Nimi was having a panic attack, but that didn't stop her from unmasking the criminal who had just destroyed her life.
He had pale skin with faint scars running across his knuckles, details she had noticed earlier while tying him up. His jet‑black, messy hair fell over his forehead as he lay unconscious, partly blocking his vision.
For ten whole minutes, Nimi had been pacing back and forth, her phone clutched in one hand, her thumb pressed hard between her teeth. On the screen, her mother's contact sat highlighted, glowing like a warning.
She should probably call them and tell them everything. Tell them that they were all going to die. She thought.
Why her? Why now? Why did the jade break in her hands? Others in her family had kept it safe—mothers, fathers, grandparents—and nothing had ever happened to it. But the moment it got to her, the one living alone, childless, trying her best to just exist… it shattered. Just why her?
This had to be a joke. A cruel one.
Nimi dropped her phone on the couch and walked into her wrecked kitchen. She grabbed a cup, filled it with water, and returned to the living room. Without hesitation, she splashed it onto the robber's face.
He gasped, sucking in a sharp breath.
"I know you've been awake for a while," Nimi said, her voice tight, arms folded across her chest.
The robber tried to wipe his face, then realized his wrists were tied together, and so were his legs.
"How did you know?" he asked, eyes darting up to study her.
"Your face kept twitching from the hit to your head," she replied. "Don't think I was too distracted to notice."
Nimi stepped closer, her expression hardening. "You've got a lot of explaining to do."
"Well, can I at least have a glass of water and be let go?" the robber asked, almost hopeful.
"No," Nimi answered flatly.
He blinked. "When are the police getting here, then?"
"Enough," Nimi snapped, frustration cracking through her voice. "How did you get in here, and who sent you?"
"Well," he drawled, "I want some water. And until then, I'm not answering."
Nimi stared at him, incredulous. "I don't think you understand your situation at all. You don't have a choice here."
Her voice trembled, not with fear, but with the weight of everything that had just happened. "You and your friends just put me in the biggest trouble of my entire life, so I'm not playing nice. If you don't start talking, I swear I will pick up whatever weapon I find and hit you with it until you're begging. And I'll tell the cops I did it in self‑defense."
Nimi exhaled heavily afterwards.
The robber raised a brow. "You seem stressed. Maybe you need the glass of water."
Nimi scoffed, turned on her heel, and walked into the kitchen. When she returned, there was a knife in her hand.
His bravado vanished. "Wait, what are you doing?"
"Start talking," Nimi warned, raising the blade, "or I'll kill you."
"You can't do that, that's murder!" he yelped, voice thin with fear.
"Still not an answer!" Nimi shouted as she moved closer.
"Ryuji!" the robber blurted, scooting back as far as the ropes allowed. "Ryuji sent us!"
"Keep talking," Nimi said, her grip tightening on the knife.
"He—he was angry. About something you did to him," the robber stammered. His breath was uneven, his dark eyes darting wildly, calculating his odds. "He paid us to break into your house. Told us to trash it, steal whatever we could. He even gave us your door code. He said you'd be home late and we'd have time to finish the job and leave, but you came back early."
Nimi's stomach twisted. Ryuji. Again.
Nimi's shoulders slumped, and the knife slipped from her fingers, clattering onto the floor. She let out a long, exhausted sigh and walked over to the couch. The moment she sat down, her head dropped into her hands. It didn't take long for the tears to fall.
She was tired. Bone-deep tired. And in that fragile, terrifying moment, the thought of simply not existing anymore felt like a twisted kind of peace.
"Uh… are you crying?" the robber asked, stunned.
"Shut up!" Nimi snapped, lifting her head to glare at him.
"S-sorry," he muttered quickly, falling silent.
Nimi cried until her body felt too drained to produce another tear. Finally, she wiped her face with shaky hands. "You didn't even bother to ask him what I supposedly did wrong to him," she said quietly, her voice hoarse.
"No questions asked," the robber replied. "That's our policy. And… he offered a good amount."
Nimi laughed—a broken, humorless sound. "He tried to film me naked without my consent," she said, the truth spilling out like poison. "He was going to sell the videos. But I caught him."
The words landed heavy in the room.
The robber's eyes widened in shock. He didn't say anything. Couldn't, really.
And Nimi broke down again, the tears returning harder than before.
"I'm… I'm sorry," he said after a moment of stunned silence.
Nimi wiped her tears with the back of her hand. "I filed a restraining order against him. He couldn't do this himself, so he sent you all. I don't even know how he got my door code because I changed it. I left work early because my eyes were blurring and I thought I'd come home to some peace and quiet, but you all just ruined my life."
"If it's about the broken furniture and stuff, I'll find a way to fix it now that I know the truth. I'm so sorry for everything," the robber said.
"It's not about the damages!" Nimi yelled, pushing herself to her feet.
The robber saw the urgency, the hesitation, and the pain in her eyes. "Then what is it about? Tell me?"
Nimi almost blurted it out but stopped herself, her fingers sliding through her straight black hair as more tears filled her eyes.
"What is it? Tell me. I promise I'll help you," the robber pleaded.
"You can't help me," Nimi whispered as she stared at him, tears running down her face.
"We won't know unless you tell me," he said softly.
Nimi sniffed and slowly sat down. She hesitated, wondering what the worst outcome could be, then finally decided to say it aloud. "I am cursed. My family is cursed."
"Cursed?" the robber asked, confused.
Nimi nodded, took a deep breath and began to speak. "I belong to a bloodline marked by an ancient curse. Long, long ago, one of my ancestors insulted a goddess who had taken human form, and the goddess, angered by the cruelty, condemned every generation to be haunted by misfortune, suffering tragic accidents and sometimes early death.
For centuries, my family lived under that shadow until fate intervened.
Many generations later, my great-great-great grandmother showed unexpected kindness to a wandering stranger, not knowing the woman was actually a lower-ranking goddess disguised as a mortal. Moved by her sincerity, the goddess offered to grant one wish.
When she learned about the curse, she ascended to the Seven Heavens to plead for mercy on our behalf. Her intercession earned us a gift: a precious jade ornament, carved from a stone that blooms once every hundred years in the Good Luck River of the Seventh Heaven. As long as the jade stayed whole and in our family's possession, the curse would remain dormant.
For generations, we lived in peace. Until now."
The robber stared at her, more stunned than he had been at any point that night. Nimi looked at him, waiting.
"Well… say something," she urged, but he only stared, lost in his thoughts or maybe afraid.
"I know. You don't believe me."
"I do," the robber said quickly. "I do. But can I see the jade ornament?"
Nimi nodded and walked over to retrieve it from the bookshelf. She returned and held it out in front of the robber, who stared at it with quiet awe.
"And what happens now that the curse has been awakened?" he asked, his gaze fixed on her.
Nimi's lips trembled. Her hands shook. "Without the jade's protection, the ancient curse is waking again. Someone in my bloodline will be the first to die unless the jade is restored. And if it isn't replaced soon, we will die one by one. Until there is no one left."
"This is bad," the robber breathed, eyes wide.
"Now you understand," Nimi said, her voice thin. "And I can't tell my family because this is all my fault. It's my fault for ever dating Ryuji. Everyone kept the jade safe until it got to me. And I don't think there is any way to fix this. What am I going to do?" She cried hard, tightening her grip on the broken jade pieces.
Silence settled between them, heavy and long, until the robber finally spoke.
"I have a way," he said quietly, with a flicker of hope.
Nimi sniffed. "Look, don't play with me. If you're saying this just so I'll let you go, don't worry. I'll do that in the morning."
"No, I'm serious. I know someone who might be able to help," the robber said.
"Who?" Nimi asked eagerly, sitting upright.
"A shaman," he replied.
"A shaman?" Nimi echoed. "That will be no use." She leaned back, defeated.
"But it's worth a try. And if anyone can help you, it's Suzuha Takigami," the robber said with quiet confidence.
"How do you know?" Nimi asked.
"Because I've seen her powers firsthand. Tomorrow, I'll take you there," he said.
"You will?" Nimi asked softly, almost not believing he would help her.
"I will. This is partly my fault, and I'm going to make it right. But can you please untie me now?" he asked.
"No. I still don't trust you," Nimi said bluntly.
"I'm going to help you," he replied with a small chuckle. "And my name is Haku Yorimoto. And you?"
"Nimi Okawa," she answered.
"Nice to meet you, Nimi-san," Haku said.
"Nice to meet you too, Haku-san," Nimi replied.