After Xiangzi died, I inherited her harem.

"I'm afraid we won't get any results from them. They've always been very good at orchestrating things together."

Yawata Kairin shook her head. Having just threatened some people, she didn't seem to have any hope for such a thing.

Rather, it's precisely because she knew certain people that she was so surprised and angry just now.

Do those people really think they can't replicate what happened back then?

"...Hailin knows those people very well, even better than I do."

Whether it was a sigh or a joke, the words that Yuu Toyokawa suddenly uttered made Kairin Hachiman's heart tighten.

Although she didn't intend to hide it from Yuu Toyokawa, since her connection with certain members of the Toyokawa family was almost common knowledge in this circle, she didn't try to hide it at all when she made the phone call earlier.

But wouldn't this make Youyu feel... that she can't give him a sense of security?

"...This car is badly damaged. Even Xiangzi wouldn't feel at ease driving it back to the funeral. Let's go to my company first. I'll get you a new car and then personally take you back."

After much deliberation, Yawata Kairin decided to change the subject.

She had a feeling that if they continued talking about this topic, their precious time alone together would end badly.

Moreover, this is also an opportunity to bring Yuu Toyokawa to my territory... an opportunity.

Thinking of this, Hachiman Kairin felt her heart race.

Go to Hachiman Kairin's place...

Upon hearing this suggestion, Toyokawa Yuu felt her heart skip a beat.

To be honest, he was a little hesitant to step into the territory of this woman in a suit.

Even now, Yuu Toyokawa still doesn't understand why Kairin Hachiman killed her last time, or what happened this time that made her drive for him, while Mutsuka Wakaba didn't come to retrieve her guitar herself.

Toyokawa Yuu was somewhat worried that she might never return.

But given the current situation...

"It seems I have no reason to refuse. It's also a good opportunity for me to see how you've been all these years, Hailing... But don't take too long, Xiangzi is still waiting for me at home."

P.S.: This chapter is 5k5k. Let's say 5k. After deducting the normal update of 4k and repaying 1k, there is a remaining 72k that has not been repaid.

written request for leave

My friend dragged me into a five-person gang that ended up in jail. After we broke up, I realized I didn't have enough time, so I asked for a day off. Tomorrow I'll earn between 8,000 and 10,000.

Word count padding

Chapter 130 Lady Hachiman, Please Have Some Self-Respect (8k)

The car, its doors dented from the collision, gradually drove into a huge underground parking garage.

Such a unique vehicle design is bound to attract some attention along the way, but in a city like Tokyo with its massive population, it is not uncommon for traffic accidents to occur occasionally.

Ignoring the strange looks from the passing vehicles, Hachiman Kairin smoothly parked the car, which would have been a headache to be towed into the repair shop, into the garage.

"We've arrived. Please come to my office and have a seat. I've already asked someone to find a vehicle that's similar to this one, but it will take a little while."

After turning off the engine, Yawata Kairin removed the car key, and the interior lights went out.

As the already quiet engine finally fell silent, Hachiman Kairin took a deep breath in the dark driver's seat, the sound of her heart beating more rapidly than usual clearly audible in her ears.

Even Hachiman Kairin herself couldn't remember the last time her heart had raced so fast.

Even so, she maintained her usual calm tone, as if she were simply showing her friend around her office after a long absence, and would send him home as soon as everything was ready.

"You can arrange it. You're much more reliable than before, but..."

With what could be considered a compliment, Toyokawa Yuu got out of the car carrying Wakaba Mutsu's guitar. The dimness of the underground parking garage perfectly concealed the slight confusion and wariness in his eyes.

Yawata Kairin suggested that she go to her company to rest first, and then change to a car that wasn't damaged so that it would be easier to take her back to the Toyokawa family home.

but......

"This isn't Starlight Plaza, is it?"

Based on my previous experience, Starlight Plaza shopping center was one of the few things I left to Yawata Kairin before Toyokawa Shoko took back all my assets.

And this woman in a suit seems to have lived up to expectations, transforming herself from a bassist in a commercial band into a big shot in Tokyo within ten years.

Yuu Toyokawa wasn't surprised that he would leave Starlight Plaza to Umiru Hachiman over the past decade.

If Toyokawa Shoko were to take all of her assets, then "gifting" some things to Yawata Kairin would be the best option.

Hatsune and Wakaba Mutsuko are completely obedient to Toyokawa Shoko, so handing them over would be worse than just handing them over to Toyokawa Shoko directly. That would leave us with few options, and we can't very well give them to Yutenji Wakanagi.

But this time, the changes seem quite significant.

Although this place is not Starlight Plaza, it is another place that Toyokawa Yuu is very familiar with.

Win-Wing Production – the agency that Ave Mujica was formerly affiliated with.

"After Starlight Plaza grew, I took over this agency. I went to great lengths to maintain the connections this agency had before and to prevent it from collapsing after the change of ownership... Didn't Xiangzi tell you about this?"

This time, Hachiman Kairin's gaze was genuinely surprised.

The change of ownership of a talent agency is just a small ripple in Tokyo, but for this small circle of people, it caused quite a stir at the time.

Strictly speaking, it was after this incident that he was never able to see Toyokawa Yuu again until Toyokawa Shoko passed away.

But how could Toyokawa Yuu not know about this?

"Um... let's go inside first."

In order not to reveal any further flaws, Toyokawa Yuu chose to skip the topic for now.

Although she almost got caught, Toyokawa Yuu got a topic she didn't know whether to be happy or worried about—this time, Hachiman Kairin seemed to have more power than before.

On the bright side, if we can get her to stick to our side this time, we'll have more room to maneuver with the Toyokawa family.

Conversely, if Hachiman Kairin betrays him again for no apparent reason, he will likely face an even greater chance of death.

I thought that Yawata Kairin had already reached her complete form after mastering Starlight Plaza, but I didn't expect her to be able to super evolve this time.

However, the agency that Ave Mujica used to belong to was probably run by Sadaharu Toyokawa.

Starlight Plaza is one thing, at least we can still get involved there, but Win-Wing Production...

Yuu Toyokawa couldn't think of any reason why this place should belong to Kairin Hachiman. Even after Sadaharu Toyokawa died, the agency should have been taken over by Shoko Toyokawa.

I have a feeling that things have become more complicated this time. Rather than staying here, I would like to go back to the Toyokawa family home and look through Toyokawa Seikao's notebooks... if those things can still be kept this time.

as well as......

Looking at the old pink guitar in front of him, he had another reason to go back to the Toyokawa family home: to check on Wakaba Mutsumi's condition.

Unlike Hachiman Kairin, who might betray him at any time or for any unknown reason, at least Wakaba Mutsumi is trustworthy.

As for Metis... let's see when we meet him before making a judgment.

In contrast to Toyokawa Yuu's mixed feelings, Hachiman Kairin felt a slight...anger.

I've never even heard of such a thing. Has Toyokawa Yuu really been doing well all these years at the Toyokawa family home?

As Hachiman Kairin was about to pull out her car key, her fingertips unconsciously began to tighten, as if she wanted to break the key off the lock.

“Well, let’s go inside first. Although Ave Mujica has been disbanded for a long time, I still have that office... You should feel more comfortable there.”

Looking up through the car window at Toyokawa Yuu, who was already standing outside, Hachiman Kairin's face had a smile back on it.

With her fingertips resting on the deformed door handle next to the driver's seat, Hachiman Kairin was about to push open the car door when she suddenly frowned.

Due to the deformation caused by the collision, this side of the car door is no longer usable. With more force, it might be possible to kick it open, but she obviously didn't want to leave such an unpleasant impression on Yuu Toyokawa.

At the same time, she felt a slight pain in her left leg, which was obviously due to the force of the impact passing through the deformed car door and affecting her left leg.

"Youyu, help me up, I think I've twisted my ankle."

With a slight hunch, Hachiman Kairin moved somewhat laboriously from the driver's seat to the passenger seat.

She is now twenty-six years old and no longer the high school girl she once was. Her fully developed body no longer allows her to move around in the cramped driver's seat as easily as a child.

Somewhat disheveled, she climbed out of the car with the help of Yuu Toyokawa. Even in the dim light of the underground parking garage, Yuu Toyokawa could still vaguely see that her face was slightly flushed, as if she was ashamed of her current disheveled appearance.

With Wakaba Mutsu slung her guitar aside, Toyokawa Yuu let Hachiman Kairin drape an arm over her shoulder.

Despite being so close to an adult woman, Toyokawa Yuu didn't feel any suggestive ambiguity, but rather a... slight tremor.

Warm, slightly damp breath patted the back of Toyokawa Yuu's neck. He could even feel Hachiman Kairin's cheek resting on his shoulder, as if Hachiman Kairin had stretched out one arm and pulled him into a half-embrace.

Anyone else would probably feel flattered or proud to be so close to a young, successful, and well-dressed woman in a suit.

But at this moment, all that remained in Toyokawa Yuu's heart was... unease.

Even closer than when Metis excitedly pounced on her at home, and even more ambiguous than when Minami Mori's invitation, seemingly seductive and provocative, was made Yuu Toyokawa feel a series of hallucinations.

The image that flooded my brain was still the somewhat dimly lit underground parking lot, but the underlying color of my vision kept flashing and changing.

Sometimes it's that office on Ave Mujica, which isn't luxurious but is spacious enough to accommodate six people at the same time.

Sometimes it's your own place, which is like an urn, simple enough to be called a humble dwelling, but enough to serve as a place to stay and shelter from the wind and rain.

But in the end, those constantly flashing images settled on a bright picture.

Luxurious decor, warm lighting, a blonde beauty with a radiant smile and lingering happiness in her eyes, and... those hands gripping her neck tightly.

"call......"

He took a deep breath, inhaling the cool air into his chest, forcibly dispelling the hallucinations that kept appearing before his eyes, and gripping Hachiman Kairin's wrist, which was resting on his body, tightly to suppress his trembling.

"You'd better make it a habit to keep a first-aid kit in your office."

"Don't worry, it's just a minor injury, it won't delay anything... The office is on the same floor as the original Ave Mujica, in the same room."

As she gently leaned half of her body against Toyokawa Yuu, Hachiman Kairin noticed the slight resistance shown by the man who was standing very close to her.

Her fingertips tightened slightly, but she ultimately did not loosen her grip on his shoulder, nor did she have any intention of standing and walking on her own.

............................................................

Familiar floor, familiar office.

Yuu Toyokawa supported Kairin Hachiman as she pulled out a key that felt incredibly familiar from the inside pocket of her suit jacket and opened the door to the office that once belonged to Ave Mujica.

"How is it? After so many years, seeing this place still looking familiar, doesn't it make you feel a little nostalgic?"

Yawata Kairin's somewhat smug voice echoed in Toyokawa Yuu's eyes as he saw an office that was almost exactly the same as it had been ten years ago.

Not only the layout and furnishings, but even the utensils placed inside are almost identical.

It was as if time had stood still in this small space over the past ten years. Even though Toyokawa Yuu had only been away from the office for less than an hour, she couldn't immediately tell that this place was any different from what it had been like before.

In contrast, the pink guitar that Yuu Toyokawa was carrying, which looked quite old, revealed the marks of time everywhere.

Clearly, what Hachiman Kairin meant by "preserving" was not just about leaving the office unchanged and having it cleaned regularly to remove dust.

I suspect that every time she comes here, she carefully inspects every corner, and if any place shows signs of aging, she immediately finds an identical item to replace it.

"I wouldn't say I miss it, I just didn't expect you to still have this place."

Helping Yamana Kairin toward the desk, Toyokawa Yuu wanted her to sit down in the office chair that was closer to her.

Unexpectedly, the woman in the suit who was leaning against him lifted her waist slightly and sat directly on the table. Instead, Yuu Toyokawa was gently pushed back into the chair that felt almost exactly the same as it had been ten years ago.

Looking at Hachiman Kairin so close by, the illusion that had just been forcibly suppressed by Toyokawa Yuu resurfaced.

After all, less than an hour ago, Hachiman Kairin sat on her desk in the same manner, but back then, as a young girl, her movements lacked the elegance she possesses now.

However, it was this action that allowed Yuu Toyokawa to see clearly the situation of the so-called "minor injury" that Kairin Hachiman had mentioned, which was not as simple as just a sprained ankle.

The woman's pencil skirt, which barely reached her knees, was completely undamaged, but the black stockings covering her legs were torn open. It appeared that the car door had deformed during the impact, creating a sharp protrusion on the inside that had cut her.

Fresh blood oozed from the wound, sticking the already torn black threads to the skin, making it difficult to distinguish between the black and red parts for a moment.

The bleeding wasn't very heavy, far from being to the point of gushing blood. It didn't appear to have damaged any arteries, but it wasn't the kind of minor injury that could be ignored.

Is the first-aid kit still in the usual place?

Toyokawa Yuu's voice turned cold, and even the dazed look she had just given off disappeared without a trace. However, the look in her eyes gradually lost its previous unfamiliarity and instead showed a hint of worry.

"Yes, I just replaced it with a new one last month, and everything inside works."

Compared to Toyokawa Yuu, who seemed somewhat worried, Hachiman Kairin's voice was much calmer. It was unclear whether she was indifferent to the injury or if something else was attracting her attention.

Watching Yuu Toyokawa rush towards the wardrobe and take the first-aid kit off the top of the cabinet, Hachiman Kairin's emerald green eyes gradually became complicated.

I thought that after so many years of not seeing each other, our relationship would become very distant.

And it seemed that this was indeed the case. When she was being helped into the elevator, Hachiman Kairin could clearly feel Toyokawa Yuu's resistance. It seemed that she did not want to maintain that close distance with her.