It had already been more than ten days since Tokai Natural was kicked out of the Tokai household.
If not for her relatively decent luck—being discovered by the director of that orphanage—perhaps she and her child would have already frozen to death amidst the steadily dropping temperatures.
As to why the orphanage director—a place within the Tokai family's sphere of influence, partly funded by the Tokai family—had chosen to take Tokai Natural in temporarily, she had no idea, nor did she need to understand.
Right now, she lacked the energy to unravel truths.
Thus, for these ten or so days, Tokai Natural used every bit of her spare time to do a little work.
Most tasks at the orphanage were paid hourly, so Tokai Natural could at least earn a bit every day.
Not much—only about a thousand yen a day.
For a daily wage in Japan, it was pitifully low.
But considering she had food and shelter here, and the orphanage itself was always short on funds—it wasn't entirely unacceptable.
To Tokai Natural, living quietly in this orphanage would actually have been fine, but, as mentioned before, this place was partially supported by the Tokai family's funds.
Many of the orphanage's residents were orphaned Uma.
If any Uma showed strong talent, the Tokai family would adopt her immediately.
Precisely because of this, the Tokai family regularly visited to inspect operations, which was exactly why Tokai Natural hadn't come here in the first place.
She had never thought anyone here would shelter her.
But that no longer mattered.
Because now, having finally arrived in Tokyo, those past concerns no longer meant anything.
She had to plan out her next step.
First, having a child meant the types of odd jobs she could choose from were severely limited.
Second, her education…
Tokai Natural's educational qualifications weren't particularly high—certainly not high enough to easily find stable employment.
Third, she had no phone, so looking up jobs online was impossible.
Finally, she had very little money left—perhaps just a few thousand yen at most. Considering Tokyo's notoriously high cost of living…
Even choosing a net café for shelter, Tokai Natural could probably only sustain herself for about ten days. Or maybe even less.
If she had internet access, perhaps basic employment issues could be somewhat relieved…
But…
Looking down at the baby in her arms, Tokai Natural could only let out a long breath.
If she were alone, she might manage survival in Tokyo somehow—but with her daughter in tow, it was…
"My only option would be family-run restaurants or something like that…"
Most workplaces wouldn't let her bring along a newborn.
That left very few choices.
But before even that, she needed to find a net café.
Being without a phone caused countless inconveniences. First, no mobile maps—paper maps or street maps designed for tourists didn't mark specific shops.
Thus, Tokai Natural wandered aimlessly throughout the city.
In the end, as the snowy night arrived, she still hadn't found her intended destination.
That was only natural. Tokyo, as one of the world's largest metropolitan cities, had a complexity of layout Tokai Natural had never before experienced.
Her finding nothing was inevitable.
Eventually, without even realizing it, she had wandered into a residential neighborhood.
Yet, even here, she couldn't find her way out.
After all, she had no map.
...
Maruzensky—the legendary JK who had somehow managed never to graduate from Tracen Academy since the Showa era—was always the center of speculations regarding her actual age. Although not the most popular topic, it was still one of Tracen's unresolved mysteries.
Maruzensky paid no attention to those discussions.
Most of her time was spent dealing with student council affairs, occasionally slipping out to race cars for fun.
Today was yet another typical night for racing cars. But as Tracen Academy lacked a dedicated garage, Maruzensky always parked her cars off-campus.
And since she occasionally didn't return to her dorm, she had simply bought herself a house in Tokyo.
Because of this, she was now walking along the road toward her home.
Turning a corner, Maruzensky spotted an Uma squatting outside the wall of the house she'd purchased, clutching a baby.
Seeing this, Maruzensky stopped in her tracks.
At this moment, Symboli Rudolf was still a piece of trash when it came to protecting Uma rights, and the official organizations seemed willing to turn a blind eye.
So, with Shinzan absent, and CB freely indulging herself, Maruzensky could be considered the sole conscience left in the Tracen student council—though even she didn't have much of it.
Still, despite that, Maruzensky wouldn't casually take in just any random stranger.
But if the stranger was an Uma, things were slightly different.
Uma didn't have that many malicious thoughts—at worst, some might have awful personalities or terrible ways of handling things.
And judging from the sight of her clutching a child…
Could she be a country Uma tricked into coming to Tokyo...?
Thinking of this possibility—
Maruzensky stepped toward her.
The scattered sound of footsteps drew closer, causing Tokai Natural to raise her head.
An Uma was approaching. Standing beyond the streetlamp's illumination, Tokai Natural couldn't see her face clearly.
But once she stepped under the lamp, Tokai Natural immediately recognized her.
The one known as the "Supercar," Maruzensky.
Looking at her, Tokai Natural couldn't help but wonder why she was approaching.
"Are you alone?"
A polite question, without any dead slang or colloquialism. This was probably Maruzensky's standard attitude when meeting someone new.
"...Yes."
Tokai Natural didn't understand why the other party would ask such a question, but even if the other had some ulterior motive, she had no way to resist.
Her frail health already made her weaker than an average Uma.
Though she was still stronger than humans, compared to a racing Uma, resistance was pointless.
Besides, there weren't many security cameras in these residential streets. If something really happened, Tokai Natural could only accept her bad luck.
Perhaps sensing Tokai Natural's brief vigilance followed by resignation—
Maruzensky didn't come closer, but merely watched her and asked another question:
"Do you have nowhere to stay?"
"Mm."
The same short response, though quicker than before, clearly showing she had let down her guard completely.
"Want to stay at my place?"
She bluntly asked the most important question.
Facing Maruzensky's proposal, Tokai Natural didn't immediately respond.
She simply stared at Maruzensky.
The two stood there, quietly looking at each other under the streetlamp.
Finally, Maruzensky broke the silence:
"It's just a sudden whim of kindness, nothing more. So, will you come?"
Listening to her explanation, Tokai Natural didn't hesitate this time.
Because in those few short seconds—she had realized something.
If it was just herself, she wouldn't have thought so much.
And more importantly, she couldn't run faster than the other party, nor could she fight back.
So—
Holding her child tighter, Tokai Natural gave a slight nod.
"Mm."
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T/N: OMGGG IS IT GONNA BE LIKE THOSE KDRAMAS WHERE THE CEO FINDS OUT HE HAS A SON (TEIO) WITH THE ONE NIGHT STAND HE HAS (NATURAL) AND TEIO IS ALL GROWN UP AND THE CEO FALLS FOR THE ONE NIGHT STAND BUT THERES OTHER MEN (UMAS) AROUND HER NOW THAT IS INFATUATED WITH HER OMGGGGGGGG THIS IS GONNA BE PEAK!!!!!!