That Half-Finished Drink Was Lethal— What Happened When I Left My Bottle Behind in a 1:4 Male-to-Female World - 14

Chapter 14: That Debt Is Lethal—A Stage for an Orchestrated Tragedy

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The atmosphere of the cafe “Les Ailes” had completely changed overnight. There was a makeover that lasted until late the other night. Due to a fervent proposal from the trainee, Reika-san, or rather, an overwhelming pressure that permitted no refusal, the interior had been transformed into a “concept lounge of the highest order, condensing the aesthetics of the Otori Group.”

(This is incredible. Is this really the cafe where I work part-time? Rather than a place to sit and drink coffee, it looks like a VIP room in an art museum.)

Looking up at the special exhibition space set up in the center of the shop, I let out a dry laugh in spite of myself. There was a polished marble pedestal. Sitting atop it was a celadon vase with a deep hue that instinctively signaled even to an amateur’s eye as “something you must never touch for as long as you live.”

“Yuuki-kun, don’t lose your footing now. I’m told it’s a hidden treasure of the Otori family sent directly from the main office. Its market value… apparently doesn’t fall below 300 million yen. Let’s put up a fence or something later. It’s honestly terrifying as it is now.”

The manager added in a trembling voice. Standing beside her was a woman claiming to be a public relations officer for the Otori Group, standing with the demeanor of a precision instrument.

“I am Chihiro Kujo, the exclusive secretary to Reika Ootori-sama of the Otori Group. Today, by order of my master, I have come to oversee the transfer and inspection of the exhibit.”

《Chihiro Kujo. A powerful figure known as the ‘Shadow’ of the Otori Group. She is a cold-blooded enforcer who will eliminate any obstacle, regardless of legal or social means, in order to carry out Reika’s will.》

Peering through silver-rimmed frames were deep indigo eyes that seemed to see through everything. Her jet-black bob, trimmed at ear-level, framed her white skin without a single stray hair. Even over the tight secretary suit that traced the lines of her body, her movements possessed a strength akin to that of a martial artist. The woman who introduced herself as Kujo glanced at me from behind her glasses.

“…You must be Yuu Yuuki-sama. You have a face that looks as soft-hearted as the rumors say… no, I mean, you have a sincere countenance. Do your best to ensure you do not damage this ‘pride’ of the Otori family.”

(Eh, what’s with that loaded way of speaking? …Wait, why does she know my name?)

After speaking in a polite tone stripped of all emotion, she moved soundlessly to a corner of the shop.

“…She’s kind of a scary person, isn’t she? Right, Reika-san?”

I spoke to Reika-san, who was organizing menus nearby. She was wearing a black wig and glasses, but her back was straighter than usual.

“That is only natural. Kujo-san is strict, but that is only because she loves the Otori brand that much. …More importantly, Yuu-sama, a customer has arrived over there. Please go and guide them quickly.”

(Is she an acquaintance of Kujo-san? And ‘Yuu-sama’? Did she just casually add an honorific to my name?)

“Come to think of it, that ‘Reika Ootori’ Kujo-san mentioned earlier…She has the same name as yours, Reika-san.”

At that moment, Reika-san’s shoulders gave a violent twitch. After a moment of silence, she pushed up her glasses, her cheeks flushing red and her eyes sparkling.

“Yes, that is correct! Reika Ootori-sama is my one and only idol! She is so precious that I even changed my name on the family register to ‘Reika,’ just like her!”

(…Uh, ah, I see. Her level of fandom has transcended dimensions. It’s a bit off-putting, but I guess she’s just that devoted.)

“But the real Reika Ootori-sama seems pretty scary based on Kujo-san. Isn’t it a lot of pressure having the same name as her?”

“(Snap) …S-She is not scary at all! She is a person who loves discipline and is purer than anyone else! Yuu-sama, please refrain from making such irreverent remarks!”

“But you know, putting a 300 million yen vase in a cafe… that lady must have a pretty ‘warped sense of reality’ too. She’s probably a cold-blooded ruler who enjoys watching commoners scramble from her high horse—wait, maybe that’s going too far.”

“(Snap… Cra-crack!) …W-Warped…?! Cold-blooded…?! Please be quiet! She… Reika-sama is just a little faithful to her own convictions! That is an act of supreme ‘benevolence’!!”

(She’s getting way too heated. Fans are scary.)

“But I think there’s some kind of intention behind it.”

Reika-san’s movements came to a dead stop.

“Since she’s the successor to the Ootori Group, she probably isn’t someone who acts without thinking. Maybe placing this vase here was Reika-sama’s way of being considerate, so that we employees could refine our sensibilities by coming into contact with ‘true beauty.'”

“I-I see! Please, do go on!”

“Well, I guess it means she’s a person with a very noble heart who believes in us and has high expectations for us. Thinking about it that way makes me feel like I should straighten my posture too.”

The air around her, which should have been bristling with anger, dissipated like mist clearing away. In its place, her lily-white cheeks gradually stained crimson, like an apple bathed in the evening sun.

“Wait, there’s no way that’s it. Reika-san? What’s wrong? Your face is bright red.”

“I-It is nothing! …H-Humph, so you have finally realized Reika-sama’s noble intentions! It is only natural. She is… she is, in all the world, the one who… you… no, it is nothing at all!!”

Reika-san began to clean with intense, mechanical movements like a broken toy. Watching the scene from a short distance away, Chihiro Kujo quietly pushed up her glasses. Behind the lenses, she was privately reflecting on her master’s state of mind.

(…How pitiful, Reika-sama. To be so flushed just from a little bit of praise. …But I wonder how long it has been since I saw Reika-sama looking so happy. I’m just a little bit envious.)

It was then… An elderly woman with unsteady footsteps pushed open the shop door. The tragedy was staged both abruptly and beautifully. The old woman was wandering unsteadily around the exhibition space. Then, her cane caught on the corner of the pedestal, and she lost her balance spectacularly.

“Oh, oh my, whoops…!”

The old woman’s body began to fall toward the displayed celadon vase. In that instant, time in the shop stopped.

“Watch out!!”

I threw aside the tray I was holding and lunged off the floor. If I pushed the old woman away, she might get hurt. On the other hand, if that expensive vase ended up underneath her… In an instant, I wedged my body between the old woman and the pedestal. I pulled her into my arms and instead slammed my back hard against the display stand.

CRASH!!!

Along with a dull impact, the sound of something shattering echoed behind me. Fragments of celadon were scattered all over the floor. The 300 million yen vase had been crushed to pieces, caught between my back and the stand.

“Ah… ah… it’s… it’s my fault… something so expensive…”

The old woman collapsed in tears on the spot. Enduring the sharp pain in my back, I gently patted her shoulder.

“It’s okay. Are you hurt, ma’am? Good. I bumped into it because I was being careless, so please don’t worry. I broke it, so you haven’t done anything wrong.”

I forced the best smile I could to reassure her.

(…300 million. 300 million, huh? …Haha, I can’t even laugh. But surely there’s insurance or something, right?)

Watching the scene, Reika-san’s expression showed an indescribable distortion.

“…What a magnificent display of self-sacrifice.”

A low, ice-cold voice echoed. Standing beside me before I realized it was Chihiro Kujo. She stared at the wreckage with inorganic eyes, then, with a cold movement of her hand, pulled out a document.

“Yuu Yuuki-sama. I have clearly confirmed with my own eyes that you shielded the elderly woman and destroyed this item as your own fault. …Manager, please state the value of this vase once more.”

“Three… three hundred million yen…! It’s a supreme treasure that the Otori family has protected for a thousand years…!”

“Three… hundred…?”

(Three hundred. 300 million. Let’s see, a market value of 300 million. My hourly wage is a little over a thousand yen. One thousand yen an hour. Ten thousand for ten hours. One hundred thousand for a hundred hours. One million for a thousand hours. Ten thousand, a hundred million… eh? How many tens of thousands of hours do I have to work? …A lifetime? No, I wouldn’t reach it even in a lifetime. …Ah, I’m finished.)

“Is there insurance or cov—”

“There is none.”

My thoughts turned pure white. 300 million. The weight of that number struck me with a pressure that felt like it would crush my heart. Cold sweat ran down my back, and I couldn’t stop my knees from shaking. Then, Reika-san came rushing over in a panic.

“Oh my! How pitiful…! Kujo-san, is there not some ‘other form’ of repayment method?”

“…Let me see. Reika Ootori-sama is a person who values ‘sincerity.’ …Yuuki-sama. If you are willing to dedicate your ‘entire life’ from here on to the Ootori family, I suppose it would be acceptable to… grant a moratorium on this payment.”

“…My entire life…?”

《The Ootori family’s ‘Service for Life.’ It meant effectively losing one’s freedom, with everything from food, clothing, and shelter to every single action placed under the management of the Ootori family. It was a legal transfer of ‘ownership’ under the guise of salvation.》

I was presented with an ultimate choice: a financial repayment I could never possibly afford, or surrendering my freedom as a human being. I glanced at the old woman trembling beside me. If I testified here that “it was because I protected the old woman,” my life might be saved. But…

(…………I can’t do that. I feel like if I did that, I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself.)

The back of my throat was bone-dry. Desperately pressing down my shaking right hand with the other, I looked Kujo in the eye.

“…I understand. …I was the one who decided to save this person. I will accept the consequences.”

(Haah, are you serious… I won’t die, so I guess it’s a blessing in disguise… But even I didn’t think it’d go this far…)

“If I can pay it back with this body… I’ll accept. …No, please let me pay it back.”

It felt like signing a one-way ticket to hell. Gripping the pen with trembling fingertips, I carved my name into the contract.

In that moment… Was it relief, or had I misseen out of fear? In the corner of my vision, I thought I saw the area behind Reika-san’s glasses flash sharply as they reflected the setting sun.

A terribly feverish gaze unlike anything I had ever seen before. Seeing those eyes staring fixedly at me as I trembled in despair, I felt an unexplainable chill for just a moment.

…But she immediately returned to her usual troubled face and gently placed a hand on my shoulder.

“…It will be alright, Yuu-sama. I will also do my best… my absolute best, to ‘take care’ of you.”

It must have been my imagination that the ring of those words sounded unusually bright. Even though we had just entered into a heavy contract, the heat radiating from her fingertips was surprisingly high.

(…Take care of me, huh. …I guess she means she’ll cover the shifts I’ll be missing… I’m sorry, Reika-san.)

I could only stare blankly at the contract to hell that had been held out to me. The evening sun shining through the window brightly illuminated my despair and this room where something had gone decisively wrong.

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