After Xiangzi died, I inherited her harem.

Her already shaken nerves seemed to be transported back to the fire, and the burning and stinging sensations began to spread across Toyokawa Yuu's body again.

The discomfort throughout her body made Yuu Toyokawa frown subconsciously, but she didn't complain.

Although it was painful, it was not unbearable compared to the suffering I had endured during my previous near-death experiences. In the end, these marks on my body were a consequence of my own actions, so there was nothing to complain about.

However, this persistent discomfort was still quite irritating, to the point that Toyokawa Yuu's movements unconsciously became a little more hurried.

Carrying the first-aid kit she had grabbed when she left home, Toyokawa Hatsune followed closely behind Toyokawa Yuu, her purple eyes constantly scanning her surroundings, trying to figure out her location.

Unfortunately, the girl who was able to come to Tokyo alone with only the knowledge she had learned from books and a boat ticket bought with her pocket money is now a complete stranger to this city she has been away from for many years.

Moreover, even in bustling Tokyo, not every place is filled with skyscrapers and crowds of people.

Unfortunately, the area where Yutenji Wakana dropped them off was completely unfamiliar to Toyokawa Hatsune, located beside a large river.

Ignoring Toyokawa Hatsune's furtive glances, Toyokawa Yuu led her to the riverbank and sat down under a large tree that provided some shade.

"Lady Yuyu, someone is already secretly following us."

Toyokawa Yuu sat down next to Toyokawa Yuu somewhat uneasily, her purple gaze occasionally glancing back in the direction they had come from.

Right where Yutenji Wakana had just dropped them off, two black sedans were already parked there.

Although no one has gotten off the car yet, the dark side windows make her feel uneasy.

"Ignore them, they won't do anything to you."

I reached out and touched Toyokawa Hatsune's smooth blonde hair. Although it was cut short and I could no longer feel that sensation of my fingers sliding down a waterfall, if I wanted to enjoy it, I still couldn't put it down.

The delicate movements, seemingly carrying a certain indescribable tenderness, almost froze the body of the Toyokawa Hatsune.

Unlike the time when he asked in the cabin how his identity was exposed, it felt like petting a pet.

At this moment, Toyokawa Hatsune could truly feel that Toyokawa Yuu, whose attitude towards her had always been somewhat inexplicable, seemed to genuinely cherish and expect something from her.

"But... what will you do?"

The Toyokawa family wouldn't do anything to her... Toyokawa Hatsune certainly knew this; Toyokawa Yuu had already explained it to her in the cabin earlier.

Burning down a funeral parlor and committing suicide together is already considered a huge scandal in a densely populated city like Tokyo, let alone when it's accompanied by comments about wealthy couples committing suicide together.

However, the decades-long conflict between the main and branch families of the Toyokawa clan is no secret in certain circles, inevitably giving rise to some rumors that arouse speculation and investigation.

Nowadays, this is no longer a family matter that can be handled entirely secretly within the Toyokawa family.

In this situation, the Toyokawa family needs someone who is nominally still part of the main family to stand in the spotlight, to demonstrate the branch families' loyalty to the family, and then gradually find some reasons to replace this person.

This person cannot be Toyokawa Yuu, who has already "died for love," so it can only be her.

However, she didn't want to. Giving everything to Toyokawa Shoko was her goal, and serving Toyokawa Yuu also met this condition.

The two were an undeniably loving couple, and Toyokawa Yuu even planned to commit suicide with his wife at her funeral.

But those who split up...

"Lord Yuyu, I beg you, if you intend to go find Xiaoxiang, please let me accompany you no matter what... In the current situation, those people will never let me go, and your and Xiaoxiang's wish for me to see the sights they couldn't see is probably already..."

Reaching out to grab Yuu Toyokawa's wrist, Hatsune Toyokawa raised her purple eyes, which were filled with pleading.

"In that case, please allow me to stay with you. I haven't seen Xiao Xiang for a very long time."

"that's not allowed."

Gently stroking Toyokawa Hatsune's hair, Toyokawa Yuu smiled and shook her head, shattering her hopes.

He also noticed the vehicles that were already parked on the side of the road.

But strangely, before his last death, and even when he had just returned to this era, he felt tense and fearful, but now...

Yuu Toyokawa didn't care whether those people were present or not; she was more concerned about Hatsune Toyokawa in front of her.

The tenderness shown by stroking hair is not merely a pretense.

This was the first time Toyokawa Yuu had treated her with such gentleness since the blonde woman in front of her had strangled her to death on Toyokawa Shoko's desk.

Even this gentleness was only barely recreated by trying hard to recall the feeling from back then.

After all, if he didn't do this, this golden retriever, whose mind was only focused on sacrificing everything for Toyokawa Shoko, would probably have had little willpower to survive in the turbulent internal power struggles within the Toyokawa family.

Unlike the previous times when she might be kicked away like a roadside stone but still manage to escape unscathed, this time, after her death, Toyokawa Hatsune will definitely be dragged to the forefront to quell the various uproar caused by her arson.

If she continues with her current self-pitying and submissive attitude... she'll probably disappear after being used.

No matter how much she tries to justify this outcome in her heart, Toyokawa Yuu will always have something to regret—in a sense, it's her own act of arson that killed her.

Of course, Toyokawa Hatsune has another option, which is to die with him, but Toyokawa Yuu would not allow that.

Living and dying together... Even Wakaba Mutsu had never done such a thing. Toyokawa Yuu didn't want to go back to ten years ago and, holding her nose, change her attitude towards Toyokawa Hatsune the way she had treated Wakaba Mutsu before.

The best way to prevent yourself from changing your feelings towards someone is to prevent them from doing anything that might change your opinion of them.

In this way, this death is still a consequence of Toyokawa Hatsune's own guilt, rather than an undeserved disaster like the one that happened to Wakaba Mutsumi last time, which she was inexplicably dragged into.

If everyone who has hurt you could change their perspective through actions they themselves wouldn't even remember.

So, if you indulge yourself to the end and suffer the most undeserved misfortune, who can you vent your resentment on?

Now, I don't even know whether to hate or pamper Mortis.

Even if it's just to maintain a moral high ground and vent one's dissatisfaction through disgust, instead of silently swallowing the deaths that only one can remember, Toyokawa Yuu would not let Toyokawa Hatsune die with him.

On the contrary, he wanted her to owe him the most.

Only those who have wronged you can be despised without any burden.

“You have to survive. I have no desire to live in a world without Xiangzi, so I can only ask you to protect everything that Xiangzi and I left behind.”

Gently pulling Toyokawa Hatsune's shoulder, letting her rest her cheek on his shoulder, Toyokawa Yuu tried hard to suppress her resistance. Her voice wasn't entirely gentle, but rather contained a hint of admonition.

I never imagined I'd be so devoted to her.

"Moreover, even if you probably won't be able to leave the Toyokawa family for a long time to come, there are still things you can do—until the very end, Shoko and I never managed to get those people from the branch family to genuinely and respectfully call us 'head of the family'... Could you please take a look at that situation for us?"

"Me... do I deserve it? I'm just... Lord Sadaharu's illegitimate daughter."

Hatsune Toyokawa didn't even dare to call Toyokawa Sadaharu her father in front of Yuu Toyokawa; she lowered her head in self-consciousness.

She knew very well that the root of all the misfortunes that Toyokawa Yuu and Toyokawa Shoko were experiencing was her forbidden identity.

If I hadn't quietly left the island on the night of my adoptive father's funeral, but instead chosen to rot and disappear silently on the island for the rest of my life, perhaps none of this would have happened.

"Don't underestimate yourself like that. No matter what, you are still Old Master Dingzhi's biological daughter."

Reaching out to lift Toyokawa Hatsune's face, Toyokawa Yuu's tone was full of encouragement.

“Legally speaking, he was the adopted son-in-law of that generation, and you are his daughter. Theoretically, you have the right of inheritance second only to Lady Mizuho. You can be more confident.”

All that talk of confidence and legal principles was just nonsense made up by Toyokawa Yuu.

Not to mention that he doesn't understand any of this, even if he did guess correctly, the succession to the head of the Toyokawa family doesn't take this into account.

Otherwise... his place in the succession should have been before Toyokawa Shoko, instead of the current situation.

However, it should be enough to fool Toyokawa Hatsune Miku.

Seeing the increasingly complicated look in the blonde beauty's eyes, Toyokawa Yuu knew that she had taken his words to heart.

"Whatever the reason, now that you're back in this city, you'll be forced to be put on a pedestal by those who split up the family. Whether you really have a chance to seize power, you'll need a pledge of loyalty to lower their guard—that's me."

"Yuyu... my lady... I..."

Toyokawa Hatsune's brain had become a complete mess.

She had never truly been exposed to these power struggles. When Hachiman Kairin exposed her identity a few years ago, she could only hide behind Toyokawa Shoko and Toyokawa Yuu, wallowing in self-pity and enjoying the expressions of distress on their faces because of her.

While feeling guilty, they were also happy that they cared so much about them.

But Toyokawa Hatsune had to admit that Toyokawa Yuu's words had stirred up a long-buried desire deep within her heart.

She longed for her identity to be acknowledged, for her to no longer be someone's adopted daughter, and for her to be free from warnings to stay away from the villa on the mountain...

Now, Toyokawa Yuu has analyzed everything for her and is even prepared to pave the way for her with her life.

Now that she is the only remaining member of the Toyokawa main family in theory, she does indeed have the possibility of possessing those things that have always belonged to her.

As long as... he can produce the ticket to return to the family.

"Why? If it's about protecting everything Xiao Xiang left behind, couldn't Xiao Mu do the same?"

But in the end, Toyokawa Hatsune still retained some rationality. She knew that if she wanted to accomplish what Toyokawa Yuu had instructed her to do, there was someone else who was a better candidate than herself.

"Whether in terms of status or ability, Xiao Mu is better than me; she just doesn't have the surname Feng Chuan. As long as you're willing to go find her, she'll do anything for you..."

“You’re right, Hatsune, but how can I bear to put her in danger? She’s Xiangzi’s other half… Can I entrust Xiao Mu’s safety to you, Hatsune?”

Yuu Toyokawa didn't say anything about how he felt that Hatsune Miku was more important to him than Mutsuka Wakaba and Mortis. He knew that the blonde beauty in front of him wouldn't believe him, and he couldn't bring himself to say it.

So... let's just tell the truth. Toyokawa Yuu knows exactly what kind of person this loyal golden retriever is.

"Let's decide on this. Time is running out. You brought that knife with you, didn't you... Sorry for getting your hands dirty."

With a casual remark, Yuu Toyokawa waved her hand, giving Hatsune Toyokawa no further right to refuse.

Taking a deep breath, Toyokawa Yuu felt her heartbeat become somewhat erratic.

Ultimately, he still harbors a fear of death, especially now, having personally arranged his own death.

"That's true, but it's still a little embarrassing to just stare at each other like this. I'll find something to distract myself. Hatsune, you can do it."

Her voice was already trembling slightly, but Toyokawa Yuu still tried to put Toyokawa Hatsune in a relaxed tone to reassure her not to be nervous.

He took a woman's cell phone out of his pocket. He had forcibly taken it from Yutenji Ruomai when he got off the bus, but he returned the sunglasses and earphones he used to contact Mori Minami to her.

He took out his cell phone, which had been burned in the fire, removed the SIM card hidden inside, and inserted it into the phone that originally belonged to Yutenji Wakana.

Looking at the icon on the screen indicating that the signal connection was complete, Toyokawa Yuu was slightly surprised.

But soon, looking at the dozens of missed call notifications from Wakaba Mutsu and Mortis in her inbox, Toyokawa Yuu smiled again.

Turning around, Yuu Toyokawa dialed a number, but not to Mutsumi Wakaba or Mortis, but to Aine Chihaya.

She had already arranged revenge for Toyokawa Hatsune, and now that she had the chance, Toyokawa Yuu was going to take a small revenge on Nagasaki Sosei, who planned to use her to manipulate Chihaya Aine.

I dialed Chihaya Aine's number, and it was answered quickly. She immediately greeted me.

Although he still spoke in a very calm and indifferent tone, it was not hard to see that the other party was quite concerned about his situation.

A slight warmth filled her heart. Although she hadn't even met Chihaya Aine once since returning this time, at least Toyokawa Yuu was now certain that there was someone who cared about her simply, without trying to satisfy any desires.

"Aine, I'm sorry, your guitar is burned..."

For the first time in history, Yuu Toyokawa interrupted Chihaya Aine's speech, first apologizing for the guitar incident.

The microphone went silent, with only faint breathing sounds remaining, as if waiting for Yuu Toyokawa to finish speaking.

"Also, I probably won't bother you anymore, and you don't need to deal with Soyo for my sake anymore, thank you—"

Before I could finish expressing my gratitude, I only managed to subtly tease Nagasaki Sase during the call.

A sharp blade pierced through Toyokawa Yuu's back and went straight into his heart.

Blood and strength seemed to rush out of the wound in that instant, and the intense pain transmitted through the nerves made Toyokawa Yuu unable to utter a single syllable.

"I'm sorry, Lady Yuu... I'll remember your words..."

He embraced Toyokawa Yuu from behind to stabilize his body, allowing the blade to penetrate deeper.

In Yuu Toyokawa's rapidly fading memory, this was the second time the two had embraced.

Last time it was face to face, completely naked, ambiguous and decadent.

This time, however, it was a direct, brutal attack from behind, painful and bloody.

Although I regret that I didn't finish speaking, this ending is not unacceptable.

For the first time in history, Toyokawa Yuu faced death with a smile of satisfaction rather than stubbornness.

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

After a long time, Toyokawa Hatsune slowly released her embrace. Looking at Toyokawa Yuu, who had long since lost all signs of life, her chest felt especially warm from the splattered blood.

It felt like... being hugged.

Ah... Lord Yu's embrace is so warm.

Warm tears silently slid down the corners of her eyes.

In contrast to the falling tears, a broken smile appeared on Toyokawa Hatsune's lips.