“Aristotle, the scholar from ancient times, supposedly said ‘Even gods cannot change the past.’ In which case, the gods are useless. People are different. The past piles up into the present. Some say the past gives us the world we know, or common knowledge, but I reject that view. […]” PeoplePastFictionMysteryCrimeThrillerScholarGodsAristotleFuminori Nakamura Book:My Annihilation Source: My Annihilation
“Everyone lies. But amid the overwhelming monotony of the everyday, it’s the rare individual who enjoys lying, who indulges and revels in it, who relishes treating others with malice.” LyingLies Book:Last Winter We Parted Source: Last Winter We Parted
“This woman Koharu could undo their coats and take the money from inside the purse. A technique called ‘nakanuki.’ What’s more, the story goes that after she emptied the purse she’d close it again and button up their coat. Incredible skill.” “Really?” “Surrounded by misery, those people laughed at the whole world.” SocietySadLife And Living Book:The Thief Source: The Thief
“Given the situation I had gotten myself into, I just chose the path that seemed most likely to succeed and did the best I could. But Shota died so suddenly. His death ripped open a deep fissure in my life. It was a cruel and heedless truth that I will never be able to comprehend. No matter what I do, I cannot change it. Is there any meaning in this world where Shota could die such an inexplicable death? That fissure spread through me unexpectedly. A responsible person would probably tell me to smile even though he’s gone. They’d probably say Shota, even though he was only a child, would have wanted me to lead a good life. But I don’t need to hear those words. This world is overflowing with hackneyed expressions like that. They can comfort most people, but they make me suffer. Words that most people nod along to make those who can’t nod along suffer. They alienate them. What about words that can reach someone like me? Do those exist? I am twisted. I can’t look at the world straight. But why am still trying to live on? Even though I think it would be better to curse the world, smile perversely and die.” Life PhilosophyLife And LivingLife ExperienceCliches Book:The Kingdom Source: The Kingdom
“Take a look around the internet. The ditches into which all evil is eventually swept. People hide their faces and type away without a care, no self-awareness for how their words will be picked up by others, forming a chain. When human beings can cover their faces and hide behind a shield of goodness, they release their aggression without hesitation. Not even realizing their aggressiveness for what it is.” LostLonelinessInternetEmptyAnonymousKeyboard Warriors Book:My Annihilation Source: My Annihilation
“The man at the end of the bar was looking at me. ... Should I get drunk and sleep with him now? But I could see that I would regret that so much I would want to die after. I didn't want to get involved with anyone, and I didn't want to bear being alone with the warmth left by someone long gone.” SexRelationshipsRegretSexualityProstitution Book:The Kingdom Source: The Kingdom
“Our job involves looking at things that people usually can't see.” Private InvestigatorPrivate Detective Book:Evil and the Mask Source: Evil and the Mask
“Number two becoming number one, that's how life goes. Always demanding the best, that's a strange way of living.” CompetitionSecond PlaceFirst Place Book:Evil and the Mask Source: Evil and the Mask
“She was thirty-two, but drew blank on various periods of her life. In her own peculiar turn of phrase, they were like holes in the ground filled with plastic.” FictionMysteryCrimeHolesThrillerPeculiarPlastic32Fuminori Nakamura Book:My Annihilation Source: My Annihilation
“Outside the window, the trees were dancing in their disagreeable manner, somehow looking closer than before. Like unholy pendulums.” FictionMysteryCrimeWindowThrillerPendulumsUnholyTressFuminori Nakamura Book:My Annihilation Source: My Annihilation
“The light from the scrawny desk lamp cast an orange glow over the dust.” LightFictionMysteryHorrorThrillerFuminori Nakamura Book:My Annihilation Source: My Annihilation