Medium

Night Before the Chaos

=Third Person's POV=

- Flag World - Virtual Japan -

Even in Tokyo, where skyscrapers tower the city, outside the wards aren't that crowded. Japan let out a breath to praise the people who made such a detailed replica in the virtual world he was in right now, as he was sitting on the engawa (縁側-outside corridor) of his Japanese-style house, looking up at the moon.

He had finally finished his work (for now) and was home for the first time in about three days. He had lost count. The fact that he had excess work to do in the "flag world" and not just in the human, or more specifically, the "real world," gave him a headache. Since the environment in the "flag world" is based on how people from the real world think of a country, Japan sighs as he realizes, for the seventh time in the month, that his people probably work too much.

(The conversation is in Japanese, but I'm not translating this)

"Hmm~? Japan, are you home?" Japan jumped when he heard the voice but quickly relaxed when he realized it was the Japanese Empire. "Oh, I didn't realize. You're up late." Without answering the remark, JE gave him a dissatisfying look. "You know what time it is, right?"

Of course, Japan did not know the time. He even lost count of the date. He shook his head sideways as JE took a seat beside him. Japan noticed that he had changed his night kimono into one with a thinner material. Summer was coming earlier than usual.

"Let's just say it's past midnight." When he heard that, Japan groaned and fell on his back on the hard wooden floor. "No way..." JE stared down at him for a minute and put a thin smile on his face. "Well, at least you have the day off."

Seeing him smile nowadays was rare, especially after one of his friends disappeared after the war. Japan felt relieved by his expression and smiled back.

"Yes, I'll just take a bath and sleep now." Japan stifled a yawn as he got up. But he quickly turned back to the other, "Is my sister here?" He asked. "No, she said she'll stay in Kyoto in the real world for a while. The others needed help... So it's just me and the two Shogunates."

Imperial Japan didn't fail to notice the worried expression his successor showed on his face. "Well, the Edo shogunate doesn't leave his room unless necessary, and the Kamakura shogunate's calm unless he goes out to meet with the Mongolian Empire. Don't worry about the housekeeping."

Now, it was Japan's time to give him a cold look. "Can't we at least send the Kamakura shogunate back to Kanagawa?" JE shrugged, "Well, we can't leave him there all alone. You do remember the time when he got drunk and destroyed part of his house because nobody was there to stop him, right?"

Now, Japan did remember that terrible incident. The other members of his family gave up on fixing the house (even though they could use magic in the flag world) because one of the main pillars was somehow bent. Nobody could figure out how he managed to bend the wooden pillar, even the Kamakura shogunate himself, and so that stayed a mystery.

Japan felt his headache worsen. He couldn't stop thinking that his family doesn't act like civilized beings. Of course, the periods before Edo didn't have any modern constitutions, nor did they have a lot of interactions with foreigners, but JE? Well..., he shoved that out of his mind, and started walking down the hall. He was longing for a warm bath and a good night's sleep.

"Good night, Japan. I'll see you when you wake up." JE called from behind him. It was nice for him to say so, not forcing him to wake up when the sun rises. Who would have thought he could act so kind, if they knew how he treated others 80 years ago? "Good night to you, too," Japan answered.

He looked behind to see the Japanese Empire looking up at the moon. God knows what he's thinking about.

- Real World - Europe -

The summer moon had just appeared. Just a slight shadow in the light sky.

Through the woods near the city, a cloaked figure was running down a trail that was not paved. The figure didn't have any shoes on, the cloak already tattered with just enough cloth to hide his identity.

He didn't seem to have any clue where he was going. The only thing he was trying to do was get out of the dark. His health was deteriorating both mentally and physically; he couldn't even see anything around him. He was running, running hysterically to wherever his body would take him.

Then, the figure halted.

He held his head for a second and looked at his palms. He was glitching. Part of his hand blurred for a second and turned back to normal. Then, his fingers. His face, and probably his legs and body, might be glitching. He uttered inaudible threats and swore irritatedly as if that could help his body from disappearing.

He started running again. His body seemed to know where it was taking him.

- Real World - ?? -

Just when the father and son were having dinner, a loud sound was heard from their back door. A thud like when snow falls from the roof. Sensing something queer, the son started to rise from his chair, but was quickly stopped by his father.

"I'll go check."

The man got up and walked towards where the sound was heard. He got his gun on the way just in case and opened the door, finding someone unconscious at the steps. Out of curiosity, he used the tip of his gun to lift part of the person's cloak.

"Was zum Teufel macht er hier!?" ("What the hell is he doing here!?")

The person in front of him was a wanted man. His son and his colleagues have been searching for him ever since he disappeared. Everyone (though there are exceptions) didn't want him back; they just needed confirmation that he was gone.

But now what?

He couldn't just kill him now; that wasn't his job, and he didn't have the authority. The man thought for a second and sighed. There was no other option but to take him inside. At least his family can keep him in sight until tomorrow when they can call others to see what they'll do.

The man tried to carry the cloaked figure but felt his fingers slip through.

"Hmm?"

He looked down at his fingers and back at the person. The person was glitching. Part of his face blurred and flickered, as if he was a bug in a computer game.

"Scheiße! What is going on!?"

By then, his son came out to the corridor, looking worried. The man quickly ordered him to clean one of the guest rooms, enough for someone to sleep in it. Then, to open up the portal that leads to the "flag world." His son looked at him puzzled but dashed upstairs to check the rooms.

After he left, the man gently lifted the person off the stone steps. The figure was much lighter compared to what he remembered. He looked down at who he was holding, sighed a little, and followed his son.