Akiko was confused. She couldn’t decide whether to feel sad, panicked, scared, or happy. The situation she was facing was so unfamiliar.
She looked back and saw a procession of at least ten cars—one of them a hearse in the middle.
They weren't just ordinary cars; Akiko had previously seen a police car at the front, clearing the way so they could arrive faster, and there was also another police car passing alongside them, taking turns.
Akiko felt small, like she didn’t belong in that place. A world that wasn’t hers.
“What’s wrong?” Kenji asked, noticing Akiko glancing out the window and then back at the cars behind them.
Akiko shook her head and smiled. “Nothing. I just wanted to see what’s happening.”
Akiko wasn’t going to complain to Kenji right now. She didn’t want to add even a little burden to him. Kenji hadn’t said anything since they got into the car, and tha
Akiko stroked the mofuku she was wearing. The garment felt very foreign to her. She had never worn a kimono that was entirely jet black—even the obi was black. Akiko was sure of that. She had never attended a funeral that required her to wear a mofuku.Akiko examined herself in the mirror, checking her hair. It was still too short to be pinned up, so she just combed it normally. The most important thing was to cover her scars so they wouldn't attract attention.When she heard the shoji door slide open, Akiko turned. She saw Kenji, who had changed into a black suit, white shirt, and tie. Formal mourning attire for men."Are you ready?" As he approached Akiko, Kenji inquired."Yes, I’m done," Akiko replied."We should go out now." Kenji seemed ready to turn back, but Akiko grabbed his hand."Can I ask for a hug?" Akiko asked.Kenji smiled and stroked her head. "Of course. You shouldn't have to ask; just come right in," he sa
"Sandaime... I'm sorry, but who...?"Kenji glanced around, casting his gaze on the person who dared to ask the question, and they immediately fell silent. "Sorry."Kenji didn’t need to say anything more, and he felt he had made a mistake. Everyone else, more or less, acted the same way. They either looked down or at least pretended not to be looking.Of course, Kenji abandoned his plan to enter and instead pulled Akiko into another room. This was enough for now. Mourning and a stern attitude would protect Akiko, but clearly, he would have to answer questions like that later—at least not right now.“You don’t need to answer anything if someone asks. I’ll handle all of that later,” Kenji said as he opened the door to another room. Fortunately, no one was inside. The reading room was empty.Akiko nodded without speaking. She sat down, lowering her gaze. Kenji turned his phone off. He had been meaning to turn it off
“Don’t ask me about that!” Akiko panicked as she saw Kyoko approaching her. It was clear that the topic of her earlier argument with Kenji was not something to discuss further.“Oh my God! Who wants to talk about what you did in bed? I was just complaining because he’s really annoying,” Kyoko shuddered in disgust as she sat down in front of Akiko.This time, Akiko realized, "You don't like Kenji," noting clearly that Kyoko didn't hold Kenji in the same regard as others did.“No. Why would I like a rough man like him? I'm not trying to insult your choice—because he's crazy about you—but I can never like him," Kyoko repeated, something Akiko had already known.And that statement now left Akiko puzzled. “But you work for him, right?”It seemed odd to her that Kyoko would still be willing to work for Kenji, despite not liking him.“I don’t like Kenji as a p
Kenji sat back down, his legs no longer able to support his body. He was too weak from the shock. This was beyond anything he had expected.He never thought he would hear Ishida's name again after all this time of burying his grudge, just as Masaki had asked him to."I honestly didn’t want to talk to you about this. I only wanted you to accept Sandaime's position peacefully as planned, and then I would leave. But blood is thicker than water after all. He chose Akiko over you." Shibata bowed his head, rubbing his arm—the gesture of a man who had failed."But that’s an impossible request! Akiko can’t become the Sandaime. She doesn’t even know anything about Kuryugumi!" Ryu protested the absurd decision.But Kenji raised his hand, stopping Ryu, because he didn’t want to think that far ahead yet. He wanted to hear Shibata’s explanation first.“You’re my father’s friend, but why did you make th
Kenji felt relieved. The worst nightmare in his mind hadn’t come true. He didn't know if he could accept it if it turned out his parents had been killed by Masaki.He felt as though he wouldn't be able to face the truth if the person who raised him was also the one who killed his parents. Kenji could never accept that the hands that freed him from his mother's cold body were the same ones that took her life.Kenji was worn down, but if that's true, then it'll destroy what's left of his humanity."Why do you look relieved?!" Shibata scolded Kenji, as well as Ryu, who apparently shared the same feeling. Ryu even exhaled with a deep sense of relief."Weren't you listening to me? Masaki Tanaka isn’t much different from whoever killed Jiro and Haruka! He had the same intention. He came to your house with the intent to kill you—kill your parents!" Shibata screamed, unable to accept that Masaki deserved forgiveness or an explanation.Ken
"Of course not! I'm angry at Masaki, not Hayato! I wanted to make you the Sandaime because Hayato died, not before that. Before that happened, I had to be satisfied knowing you could survive without being threatened again."Kenji looked at Shibata's face as he tapped the table with his finger, emphasizing his answer and showing his sincerity."You're wrong. I wasn't living safely without threats. The people who killed Hayato-aniki were after me too, weren't they?" Kenji asked."That's because Masaki was foolish!" Shibata hissed."What do you mean?""When the report on your parents' case was filed, I was no longer allowed to be involved in handling it. I was too close to Jiro and Haruka. All I could do was attend your parents' funeral. As a result, I couldn't fake your death. In the end, you were declared missing, not dead. I told Masaki to manipulate the report so you would also be considered a victim, but maybe he wasn’t quick enough. In the
Akiko slid the door open very slowly, careful not to make any noise.According to the servant who had spoken to her earlier—while delivering the breakfast tray she now held—Kenji was in the room, sleeping.Akiko had been surprised when she couldn't find Kenji in his room. The room she had stayed in was Kenji's.Last night, Ryu showed it to her, mentioning that Kenji would join her once he was finished with his affairs. But he never came, even by morning.Akiko wasn't angry, but she couldn’t help feeling worried. Now, seeing Kenji resting, albeit uncomfortably, she felt relieved. He was still wearing the same suit from yesterday.She quietly set the breakfast tray down, still trying not to make any noise. Then, Akiko tiptoed over to Kenji, who was lying on his side, slightly curled up, using his folded arm as a pillow.If she had known, she would have brought a pillow to make him more comfortable. Akiko hoped Kenji had reste
Akiko slid the door open very slowly, careful not to make any noise.According to the servant who had spoken to her earlier—while delivering the breakfast tray she now held—Kenji was in the room, sleeping.Akiko had been surprised when she couldn't find Kenji in his room. The room she had stayed in was Kenji's.Last night, Ryu showed it to her, mentioning that Kenji would join her once he was finished with his affairs. But he never came, even by morning.Akiko wasn't angry, but she couldn’t help feeling worried. Now, seeing Kenji resting, albeit uncomfortably, she felt relieved. He was still wearing the same suit from yesterday.She quietly set the breakfast tray down, still trying not to make any noise. Then, Akiko tiptoed over to Kenji, who was lying on his side, slightly curled up, using his folded arm as a pillow.If she had known, she would have brought a pillow to make him more comfortable. Akiko hoped Kenji had reste
"Excuse me, is there a studio here for ikebana classes?" A woman pushing a stroller inquired as she approached the reception area."Are you a new participant looking to sign up?" The woman at the front desk looked excited."Yes, but I’m a complete beginner.""That’s no problem. We have classes for beginners, and after all, every expert started as an amateur." The receptionist smiled and handed over a form to fill out."But, excuse me, is it okay if I bring my baby? I don’t want to leave him at home alone." The woman hesitated, pointing at the stroller."Oh, of course! There's childcare for all participants. We have it set up because most of our students here are women. Hey there, handsome!"The receptionist waved at the baby, whose little hand reached out from the stroller, smiling at the movement in front of him."Thank goodness. I was worried I'd have to leave him." The mother took the form and sat down to st
"Did you kill him?" Ryu asked Yui, who was sitting in the back seat, tidying up her katana."No. The position wasn’t right. I didn’t want him attacking me when my arms were tired."Yui flexed her hands, squeezing the air to loosen up her muscles. Her arms were genuinely exhausted after a tense struggle with Ueda. The effort to break free had forced Yui to exert all her strength to maintain control of the hostage situation."He's crazy. I’m not sure I could beat him in a fair fight," Yui shaking her head.Ryu glanced at his sister through the rearview mirror. It was rare for her to admit someone else's strength so frankly. Yui often mocked Kenji, even though they were clearly equals."Is he that good?" Ryu asked."Yeah! He’s amazing! His arms can stretch like rubber, but he can’t swim and has no sense of direction. Still, he never loses in a fight. He’s awesome!"Ryu almost swerved off the road as Ky
Kyoko underestimated Ueda’s strength when drunk—or rather, he wasn’t as drunk as she had hoped. He was still incredibly strong.Kyoko’s plan was to make Ueda drink until he was too weak to force anything like what was happening now. Ueda was still moving with impressive precision, while Kyoko drifted in and out of consciousness. She continued to push him away, but her strength was probably half of what it normally was.Worse, Kyoko was still half-conscious, which made her fully aware of the fear each time Ueda touched her. Not being able to fight back while knowing she was on the brink of being assaulted by him was far worse.“Let go of me, you pig!” Kyoko screamed with all her might when she couldn’t break free from Ueda’s grip.“Why are you resisting? Didn’t we agree to this? You were the one who came onto me earlier,”Ueda whispered, lowering his face to try and press his ch
"But how does he know about Ishida? Maybe he's just referencing a memory?" Ryu tried to calm his sister."No. Earlier he mentioned Nakamura, then suddenly brought up Ishida."Yui approached the desk, where the laptop and equipment were set, selected a file, and played one of the recordings. It was a recording of Abe and Ueda.There were several files, and Yui's job was to listen and pick out the important parts. Ryu and Kyoko's task was to ensure the bugging devices were placed near Abe, which was a difficult challenge.Abe was always cautious, so he would sweep for bugs in his office and bedroom every two or three days.To avoid suspicion—since finding bugs in his office would raise alarms—Ryu and Kyoko had to take turns placing and removing the devices each time.Luckily, they had already figured out Ueda's highly regimented habits. So far, they hadn't encountered any issues. However, the process of placing and removing t
After hearing the footsteps and the scolding, Kyoko knew that what Ryu was doing was his way of covering up their situation—talking alone in a strange place. Still, it caught her by surprise.“You two could find another place for that, couldn’t you? Don’t flaunt it in public like this!” The reprimand was sharp.“We apologize.” Ryu flashed a regretful smile, bowing deeply as he asked for forgiveness.However, Ryu's usual smile, which often soothed the emotions of his conversation partners, lost some of its charm due to his disguise. The person scolding them didn’t seem convinced.“I could report you and have you fired for doing this during work hours!” she yelled.“Tsukino-san! Don’t be like that. We were just messing around. There’s no need to take it that far. Please forgive us,” Kyoko finally turned around and joined in the apology. Her words were more effective t
“Damn idiot!”The bald man sitting behind his desk cursed at the television, which was currently showing Yuto Nakamura kneeling at the gate of his home.He then turned to the man behind him. “Why isn’t Kuryugumi defending them? They should be helping, right? They were responsible for nominating Nakamura."The man who was being addressed bowed slightly, indicating that he needed permission to respond. “They’re probably deceived as well, Abe-dono*. They don’t know about the bad things and think they’re clean.”Abe scowled, continuing to observe Yuto, who bore a dismal expression in his eyes. He had suspected that from the beginning, but he didn't think it was accurate.“Kenji is different from Masaki. He isn’t careless like this. I am familiar with how they typically select candidates to propose to. Even the slightest oddity would cause them to cancel their choice and look for someone
Yuto cursed inwardly as he saw the crowd of reporters gathered at his doorstep. He hadn't expected to face them, even though Karin had given him a slight heads-up about the situation at home. But it turned out there were far more people than he'd imagined."Please take a turn over there."Yuto asked the taxi driver not to stop in front of his house. He needed to find another way in, perhaps through the less conspicuous back door, hoping no one would be waiting for him there.But again, disappointment. As he arrived at the street leading to the back entrance, Yuto saw a few people standing near the gate. Even though the crowd was smaller than at the front entrance, it was still preferable to the main entrance.Yuto instructed the taxi driver to stop, but not directly in front of the gate. He got out near the back gate of the neighbor’s house, then walked toward his own.He kept his head down, raising the collar of his coat to hide his face. Th
"There are no serious symptoms, Sandaime. Your wife is strong, and her pregnancy has entered the end of the second trimester. Very strong. I hope there won't be any issues until the day of delivery."The doctor, who had examined Akiko, smiled as he delivered the news. Despite hearing everything, Kenji didn't feel reassured. "Are you sure? She was dizzy earlier!""I'm sure. Fatigue can cause dizziness, even if it occurs only once or twice. If it repeats frequently, then it could be a concern." The doctor gave him a slight warning, but not a direct one, to prevent Kenji from becoming panicked."I'll remember this. Make sure you don't make a mistake." Kenji's tone was threatening. He did not want any errors."Of course. Just make sure Tanaka-san continues with her regular check-ups." The doctor bowed, and Kenji waved him off.Kenji then entered the room, where Akiko was lying down. Her eyes were closed, but Kenji knew she wasn't asleep. The moment he
Akiko did indeed locate the man who was with Shibata yesterday, but his condition was not favorable.Yesterday, Akiko noticed that his condition had deteriorated, but this time it was even worse. He had bruises on his face, his nose was bent and darkened, and his shirt around his chest was dirty, revealing the mark of Kenji's boot."Akiko-chan."Yuto tried to approach her, but Kenji—who, of course, had followed her in—stopped him. He pulled Akiko's hand, keeping her away from Yuto while standing between them."What do you think you're doing?!" Kenji shouted."Move," Akiko replied, pushing Kenji aside."Kiko-chan." Kenji was clearly surprised, as it had been a long time since Akiko had openly defied him like this.But Akiko didn't want to stay quiet. She needed to understand the meaning of the strange sense of righteousness stirring within her heart.Akiko never doubted that her love for Kenji was real. There was no