January 3, 1991, afternoon. Niseko Gokurakukan.
Snow had been falling since morning, and a layer of whitish frost had accumulated on the outside of the glass dome.
The maintenance crew had just come down from the edge of the roof; the workers had not even taken off their cold-weather gear, and the melted snow from their boots had already turned into a puddle of grayish-white mud in the logistics corridor.
The tourists could not see this.
What they saw were snowfields, hot springs, lights, and the towering glass dome.
People were taking photos in the lobby, and the laughter of skiers drifted in intermittently from the automatic doors.
Although the number of people had dropped significantly compared to its peak, the atmosphere of a "New Hokkaido Vacation Paradise" as described in magazines still remained largely intact.
But in the operations office, no one could smile.
Nozaki spread the December heavy oil consumption report on the table and placed the records for glass dome defrosting and seal replacement beside it.
The final document was a photocopy of the transfer materials package that Saionji Construction had originally handed over to Seibu.
"Calculate it again."
The assistant standing by the table looked down at the calculation sheet, their voice very low.
"I have already calculated it three times. The December heavy oil consumption is 21% higher than the stable operation estimate in the materials package. The costs for dome defrosting and seal maintenance have also exceeded the monthly budget for the snow season."
Nozaki did not speak.
The assistant added another sentence.
"If this trend continues in January, the maintenance budget will be burned through before the snow season even ends."
The office was silent for a few seconds.
Outside the window, another burst of snow hit the glass, rustling softly.
The lights from the dome shone through the layer of frost, looking beautiful, but as Nozaki looked at that light now, he only felt that it was spending money every minute it stayed on.
In fact, it really was burning money every single minute and second.
He picked up the transfer materials package and flipped to the page on the winter energy consumption model.
"Higher during the trial operation period, will fall back after stable operation."
"The glass dome insulation structure has been optimized with composite layers and can adapt to operations during the Hokkaido snow season."
"After initial debugging of the underground constant temperature system, energy consumption can enter a stable range."
When reading these sentences back then, they were beautiful and very convincing.
The materials provided by Saionji Construction were complete enough, the bank was willing to accept them, and no one inside Seibu was willing to ask any difficult questions about a project that perfectly supported their resort layout in Hokkaido.
Now, Gokurakukan had been taken over.
As the economic situation worsened, revenue was decreasing, but operating costs were increasing.
Was Saionji Construction not supposed to be known for its quality?
Nozaki closed the materials package and picked up the phone.
"Connect me to the Tokyo Engineering Management Department."
The assistant looked up.
"Now?"
"Now." Nozaki looked at the report on the table. "Tell them that the discrepancy between Gokurakukan's snow season operating costs and the transfer materials package is too large."
"Have Tokyo send a formal inquiry to Saionji Construction, requesting an explanation for the winter energy consumption model, dome maintenance costs, and insulation material replacement records."
The assistant hesitated for a moment.
"What about the wording?"
"Use 'annual audit'."
Nozaki threw the pen back onto the table.
"We will ask first and see how they respond."
That evening, at the Cost Management Headquarters of Saionji Construction.
Gondo sat behind his desk, looking at the photocopy of the inquiry sent by the Seibu Engineering Management Department.
The wording of the document was very polite.
Every question stopped at the engineering and operational level, looking like just a part of an annual cost review.
But Gondo could see what these questions were really asking.
Why the heavy oil consumption had not fallen back.
Why the dome maintenance costs had not come down.
Why the snow season model in the original transfer materials package looked so much better than the current operating reports.
Gondo flipped the document to the last page, his gaze stopping on the confirmation column from the Cost Management Headquarters back then.
His seal was there.
Gondo put away the photocopies with some irritation.
The Eldest Miss had returned to the country; everything would get better once he saw the Eldest Miss.
The phone rang.
Gondo glanced at the number and picked it up.
"Executive Director Gondo, the Engineering Management Department is asking if we should suppress this inquiry from Seibu for now? Tokyo only just received it today; should we wait until the Eldest Miss gives instructions before—"
"Do not suppress it."
The other end of the line was silent for a moment.
Gondo put the inquiry back on the desk.
"Follow the process. The Engineering and Technology Headquarters will verify the original models, the Operations Data Room will verify maintenance records, and the material suppliers will verify the insulation material batches. The Cost Management Headquarters will not draw any conclusions for now."
"But Seibu is asking about the transfer materials package..."
"I said, verify the process first."
Gondo's voice was colder than usual.
"Whoever has the original records, submit them. Do not supplement, do not alter, and do not explain for anyone."
The person on the other end acknowledged.
After Gondo hung up, the office went quiet again.
He leaned back in his chair and raised a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.
He would just use those suppliers to drag it out for a while.
The letter had already been delivered.
He was waiting for Saionji Satsuki's decision after she returned to the country.
Before that, he could not admit anything, nor could he suppress it.
Admitting it was equivalent to handing the hilt of the sword to Seibu; suppressing it was equivalent to writing his own name on the paper in Inspector Fujita's office in advance.
This was not something that could be glossed over with a simple "I am sorry."
So he could only push the ball down.
Push it to the original records.
Push it to the technical departments.
Push it to those who had actually filled the materials, energy consumption, and maintenance costs into the forms page by page.
Gondo looked at the inquiry pressed on his desk and suddenly felt that those few pages of paper were very light.
As light as snow.
It made no sound when it fell, and by the time one realized it, the door had already been buried.
When the Tokyo branch of Hamano Material Industry received the verification request, it was almost time to get off work.
Hamano Keizo was originally preparing to head out for his first client meeting after the New Year.
When his secretary brought the document in, he only flipped through two pages before hanging his overcoat back on the rack.
"Let the Vice President use the car."
The secretary was stunned for a moment, then quickly acknowledged and exited.
Hamano spread the materials on the table.
What Saionji Construction forwarded was a process verification request.
What was submitted by the Seibu Engineering Management Department was a more tactful technical consultation.
The headings were different, but they were asking about the same thing.
Why Gokurakukan's snow season costs were so far off from the original model.
Hamano laid out the insulation material grade specifications from that year, the first winter energy consumption revision table, the dome seal maintenance records, and the cost parameters from the transfer materials package.
After looking at them for half an hour, he actually breathed a sigh of relief.
There were no low-level errors.
The material batches matched, and the acceptance records matched.
The energy consumption model itself had calculation bases, and the high maintenance costs could be explained as initial debugging for the snow season.
The set of materials Saionji Construction had put together back then was not stupid enough to leave a hole that could be caught at a glance.
The trouble lay right there.
Every item could be explained, and every sentence was passable.
High energy consumption was initial debugging, defrosting maintenance was seasonal fluctuation, material replacement was on-site optimization, and high maintenance costs would fall back after stable operation.
These words looked very sound when viewed individually.
Gokurakukan was not an empty shell that had not been verified by the market.
It had been opened under the Saionji family, and it had made money.
In the first month after Seibu took over, the underground casino, restaurants, and auction house had still kept the book profits looking very beautiful—beautiful enough to make those frighteningly high heavy oil costs, maintenance fees, and depreciation temporarily become "costs that luxury facilities should have."
At that time, no one was willing to ask whether the cost model was too optimistic.
Because the profits could still cover it.
But now, revenue was dropping, room occupancy rates were dropping, and the transaction volume of auctions was starting to drop; only the expenditures remained stuck in place, even looking worse than the estimates in the materials package.
Hamano picked up a pencil and drew a line next to "will fall back after stable operation."
The problem was not that this sentence made no sense back then.
The problem was that the premise for it to hold true was that Gokurakukan could maintain the initial super-profits.
The secretary knocked and came in.
"President, Seibu is still waiting for a call."
Hamano did not look up.
"Tell them that technically, there are no false materials."
The secretary was just about to write it down when he heard him add another sentence.
"However, there is a significant discrepancy between the actual energy consumption curve and the stable operation estimate in the transfer materials package. The original model was biased towards optimism."
The secretary's pen tip paused.
"Should I write this sentence in too?"
"Write it."
Hamano put down the pencil.
"For the version for Saionji Construction, only answer the process verification. For the version for the Seibu consulting firm, keep this sentence. Do not write Gondo's name, and do not write about Saionji Construction's internal responsibilities."
"Understood."
Hamano looked at those materials and was silent for a while.
He certainly knew what Seibu wanted.
But he absolutely dared not offend Saionji.
He could only drag it out like this, taking it one step at a time.
The rain in Akasaka had been falling from morning until afternoon.
In the conference room of Seibu Real Estate's external consulting firm, Shimada sat at the end of the long table, with three documents in front of him.
The first: Gokurakukan's maintenance costs for the last three months.
The second: the process verification request forwarded by Saionji Construction to the suppliers.
The third: the technical summary from Hamano Material Industry.
The head of the consulting firm stood by the table, reporting.
"Saionji Construction has not explained directly, nor have they denied it."
"Gondo's instruction is to first have the Engineering and Technology Headquarters, material suppliers, and Operations Data Room verify the original records separately, with the Cost Management Headquarters drawing no conclusions for now."
Shimada flipped through Hamano's summary.
"And they did not suppress it?"
"No."
"Has Gondo been in contact with Hamano recently?"
"On December 27th, at the Japan Construction Materials Association exchange meeting, the two chatted for fifteen minutes. The content is unclear. No direct contact has been confirmed since then."
Shimada nodded.
The brief contact before had originally just seemed like ordinary socializing.
Now, placed after the inquiry about Gokurakukan, the flavor had changed.
Gondo must have already smelled the risk.
But he had not reached out to Seibu, nor had he shut the door tight for Saionji Construction.
He was waiting for someone to return.
Waiting for Saionji Satsuki to return.
Shimada continued to read the summary.
"What is Hamano's judgment?"
The person in charge said, "Technically, it cannot be determined as false. But there is a significant discrepancy between the actual energy consumption curve and the transfer materials package estimate. The original model was biased towards optimism."
Shimada read this sentence twice.
Biased towards optimism.
Very good.
These three words were more suitable to put on the table than "error."
Errors require proof; being biased towards optimism only requires questioning.
"What about Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank?"
"They have not officially asked yet. However, the bridge loan for Gokurakukan is with them. If an operating cost discrepancy appears in the annual audit report, they will require supplementary explanations."
Shimada closed the document.
This matter was no longer as simple as Gokurakukan burning money.
Gokurakukan burning money was also Seibu's own responsibility.
Passenger flow, oil prices, the receding bubble, and snow season maintenance could all be explained as errors in business judgment.
But if the model in the transfer materials package had been biased towards optimism from the start, the matter would take on an additional layer of meaning.
The projects after the merger of Saionji Construction had left behind parameters that could be reinterpreted.
And what Saionji Satsuki was doing at this moment was using the review of the Leningrad low-temperature project to take all parameters for cold regions, low-temperature storage, and Hokkaido projects back into her own hands.
Her movements were too fast.
Once she met with Gondo, completed the materials, and closed the explanations, all that would be left in Seibu's hands was an ugly operating report.
"Prepare a briefing to be sent to Chairman Tsutsumi's secretary's office."
The person in charge immediately looked down to record it.
"What is the content?"
"Gokurakukan's snow season operating costs continue to deviate from the transfer materials package model. Saionji Construction has not directly explained, transferring to supplier process verification."
"Hamano's technical summary believes the model was biased towards optimism. It is recommended to initiate a re-review of operating costs in the name of an annual audit, not to contact Gondo for the time being, and not to name Saionji Construction's responsibility for now."
Shimada paused.
"Add one last sentence. Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank can be passively asked about the risk of loan rollover."
"Yes."
At this moment, the conference room door was knocked on gently.
The secretary walked in and placed a note by Shimada's hand.
"News from Narita. Saionji Satsuki has returned to the country, and Endo has also gone to the airport."
The person in charge subconsciously closed their mouth.
Shimada did not show any surprise.
He just pressed the note next to Hamano's summary and looked at it for a moment.
"Do not touch Gondo for now," he said. "Let him go to his master to seek some comfort."
The person in charge nodded.
The secretary did not leave and added:
"Also, from Osaka. A public relations firm in Kitashinchi has recently been inquiring about Gokurakukan's winter maintenance costs and insulation material suppliers. They asked very circuitously, but they also asked about Hamano Material Industry."
Shimada raised his eyes.
"Hakusuikai?"
"It cannot be confirmed yet, but that firm worked for two real estate companies controlled by Uragami Masaaki last year."
Shimada leaned back in his chair.
The sound of rain tapping on the glass was very faint.
The car lights on the street below were stretched into long lines by the rain, like someone had drawn a line across Tokyo's ledger with a wet finger.
He certainly knew about the game between Hakusuikai and the Saionji family.
After their last card was suppressed by Kyoto, they were looking for a new card.
They could no longer ask whether Saionji was an outsider.
Then they could only ask whether Saionji herself was stable.
Shimada looked at the three documents on the table.
Gokurakukan's operating report.
Saionji Construction's process verification.
Hamano's technical summary.
Viewed separately, the three items were just ordinary commercial documents.
Placed together, they had a new flavor.
Perhaps Seibu and Hakusuikai also had a basis for joining forces.
"Send the briefing to Chairman Tsutsumi's secretary's office first," Shimada said. "Let them know in Osaka too that Gokurakukan does indeed have a review summary."
"Then tactfully explain that we... might have the possibility of cooperation."
The person in charge looked up at him, then quickly lowered their head.
"Yes."
Shimada reopened Hamano's summary, his gaze stopping on the words "model biased towards optimism."
The rain outside the window was still falling.
There were hundreds of kilometers between Tokyo and Osaka, but when the same rain fell, water would always flow into the same ditch.