Alternate Dimension (Part 52)
The greenery and the Victorian design makes me not think about how old the buildings are. The only ones that does say its age are the dormitory buildings, which is built fairly recently.
Upon arriving of the place Itsuki wanted to bring me to, I realized that there are even fewer people working here than the Inami branch. In fact, instead of a male majority at any given place, there are exclusively only females here, or at least appear to be.
Itsuki: "Saeko-chan, relax. I don't have the intention to torture you as usual as I lack the gene that makes me do so with my current form, so I don't have the mood to do so anyway. We brought you here as we noted that you are very likely to end up here after you graduated from Kamisugi High and that you might get very frightened if you were to suddenly gain knowledge about guys. Your damaged brain tells me that it doesn't know what guys are at all."
With that, he made me look into something that resembles a microscope for both eyes. In it is a hot air balloon in an open field with the lighting of sunset. It may seem easy, but try being forced to look at it with my eyes open (they moaned when I blinked) for a prolonged time and several rapid flashes at random that should had given me seizures. Except those weird things that I'm seeing that seem to come only from my eye and not what my pupil is capturing, my vision seem relatively unchanged. What was that for?
Itsuki: "Okay. You should be able to see guys now as faint figures, but your brain still doesn't know what they are even though you are able to see them now."
Me: "So how would I know if I'm looking at them, but with my brain not registering it?"
Itsuki: "Hmm, there's nothing here that could tell you for sure. Maybe when we get out of this place later. Anyways, as you can see, I am locked in this uniform with no access to my own body except the areas that aren't covered by it and I can't spread my legs wide apart, let alone cycle or run. It's a wonder how the swimming club here won in almost all of the competitions they took part in considering that they too can't change out of this while swimming except during the actual competition. The winning rate is oddly increasing in recent years too. Saeko, you go try if you can remove it for me or any of the staff here with all the energy you have. We've all tried, but failed. It's even troublesome for any of us to get back up should we somehow find ourselves lying on the ground due to how limited or legs are able to move."
The uniform looks like it's a prefect fit for whoever is wearing it and they all look as though they are new, but what is this about? I tried Itsuki's, but it doesn't even budge: I can't even open the blazer, lift up her skirt, or even pull off her shoe. The same goes with everyone else. What is this?
Itsuki: "Apparently, the reason that was given to us is that by ensuring that us girls would have a guaranteed happy marriage by behaving properly and be faithful to male partners, be able to think clearly and not make regrettable decisions, and locking out our most sensitive and important parts of our own body to "prevent loving oneself instead" or prevent being pregnant after a helpless rape. As for the guys who are girls while wearing the uniform or had stepped into the Mizuho campus, whichever is earlier, there is the additional reasoning of knowing what girls go through at first hand to "know their future life partner better" and the option to permanently become a girl just as though they were born one complete with how people see them. I wouldn't choose that last one because I have a girlfriend that is very likely to be my wife."
That last part seem awfully familiar with what I experienced when entering the other dimension unexpectedly. The way the uniform works also sounded similar to the old version of my body protection that looked a lot like a Mihara competition swimsuit, but with some flexibility. Also that bit Itsuki said after that seems even weirder for a woman to say that one has a girlfriend or a wife.
Itsuki: "Anyways, besides your eye treatment a while earlier, fixes that were done to you in the new version since after being admitted to the Hong Kong hospital some months back are mostly in your favour, including those you have complained about. Take a look at the manual on the desk there for a detail description of all of the features you have."
She referred me to a book that seems thicker and heavier than the phone directory. Wait, that's a user manual of myself? What am I? A household appliance?
Itsuki: "Unfortunately, it's not fully ready yet. The newest feature that we have implemented is selecting the appearance of your hair and some presets. Also, the fact that you know that my current form is not what you would know me as, but don't remember what that is, tells me that the impact is minimal."
The hair-changing part is enough to have a particular group of people not to see me with the appearance of another group of people, but could still recognize me if they paid close enough attention or talk to me. I've noticed that all of the staff wears a light pink pass with something embossed into the background and has the logo of the school and some unknown logo next to it. I noticed that the photo is of what they are inside Mizuho as the photo on Itsuki's pass is of what I'm seeing now and not the original form. Remembering the students I saw earlier, I can't tell the difference between a real girl and a guy who had been "magically" transformed. Itsuki pointed out that I had saw some of them earlier but form only a small minority of the total population. To show how difficult it is to remove the uniform even outside the campus, she decides to bring me to our parent's house.
The route Itsuki took this time is different and seem quicker that it make me think that the route we took earlier was a huge detour. Also, Itsuki didn't transform back when we left the campus like how she suddenly appeared upon entering.
Itsuki: "I'm not a temporary visitor, so this would not wear off until I am alone in my bedroom. Don't ask me why as I'm not one of those behind it."
Just as I was thinking that Itsuki would not make any diversions, seeing that she took the usual route home, she unexpectedly turned into the underground staff parking area of the Hatsuya headquarters. Itsuki's staff pass from Mizuho seem to work without any problems.
Me: "What are we doing here? Didn't you say that no one would recognize you at your current form and head home to change back?"
Itsuki: "Everyone is heading home about this time. If I head home, I would miss them and might encounter something unexpected that causes further delay. This is something that should not be delayed further. You know how slow our machines are to work on this project that was given to us by our future counterpart. Saeko? Could you come with me? I don't want people to stop me unnecessarily and I'm in an urgent rush before the leave the place."
Me: "Er, sure then."
We headed to the lift lobby that is quite far. Upon entering the empty elevator, Itsuki pressed the level where the director's office is. As we reached the first floor, I saw several of something faint and some female staff entering the elevator. Strange: although I can now see what I was previously unable to see as something faint, my brain isn't telling me what I'm seeing as though I still couldn't see. Why is my mind telling me that there are only women in this elevator when I could see something else?
As we got out of the elevator at the level she wanted to get off, Itsuki walked in the direction opposite to where the director's office is and climbed up some stairs to an area of an another floor that seems isolated from the rest of the level and, as far as I could see, assessable only by a set of stairs from other levels that everyone avoids. She told me she's in a hurry and appears impatient, but why isn't she running since we left the car? She's even walking like one would do for a leisure walk in a park.
Itsuki: "Saeko, if you haven't realized, I had been trying to run, but I can't walk faster than my current speed due to my leg's movements being restricted with this uniform. So, could you go ahead to the testing department to let them know of my urgent business while I'm forced to take a leisure walk there?"
Itsuki seemed rather annoyed, but I ran ahead anyway.
Aiko: "Saeko? What are you doing here?"
Aiko Hirano, the director's daughter. She seems to know me well even though this is actually the first time I've met her in this dimension. I don't know much about her, but it seems that she's doesn't follow her father and only got her current high job position only because she is the director's daughter and, except Kotomi, doesn't have anyone else in the family actively working for Hatsuya. Aiko herself didn't like to be promoted for that reason.It's not uncommon for a child to not like their own parents or carry on customs/traditions from earlier generations, even if they are not arguing amongst themselves at all. She might be a direct decedent of the people behind the war 70 years ago, but she doesn't have their memories or their way of thinking. Aiko even told me in class some years ago that she didn't even like what her ancestors did and is ashamed to be their decedent. She even told me that the war caused her great-grandmother on her dad's side to meet her foreign husband who had fled from his home country because of some revolution of his homeland that had a lot of people brainwashed or killed, which explained why Kotomi and her siblings had odd hair and eye colour. Besides that, she looks just like any typical Japanese.
Me: "Itsuki had asked you, through me, to wait before leaving due to some urgent business that is unknown to me. Itsuki is having problems getting here now or would had come here with me earlier."
Aiko: "Okay then. I'll wait for a while longer. I am the last one here, but not in a hurry to leave, though you would have missed me if you came a few minutes later.
Itsuki appeared shortly afterwards. Aiko wasn't sure who that was, but she does recognizes the pass.
Aiko: "Who are you? You look a lot like Saeko, but I sensed that you are not her counterpart from the other dimension and... Itsuki?! What on earth..."
She saw the name on the pass and somehow recognizes the logo that is relatively unknown to me.
Itsuki: "Never mind about how I look right now. I just came from Mizuho Girls' High academy, which I was recently assigned to work at, and forced to wear this normal looking magical thing that does strange things to my body and could only remove in certain situations. You know the odd things that happened to people who went there that aren't told outside. Anyway, I have something important to tell you, something that I can't tell your dad, Saeko, or anyone outside the testing department."
If I'm one of the parties that isn't allowed to listen to what Itsuki has to say, why did she bring me here?
Itsuki: "Sorry. I would bring you in if people can't read your mind as easily as turning on the television."
...
I didn't get to go in, but from what I could see inside, I could see outdoor displays that could replace LEDs as it could display more detail and more colourful, not a pain in the eye to look at, and could be seen clearly in both bright and dark places. There's also a clear cube that uses optical technology (same as CDs) to store data on it. I don't quite know how it works as it's not flat and circular with the added dimension. Only some of the old things in there are what is seen in everyday use.
After what seemed like forever, they finally came out. Why are they laughing together? Itsuki is now holding a plastic bag of a convenience store that has something inside too, which I
Aiko: "Sure. I won't tell dad about what you told me. See you later, I need to secure this place that could take a while."
I made sure I waas outside Aiko's hearing range before asking.
Me: "What was that about?"
Itsuki: "Well, it was about the complains you had and asking her to examine me in my current state, which I still have a lot of questions about. Anyways, let's head home before mom reaches home and sees me like this. She had decided to start working in a company office in the downtown area shortly you visited us in the summer."
Mom is working? With the exception of being in the other dimension, mom usually stays at home for as long as I could remember.
Upon arriving of the place Itsuki wanted to bring me to, I realized that there are even fewer people working here than the Inami branch. In fact, instead of a male majority at any given place, there are exclusively only females here, or at least appear to be.
Itsuki: "Saeko-chan, relax. I don't have the intention to torture you as usual as I lack the gene that makes me do so with my current form, so I don't have the mood to do so anyway. We brought you here as we noted that you are very likely to end up here after you graduated from Kamisugi High and that you might get very frightened if you were to suddenly gain knowledge about guys. Your damaged brain tells me that it doesn't know what guys are at all."
With that, he made me look into something that resembles a microscope for both eyes. In it is a hot air balloon in an open field with the lighting of sunset. It may seem easy, but try being forced to look at it with my eyes open (they moaned when I blinked) for a prolonged time and several rapid flashes at random that should had given me seizures. Except those weird things that I'm seeing that seem to come only from my eye and not what my pupil is capturing, my vision seem relatively unchanged. What was that for?
Itsuki: "Okay. You should be able to see guys now as faint figures, but your brain still doesn't know what they are even though you are able to see them now."
Me: "So how would I know if I'm looking at them, but with my brain not registering it?"
Itsuki: "Hmm, there's nothing here that could tell you for sure. Maybe when we get out of this place later. Anyways, as you can see, I am locked in this uniform with no access to my own body except the areas that aren't covered by it and I can't spread my legs wide apart, let alone cycle or run. It's a wonder how the swimming club here won in almost all of the competitions they took part in considering that they too can't change out of this while swimming except during the actual competition. The winning rate is oddly increasing in recent years too. Saeko, you go try if you can remove it for me or any of the staff here with all the energy you have. We've all tried, but failed. It's even troublesome for any of us to get back up should we somehow find ourselves lying on the ground due to how limited or legs are able to move."
The uniform looks like it's a prefect fit for whoever is wearing it and they all look as though they are new, but what is this about? I tried Itsuki's, but it doesn't even budge: I can't even open the blazer, lift up her skirt, or even pull off her shoe. The same goes with everyone else. What is this?
Itsuki: "Apparently, the reason that was given to us is that by ensuring that us girls would have a guaranteed happy marriage by behaving properly and be faithful to male partners, be able to think clearly and not make regrettable decisions, and locking out our most sensitive and important parts of our own body to "prevent loving oneself instead" or prevent being pregnant after a helpless rape. As for the guys who are girls while wearing the uniform or had stepped into the Mizuho campus, whichever is earlier, there is the additional reasoning of knowing what girls go through at first hand to "know their future life partner better" and the option to permanently become a girl just as though they were born one complete with how people see them. I wouldn't choose that last one because I have a girlfriend that is very likely to be my wife."
That last part seem awfully familiar with what I experienced when entering the other dimension unexpectedly. The way the uniform works also sounded similar to the old version of my body protection that looked a lot like a Mihara competition swimsuit, but with some flexibility. Also that bit Itsuki said after that seems even weirder for a woman to say that one has a girlfriend or a wife.
Itsuki: "Anyways, besides your eye treatment a while earlier, fixes that were done to you in the new version since after being admitted to the Hong Kong hospital some months back are mostly in your favour, including those you have complained about. Take a look at the manual on the desk there for a detail description of all of the features you have."
She referred me to a book that seems thicker and heavier than the phone directory. Wait, that's a user manual of myself? What am I? A household appliance?
Itsuki: "Unfortunately, it's not fully ready yet. The newest feature that we have implemented is selecting the appearance of your hair and some presets. Also, the fact that you know that my current form is not what you would know me as, but don't remember what that is, tells me that the impact is minimal."
The hair-changing part is enough to have a particular group of people not to see me with the appearance of another group of people, but could still recognize me if they paid close enough attention or talk to me. I've noticed that all of the staff wears a light pink pass with something embossed into the background and has the logo of the school and some unknown logo next to it. I noticed that the photo is of what they are inside Mizuho as the photo on Itsuki's pass is of what I'm seeing now and not the original form. Remembering the students I saw earlier, I can't tell the difference between a real girl and a guy who had been "magically" transformed. Itsuki pointed out that I had saw some of them earlier but form only a small minority of the total population. To show how difficult it is to remove the uniform even outside the campus, she decides to bring me to our parent's house.
The route Itsuki took this time is different and seem quicker that it make me think that the route we took earlier was a huge detour. Also, Itsuki didn't transform back when we left the campus like how she suddenly appeared upon entering.
Itsuki: "I'm not a temporary visitor, so this would not wear off until I am alone in my bedroom. Don't ask me why as I'm not one of those behind it."
Just as I was thinking that Itsuki would not make any diversions, seeing that she took the usual route home, she unexpectedly turned into the underground staff parking area of the Hatsuya headquarters. Itsuki's staff pass from Mizuho seem to work without any problems.
Me: "What are we doing here? Didn't you say that no one would recognize you at your current form and head home to change back?"
Itsuki: "Everyone is heading home about this time. If I head home, I would miss them and might encounter something unexpected that causes further delay. This is something that should not be delayed further. You know how slow our machines are to work on this project that was given to us by our future counterpart. Saeko? Could you come with me? I don't want people to stop me unnecessarily and I'm in an urgent rush before the leave the place."
Me: "Er, sure then."
We headed to the lift lobby that is quite far. Upon entering the empty elevator, Itsuki pressed the level where the director's office is. As we reached the first floor, I saw several of something faint and some female staff entering the elevator. Strange: although I can now see what I was previously unable to see as something faint, my brain isn't telling me what I'm seeing as though I still couldn't see. Why is my mind telling me that there are only women in this elevator when I could see something else?
As we got out of the elevator at the level she wanted to get off, Itsuki walked in the direction opposite to where the director's office is and climbed up some stairs to an area of an another floor that seems isolated from the rest of the level and, as far as I could see, assessable only by a set of stairs from other levels that everyone avoids. She told me she's in a hurry and appears impatient, but why isn't she running since we left the car? She's even walking like one would do for a leisure walk in a park.
Itsuki: "Saeko, if you haven't realized, I had been trying to run, but I can't walk faster than my current speed due to my leg's movements being restricted with this uniform. So, could you go ahead to the testing department to let them know of my urgent business while I'm forced to take a leisure walk there?"
Itsuki seemed rather annoyed, but I ran ahead anyway.
Aiko: "Saeko? What are you doing here?"
Aiko Hirano, the director's daughter. She seems to know me well even though this is actually the first time I've met her in this dimension. I don't know much about her, but it seems that she's doesn't follow her father and only got her current high job position only because she is the director's daughter and, except Kotomi, doesn't have anyone else in the family actively working for Hatsuya. Aiko herself didn't like to be promoted for that reason.It's not uncommon for a child to not like their own parents or carry on customs/traditions from earlier generations, even if they are not arguing amongst themselves at all. She might be a direct decedent of the people behind the war 70 years ago, but she doesn't have their memories or their way of thinking. Aiko even told me in class some years ago that she didn't even like what her ancestors did and is ashamed to be their decedent. She even told me that the war caused her great-grandmother on her dad's side to meet her foreign husband who had fled from his home country because of some revolution of his homeland that had a lot of people brainwashed or killed, which explained why Kotomi and her siblings had odd hair and eye colour. Besides that, she looks just like any typical Japanese.
Me: "Itsuki had asked you, through me, to wait before leaving due to some urgent business that is unknown to me. Itsuki is having problems getting here now or would had come here with me earlier."
Aiko: "Okay then. I'll wait for a while longer. I am the last one here, but not in a hurry to leave, though you would have missed me if you came a few minutes later.
Itsuki appeared shortly afterwards. Aiko wasn't sure who that was, but she does recognizes the pass.
Aiko: "Who are you? You look a lot like Saeko, but I sensed that you are not her counterpart from the other dimension and... Itsuki?! What on earth..."
She saw the name on the pass and somehow recognizes the logo that is relatively unknown to me.
Itsuki: "Never mind about how I look right now. I just came from Mizuho Girls' High academy, which I was recently assigned to work at, and forced to wear this normal looking magical thing that does strange things to my body and could only remove in certain situations. You know the odd things that happened to people who went there that aren't told outside. Anyway, I have something important to tell you, something that I can't tell your dad, Saeko, or anyone outside the testing department."
If I'm one of the parties that isn't allowed to listen to what Itsuki has to say, why did she bring me here?
Itsuki: "Sorry. I would bring you in if people can't read your mind as easily as turning on the television."
...
I didn't get to go in, but from what I could see inside, I could see outdoor displays that could replace LEDs as it could display more detail and more colourful, not a pain in the eye to look at, and could be seen clearly in both bright and dark places. There's also a clear cube that uses optical technology (same as CDs) to store data on it. I don't quite know how it works as it's not flat and circular with the added dimension. Only some of the old things in there are what is seen in everyday use.
After what seemed like forever, they finally came out. Why are they laughing together? Itsuki is now holding a plastic bag of a convenience store that has something inside too, which I
Aiko: "Sure. I won't tell dad about what you told me. See you later, I need to secure this place that could take a while."
I made sure I waas outside Aiko's hearing range before asking.
Me: "What was that about?"
Itsuki: "Well, it was about the complains you had and asking her to examine me in my current state, which I still have a lot of questions about. Anyways, let's head home before mom reaches home and sees me like this. She had decided to start working in a company office in the downtown area shortly you visited us in the summer."
Mom is working? With the exception of being in the other dimension, mom usually stays at home for as long as I could remember.
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