readx; "Right here. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo”

"Then bother."

Following the head teacher, the gentleman also entered the room.

"Ichinose-san...... Well, here. ”

"And then these children, I hope to sit in on ......"

"I see, it does feel like a group of friends and family."

When the head teacher was talking to the gentleman, Kotomi didn't look at it at all.

Xing preached in advance that the person who came for a long time was a bad guy, which made the atmosphere in the house quite complicated.

The gentleman turned to face us, bowing his head deeply.

"I am the one who was appointed as the legal guardian of Kotomi Ichinose, and I am very grateful to everyone for taking care of Kotomi."

The gentleman spoke, calmly and sincerely, not at all like facing a few children much younger than himself.

“…… I mean, it's not like a badass at all. ”

Apricot whispered.

"It's all said that it's not a bad person......

Lin Yu said helplessly.

Noticing Lin Yu, the gentleman smiled slightly.

He wore a folded coat on his left arm and a box that appeared to be made of aluminum in his right.

"Ah......h

Kotomi whispered.

"That's ......"

The gentleman nodded silently.

Then, put the box on the table.

Everyone present looked at the box.

The box in front of me is really used ruthlessly.

The edges and corners were dented, the sheen of metal had been lost, the plastic handles were broken, and the hinges were rusty.

Ordinary use will never become like this, only after drifting in the world for a long time will it be so rusty.

Kotomi stands by Tomoya's side.

His shoulders fluttered slightly.

He seemed to want to go forward, but he was too surprised to hesitate.

It's as if there's an invisible wall in the middle.

In the end, she only grabbed the corner of Tomoya Okazaki's school uniform.

"Daddy's...... Chest ......"

The gentleman nodded solemnly.

"It was delivered yesterday evening. I opened it and checked it, and confirmed that it was indeed something that the Doctor had brought on the plane, so I sent it to you. ”

Kotomi, on the other hand, just stared at the worn-out box.

In his hand, he kept holding the corner of Tomoya Okazaki's clothes tightly.

"Papers, are they in there?"

Kotomi Ichinose said in a calm tone, but everyone present knew that she was desperately trying to suppress her feelings.

The gentleman did not answer anything.

And then he still looked at Kotomi without expression. Said slowly.

"Kotomi-sama...... Open the box and take a look. ”

Kotomi's body seemed to tremble violently.

"Kotomi ......"

Tomoya Okazaki gently placed his hand on Kotomi's head.

Inside the box are the relics of Kotomi's parents.

Whatever it is.

Even for Kotomi, it evokes sad memories......

Even if it only made Kotomi sure that her parents would never come back......

But Kotomi always has to face it.

"I'll be with you."

"Everybody's going to be with you—that's right, I should!"

Fujibayashi said.

Eventually, Kotomi nodded.

Slowly let go of Tomoya Okazaki's school uniform.

Leave everyone and walk towards the box.

Everyone was watching her.

Kotomi put her hand on the box.

With a snap, the metal clip on the lid opened.

Press your thin fingers on the lid. Lift it up slowly......

The chest was opened.

Inside. A blanket of bright tea sè was stuffed full.

It seems to be looking at Kotomi tenderly......

"Hey...... Yes...... Huh? ……”

Starling, who had been a little timid before, couldn't help but feel a huge contrast when he saw that thing.

“…… Plush toy? ”

Apricot wondered.

Kotomi stared at it intently.

It seems that I can't believe my eyes.

Although the long plush was slightly stained, it was indeed a stuffed bear toy.

It doesn't look like it's scared of life at all, and it seems to be waiting to be picked up there.

in the gap between the teddy bear and the box. Sandwiched a piece of paper.

Kotomi pinched it up with her fingers.

Brought out a little bit of sand that was in the box, and fell to the floor with a clatter.

It was not a piece of paper, but a carefully sealed envelope.

The face faded badly, and the surface was covered with stains and wrinkles.

Everyone poked their heads out from behind Kotomi together.

It says so.

if-lure-fiis-suitcassir -& fanch

Appears to be a fluent handwriting written in pencil.

It seems that the person who wrote this sentence was in a rather hurry, and the final signature was stopped before it was finished.

“…… What does that mean? ”

Fujibayashi asked.

"If you find this box. Please try to pass it on to our daughter...... Kotaro Ichinose and Megumi Ichinose ......"

Kotomi Ichinose said quietly.

That is...... The last K&M ......? ”

Kotomi nodded as if she was answering her own question.

"Collaborative research papers are always signed with such handwriting."

No one said anything more.

Only the cloth bear in the box looked at everyone like the actors who were about to appear next.

“…… This was written by Kotomi's father and mother, right? ”

Fujibayashi asked.

"Ah...... But、But,Kotomi's parents...... It was ...... a long time ago."

Fujibayashi starling said.

"What's going on? Explain it clearly! ”

Fujibayashi looked at Tomoya Okazaki.

"Threatening me won't lead to anything."

Peng also spread his hands.

“…… Let me explain. ”

Everyone looked at the gentleman.

"This box is indeed the belongings of the Ichinose couple, and it has been confirmed that it was brought into the cabin of the plane as a personal item when boarding the plane, and after that, the two of them unfortunately suffered an accident......"

The gentleman paused. Look at the suitcase.

"The rest is just speculation."

"This box was thrown out under the impact of the plane falling into the water, but because the contents were relatively light, it did not sink with the wreckage, and since then. It began to drift on the sea, and eventually, the box was washed up on the shores of a distant country, and at this very moment. The memory of that accident is long gone, finally. Someone found the box and opened it, and it contained the teddy bear, and a letter, and it would have been justified if the man had ignored it, or even kept the box for himself, but the man did not do so, but entrusted the box to someone else......"

"I think he must have understood that this is a very precious thing, and just like that, this box was passed in the hands of people from all over the world......

No one said anything.

Noticing everyone's expressions, the gentleman smiled a little embarrassedly.

"It's not entirely unfounded speculation, oh, I have a friend who is familiar with minerals. Last night I asked him to test the sand in the box, and it turned out that it probably came from the desert in the interior of Africa, and it is unknown why the box passed through such a place. In fact, whether it is the toy or the box itself, you can see the traces of several changes of hands. ”

Kotomi just stared blankly at the teddy bear.

The bear's dark eyes seemed to be looking at Kotomi with a smile.

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