After getting permission, Yuto went upstairs.
Once he was out of sight, Chiko's face turned cold with anger, determined to find out exactly which idiot had been gossiping about Hanako today.
Reaching the door, Yuto knocked three times.
"Who is it?" Hanako's voice was cold and deeply exhausted.
"It's me, Aunt Hanako," Yuto replied.
"Oh, it's you, Yuto-chan. What is it?"
"Aunt Hanako, I wanted to ask you about something."
"Then wait just a little bit, okay, Yuto-chan?"
Hearing her voice—exhausted to the extreme yet still carrying warmth and affection—moved Yuto.
After a few minutes, Hanako opened the door.
She wore a tired but gentle smile, the dampness around her brows suggesting she had just washed her face.
She stepped aside while looking at him with warm eyes. "Come in quickly, Yuto-chan."
Yuto walked in, noting that the room was neat and orderly despite the argument from the previous night.
He sat down across from her.
"What is it, Yuto-chan? Do you need something from me?," she asked.
Her gentle words could not mask her exhausted appearance.
'She looks so drained,' Yuto sighed inwardly. "Aunt Hanako, I wanted to ask about last night..."
The instant he spoke, her expression shifted.
Light and shadow seemed to alternate across her face as a myriad of emotions cycled through her eyes, ultimately settling into a deep trace of self-mockery and sorrow.
Hanako spoke in a low voice, her face carrying a trace of misery, though she never broke down into sobs.
Yuto's heart tangled with sympathy, pity, and anger, culminating in a single sigh.
He had thought that after half a lifetime of hardship, Hanako had finally found someone to belong with.
Instead, she had been looked down on and deceived.
That boyfriend of hers—the manager from the Shinomiya Group—already had a family of his own.
If Hanako had not happened to see his phone by chance last night, she would still have been kept in the dark.
"Maybe I really don't have the right to seek happiness," Hanako forced a smile.
Her voice remained calm but carried subtle threads of trembling. In her eyes, there was only entwined sorrow and bitterness.
Any hatred and anger had been no more than a gust of wind, appearing for a moment before vanishing.
Yuto took hold of her hand.
His emotions surged, but when the words reached his lips, he didn't know how to comfort her.
"He's a manager at the Shinomiya Group with a bright future. How could someone like that stay with a woman like me?" She shook her head. "And me... how did I not think this through properly? I swore I would never let men deceive me again, yet I still kept longing for someone to rely on. I'm the stupid one. I'm the stupid one..."
Once a person starts pouring their heart out, it becomes difficult to stop.
Hanako spoke on and on until she finally could not hold back her tears.
A bitter laugh escaped her, accompanied by falling tears.
Plink— The tears splashed onto the back of Yuto's hand like scattered raindrops.
Yuto's feelings were hard to put into words.
He knew Hanako was an exceptionally strong person, otherwise, she never would have been able to hold up this entire karaoke club by herself.
But at this moment, that strong woman was insecure and ashamed of herself, blaming no one but herself in her rambling words.
She showed no hatred or anger.
Yuto had never truly known the details of Hanako's past, only overhearing bits and pieces that didn't reveal the whole picture.
Yet, from the time he met her, he never once thought she was beneath others.
The proprietress of an entertainment club was not a profession society respected. Even in a country where the sex industry was permitted, it was considered low-class work.
Yuto wouldn't presume to judge those societal values, but he knew Hanako was a good person.
Many of the employees in the club were girls who had gone astray, taken in and saved by Hanako.
He had heard the women praising her goodness, and even the owners of the other entertainment establishments spoke of her with admiration.
He had often thought that if her fate had been different, she would have been someone who stood above others and shone brightly.
But fate always liked to make fools of people.
"Aunt Hanako," Yuto sighed, saying nothing more as he placed his other hand over hers.
"Oh dear, I actually cried in front of Yuto-chan. That really won't do." Hanako withdrew her hand and wiped the corners of her eyes.
Her expression still carried sorrow, but she forced a faint smile.
Even though she had wiped away the tears, her eyes remained red. For a woman in her forties, such a sight was not common.
A young girl with a soft heart spilling her emotions and crying would be perfectly normal, but for an adult battered by life, crying had become a luxury.
"It's all right, Aunt Hanako." Yuto pressed his lips together, the corners of his mouth rising into a soft smile.
"All right, after talking with you, I do feel much better. Thank you for listening to my complain," Hanako said, offering her usual smile.
Yuto shook his head. "No, I'm the one who should be grateful. The fact that you were willing to tell me all this... I'm thankful for that too."
His words made Hanako laugh.
She reached out and rubbed his head. "Yuto-chan really is such a good boy."
She stood up, leaving Yuto looking a bit puzzled. "The club's about to open. It's time for me to go downstairs and have a look."
Talking with him had grounded her mood again.
"Then I should be going too," Yuto said, taking a few steps toward the door before turning back.
"Aunt Hanako, the important things always arrive a little late."
Hanako froze for a moment before offering a quiet smile. "Yes... the important things always arrive a little late."
After leaving the karaoke club and walking down the street, Yuto kept thinking about Hanako's vulnerability.
'Everyone has moments of weakness.'
He returned to his restaurant with a little time left before opening, gathering himself to welcome the evening's customers.
He washed his face and swept the area out front to clear the dust and debris that had gathered over the past few days.
If he was going to open for business, he wanted the place looking its best.
Hanging up the noren, he turned on all the lights.
The time for to the restaurant to open was about to begin!
...
Unexpectedly, Kasumigaoka did not arrive early today.
Remembering how he had provoked her earlier, Yuto pulled out his phone, finding it flooded with her messages.
[8:46 a.m. Kasumigaoka: Why exactly did you buy it?]
[Kasumigaoka: ???]
[Kasumigaoka: Not talking anymore???]
[Kasumigaoka: (angry.jpg) ×3]
[11:46 a.m. Kasumigaoka: You there?]
[Kasumigaoka: ....]
[2:00 p.m. Kasumigaoka: Kamisaka-kun? Kamisaka-kun?]
[Kasumigaoka: KAMISAKA YUTO!!!!]
[5:34 p.m. Kasumigaoka: I'm not going to the restaurant tonight. Machida-san wants to talk with me.]
[Kasumigaoka: Why haven't you replied to me all day?]
[Kasumigaoka: Reply when you see this.]
Looking at the screen, Yuto could practically see the girl transitioning from calm to exasperated.
The mental image made him laugh.
Having left her hanging all day, he figured he ought to reply, so his fingers tapped out a single character.
[Kamisaka Yuto: Mm.]
One character was enough to tease her more and he put the phone away.
Flipping the sign from "Closed" to "Open," he walked back behind the counter.
Waiting for the first customer always brought a bit of excitement, as there was no way to know who would walk through the door.
Slide—
The restaurant door opened.
Yuto looked toward the entrance with a trace of surprise. It was the first time his employee had shown up punctually.
Accompanying the dragon maid were Lucoa, Fafnir, and the Emperor of Demise.
Kanna had already mentioned she wouldn't be coming tonight, so her absence was expected.
"Welcome," Yuto greeted them with a smile before addressing his employee. "Tohru, this is the first time you've shown up for work on time."
The lively dragon girl grinned with delight, prompting Yuto to guess the reason.
"Boss, Boss, Father has allowed me to stay in this world!" Tohru ran over to deliver the news.
Realization dawned on him.
His gaze turned toward the Emperor of Demise with a trace of inquiry.
The older dragon's expression remained as stern and steady as ever, though the thick beard covering half his face made reading his emotions difficult.
Meeting Yuto's questioning look, the Emperor gave a firm nod.
Yuto looked back at Tohru, who stood there with sparkling eyes, and smiled. He didn't know how she had managed to persuade her father, but her staying was a good thing.
It meant he would be able to hand off more chores.
The Emperor of Demise walked to the counter and sat in the very center. Perhaps due to his imposing presence, both Fafnir and Lucoa remained quiet as they took seats off to the side.
Tohru took her place beside the counter, wearing an eager smile.
"What would you like to eat today?" Yuto asked the Emperor.
As long as someone sat there peacefully, they were a customer of the restaurant.
The Emperor was silent for a moment before speaking. "A simple vegetable dish will do."
His voice was calm and steady as a mountain, but the words themselves were hard to believe.
Yuto was stunned, almost wondering if he had misheard him.
The man before him was the leader of the Chaos Dragon clan from another world, yet he had ordered a simple vegetable dish.
The mismatch was jarring.
Hearing the order, Fafnir and Lucoa exchanged strange expressions, while Tohru remained unbothered.
"No meat dishes?" Yuto asked.
"Simple vegetables will be enough," the Emperor replied in that composed manner.
The steadier he was, the stronger the contrast felt!
"Please wait a moment," Yuto said, accepting the confirmation.
He turned to Lucoa and Fafnir. "And what would you like?"
Both of them shook their heads with a serious face.
Understanding their reluctance to eat in front of the chaos faction's leader, Yuto smiled and asked no more.
He turned around and headed into the kitchen. A
simple vegetable dish would be easy enough.
"No eggs either," the Emperor's voice called out just as Yuto opened the refrigerator.
"All right!" Yuto took out a round eggplant.
After a moment of thought, he decided to make braised eggplant. It was a classic vegetarian dish that, if made properly, was just as satisfying as meat.
As he washed the vegetable, he mused over the situation.
'The boss of the Chaos Dragon clan is actually a vegan...'
It was hard to accept.
A giant dragon that ate vegetables instead of meat defied all logic.
In comparison, Tohru and Lucoa were much more in line with a typical dragon's diet.
A faint smile touched his lips.
With a few deft flashes of his knife, he cut the eggplant into large chunks. If the pieces were too small for braised eggplant, it lost much of its texture.
He heated a pot of oil, and once it was hot, he used a large skimmer to lower the chunks in for frying.
While there were many ways to prepare the dish, Yuto preferred to deep-fry the eggplant until golden and soft.
This ensured that when it was stir-fried later, it would develop a crisp exterior while remaining tender inside.
Once the pieces turned golden, he lifted them out and transferred the hot oil to another container.
Next, he sliced green and red chili peppers and chopped scallions, ginger, and garlic.
With the wok ready, he tossed in the aromatics to stir-fry.
Scallions, ginger, and garlic naturally drew out flavor, and with the peppers added, the aroma became rich and aggressive.
Out in the dining area, even the Emperor of Demise, who had maintained a steady expression the entire time, showed a faint flicker of interest in his eyes.
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