Volume 3A, Afterword

Volume 3A, Afterword

That was Kimitoasamade 3-A. It starts the morning after 2-B, but things were as lively as ever with those three girls plus several more.

This was…yes, the physical examination was something I realized I had intended to write a while back but never got around to. And for the drama CD, I didn’t even intend to write about it, much less actually write about it, so I went for all the material I hadn’t done before. Or rather, I wish I had written this in the main story, but the timing and flow of things just never worked out. Life never goes the way you want it to, does it?

Anyway, things are progressing toward the Gagaku Festival, but this time I had them think about what comes next and what is normal for them while everyone begins their respective activities.

I feel like Naito and Naruze have it especially tough.

In this era, planning for your future was quite strict. Normal people would either continue the family business (generally the eldest son did this) or helped out with it (For the second son on down. They weren’t allowed to marry until their family was prosperous because they had to be able to support the growing family).

To make sure that everyone but the eldest son didn’t become “deadbeats”, the eldest son had to work hard to keep the family going. Yet the eldest son wouldn’t have all that much experience, so if he let his guard down the family could go out of business. And all the while, he would have to keep the family and his brothers together.

The standard style was for the eldest son to be in charge while the entire family worked to protect the generations-old family and their land.

You can see how the idea of the “family” was a lot more important than it is now.

“Okay, this might be sudden, but did you do anything for your future while in high school?”

“I worked part-time cooking okonomiyaki at a truck that stopped at festivals in Ishikawa and Gifu prefectures every week.”

“That’s not about your future. It’s day labor.”

“The white truck’s usual location was below an overpass in Takadanobaba.”

“Oh, that’s near an arcade, right? This is starting to get oddly realistic.”

I wonder if things like that are still around. Hmm.

Anyway, the background music this time was Hate Made Mo. It’s nice everyday background music, but I was more focused on the fact that it’s a cheering song.

“Who was being cheered on the most?” I do wonder that, but I also think it’s a mutual thing.

Okay, wait just a bit longer for 3-B.

August 2012. A morning before a summer manga festival.

-Kawakami Minoru