The So-Called Earth Federation

He kept his little face stern.

Shu-chan's signature coldness.jpg.

Shuya expressionlessly pulled out his phone and called his dear mother.

"Hello? Shu-chan? What do you need, sweetheart?"

Her sweet voice came through the phone.

"Mom, Dad—"

"What are you trying to do?!"

When Inoue Hikoo realized something was wrong and tried to snatch the phone, Shuya quickly said, "He said he wanted to find a second wife! Son, you have to tell!"

"Argh!"

Inoue Hikoo lunged for the phone and snatched it away. "Sakura-chan! Don't listen to him! It's not like that!"

"...Heh."

A chilling voice echoed from the other end.

"We'll talk about this later."

Her voice was like that of an evil spirit.

Hanazawa Sakura hung up.

"I'm done for! I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead!"

Inoue Hikoo broke out in a cold sweat. Without even bothering to pack up, he made for the door.

"I'm going home for now!"

"Heh. And where do you think you're going?"

Shuya sneered.

"You little brat, no more lollipops for you!"

"You're dead too."

"You're throwing your own father under the bus!"

"Come on, let's hurt each other! I've been putting up with you all day!"

Inoue Hikoo and Inoue Shuya traded heated insults.

In the middle of their argument, Inoue Hikoo's phone rang.

His face went pale as he shakily answered.

A voice as cold as the winter wind said:

"I'm at the door."

I knew it! This was straight out of an urban legend! The classic knock at the door!

Shuya was shocked.

There was no need to mention what happened after that.

After being forced to sit on his knees and listen to a lecture, Inoue Hikoo slumped into a corner, looking utterly burned out.

"Shu-chan, I'm sorry. Mommy came late."

From every angle, Hanazawa Sakura was a great beauty with a distinctly Japanese charm.

Having given birth hadn't affected her figure at all. She even had the alluring grace of a mature woman.

She smiled warmly and drew Shuya into her ample bosom.

"Mom..."

Shuya looked at Hanazawa Sakura, his emotions on the verge of spilling over.

Then Hanazawa Sakura said sweetly, "Sweetheart, I helped you out, so we're even about the money I took from your formula fund, right?"

She stuck out her tongue playfully.

Shuya: "..."

He silently pushed Hanazawa Sakura away.

It took one to know one.

Shu-chan's signature coldness.jpg.

Heh, women.

He straightened his cute little outfit and walked forlornly out of the recording studio.

"I'm heading home."

Inoue Shuya left this sad place without looking back.

"Have a safe trip~"

Hanazawa Sakura didn't take it to heart or worry. Her agency's manager would drive him home.

Section 6: The So-Called Earth Federation

"Sorry for the trouble, Saori-chan."

"Not at all."

The woman speaking with Shuya was the only manager at his mother's agency, Maeda Saori.

She was an ordinary-looking woman who was a little cute if you looked closely, and looked somewhat decent with makeup.

She was a young woman of twenty-five.

She was also a huge fan of Shuya's, though she seemed to try to hide it. Shuya had seen right through her at a glance.

She was too young and too naive to conceal it properly. That starry-eyed gaze of hers was so conspicuous that even Shuya, with his sharp instincts, couldn't miss it.

Even now, he could tell from the rearview mirror that Maeda Saori was greedily admiring his peerlessly adorable face.

Heh, a shota fan.

Shuya remained composed. He was used to that kind of gaze.

"By the way, Saori-chan, could you stop at the cake shop near my place? I need to pick up a cake."

"Oh, you mean that really pretty one? I heard their cakes are super expensive... Is it for the quintuplets next door again?"

"Yeah, that's right."

Shuya smiled, his meaning hard to read.

"Wow... Shu-chan, you really like them."

"Yeah."

After saying that, Shuya closed his eyes. Saori took the hint and didn't say anything else, just put on some soothing classical music.

This quiet ride home was a perfect opportunity to explain the world.

Inoue Shuya was undoubtedly a transmigrator and a reincarnator.

He hadn't lived long in his previous life either. He'd kicked the bucket before turning thirty, hadn't experienced much of the harshness of society, and had little life experience. In this life, his child's body had influenced him, and sometimes his behavior wasn't very mature.

Well, he'd let the past drift away.

The important thing was this world... this thing called the Earth Federation.

Shuya didn't understand much about it, and he didn't care much about history.

All he'd heard was that a world war in the past had killed a huge number of people, and the countries couldn't take it anymore. After this and that, they'd founded the Earth Federation.

As for what "this and that" actually meant, well... it wasn't important.

Don't ask. I'm just too lazy to come up with the details!

Shuya cared about only one thing.

Perhaps because they'd been eager to restore the population after the war, the Earth Federation had adopted a polygamous system.

That was why Shuya had thrown his dad under the bus by saying he wanted to marry a second wife. It fit the times.

Though it had been peaceful for quite a while now, and the system of polygamy was starting to face some pushback from feminism, it was still the norm for the time being.

Shuya thought that if this were a novel, people would definitely call the system unrealistic.

...But, come on. If people could accept transmigration and reincarnation, why couldn't they accept this?

If anyone still insisted on complaining, he could only post a picture.

Kyon.jpg.

Since history had changed, the world was different too.

In short, the world was very peaceful now.

There were no more countries. Everyone was a citizen of the Earth Federation.

The Japan Administrative District where Shuya lived had changed a lot too.

With the whole world unified, the regions interacted frequently and closely, and the effects of cultural integration were clear.

Shuya had visited the Japan region in his previous life. It was great for tourism, but the work pressure was too much.

Compared to his previous life, the social hierarchy and deference between ranks in Japan had eased considerably, and the pressure was much lower. It had been easy for Shuya to get used to life here.

He'd also heard that the neighboring Great Hua Administrative District had opened up a lot and wasn't far behind the rest of the world. It was basically on par with the global mainstream.

He'd heard that the leaders there strictly controlled the cultural industry, which was a bit of a pain.

But every administrative district had its own characteristics, and Shuya wasn't going to comment. (Actually, he didn't dare comment. Winking face.)

Speaking of culture... that was a little different too.

The countries had suffered tremendous casualties in the world war. They'd only recently recovered most of their strength, and the scars hadn't completely healed. Under those circumstances, the demand for entertainment was endless.

It was a great time to work in entertainment.

And with that market, creators like Inoue Hikoo—who did whatever he pleased—could afford to do so.

Everyone knew that people who couldn't put food on the table couldn't afford to do whatever they pleased.

The background had been explained well enough, and Shuya felt the car slowly come to a stop.

"We're here."

Saori spoke up.

"Okay, thanks for waiting."

"Oh, of course! I'd wait for you as long as it takes!"

"..."

Hey! Saori-chan, you're letting your true self show!

Shuya gave his silly manager a warm look, opened the car door, and stepped out on his little legs before heading into the cute cake shop.

"Miss, I'm here to pick up a cake!"

He smoothly turned on the charm, wearing an innocent, adorable smile.

He didn't actually know the shop staff. The cuteness was purely a habit of the job and the result of his life experience.

"Here you go, Shu-chan. This is for you... Let me tell you a secret: when the pastry chef found out the cake was ordered by Shu-chan, they really went all out!"

The shop assistant whispered conspiratorially to Shuya and gave his little cheek a gentle pinch.

A triumphant smile flashed across Shuya's face.