The Following Day
"Anything else?" said the doctor.
"No. It's just that I can't recall what happened after I fell from the tree," I replied to the doctor, who had arrived in the morning to check up on me by the madam's order, said Akane. But I have a feeling she has something to do with this. Still, I can't blame her for worrying—maybe I was a good friend to her.
("Maybe you should try that…")
It looks like the doctor is telling Akane something, but I can't hear them from here. Anyway, I wonder what he thinks of me though.
---
Flashback
"Sorry, but I don't recognize you. Who are you?" I asked. But he continued and helped me stand up.
"I'm the gardener and overseer of this garden. Are you interested in it by any chance?" he said, keeping a composed expression.
"The flowers smell very good. You want to check them out together?" he added.
"No, I'm okay. I mean, not specifically—the flowers are fine but… it was the tree."
After realizing what I'd just said, I had no other words, so I blurted out, "Have a good day, sir," and rushed out of there.
"A tree?…" he said, puzzled as to why I would visit a garden filled with flowers only to see a tree.
"I said something stupid," I muttered to myself. But it didn't bother me much since I knew what I meant by "tree." So far, it's the only thing that might give me a clue as to why I'm here. I have a strong feeling it might be connected to me somehow.
Later that afternoon, I was given a task to handle the dishes alone, when suddenly I heard my name called by another girl. It wasn't Akane, and it wasn't someone I knew. When I turned around, she immediately rushed away. I didn't pay much attention at first and went back to work, but then she called me again.
So I stepped out of the room to ask her why she was calling me. When I saw where she was, she was standing at the corner of the room. Before I could ask what she wanted, she started running away.
"Hey, wait!" I shouted, trying to stop her, and started chasing her down.
"Hey, would you stop?! Where are you going?!"
After chasing her through several corners, she reached a certain room and stopped.
"Would you stop running already?" I said, trying to catch my breath. Who is she anyway? I don't recognize her at all.
"Are you going to tell me why you called me here?"
She still wouldn't say anything, but then suddenly opened the door to the room and went inside. I followed after her.
The moment I entered, I noticed it was an empty space. There was nothing to see besides an open area of white that seemed to stretch endlessly, though the door behind us remained open. The girl who brought me here had suddenly stopped and remained silent. I approached her to ask a question.
"Hey, what is thi—"
She suddenly collapsed at my feet. I quickly rushed to her side.
"Hey, are you okay—?"
How lifeless she looked as I held her in my arms. Her body was warm—still at normal temperature—but her eyes, breathing, and heartbeat had stopped. It's something I couldn't make any sense of.
"What happened to you… and who are you?"
With my shocked eyes, I realized something—I didn't know who I was again. The shock was enough to slap me back to reality.
"It's evening now. A nightmare in the middle of the day. A daymare," I whispered as a tear flowed down my face. I didn't understand why, so I wiped it with my finger.
"What is this?"
It's a strange feeling—something that's squeezing my chest tightly. It hurts for no reason.
"Am I crying?"
Later, as I left my room, I was greeted by Akane again.
"You're awake! Good. How are you feeling?" she asked, still looking as energetic as always.
"I'm okay now," I replied.
"Good. Follow me," she said, though she didn't say why.
"This is Mr. Rin Kōjin and his daughter, Akira Kōjin," Akane told me. I guessed it was because of my memory situation—she must think meeting new people will help me recover it, or at least help me interact until it returns naturally. But I didn't know how to respond. Should I say 'nice to meet you'? We already met before. What should I say?
"It's nice to make your acquaintance, Ms. Haru," said Mr. Rin Kōjin.
"Same—yes," said Akira Kōjin, who looked a bit younger than me.
"No please, Haru is just fine. No need for formalities, and it's nice to know you two. Again," I said. But the look Akane gave me concerned me a bit.
"Sorry, Aka—" Before I could finish, she pulled my hand.
"Let's go!" she screamed as we walked away.
"I wish you well, Haru," said Mr. Kōjin.
"Same—yes," said Akira. They both looked capable and kind.
Later, we arrived at the mansion.
As we entered, we found someone cleaning the interior.
"That's Akane Komori," said Akane, as if I'd asked and forgotten who that person was.
"Can I help you two?" Akane Komori asked, but Akane Nozomu brushed her off.
"Okay, let's go now. We're done here. Later, Akane," she said, pushing me away.
"You two share the same name?" I asked her.
"Yeah, we do—funny, huh? But we're not related in any way. You'll mostly find her working within the mansion since she's Ms. Sakura Kōchō's personal maid," said Akane.
Later, we found ourselves on the third floor and stopped in front of a room. Akane Nozomu knocked on the door after taking a deep breath.
"Come in," said a voice from inside.
"I brought her, madam," said Akane as she bowed her head. I quickly caught on and did the same.
"Haru, stand up straight," the woman said.
"Yes, madam." I slowly raised my head and met her gaze. She looked a bit older but clearly in charge. Then she started walking toward me until she stood close enough that even a slap could reach if she wanted to.
"Tell me, Haru," she said. The sudden pause made me nervous. What was she going to ask?
"You fell from a tree, was that right?" she asked.
"Yes," I replied quickly.
"And you can't remember anything about yourself besides your own name?"
"Yes," I said, maintaining a composed expression.
She suddenly exhaled deeply and said, "Girls these days. Anyway, I'm glad you can still move around—that means we only have your memory to worry about."
"But until your memory returns, you can address me as Ms. Mirai Tokiwa Zaikai. I'm the one who runs this place. It's in your best interest not to disappoint me."
She said it fearlessly—like a lioness on her rock.
Later, we found ourselves outside the mansion.
"Phew, I thought I'd die in there," said Akane, though I didn't understand why.
"Why do you think so?" I asked.
"Are you serious? Her gaze is like a beast about to tear you to pieces," she said.
"Too bad the man of the house isn't here. I wanted to introduce you to him too."
As she spoke, I started wondering what he might look like—to make Akane like him so much.
"Here we have the garden, and past it is the gathering area. It's used for parties and other big outdoor events. There's also a huge ballroom inside the mansion," she said. It made sense why the place was so large. They probably hosted more people than I could imagine.
Then Akane took me to meet the person who cared for the garden.
"Meet the man behind the beauty," she said.
"Leave me alone," said the man.
"Pss… Haru is here too," whispered Akane.
"Oh, sorry. Hi, I'm Lila Kusa no Kokoro, but you can call me Mr. Kusa—it's weird introducing myself to you again after all this time," he said.
"I understand. Sorry for the trouble," I apologized.
"No need to apologize, please. Just stop climbing trees—it doesn't suit you at all," he said. Somehow, that got to me a bit and left me with a gloomy face. But he was right.
"Okay, let's go—we're done here. Don't mind him; he's like that to everyone," said Akane as she pushed me away.
"The farm—and meet the people who do all the work on their own. First up, we have Mr. Sora Kaze. He's the funny one and the backbone of the team. If he's sick, the others get weak."
"Not true," Mr. Sora replied.
"Mr. Shinjiro Kaze—he's the brain, sharp and quick to read situations."
"Hm." He just nodded.
"And lastly, we have Mr. Kenji Kaze. He's the muscle—the brute strength of the group. I'm not giving too much credit, am I?"
"…" No response.
"As always, he's mostly quiet, which I sometimes find irritating," she added.
"Thank you, and sorry for the trouble," I said.
"Don't mention it—it's nothing hard for us. It's hard to imagine how you feel, living without your memories," said Mr. Sora. "So don't get gloomy—they'll come back."
"It's amazing how just the three of you can handle this entire area," I said, surprised but calm.
"If it was just me, it'd be trouble—but I've got my brothers," he said, pulling them close.
Later at the mansion—
"Looks like the only people left to meet are the gatekeeper and the master. But at this hour, the master must be busy, so we'll probably only find the gatekeeper. Oh, there he is—he's also the master's personal assistant," said Akane.
"Oh, the gardener guy follows too?" I asked. He was the same one I met at the garden yesterday.
"Gardener?... Wait—you mean Master Zaikai Takanori?!" Akane screamed.