Sakiko ran toward the Western-style mansion she was familiar with.
Along the way, she looked terrified. Every passerby seemed like a yakuza member in her eyes, filling her with panic.
Although she had experienced the painful fall from a noble young lady to a poor one, she had also endured the pain and anger of seeing her father paralyzed at home like an invalid while she, a first-year high school student, had to support him.
But in Sakiko's world, she had never seen the true darkness of society.
A father who sold his own daughter. Yakuza members smiling sinisterly while planning to sell her to an adult entertainment establishment.
These were things many people would find difficult, or even impossible, to encounter in their entire lives.
Yet these things happened to Sakiko.
As she ran, she thought sadly, why was her life so despairing?
When she arrived at the familiar Western-style mansion, she looked at the residence she had lived in for over ten years. It no longer belonged to the Togawa Family, but in Sakiko's heart, it was still her real home, not that dilapidated shack filled with the smell of alcohol.
Sakiko did not have the key.
Standing at the door, she pressed the doorbell. After reaching the entrance of the mansion, her fearful heart slowly calmed a little.
Inside the house, Haibara, who was typing on her computer while thinking, frowned when she heard the doorbell.
"It's so late. Who is ringing the doorbell?"
She knew it definitely could not be Toru.
Not to mention that Toru had the house key, even if he forgot to bring it, he had many ways to enter the house.
Haibara opened a program on her computer and connected it to the door monitor.
"It's Sakiko? What's wrong with her, why is she crying?"
Haibara was a little surprised and unlocked the door.
Sakiko walked through the courtyard and entered the house.
Haibara, sitting in front of the raised platform, turned her chair and asked, "Sakiko, what happened to you?"
Seeing Haibara, Sakiko, who had already wiped away her tears, felt her eyes turn red again.
Sakiko quickly took two steps forward and hugged her, burying her head in Haibara's arms.
Fortunately, Haibara was sitting on a tall chair. Otherwise, given their heights, she would not have been able to hug her at all.
"Okay, okay, it's alright. Don't cry."
Haibara gently patted Sakiko's back like an older sister.
Sakiko did not know why, but even though Haibara was only an elementary school student, Sakiko felt like the elementary school student in front of her, while Haibara was the gentle older sister.
Haibara seemed cold, but her heart was actually sensitive and gentle. She knew Sakiko must have suffered some grievance, so she comforted her softly.
After a while, Sakiko stopped crying.
She shyly lifted her head from Haibara's embrace.
Looking at Haibara, who seemed like a little adult in front of her, Sakiko hesitated, unsure if she should tell her what was on her mind.
Taking a deep breath, Sakiko made up her mind.
From today onward, the cowardly me is dead. The me now will be the reborn Sakiko!
Just like when she decided to attend her former friends' live performance. It was about gathering the courage to apologize to them and express her true feelings.
Even though the song Haruhikage at the live performance had completely broken her down, Sakiko's resolve had not changed.
Especially after experiencing her father's betrayal at home and the threats and intimidation from those yakuza groups, Sakiko did not fall into despair. Instead, it made her stronger and allowed her to grow instantly.
Sakiko told Haibara everything that had happened.
She began from when she was still the young lady of the Togawa Family, recounting everything bit by bit.
Haibara did not interrupt, listening quietly.
In the past, although she knew Sakiko must have gone through some family changes to become the way she was now, Haibara was not very clear about what exactly had happened, and she had never been interested in asking about other people's pasts.
Now that Sakiko was telling her story herself, Haibara finally understood her past experiences.
It gave her a feeling of shared suffering.
Both of them had their own misfortunes. Although Haibara believed her own misfortune was much worse than Sakiko's, misfortune was not something that should be compared.
When she heard that Sakiko's father had fallen into gambling debt and even planned to sell his own daughter, Haibara was completely stunned.
She had never imagined she would see such a beastly father.
Haibara said angrily, "How dare someone like that call himself a father? But Sakiko, you too. When you knew he had gambled away the family fortune, you should have cut ties with him completely."
Sakiko said shamefully, "At that time, I didn't know gambling could be so harmful. If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have made that choice."
Haibara felt her tone might have been too harsh, so she comforted her.
"You can't be blamed entirely. After all, you were still young. It's normal not to understand some things."
Sakiko hummed in response, then suddenly felt something strange.
Why am I being told I'm young by an elementary school student? Are elementary school students nowadays so capable that they're already as mature as adults?
Then haven't I lived these past ten-plus years for nothing?
Sakiko felt a strange mix of gain and loss. It felt like she had truly wasted her life, being less perceptive than a child.
Haibara noticed her expression and quickly stopped talking, afraid she might discourage Sakiko further.
"Fujiwara-kun, he'll be alright, right?"
Sakiko began to worry.
At that time, because she was too scared, she left after Toru persuaded her.
"It's just a few yakuza members. What could happen to him?"
Sakiko did not know Toru's true identity, but Haibara did, so she was not worried at all.
Even though Haibara, like Sakiko, often became terrified when facing the Black Organization, she did not care about ordinary yakuza groups.
"Sakiko, you must be very tired now. Stay here tonight and go rest."
Haibara completely treated herself as the mistress of the house while advising her.
Sakiko hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.
"I won't rest until I see Fujiwara-kun is safe."
"As you wish."
Haibara returned to her cold demeanor and sat in front of the computer, continuing her research on pharmaceuticals.
After spending time with Haibara, Sakiko had already grown familiar with this elementary school student's personality.
She sat beside Haibara and glanced curiously at the computer screen.
Haibara did not mind her looking. She was confident that ordinary people would not understand what was on the screen anyway.
And indeed, Sakiko felt dizzy after just one glance.
Haibara was writing something similar to a thesis. Not only was everything written in English, but the chemical formulas were so complex that Sakiko almost felt like kneeling and kowtowing.
She became even more depressed.
Are elementary school students this capable now?
Not only is their English so good, but they already study chemical formulas that I cannot even understand?
Sakiko did not wait long before the mansion door opened and Toru walked in.
She quickly stood up and jogged over to him.
"Fujiwara-kun, are you, are you injured?"
Although she knew Toru was very capable, he had faced members from three yakuza groups. What if he had been injured?
Toru smiled.
"I'm fine. You don't need to worry, and you don't need to worry about the Matsuba Society retaliating against you. I'll handle it for you."
Even Sakiko, who had strong self-esteem and hated being pitied or helped, could not refuse at this moment.
Because she knew this matter was beyond her ability. Facing those lawless yakuza groups, she truly had no way to deal with them.
Sakiko hesitated.
"Fujiwara-kun, after all they are a group of yakuza members. How are you going to solve it?"
In Sakiko's eyes, Toru was very capable, but he was still just an ordinary university student. How could he solve something like this?
Toru said, "Sakiko, do you know my father's position?"
Sakiko shook her head.
"He is the Chairman of the Japan National Security Committee, which oversees the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. These yakuza groups may not fear grassroots police officers, but they would not dare act arrogantly in front of high-ranking police officials."
"If I ask my father to step in for something like this, it can be solved with a single word."
Of course, that was a lie. Toru would never ask the Fujiwara family to deal with such a small matter. He had plenty of ways to handle it himself.
But Sakiko believed him.
Toru was willing to ask his family for help just to solve her problem. That made her feel both touched and guilty.
"What about that person?"
Toru knew she was referring to her useless father.
He replied indifferently, "You still care about him?"
"It's not that I care. From the moment he sold me, I was already in despair."
"That man is your father after all. I won't do anything to him. I just let him fend for himself. As for whether he can escape the pursuit of those yakuza groups, that has nothing to do with me."
"Thank you, Fujiwara-kun."
Sakiko sniffled, her voice choking with emotion.
At this moment, she had completely made up her mind to draw a line with her past and sever that father-daughter relationship forever.
"You've been through too much tonight. Go get some rest first."
Toru comforted her.
Sakiko nodded gently and walked upstairs in a daze.
The mansion had many rooms. As Sakiko's former home, she was very familiar with it.
The room she used to live in had now become a guest room.
Returning to the place she had lived in for more than ten years, even though the furniture and decorations had changed, Sakiko still felt a faint sense of security.
She took out her phone and dialed a number.
"Sakiko?"
"Misumi, let me forget everything."
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
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