Happy New Year♥!　7

【A message for golf and baseball lovers!】

Act 18 [Bubble Collapse]During the bubble economy from 1986 to 1991, Japan's national income was second only to the United States, stock prices reached their highest, land prices rose to the point that it was said that the land price of the 23 wards of Tokyo could purchase the entire United States, and the inexplicable bubble burst with people dancing on the stage at discos. Neither Ken nor Jin had a very good time during the bubble. As private businesses, they steadily took on jobs, somehow managed to pay off their home loans, raise their children, and get by on a shoestring. The people around them who made money from real estate and investments lived flashy lives, and everyone drove luxury cars like Mercedes, BMWs, Celsiors, and Cima, and the businessmen who wore Rolexes and gold necklaces on their wrists lost their homes and cars when the bubble collapsed. "Another bank is going bankrupt, what's going to happen?" "My clients are going bankrupt one after the other, I'm worried." "We didn't have a good time during the economic bubble, and we don't know anything about stocks or investments. If things continue like this, we'll all freeze to death." "What a stupid thing to say!" "The other day, we got a bounced check and didn't get our 400,000 yen design fee." At that moment, the phone rang and a fax machine rattled and pulled out thermal paper. "I have a bad feeling about this." Ken's hunch turned out to be correct. (Bankruptcy Notice Dear Mr./Mrs., We are pleased to hear that your company is prospering. Thank you very much for your continued patronage. Due to various circumstances, Yonige Honpo Co., Ltd. will close down as of XX/XX/XX. Thank you very much for your support over the years. Sincerely yours, XX/XX/XX) "Oh no, I'll go and check on my client." A crowd had gathered at the client's entrance. There were also people from contractors and subcontractors who had not been able to collect their money, employees of the company who were not receiving their salaries, and people with bad-looking faces who seemed to be debt collectors from loan sharks. There was only a single note on the glass at the entrance, and the inside was empty. It seems that the president has run away in the middle of the night. Ken went home and told Natsu. His shoulders were shaking with anger. Usually, the design fee is small compared to the construction and construction fee, so he would pay it in cash. "Ayu-san, I'm sorry, but this time only, please wait for about 10 days for payment. Ayu-san, this time, I would like to ask for a three-month promissory note." The parent company and clients take advantage of the weakness of subcontractors and say this. "Please wait a little, just this once..." is almost 100% a default. "If I had refused then, this wouldn't have happened..." Tarareba had a lot of regrets about golf, but for a while, he couldn't sleep because of regret and anger. The price of rice, the staple food, has risen and more than doubled, and there are even people who steal rice from farmers, which makes the news. "Work and earn your own money." We felt the same way back then. "If you ask for a design, you have to pay." The number of clients has decreased since the collapse of the bubble economy, and we've lost about three or four cases without payment, and new work is also decreasing. "We're in a pinch, we have to think of something." Jin was in a similar situation. "The number of orders for new construction has decreased." "I can't delay payment to the materials supplier, so I have to ask the bank if I can borrow money." It takes more than 10 years to gain trust, but it only takes a few minutes to lose it. "Sorry, can you wait for my payment?" "I would never say that. Everything I've learned from my dad, inherited, and built up over the years will all fall apart at once." During the bubble era, Jin didn't earn much, and even though he received a few requests for new construction, he couldn't build many by himself, so he just worked hard. "We have to get through this crisis somehow." When Ken and Jin had free time and no work, they remembered their student days and did part-time jobs as cleaners and deliveries. At that time, Ken used to draw hand-drawn blueprints and perspective drawings on a drafting table, but the age of computers was coming. He thought that if they didn't digitize, they would be frozen out of this industry. "If I don't have much time at work, I'll study computers while working part-time. I have plenty of time." I consulted Natsu. "I'm thinking of buying a used computer and software. I can't do without a computer from now on." "Okay, how much do I need?" "About 1 million yen. The computer is used, but I need a Macintosh Quadra with fast processing speed to create 3D perspective, and each piece of software costs about 200,000 yen." Natsu was the type of person who didn't mind spending if it was necessary for work. His parents ran a machine factory, so he knew that if he was stingy with investments, the business wouldn't be viable. "It's only a little, but I have savings from hard work up until now, and my house loan is paid off, so I'll go to the bank tomorrow and withdraw the money." After studying for about two years, he showed the work he had made to a client who had not gone bankrupt "It's not on par with these boring computer-drawn drawings and perspectives." It was still the heyday of hand-drawn work, so he was criticized for it. Then, computer processing speed improved and prices dropped as computers became more widespread, and the accuracy of software improved, so it was finally possible to create realistic perspective drawings with a realistic texture. He went to a major office furniture manufacturing company to develop a new business, and he went out to do business with them, but he didn't expect anything. "I'm sorry for showing up out of nowhere. I'm actually making a perspective drawing like this. Could you consider it for a presentation?" "Please wait a moment." A few minutes later, the person who showed up gave me his business card. His title was Director of the First Planning Department. He looked at the work and said, "It's nice." "Please wait a moment!" A little while later, after some casual conversation, the person who showed up was the director of the commercial facilities department. After seeing the work, the director of the commercial facilities department said. "Can you please complete a CG perspective drawing for this property? I can't pay you, but I'll consider it as a proposal!" "Please let me do it!" He grabbed the opportunity by doing business with no expectations. A week later, Ken submitted the completed CG perspective drawing. "That's good. How much is the cost per drawing?" "It depends on the size, but for this property, it's ◯◯ yen. "Okay. Then, please sign your name on this contractor registration!" I was able to directly register with a major steel furniture company. I went home and reported it to the summer! "Yes! I got a direct contract." Since then, this steel furniture manufacturing company has been in business for nearly 30 years, accounting for 70% of Ken's office's sales, and Ken has been able to turn a difficult situation into an opportunity. Most of his design colleagues who were committed to hand-drawn design were forced to go out of business in inverse proportion to the spread of computers. At the same time, Jin was working part-time to survive, and steadily and honestly. His work was gradually picking up. Then, in the dim morning, the house shook unsteadily. The Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995. The highway was toppled over, houses and buildings collapsed, and it was an unprecedented disaster. The number of jobs to help those who lost their homes suddenly increased. Jin received more orders than ever, but he didn't exceed his limits and took on as many as he could, and just like Ken, he was able to get through the crisis.



Act 19 [Hide the Vagabond] Hidetaka Ayu, 36 years old, single player, no, single. In golf, he loses his voice when he talks too much.

Tomomi's younger brother, born 4 years after his older sister, and a resident of Ujitawara Town.

He's had a bad memory since he was a child, and when Ken and Natsu take him to amusement parks, the zoo, Kinoshita Circus, etc. on Sundays, he can't sleep in the car on the way there and becomes sleepy once they arrive.

Tomomi, on the other hand, falls asleep as soon as she gets in the car.

He imitates her older sister in everything, and even takes ballet and piano lessons, but she can't keep it up.

He hates studying and is not good at sports.

He has a high pride and gets upset easily if she doesn't like something, but her only good point is that she's kind.

Hapi, Moni, and Gantan are all in love with this big brother Hide. He doesn't call me Uncle Hide, he calls me Hide-nii(Brother Hide), and he's very caring.

"Hapi, Moni, do you want to invite me to Hirakata Park tomorrow on Gantan?"

"Yeah, let's go!"

Hapi and Gantan are in 6th grade now, and Moni is in 3rd grade. "Moni, come here and measure your height!"

He started marking the height board on the wall with a magic marker when Hapi was born and could stand and walk.

The lowest mark is 55cm from the floor.

"128cm"

"Finally, we can ride all the rides at Hirayama Park, that's great." Until now, Moni had complained that there were not many attractions that were available for people under 120cm.

"I can ride the roller coaster, but I wonder if it's okay~"

"It's okay, I rode the roller coaster at Ikoma Amusement Park before!"

Ikoma Amusement Park has quite a few attractions that even young children can ride.

On a weekday morning when Hapi and the others had the day off, Natsu made us a rice ball lunch.

Hide took the three of them in his car and set off.

We arrived 10 minutes before the park opened at 10:00, and since it was a weekday, there were not many people there and we were able to enter smoothly.

Hide: "What do we want to ride first?"

Moni said,

"The underwater swing!"

Hapi: "The flying trapeze, right?"

Hirakata Park's flying trapeze, the Wave Swinger, has a one-seater and a two-seater.

"I'll ride it alone!"

"I'll ride it alone too."

"Then I'll ride it with Hide-nii!"

Moni seemed a little nervous because it was her first time riding it. Moni sat on the inside and the trapeze slowly rose, and when it was about 2m above the ground, it started to spin.

Looking at Moni's face, she was nervous at first, but gradually she started to smile.

Hirakata Park's flying trapeze was quite high and impressive. Moni's long hair was fluttering in the wind.

Both Hapi and Gantan were really excited.

"Moni-chan, you got to ride it!"

"Of course! Hey, Hide-nii, let's ride the underwater swing one more time!"

"It's getting crowded, so should we go on the popular roller coaster first?"

"Yeah, let's go on it!"

We walked up the stairs a little, and the attendant said,

"How tall is she, let's measure her height here." Moni was 8cm over the 120cm mark where the red tape was, so she was OK.

So that she wouldn't have to measure herself again, he attached a red string to her wrist next to the tape for the free ride pass.

Moni-chan had a smug look on her face.

"I want to sit in the front."

"Me too."

"I'm going with Hide-nii."

It was our turn, and we got into the third car from the front, and the roller coaster Red Falcon slowly climbed up the stairs.

When we reached the top, our speed slowed down, but then we started descending at a rapid pace, our bodies tilting.

Hide's knees hit the ground in the narrow space inside the car, and it looked like it hurt.

Hapi and the others were squealing with joy.

In the blink of an eye, we went around the track once and reached the finish line.

"Hide, I want to ride it one more time!" said Happy.

There was already a line of kids.

It was spring break, so even on a weekday, it was full of kids. "Shall we ride different things and then come back later?"

"OK!"

"I want to ride the underwater swing one more time. This time I'll ride it by myself!"

It seems like Moni has settled on the underwater swing. Last time, there were two of us, so she wants to catch up with her big sister. "Okay, let's ride the flying trapeze one more time!"

Moni's tension had already been released and she was excited from the start.

"Ah, that was fun. Let's ride that next, Hide-nii!"

Hapi pointed to the slightly scary attraction, Guruguru King, which looked like a spinning Viking. It was an attraction where you sit facing outwards on a chair like a bicycle saddle and spin around while doing Vikings from side to side. Moni said,

"I'm scared, I can't ride it!" "Don't worry, Hide-nii will sit next to you and lift you up."

It was pretty impressive, and Moni had her eyes closed.

After they finished, Hapi and Gantan must have really liked it, because they rode it four times by themselves.

Moni ended up riding the flying trapeze with Hide-nii four times. After that, they rode Pachanga, a rapids ride attraction, on a huge round rubber boat that can carry about eight people.

Hide-nii's T-shirt got soaked from all the splashes. Seeing that, Hapi grinned.

We lined up for the wooden roller coaster, Elf, to ride it one more time before lunch.

There was quite a wait, but we were finally able to get on.

When we were done, Moni-chan seemed happy, as she had also had fun.

Hide thought.

"The old roller coasters at amusement parks were scarier because they had one full rotation or something."

"Really?"

"I guess roller coasters these days are less scary so even small children can ride them."

"I want to ride it one more time!"

said Hapi.

"It's already lunchtime and I'm tired of waiting in line again."

We all sat on a bench and ate the rice ball bento that Natsu-san had made for us. From noon, we went on a number of rides, including Magical Jumpin, which shook us up and down, Crazy Mouse, which made sharp turns around hairpin curves, Kite Flyer, which spun around while lying on its back, Octopus Panic, which ran at breakneck speed while turning up and down and backwards, the Swinging Swing, which about five people ride, the Screaming Pash, which went down a rapids on a log, the haunted house Dororon Travel Agency, and the cute twin crocodile roller coaster Rowdy. Having fully earned our money for our free passes, we played until we were exhausted and then went home.

"Ahh, that was fun, let's go again, Hide-nii!"

"I don't have any more money, so maybe next time."

"Thank you, Hide-nii!"

Haiy, Moni, and Gantan all thanked Hide-nii.

Hide joined the baseball team in high school, and endured three years of rigorous training with the team, which had won the Koshien tournament.

He wasn't selected as a regular player, but he was given the number 15 jersey and at least he had guts.

After graduating from high school, he attended an aviation technical school for two years to become a mechanic, but although he was not able to become an aircraft mechanic, he got a job in the aviation manufacturing industry and rented an apartment in Nagoya to start living alone.

Ken and Natsu were excited, but he couldn't get used to the monotonous work, and he returned to Ujitawara due to credit card debt and overdue rent.

He got a job again at a manufacturing factory in Kyoto, but it didn't last long and he quit.

One day, he went on a trip to Jamaica by himself because he likes reggae music.

He returned a month later and rented a small shop and opened a shot bar, this time without any bartending experience. It was not popular in such a rural area, and he ended up with more debt and gave up.

After that, he changed jobs at night to deliver lunch boxes and as a long-distance truck driver for a transportation company, and now he works in events, but there are many days when he is not working and he lives like a day laborer, which makes Ken and Natsu worry.

He fell in love with Ai-chan, a woman with a child whom he met while managing the shot bar.

Ai-chan was a very reliable girl who was raising two children on her own after her divorce.

She came to visit Hide and introduced Ken and Natsu.

Ai-chan's grandmother gave Ai-chan a pre-built house as a gift.

Hide and Ai-chan started living together in the house, and Ai-chan started managing the salary she earned from working at a bento shop.

Ken and Natsu agreed that Hide needed a reliable daughter like her, so they bought him a big TV as a gift for the new house. However, one day, just a few days later, Hide came back to his parents' house.

"I guess they kicked him out."

"I guess they're only allowed to stay with the TV."

"I want it in exchange for the old TV at home!"

"What are they going to do from now on? They have no pension in the future, and no savings.

How are they going to survive when we die...?"



Act 20 [Fateful Encounter]Ken and Natsu's eldest daughter, Tomomi, was a high school student.

She was busy with her studies and basketball, but she tore her Achilles tendon during a game and was hospitalized for a while, which made her unable to play in games and she had a hard time.

During the winter break in January, she was able to get rid of her crutches, but even after being discharged from the hospital, she was unable to play in games due to rehabilitation, so she was just thinking about things.

"I want to see the drift ice."

When you have an idea, you act immediately! It's in the Ayu family's DNA.

I went to Itami Airport first thing in the morning and waited for my turn for my Skymate.

There were not many people going to the north in the cold January weather, so I was able to get on right away.

After arriving at Chitose Airport, I walked around Odori Park and visited the clock tower and the former Hokkaido Prefectural Government Office (Red Brick Office), and then ate delicious miso ramen at the original Sapporo Ramen Yokocho.

"It's delicious! It really warms me up."

That day, I went to Noboribetsu Onsen, saw the bear ranch, and stayed overnight.

The next day, I went to Otaru, walked along the snow-covered Otaru Canal, and then extended my journey to Hakodate.

I went to Mt. Hakodate to see the night view and visit the Red Brick Warehouse.

The next morning, I walked around Hakodate until noon, returned to Sapporo, and visited a rental car shop.

I had gotten my license and drove at home, but I wanted to try driving slowly on snowy roads.

When I opened the door, two boys and one woman of my age were sitting on a bench sofa.

The reception counter was full, so I sat on an empty sofa, and a boy who looked half-Japanese called out to me.

I was shocked for a moment, thinking he was trying to pick me up, but I quickly calmed down, thinking that this was not the place to be.

"Um, we just met here. Where are you going to after renting a car?"

I thought he would speak to me in English, but he spoke to me in fluent Japanese.

"We're going from Mt. Daisetsu to Lake Mashu, to see the drift ice in Abashiri, and then to Lake Akan. Do you want to share?"

"What?! I'm also planning to see the drift ice, so I thought I'd rent a car."

"Really?! We'll split the rental fee and it'll be cheaper, and I thought it'd be more fun and lively than going alone, so I agreed."

I thought about it for a bit, but I nodded, relieved to hear the rental fee would be cheaper and that there would be a woman with me. Plus, this person was a bit my type.

"Then can I ask you to do it?"

"Yay, OK."

I signaled to the three of them.

The half-Japanese boy completed the procedure and set off in the rental car.

The half-Japanese boy was driving, and another boy was in the passenger seat.

The women sat in the back seat.

"Then let's introduce ourselves briefly. I'm a high school girl. My father is Scottish and my mother is Korean. I'm currently working part-time at a farm in Furano. I'm 23 years old. Nice to meet you!"

"My name is Matsukawa Chiharu. I'm here as a tourist from Tokyo. I'm 20 years old."

"I'm Ishiyama Sayuri. I came from Aomori across the Tsugaru Strait. I'm 24 years old, and I'm the oldest. Nice to meet you."

"My name is Ayu Tomomi. I'm from Kyoto. I'm 20 years old too."

Everyone except Sayuri is a student, and JK seems to be on a break from university.

The drive was fun and we saved money on the rental car, so we stopped at a delicious-looking conveyor belt sushi restaurant on the way for lunch, and before we knew it, we were on the mountain roads of Daisetsuzan.

Chiharu took over driving halfway through, and after a while,

"I want to try driving too!" Sayuri said.

I also wanted to try driving, but I was afraid of driving with other people in the car, so I didn't bring myself to say it.

"Then let's park in that wide spot!"

Sayuri sat in the driver's seat and the high school girl sat in the passenger seat.

Chiharu sat next to me and we were chatting as we drove when the straight road beyond the curve turned into a white sheet of ice.

When the tires climbed up onto the snowy road, the tail of the car shook and Sayuri instinctively tried to turn the steering wheel.

The car slipped and began to spin.

"Aaah!"

The high school girl quickly stabilized the steering wheel with her right hand and the car spun along the road.

I was prepared for either the car to hit a mountain or fall off a cliff.

(Sorry, Mom and Dad...)

I closed my eyes.

Sayuri's scream echoed as the car stopped.

As it spun along the road, it didn't hit anything and no one was hurt.

It was a fine play by the high school girl who quickly stabilized the steering wheel.

I gently opened my eyes.

"I'm sorry, I..."

Sayuri said, with tears in her eyes.

"Anyway, I'm glad everyone's safe?"

The car was moved to a safe place and the high school girl took over driving.

It was silent all the way to Lake Mashu, but the high school girl gradually calmed everyone down and gradually created a peaceful atmosphere.

Sayuri also calmed down and began to smile.

(He's nice), Tomomi thought.

After that, we all went to Abashiri and took a commemorative photo at the main gate of the prison.

The drift ice in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk was an impressive sight.

I was overwhelmed by the natural phenomenon of the ice piling up and collapsing with a sound when rocked by the waves.

I was glad I came. I was glad I was alive.

If I had lost my life at that time, I would not have been able to see such a view.

For that moment, I was grateful for luck.

We said goodbye to everyone at Lake Akan, left the rental car here, and some of us headed to Cape Soya, some of the high school girls were heading back to Furano, and some of us were going back to Sapporo.

I was planning to go to the Ainu museum and spend the night at Lake Akan.

A lot happened, but it was a memorable trip.

We were reluctant to say goodbye, but we parted ways without exchanging contact information.

Once in a lifetime encounter.

We don't meet many people, so we have to cherish the opportunity.

A friend on the girls' basketball team suggested this during our graduation trip in our third year of high school.

"Tomomi is going to Kyushu, so we won't get to see each other very often. Let's go overseas this time!"

"I agree!"

"Where should we go?"

"I want to go to Spain!"

"I think Italy."

"How about going from Italy to Spain in eight days?"

said the captain.

"That's great!"

It was decided. The unity of the girls' basketball team is a direct result of relationships.

It was the first time for everyone.

We went on a tour to Rome, Florence, Venice, and Milan, and then took a long-distance bus to Barcelona and Madrid.

In Rome, we followed Audrey Hepburn's holiday route, visiting the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and Mouth of Truth, and visited the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Vatican.

In Florence, we visited the Duomo and Giotto's Campanile, and in Venice, we visited St. Mark's Square, the Grand Canal, Rialto Bridge, and Murano Island, famous for its Venetian glass, where we bought shochu glasses as souvenirs for Dad and Jin, and Burano Island, famous for its lace.

In Milan, we visited Milan Cathedral and the Galleria shopping mall, and at the suggestion of Tomomi, who is a descendant of Natsu-san, we went to Serravalle Designer Outlet, the largest in Italy.

Famous brand items such as "Armani," "Bally," "Fendi," "Ferragamo," "Gucci," "Moschino," and "Prada" were surprisingly cheap, but we couldn't afford them.

Here too, everyone was just watching

"I'm Just Looking!"

In Barcelona, ​​we visited Sagrada Familia, Park Güell, and Antonio Gaudi's apartment.

We went to Toledo from Madrid, the capital of Spain.

The old town of Toledo, where buildings that combine three religions, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, are lined up, is said to be

"the whole city is a museum."

It is also famous as the city where El Greco, a representative Spanish painter, was active.

We got on the hop-on hop-off bus to see the city of Toledo, and suddenly, we saw someone who looked familiar.

Could it be Sayuri? I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Ishiyama Sayuri?"

"Tomomi?"

Next to me, Mitchan, my best friend on the girls' basketball team, was biting into a prosciutto sandwich she bought at a Mexican restaurant called Viandas.

"This sandwich is delicious! What a collaboration and encounter between cheese and prosciutto." She was a girl from the countryside with a slight accent.

"Tomo, who is that?"

"I met you on a trip to Hokkaido before."

"It's fate that we met again here!"

"It's been a while, how are you?"

"I'm sorry for putting you in danger that time!"

"Oh, no..."

Tomo had never dreamed that she would meet you again here, so she was speechless and just stared at Sayuri's face.

Everyone encouraged her to sit next to Sayuri, and we chatted about what we had been up to since then, and we didn't get to see much of the beautiful cityscape of Toledo.

We gave each other our contact information at that time, and after returning to Japan, we started exchanging letters.

After that, everyone graduated from high school, and most of the girls on the basketball team went on to study at Ritsumeikan University's Kyoto Kinugasa campus.

Tomo was majoring in Korean and Chinese, and went on to Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, a sister school in Beppu, Kyushu, which is an international university.

After moving into the dormitory, things got busy, and in the fall of my third year, there was talk of me going on an exchange program.

The destination of the study abroad is Busan University in Korea.

Natsu said.

"Tomo-chan is not the kind of girl who stays at home, I think he will live abroad."

"Let's bear with the exchange program for a year for now."

The family went to Busan to rent an apartment, and somehow managed to make a contract with a rental agency for a year.

In Korea, there is a system called jeonse, and apparently you can avoid paying rent by depositing a security deposit.

It depends on the size, but for a one-room apartment, you can deposit about 4 million yen and avoid paying monthly rent.

Of course, when you move out after a year, you get the full 4 million yen back.

I wondered if the landlord would lose money, but it seems that the landlord will collect the money and buy a new apartment.

The real estate bubble in Korea is also causing apartment prices to rise rapidly.

In Busan, it only cost 4 million yen, but in Seoul, it seems it would cost two or three times that amount.

If the jeonse is small, monthly rent will be charged, but it seems that landlords would rather have someone pay a deposit than borrow money from a bank and pay high interest.

However, you need to be careful because you have to tell them when you're moving out early, otherwise they won't give it back until the next tenant is found.

The furniture was equipped with air conditioning and a TV.

A week after I started attending Busan University, I saw a face I'd seen on the pilot again.

"Tomomi!"

"High school girl! Why?"

"Was Tomomi the exchange student from Japan?"

All of JK's friends were asking who she was,

"Nuguya?"

"JK, were you a university student here?"

Was it another fateful encounter? JK and Tomomi started dating seriously.

After returning to Japan after her study abroad, Tomomi started looking for a job.

After interviewing at several companies, Tomomi was hired by Lawson, who was recognized for her mountain climbing experience.

She was in charge of management at each Lawson store. The job entails visiting several companies to help with sales promotion and how to increase sales.

The location is Osaka, so it's easy to commute from home, but Natsu's parents' home is in Osaka, and there was a spare room, so Tomomi started living in Osaka.

Natsu said.

"I thought it was just like I said, Tomomi isn't a homebody."

After about a year and a half of working at Lawson,

Tomomi said. "Mom and Dad, there's someone I want you to meet."

"Who is it?"

"I'm dating someone."

I was surprised because she never showed any sign of it.

"Actually, I met him when I was studying abroad at Busan University, and he's now working for a trading company in Korea."

"Huh..."

Natsu was surprisingly calm.

Ken was flustered.

"I want to meet you this Sunday."

The next Sunday, I was surprised to see him half Japanese, but he spoke Japanese and was a nice young man.

"I think it's a good idea. He likes Tomomi, so it's fine."

Ken remained silent.

Then, after a while, Tomomi said,

"I've bought ferry tickets to Busan, so I'd like you to meet her parents there."

This was what Natsu had decided.

What a pushy daughter.

After making work arrangements, the three of them boarded the Panstar Ferry from Nangang.

It was their first boat trip, and the sea breeze was very pleasant as we departed Nangang International Terminal at 3:30.

The ferry was large and you could move freely between three floors.

The basement was packed with trucks and containers.

The first and second floors were guest rooms and lounges, and the third floor was a deck.

There was a bar, duty-free shops, a restaurant, and even a bath with karaoke and a sauna.The Seto Inland Sea was smooth and comfortable, and we passed the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, the Seto Ohashi Bridge, and the Shimanami Kaido on the way, and passed the Kanmon Straits at around midnight.

Once we reached the open sea, the boat was quite bumpy, but it was late at night and we fell into a deep sleep.

When I woke up in the morning, I could see Tsushima on my left. Around 10am, Busan Port came into view, and the quarantine at sea was over.

We entered Busan Port just before 11am.

After a simple immigration procedure, we set foot on Busan soil. It was strange to think that this land stretches from the Asian continent to the Eurasian continent and all the way to Europe.

Tomomi had booked a hotel in Dongnae Hot Springs.

That day, we relaxed in the hot springs and ate Korean food at a nearby restaurant.

The next day, we went to a nice Korean restaurant near the hotel for lunch, and met his parents for the first time.

His father doesn't speak Japanese, but he is fluent in Korean.

His mother only speaks Korean.

He has two older sisters, and the eldest can speak both English and Japanese.

Apparently she has experience working for the Korean conglomerate Samsung.

Ken was so nervous that he couldn't even eat, but Tomomi must have studied Korean quite a bit, as she spoke with her parents and sister, and her efforts seemed to have paid off and she was well taken care of.

"Well, I guess that can't be helped,"

Ken gave up.

Things progressed smoothly, and in the fall of that year they had a wedding, and Tomomi quit Lawson and went to Korea.

Natsu said again.

"I guess it turned out just like we said it would."

Natsu began to frequently go to Korea alone and stay at Tomomi's house.

At the end of the following year, Tomomi returned to Ujitawara to give birth, and they spent New Year's together.

Tomomi had told Natsu that she wanted to give birth in Japan, which was Tomomi's wish.