Every time Yohei saw the Kurosawa mother and daughter, he felt a strange mood.
It wasn’t just because Kagami resembled his ex-wife. Kosuzu was a beautiful woman, but that didn’t mean Yohei and Kosuzu’s relationship was born from love.
They thought of each other as useful, and that made the relationship continue without delving into the complicated background.
Kosuzu appeared to be the ideal mother on the surface. But that didn’t mean she was the ideal wife.
Even if it wasn’t a relationship built on love, Kosuzu demanded love from Yohei.
He thought it was justified. It’s good for a couple to do their best for each other. Many political marriages from the past ended in catastrophe if they didn’t do that.
However, Kosuzu was a lot more unruly than Yohei originally thought—
….
Lifting his still warm green tea cup, Yohei gazed at Kagami sitting across from him.
She resembled her.
But then again, she didn’t.
Kagami had almost the same appearance as Kosuzu at a glance, but at least Kagami didn’t casually cut her child off, like Kosuzu did.
From the start, Yohei didn’t know what Kosuzu had hoped for Yu. No matter how much they worshipped forgotten deities, a human’s body can’t be anything but human.
“…Thank you for granting my request.”
Um.
Hearing Kagami lightly bow her head, Yohei felt slightly uncomfortable.
She was still— a young person. She had just become an adult, and that was all.
Even compared to Miho, who had been following Yohei recently, there wasn’t a big age difference. If necessary, she could still be called a student.
Many young women had approached Yohei with various ‘requests.’ Some succeeded in gaining his interest, and among them, some betrayed that interest far too naturally.
Still, Yohei didn’t care much. Most were just humans wanting money, and once they left with that little money, they never returned.
But Kagami in front of him felt a bit different.
“I haven’t done anything deserving of thanks.”
If anything, Yohei neither invited Koto Ne nor allowed Yu to invite her. He knew it was natural for a child to bring a friend along.
Even if Koto Ne was someone significant— for now, she was just Yu’s friend.
But it seemed that meant something different to Kagami, Koto Ne’s mother.
“I thought it would be uncomfortable to arrange such a gathering, considering my relationship with Yamashita-san.”
Ah, so that’s what it was.
Thinking generally, it was indeed an uncomfortable relationship.
And hearing Kagami say that made Yohei even more interested.
She was Kosuzu’s sister. There were even stories circulating that she gave birth to the ‘child of God.’
And yet, it puzzled Yohei that such an existence could possess such ordinary feelings.
In Yohei’s memory, Kagami’s impression was hazy. They weren’t someone he could frequently see. Kosuzu had hidden Kagami away in a very deep place and didn’t show her to Yohei.
The only time he could catch a glimpse of Kagami was shortly after Koto Ne was born.
Due to the merit of giving birth to a ‘child of God,’ Kagami had risen to a very important position through Kosuzu, and only then did Yohei get to see her in person.
She was like a decorative woman.
Yohei had given Kagami such a dry evaluation the first time he saw her.
She appeared to gaze at distant places with an indifference that seemed to signal disinterest in anything in the world. She looked slightly malevolent, resembling Kosuzu, but that only made her seem more detached, almost lacking in humanity.
Yohei had never deeply loved Kosuzu, but he thought that Kagami seemed even more doll-like than Kosuzu.
Not long after, Kosuzu had boldly cut ties with Yohei, as if to say, ‘It’s done now.’ Yohei had felt awkward for a while but—
“That isn’t the case.”
So, it wasn’t uncomfortable at all. To Yohei, Kagami was virtually an entirely different being from Kosuzu.
“Regardless of the past, we are neighbors now, aren’t we?”
….
“Moreover, I find it easier to converse under specific conditions. Given what I have to do, it’s a bit more convenient than maintaining pure human relationships.”
Yohei said that, taking another sip of green tea.
Imitating Yohei, Kagami also took a sip of green tea and cleared her throat.
As if to say, So let’s just lay out the conditions, Kagami slowly opened her mouth.
“Um, have you seen any signs that the Kurosawa family is moving?”
Even knowing how rude of a question that could be, and feeling a sense of fear from asking it, Kagami posed that question.
Logically speaking, Kagami’s actions were clearly hard to understand.
She could have just run away like those women who had previously taken help from Yohei. The money she received from Yohei wasn’t enough to live in hiding forever, but it still was sufficient to settle in a place away from things.
But Kagami didn’t do that.
If she lived in Tokyo, surely she should have kept her distance inside the city as much as possible. Perhaps she could catch a decent man, change her identity, and settle down.
But still, Kagami didn’t do that.
She wanted to raise Koto Ne as an ‘ordinary child.’
Thinking back on what Kagami had said, Yohei pondered quietly.
“I didn’t see any movement from the Kurosawa family.”
Yohei slowly moved his lips to answer.
“And even if they do move, they wouldn’t attack us directly.”
What the Kurosawa family wanted was a reasonably large force capable of committing illegal acts. Since Kosuzu broke away from Yohei, they wouldn’t have the strength to directly assault his house.
Kagami knew that and was probably lingering around here.
“Indeed.”
Kagami responded with a look still filled with unease.
….
For a moment, silence hovered between them.
This time, it was Kagami who spoke first.
“Yamashita-san.”
“Yes?”
“Have you heard anything about Yu-kun’s talk regarding Koto Ne?”
…Yes?
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, Yohei blinked.
“Yu-kun is Koto Ne’s friend. Since he wasn’t the type to make friends widely from kindergarten….”
Hah.
Yohei’s mouth dropped slightly.
…I haven’t heard anything particular, but if I do hear anything irregular, I’ll let you know.
“Thank you.”
Kagami bowed her head again in response.
Yohei chewed over the term “ordinary child” in his mind once more.
Really?
Kagami had been hidden away in that house since her childhood. Though he couldn’t tell how she was educated, if someone tried to teach her, they could have succeeded.
It was likely she had no memories like ordinary children.
In this country, if one set their mind to run away, they could manage to do so.
But that was far from ‘ordinary daily life.’ She wouldn’t be able to make friends, and there would be little time for proper study.
In that case, securing safety in a place where safety is guaranteed would be better.
…And one method among those was for her daughter to become friends with a ‘being that could protect her.’
Yohei drank his green tea as if pouring it into his mouth.
Is that so?
He had thought of her as a completely different being, but she surprisingly had some similarities.
Cunning, yes—
Yohei glanced at the clock on the wall. About ten minutes had passed since they sat across from each other.
“Well then, shall you head to Koto Ne?”
“Oh, yes.”
As Yohei said that and stood up from his seat, Kagami quickly followed suit.
There was an atmosphere that suggested she cared more about her daughter than speaking with Yohei. Considering Kagami’s actions up to this point, it seemed like her reason for living was focused on her daughter.
Was she simply projecting what she wanted?
Or did she genuinely love her?
Yohei didn’t need to think that far.
However.
What if Kosuzu had a personality similar to Kagami?
While watching Kagami’s figure moving ahead, Yohei pondered a strange thought.
It didn’t seem like a lengthy contemplation. Yohei was never the kind of honest and sincere individual to begin with. Most importantly, since a girl not much younger than Kagami was already in this house, Yohei felt he had to be much more cautious now.
“Koto Ne!”
“Mom!”
Once they reached Yu’s room, Kagami called out to Koto Ne with a smile, and Koto Ne immediately ran out and jumped into Kagami’s arms.
It was a sight like something drawn in a picture.
…
But in that moment, when Koto Ne looked up at Yohei, he inadvertently thought of Kosuzu’s face.
Perhaps they resembled each other more as aunt and niece than as sisters.
…For the sake of that daughter, he absolutely couldn’t get too close.
Yohei had a somewhat joking thought.
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