Tired

Inside the hut, four people were sitting at the chabudai, having dinner. Among them was Ralph, eating like there was no tomorrow.

(Chabudai is Japan's traditional dining table, which usually appears in anime. Ralph and Aoi's table are of Western standards, however.)

Three people live in the hut, the middle-aged man and his wife, and a small five-year-old boy. They moved into the cabin last summer.

"This is a good place, I also like the idea of ​​living in a cabin like this ..." Ralph spoke with a slight smile as he looked around.

"So ... Ralph-kun, how did you get here?" The woman asked.

"Excuse me, what's your name?" Ralph asked back.

"You can call me Sana." The woman spoke with a slight smile.

"Sana-san, the story is long and unfortunately I can't tell it completely. But I really did flee Korea by boat." Ralph spoke while eating.

"Eh? How is that possible?" Sana didn't seem to believe it.

"I know what you're thinking, but I'm sorry I can't explain it any better." Ralph sighed and said.

Sana looked at her husband and said:

"Husband, what do you think?"

The man looked at Ralph from head to toe sharply and said:

"He stinks of war, he's probably not lying."

"Really? Haha." Sana laughed lightly.

"Will you want to take a shower?" The man asked.

"Cough ... Excuse me, what's your name?" Ralph asked.

"You can call me Yang, that's how everyone knows me." The man answered.

"... Yang-san, are you by any chance Chinese?" Ralph looked at the man sharply.

"Yes, any problem?" The man asked back in a low voice.

"I have no problems, but I'm surprised to learn that a Chinese man currently married a Japanese woman and currently lives in Japan, you understand me, right?" Ralph spoke lightly.

"... My country's relationship with hers does not concern you." Yang responded with a sigh.

"Actually, I'm Japanese, I was only in Korea on business. But it's not like it matters." Ralph corrected with a slight smile and stopped eating.

"You mentioned bathing, right? I'll pay for that too." Ralph said and put a small stack of dollars on the table.

"... Where did you get so much money from? Dollars on top." Yang asked in a suspicious voice.

"Haha, you don't have to worry." Ralph spoke with a smile. This was only part of the spoils of war that he accumulated over the days. It was no problem for him to raise a small fortune while looting some coffers or bodies of people.

In Yang's eyes, however, a flash of understanding passed.

"Whatever, the bathroom is over there." Yang pointed in one direction.

"Please excuse me." Ralph spoke and stood up.

After Ralph entered the bathroom, Yang said to Sana:

"Prepare a towel and a simple outfit for him, his clothes are basically unusable."

Sana nodded and stood up.

Yang then looked at his son and said:

"Don't cause trouble while the boy is here, understood?"

The boy just nodded while eating.

Yang blew out a breath and looked at the money he earned by allowing Ralph to eat and bathe at his house.

"With that, we should have no problems next winter. The boy is certainly generous." Yang murmured and continued to eat.

In the bathroom, Ralph took a quick shower and removed all the dirt that had accumulated in him. His long hair was looking like a steel sponge from accumulated dirt.

Sana left a towel and clothes ready for Ralph by the bathroom door, which saved Ralph from asking for it.

After putting on his clothes, which consisted of plain blue shorts and a gray shirt, Ralph came out of the bathroom.

Ralph also loosened his hair, making his hair fall freely over his shoulder and back.

"Hey, Onii-chan, why does his hair look like a woman's?" The boy asked when he saw Ralph's hair, it seems that he wanted to ask this question for some time due to his curious eyes.

Ralph smiled bitterly and said:

"What defines whether someone is a man or not is his decision, his actions, not his outward appearance. Are you a man?"

"But of course!" The boy exclaimed.

"This is what matters to you, what you want to be." Ralph spoke seriously.

"Cough Cough ... Ralph-kun, do you plan on spending the night here?" Yang spoke as he approached Ralph, he had a slightly strange expression.

"... How far is the nearest hotel?" Ralph asked back.

"It's about 2 miles from here, in the nearest town." Yang replied.

"... Can you tell me the direction and direction?" Ralph asked again, intending to go there.

"Ralph-kun, it's late. If you want, you can sleep here." Sana suddenly said.

"Thanks for the good intentions, but I already made up my mind." Ralph spoke with a smile.

"In this case, we will not insist. The hotel is northwest of here, there is a road to follow in a straight line." Yang spoke.

Ralph nodded and went to the cabin door.

"Thanks for the food and the bath and if there is a destination, we will see each other again." Ralph said, opened the door and left the cabin.

After a short silence, Sana suddenly noticed something in the corner of the room, there was a big box.

After opening the box, Sana exclaimed in fright and Yang was surprised to see what was inside.

Yang closed the box before his son could see what was inside and thought:

-To leave a rifle with us, does he think the war will get here?

Meanwhile, Ralph stopped near the cabin and said:

"My status."

[Ralph Karman

Age: 20 (Soul) 15 (Body)

Level: 9

Talents: Infinite; Aura; ...

Situation: Healthy; Psychologically influenced by Imamoto Ralph;

Skills: Indomitable spirit (Passive); Aura sensitivity, lv7; Inner Vision, lv7; Aura Fusion, lv7; Space illusion, lv1;

Beast Skills: Illusion, lv5 (Mastered);

Stats:

Strenght: 10

Agility: 10

Intelligence: 20

Dexterity: 10

Vitality: 20

Resistance: 10

Will Power: 20

Latent Energy: 20

Available stats points: 20]

-I killed several Aura Masters, but most of them only had make me earn a point or two ...

Ralph thought.

Ralph divided the available points equally for four stats, Vitality, Latent Energy, Intelligence, Will power. Each with 25 points.

After a brief moment of euphoria when he felt his power growing, Ralph jumped in the air and, using the wind, fired towards the hotel.

-My energy increased by about fifty percent with five points, as well as the other three stats ... Can I reach the inn by flying uninterrupted?

Ralph accelerated more and more, easily overtaking a luxury car.

-Unfortunately, I can't fight at that speed yet, since I don't have enough control ...

Ralph thought with a sigh.

Although he is flying so fast, he cannot use this method in a fight, he would not be able to control his own body properly.

After several minutes, Ralph saw several lights on the horizon, it was the city.

Ralph had no problem finding the hotel, the city had one right at the entrance.

The hotel was small and Ralph paid little for the stay.

Ralph lay in bed, sweating deeply from the effort, and fell asleep in the same instant, he was simply exhausted, not having slept since when he left Japan.

He did not enter Dream World, but simply had a normal dream.

He dreamed of his family, but not of the other world, he dreamed of Lord Akira, of the people who work in the workshop.

He also dreamed of his childhood friends at the orphanage ... With the photo of Imamoto Ralph's parents.

Ralph suddenly opened his eyes, waking up for some reason in the middle of the night ...

"What happened?" Ralph wondered how he realized he was shaking.

"No ... This is not about me." Ralph murmured when he thought of something and stood up. It was already day.

Ralph stretched for a moment just before going down the stairs to the hotel and paying for a good breakfast.

As Ralph ate, he reflected on what he should do from now on.

He needs to return to Tokyo and inform HQ of the mission's success. Of course, he can inform HQ even if I know how to go in person now that he is in Japan. But he decided to inform in person, for a very simple reason, he wants a little rest ...

He saw a lot in those few days ... The expression of each person in Korea was similar, because it carried the sign of death, sadness, pain.

Ralph saw soldiers killing each other with hate in their eyes, as the other side had killed someone important to the other, be it a companion or family member.

Ralph saw people stealing and killing for his own survival, he even saw signs of cannibalism in some chaotic areas, which made Ralph wonder if he was dealing with beasts or people.

It has been a short time since the beginning of the war, so there should be no shortage of food to the point of resorting to cannibalism ... Still, some people have become monsters.

Ralph put his hand on his chest slowly and came to a conclusion:

"That dream is a remnant of Imamoto Ralph, his fear that the war will reach those people ... Certainly, even I am afraid, of what is happening in my world with so many beasts arising ..."

After he finished eating, Ralph left the hotel and started walking towards a travel company. Ralph bought a bus ticket to Tokyo without much hesitation.

He was on the same island as Tokyo, Honshu, so he didn't have to buy an airline ticket.

He ended up in Shimane Prefecture, in the Chūgoku region, which is on the west coast of Honshu Island. In a small town called Shishu.

In the afternoon of the same day, Ralph embarked on the trip to Tokyo. He sat in an armchair at the back of the bus and put on headphones to listen to music.

As Ralph watched the scene from the bus window, he slowly fell asleep, this time without any more dreams.

The bus left the Shimane prefecture, and went through other prefectures in the Chūgoku region before finally heading towards Tokyo, which delayed the trip considerably.

The trip was slow, as Ralph wished, and calm. Ralph ate where the bus stopped for a break, and spent the rest of the time practicing or listening to music on the bus.

There were several rice fields in parts of the route, which was a beautiful landscape to admire along with mountains and rivers.

After two days of travel, Ralph finally arrived in the Kanto region, in Tokyo Prefecture.

When Ralph saw the modern buildings through the window, he knew it was time to stop relaxing.

Ralph got off the bus when he stopped and breathed in the polluted city air once again, the day was overcast.

-It's really rotten.

Ralph thought and started walking.

He more or less knew his location, and went quietly to HQ.

After a long walk, Ralph entered the family building again, took the elevator down and entered the Golden Star control room.

"Soldier Imamoto Ralph introducing himself." Ralph spoke with a solemn expression in front of Sergeant Mina.

"... You are here. Why did it take so long? Why didn't you communicate with HQ?" Mina sighed slightly and started to question Ralph.

"I ... I was a little tired." Ralph replied with a bitter smile.

"..." Mina looked deeply at Ralph and sighed.

"You know what to do right? I want a report on my desk in less than ten minutes." Mina spoke and gave Ralph a paper and pen and went back to doing what she was doing.

Ralph sat on a chair and started writing the report as detailed as possible.

After a few minutes, Ralph handed the report over to Mina, who began to read it carefully.

"So this is what happened, the equipment fried because of the electromagnetic pulses of nuclear bombs. I will pass your report on to the superiors." Mina spoke up and put the report in an envelope before getting up and going in one direction.

Ralph blew out a breath, but before he could relax, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"He's back, Soldier. And still in uniform. Follow me." Lieutenant Torn had come after Ralph at some point and looked at him with a dark smile.

Ralph felt a chill in his spine but did not dare to defy the superior's order in this case, since he was really wrong.

After a while, they both arrived in front of a colorful door.

"Come in, disciplinary punishment occurs from the moment you enter, and ends the moment you leave." Torn spoke with a mysterious smile.

Ralph took a deep breath and turned the door handle, when he opened it he saw only an empty room, and calmly entered the room.

When the door closed, however, the torture began.

The great power of this room is to directly interfere with a person's senses and emotions, regardless of whether or not he is an Aura Master. It inflicts great mental damage and causes trauma to the person, according to the wishes of the master of the room.

Ralph didn't know that, but he did.

As if he had gone mad, Ralph could only think of going in uniform to HQ, feeling a great fear just thinking about not going in uniform. This was just beyond real, and out of Ralph's control.

For several minutes, the session slowly recorded in Ralph's memory and body the fear of going to HQ without a uniform, like a brainwash.

-Damn it!

Ralph repeatedly tried to resist, but always without success, he was unable to fight the room and emotions at the same time.

After about half an hour, Ralph, who was crying uncontrollably, managed to reach the door handle and leave the room.

Because of the flow of emotions, he had temporarily lost control of his own body. Only after slowly adapting did he manage to move.

Torn was waiting for Ralph outside and asked when he saw Ralph crying:

"How it feels?"

"Great, I never felt so good!" Ralph replied through gritted teeth as he dried his tears.

"Hahaha, I hope you learned your lesson." Torn spoke up and left, leaving Ralph angry and alone.

-Wait, one day I'll lock you in there and throw the key away!

Ralph thought bitterly and went to the control room again.

There, he remembered the mission he had accepted. Unfortunately, he cannot perform the mission. But now he can.

After calculating the kidnapper's next appearance in western Tokyo, Ralph realized it would be in less than an hour!

-I have to run!

Ralph thought and ran to the elevator.

After climbing up and out of the building, Ralph immediately went up in the air and flew west. Of course, he doesn't plan on flying all the way, as it would tire him out, he just left the busiest and most chaotic part of the center and then took a taxi.

After about half an hour, he was at the location scheduled for the kidnapping. Ten minutes to go.

The place is a public park, with big trees and lots of benches for people.

Ralph took a deep breath as he waited for some sign from the kidnapper.

After ten minutes, Ralph watched a couple eating ice cream on a bench, when suddenly the woman passed out on the man's lap.

The man seemed to recite something in a low voice and the woman slowly opened her eyes and stood up, but she was behaving strangely.

-I found you.

Ralph thought with an indifferent smile.

-This time I need to be more careful. Because my control has increased, I hope he doesn't feel my Aura ... I want to find out where the kidnapped women went.

Ralph started following the couple through the park, and then through the streets of Tokyo.