July 3rd, afternoon.
The summer vacation had just begun. It was the height of July, and the bright blue sky was completely free of clouds. The blazing sun beat down mercilessly, scorching everything on the earth until the soil in the fields seemed almost ready to smoke.
The big poplar tree outside the house looked as if it had been wilted by the heat, its green leaves drooping powerlessly, like a patient stricken with illness.
Chapter 422