Solnus 4. The Silver Boys and The Alien Aspirants; The Trapped Good Alien (?)

5741 days, or 15 years, 8 months, 2-3 weeks before The Circumadversum Omatsuri, one afternoon.

The four changing circles of a vehicle had stopped. The vehicle was large enough to accommodate many passengers. One of the passengers on the public transportation vehicle got off. The passenger, already wearing a hat, stepped from the bus floor to the bus stop floor.

Let's call this passenger X. After X's two feet touched the bus stop floor, they immediately stepped away from the bus stop. This bus stop was indeed the one where X had to get off, as he would have to walk to get to his desired location.

A few meters from the bus stop, X paused. He opened his fanny pack and checked to see if he had left anything behind. His cell phone, wallet, and wallet contents were all still there. After a brief inspection and ensuring nothing was left behind, X continued on his way.

As he walked, X's hands were folded behind his back. Of course, X wasn't handcuffed; he wasn't a criminal. X had his hands folded behind him to protect his valuables, which he was currently encasing in a soft case slung over his shoulder.

The soft case contained X's beloved guitar. The guitar case, standing upright behind X's back, towered quite tall, measuring approximately 65 centimeters. Compared to X's body, the guitar case appeared enormous. X, who is currently 12-13 years old, is only about 160 centimeters tall.

X is a boy currently attending junior high school. Today is a school holiday, so X isn't wearing a school uniform. He's dressed casually for band practice with his friends, which he's been doing from morning until evening.

If possible, X would actually like to practice until nightfall. But he still has self-control; he knows his parents would be angry if he stayed up late playing music. He still managed to force himself to go home, interrupting practice with his band, The Silver Boys.

After sharing the street with other pedestrians and several motorcycles, X's footsteps finally led him to his house. The X's house was a two-story building nestled among narrow alleys. It was one of the rental houses in city A.

When X entered his house, he found his father sitting in one of the chairs in the small living room. X's father was reading something on his cell phone. X greeted his father, and X's father only responded with a smile—apparently, X's father needed to finish what he was reading. Meanwhile, X continued walking towards his bedroom.

As soon as X arrived in his room, he put down his hat, fanny pack, and, of course, his beloved guitar. A second after the guitar returned to its resting place, there was a knock on the door. X immediately opened the door and found the person he had expected to be the knocker. Who else could it be if not X's father?

X also experienced what he had anticipated. With the bedroom door open, X and his father sat facing each other on X's bed. X's father offered advice: that X should remember that his grades had been slipping lately, that X had been playing in a band for too long, that X should remember that a band should only be a hobby, and that X should remember that he couldn't possibly make a living from art for his future.

X's father said, "If you were truly talented in music, of course you could have a bright future with it. But in reality, you can't, right? You haven't been able to create a song that would go viral, and you probably never will. You're just copying other people's music, and that won't guarantee your future."

At that moment, X's mother also entered X's room. Her mother also bombarded X with words that felt like a slap in the face. X remained silent, not refuting his parents' words at all.

The series of events above involving a junior high school-aged boy who has a band called The Silver Boys are two events that occurred similarly in two cities thousands of kilometers apart. City A = {Hanoi, Jakarta}, or in other words, the incidents occurred in Hanoi and Jakarta. X = {Bành Đức Hải, Guruh Dwi Cahyo}, or in other words, the children who experienced the event were Bành Đức Hải and Guruh Dwi Cahyo.

In the end, Bành Đức Hải and Guruh Dwi Cahyo said something that made their parents smile: "Mom, Dad, this might be my last day playing in my band all day. I've already told my bandmates that. From now on, I'll study harder. I've planned to work in Japan so I can save more money. If I have enough money, then I'll form another band. And if I actually don't have musical talent, I can work in the music world as a manager or talent company owner with my money."

The X announced he would be leaving The Silver Boys and expressed his desire to find lots of “ginko,” or silver coins, by becoming an alien in a foreign land.

(000)

5741 days, or 15 years, 8 months, and 2-3 weeks before the Omatsuri Circumadversum, one afternoon.

Many aliens were already roaming Japan. They occupied various regions, various places, both rural and urban. They carried out various jobs in fisheries, agriculture, eldercare, research, and others. They held various statuses, including technical intern training visas, Specified Skilled Worker (tokutei ginou) visas, diplomatic visas, RIKEN visas, and so on.

John Anatole Holland is someone who could be considered a special alien. Born and a citizen of the Netherlands, he currently holds "permanent resident" status, which he obtained only about a year and a few months after working in Japan. Typically, permanent resident status is granted to foreigners after living and working for at least 10 years in Japan.

Holland was able to obtain this status because he met the required requisites. The white man had applied for a "Highly Skilled Professional" visa and scored over 80 points. According to law, this visa can be obtained if someone scores over 70 points. If someone scores over 80 points, they can also apply for permanent resident status even if they have only lived and worked for one year, as John Anatole Holland did.

As a researcher, Holland's numerous points were boosted by the numerous research and scientific publications he had completed. For all these achievements, he owes a special thanks to one person who has greatly assisted him. That person is a colleague, a professor who also works in the field of STEM research.

Hoshimu Kimura is the name of the person who helped John achieve various achievements. Therefore, when Professor Kimura invited Holland to visit a remote island in southern Japan, John immediately said yes. One afternoon, John arrived at a small airport on the island Professor Kimura had mentioned.

Professor Kimura, who was waiting for Holland at the airport, immediately shook hands and greeted him. Professor Kimura said, "Yaho, Joho-san, how are you?"

Holland smiled and replied, "I'm fine, Professor Starwood. It's good to see you again after several months."

Their mutual names, neither surnames nor given names, indicated that the two men were already familiar.

The two men stopped briefly at a vending machine before heading to Professor Kimura's car. In front of the vending machine, Holland noticed something different. He asked, "Professor Starwood, didn't you buy coffee like usual?"

Professor Kimura smiled and replied, "I did want some lemons, Joho-san. From now on, maybe I'll buy more lemons than coffee in the future."

Holland simply nodded in response. Holland didn't comment on Professor Kimura's change, as a change in someone's beverage preferences is nothing unusual. The two men immediately walked to Professor Kimura's silver SUV.

When he opened the front door, Holland was surprised to find something unusual. Professor Kimura had brought so much stuff that it filled the second and back rows of the five-door car. Holland saw many cans hidden behind a large plastic curtain that had been tied down.

Holland asked, "Professor Starwood, what's that behind here? It looks like an aluminum can or a tin can."

As he got into the driver's seat, Professor Kimura replied, "Those are tin cans. They're heavier. Magnets will stick to them if you hold them close. They're empty, and I need them for something."

Holland was certainly familiar with the "magnet test" and tin cans. Most magnets will stick to tin cans when they're brought close together. This is because tin cans are made with a thin layer of tin coated with steel.

Holland, now seated in the front passenger seat, asked again, "Something?"

Professor Kimura didn't answer Holland's final question but instead talked about numbers. "If you see me carrying so many of those things, I do need a lot. In the future, those cans probably won't be enough for that. Looks like I'll need a truck."

Holland tried to joke, "But it's not a truck for transporting people to another world, is it, Professor Starwood?" Professor Kimura only smiled faintly in response to the joke. Holland, understanding the situation, immediately suppressed any desire to joke.