Anastasia was surprisingly free for the day. She'd decided, well, more like been coerced, into taking a day off from the company. Kenji had suggested it, insisting she needed a "her-day" and that he would take care of everything. They'd argued about it all throughout yesterday night and even this morning before that bastard had cheated and brought in his secret weapon.
She pouted as she remembered him holding their little Ren up, the young boy giving her such devastating puppy dog eyes. She simply couldn't say no to those chubby cheeks of her littlest one. That had been completely unfair. The man knew exactly how to dismantle her CEO facade, and he used their child to do it, leveraging the power of parental devotion.
So now here she was, reclining in a warm bath, her hair pinned up, and the faint scent of rose oil filling the air. The porcelain tub was deep, the water perfectly warm, and she let the tension melt from her shoulders.
She cracked her neck, the small joint popping a release of months of stress, then sank deeper into the comforting silence, more relaxed than she'd been in months, than even their little trip to Kyoto.
The quality of the silence in the house, a rare commodity in this house, was a luxury she allowed herself to savor. 'Finally, some peace from all that work, ' she thought, smiling.
If this had been the old days, nothing on this earth would have convinced her to leave her company, her entire life's work and livelihood, to her husband. The thought of losing the enterprise she had built from the ground up would have been unbearable.
But these past months had shown that he was not just capable of maintaining the company, he was capable of brutality when defending it. And, she bit her lower lip, he was vicious, too.
She couldn't help but remember one specific instance when he came to the office to "help out." The Borghese Group, notorious corporate raiders, had tried a hostile takeover of one of their most profitable subsidiaries. Kenji had walked into the negotiation room and walked out twenty minutes later with the competitor's main asset signed over to her company.
The rival CEO was left pale, shaking, and publicly humiliated. God, the way he tore through people when he was in charge was just… "Hmph," she let out a quiet, guilty hum. She would forever deny that seeing him bring one of the men to tears had turned her on, no matter the sly looks he gave her afterwards.
She knew she didn't have to worry about the company. But what should she do? When was the last time she just had a day for herself? She frowned, it was too long ago to remember, then smiled. Well, she could just use the day to laze around, watch a few trashy reality shows, and enjoy the peace.
She got out of the bath, drying herself and wrapping herself in one of Kenji's oversized shirts, the fabric smelling faintly of his aftershave.
The kids were already at school, and Kenji was at the office. She giggled a little at that. She had left an endless mountain of paperwork on her desk, the kind that popped up unexpectedly, international shipping contracts, corporate tax filings, three separate audits, and a new stack of South American supply chain compliance forms.
She had deliberately left it, planning to tackle it today, but since Kenji had graciously decided to take care of things, who was she to deny him the joy of endless reports and contracts? She giggled again, pouring herself a glass of crisp white wine as she leaned back onto the couch, sighing in perfect content.
Meanwhile, at said office.
Kenji was dying. He stared at the pile of papers that towered on the desk, a silent, mocking monument.
He had tried using the System. He had cast [observe] on the stack, which just returned: [Paperwork: Level 9999 – Unsolvable by Conventional Means. Warning: Extended exposure may result in the debuff: Corporate slave].
He even tried using [Gamer's Mind] and high intelligence to process the data faster, but the sheer volume of jargon, legal loopholes, and required signatures made his brain hurt more than any psychic attack.
His Ultimate Class powers, designed to annihilate gods and shift dimensions, were completely useless against the Logistical Demon of tax law. He was quickly starting to understand that nothing short of omniscience or a degree in international finance would save him from this logistical hell.
He was grinding through them, his brow furrowed in concentration, his Nen aura and mana barely containing his frustration, when the door opened and Saya, his wife's assistant, came in carrying more paperwork, a fresh stack of European merger documents in triplicate. She dropped it on the desk with a heavy, deliberate thud, a faint, undeniable smirk playing on her lips.
He felt like his soul had just left his body, spiraling away into the Multiverse. "You know, Saya," he muttered, his voice muffled against the desk, "you seem to be enjoying this way too much."
Saya adjusted her glasses, the smirk widening into a confident, professional smile that screamed superiority. "Mr. Takahashi, your wife handles this, plus three executive meetings, every day before noon, while also raising three children. I assure you, this is merely a light afternoon."
She emphasized the word 'light' just to twist the knife further. Kenji knew she was right, and it only added to his misery. Was this revenge for all those times "Kenji" had unknowingly annoyed her? If so, then it was effective.
His head hit the desk with a defeated thud. "This is worse than fighting a high-tier boss. At least they give you the satisfaction of hitting back and getting EXP."
Anastasia spent most of the day just lazing around and unwinding. Around late in the afternoon, feeling slightly peckish, she decided to head out to buy some snacks and groceries.
She was picking out some fresh produce when she heard someone call out to her. "Excuse me, but are you not Kenji's wife?" the man asked her.
She was instantly cautious. The man was impeccably dressed in a designer suit, with kind, intelligent eyes, and seemed to have a calming aura that made everyone around him feel at ease.
He looked completely harmless, yet the air around him had this weird vibe that made her want to not be in his presence.
"Yes, I am. Sorry, but who are you?" she asked him, her CEO mode coming out, helping her to maintain composure, despite wanting to get away from him after all. It wasn't every day a stranger came out acting familiar with you.
"Sorry, I'm a friend of Kenji's," the man said, offering a calm, friendly smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. His voice was soothing, carrying an almost hypnotic suggestion to her ears. "I've been meaning to talk with him, but haven't been able to get a hold of him. Do you know where he is?"
She didn't know why, but she was feeling a bit light-headed. Her thoughts, usually laser-focused, were starting to drift toward him, feeling strangely obliging. "My husband is busy at work at the moment," she told him, a frown creasing her brow. Her survival instincts were screaming, Leave now, go home.
"That's a shame, I was hoping to meet him," the man said sadly, his voice resonating deep in her chest. And before she could stop herself, her mouth opened and she heard her own voice say, "Why don't you accompany me and wait for him back home?"
Why did she say that? Her mind felt hazy, like a thick fog was obstructing her thoughts, and she felt her consciousness, trying to push the fog away, screaming a warning she couldn't translate into action.
She was so busy struggling with the dizziness and the strange, overriding urge to please the stranger that she didn't even realize when she had reached her own home and was ushering the stranger inside, her keys clicking in the lock.
"So, how do you know Kenji? He hasn't mentioned someone like you before," she began as he looked around the house. She managed to force the question out, a small victory against the mental haze.
The man turned to her, momentarily ceasing his smile, like he wasn't expecting her to have started a conversation with him. His eyes didn't look at her face, they roamed around her body with hidden lust and the room with rapid calculation.
She could sense his gaze and his inspection of her home. She had a strong feeling that it wasn't just lust that she could see in his gaze, he was looking at her like some sort of lab rat and mentally cataloging everything he learnt.
Then he smiled again and answered.
"Oh, this is a lovely home you have," he said, completely ignoring her question while simultaneously complimenting her home.
'He didn't answer, ' she thought, He hasn't told me his name or how he knows Kenji. She opened her mouth to ask his name and who he was, but instead she heard, "Thank you, it was something a friend of mine had helped with."
Her words weren't her own, and it felt like she was navigating through mist while half blind and still asleep. It was so strange, like she was watching everything and hearing everything but could barely acknowledge it even as it was there in her front..
Her anxiety spiked as he just kept watching her. When she saw him starting to shift and lean forward towards her, her instincts were screaming at her to run when the front door opened.
"Arrrgggg, I don't know how you can do this all day, love, it's exhausting," Kenji groaned as he walked in, loosening his tie, the sound of his voice normal, yet cutting through the charged atmosphere like a blade.
He was so tired, he didn't understand how his wifey could do this every day and not have gone mad long ago.
His Senses immediately registered a powerful foreign magical signature inside his home, and He stopped dead.
He looked at the man, then at his wife's dazed, glassy eyes, and then a torrent of pure, unfiltered fury rose from the depths of his heart, threatening to burst out of him and kill everything and everyone around him.
His initial impulse was immediate annihilation. His head snapped back to the man, his expression instantly murderous, before he paused, exhaled a barely audible breath, and violently controlled his expression, forcing a mask of calm.
He walked over to his wife, his absolute focus, ignoring the man completely, treating him like an insect. He leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek, her eyes clearing up as his golden eyes silently assessed her condition.
"Hey, honey. Sorry, I'm late. Why don't you go and check up on Ren? I just picked him up from school, and he needs some help. Go ahead, love."
The subtle magic he inserted into the kiss to dispel what she was under. She blinked rapidly, the fog clearing from her eyes. She smiled faintly, and she rose up before quickly leaving the room without a word, heading upstairs to check on their son.
Silence filled the room.
The other man, still sitting, smirked faintly, folding his hands on his knee. He had observed the subtle magical counter-attack, clearly amused by the display of domestic affection and Kenji's competence in doing so. "Hello, I'm—"
"I know who you are," Kenji interrupted, his voice dropping to a cold, flat tone that promised retribution. His eyes were now glowing gold. Who did this bastard think he was to barge into his home, attempt to control his wife, and he was sure that the man would have done more if Kenji had not arrived early.
He took a single, slow step forward. He had not had beef with this man or his faction before, but now...now he swore to himself that if a single one of his kind ran into him, he'd kill them with no mercy.
Golden eyes glinted with lethal warning.
"Why are you here, Azazel?"
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