When Sakiko heard that Toru wanted to introduce her to a job, her first reaction wasn't gratitude, but anger.
Her voice suddenly rose, echoing in the car, "Mr. Fujiwara, are you pitying me?"
The car fell silent, the only sound being rain tapping against the windows and water splashing as the car drove through puddles.
After the burst of emotion, Sakiko quickly calmed down.
No matter Toru's reason, he was showing her kindness. Even if she didn't accept it, getting angry like that was completely inappropriate.
She lowered her head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Fujiwara. I raised my voice."
Toru shook his head. "It's fine. I understand. If I were in your position, I'd probably be angry too. It feels like an insult to your pride."
Sakiko gave a self-deprecating smile. "This pride of mine probably seems ridiculous to others. You must be laughing at me, Mr. Fujiwara."
"Not laughing. Just a little unhappy."
Toru answered frankly.
Now that she had calmed down, Sakiko kept telling herself: don't push away kindness just for the sake of pride.
Think about the debt. Just working in customer service wouldn't even pay off the interest in a lifetime.
She had her own plan for making money, though she hadn't fully made up her mind.
Whatever she decided, she needed a stable income first. Ideally, something that could even help her save a little—that alone would ease some of the pressure.
Thinking this through, Sakiko took the initiative. "Mr. Fujiwara, what would you need me to do?"
"Can you cook?" Toru asked.
"I learned in home ec before, and I've been cooking for myself this past year."
"How's the taste?"
"I think it's pretty good."
Sakiko more or less understood what kind of job he was offering.
Toru nodded. "You saw my sister at home earlier. I'm usually at school or busy, so I'm rarely home."
"Haibara gets absorbed in her computer and forgets to eat, or she orders takeout."
"Ordering takeout once or twice is fine. But relying on it long-term isn't good. So I was hoping you could come by in the evenings to cook for her and remind her to eat."
"You could also help out with some cleaning."
He paused, then added, "You don't have to clean the whole house by yourself. That's impossible. I'll still be hiring a professional housekeeping company."
"As for pay, let's say 5,000 yen per visit. How does that sound?"
Sakiko shook her head. Not out of disagreement, but because: "That's too much. Professional housekeepers and visiting cooks usually charge around that amount."
"I don't have professional skills. With what you're offering, you could easily hire someone more qualified."
That was the last of her pride. She wanted to earn through labor, but didn't want charity. What she wanted was fairness.
Toru gave a helpless smile. "Hiring a professional isn't possible. My sister gets uncomfortable around strangers. She doesn't like them, and she doesn't trust them either."
"You're clean, have no record, and you're young. That would put her more at ease."
He wasn't saying this casually. Haibara truly didn't like strangers. Being around unfamiliar people would only remind her of the fear she carried from the Black Organization.
Toru had no choice but to find someone reliable to take care of her.
And Sakiko seemed like a good fit.
They hadn't interacted much, but Toru could see that she was persistent, responsible, honest, and kind.
Once a carefree rich girl, now suddenly fallen from grace, she didn't give up. Instead, she worked hard to survive. That kind of tenacity was something Toru respected.
Of course, there was another major reason.
[You have gained 1 Body Stat point]
[You have gained 1 Black Tech item draw]
Toru had just gotten these points—from Momiji.
He didn't think much of her before. She was just a minor character in the Conan world.
But after she fell completely in love with him, he gained 1 body stat point and one draw for advanced technology.
Which gave him an idea.
Maybe... Sakiko could also give him points?
Sakiko hesitated. "Mr. Fujiwara, could you give me a bit of time to think it over?"
"Sure. Let's add each other on Line. Tell me once you've decided. If you decide to refuse, that's fine too. I'll respect your choice, Ms. Toyokawa."
"Thank you!"
Sakiko sincerely expressed her thanks.
She pulled out an older model phone from her bag and exchanged Line IDs with Toru.
Before long, Toru drove to a nearby intersection. Sakiko said, "You can stop here, Mr. Fujiwara."
"The road ahead is pretty narrow. It'll be hard to turn around."
Toru pulled over. The rain had grown heavier. Sakiko, holding the umbrella he lent her, softly said, "I'll wash the umbrella and return it to you later."
"Just let me know on Line before you come over. I might not be home."
"Okay."
She thanked him again, then stepped out of the car, opened the umbrella, and walked off with her head down to avoid the rain.
After a few steps, Sakiko turned back and waved at Toru before disappearing into a nearby alley.
Across the road, two Tsukinomori Girls' Academy students were also walking with umbrellas.
One of them, a girl with long chestnut hair, suddenly widened her eyes and grabbed her friend's arm. "Mutsumi, look, isn't that Sakiko?"
Wakaba Mutsumi heard Nagasaki Soyo and turned slightly. She saw Sakiko hurrying off and a faint ripple appeared in her eyes too.
Soyo wanted to chase after her immediately, but Mutsumi quickly held her back.
Soyo turned to protest, only to see Mutsumi quietly shaking her head.
Only then did Soyo realize—Sakiko didn't want to be found. If she ran up to her now, it would only push her further away.
"...That car..."
Soyo suddenly remembered something. The car Sakiko just got out of—it looked familiar.
She quickly made the connection. Wasn't that the car owned by Fujiwara Toru, the boss of that café near Ikebukuro Station?
It was a Porsche Panamera. Already a rare car, and Toru's had a matte custom paint job. There might only be one like it in all of Tokyo.
Ideas began forming in Soyo's mind.
She couldn't go see Sakiko directly. But she could take a roundabout path, reach out to Fujiwara Toru first, then find Sakiko through him!
The more she thought about it, the more she felt she was on the right track... and the smarter she felt.
She had no idea Sakiko had already gone bankrupt.
But Wakaba Mutsumi, having known her since childhood, understood her current situation all too well.
When she saw Sakiko step out of a Panamera, her first thought was:
"...Sakiko is being kept."
Luckily, she said it quietly. The rain was loud enough that Soyo didn't hear it.
...
At 10 PM, Sakiko finally returned home, her body and spirit both worn out.
The rain had mostly eased, though a fine drizzle still fell from the sky.
She looked at the quiet street and sighed.
Being customer service was no easy task—especially after-sales.
People who call are often already angry, their emotions unstable. It's common for them to say cruel, unreasonable things.
There were moments Sakiko wanted to curse them out. But as a "qualified" representative, she had no choice but to respond politely and do her best to resolve the problem.
"I'm home..."
She was still living in Tokyo's North District, not far from Toru's mansion.
One reason was that she was familiar with the area. The other was that rent here was cheap.
Her current home was an old rental. The air was damp, the lights were dim, and the musty smell of mold hung in the air.
Other than the old TV playing in the background, there were hardly any other working electronics in the cramped room.
Beer bottles littered the tatami. She carefully stepped around them in disgust and glanced at the man lying on the floor in front of the TV, snoring loudly.
This was her father. Once an outstanding man, now ruined by gambling.
She returned to her makeshift room—a closet just barely two square meters. That was her space.
But the moment she stepped in, she sensed something was off.
Someone had been here.
Her heart dropped. She immediately reached under her bedding.
Gone. Empty.
The money she'd worked so hard to save over the past year... was gone.
Combined with the fact someone had been inside the house, she could easily guess who had taken it.
Debt collectors.
Sakiko's eyes turned red. Her chest heaved as she gasped for breath. She slumped to the floor, covering her mouth, trying not to sob aloud.
But tears rolled down her cheeks anyway.
How much debt did her family still owe?
She didn't know. Probably close to 100 million yen.
With that much debt, how long would it take to pay it back with a regular job?
She had no choice. She would have to enact her original plan.
But once that plan began, she would no longer have time to work part-time and no stable source of income.
What she needed most now was a job with short hours that still provided enough for her to live on.
The easiest method, of course, was to sell herself. Quick money, flexible hours. Just lie there.
But Sakiko would never do that. She'd rather die.
Her only option now was—
She took out her phone and stared at Toru's Line profile.
...
At the mansion, Toru sat in his study, ready to head out for a night run.
But first, he looked at the screen in front of him and said:
"Draw the black tech this time."
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)