The Reincarnation of a Commoner Couple - Episode 14

A few hours on the Shinkansen later.

We arrived. Kyoto Station.

“Don’t cause trouble for other passengers. And be back on time for the meet-up, got it? If even one group is late, free time is over for everyone!”

Right after arriving at the station, free time began. From here, each group followed their pre-planned routes.

“Alright, first up is…”

Masaru, our group leader, checked the itinerary. First stop: the place I requested.

“Wow… completely deserted.”

“Keita, how did you even find a place like this?”

Visiting famous shrines and temples is the usual way to see Kyoto. But the place I picked? A lonely, almost tourist-free shrine. And I had my reasons.

I explained to Azusa why I chose it.

“Well, you know how big-time streamers do live streams? People throw huge donations at them, right? But the chat scrolls so fast, sometimes they don’t even notice yours. But if you donate to a small, struggling streamer? High chance they’ll react!”

“Are you an idiot?”

Please don’t look at me with those pitying eyes. I thought this through!

Even if you pray at Kiyomizu-dera, the gods are probably overwhelmed! (Not sure what they’re enshrined there, but still!) But a lonely shrine like this? The gods must be bored out of their minds! Time to blow their minds with a fat donation! Big shrines are used to big money, but not this place!

That was my passionate argument.

“You really are an idiot. Good grades haven’t fixed that part of you.”

I didn’t win her over.

“Keita—! I dunno why you picked this place, but let’s hurry up—! We’re on a tight schedule—!”

Whoops. Masaru was rushing me. Okay then, time to pray.

ABSOLUTELY. NO. RESULTS!!

All because I’m useless…!!
All I did… was pointlessly sacrifice Yukichi-san…!!
I couldn’t…
Uncover the truth…
Of the regression phenomenon…!!

“Come to think of it, wasn’t Attack on Titon supposed to be wrapping up soon?”

“Now that you mention it, yeah.”

I think it started back when I was in middle school. I used my meager allowance to buy the volumes. Now that I know how it ends… not sure if I’ll buy the rest.

“Ah, right. It’s not just horse racing. You can’t even enjoy manga or light novels anymore.”

“Some works are fun no matter how many times you read them, though.”

True that.

(Just for the record: absolutely nothing happened. I even checked my status board – no changes. I sneaked that donation in when no one was looking! What a noble sacrifice, Yukichi-san.)

After my little charade, we took a rickshaw to Kiyomizu-dera. Since it was only the first day, we didn’t have much time. But our meeting point was near Kiyomizu, so we decided to enjoy it to the fullest today. Grabbing snacks along the way was fun too.

“These cucumbers are amazing. You have to get them here.”

“They really are.”

It’s this cheerful old lady’s shop. She cracks jokes about comedians popular back in the day. No relation to that, but somehow, walking down this street, you just have to buy one.

“No action at Kiyomizu-dera either, huh?”

“I’m speechless.”

Combined with Azusa’s donation, that makes four sacrificed Yukichi-sans.

Well, it’s supposed to be a thank-you for the regression, so this probably isn’t enough… But since I don’t even know if it’s working, it kinda feels like a rip-off. No, no, it’s the thought that counts! I shouldn’t have such impure thoughts!

After thoroughly enjoying Kiyomizu, day one was over. We headed to our inn by bus. Rooms were, of course, separated by gender. After dinner and the bath, the classic school trip night talk about love… never happened.

“UNO!!”

“+4!”

“Gyaaah!!”

We just enjoyed a pure game of UNO.
That’s middle schoolers for you.

Day Two.

Today was the so-called “pilgrimage.”

One of our group members is a huge Detective Conon fan.
So we decided to tour locations from The Cross air in the Labyrinth.
I’d seen the movie multiple times but never visited the spots, so I was interested.
Azusa and the others agreed too – unanimous decision.
Once again, the greatness of Conon prevails.

From Kurama Station to Kurama-dera Temple.
It was incredible. Felt just like the movie.
The Conon fan girl showed us images on her phone – even the number of trees matched.
My thoughts were childish – “Wow, they really recreated it!” – but it was truly amazing.

Then we climbed Mount Kurama to Kibune Shrine.
It’s the spot exactly like the movie poster.
Sadly, no cherry blossoms.
There were quite a few tourists here, so we politely asked and took photos mimicking the poster.
A perfectly student-like way to enjoy it.

We planned to visit a few more places, but climbing the mountain took way longer than expected. So day two ended there.

Day Three.

Today was just for souvenir shopping before heading home.

“Man, that was way more fun than I expected.”

“I know, right? There’s a certain charm you can only enjoy as a student.”

Honestly, two nights and three days isn’t enough to fully enjoy Kyoto. Someday, when I’m earning money, I want to splurge on a long trip.

And so, my second middle school trip came to an end.