“Didn’t you input the data here yesterday? This house isn’t considered expensive.” Akiko pointed to another folder, helping Riko, who looked confused.“Ahh…” Riko sighed deeply, then opened the folder Akiko had indicated, and, of course, finally found the data on the house in front of them.“Impressive. You’re learning quickly,” Riko praised. Akiko smiled shyly but was pleased to hear it.“I thought this house would be considered expensive given its size,” Riko said as he opened the data on his tablet.Akiko had already moved on, starting to measure the width of the gate. She bent down and carefully noted the measurements. Fieldwork was indeed part of her new job. Luckily, for outdoor activities like this, Shinigi provided black pants as part of the uniform.Akiko had initially been puzzled when she imagined having to work outside in that short skirt. When she saw that pants were included in the uniform she received, Akiko liked her new office even more. This was clearly reflected in
"Excuse me, but what do you mean by saying that?" Akiko stood up and stared at Mori.Of course, Akiko understood exactly what Mori meant. This wasn't the first time Mori had said something like that. Akiko still remembers the conversation between Mori and the HR woman yesterday. Her presence was suspicious.But Akiko would not accept insults because she really hadn't done anything unusual. She was here because she had been summoned. She didn't know how or by whom she had been called. And clearly, Akiko felt she had worked very hard to catch up and learn. Hard work was no straightforward task."You heard what I said, didn’t you? You don't belong here...""Sorry, but why do you think I'm not a suitable fit? Have I made any mistakes in the past few weeks? Is there a poor performance on my record?"Akiko was bold because she knew her work was nearly flawless. Akiko might have made mistakes in her first week of training, but they were minor. After that, Akiko guaranteed everything was pe
“No! I will keep working, and you have no right to interfere.” Akiko responded just as firmly, then turned away and walked faster toward her room.Akiko didn’t want to argue any further. She didn’t want praise for all her hard work, but she certainly didn’t want to hear any more scolding. Akiko wanted to decide her own life going forward."Kiko-chan!” Kenji shouted. Akiko’s reply had clearly been too bold.“Come home earlier, or...” Because Akiko was already out of sight, Kenji didn't finish his sentence.He didn’t follow her, but he was still annoyed when he heard the loud clatter of a cup hitting the wooden table afterward. Kenji grunted and picked up his phone, dialing Ryu.“What’s going on? Since when do you call me from your cell phone at home?” Ryu answered, surprised. He knew very well that Kenji usually used the landline to call him when he was at home.“It’s broken,” Kenji replied curtly. There was no way he was going to mention that the telephone had been floating in the poo
Akiko jolted awake, wiping her wet face. The water was quite full. Almost her entire body was drenched, from her uniform to her underwear.The pounding of her heart and the throbbing pain in her head accompanied Akiko's attempt to understand what had happened—bullying."Hey!" Akiko shouted when she heard footsteps outside the bathroom stall, and she moved to open the door to see who had just poured the dirty, cold water. But as she reached for the door handle and turned it, Akiko immediately sensed something was wrong, and her body felt even colder. Something blocked the door, so it wouldn't open."HEY!" Akiko pounded on the door and screamed in panic."Who are you? Why are you doing this?" Akiko shouted, then kneeled down, looking through the slightly open gap at the bottom of the stall.Akiko only saw a glimpse of women's shoes running toward the door, turning off the lights and closing it with a slam. Akiko found herself trapped inside, drenched, trembling, and enveloped in total
Akiko's consciousness was very faint. She could hear voices around her but couldn't open her heavy eyelids. Her eyes remained closed, but her eyeballs seemed to move underneath them."So far, I only see the possibility of exhaustion and dehydration.""Are you sure there's nothing else?"Akiko didn't recognize the first voice, but the one that responded was unmistakable—Kenji."If you wish, I can conduct further tests, and...""Nnnn... o..." Akiko forced her eyes and tongue to move. Her vision was a bit blurry, but she eventually recognized where she was and who was standing beside her.Kenji looked down at her, while the doctor who had been talking to him earlier approached and checked Akiko's vital signs. The doctor swung a small flashlight in front of Akiko's eyes to assess her level of consciousness."Nakamura-san? Can you hear me?" The doctor called Akiko, gently tapping her shoulder. Akiko nodded, and her eyes opened fully."Ah, thank goodness." The female doctor smiled, then tur
"I can manage on my own." Akiko refused Kenji's outstretched hand, which was meant to help her out of the car. She had touched that hand dozens of times before—once—but that didn't mean she wanted to touch it again now.Akiko could no longer imagine how that hand once stroked her head, or how it gently comforted her when her head throbbed with pain. Indeed, that hand forced her to kiss him. Akiko didn’t want that hand to touch her again.Kenji clenched his hand, not pursuing the matter further, and walked ahead into the house.As she slowly followed behind him, Akiko glanced at Kenji's back. She suddenly felt regret. Her earlier avoidance was too harsh. Kenji had stayed with her all night at the hospital. At least he showed up. That was more than Kaito, who hadn’t appeared at all, even by this morning.Akiko didn’t know if Kaito hadn’t shown up because Kaede had forbidden him or for some other reason, but Kaito’s absence while she was in the hospital made Akiko even more disappointe
“You can’t kill him!” Ryu repeated it for the fifteenth time. Now he was practically begging.Ryu had known from the beginning that convincing Kenji to spare the person who had hurt Akiko wouldn’t be easy, but it was far tougher than he had anticipated. Kenji’s expression hadn’t changed; he still hadn’t accepted Ryu’s suggestion.“She’s just a regular employee, not part of Kuryugumi. She’s an ordinary person, so let me deal with the punishment.”“Why should it be that way?” Kenji hissed.“Because that’s how normal people live. When I dealt with Shingi Fusaya, you promised not to interfere. So, don’t kill her. She’s guilty, but killing her is excessive.” Ryu didn’t want to bring up that agreement, but it was the only way. Persuading Kenji was a risky task, like taming a tiger.“CK!” Kenji clicked his tongue, glancing at his watch and realizing that he had been gone longer than planned. The lengthy argument with Ryu had taken up more time than he intended.“Okay, but you’d better make s
Akiko hurried along, not because she was late or overslept, but because she wanted to get to the floor where her office was as soon as possible. Akiko wanted to meet Kyoko as quickly as possible. This was the day.After waiting two days—Kenji hadn’t allowed her to go to work yesterday, and Akiko had peacefully complied—this was the moment when Akiko would demand accountability.Her body wasn’t seriously injured, but the mental damage was significant. It wasn’t just the fear; the disappointment also counted as a consequence.Akiko was relieved when she saw that only Kyoko was in the room. She always arrived the earliest. Akiko wanted to talk to Kyoko before anyone else arrived.“Oh… I thought you’d continue to feel special and take vacations whenever you liked.” Once again, Kyoko greeted Akiko with sarcasm. Akiko, who initially wanted to ask more calmly, quickly lost her patience.“I wasn’t on vacation; I was sick because of what you did!” Akiko put down her bag, then turned to glare a
"What's wrong?" Akiko grew more curious as she watched Kenji lower his head and cover his face with his hands."Sorry, just a moment." Kenji needed to calm himself. The fear he felt earlier was real. He had braced himself for Akiko's complaining of pain, clearly worried about her post-surgery scars.But Akiko was completely calm. A small ray of hope emerged amidst all the darkness that enveloped him."Are you okay?" Akiko asked again, gently touching Kenji's hand, which slowly loosened its grip."Yes, I'm fine. Everything is fine." Kenji smiled, causing Akiko's heart to race again. She reflexively covered Kenji's mouth."Don't smile like that," Akiko complained. Kenji raised his eyebrows in question."Just don't."Kenji found the request odd, but he nodded. Only then did Akiko release her hand, exhaling with a sense of relief."What's wrong with my smile? Is it scary?" Kenji didn’t think he had made a scary face, but Ryu
Akiko stared at Kenji as he walked in, once again placing a hand on her chest. She felt abnormal, her heart racing with excitement.Or maybe it was the man who wasn’t normal. Akiko couldn't imagine how she had married someone so... handsome.Akiko admitted it. Ryu, who had been with her earlier, was handsome, sweet, and had a clean face. Kenji’s face was the complete opposite.Kenji was handsome, but not sweet, and he looked rugged with stubble that seemed a few days old. But that wild side of him was driving her crazy. Akiko felt her stomach suddenly warm as those dark eyes looked at her.She wanted to look away—unable to withstand the excessive charm—but decided to keep looking. It would be strange to turn away so suddenly. After all, they were husband and wife. Akiko wanted to get used to looking at that face quickly.“Are you feeling dizzy?” As he sat beside Akiko, he naturally reached out to touch her
"Is this going to be permanent?" As soon as Kenji and Hayashi left the room, he asked his question.Hayashi ran a hand through his white hair, and the lines on his forehead deepened."The answer is, I don't know." Hayashi gave his honest reply with a long sigh.If not for the fact that Hayashi had done so much to help Akiko recover, Kenji might have snapped at him for his unhelpful response.It was Hayashi's job to diagnose Akiko's condition, not to be unsure. It was Kenji's responsibility not to be in the dark."Maybe this answer won't satisfy you," Hayashi said, noticing how Kenji was struggling to contain his emotions."However, I am unable to provide a definitive response. The neurologist who worked with me on Akiko's case before diagnosed her as unable to function normally, but after therapy restored her motor skills, her ability to remember and understand things slowly returned. When it comes to Akiko's condition, nothing is set in sto
Akiko followed Hayashi's flashlight beam, moving left and right with ease. There was no problem at all."What do you feel?" Hayashi asked with a friendly smile. Akiko looked at him. He was a kind and gentle doctor."Dizzy." Akiko had felt a sharp pain in her head when she tried to sit up earlier, but now it had eased significantly. That was her only physical complaint. As for her thoughts—Akiko couldn’t explain them."Of course you feel dizzy. You have a head injury."Akiko appreciated the doctor's warmth as he gently explained. She then touched the bandage on her head with a confused expression."What happened to me? Did I fall?" Akiko inquired, hoping for a quick explanation.But the doctor didn’t answer immediately. Akiko caught him glancing at one of the men standing on the opposite side of the bed. The man nodded.Akiko understood instantly that Hayashi had just sought permission. The doctor was seeking permissi
Kenji's thoughts immediately pointed to her. Only Karin could have come up with such a cunning plan, with the intent to hurt Akiko.After all, who else knew about the relationship between him and Akiko besides Karin? Kenji doubted his father would resort to such cowardly methods. His father had already shown his way yesterday—an attack from the front, forceful if necessary."I think we were wrong. Karin isn't interested in the Nakamura fortune. She's doing everything she can to hurt Akiko." Kenji corrected his earlier assumption that Karin was merely being materialistic when she tricked him. "Everything she's done since the beginning has hurt Akiko.""Why though? Why would she hate her own niece?" Ryu scratched his head, looking confused.It wasn't a question that Kenji needed to answer. Aside from not knowing the reason, Kenji didn’t care. What mattered was that Karin had hurt Akiko.Before this, Kenji could still forgive everything Kari
But Kenji's burden gradually lessened as he saw a smile spread across Hayashi's lips.“It worked. Everything was successfully retrieved. And Akiko's condition is very stable,” Hayashi said, giving a thumbs-up.Kenji let out a sigh of relief, but he knew his relief was premature.“How…”“I’ve requested that the biopsy be done as soon as possible, but it will still take at least a day. Be patient. Stay with Akiko when she wakes up. Huh, what happened to your face?” Hayashi inquired, noting Kenji's bruised and battered face.“Something happened, but it's over now,” Kenji responded vaguely. He might hear the full story later about the earlier commotion, but Kenji wasn’t too concerned. Kuryugumi usually had a team to clean up any public disturbances.Hayashi squinted at Kenji's face before patting his shoulder. “Take care of those wounds. But I must go. I’m not as youn
"Then obey. I've allowed you to do as you please all this time."Masaki looked at Kenji, who was bowing before him, shaking his head. He had watched Kenji grow, and of course, he knew that Kenji rarely begged anyone for anything.Seeing Kenji bowing always surprised him. This was the second time Masaki had seen Kenji in such a position. And for the same reason—that weak girl."I will obey and follow your orders—whatever you want. But not with Akiko," Kenji said, pressing his forehead to the ground. Masaki sighed and shook his head. He couldn’t understand why Kenji was so stubborn."Get up," Masaki ordered. Kenji raised himself, but he remained kneeling."You make me seem like a villain when everything I've done has been to protect you, not to be cruel to you," Masaki said, resting his head on his hand while watching Kenji, who was now staring at the grass."Can't you want something else? She’s just a woman. There are
"Do you really want to commit a massacre out in the open?" Masaki shouted, and Kenji finally lowered the katana in his hand.He was a little disappointed that no blood had been spilled. He could kill, but not in front of so many witnesses. A rule that Kenji found bothersome.As Masaki was pushed closer to him, Kenji bowed and glanced at the unfamiliar face behind his father. He might be significantly older than Masaki. However, he appeared more robust and healthy.Kenji was a bit puzzled. If his father wanted to replace Matsuda, he should have picked someone younger, not someone as old as this. Kenji wasn't convinced that this man could lift his father in an emergency.But now wasn’t the time to question Masaki's decision. The veins around Masaki’s neck bulged as he held back his anger."Are you trying to fight me again?! Do you care more about that boy than my words?!" Masaki snapped."I've followed your words," Kenji replied po
Minute by minute, Kenji’s time spent outside the operating room felt like a nightmare—a terrible nightmare.Kenji had never felt this desperate before. He had to endure it for nearly three hours. In addition to the weight of all the risks, Kenji's attention was now fixed on the biopsy results.Hayashi mentioned this possibility yesterday. This is the worst possible outcome for Akiko's condition.Kenji slumped into the chair, closing his eyes, trying with all his might to follow Hayashi's advice not to overthink it.Hayashi had even laid out a very detailed treatment plan this morning to assure Kenji that, whatever the outcome, it didn’t mean a dead end. But Kenji didn’t want to let that possibility enter his mind. The treatment might offer a chance of recovery, but only a chance—not a certainty. That uncertainty planted an ever-growing darkness in Kenji’s mind, rooting deeply.*DRTT!*Kenji jerked as his phone vibrated and immedi