manynovel Page 83
Page 83
"I just saw Riki-chan."
She ran out of RiNG crying, but Nagasaki Motoyo didn't call out to her, and Shiina Tatsuki, immersed in her own grief, didn't notice her presence either.
Seeing Shiina Ritsuki like that, she understood—whatever Gen Xudou wanted to do, he must have failed. Otherwise, Ritsuki wouldn't look so grief-stricken, and Xudou wouldn't be so... lost and vulnerable, so heartbreaking.
【CryCHIC】...I guess it's over.
However, the sadness that arose from this was nothing compared to the heartache of seeing Gen Heo-do in such a dazed state.
Her destiny was never with the band. Therefore, she didn't experience the same level of pain as the others.
and so……
"Xu Dou, let's go home."
Holding his arm with one hand and smoothing the mess on his chest with the other, Nagasaki Motoyo's voice was very soft, as if she was afraid of disturbing Genji's pain.
Don't dwell on those sad things anymore.
Stop dwelling on problems that aren't your problems.
In the past, you rescued me from the loneliness and sorrow of losing my family, and gave me someone to rely on again, and happiness to look forward to.
This time... it's my turn to comfort you.
No matter what others do... I will always be on your side.
In Nagasaki Motoyo's slightly melancholic yet gentle blue eyes, he saw undisguised favoritism and care.
It was like a faint glimmer of light finally appearing in the deepest darkness, allowing one to catch their breath.
“…Mm.” Yuan Xudou responded softly.
亻尔零②2疑珊⊙爸貳“回家”。
Chapter 117 I've Found You, Toyokawa Shoko (Part 5)
The dimly lit streets were shrouded in a pale yellow twilight, the faulty streetlights flickered, and the gradually turning autumn wind made the exposed skin feel slightly chilly.
The girls who were still lingering on the road chatted in small groups, discussing topics brimming with youthful energy, such as "The coffee at that shop we went to today was really good" and "Where should we go next time we go out?" before saying goodbye and heading home.
Toyokawa Shoko pulled her collar tighter to prevent the swirling wind from getting into her thin clothes and stealing away her already meager warmth. She turned her head away, ignoring the carefree laughter, and hurried into the alley beside the street.
Her face, which was more pale than healthy white, cautiously looked around to make sure there were no suspicious-looking people around before she relaxed a little.
Then, my relaxed thoughts were immediately overtaken by another uncomfortable feeling.
...I'm so hungry, I want to eat white rice.
Smelling the aroma of food wafting from the window bathed in a soft yellow glow, Toyokawa Shoko's dim golden eyes glazed over for a moment. Having only eaten a piece of bread for lunch, an uncontrollable hunger began to surge in her stomach.
Especially when she heard the sounds coming from that house, which seemed to be a family chatting happily, her vision seemed to become somewhat blurred.
……Home……
However, the thought of the dwindling balance in her bank account jolted her awake. She gritted her teeth and fled the path as if in a flight of courage.
Although she vaguely recalled that person again... Toyokawa Shoko understood that warmth and happiness did not belong to her now. Lingering on those feelings would only cause the weakness she had so painstakingly suppressed to resurface.
I can't let any more weak thoughts creep in... Since I've chosen to do this, there's nothing to complain about, no matter how bitter the outcome.
Having reaffirmed her stubbornness, Toyokawa Shoko wiped the blurriness from her eyes and raised her head with a firm gaze once more.
Then, I saw the incredibly familiar silhouette standing at the end of the empty street, the one that had flashed back countless times in my dreams, etched deep into my memory.
"...Eh...?"
With a much somber expression, Gen Xudou stood there, calmly watching Toyokawa Shoko, whose body was trembling like a leaf in the wind.
As if by instinct, my heart pounded violently, driven by shock and fear rather than the joy of reunion.
...I can't let Xu Dou see me like this...!
As soon as this thought crossed her mind, Toyokawa Shoko instinctively turned around, wanting to escape as she always had.
"Are you still going to run away?"
However, the calm voice behind her slowed her down, preventing her from taking another step.
Instead of chasing after Toyokawa Shoko as she fled, Genji Koto simply stood there, his questioning voice soft yet clear in her ears.
"Where do you intend to run off to this time, Xiangzi?"
He found the person he had been searching for, but he didn't show any joy.
Shoko Toyokawa turned around stiffly, slowly lowered her head, and walked to him.
Her once bright sky-blue hair now appears much duller, much like the girl's current mood—gloomy and conflicted.
Breathing heavily, Toyokawa Shoko exhaled a hot breath and spoke coldly.
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"How long are you going to keep this up? The Xu Dou I know isn't the kind of person who would relentlessly chase after someone like this."
“The Xiangzi I know isn’t the kind of person who would cut ties with a friend without a word,” Yuan Xudou retorted calmly.
They were clearly the people who knew each other best and liked each other the most, yet they were saying things they didn't mean and attacking each other, mocking each other... A strong sense of discomfort stuck in her throat, making Toyokawa Shoko so upset that she could hardly breathe.
Even so, she just clenched her fists and continued to be stubborn.
"This only shows that... we don't really understand each other."
"Really?" Even someone as calm as Yuan Xudou was a little angry because of her words, which seemed to be denying all their past relationship.
"Then why was I able to find you?" His hand clenched slightly.
In a bustling metropolis like Tokyo, to go alone to find someone who is deliberately avoiding you.
Despite being the ex-husband's daughter, she has distanced herself from the places she used to frequent and has instead hidden away in this remote and secluded rental apartment area.
With all contact and whereabouts severed, past experience rendered useless, and repeated visits to the Toyokawa family yielded no results. There was no direction to guide them, no glimmer of hope.
"Why do you think... I was able to find you?"
Seeing the look in Toyokawa Shoko's eyes, which suddenly shifted from confusion to panic as if she had considered that possibility, Gen Xudou took a deep breath.
“It was you who came to me first,” he murmured softly.
"Xiangzi, it's because you wanted to see me... that's why I had the opportunity to find you."
Yuan Xudou revealed a somewhat self-deprecating smile.
"This is what it means to be of one mind."
"Ah..."
Shocked by that fact, Toyokawa Shoko involuntarily took a step back, uttering a trembling, dazed sound.
How could this be...%er韭崎H#瘤九伊衫? ⒏)陸〕It would be like this...
However, despite still denying it in her heart, Toyokawa Shoko had already understood... Yes, this was the truth.
It was because even in this situation, she would sometimes miss Yuan Shixu and hope that the two of them could continue to be together... that he was able to find her almost instinctively without any information.
Especially now, after such a difficult life has continued for some time, this thought has taken root and grown unconsciously, eventually turning into this twisted thought that reconnects the two of them.
The weakness within yourself that you thought you had killed has never truly disappeared...
Now that I've been exposed... there's no point in saying anything against my conscience anymore.
Like a fortified city wall suddenly collapsing and a mask being ripped off, Toyokawa Shoko bit her lower lip, her expression wavering, and her previously aggressive and cold tone vanished.
"Well, so what..." she said, as if making a last-ditch effort, gripping her left arm tightly with her right hand in a defiant stance. "I'm not going back to the band anyway...!"
Yuan Xudou silently watched her, then slowly spoke, interrupting her self-deprecating words.
"【CryCHIC】 has been disbanded by me."
Toyokawa Shoko was stunned.
“I didn’t keep looking for you like this just to get you back into the band.” Ignoring her dejected expression, Yuan Xudou said to himself, “I just want to know… what made you decide to leave the band.”
After a long while, Toyokawa Shoko, who had barely managed to process the news that "CryCHIC has disbanded," seemed to have become even paler.
Why...why is this happening...?
Clearly, with Xu Dou around, the band should be able to keep going even if I leave...!
As if sensing the shock and confusion in her heart, Yuan Xudou let out a soft breath.
“After you left, everyone was looking for you… Searching for people is really tiring. Sometimes, I even confuse other people with you.”
He spoke calmly, the weariness in his dark eyes genuine. "Besides, this is a band you formed yourself."
"Since even you have abandoned me... what reason do I have to keep it?"
"..."
Even though it sounds simple... Toyokawa Shoko understands that things can't end so easily as he says.
Especially... at such close range, she could sense Yuan Xudou's subtle, suppressed melancholy. Feeling somewhat guilty, she opened her mouth, but was interrupted by Yuan Xudou, who clearly didn't want to continue the topic.
"Now, can you tell me why you did this?"
The guilt she felt earlier was overshadowed by the desire to continue hiding the truth. Toyokawa Shoko remained silent for a long time, but ultimately did not give any reason.
He wasn't disappointed; seeing her still so stubborn, Yuan Xudou felt a sense of "I knew it," as if it were only natural.
"...Since you won't tell me, then I'll tell you myself."
He slowly took out a stack of photocopied paper and hung it in front of Toyokawa Shoko.
“A few days ago, I checked the Toyokawa family’s cash flow. Although the subsequent accounting work was very discreet, large transactions will always leave traces.”
"Stock market funds, company financial reports and cash flow... During our summer vacation, the assets related to the Toyokawa family suddenly fluctuated by tens of billions of yen. It was hard not to notice. There were also news reports of similar large-scale financial fraud cases, but no specific targets have been identified yet."
"Following this lead, I investigated the management of the various publicly known companies owned by the Toyokawa family. Then, around that time, I discovered the management reshuffling."
"'Toyokawa Real Estate'...a company under the Toyokawa family. The original manager, 'Toyokawa Kiyotaka,' was removed from the position of president after that period."
As Yuan Xudou stared at him, his expression grew more fragile with each word he spoke, and now he was looking at him with pleading eyes, even... looking somewhat pitiful.
He closed his eyes. "That was your father."
"Because he was defrauded of tens of billions of yen, which disgraced the Toyokawa family's reputation, he was not only removed from the management, but also lost out in the factional struggle and was kicked out by the Toyokawa family."
"You only learned of this news after you went back home for summer vacation, so you gave up your privileged status as the eldest daughter of the Toyokawa family and left with nothing to find your father... Am I right?"
...not a fraction off.
Aside from not having guessed that her argument with her grandfather about her father was even more coherent and detailed than she herself knew.
Toyokawa Shoko herself only knew that her father was deemed incompetent by the family due to losses and was subsequently kicked out of the house. She never imagined that there might be factional struggles involved afterward. She simply believed her mother's judgment and thought that her father had been framed, not that he was the "useless fellow" her grandfather described.
And it was precisely because he understood each other's personalities so well that he was able to easily guess Toyokawa Shoko's thoughts and choices after all that had happened.
“Since…you already know…why did you still—” Her voice trembled.
“…Investigating the flow of funds from the Toyokawa family is something I only recently considered.” Gen Xudou lowered his eyes slightly. “I’ve already said, I’m not here to get you back into the band.”
"...I just wanted to know."
He seemed to sigh very softly.