That Half-Finished Drink Was Lethal— What Happened When I Left My Bottle Behind in a 1:4 Male-to-Female World - 18

Chapter 18: That Woman Is Unreasonable—Until Reaching the Quagmire of Pride

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Shizuku Kisaragi’s POV

For some reason, the taste of the instant coffee last night wasn’t as bad as usual. My fingertips felt just a little lighter as I flipped through the Compendium of Laws. Every time I glanced at the folding chair where Yuu-kun had sat, I had a flash back to his face—the way the tip of his nose turned bright red as he cried.

(…That was cheating. It’s just too unfair.)

《A gender ratio of one to four. In this world, the genuine tears of a man carry enough value to move a national budget. Most tears are murky things, layered with calculation and acting. Finding “genuine tears” that overflow from a heart of true kindness and sincerity might be harder than finding a Tsuchinoko.》

And I had been clung to by such an endangered species of a boy with such direct, honest eyes. Even my reason, which I had hardened like stone over six years, was bound to crack at least a little bit. I shook my head, switching my melting brain back into work mode. The plan was set. I had to clear the hurdles to invalidate the legal efficacy of the “contract” that had trapped Yuu-kun.

(Civil Code Article 90, violation of public order and morals. An excessive compensation amount of 300 million and lifelong labor. If there’s a judge out there who would call this “valid,” I’d love to see the look on their face!)

I picked up the receiver and began contacting my former peers from my training days and seniors at major firms. I was going up against the Ootori. I couldn’t have too much backup. However…

“…Wait, what do you mean you’re refusing?”

The response from the first person was an unexpected rejection. My friend, who was supposed to have had the strongest sense of justice during our training days, let out a frightened-sounding voice over the phone.

“Kisaragi, take my advice. Drop this case. …No, forget even the name of that client.”

“Wait a minute. I’m just looking to nullify an unjust contract. The law we studied exists for times like—”

“The law only works when the Ootori aren’t touching it. …Do you even know who the auditing firm for the Ootori Group is? Do you know whose influence reaches the officers of the Bar Association?”

The line went dead with a cold, mechanical beep. The second person, the third person. With every call I made, I felt the sound vanishing from my surroundings.

“Kisaragi-sensei, I’m sorry, but forget about that joint representation talk from yesterday. My firm acts as consultants for the Ootori’s real estate division. If I even touch this, I’m fired.”

“I’m sorry, Shizuku. I don’t want to cut ties with you, but… sorry, I’m really sorry.”

My smartphone was no longer filled with “legal consultations” but with notifications of “declarations of severance.” The abnormalities continued past noon.

“…What? Refusal of delivery?”

Looking at the notice from the post office, I doubted my ears. The notice I had sent to the Ootori Group headquarters had been returned—not as “address unknown” or “refusal to accept,” but for the incomprehensible reason that “the department in question does not exist.”

“That’s impossible. That office existed as of yesterday!”

Feeling a sense of panic, I grabbed the phone to attempt direct negotiation. But no matter how many times I redialed, all I heard from the other end was a mechanical ringing.

“…Haha, what is this? This is worse than a manga.”

《The massive gravity known as Ootori. Like a black hole, it swallowed the six years of social credit a single lawyer had built up in an instant. The badge in her hand had degraded into nothing more than a fragment of metal.》

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Evening. The office intercom rang. It wasn’t Yuu-kun. The rhythm was colder, more precise—like a machine. The moment the door opened, the smell of burnt coffee in the office was overpowered by the scent of expensive perfume.

“Good evening, Shizuku Kisaragi-sensei. …You look quite exhausted.”

Standing there was a woman clad in a perfectly tailored secretary’s suit. Behind her glasses sat indigo eyes that allowed no emotion through. She must be Reika Ootori’s right hand.

Chihiro Kujo.

“…What business does an Ootori covert agent have in a dump like this?”

Under the desk, I used my other hand to pin down my trembling right one. Kujo walked with elegant steps and stood before my battered desk. What she looked down at was not my face, but my “fingertips.”

“How pitiful. …Fingers deformed from gripping a pen too hard. The crystallization of six lonely years, unacknowledged by anyone, yet still clinging to the illusion called the Law.”

My heart froze. How did she know about my past?

“My lady highly evaluates those ‘useless efforts’ of yours.”

Kujo casually held out a document. It was different from the cursed contract Yuu-kun had shown me last night. It was a proposal made of pure white, high-grade Japanese paper.

“Withdraw from the contract with Yuu Yuuki. …If you do, the Ootori will welcome you as an exclusive consultant. Status, fame, and rewards you couldn’t earn in a lifetime. …The Ootori alone will fairly evaluate the value built up by those ugly fingertips of yours.”

My throat hitched. I had wanted this for so long.

(To my parents who laughed that “a woman just needs charm.” To the men in the legal world who scoffed at me as a “youngster.” I wanted to prove my effort, my ability. That ticket was right here in front of me…!)

“…And if I refuse?”

At my raspy voice, Kujo smiled. A smile like a merciful Holy Mother, or perhaps a cold-blooded Reaper.

“By the end of this month, the lease for this office will be terminated. Your bank accounts will be frozen, and the Bar Association will begin preparations for a disciplinary request. …You will never be able to speak of the law again. I will turn the very existence of Shizuku Kisaragi into ash.”

《An Ootori “Purge.” It is not physical violence, but a social “erasure of existence.” Those who defy their will are stripped of even the right to stand in court and are processed as if they had never existed in the world to begin with.》

Outside the office window, the sun had set, and the city began to give off a glow fueled by Ootori capital.

“Now, make your choice. …Will you accept the young lady’s mercy and ascend to a place where the light shines? Or will you sink into the mire yourself for the sake of a single ‘bad debt’ like that?”

My head throbbed as if it would split open. If I became an Ootori consultant, maybe I could ease the pressure on Yuu-kun. …That sweet excuse crossed my mind. But that would be the death of the “me up until now.”

(The fingertips Yuu-kun looked at while crying yesterday. His trembling voice that called me “cool.” …If I succumb to the Ootori here, with what kind of face could I ever meet that boy who affirmed me for the first time?)

However, Kujo’s eyes blocked all my paths of escape.

“…I will wait until tomorrow for your answer. Is that understood? However, my lady is in a hurry. If Yuu Yuuki does not report to the villa tomorrow morning, I will physically erase your ‘life’.”

In the office after Kujo left, only silence and the smell of burnt coffee remained. I stood alone in the pitch-black room. Career, badge, social status. The “Justice” I was trying to protect by gambling my everything was now about to be crushed by a giant foot named Ootori.

“Yuu-kun…”

(The boy who cried and thanked me for being saved. At that moment, I felt that all my hard work had truly been worth it. …Can I betray that warmth?)

The Compendium of Laws on the desk now looked like nothing more than a cold, heavy mass of paper. I gripped the “pure white proposal” the Ootori had offered with trembling fingers.

I was stuck in a desperate situation. Would I betray his tears? Or…

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