Chapter 31 Clouds Over the Blue Sky
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
That night after I gave Kaede the poison of Muldeur, I was on my way home from Yasunaga’s. I was thinking about our future relationship
Then, after that, on my way home from Yasunaga’s bar, where I had been forced to drink a bottle of sake that I couldn’t get drunk, I was stopped in my tracks by an arm around my shoulder, unkindly and unintentionally
”Hey, you’re James Masuda, right?”
”…Yes, that’s right…”
”I knew it. I thought it might be you.”
”Well, have we met before?”
”No, this is the first time we’ve ever met.”
It is not that I did not notice his behavior at all
On the contrary, I instantly understood that it would be better for me not to see him too often. However, it seems that my timing was a little off. As soon as I walked out of the bar onto the main street, I was caught without a chance to throw him off the scent
The other party was Akuzawa Hitoshi
I had seen him before in the cabaret club run by Yasunaga, where I had just been, but this must have been the first time I talked to him face-to-face. I only caught a glimpse of his face for a moment, and I left the place soon after that, so I can say that this is the first time we have met. But now, for some reason, I felt a burning discomfort in my spine
This feeling is familiar to me. A somewhat indescribable feeling of hate inside me. It must be manifested as a sense of caution. In the other world, that sensation has saved my life several times. I can say that it was not a good omen
I did not see any black [Hostility] in Akuzawa’s aura. However, it is difficult to say whether the man in front of me is friendly or not, because of the difficulty of his aura. All I can say for now is that he does not seem to have any immediate intention to harm me
”My name is Akuzawa Hitoshi of the Rindou clan. I’m sorry, but may I talk with you for a moment?”
Despite his polite words, Akuzawa’s attitude was somehow intimidating. The fact that he looked like a big, heavy-duty man may have had something to do with it. Well, if an ordinary person had bumped into such a big man on the street and had him rubbing shoulders with him, he would have been intimidated by that alone
”Oh, you are from the Rindou group. It’s my first time meeting you. So, what does Akuzawa-san of the Rindo group want with me?”
”I heard it. That you’ve started a new business in cooperation with Yasunaga brother.”
”Yes, well…”
”You see, Yasunaga and I are brothers. We’ve done many crazy things together since we were youngsters.”
”Ah, you’re Yasunaga-san’s brother. I happen to have a connection with Yasunaga-san, and as you say, he is a close friend of mine.”
There is no way that Yasunaga is going around spreading the word. Probably, Akuzawa must have gotten the scent of money from somewhere. In the first place, my business connection is only through Yasunaga, but in fact, it is with the Rindo clan, so it would not be surprising if the story came up within the clan
”I hear that you are an amateur. That’s a strange coincidence, isn’t it? Well, it’s a mutual benefit for both of us, I guess. By the way, I heard you’re doing a pretty shabby business, aren’t you?”
”Yes, I’m making a good profit thanks to it…”
”I envy you. We’re barely making enough money to feed ourselves tomorrow.”
”But you’re not asking me to make you a part of this, are you?”
”Hey, hey, don’t get me wrong. Do you think I look like the kind of man who would mess with my brother’s business? That’s a bit upsetting. I’m just here for a quick hello. Anyway, you know. I was hoping to do some good business with you.”
Akuzawa denies it with body language and hand gestures as if he has no recollection of it at all
He was not trying to interfere with the situation at all
Well, since not only Yasunaga but also Shindo, his superior, have been informed of the situation, it would be difficult for Akuzawa to make a move on me
”You are making a face-to-face connection, huh? But I already have my hands full with the business with Yasunaga-san. I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can meet your expectations.”
”Don’t be so cold. You know what they say: ‘A meeting by chance is worth a thousand words’? I’m still a very loyal person.”
”I am not trying to disrespect you, Akuzawa-san. I myself am not doing such a large scale business, but rather a small business.”
”I’m not asking you to tell me how to make money too. At any rate, I don’t mind if you call on me when you have some trouble. My brothers may be better at business, but I’m sure I’ll be more helpful in the rough stuff.”
”Is that what you mean? Still, I haven’t had any trouble in that direction so far.”
”But you’ve already stepped into the backstage business too. You can’t be sure that one or two people won’t get in your way in the future, can you?”
”Well, that may be so.”
”Then, I’m here to help you in that case. It depends on your wish and your money how you want to settle the matter.”
I was a little prepared for the fact that he was going to make some kind of a stink about it, but I didn’t realize that he was making a sales pitch to me
Well, this is peaceful Japan. Nobody would expect that the person who approached me is just a murderer who has been immersed in a violent act
”Here’s my card. Call me here if you need anything.”
”Okay…”
”All right, then. I’m looking forward to working with you.”
Akuzawa says what he wants to say one-sidedly and leaves the room
However, as Yasunaga had told me, he seems to be the type of person who is good at jumping into the other party’s heart. When he pulls back, he does so easily, but he does not let his opponent take the lead
The way the strong-looking man suddenly smiled in a frightening way was enough to make the other person let his guard down. Like as we talked like this, I was tempted to give in to him, thinking that it would be okay if he did so
However, although I did not see any dark emotion in Akuzawa, I did not see any white color of [Favoritism] or yellow color of [Interest] as well. Normally, when one talks to a stranger, one might expect to see a little bit of yellow in [Interest]
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