the thick theoretical books, but if you combined them all, they would amount to about three theoretical books. It was too much to take with them. Yet Arden felt uncomfortable just leaving them at home.
First of all, they weren’t Arden’s possessions. The owner was dead, so it was ambiguous whose they were, but they certainly weren’t Arden’s. Moreover, they were Plin’s diaries. Arden wasn’t aware of it, but he had an attachment to Plin’s belongings.
He was also concerned about Pini. Pini, who would be guarding the house alone, thinking of the people who would never return. Wouldn’t it be right to return the diaries to Pini?
“It looks like a diary.”
“Plin… the person who raised me wrote those diaries.”
“Ah…”
Rite looked up at Arden. He blinked once, then immediately lowered his gaze back to the diary. He furrowed his brow, seemingly concentrating. He quickly flipped through the pages, his eyes darting back and forth rapidly.
“Um…”
Arden opened his mouth but promptly closed it again.
Is it okay to show this? Plin and Rite are essentially strangers. Is it okay for a stranger to see someone’s diary? Actually, even my reading it probably wouldn’t have pleased Plin if he were alive, but… anyway, since he’s dead…
While Arden was seriously contemplating, Rite had already opened another diary and was browsing through it. He seemed to have found something, as he stopped flipping the pages rapidly and began reading intently.
“He doesn’t act frivolously and is well-behaved, but there are many times when he’s in a daze even when I call him, and I don’t know what he’s thinking.”
“…”
“What were you thinking about?”
Rite, who had been reading the diary aloud, lifted his head to look at Arden. Arden stopped his contemplation and looked at Rite. He frowned, wondering what Rite was talking about, then recalled Plin’s diary that he had read before and relaxed his expression.
“Ah. That.”
At that time, Arden wasn’t unable to respond to sounds because he was lost in thought. Arden habitually fidgeted with the metal hanging from his earlobe. The accessory he always wore on his ear was something Arden had made, modeled after a device Plin had created for him.
“I don’t remember. It was when I was seven.”
It was a lie that had become so familiar that he wasn’t even aware he was lying. Hide your weaknesses. That was the first lesson Arden had learned in social life.
“Stop looking. What’s the point of reading someone else’s diary?”
“You’re going to throw it away anyway. I won’t be able to see it later.”
“…I’m not throwing it away.”
Arden awkwardly took back the diary and put it back on the bookshelf. Just moments ago, he had said that items with no use were unnecessary, but now he had to take back his words. If Plin’s diary could be excused, what item could be more useless than Rite’s baby tooth?
“Then?”
“Let’s… send it to Pini.”
The diaries would be returning to their original place, so Pini wouldn’t be surprised, but how would he explain Rite’s tooth? Arden’s mind raced.
He wanted to keep Rite’s baby tooth, even if it meant doing that. It was just a fallen baby tooth, but it was different to Arden. When he looked at this small tooth, he could vividly recall the sound of the wind and the firewood from back then. The warm and moist inside of a mouth, the small force of sucking on a finger, and even the ticklish sensation of the small tooth—all of it.
Even if he and Rite were to die as easily and meaninglessly as a candle in the wind, he wanted some trace of Rite to remain somewhere. This small fragment seemed appropriate for that trace. A small tooth that had grown through tender gums.
“You too should only pick what’s absolutely necessary. We can’t send too much.”
After returning the transparent case to its original place, Arden turned around to look at Rite. Rite smiled gently and said,
“It would be hard to get our stuff back from Pini’s house later.”
His voice, almost a murmur, expressed something closer to a wish.
* * *
To Pini,
How are you doing? I’m doing well.
The weather has been really cold lately. Though it’s always cold here.
And also…
Hello Pini. From here on, I’m writing instead of Arden. He really has no way with words, you know?
I heard you were worried about me a lot. I’m fine. I’ve grown much taller, and I feel that I’ve grown in many ways. It was difficult, but I think I gained a lot as well. Still, I’m sorry for making you worry.
I really want to tell you about what happened to me during my journey, but I think it would be better to talk about it in person rather than in a letter. I assure you, whatever you’re imagining, it’s more than that. To give you an idea, Arden still seems like he doesn’t quite believe what I say.
Next time, I hope you can come on a journey with us too. It would also be nice if I could visit Kamalon where you are. You’ve always come to the Winter Forest where we are.
Pini, have you ever seen the sea? Have you ever imagined it? I’ve imagined it countless times, and I wonder how similar it will be to my imagination. Wouldn’t it be good if we went to Alsi together after visiting Kamalon? It’s also close to Kamalon. They say it’s a place with many people and it’s vibrant. Arden says he doesn’t like crowded places because they’re complicated, but I think it would be quite fun. What about you?
There’s a lot I want to write, but the paper is too small. I’ll continue on the next page.
Pini. It’s Arden.
The reason for writing this letter is not to say hello. Just in case, I’m sending Rite’s letters on both sides.
Both Rite and I will be leaving the Winter Forest for the time being. I don’t know when we’ll be able to return. We might not be able to return at all.
I think you’ll understand why I can’t write the details in this letter. It’s for everyone’s safety.
When everything is over, I’ll go home. I’ll meet you at home and explain everything. But if I don’t return, if you think too much time has passed according to your judgment, come to the Winter Forest. I’ve put a box with papers explaining everything in the ground to the right of the tree house ladder. The choice is yours.
I’m thinking of looking for an engineer during our journey to Moran. If I disappear, you’ll need an engineer to take care of you. I plan to do my best, but if I fail at that too, you’ll have to find one yourself. I’m truly sorry for saying such irresponsible things. (Rite: I’m really sorry too. I mean it.)
I don’t think the cabin here is safe, so I’m sending a few things along with this. I think it would be best to put Plin’s diaries back in his study. Could you also keep Rite’s other belongings for now? (Rite: That small front tooth there fell out of me. But it’s Arden’s.)
I also have something to ask you. How long does the train from Winterishe to Menden run before stopping, and for how many minutes? And what did you think of the station attendant at Winterishe? In particular, could you tell me what you thought of the station attendant’s economic situation?
So I really hope we can go to the sea together, Pini.
I’ll try to visit Kamalon before it gets too hot there. Arden said there’s nothing to see in Kamalon, but I believe your thoughts will be different. I would appreciate it if you could think of recommended tourist spots in Kamalon before I visit.
The letter has gotten quite long. I’ll end it here.
Then, see you next time in Kamalon. Take care until then. I will too.
From your friend, Rite.
To my friends Arden and Rite,
I received your letter well. The cold season has come to the Winter Forest. Kamalon is also cold now, but I think the winter here is less cold than the summer there. Of course, I’m a robot, so I’m okay since I don’t feel the cold.
I can’t wait to see how much Rite has grown. As Rite said, it would be nice to explore Kamalon together, hear Rite’s travel stories (I’m prepared to believe anything I hear), and see the sea in Alsi. After receiving Rite’s letter, I imagined the sea for the first time. I’m a robot vulnerable to water (my waterproofing isn’t as good as the newer robots’), so I can’t swim, but I really want to see it together.
The train to Menden stops once between 9 hours 45 minutes and 50 minutes after departure, and once between 20 hours 5 minutes and 8 minutes. In my experience, it stopped for a minimum of 7 minutes and a maximum of 9 minutes. The station attendant always wore an old jumper and hat and would scratch around his unkempt beard. Sometimes I saw him drinking, and it was cheap beer. I think the possibility of what Arden is planning isn’t too low, as he seems neither wealthy nor diligent in his work.
Don’t worry about me. You don’t have to be sorry. But I’ll be waiting for the day when Arden and Rite come to Kamalon together.
I can’t agree with Arden’s statement that there’s nothing to see in Kamalon. I’d like to properly introduce Kamalon to Rite.
I really hope that happens. I’ll pray that both of you return safely.
From your eternal friend, Pini.
P.S.
Keeping a fallen tooth. Arden has changed a lot too.
