Ryohei was mentally cataloging his social circle.
He had a sister in Nagano whom he hadn't spoken to in three months.
His parents were dead.
At least I don't have to worry about parents noticing I've changed, he thought.
Suddenly— "Hikigaya Ryohei!!! STOP RIGHT THERE!"
He turned.
A woman stood there, trembling, pale, and looking like she hadn't slept or washed in days. "And you are?" Ryohei asked tentatively.
"What?! Are you so afraid I'll make trouble for your precious Kazusa that you're pretending not to know me?! Can you even tolerate your wife going out to find other men? You're pathetic!!"
The woman was spitting venom.
Ryohei was baffled for a second, but her mention of Kazusa and her Discarded Wife aura made her identity clear.
The victim from this morning's call?
Setsuna?
Great.
Trouble.
He looked her over. She was naturally beautiful, with willow-thin brows and deep, melancholic eyes, but she looked like a Loser Heroine who had been run over by a truck.
"Answer me! Kazusa wasn't with you last night, was she?! Neither was my husband! Do you understand what that means? How can you stand this?!"
Setsuna, on the verge of a breakdown, swung her handbag at him. Ryohei stood there, unsure of how to respond. Should he tell her he already got the divorce? Or that even if he hadn't, he wouldn't want that woman back anyway?
Divorce! The sooner, the better for one's peace of mind!
Besides, if you count it out, it's already been a month since the papers were signed.
That "dog couple," if they move fast enough and lack enough shame, might even have a baby on the way by now. A marriage that requires you to trade your dignity to save it isn't worth having.
"Um... Mrs. Kitahara, I've actually already divorced Kazusa Touma."
Ryohei's hand shot out, catching the soft, weak wrist of the hysterical woman before she could strike him again.
He spoke with an air of "Zen" detachment.
To Setsuna, it felt surreal. Ryohei was as calm as if he were stating a fact about someone else's life.
"So, whatever she does now has nothing to do with me. You're looking for the wrong person."
"Di... di... divorced!" Setsuna's brain felt like it had exploded.
The news was too much to process. After a moment of blank shock, her mind began to race like she was on a stimulant.
"If Kazusa is divorced... she's free. Doesn't that mean she and Haruki can be together without any restraints?" Setsuna began to mutter to herself. Ryohei felt a bit awkward; the woman's brain was suddenly working a bit too well.
"Basically," Ryohei nodded irresponsibly, viewing the mess from his outsider's perspective.
Setsuna immediately realized the next step: Would Haruki ask her for a divorce next? They had no children to bind them together. Then again, looking at Ryohei, even having children wasn't a guarantee of safety.
"HOW COULD YOU DIVORCE HER?!"
"Kazusa was your wife!"
"You're just pushing her onto someone else?!"
"Didn't you love her more than anything? Go win her back!!"
"What about your children?!!"
"If Kazusa is divorced, what am I supposed to do?! I'm finished!"
Setsuna stood stunned for a few seconds. Then, looking at Ryohei's detached, transcendent aura, she snapped.
Ignoring her stomach cramps, she lunged at him like a feral cat, her small fists raining down on him. Once an ethereal, elegant lady, she was now screaming and crying like a common street brawler, her hair a tangled mess.
Passersby stared, assuming Ryohei was some scoundrel abandoning his wife.
Given their ages, most people would have believed they were a married couple.