The air felt crisp and thin. At 23°C, it's just the right temperature, a rare moment when the winter chill has vanished, but the grueling humidity of July hasn't yet settled in.
During this moment, Nifuji tried something that was impossible to do when he was working as a salaryman.
Jogging.
Yes, a morning jog.
Still, the sun is already above the horizon, casting a bright, clear, golden light across the neighborhood. There is no "dawn" left; it is fully daytime.
Unlike in his previous life, in the country where he lived, at 5:00 AM in Setagaya (the district where he lived), the sun offers three completely different versions depending on the time of year. Because Tokyo is quite far east within its time zone, the sun rises much earlier than many visitors expect.
Regardless, he happened to be there at the most popular time for Setagaya runners.
The sun feels "friendly" for about another hour, but he knew that in an hour, it would turn into the punishing heat of the day.
Yet, as there was still time, he decided to enjoy his morning while jogging.
The shadows are long, making the residential streets look like a movie set. It felt like the city was wide awake. He saw elderly residents out for walks and heard the "Min-Min" cicadas starting their morning chorus.
Still, he had to say, what he did was simply luxurious, and something that only appeared in the drama.
No, even in Japanese dramas, there was no one who did the morning run.
It might be surprising, but many had worked or gone to school in the early morning, as many of them often woke up at 4 to 5, as they had two hours for travel.
Yes, it was ridiculous, especially when two hours of travel was simply hell.
However, life, reality, and bills forced them to do something that no one wanted, and Nifuji was glad that he could change his life.
Still, it was also because of that, as he was given a chance instead of trying to let himself be swallowed by the feeling of laziness, and all other emotions that would ruin him, he had to try to be better.
Living a disciplined and joyful life would put him in a good mood all the time.
While some people might say that it was better to just play games from night to morning, then sleep in the morning till he woke up, and do nothing, he knew that he wasn't at that age anymore.
Unlike when he was young, where it didn't matter even if he stayed up late, or slept in the morning till so late, he wasn't young anymore, so he had to keep his health in a perfect state, maintaining it so he could have a long life, which made him able to enjoy his hard work.
Many people worked till so late, and when they grew older, they made a lot of wealth, but unfortunately, due to overwork and lack of health awareness, when they grew older, they entered the hospital, spending all of the money that they had worked hard for in the hospital instead of enjoying it.
Nifuji didn't want that, and he had to limit himself, since no matter what, health was important, and while work was also important, if his body was broken due to it, was it worth it?
Still, he also knew that he could do this because he had "enough" money, and his body had become his important asset for work, since if he didn't have a good body, he knew that he would be as good as dead, which was why, even thought it was luxurious and he was frowned upon by many salarymen, people who worked in the early morning, he ignored them despite their curses of him, who thought that he was a NEET.
Yet, he didn't care, nor did he plan to say anything, since he knew that it was their way to cope with their life, which was uncomfortable, exhausting, and simply hell-like.
To pay their subscription fee, they had to work, or else, they would become homeless, dying on the corner.
Or rather, as he ran, he could see many homeless people on the street, hiding away on the corner.
It might be strange, as this country was known for being beautiful, but hiding behind that beautiful cover, many lived miserably, as they couldn't work and could only scrape by picking up trash.
If there was a way for them to change, Nifuji knew that they would go to work on those works that hardly took interest from others, such as those of fishermen, especially those on the Sea of Okhotsk, or Bering Sea, for crabs, and others.
Regardless, Nifuji shook his head and decided to put away all of his thoughts, focusing on himself and the ones that he cared about.
He wasn't a hero, after all, so it was impossible for him to take care of everyone.
Still, was there a way for him to solve all the problems in this world?
Nifuji looked at the high sky, the brilliant radiance of the sun made it hard for him to see, but even so, the light was comfortable on his skin, as if his body was living. It was tiring, yet he could live more alive than ever.
At the same time, many who saw him had changed their perception of him, thinking that he might be an athlete or trainer instead of a NEET.
After all, who would do such diligent jogging in the early morning?
Still, while he felt hungry and wanted to eat, unfortunately, there weren't any stores that opened in the early morning except for the fast food restaurants that opened for 24 hours a day, so he thought of going back, but when he was about to go home, he happened to see someone familiar.
A large red bow secured her long, dark hair in a high ponytail.
Among all the people in this area, Nifuji knew that there was only one person who wore such a recognizable accessory.
Still, he also couldn't help but think of their previous exchange, when she happened to see him out with a woman.
Yes, it was still awkward, but even so, he decided to greet her. "Wakana-san!"
Yup, she is the Wakana Kinmei, the owner of the Kinmei Laundry, where he often did his laundry.