--Friday, June 12, 2172
Meanwhile, Haruto's expression twisted in disgust. Not only because of the measly five million Kai was offering him—a handout compared to the fortune he had amassed with his wife—but even more because of the obvious ploy to humiliate him.
If Aiko controlled that money, he would be at her mercy, and she could leave at any moment, leaving him with nothing. Not to mention Kai was evidently trying to strip him of his role as provider father.
"We don't need handouts or cheap tricks. I'm not going to let decades of my work be trampled on!" Haruto shouted, full of indignation, as he looked at Yumiko, who was clinging tightly to the arm of the blue-eyed young man as if she were a lovestruck girl—or better yet, a floozy.
"What work?" Kai looked at Haruto and spoke in a cold voice. "Do you mean the complicated job of being a damn parasite who did nothing but take advantage of someone else's work? Don't give yourself airs; everything you have is due to luck—you landed a good woman, that's all."
"What do you know, you bastard?!"
Haruto shot back, face red with rage, spittle flying uncontrollably. Kai's expression soured, and he looked at Haruto with serious intent to get rid of him permanently, which made the old man shrink in fear. At that moment, Aiko, wearing a complicated expression, gently tugged on Haruto and looked at Kai, then asked in an almost whisper.
"… Why do you want to give me so much money?"
"For the reasons I said: as an apology for a misunderstanding—which I imagine you know what it is—and to let Nejire play with her brother, that's all. I don't have any particular opinion of you; my problems are with that rat you chose as the father of your child. So if you return what you took, even if you don't accept the deal, I won't look for trouble with you—especially given your pregnancy."
Kai replied in a calm voice, then looked at Yumiko, who nodded and turned to Aiko to add in an equally calm voice.
"I don't want anything to do with you or your child either, though I certainly don't have any good thoughts about you, since you let yourself get pregnant by a married man. In the end you did me a favor. You helped me wake up and finally see what kind of trash I married. So sign, let's finish this; I don't want to have to see you again."
Hearing Kai and Yumiko, Aiko bit her lip and then looked at Haruto, who seemed about to get up and start shouting again. Her love for Haruto didn't come out of nowhere—he was the only one who supported, valued, and protected her in the company. Her, the one always underestimated and pushed aside. But at the end of the day, that man—the one who had been her hero—ended up using her to commit a colossal fraud just to save his pride.
But now it was too late for regrets; they had been found out, and she was pregnant by him. Whatever happened, her life was now tied to that man forever. Whatever he was, he was the father of her child, and she would never leave her child without a father. A child needs their parents together, and she—no matter what she had to sacrifice or endure—would give her unborn little one a proper family.
Coming to a resolution, Aiko took a deep breath and squeezed Haruto's hand tightly. When Haruto turned to her in surprise, Aiko looked back with the firmest, most resolute expression she had ever shown, surprising him even more. In a steady, almost solemn voice, Aiko declared, looking Haruto straight in the eyes.
"Let's end this, Haruto. We're the ones who were in the wrong. Let's take the money they're kindly offering and start a new life. I want to leave this behind."
"But Aiko, without money…" Haruto replied in a strained voice. Aiko shook her head and answered firmly.
"Five million dollars is more than enough for us to live the rest of our lives. Besides, we can always work and grow that money. Let's just go. Let's not continue with this—I'm exhausted."
"You don't understand—five million is too little; the fortune we built is—"
"HARUTO!!"
Haruto tried to explain in a rush, but his words were cut off by Aiko's shrill, furious scream. Being on the receiving end of Aiko's anger for the first time, Haruto couldn't help opening his eyes in disbelief, and Aiko spoke again, visibly angry.
"That's enough! Do you think it's a small thing that we almost destroyed your wife's life's work?! Do you think it's nothing the way we deceived her?! We were the ones in the wrong—we should be grateful they're willing to give us some money and not throw us in jail for what we did!"
"It was just a mistake; we were recovering, everything would have gone back to the way it was—"
In a voice that was both fearful and defiant, Haruto tried to justify himself once more, but his words were cut short by a hard slap. Bringing his right hand to his face, Haruto stared at Aiko, eyes wide with disbelief, and his beautiful pregnant wife shouted, full of indignation.
"Wake up!! Wake the hell up!! Do you want our child to be born in prison or what?! What agreement did we make before? That we'd separate ourselves from all of this, that we'd go far away and start our life from zero! Keep your word like a damn man!!!"
"…"
Haruto looked at the enraged Aiko as if he were seeing an unknown monster and fell completely silent, almost unable to process what had happened. For their part, Yumiko, Kai, and Keiko looked at one another in visible surprise; they truly hadn't expected that outcome. The lawyers present shared the thought, looking at one another with obvious discomfort.
(Why do rats have so much luck? First he marries Yumiko, and now he finds a woman loyal enough to stay by his side through this entire mess and with enough backbone to confront him to keep him from doing something even more stupid… There really are blessed people in this world…)
Looking at the shocked Haruto, Kai couldn't help thinking to himself as he let out a small sigh. After a few seconds of complete silence, Kai looked at Aiko and said in a calm voice.
"Then I imagine you agree to the deal, Miss Tanaka."
"Yes, Saito-sama, I agree, although given the circumstances we're in, I wouldn't like to go to your place of residence…" Aiko turned to look at Kai and replied in a calm, professional voice. Kai nodded and spoke quietly.
"I understand your concerns, so let's include in the agreement that visits will be in places agreed upon by both parties, and only people authorized by you may attend."
"Thank you very much, Saito-sama. I agree."
Aiko made a formal, respectful bow as she spoke, which made Haruto grit his teeth and look at Kai full of hatred. For his part, Kai nodded with a calm expression and, after glancing at Yumiko to confirm she had no issue with the arrangement, said.
"Then it's settled, Miss Tanaka." Turning to Keiko at his side, Kai added with a small smile.
"I'll leave the arrangements for the company to you."
"You were incredible, Kai…"
Keiko whispered in his ear in a voice laden with desire and lust, then took a deep breath and set an implacable business expression on her beautiful face. Then, the beautiful mother turned to look at Aiko.
Seeing Keiko take off her glasses, Aiko and Haruto couldn't help looking at her in visible surprise, but Aiko quickly refocused and began a serious discussion with the beautiful woman to hand everything over. Once everything was finalized and signed, Aiko stood up and left the room holding Haruto's hand. But Haruto looked at Kai with an expression full of hatred, then mouthed.
"This isn't the end."
Kai returned a scornful smile to the pathetic man who no longer even dared to speak, then turned to Yumiko and asked with a smile.
"Now you're a free woman—how do you feel?"
"There's still the official document to sign, but it feels good… As if a weight had been lifted off me." Yumiko said in a calm, relaxed voice, which made Kai and Keiko smile.
"Let's go eat something together to celebrate." Keiko said quietly. Kai nodded and replied casually,
"Sounds like a good plan. My treat."
The group left the building with easy smiles and reached the car. In the midst of casual conversation, the group of three reached a small restaurant, where they ordered something simple to eat in a private room. In the middle of a lively dinner with idle chatter, Yumiko let herself sink onto Kai's shoulder and said with a smile.
"Kai-chan… I feel so relaxed… I don't want to work anymore…"
"Then don't work." Kai said with a smile. He took out his wallet, pulled out a black card, handed it to Yumiko, and added casually.
"That card has no limit. Use it for whatever you want from now on. Just make sure to spend at least two hundred thousand dollars a year, or they'll cancel it."
With the card in her hands, Yumiko turned to Kai in visible surprise. She never imagined Kai would take her joke seriously and hand her unlimited money outright. For her part, Keiko, wearing a playful expression, moved close to Kai and began tracing circles on his firm chest as she spoke in a sensual voice.
"Kai… Aren't you going to 'support' your Keiko…?"
Somewhat amused by Keiko's attitude, Kai took a gold card from his wallet and handed it directly to the beautiful black-haired mother, then spoke in a casual tone before returning to his meal.
"Same story—no limit. But with that one you have to spend at least 250k."
With the gold card in her hands, Keiko was a bit stunned, not believing that Kai would actually give her a card. Holding their cards in both hands, Keiko and Yumiko looked at each other, then at Kai, who didn't seem to be joking at all. Yumiko asked while Kai ate calmly.
"Are you serious, Kai-chan?"
"Of course. If you want to retire completely, I'll support you. The one thing I don't lack is money." Kai replied casually, then picked up a breaded chop and took a big bite. Keiko set the card on the table and spoke in a more serious tone.
"It isn't necessary, Kai. It was just a joke—we don't lack money either, you know that."
"Keep them. It's my way of showing you my affection and support. If you don't want to use the money, just buy some nice things from time to time so they don't cancel the cards, and that's it." Kai didn't give it much importance and spoke before going back to eating.
Keiko and Yumiko looked at each other for a few seconds, then carefully put the cards away. Although neither of them lacked money, the gesture was no less moving. Now they felt backed up—whatever happened, they had their Kai to look out for them; they weren't alone. They had a true pillar capable of bearing the world for them.
Almost unconsciously, the pair of mothers looked at Kai with intimate tenderness and went back to their meal and casual talk. After a while, the meal finally ended, and Kai left the restaurant with the pair of beautiful mothers—who looked more like supermodels—on his arms, drawing everyone's attention as they passed.
The people nearby couldn't help but look at the young man with blue eyes with mixed emotions—envy, surprise, and even reproach. But neither the mothers nor Kai paid them any attention and simply walked calmly toward a secluded alley, wanting to return home using Accompany. Soon, the group entered a dark alley, their cheerful laughter echoing around them.
But just then, Kai felt something strange in the distance, as if someone were aiming at him. With sharp eyes, Kai turned to look behind him and activated his black-and-white vision, which allowed him to "move" his field of view. Soon, Kai could see a man dressed in black aiming a huge rifle, his expression surprised.
Startled to see Kai looking in his direction, the man pulled the trigger, but although there was a great explosion in the weapon's chamber, not a single sound was emitted. Only the flash and the recoil of the weapon betrayed the power of the blast.
With a keen look, Kai coated his arm with Conqueror's Haki and slipped free of Yumiko, then put his hand in the bullet's path and caught it. Because of Kai's sudden movement, Yumiko and Keiko turned to him in alarm, only to see his fist in front of his chest, smoking.
"What happened?!" Yumiko asked, alarmed—at which point Keiko, who sped up her thoughts to the maximum, reached a conclusion and announced darkly.
"An attack! There's a sniper!"
[Sage, I want to know where that son of a bitch came from.]
Kai contacted his trusty assistant while he expanded the range of his perception to detect any other enemy and materialized the Accompany card.
***
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