After the funeral, I was worried about Shizuka and her mom, so I followed them back to their house to comfort them some more. They were really touched by my concern.
…
A few days passed, and I thought things were getting back to normal. But then one day, Shizuka suddenly came running to my house in a panic.
"What's wrong? What happened?" I asked urgently, seeing how out of breath and upset she looked.
"M-mom... there are a bunch of people at our house demanding we pay them money! They won't leave!" Shizuka was on the verge of tears.
"Okay, let's go right now!" I grabbed Shizuka's hand and we ran to her house, not even stopping to tell Doraemon.
I couldn't help worrying - those debt collectors on TV are always so vicious. What if something happened to Shizuka's mom?
When we arrived, my fears were confirmed. A group of thugs in ill-fitting suits were standing menacingly at the door. They may have been wearing suits, but they were clearly just putting on a thin veneer of civility. I could tell they'd show their true colors at the slightest provocation. This was the real face of organized crime.
Most of them had rolled up their sleeves, revealing arms covered in tattoos. Some were wielding iron bars, which they'd used to smash up Shizuka's beloved flower garden.
Pero, their dog, was barking furiously as if trying to chase the men away, but he was tied up and couldn't reach them.
After causing enough damage to intimidate the residents, the leader finally spoke: "Well ma'am, have you thought it over? We don't want to do this, but you're the one who owes us money."
"We're just doing our job. You signed the contract yourself, remember? We have it right here."
"But... we don't have any money left," Shizuka's mom said weakly from the doorway, looking pale and nothing like her usual elegant self.
"No money? That's easy to fix - you've still got this house, don't you? Tokyo property values are decent. If you sell, you should be able to cover it."
"Otherwise..." He grinned menacingly. "Well, I'm sure you don't want that, eh missus?"
Geez, what kind of cliche villain dialogue is this? I thought with exasperation. That "you don't want that" line is my job!
But at least I'd arrived in time. I breathed a sigh of relief. These guys seemed to be professionals whose main goal was getting paid. They probably wouldn't actually hurt anyone yet, since that would make it harder to collect.
But who knows what they might do if this dragged on too long?
Frowning at the crowd blocking the door, I used my psychic powers to push them aside and clear a path.
"Wait!" I called out to the leader.
I led Shizuka over to her mom. Seeing how pale her mother looked, Shizuka rushed to support her. "Mom, are you okay?!"
"I'm fine, I'm fine," her mom insisted. But then she scolded, "Why did you bring Nobita here? It's dangerous!"
"You kids shouldn't get involved. I can handle this."
She started to say more, but I wasn't listening. I stood protectively in front of them and addressed the lead debt collector:
"I'll pay their debt. Is that acceptable?"
One of his underlings started to object, but the leader silenced him. He'd seen me use my powers earlier and realized I wasn't an ordinary kid.
As a professional, he didn't really care about the details. He just wanted to get paid and complete the job.
"You can cover the full amount?" he asked.
"I can. How much is it?" I replied seriously.
He gestured to an underling, who brought over a stack of documents.
"This is the loan contract. Please review it. The total owed is 50 million yen. Will that be cash or credit?"
50 million yen?! That's over 800,000 dollars! How did Shizuka's mom borrow so much? Is healthcare really that expensive here? Mr. Yoshio wasn't in the hospital for that long!
But even though I was confused, I knew I had to pay it off. Debts have to be repaid, after all.
"Credit card," I said, wondering if they'd even be able to process it.
"Very well." The leader waved, and an underling quickly produced a card reader.
I swiped my card. Seeing the transaction go through, the debt collector visibly relaxed. With his job complete, he became much more cordial.
"Please keep your receipt," he said, handing me a slip of paper.
What the hell? They give receipts for this? I thought incredulously.
"This is their loan contract. If you sign here, the debt will be transferred to your name."
I had considered just burning it, but then I realized this wasn't some ancient IOU that would disappear if destroyed. And with the debt in my name now, it was basically the same as if Shizuka's family didn't owe anything.
So I signed my name.
"Alright sir, our task is complete. We hope you're satisfied with our services. If you need money in the future, please come to us. And if you ever need debt collection services yourself, we handle that too." With that, the leader waved his hand and they all piled into a waiting van and drove off.
Damn, the local yakuza are pretty polite. Good customer service too.
And no cliche confrontation scene like in novels - they just left peacefully?
But I wasn't going to complain about things going smoothly.
I turned around to find only Shizuka's mom still there. She must have sent Shizuka inside earlier in case things went badly.
"Nobita, you..." she stared at me, her expression a mix of shock and other complicated emotions.
"It's okay now, Auntie," I smiled at the beautiful older woman, whose face was still a bit pale but whose mature charm remained intact.
She started to say something, but just then Shizuka came running out and threw her arms around both of us.
"Mom! Nobita! Are you alright?" Her voice was thick with unshed tears.
But she must have hugged us too forcefully, because her mom stumbled and fell against me.
So while it looked like Shizuka was embracing us both, I was actually the one holding them.
Shizuka's mom didn't protest, though a hint of color returned to her pale cheeks.
I savored the feeling of these two beautiful women in my arms - one youthful and vibrant, the other elegant and mature. Their soft bodies were completely in my control.
What if...
My mind began to wander to some very interesting possibilities.
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# Support with Power Stones!
# Every 400 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter