Vol 2 Chapter 13【Vol 2 – Lies and Truth】

She’d given her name without any hesitation.

“Oh. I’m Hasegawa—”

“I didn’t ask.”

“Right. Sorry…”

He’d barely started recovering some confidence after she shared her name, and she’d already knocked it back down. He sat there staring at her, expression probably readable on his face, because she caught herself and backpedaled with what looked like genuine discomfort.

“Hehe — that was actually a joke. So, full name?”

“Hasegawa Ryo.”

The food arrived at the same moment. Whether she heard him or not, she reached for the ramen without acknowledging it. Maybe she’d just been asking to ask. She picked up her chopsticks. She stared into the bowl for a moment, then mirrored him — waiting until he moved first before lifting her own chopsticks.

He started eating. She started eating. What was that about?

After the first bite, though, she stopped mirroring him entirely and just ate. The noodles disappeared fast — the kind of pace that came from not having eaten in a while. Before he’d gotten halfway through his bowl, he could see the bottom of hers.

He wasn’t slow either. They finished at almost the same time.

“Done?”

“Yes. Thank you for the meal.”

She said it a little stiffly, then pulled out the money he’d given her and moved to pay. He got there first, pushed past her, and put ¥1,400 on the counter on the way out.

“I can pay for my own food. You already gave me money…”

“You enjoyed it. That’s enough.”

“Mmm…”

“Ready to call it a night?”

“You’re really just going home like that? We could still—”

Again with this. He pressed one finger to his lips and gave her a look. Then he turned and walked off down the street, one hand raised in what he hoped read as effortlessly cool.

Between the love hotel and dinner — ¥28,400 gone. He didn’t feel particularly bad about it. Compared to item prices, it barely registered. He told himself to forget about her.

She wasn’t a target he could pursue right now anyway. Getting tangled up in whatever trap she represented wasn’t worth it. Forgetting her was the smarter call.

Back home, in the shower, he made a deliberate effort to push her out of his head by thinking through his approach to Akamine Miyuki instead.

Not that there was much to think through, actually. He had a business card with a party contact number right in his pocket. He spread the wallet open on his bed and pulled out all the cards.

OO Group Representative Director Washino Towa

OO Group Executive Managing Director Kazahara Yasumasa

OO Entertainment Agency President Ariga Masaya

Aside from the party inquiry card, they were ordinary business cards. Probably party members. Laid out in a row, they were all high-status names.

The one that mattered, though, was this:

Interested in joining our party? Inquiries: 080-1111-2222

He picked up his phone. Might as well call. No point hesitating. He took a breath, punched in the number, and hit dial. Someone answered almost immediately.

First phone call that had connected since entering this world. As expected — numbers obtained inside the game worked fine.

“Hello?”

A woman’s voice. Was it Akamine Miyuki herself?

“Hello — I received a business card from someone I know, and I’m calling about joining.”

“May I ask who referred you? Without a referrer, joining is a bit difficult.”

What was complicated about this? He hesitated — then his eyes landed on the business cards spread across the bed.

“I received the card from Ariga-san.”

He’d get caught eventually, but he’d worry about that later. He grabbed a card at random and committed the name to memory. Silence on the other end. The reply came about a minute later.

“My name is Kimoto Ririsa — I handle inquiries. Ariga-san is confirmed as one of our members, so… we’ll need to conduct a brief interview before proceeding. Could you come in to meet with us? Please bring the card you received from Ariga-san.”

The woman who called herself Kimoto gave him a time and place, then asked for his personal details. He gave his real name without thinking. She confirmed and hung up.

Kimoto. Not Akamine Miyuki. He probably shouldn’t have expected the organizer to be taking cold calls.

He opened his eyes, and it was morning.

He’d fallen asleep without noticing. His mind had been spinning with too many things at once, and somewhere in the middle of it all, he’d gone under. Light was cutting through the gap in the curtains. He shot upright and grabbed his phone. The appointment was at 10 AM. He had one hour.

He rushed to wash his face and pulled out his suit — the one he’d only worn three times.

Social party. And an interview.

Whatever this was, it almost certainly cost money to get through the door. He dug out his bankbook. ATMs had withdrawal limits on large amounts, so he’d need to take it to a branch.

I don’t have their kind of social standing. But I have money. Maybe that’s the angle.

He got himself together, dressed properly, and took the bus to the subway. From there, he made his way to the café they’d agreed on, arriving with five minutes to spare. The place was nearly empty — it was early—just one other customer. A woman, back turned.

Had to be her.

He assumed it was Kimoto from the call and walked over. Then he saw her face.

It was Akamine Miyuki.

She’d come herself. Maybe Kimoto was just the phone handler, and Miyuki handled interviews directly — either way, Ryo decided this was a lucky break and spoke up.

“Good morning. Are you the one conducting the membership interview?”

“Are you Hasegawa-san?”

“Yes.”

His real name, given over the phone without thinking, had reached her straight away. She gestured at the seat across from her. He nodded, pulled out the chair, and sat.

The moment he did, she held out her hand.

“First — may I see the card?”

No introduction. No greeting. Just a command. He swallowed the irritation — he wasn’t in a position to push back — and produced two cards from his pocket: the one with Ariga’s name on it, and the party inquiry card. She turned them over, scrutinizing both sides, checking for forgeries, by the look of it.

“The cards are genuine. However — when I contacted Ariga-san yesterday, he said he had no idea who you were. Could you explain that?”

He swallowed.

Of course, she’d checked. He’d been naïve. Her eyes sharpened. Something about that expression — so cold coming from such a delicate face.

All in, then.

“I’d heard about this gathering and wanted very much to join, so I had someone put me in contact and arrange a referral — the details of that, I’m not in a position to share. But I’m running my own operation outside the law, so I need connections and access to women. Money is what I have so that I won’t be a liability to this group. And that card is genuine. You only give those to people you trust, don’t you? I was brought to Ariga-san by someone he trusts.”

She listened. A slight furrow appeared between her brows — the look of someone turning something over carefully in their head.