After Kanjuro left, Toyama Ayame sat slumped on the tatami mat, her vision blurred by tears. Fear, shame, and the complex feelings for that mysterious youth she had suppressed for eighteen years submerged her like a tide. After a long while, she finally managed to compose herself, reapplied her makeup, and forced herself to go downstairs.
She went to a relatively secluded corridor, and as expected, Kanjuro was waiting there, as if he knew she would follow.
"What... what do you actually want?" Toyama Ayame lowered her voice, her tone trembling with despair.
Kanjuro turned around. His face was no longer cold but carried an almost "gentle" expression. However, behind this gentleness was an even more unfathomable control. "I don't want anything, Ayame," he said softly, his gaze seeming to pierce through her soul. "I've returned just to see our daughter. To see how she's doing."
Toyama Ayame was stunned. She hadn't expected Kanjuro to say such a thing. If... if he was just here to see her and wouldn't disturb their lives, then perhaps... that would be the best outcome? She even felt a flicker of unrealistic hope in her heart.
"Re... really? You promise not to disturb us?" Her voice carried a plea she hadn't even noticed herself.
Kanjuro smiled slightly. That smile had a strange soothing power, yet it also contained a hint of pity, as if mocking her naivety. "I won't force you to do anything, nor will I deliberately destroy your current life. I'm just... visiting as an 'old acquaintance'."
His words were ambiguous, but to the distraught Toyama Ayame, they were a great "mercy." She watched Kanjuro's back as he walked toward the living room, her heart filled with mixed emotions. That long-buried feeling of love and hate, easily stirred by him, coiled around her heart like vines once more, making her both fearful and filled with an unspeakable reluctance to let go.
Dinner continued. The atmosphere seemed to have softened considerably. Kanjuro, Ran, Sonoko, and Kazuha sat back at the table. Kazuha and Ran looked at Kanjuro with complex gazes, containing both the lingering shadows of last night and gratitude and a hint of guilt for his current "reasonableness."
Kanjuro keenly captured their emotions. He spoke at the right moment, his voice gentle and carrying a hint of loneliness: "About last night... I know it was a misunderstanding that no one wanted to happen. You both have people you like, Heiji and Shinichi, I know. Rest assured, I won't use this to disturb your lives, nor will I make things difficult for you."
He acted so "understanding," even proactively pointing out their feelings, placing himself in the position of both a "victim" and "the one who steps aside."
"Brother Kanjuro! This is so unfair to you!" Sonoko immediately played along, pouting her lips in dissatisfaction.
"Alright, Sonoko." Kanjuro reached out and affectionately flicked her nose, the action natural and doting. "I can understand. Although it was a misunderstanding, it has already happened. What's important is that we all look forward and don't get trapped by an accident."
His "magnanimous" words immediately lightened the burden in Kazuha's and Ran's hearts. The two looked at each other, both seeing a look of relief in the other's eyes.
Kazuha said softly, "Brother Kanjuro, don't blame yourself too much either... We, we don't blame you."
Ran also hurriedly nodded in agreement, "Yes, Mr. Kanjuro, let's just let this matter pass."
"I'm relieved you feel that way." Kanjuro showed a relieved smile with a hint of vulnerability, perfectly evoking their sympathy.
Just then, the sound of a door opening came from the entryway. Ginshiro Toyama, wearing a police uniform and looking serious yet tired, returned from work.
"Dad!" Kazuha immediately stood up.
Toyama Ayame also hurriedly went to meet him, taking her husband's briefcase and trying to make her expression look natural. "Ginshiro, you're back. We have guests; they're Kazuha's friends."
Ginshiro Toyama changed into slippers and walked into the living room, his gaze sweeping over Ran and Sonoko. Ran bowed politely and greeted him, "Hello, Uncle. I am Ran Mouri."
Sonoko also introduced herself, "Hello, I am Suzuki Sonoko."
Hearing the name "Suzuki Sonoko," Ginshiro Toyama's gaze clearly faltered for a moment, revealing a trace of shock and pity. "Suzuki Sonoko?...Are you the one from the Suzuki Family... Were you the one during..."
Sonoko's face turned pale for a moment. Suppressing her true coldness, she lowered her head, perfectly displaying a hint of "pain" and "vulnerability," and nodded slightly. "...Yes, I'm sorry to have shown you that side of me."
Ginshiro Toyama sighed, his tone softening considerably. "Sigh, let the past be the past, child. You must be strong." He didn't ask further; after all, it was someone else's scar.
Subsequently, his gaze fell on the only unfamiliar male—Kanjuro. "And this is...?"
Kanjuro stood up calmly, smiling and poised. "Officer Toyama, hello. My name is Kanjuro, and I am a friend of Kazuha's."
"Kanjuro..." Ginshiro Toyama repeated the name in his mind and nodded, making a note of it. He could see that his daughter was on good terms with these young people. Although he felt this young man named Kanjuro had a somewhat special temperament, he didn't think much of it, assuming he was just a new friend of his daughter's.
"You're all guests, so don't just stand there. Sit down; the food is getting cold." Ginshiro Toyama motioned for everyone to continue eating. The return of the head of the household made the atmosphere at the table seem truly "normal."
However, beneath this seemingly harmonious dinner table, undercurrents were still surging. Kanjuro ate calmly, chatting softly with Kazuha and Ran, and occasionally making polite conversation with Ginshiro Toyama. His gaze occasionally met Toyama Ayame's, and each time it made her heart skip a beat, followed by a hint of unspeakable bitterness.
Although Ginshiro Toyama appeared normal on the surface, his professional intuition made him vaguely feel that his wife was a bit restless tonight. However, he just assumed it was because of the sudden influx of guests and that she was a bit tired.
(Step one: integrate into this family, accomplished.)
(Next, it's about letting this seed named 'Kanjuro' slowly take root and sprout in this home.)
A cold smile that no one could understand played on the corners of Kanjuro's mouth. Under the cover of night, beneath the peaceful facade of the Toyama home, the dangerous game had only just begun. Dinner ended in an atmosphere that seemed harmonious but was actually filled with hidden agendas. Although Ginshiro Toyama was tired, his professional habits made him pay extra attention to the friends his daughter had brought home, especially that uniquely tempered Kanjuro.
While Kazuha, Ran, and Sonoko were chatting in the living room, Ginshiro Toyama whispered to his wife, "Ayame, is that young man named Kanjuro a close friend of Kazuha's? I haven't heard her mention him before."
Toyama Ayame's heart tightened. She forced herself to stay calm, lowering her eyes as she organized the dishes, and replied in as natural a tone as possible, "Oh, him... He seems to be mainly Ran and Sonoko's friend. Kazuha only met him when they came to Kyoto for this trip. He's... a friend of a friend, I suppose." She skillfully distanced the relationship between Kanjuro and Kazuha.
Ginshiro Toyama nodded, noting this information, and didn't ask further. He turned to his daughter, his tone gentle but concerned, "Kazuha, I heard from a colleague today that you went to the Police Station to report a case this morning? What happened?"
Kazuha's body stiffened slightly as she exchanged a nervous glance with Ran and Sonoko. Following the story they had agreed upon earlier, she tried to keep her voice steady: "Um... yes, Dad. We stayed at an inn near Kiyomizu Temple yesterday, but it seems the dinner was drugged. When we woke up this morning, everyone was dizzy and weak, feeling very unwell. We've already reported it, and... and the Head Priest of Kiyomizu Temple has already admitted to ordering the drugging and has been arrested."
She spoke briefly, deliberately blurring the specific details of the "discomfort" and the eerie process of the Head Priest's "confession."
Ginshiro Toyama frowned. "The Head Priest of Kiyomizu Temple?" He felt a bit surprised; that priest's reputation in the local area had always been quite good. But since the man himself had confessed and the evidence seemed to point to him, as a father, his priority was his daughter's well-being. "How are you feeling now? Is there any other discomfort? Do you need to go to the hospital for a detailed check-up?"
"No need, Dad, we're much better now." Kazuha shook her head hurriedly, fearing that further investigation would reveal the truth.
Ginshiro Toyama looked at his daughter's slightly pale face and the trace of imperceptible panic in her eyes, and the doubts in his heart were not completely dispelled. He keenly felt that things might not be as simple as his daughter said, but seeing that she didn't seem to want to talk much and that the "culprit" had already been caught, he temporarily set aside his doubts and just patted his daughter's shoulder. "As long as you're okay. Be more careful when you're out in the future."
The night was deep and quiet, and the Toyama household gradually settled into silence... The guests were arranged to rest in the guest rooms. Toyama Ayame, however, was not sleepy at all. Kanjuro's appearance during the day and his words swirled in her mind like a curse. Driven by some inexplicable impulse, she walked out of her bedroom and came to the relatively secluded tea room, wanting some peace, but her mind remained in a state of chaos.
Just as she was staring blankly at the night scene outside the window, a low and familiar voice sounded behind her:
"Can't sleep?"
Toyama Ayame turned her head abruptly, her heart nearly leaping out of her chest—at some point, Kanjuro had appeared at the entrance of the tea room like a ghost, quietly watching her.
"You... what do you want to do?" Her voice trembled, but her body felt as if it were nailed to the spot, unable to move.
Kanjuro slowly approached, his eyes shining startlingly bright in the darkness. He did not answer her question, but instead said in a tone that was almost a sigh: "Actually... I like you very much, Ayame."
Toyama Ayame's face flushed red instantly, her heart beating like a drum. "What... what nonsense are you suddenly talking about..." She wanted to reprimand him, but her voice was soft and lacked any strength. This straightforward sentence was like a key, instantly opening the heart she had kept locked for many years; those deliberately forgotten throbs and intoxications from that night eighteen years ago came rushing back.
A knowing smile curled at the corners of Kanjuro's mouth as he continued to approach, his voice carrying a bewitching magic: "For these eighteen years, I've thought of you every single moment. I think... it's the same for you, isn't it? Otherwise, why is it that when you look at me, your eyes hold not just fear, but also an unconcealable... throbbing?"
Having her deepest thoughts laid bare, Toyama Ayame leaned weakly against the wall and let out a dejected sigh, as if giving up all pretense: "So what... I'm already married." This sentence was less a rejection and more a helpless statement of fact.
Kanjuro chuckled, his voice tinged with a hint of mockery: "Is that so? But I sense that between you and Ginshiro Toyama... it seems there has never been a true husband-and-wife relationship? You maintain a... fairly restrained relationship, something more like friends?" His perception was terrifyingly sharp.
Toyama Ayame's eyes widened in shock; she hadn't expected him to know even this. She bit her lip and finally nodded, admitting the truth. Between her and Ginshiro, there was more of the affection of childhood friends and the responsibility of mutual support, lacking the most fiery passion between a man and a woman.
"But..." She suddenly looked up, a hint of worry in her eyes, "You don't intend to hurt Ginshi, do you? He... he's a good man."
As if he had heard something hilarious, Kanjuro burst into laughter, though his tone carried a cold possessiveness: "How could I? After all, he helped me... raise our daughter for eighteen years for nothing." He deliberately emphasized the words 'our daughter,' as if declaring sovereignty.
He reached out and forcefully pulled the stiff Toyama Ayame into his arms. His embrace was cold and solid, carrying a power that was both shivering and irresistible. Toyama Ayame made a symbolic struggle before slumping weakly in his arms. That feeling from eighteen years ago of being completely controlled and unable to think returned once more, mixed with a massive sense of guilt and a twisted pleasure.
Kanjuro lowered his head and whispered into her ear like a demon, his warm breath brushing against her earlobe:
"However, I hope he can... slowly disappear."
"Not through violence; that would be too boring."
"Perhaps an 'accidental' promotion and transfer to a distant land?"
"Or, a special mission... long enough for people to forget his return date?"
"Or even, let him choose to... leave on his own."
His voice was very light, yet it carried an unquestionable decisiveness, as if stating an impending fact.
"In this Toyama household, this world that should belong to our family of three, there should be no outsiders, don't you agree? Ayame?"
Toyama Ayame nestled in his arms, listening to his cold and possessive plan, her body trembling slightly. Reason told her this was wrong and terrifying, but deep in her heart, the dark flame that had been suppressed for eighteen years was ignited. Her twisted longing for a 'complete family' led her to finally close her eyes, as if silently consenting to his words.
As the night deepened, the two embracing in the tea room—one representing extreme darkness and control, the other immersed in guilt and lost attachment—together wove a silent and dangerous web against the master and protector of this household. Ginshiro Toyama's existence had already become an obstacle in Kanjuro's eyes that had to be 'gentle' removed.
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