It was close to eleven at night.
During summer, oden rarely sold well because of the heat. The evening rush had already passed, and almost no customers remained at the stall.
It was time to close.
Kobeni Higashiyama turned off the gas stove and cleaned the stall together with her younger brother, Yori.
Soon, the clock reached eleven fifteen.
A shirtless middle aged man staggered toward them. He was tall, wore a bandana, and carried a massive beer belly that pushed against the night air. His face was bright red from alcohol.
The man was Ito Shun, the owner of the oden stall.
"Hic..."
Ito let out a drunken hiccup as he swayed closer, squinting at Yori.
"Oi... Akai, why the hell are you closing so early? What time do you think it is?"
A heavy smell of alcohol washed over them.
Since he was their employer, Kobeni and Yori endured it silently.
"Um..." Kobeni raised her hand timidly. "Mr. Ito, it's almost eleven thirty. Also, you mixed us up. I'm over here."
"Huh?"
Ito scratched his head, confused.
"Why are there two short people... Akai, what is this, some ninja clone trick?"
Yori lowered his head nervously and extended his hand.
"I... I'm Kobeni's younger brother, Higashiyama Yori. N nice to meet you."
Slap.
Ito knocked his hand aside without looking.
"Tch. I don't need introductions from a brat. Just give me the money. My friends are waiting for mahjong."
"Y yes!"
Kobeni quickly pulled Yori behind her and handed over the neatly prepared bills.
"Mr. Ito, today's sales were three thousand yen. According to our agreement, I keep six hundred yen, so this is two thousand four hundred yen. Please check."
"Two thousand four hundred?"
Ito's expression immediately darkened.
"Why so little? You're not skimming money off the top, are you?"
"N no, I didn't take anything!" Kobeni waved her hands desperately.
"I usually make seven or eight thousand yen a day," Ito snapped. "How did it drop to three thousand?"
"I... I..."
Her voice trembled, tears already forming.
Normally Ito only complained a little, but tonight he was drunk and clearly looking for someone to blame.
"What is this, charity money? You useless trash. Did you even cook it the way I taught you?"
"I did..." Kobeni whispered, wiping her eyes.
Ito grabbed a ladle and drank some broth.
The next second, he spat it out violently.
"Pah!"
"This tastes like garbage! Were you sent by competitors to ruin my reputation as the Oden Master?"
Yori stepped forward carefully.
"Mr. Ito, please calm down. I think my sister's cooking tastes good. My classmates like it too. It's just the off season, so fewer customers come."
"Good?" Ito barked out a laugh. "You two must've grown up eating crap if you call this good!"
"Sumimasen!"
Kobeni bowed deeply, almost folding in half.
"Please tell me what I did wrong. I'll fix it right away."
Ito hesitated, clearly unable to name an actual problem.
"If you want to fix it... make the flavor stronger," he muttered. "And hand over another three hundred yen. That's punishment for today's poor sales."
"Three hundred yen?"
Kobeni's eyes widened in disbelief.
"But then I'll only have three hundred left. I worked six hours and only earn that much..."
"So what?" Ito glared at them. "If you don't like it, plenty of others want the job. Refuse, and don't come tomorrow."
Tears slipped down Kobeni's face.
"I'll give it... I'll give it."
Ito smugly pocketed the extra three hundred yen.
"Ever since you started working here, my luck at mahjong's been terrible," he said coldly. "You should be grateful I haven't fired you."
He climbed onto his tricycle and rode away unsteadily into the night.
Kobeni took a slow breath, forcing herself to calm down.
"Let's go home, Yori."
"Yeah."
Yori handed her a tissue.
"Don't be too sad, Sister. Even if your grades aren't as good as Big Sister's or Big Brother's, they're still enough for university. Once you get in, you'll find a good job and never deal with people like him again."
Kobeni smiled faintly.
"Thanks, Yori. What about your grades?"
Yori hesitated.
"I... I'm slow. My grades are actually worse than yours."
"Ah..."
The streets were quiet.
To save money, the siblings walked home instead of taking transportation.
It was nearly midnight when they arrived.
The lights inside the house were still on.
Kobeni felt surprised.
Were their parents waiting?
No.
They were probably waiting for Yori.
Her parents had always prioritized the boys in the family.
Only her older brother and Yori ever received tutoring lessons.
The siblings quietly changed their shoes at the entrance.
Before entering, voices drifted from inside the house.
"Old man, I asked around again," their mother said excitedly. "Teachers say Kotaro will definitely pass the university entrance exams this time."
Kotaro was Kobeni and Yori's older brother.
"Good," their father replied. "With this many children, at least one finally turned out useful. The others only waste money, especially the older sisters. They barely contact us anymore."
Kobeni and Yori froze, exchanging awkward glances.
"Don't say that. There's still Yori," their mother added.
"Yori?" their father scoffed. "His evaluation says he has potential. Do you know what that really means?"
Silence followed.
"It's fine," the mother continued. "More tutoring will fix it. Once Kotaro graduates and becomes a civil servant, he can support Yori."
"But we don't have enough money for Kotaro's tuition," the father said worriedly.
The mother laughed softly.
"That's easy. Kobeni is the right age now. Marrying her off would solve the tuition problem."
Kobeni's breathing stopped.
"Someone at my workplace likes girls her age," the mother continued casually. "If I talk to him, he'll definitely pay well."
"The man you're talking about is almost sixty," the father said in shock. "He's married, and his grandchild is about to be born."
"So what?" the mother replied coldly. "Whether she becomes a wife or a mistress doesn't matter. As long as money comes in."
"...That makes sense."
The father nodded slowly.
"How much can he pay?"
"Probably the standard amount. Around one million yen."
"What? That's too little!" the father snapped. "She's still untouched!"
"Be realistic," the mother said impatiently. "That's normal in the Kanto region. I'll negotiate, maybe push it to one point five million yen."
"No, that's still low," the father muttered. "If we think long term, sending her into the sex industry would earn even more."
Thud.
Kobeni's schoolbag slipped from her hand and hit the floor.
"Sister..."
Yori whispered nervously.
Kobeni stood frozen.
Her pupils trembled.
Her dreams shattered quietly in that moment.
Why?
Why did her parents treat her like something to sell?
Why had no one ever cared that she also wanted to attend university?
That she wanted a normal life?
Why was she even born?
"Why..."
Her voice broke silently inside her chest.
"Why... why... why..."
===
Look up "_Zeph" on Patreon to get access to chapters in advance.