After providing Miyako with a training plan and goals, Akira also needed to start his own work.
Akira took a plate of chilled watermelon from the refrigerator and returned to the second floor, arriving at Tsuchikata Yu's room door.
"Tsuchikata-san! Tsuchikata-san! It's evening! Time to get up!"
Akira knocked loudly and unceremoniously, mainly because if he didn't knock like that, there was no way to wake up Tsuchikata Yu, who slept like a dead pig.
Having experience as a corporate slave, Akira understood the feeling of not wanting to open your eyes once you closed them, hovering on the brink of sudden death, not knowing when you'd kick the bucket.
He was really worried about Tsuchikata-san's health… He had transmigrated and gotten a chance to live again, but was he going to work himself to death once more?
He didn't know how Tsuchikata-san had died in his previous life. If it was from overwork like himself, that would be too tragic.
After knocking for a while, Akira heard a loud thud and a gander-like wail from inside the room, so he stopped knocking.
From the sound, he knew Tsuchikata-san was probably awake, but his mind hadn't cleared yet, and he must have accidentally bumped his knee or little toe while getting up.
A few seconds later, Tsuchikata Yu, with panda eyes, opened the door, hunched over, and asked in a half-dead voice,
"Oh… Akira-kun… What time is it now?"
"It's already nine in the evening, Tsuchikata-san, a bit later than your usual waking time."
"Damn!"
After a classic Chinese expletive, Mr. Tsuchikata scratched his bird's nest-like head, and his relaxed expression was once again filled with anxiety.
"Damn it, I just wanted to nap for a bit, how is it already nine… Damn, I'm going to miss the delivery deadline!"
Although he wanted to rush back to his computer immediately, Tsuchikata Yu still courteously thanked Akira. If Akira hadn't come to wake him up, he would probably have to work furiously for the next three days.
"Luckily you came to wake me up, otherwise I would have been doomed today. So, what's up, Akira-kun?"
Akira handed over the plate of watermelon he was holding.
"Have some melon."
"Where did this melon come from…?"
"The Old woman bought it. She told me to come up and share it with you and Tashiro-san."
Looking at the plate of watermelon, Tsuchikata Yu's face was filled with emotion. Tears welled up in the middle-aged man's eyes, and he wiped them away with the back of his hand.
"Ah, Granny Kobayashi… She's simply a living Bodhisattva."
"It's because of Grandpa Kobayashi's dying wish that the Old woman takes such good care of us 'otherworld wanderers.'"
"I know, but even so, it's already amazing that she can do this much. She's not related to us… Sigh, if it weren't for her, I might have died on the streets."
Who wouldn't be like that…
Although Akira called her "Old woman," it wasn't a sign of contempt but an affectionate term, just like Granny Kobayashi called him Shirako.
In his heart, he was also very grateful for Granny Kobayashi's unconditional contributions.
However, Granny Kobayashi's relationship with her son seemed strained. Akira had lived in Kobayashi for nearly half a year and had never seen her son visit even once.
But seeing that she could still borrow things her granddaughter used to use, it probably wasn't to the extent of a severed relationship.
But if things continued like this, Akira thought he would take the place of Granny Kobayashi's son and care for her in her old age.
Although Granny Kobayashi didn't seem to lack money at all, for an elderly person, companionship was probably more important than money.
After handing over the watermelon, Akira casually asked,
"Tsuchikata-san, can I borrow your laptop?"
This wasn't the first time Akira had borrowed a computer. Before, to understand various information about this world, besides reading books in the Library, he would also use a computer to search for various information.
As a seasoned internet user who had learned to surf the web since the second grade in his previous life, with over twenty years of online experience, Akira knew that if you only looked at one side of the news, it was easy to fall into a cognitive bias and be used as a pawn by unscrupulous media that took things out of context.
Although this world was not yet like the internet era of his previous life, where information cocoons and manipulated narratives were everywhere, Akira, who already knew what kind of monsters the internet could be, still habitually and rigorously filtered information.
Information should not be obtained from only one source; one should look at information from various parties and then view it dialectically. This was the method of dialectical materialism for thinking about and understanding the world.
Tsuchikata Yu usually used a desktop computer for work. The laptop was a backup, used for dual-line operations or when slacking off.
Tsuchikata Yu stepped aside, inviting Akira into the house.
"Alright, come in."
"No, I won't go in. Just lend me your laptop."
"Huh? But only my room has an internet port in this house, and Granny Kobayashi specially installed it for me. Even Wi-Fi isn't widespread yet..."
"I don't need to go online. I just need to use some office software."
"Oh, alright, wait a moment then."
Tsuchikata Yu turned and went back into his room, navigating through the messy piles of clutter. He retrieved his laptop and charging cable from the computer desk and brought them out to Akira.
"Just don't delete my backed-up work files... Well, I probably don't need to remind you."
Tsuchikata Yu and Akira exchanged smiles; this was the unspoken understanding between old men.
Although Tsuchikata Yu was much older than Akira, there was no generation gap between them. Many popular internet memes from their previous lives were now only known by Akira and Tsuchikata Yu.
Seiko, though also a transmigrator, seemed to have rarely used the internet in her previous life. She was seldom seen, and even when she was, she wouldn't join their conversations.
"Thanks, Tsuchikata-san. When I make some money, I'll treat you to a big meal."
"Ha, I'll be waiting then. I've become useless in this world; don't you end up like me."
Tsuchikata Yu chuckled self-deprecatingly, then yawned and rubbed his face, rousing himself to go back to his room and continue working.
Akira knew Tsuchikata Yu was having a hard time, mainly due to financial problems; he seemed to be heavily in debt. But Akira was also broke and couldn't offer much help.
Moreover, Akira was completely clueless about programming, and he didn't plan to pursue that path. After all, programmers were like cultivators, going bald after thirty, and Tsuchikata-san's hairline was constantly receding.
Not every transmigrator gets a cheat-like, wish-fulfillment life after transmigration.
Does transmigration mean escaping the sea of suffering? No, it just means falling into another sea of suffering.
At least the three transmigrators in Kobayashi each had their own difficulties.
But since they had been reborn, they absolutely couldn't repeat their past mistakes. In this life, they must live a relaxed, laid-back life!
Transmigrators who had already died once feared no hardship!
After getting the laptop, Akira returned to the living room. Miyako was practicing Seiko's lines, already quite good at it.
Akira didn't disturb her. He just sat at a nearby table, plugged in the laptop, and turned it on.
The familiar yet retro Windows 7 boot screen appeared, but in this world, it was the latest operating system.
Akira borrowed the laptop not to play games, but to use Office.
In his previous life, as a screenwriter and copywriter, he spent most of his time dealing with keyboards and WPS.
Writing novels in the Library before was just to practice writing and recall novels suitable for copying.
To get serious, he needed a computer.
So then... let the creation begin!