Five minutes later Fujimoto Matsu burst through the door, travel-worn.
He wore a crumpled black suit and a thick silver chain around his neck. The door slammed into the wall with a loud bang.
The noodle shop fell silent for a moment.
"So that's what's going on, huh?"
The instant Fujimoto Matsu saw Sen Getsusa, his expression changed.
He sauntered up, pulled out a chair, and sat facing her with legs spread wide in a deliberate provocation.
Hiratsuka Shizuka watched him impassively.
"This year's dividend will be twenty percent higher. From now on, don't trouble my mother or grandmother. And I know about this girl and the orphanage—stay away from them."
Sen Getsusa sat with arms crossed and one leg over the other, saying nothing.
Fujimoto Matsu's face darkened.
"What crap are you spouting?" He slammed the table.
The few customers glanced over; the waiter hesitated, took in Fujimoto Matsu's appearance, then lowered his head and scurried to the kitchen.
"You think this pocket money gets you out of the Matsutani-kai?"
Fujimoto Matsu stretched his neck, half-smiling at Hiratsuka Shizuka. "Miss Hiratsuka? Still think you're a princess? You've benefited plenty from the Matsutani-kai all these years."
Hiratsuka Shizuka replied coldly, "You mean how boys who liked me got beaten up for no reason, or how wherever my mother and I moved, someone would 'visit' us the next day?"
"Am I still a minor, Fujimoto 'little bro'?"
"I should thank Uncle for the shareholders' side of things, but beyond that, there's nothing else, right?"
"Or has Uncle already decided to turn against me?"
Fujimoto Matsu waved his hand with a grin, fanning the air, his total indifference written all over his face.
He chuckled and said, "It's all the boss's idea to 'take care' of you two. Still, you have to admit the old man's got vision—your returns over the years have been impressive. Look at my clothes."
He tugged at the collar of his black suit and shirt. "Thanks to the young lady, we even get this kind of subsidy."
Sen Getsusa turned around and waved to the manager watching from afar, signaling him not to worry.
Hiratsuka Shizuka looked at Fujimoto Matsu in disgust. "The money over the years should be enough. Consider it repayment for the help he gave Mother when we were kids—even you trash have food and clothes and live well. Mr. Fujimoto Matsu, our relationship ends here."
"Ends here?" Fujimoto Matsu said cheerfully. "The boss won't give up. The young lady will have to tell him herself. Besides, I don't have the final say on the orphanage… Ah! Speaking of which, your friend is meddling in that too."
He soundlessly mouthed a name.
"Got it." She raised an eyebrow and turned to Sen Getsusa. "I know who's handling that part now, though it was only a guess before."
"Have you heard of the Yukinoshita Family?"
Sen Getsusa shook her head, puzzled. "…Maybe?"
"They're in real estate; one of the men is a prefectural assemblyman. Looks like my friend is in charge this time. She's not the sort to do this—there must be some misunderstanding."
Hiratsuka Shizuka promised Sen Getsusa: "I'll go talk to her. Aren't you moving soon? No one will disturb the children in the meantime."
"Ah, Yukinoshita. Now I remember! But they're hardly a big clan—calling them a 'family' feels like an overstatement…" Sen Getsusa vaguely recalled the name.
"Hah, you've got guts saying that," Fujimoto Matsu said, giving her a "are you serious?" look.
The girl across from him folded her arms, expressionless.
Fujimoto Matsu suddenly recalled the frenzied side of this madwoman at the orphanage gate and subtly slid his foot backward.
Hiratsuka Shizuka cut in: "That's enough. I'll speak to Uncle. Don't go to the orphanage again, all right?"
Fujimoto Matsu looked disdainful.
He yanked his shirt collar, cursing foully, paying no heed to Hiratsuka Shizuka.
"Beg the boss. Talking to me is useless,"
he muttered, pulling a cigarette from his pocket. Sen Getsusa suddenly spoke.
"You talk too much."
The girl twirled a lock of hair, big eyes blinking. "Want a beating, kid?"
Fujimoto Matsu: …Honestly, he was scared of this girl.
Hiratsuka Shizuka was an oblivious "young lady," easy to handle—being a teacher, she had weak spots like her mother and grandmother.
—The girl in front of him was different.
He still vividly remembered her brutality that day.
He rubbed his fingertips, then thought of the boss.
His vanished courage returned at once.
The man rose, shadowed, unwilling to waste more words on the two women.
He cracked his knuckles, looking down with contempt. "I'll report today's events to the boss."
Hearing the threat, Sen Getsusa stood as well.
She calmly moved the table between them aside.
Seeing this, Hiratsuka Shizuka grabbed the girl's hand.
"I'll speak to Uncle," she said hurriedly, trying to calm Sen Getsusa, then turned to the sullen Fujimoto Matsu. "My business with Uncle doesn't need your commentary, Mr. Fujimoto Matsu."
Fujimoto Matsu smiled, eyes oddly fixed on Hiratsuka Shizuka. "Uncle? The boss is no uncle of yours."
"He's no longer a Mortal, Miss Hiratsuka. Don't you get it?" Fujimoto Matsu rolled up his sleeve to reveal a string of black, tattoo-like pictographs.
"We will leave the Mortal realm and enter the Origin Point! Miss Hiratsuka, you'll never understand the great cause My Lord bears!"
"It is the Origin Point!"
Hiratsuka Shizuka stared blankly at the increasingly fanatical Fujimoto Matsu, utterly bewildered. Beside her, Sen Getsusa pondered.
She vaguely remembered Yubabas Sister saying her World was undergoing a revival of mystery.
Besides those chaotic monsters, it must be this Origin Point Fujimoto Matsu spoke of.
A purple curtain unfurled.
[Name: Unimportant]
[Chaotic Contactee: Arrogant creature. Without 'understanding,' it seeks godhood in a Mortal shell. Lacking talent, it touches mystery without restraint.]
[As foolish as sticking your head in a crocodile's mouth.]
[Energy Level: Lv0 · Contactee]
Beside her, Fujimoto Matsu grew solemn, earnestly advising Hiratsuka Shizuka: "Miss, know your place. If you anger the boss because of this girl, even family ties won't help. He is already…"
As he spoke, he began muttering incomprehensibly.
Each forceful word seemed not shaped by tongue and throat but stirred from the brain, sliding down the esophagus to spout from the stomach.
Unable to look away, Hiratsuka Shizuka followed the sound: his stomach writhed, seeming to open into a distant cavern.
His voice carried the cavern's echo, swirling around the two of them.
Sen Getsusa noticed Hiratsuka Shizuka's fingers beginning to twist irregularly, each acting on its own, lifting and curling in eerie independence.
She too was in a trance, lips curving into a smile as she rose to join Fujimoto Matsu in the chant.
Just as the man reached the crucial moment, he spun around with fervor, thrust his hands skyward and roared.
Praise the group leader! Praise Ch—
Smack!
Sen Getsusa's expressionless spinning kick caught him in the face, cutting the devout prayer short.
---------------------------------
Hope you enjoy this fanfiction if you do and would like to read the next 30 chapters in advance, pls do check out my Patreon.
patreon.com/TLScarlet
Also don't forget to give me a Power Stone if you do like this fiction. Your support really motivates me to continue doing my best in translating, Thanks!!