novelVolume 8, (2)
| ← Ch.56 | Ch.58 → |
To tell the truth, a plan consisting in suggesting a deal to Genichirou-san was slowly appearing in my mind. It was an undeniably stupid plan, but I had the feeling that something like a miracle could happen. And Alice was needed for that. For that reason, I proceeded to convince her using a fake argument.
"Because, you see, Alice, you're Hirasaka-gumi's anego, aren't you?"
Her bewildered face at that moment was such a rare sight that I even thought about taking a picture.
"So this is your problem too, Alice."
Contrasting its luxurious exterior, the first-class hotel was a place where it was almost insultingly easy to sneak into. When it got dark, the lobby got packed with foreigners carrying suitcases with airport tags, so I entered without being even barely noticed. The receptionist was really polite and greeted even a brat like me with a smile.
"I'd like to announce myself to Hinamura-san who is staying at room 3301. Uuhm, I'm Fujishima and I came in behalf of Souichirou..."
The young receptionist picked up the phone and I skimmed through pamphlet from the hotel that was lying around, and I learned that room 3301 was a suite that took up the whole floor. Well, I had imagined something like that to be honest.
Okay, what should I say? I need to concentrate...
"Hinamura-sama will be here soon." the receptionist said."Please wait over there for a while."
Ah, so he's coming here? Well, obviously he wouldn't let someone he only saw two times into his suite. I sat down on a sofa in the lobby and waited.
After two minutes--
"Naru-chan!"
A female voice broke the calm atmosphere of the lobby. Employees and guests were equally startled and turned to look at the elevator. I also quickly got up.
"I'm so glad ya came, Gen-chan's not here so I was gettin' bored."
Rikako-san rushed up to me. She was wearing a light purple dress and a long translucent stole. I took a step backwards; I didn't foresee Rikako-san being the one who would come.
"...A-ah, sorry for showing up so suddenly."
I sat down once again.
So Genichirou-san is not here... I'll have to come here again some other time, then.
Meanwhile I had no other option than to talk to Rikako-san, even though she made me kind of nervous (and she's Yondaime's mother!)
However, before I could say anything, Rikako-san grabbed my arm, saying "let's have some tea, c'mon" as she pulled me to the cafeteria at the right of the lobby.
Sitting in front of Rikako-san, I looked at the menu with its prices such as 1400 yens for a cup of coffee. What am I doing? I scolded myself.
When I raised my gaze. I saw Rikako-san dialing a number on her cellphone.
"Ah, Gen-chan? It's me. Ya know? Naru-chan just came here. Yeah. We're at the lounge in the first floor. Yeah, come back soon, okay? Fine. Love ya. See ya later!"
After she snapped her cellphone shut, Rikako-san ordered two pieces of cake and two cups of coffee and she leaned her body forward with sparkling eyes.
"I'll hear eeeeverything ya have to say, Naru-chan. Gen-chan wants to bully Sou-chan so he's been investigating lotsa stuff about Hirasaka-gumi. But it was such a coincidence to meet ya as soon as we arrived to Tokyo! Thanks again for helpin' us with Suitengu, Naru-chan."
"Eh..."
I wish she would stop calling me Naru-chan. Many people has called me many different names, but this nickname is particularly embarrassing.
"Uhm, you both came here because Yondaime--I mean, Souichirou-san..."
"Yondaime sounds cute.", Rikako-san said."I like that nickname. I wonder if I should start callin' 'em Sandaime and Yondaime too..."
Aren't they your own husband and son?
"Ya guys drank sake together, didn'tcha? That's so cute... Since he was little, Sou-chan has always been so stubborn and cute..."
And with that, she spent 45 whole minutes telling me lovely stories about Yondaime's childhood. He would slaughter me if I dared to mention one of these stories concretely, so I won't write them here.
"Is Sou-chan doin' fine here? Is he takin' good care of himself? Is he eatin' right? He's quite skillful, does he cook his own meals?"
"Eh, ah, well... I don't know that much about his personal life..."
She really is his mother, I thought as I looked at her closely. Her makeup was applied with utmost care and her skin was really smooth, that's why she looked like she was still on her twenties.
She then looked at me. Oops, that was close.
"Ya know, I ain't a good cook. Even if we go back together to Osaka, I don't think he misses mom's cookin' or anythin' like that."
"Aah, uhm..." Finally there was an excuse to start talking about that matter, so I held onto that."Did you really come here to take him away?"
"I have that intention, yeah", Rikako-san said as she poked her own cheek with her index and ring fingers in an adorable gesture."But I don't know about Gen-chan."
"You don't know?"
"To Gen-chan, he's not his kid but Hinamura family's successor. He'd need his consent to take 'im back, wouldn't he? If so, why is he picking a fight investigatin' and all that?"
Not his son, but his successor... I scratched my head. Investigating? Is that something that can be easily done? Isn't Yondaime's company so new that it's practically growing by word of mouth and trustworthy people only, and if its financing were to be taken away it would just disappear?
"If Sou-chan goes back, will ya feel lonely, Naru-chan?"
"Lonely? Well, yes, I would, but what I'm trying to say is--"
"Why don't ya come with him?"
"Eh?"
"Ya two are sworn brothers. Doesn't that make ya my son too? Doncha wanna live with us? Ya will be welcome in this family!"
"Nonono"
"Havin' a family of 4 is a dream of mine. We could all play family mahjong!"
With my mouth half open, I stared at Rikako-san as she was daydreaming. I had initially thought my plan was absurd, but an opportunity was unexpectedly presented. Maybe I could carry on.
"U-uhm, so..."
Rikako-san suddenly stood up and waved her hand, facing the cafeteria's door.
"Gen-chan! Over here!"
I sighed and turned around, seeing a surprising scene.
On the opposite side of the spacious lobby, outside the hotel, men in suits that made no effort at all in concealing their identities as Yakuza got off from a row of parked imported cars and bowed at the same time. From the side door of one of those cars, a man in a white down jacket got off too--Genichirou-san. There were lots of people registering at that time, so the lobby broke into murmurs. It looked just like a scene from Minbo no Onna. The old hotelier's face paled. But the only one who entered the lobby was Genichirou-san, and the rest of the men dressed in black returned to their cars. Apparently they were just there to escort him.
"Boy, I heard ya came here at midnight to steal my wife so I had to come runnin'. I even thought about sendin' one or two of my men to greet ya."
After saying those scary words, Genichirou-san sat by my side for some reason.
So he won't let me run away... Just as I thought, this man is half yakuza.
"Yer sayin' that as if I wasn't faithful. Gen-chan's the only one I blindly love."
"So ya unblindly love other men?"
"Wouldn't that be ya?"
"Even at the top of Tsuutenkaku tower, I wouldn't see anyone except for ya."
If he had to listen to this kind of stuff everyday, I understand why Yondaime ran away from home. They went on for a while, and my head was starting to hurt already.
"I don't understand what you're saying anymore!"
"Oh, the boy started with his specialty again."
"I didn't come here to do manzai! I--"
I became exasperated and got up from my seat just when the waiter came to take Genichirou-san's order, so I sat down again. Some of the clients had noticed and they were looking in our direction. I'm sorry.
Once I cooled down, I carefully chose my words, took a deep breath and let my voice come out:
"It's about Yondaime. I'll get straight to the point: Leave the company linked with Hirasaka-gumi alone, please."
Genichirou-san squinted by my side.
"Boy, ya don't have a reason to meddle, do ya?"
"I'm his sworn brother."
"Oh? If ya say so." Genichirou-san raised his eyebrows showing an amused expression."But that sounds like yer just openin' yet mouth to spout a frivolous excuse. I wanna hear a concrete reason."
"Even if you make his company go bankrupt and cover him with debts, he's not the kind of person who will obediently return to his parents. No matter how you look at it, what you're doing is meaningless. Please, stop."
"Did I say I wanted to make the company go bankrupt so Souichirou would return home?"
"...Eh?"
Genichirou-san's mocking gaze felt burning like cold fire.
"B-but, you made the bank stop financing him..."
"Listen, I can crush anyone when I get mad, even my own son, and demonstrating that is not somethin' meaningless in this world. Brats shouldn't be talkin' as if they knew everythin'."
I shivered.
Maybe my senses were already numb. Maybe I was already used to step on territories I shouldn't be familiar with. But that man wasn't 'half' yakuza, he was a complete, legit yakuza. Not because he was part of a group of gangsters or anything like that, but because in his soul's stairway, he was someone who could ignore the other party's pain when he used his own fists to hit them--Hinamura Genichirou was a genuine yakuza.
My hands were trembling over my knees. What else should I say?
"That's not all, though. There someone else who could become Hinamura family's heir.", Genichirou-san suddenly spoke."I couldn't decide if I should pick Souichirou or this other person. That's why I came to Tokyo, to see how far Souichirou's talent goes. So it's kinda the opposite of what ya were thinkin', boy. I ain't interested in entrustin' the family to someone who would go bankrupt just because of this."
I was in mute amazement. Wasn't that much worse? If Yondaime could manage to keep the company they would make him go back, and if he went bankrupt they would just abandon him like trash.
"In that case, all the more reason--"
"All the more reason what? I have to see if he can go on with the company or not. Do ya have a better idea to make him demonstrate he can keep the business goin' in the real world?"
I couldn't say anything, so I lowered my gaze.
"Gen-chan, yer bullyin' my Naru-chan. I forgive ya if yer a homo, but if yer a sadist then I want the divorce."
"So if I'm just gay it's okay?"
"So ya were gay!? Let's get separated!"
I was feeling utterly depressed and I didn't have energy to open my mouth, so the person who interrupted their manzai routine this time was the waiter bringing the coffee. Genichirou-san flicked his wife's forehead to make her shut up and drank a sip of coffee, talking to me once again.
"Ya ain't no idiot, boy. What are ya plannin' to do? C'mon, tell me."
"N-no, nothing..."
"Ya can say it."
I balled into fists my sweaty hands over my knees. I can't take this anymore.
At that moment, Rikako-san spoke:
"How 'bout we play mahjong?"
My shoulders shook because of my surprise. Genichirou-san brought the cup to his lips, frowning.
"Mahjong?"
"Yeah. Just a moment ago I was sayin' it would be nice to play family mahjong and Naru-chan's eyes were sparklin'"
Ugh. Did I really make such an easily read expression?
Genichirou-san let out a guffaw and settled himself comfortably in his chair beside me.
"Then, uh, even if Yondaime's company goes bankrupt there's nothing you gain with that, right? So, how about we have a match and make a bet? Uhmm--"
For example, if I lost I would pay him whatever amount he wanted, and if I won he would have to leave Yondaime alone. I was intending to reach a simple conclusion. However, Genichirou-san wouldn't stop laughing, but unexpectedly Rikako-san interrupted.
"What? I don't see what's so funny. Dontcha use mahjong to make yer decisions, Gen-chan? Sayin' stuff like 'if I make a daisangen I'll expand to Italy' and all that. It's also the first time we have four players... And, wouldn't it be good if we set a really high rate so we can take all of Sou-chan's money? Way better than coercin' the bank."
"Well yeah, that's right."
Hey, wait a second. Was that last thing something a mother should say? Don't turn the conversation that way please, I would be willing to bet all that money if it was just me, but I can't afford to risk making Yondaime go bankrupt.
"How's that idea sound to ya, Souichirou?" Genichirou-san said out of the blue. I was startled and followed Genichirou-san's gaze--There was no one there. But when Rikako-san got up with her eyes sparkling exclaiming "Sou-chan!", I realized. Nervously turning my head around, I saw the sleeves of a crimson jacket.
"What the hell are you doing? I thought I told you not to get involved."
Yondaime's voice was sharp as a knife. Since when is he there? And does Genichirou-san have eyes on his back or something? He could also easily see the cameras that time when we played mahjong.
"What 'bout ya, why are ya here?" Genichirou-san said in a calm manner as he raised the cup to his lips, without turning around."It's past midnight. Brats should be sleepin' at home."
"I came to put an end to this." Yondaime just stood there behind Genichirou-san and me with his hands inside his pockets. The waiter glanced in our direction from time to time with a worried expression."I might not be able to avoid your dirty hands now, but I know quite a lot about the Hinamura's shady stuff. I can make us even."
"Shady or not, it doesn't matter. That's how money's used. I told ya already, it's the most effective thing to crush others."
"Like I care. I'll go to Osaka's public prosecutor's office and I'll tell them to call the bank."
"C'mon, both of ya..." Rikako-san said.
Genichirou-san finally supported his elbow on the back of the chair and turned around. Both wolf gazes clashed with each other.
"Do as Rikako said. Siddown."
"I didn't come here to have tea. Unlike that kid, I don't feel like babbling nonsense with an annoying fellow."
"Oh, it's nothin' like that.", Genichirou-san saido."We were talkin' about settling this with a mahjong board. This boy came all the way here to talk about that. Quite the cute lil' brother, ain't he?"
I sighed and looked at the three. Rikako-san was exchanging glances between his husband and his son with the serious expression of a middle school girl who just hid a love letter in a shoe locker. Genichirou-san had turned his gaze to the cup of coffee on the table again. Yondaime had fallen silent with his gaze fixed between my shoulder and Genichirou-san's.
"...Did he really suggest a mahjong match?" he finally sat down, poking my head. Rikako-san nodded, and I didn't say anything since it wouldn't make a difference anyway.
For an instant only, Yondaime looked at me. Just by looking at his eyes I understood what he was trying to ask me: Do we have a chance of winning?
I nodded just with my gaze, without letting Genichirou-san notice. Yondaime then looked at Genichirou-san.
"...What will be the rate?"
A slight smile appeared on Genichirou-san's lips.
"5 points would be nice."
"Cash payment?"
"Of course. As I already said, ya and I ain't father and son anymore. deferred payment is okay too, since I'm gonna crush ya."
I felt relaxed upon hearing that. After that, they kept talking about terms and conditions of the match that I couldn't understand at all, but there was no place for me to mention the victory condition I had thought about anymore.
"I never thought of you as a father in the first place, you bastard. I cut off my ties with you long ago.", Yondaime said, taking a deep breath."Let me decide the minor rules."
"Fine. In exchange, I will decide the place. I'll also buy brand new tables. Tokyo is yer territory, so I won't let ya cheat."
Yondaime and I left the hotel together. The lights of the luxurious Akasaka buildings spread on the night sky and the wind was blowing, mixing with the smell of the exhaust pipes as we were going down the slope of the vehicle entrance, cooling down my face that was burning because of my nervousness and excitement. I had been worried about how things would turn out, but Rikako-san had saved me.
"Why did you look so relieved?" Yondaime muttered under his jacket's collar.
"Eh? ...Ah, well, I didn't quite understand what I heard about the terms of the match, but I didn't think the rate was that high. It's just 5 points, isn't it?"
In mahjong, 5 points normally means that 1000 points=50 yens. In a 30 minute lapse, even without playing very well we would only lose around 3000 yens, not really an amount to worry about. It really wasn't an amount that would make someone say 'I'll crush you' with a scary face.
However, Yondaime heaved a long sigh and started walking faster.
"Are you an idiot? Do you think that damn yakuza would play with those student mahjong rates?"
"...E-eh?"
"5 points to the Hinamura family means 5000 yens for each point."
I froze in the middle of the slope that led to the main street. A broken calculator was giving off sparks inside my head. My calculations had been completely wrong--In the most literal sense.
One point=5000 yens?
I saw Yondaime's back as he was walking away.
Right. Didn't Rikako-san say so herself? That thing about taking all his money.
5000 yens for each point. If we lost all of our points, the payment would exceed 100. 000. 000.
*
"...So, I'm your trump card? Way to count your chickens before they hatch!"
Alice's voice was colder than the conditioned air inside the room.
"Y-yeah... I also thought it was wrong to make this plan without saying anything to you, but I wasn't sure I could manage to arrange a mahjong match."
"You just didn't want to deal with me telling you that your idea was naive, am I mistaken?"
She was right. From the other side of the bed, I hung my head, defeated.
The day after talking with Genichirou-san, I showed up at the NEET Detective Agency immediately after school, just to be scolded by Alice. Not that I didn't deserve it, I had gotten her involved in my irrational mahjong plan. Genichirou-san's abilities were way far from average, so most likely he thought his victory was assured. But he didn't know about Alice's existence, so that gave us the possibility of having an advantage.
"In short, you're saying I should play mahjong with the three members of the Hinamura family?"
"...Well, yes, basically. Yondaime absolutely has to play."
Alice sighed."It's true that I'm unbeatable and currently undefeated at online mahjong, but that doesn't mean anything in front of someone who is able to cheat."
"But you're much better than me, aren't you? Even if I worked hard and we managed to find a way to play without letting him cheat, I still wouldn't stand a chance against Genichirou-san at normal mahjong. But if you're the one who plays..."
"You're worse than a chimpanzee. At least a monkey has the brains to run away when he's in front of an opponent he can't win against!"
The detective was as harsh with me as usual.
"Not to mention, what's with that ridiculous rate? Have you lost all sense of money because you've been playing with someone else's money for too long?"
"I know, but..."
Before parting ways with Yondaime the night before, I had asked him about that strange rate with numbers that could easily send one to bankrupt. In the first place, we didn't want money, we needed Genichirou-san to stop pressuring the bank, so the betting rates shouldn't have mattered that much. If our side won Genichirou-san wouldn't interfere with Yondaime anymore, and if we lost we would have to pay--That was the original agreement. But Yondaime answered this:
"Do you think that bastard will just obediently leave me alone if he loses the match? He'll keep bothering for as long as he can. So, there's no other option than to solve this with money. The best way to do that would be taking away enough money from him to make him unable to stay in Tokyo. He might be rolling in cash back at Osaka, but I don't think he has more than 100. 000. 000 in cash over here, so he will have to leave."
Alice stared at the roof like she was praying.
"I understand the reasoning, but it's not normal for a father and a son to want to cannibalize each other like that."
"Yeah, it seems like those two don't think of each other as a father and a son respectively. They said they had cut their ties."
Now that I thought about it, not even once I had heard Yondaime refer to Genichirou-san as his father.
"And, will Yondaime really let us take part of this outrageous bet?"
"Yes. If I tell him you're better than me, I'm sure he will make a formal request."
"Good grief. I was under the impression that he was a shrewder man than that, but it looks like his stupid sworn brother has weakened his rationality."
Yondaime came as soon as it got dark, and once again I realized my own stupidity.
"Genichirou sent the place he chose."
I took the fax paper Yondaime held out to me and noticed there was a map printed on it below the designed date and all that. There was a placed in the middle marked with an X.
"This is... Near the Arakawa river, isn't it? What place is it exactly?"
"It's not near. The place is Arakawa's riverbed."
My jaw dropped and I was unable to move. Alice snatched the paper away from my hands.
The river bed? Outdoors?
"Were you really thinking about asking Alice to be your replacement?" Yondaime asked with an astonished expression. I nodded, still bewildered.
"Hmph. Genichirou said we would do it outdoors so we wouldn't cheat, but his true intention was to leave Alice out of the game."
"E-eh?" I stared at Yondaime with my eyes wide open."He said he had investigated lots of things, but he had no way to know Alice was good at mahjong, had he?"
"He probably knows that we know a highly intelligent agoraphobic shut-in, there's also the fact that she's considered Hirasaka-gumi's anego, and your unusual confidence. Genichirou's way of doing business basically consists in crushing his opponent, with utmost efficiency."
I looked up at the roof and sighed. I had been too naive.
"Why do you both think I've been only listening quietly?" Alice said, looking displeased, hugging a teddy bear against her chest."I've been able to go out a bit lately. And playing mahjong is not a tough exercise."
Even though she had just told me that my plan of her taking my place was ridiculous, what had really bothered was the fact that I had left her out. She wanted to be involved in this as much as me. The problem was that her way of expressing it wasn't honest at all.
"It says we'll be starting tomorrow at 13:00. If it was nighttime it would be a different thing, but sunlight's really bad for you."
"U-uuuh! If the sky is as clouded as the day the dinosaurs became extinct I might be able to make it."
Yondaime flicked Alice's forehead."Stop that, you idiot. Have you already forgotten about the time we played baseball? Weren't you ill for three whole days just for going to bat once?"
"I'm still in better shape than my assistant who is inferior to a monkey and can't even grab a tile without having his breath weakening because of his nervousness even while sitting down." No, I'm pretty sure I'm in better shape than you.
"Listen, Yondaime. I think I've already told you this a while ago, but your sworn brother is so hopelessly optimistic that it's like tomatoes and cucumbers were growing inside his skull."
"I'm also pretty sure I told you this before, but your assistant has less sense of crisis than someone who climbs the Himalaya wearing a short-sleeved T-shirt and pants."
Why are they both competing to see which one of them makes more fun of me?
"Anyway, since Alice can't go out and we can't cheat... I need to find a way to annihilate him so he'll lose his cash-"
"By the way, " Alice interrupted."Your father is here because he wants to make sure you're worthy of becoming Hinamura family's successor. If you win against him in a spectacular way, won't you intensify his tenacity?"
Yondaime made an expression that looked as if he had drank the coffee before the powder had entirely dissolved.
"I don't give a damn. That's his own problem, I don't intend to inherit the business so it has nothing to do with me."
That made me remember something.
"Genichirou-san said there's another candidate for becoming the heir, and he couldn't decide if he should choose you or that person."
"...Another candidate?" Yondaime cocked his head."I don't have any other close relatives, is it someone from the company? That anachronistic bastard is gonna let someone that's not from the family run the business? Hmm."
After muttering a 'Well, whatever. It has nothing to do with me', Yondaime looked at Alice and then at me once again.
"This is a formal request from me. Use whatever method you want. Think of a way to drive that stingy bastard to the wall."
We started by carefully watching the video Yondaime had brought, the footage from the security cameras from the day Genichirou-san beat me at the mahjong parlor.
"At the moment he cheats, his fingers are never caught on camera. That's important.", Alice pointed out.
"He steals tiles from the wall, no doubt about that, but he does it so spontaneously that I can't know exactly when he does it.", I said, remembering my dreadful experience.
Genichirou-san's trick was stealing tiles from the pond--In short, it's a technique in which you pretend to take one of the piled up tiles that are facing downwards, but you actually steal one of the visible tiles discarded by the other players. There's no way a beginner can win against that.
Mahjong is a strange game. There are historical reasons, and also the influence of countless fiction works based on Asada Tetsuya's novel, but cheating actually tends to be tolerated. Well, it's more like cheating can be complimented despite being called a dirty tactic. Even if there's circumstantial evidence that tiles have been replaced, unless you get caught red-handed, the fraud won't be condemned, and they can even comment on how good your cheating was; it's that kind of environment.
"Does he use any other skills?", Alice asked Yondaime.
"Just stealing tiles, as far as I know."
"Well, that trick is effective with automatic tables. If he's able to successfully carry on that trick, there's no need to use riskier ones. Okay, what can be done? Since it's going to be held outside, we can't prepare a gadget to see the opponents' hand beforehand..."
Yes, if we were on a closed space, Major who is an expert in spying devices could place mini-cameras so we could see Genichirou-san's hand without him noticing, but since the match was arranged to be outside that was impossible to do. Hiding cameras on the riverbank, or installing super telephoto lens in the surrounding buildings would also be useless because we couldn't know where the tables would be nor where everyone would sit down until the day of the match. Genichirou-san would buy a brand new table and wouldn't open it until that day, so we couldn't alter the table either. And even if we could completely see his hand, in the first place mahjong is a game when one needs to have the right tiles to accumulate points, and Genichirou-san's skills were faster in that aspect too. How could we win? A plan not only to defend ourselves, but to win and take his cash--
"......Hm?"
I suddenly realized something and covered my mouth with one of my hands.
Genichirou-san's quicker hand. Outdoor mahjong.
"What's the matter?" Yondaime slightly tilted his head. I raised my hand to stop him from talking and thought.
Is it possible?
Theoretically, it was. There were so many necessary things that it made me feel dizzy. Preliminary work, tactics to withstand until they fell into the trap, tactics to make sure they could effectively fall into the trap, and more than anything, coordination.
I finally came to, and I organized my thoughts. There were too many missing pieces, but I wasn't alone. Alice and Yondaime were here. So I made up my mind, gulped, and spoke:
"...Our side gets to decide the minor rules, right? In that case, there's some rules I'd like to add."
"What? Obviously Genichirou won't accept any rule that will only benefit us."
"No, there are special but impartial rules, because they're only related to the point exchange. Two rules."
"Speak."
"The first one is, we won't use chips, whoever wants to raise the bet will do it with cash."
Yondaime arched one of his eyebrows."That's a disadvantage to me. Do you understand? Measuring out points with chips we can pay later so we can continue even if we exceed our cash halfway, but if we have an exact amount it will be all over once we spend it all."
"I understand, but it's necessary. Besides, if it doesn't sound advantageous to us it's more likely that Genichirou-san allows it."
Yondaime snorted and folded his arms."And what's the other rule?"
"There won't be a 'father'. Everyone will earn dealer points."
"What the hell?" Yondaime ruffled his silver hair with his hand.
In mahjong, one of the players is the dealer or father, and that position rotates in each round. The dealer gets more payment if he wins and has to pay more if he loses; it's a high risk-high return position. But with my plan, everyone would be 'fathers'. Everyone would earn 1, 5 more if they won and would have to pay double if they lost.
"Isn't that a disadvantage for us too?" Yondaime complained."Well, whatever. I'll tell him. Now, explain that strategy of yours already. Why do we need those rules?"
I gulped and started talking, sitting at the edge of the bed. Alice's big eyes were getting more and more round and Yondaime was frowning more and more.
When I finished explaining everything, Alice sighed and told Yondaime:
"I take back what I said a moment ago. Your sworn brother is nothing but a hopeless dreamer."
"You're right, that's a good way to describe your assistant." "You don't need to keep competing! We better hurry with our preparations!"
Yondaime sighed and removed his back from the wall."True. It will be a disaster if we lose, so let's do this thoroughly. I'll talk to Major. So, Alice--" As he was walking to the door of the office, he pointed at the detective on the bed."Think of a way to make him fall into the trap."
After the door closed, Alice glared at me from the corner of her eye, hugging his teddy bear to her chest and pressing her jaw into it.
"Is it impossible?", I asked, feeling anxious.
"It's not impossible. I have thought of a strategy, more or less... But it's a lost cause. You see?"
And with that, Alice started talking. Her strategy was as ridiculous as mine.
*
In the clear winter sky, many kites of different colors could be seen, and the cheerful voices of the children could be heard on the riverbank.
"So nice, the kids are havin' fun...", Genichirou-san said with his eyes half-closed and his down jacket blowing in the wind.
"When Sou-chan was that age he ran outside everyday..." Rikako-san muttered by his side. As expected because of the cold, she was wearing a simple but thick coat, and her hair was tied in a bun.
"Stop blabbering. Start the preparations already.", Yondaime said, ill-humored.
Various men that one could realize with just a glance that they were yakuza took a huge box and some suitcases from inside a truck. Carefully unpacking, they arranged a simple automatic table, a small dynamo, four stools and two small desks on the surface covered with pebble and surrounded by overgrown grass.
Our luggage was a bag that Pole was in charge to bring. A mountain of rolled bank notes were placed on the two desks. I had already seen 200. 000. 000 yens in cash with my own eyes some time ago, but it was still quite a sight. Pole's hands were shaking a little.
Our cash was 160. 000. 000 yens. Almost all the cash Yondaime had on him had been already invested in business, so the bank notes in front of us had been loaned. Genichirou-san's side had more or less the same amount.
"Let's reconfirm the rules.", Genichirou-san said as he was setting up the mahjong table."No chips, was it?"
The four sides of mahjong tables have slots than automatically open and close. That's where chips are normally put, but they were going to be empty that day because we were going to use the money on that desk in front of us directly.
"So are ya really gonna be payin' in cash? Ya run out of money and yer done for."
"Shut the hell up. Worry about your own wallet." Yondaime cussed and Genichirou-san snorted. The money on their side wasn't necessarily all they had, but as for us, those rolled bank notes were our life line. We were really on the edge of the cliff.
"Next one, no father?" Genichirou-san took the yellow plate with the East wind sign and threw it to the cardboard box that served as a garbage bin. That plate is normally used to signal the dealer, but we wouldn't have to use it this day either.
"Such a weird rule. Does it mean that there ain't no parents and children relationships here anymore?"
Genichirou-san laughed. That wasn't the reason I had made that rule, but maybe it was inevitable for him to interpret it like that. Yondaime just gave him a disdainful gesture. Well, in a way I was glad they had misunderstood, although Rikako-san's sad eyes made me a bit uneasy.
"Aight, ya guys get back to the car.", Genichirou-san turned to the men who had brought all the stuff."And keep an eye on Souichirou's car, if someone comes, let me know."
Yondaime also talked to Pole: "You go back to the car too. Don't leave until the game is over."
"Understood!"
Only the four of us were left around the mahjong table. The voices of the children were now distant, and the sound that prevailed was the wind blowing against the grass.
What a strange situation, I found myself thinking, because if it was a bet involving money, I would generally be just an observer.
"Family mahjong!", Rikako-san said with a cheerful voice that sounded a little forced.
"Shall we begin?" Genichirou-san pressed the button on the table.
When you play mahjong in pairs, you have to sit in front of the person you're teaming up with, so I had Genichirou-san at my left and Rikako-san at my right.
As soon as we started, Genichirou-san noticed our strange way of playing.
"I was wonderin' what yer plan could be, but what's with this? Just child's play.", he said, laughing... And in the blink of an eye he earned 18000 points. With a sulky face, Yondaime transferred part of his money to the other desk.
Our plan didn't change by the next round. This time, Rikako-san won with the maximum amount of points.
"Just as the Thirteen Orphans are called matchless, what ya guys are doing should be called useless..." Rikako-san smiled."But, ya two really get along, that's nice!"
Genichirou-san himself was an opponent to worry about, but Rikako-san was also quite dangerous. In just two rounds, they had practically seen through our objective.
However, that was part of the strategy that Alice had taught us.
"Aiming to Thirteen Orphans in all rounds..."
Two nights before, Alice had explained.
"It might seem ridiculous, but it's a strategy that has worked in several tournaments."
Thirteen Orphans is a winning hand in which you need a tile of each one of the dragons and the winds, the tiles 1 and 9 of each suit, and an extra tile of any other terminal or honor tile. Non-dealers would win 32. 000 points with this hand, but since with our rules everyone had 'father' points, everyone would win 48. 000. That means that if you had this tiles, you would obtain the maximum amount of points.
"This tactic has three advantages. First, of course, is the high amount of points. The second one is that in case you can't seem to obtain a favorable hand, it's easier to get an unusual evasive hand."
In any case, many tiles would be discarded during the second half of the first round, reducing the danger of making the opponent win. In theory, it's a perfect defensive-offensive tactic. In practice, that hand is hard to come by, so even if you aim to get it in all the rounds, the opportunity might just come once.
Even so, we chose that strategy.
"The third advantage is-" Alice smiled at me."It's the tactic that fits the best with the plan you thought of, of course."
For that reason, Yondaime and I focused on the disposable tiles, and Mr. and Mrs. Hinamura kept winning. The bank notes on Yondaime's desk were quickly decreasing. The idea of paying directly in cash that I had suggested myself was difficult to stand mentally. Each one of Genichirou-san's winning hands was worth around the same amount a normal person earns in a whole year.
Where on earth is the 'family mahjong'?, I thought to myself. My fingertips had numbed. The usually talkative Genichirou-san had fallen completely silent when Yondaime's money was reduced to half. Rikako-san's usual happy expression had turned gloomy.
Why is this happening even though they're linked by blood? Even knowing they would destroy their ties and each other, they calmly kept doing it.
An hour later, our funds were already at their limit. The money on Yondaime's desk could be counted with just a glance, while the money on Genichirou-san's side was a high mountain that looked like it was about to collapse.
"Oh well. Everythin' will be over next round...", Genichirou-san said, looking at Yondaime from the corner of his eye.
"It's cold, so I can't wait to go back and take a bath..."
"Quit blabbering. I still have 200, 000, 000 stored.", Yondaime answered in an unfriendly way. He was actually just bluffing, but the look on Genichirou-san's face changed. As soon as the next round began, I understood that he had accepted Yondaime's taunt.
The discarded tiles that were lined up on the table were disappearing one by one without us noticing. He had started doing his special cheating skill, stealing from the pond. Rikako-san apparently noticed to and immediately started aligning tiles so they were easier to steal.
Genichirou-san was aiming to do Thirteen Orphans. He started preparing his double yakuman. If he showed us his Thirteen Orphans he would take all of my points or Yondaime's with one of the tiles that we had discarded. If by some twist he'd won with a tile taken by himself it would also be the end. Only a couple of millions were left on Yondaime's desk anyway.
Even in the cold wind of January, my fingertips holding the tiles were sweaty. If I lost that opportunity I would simply die. Only the tiles would tell. I desperately checked which tiles had disappeared.
Three tiles until Genichirou-san's hand is complete.
Now's the time.
I took off my jacket and put it behind the stool. That was the signal. Nothing changed around the table. There was just the sound of the wind and the tiles clacking. The person who had to interpret my signal from above had to notice my deep red T-shirt.
Genichirou-san stole another tile.
Only two more left.
One more left.
Hearing the wind in my ears, I slowly adjusted the coordination of my next move.
Genichirou-san announced tenpai. Without a doubt, it was going to be the Thirteen Orphans.
Yondaime discarded his last tile without giving it a second thought. End of the turn.
At that moment-
An intermittent sound made itself audible from far away among the sound the wind. Genichirou-san stopped his extended arm for an instant and frowned.
But he didn't know that sound was the rotor of a helicopter, and he didn't know the fate that sound would carry either. Genichirou-san's stopped hand got close to the mountain of tiles again, and the sound of the rotor and its blades cutting through the air was now just above our heads. Rikako-san raised her head with a darkened expression. Just when Genichirou-san was about to exchange his Green Dragon tile with one of the discarded ones, a huge shadow surrounded the mahjong table and the four of us. The surrounding grass shook violently and a whirl of wind was formed. The helicopter was flying so low that it looked like it was going to crush us. Then the hatch opened, and a backlit short human silhouette stuck out his upper body. Said silhouette was holding a long, rod-shaped object--The barrel of an M14 assault rifle.
Another sound soon followed, even louder than rotor. It was, without a doubt, a gunshot. At the same time, Genichirou-san sprang up from his chair, but his next action was something that I couldn't have predicted. He grabbed Yondaime, who was sitting at his right, by the shoulders, and pushed him to the ground. I heard the sound of sand scattering at one side of the table. The noise of the rotor grew gradually distant and the shadow over us became smaller and smaller until it disappeared, but my heart was still pounding heavily inside my chest, and I felt the dry, cold wind brushing my ears once again.
"...What on earth was that?" Rikako-san wondered out loud, unburying her head from under her arms and standing up from her chair to look up at the sky.
"A hitman from somewhere...? But he went away without doin' anythin'..."
Yondaime stood up and patted the dust from his sleeves, speaking in a very clear voice:
"It was a bad prank from a friend... Just discard that tile you were about to discard."
Still holding the Green Dragon in his hand, Genichirou-san stared at the table's surface.
It was then when he finally understood anything. And he started laughing, his shoulders shaking.
"I see. It was for this. It was all for this. Not usin' chips, and not havin' a dealer... It was all for this reason."
I firmly swallowed and lowered my gaze to my tiles. Yes, everything had been prepared for this very moment.
Still standing up, Genichirou-san placed the Green Dragon tile on the table. I felt my body drenched in sweat and my eardrums pounding.
"Ron."
Trying to control the shaking in my hands, I turned my tiles, showing them.
"...Thirteen Orphans--Double Yakuman."
Rikako-san blinked, showing a surprised expression.
"...W-what's this, what's goin' on? Gen-chan?"
"Ya'll understand by just lookin'." With a transparent smile, Genichirou-san looked at the table."When I panicked and stood up, the boy turned the table itself around."
I wiped the sweat off my hands on my jeans. It was just like Genichirou-san had said. When they both got distracted by the helicopter, I turned the table 90 degrees counter-clockwise. Genichirou-san now had Yondaime's hand, full of useless tiles, and the hand with the Thirteen Orphans that had been obtained through his cheating tactics was now mine. The dangerous rule of paying the bets with cash, and the no-dealer rule, I made them both for the sake of this plan. Since no one would have individual chips, nothing would be signaling the points of each player, so they wouldn't be direct evidence that the table had been turned around.
Just looking at the dramatic change in the tiles, the circumstantial evidence was incredible, but there was no concrete proof to blame me of cheating. That was this strange game's unspoken rule.
The greatest contributor to this incredible trap weren't me or Alice, but the one who had to see my signal, Major, who was able to perfectly coordinate the moment when he had to fly above us with the helicopter.
Yondaime let out a sigh.
"It's over..." His voice somewhat sounded like that of a tired lost child who was on the verge of tears.
"Let me ask ya one more thing." Sprawling in the chair and stretching both of his legs, Genichirou-san spoke in a calm tone.
"What?"
"I bought this table brand new. Since it's round and monopod, it's light and easy to turn around, but what if it had been a table difficult to move?"
Yondaime glanced at me for a moment and then lowered his gaze.
"Tokyo is my familiar territory. You said so yourself, didn't you?"
Genichirou-san slightly tilted his head, and Yondaime continued talking without raising his gaze.
"Very few storekeepers can deliver a mahjong table in just two days. I contacted all of them and bought all the tables from them, except the ones of this type."
That's how money is used. You were the one who taught me that, you idiot. --When Yondaime muttered this, the velvet surface where the mahjong tiles and Genichirou-san's legs were resting shook a little.
I will never forget the smile that appeared on Genichirou-san's face at that moment.
"Between the charter of the helicopter and buyin' all those tables, didncha exceed the budget quite a bit?"
"Shut the hell up. None of your business. Worry about your own deficit. If you don't have the cash, then write an IOU right here and now. Put the annual interest rate on the bankruptcy of the third generation of the Hinamura family."
"Ah yeah, that..." Genichirou-san turned his gaze to my double yakuman."A dealer double yakuman is worth 96. 000 points, so it's 480. 000. 000 yens, huh? 160. 000. 000 ain't enough."
I didn't know if I should speak or not, but in the end the words came off from my throat to my lips.
"Ehmm. Non-dealer is fine."
Yondaime and Genichirou-san looked at me at the same time. For a second, their faces looked exactly the same.
"It doesn't have to be a dealer score. Non-dealer score is 64. 000 points."
"Why?"
"Just before, when the guy in the helicopter pointed his rifle, you covered Yondaime..."
Yondaime showed his teeth.
"I'm sorry. That guy is actually one of our companions, Major. And of course, that rifle was just a model gun to distract you. But, you protected Yondaime."
"Dunno, I don't remember doin' that." "What's with that selective memory!"
But I had understood already. Regardless of all the hateful things they had said to each other--
"Genichirou-san, you truly think of Yondaime as your son. I'm Yondaime's sworn brother, that means that in a way I'm also your son. So, it's 64. 000 points. The money on that desk is enough."
Alice had also told me. The family is the smallest social union in which everything can be forgiven. I have nothing more than a broken family, so from the bottom of my heart, I thought: I don't want to see them covering each other in debts like that. This battlefield in which we had fought for millions of yens hadn't been exactly the cleanest fight, but still...
Genichirou-san didn't even try to conceal his laughter. Yondaime made a sulky face and looked away. Rikako-san grabbed my arm and Yondaime's with both of her hands, pulling us closer.
"Yer both my kids! I love ya!"
"Shut up!" Yondaime brushed his mother's hand off.
"Souichirou, ya okay with that stupid thing he just said?" Genichirou-san chuckled as he pointed at me. Yondaime turned his back to us.
"He was the one who raised the bet.", he started walking, making his way through the overgrown grass."Do as you please."
*
Genichirou-san called me two days after the mahjong match, just when Yondaime had came to the Detective Agency to discuss how to manage the troublesome accounting process. How could he launder 160. 000. 000 yens obtained through a gambling bet? In the middle of the conversation, my cellphone rang. The screen displayed an unknown number.
"...Hello?"
"Boy? We're goin' back to Osaka. Thought I'd say goodbye."
I could only hear his voice, but his smile surfaced immediately in my mind. Genichirou-san. I nervously looked at Yondaime for a second and went to the kitchen so he that he wouldn't hear our conversation.
"Eeh, uhm, uhhh... Thank you for your hard work." I didn't know what else to say."How do you know my number?"
"Did some research. I know Souichirou's number too, but he'd get all grumpy if I called him."
Probably, buy why would he call me? What did he want to talk about?
A noise was heard on the other side of the line, followed by a cheerful female voice.
"Naru-chan? It's me, it's mom! It's a bit sad but we're goin' back to Osaka like good losers. Take good care of Sou-chan! By the way, he's there with ya ain't he? Sou-chaaaaaan ya hear me!? Mom loves ya a ton!!"
I distanced my phone around 40 centimeters away from my ear.
Wow, he's really going to hear at this rate.
"Stop makin' a fuss, ya idiot. Give it back."
When I heard Genichirou-san's voice, I brought the phone to my ear again.
"Well, it's been fun. 'Til now, nothing interesting had happened whenever I came to Tokyo, but it was nice meetin' ya, boy. Let's play mahjong together again some other time."
"No no no. I've had enough with mahjong. Please give me a break."
"Hey, have ya forgotten already?" Genichirou-san's voice turned cold, just like it was when he was sitting at my right at the riverbed."The one who stole my Thirteen Orphans wasn't Souichirou but ya, boy. Ya'll have to let me take revenge on ya. Give me a call whenever ya visit Osaka."
I think I've decided to never go to Osaka in my life.
"Ahh yeah, by the way" Genichirou-san's normal tone of voice returned."Tell Souichirou that there's no way I'm gonna let someone who hangs out with such a naive, simpleton sworn little brother become the Hinamura family's successor. He can keep bein' a NEET in Tokyo 'till he drops dead if he wants to. I decided to pick the other candidate."
"Huh..."
I raised my head to look up at the dark roof. Everything turned out okay in the end... So it seems. That comment he made was insensitive, though.
Genichirou-san hung up after a 'see ya', and I timidly walked back to the room. Yondaime glared at me, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"What did that damn yakuza want?"
Well, it was obvious he was going to notice.
"Aah... Ehm, well..."
When I told him that Genichirou-san had decided to choose the other successor, a complicated expression appeared on his face, as if the saliva inside his mouth had turned sour.
"What the heck. The other successor? He should have chosen that one from the start instead of making all this big fuss. What did that idiot couple come from, really?"
At that moment, Alice who was in her bed chuckled, her shoulders shaking.
"As I said, Mr. and Mrs. Hinamura came here to visit the shrine. Everything else was secondary."
Yondaime knitted his brows and cocked his head, looking at Alice."To visit the shrine?"
"That's right. Narumi, do you remember what shrine did they want to go?"
The sudden turn of the conversation confused me.
"Ahh... Uh, If I remember correctly, Suitengu?"
Alice nodded.
"Yes. Suitengu shrine at Nihonbasho is famous in Japan as a place to pray for a childbirth without any complications."
Yondaime and I probably looked at Alice with the same surprised face.
"...C-childbirth?"
"Hinamura Rikako is probably pregnant. The other candidate to become the heir would be the child inside her womb."
Yondaime stood up with a completely astonished look on his face, snatching my phone away from me and redialing from the call history.
"It's me....You bastard, why didn't you say anything!? About mother, is she really going to have another brat? Aah? You're out of your mind, idiot! ...The charms of a pregnant woman? No, why the hell would I know about that? That's disgusting, so shut up! Hey, bastard, where are you now? I hear some kind of announcement on the background. Haneda? You imbecile, what are you thinking? She's not even in the stable period of her pregnancy yet, why are you going by plane? Take the bullet train! She's forty-three years old, she might look young but she's still an old bat, it's surprising that she's pregnant in the first place! ...No, I'm not complimenting you because of that, stupid! ...Aah? What are you talking about? ...Soujirou? Soujirou? You idiot, what if it's a girl? A name is for life so think about it more seriously! Ah, and don't do anything stupid with inheriting the business and all that. Learn a bit of what happened with me!"
His way of talking was so scary that I was getting worried that he would break my phone. I was still bewildered and could only exchange absent looks between Alice's long hair and Yondaime being a victim of teasing on the phone.
I see, they came to Tokyo to visit the shrine. Alice casually mentioned it some time ago.
"If I had explained it from the beginning, you see, since Hinamura Souichirou is actually such a kind man..." Alice chuckled."I think he wouldn't have fought as seriously as he did."
The detective's maliciousness dilemma, I suppose.
During fifteen more minutes, Alice and I continued listening while sitting on the bed to the manzai routine between father and son. We could only hear the tsukkomi, but it was incredibly easy to imagine what the boke lines were. Probably because of Yondaime's Osakan blood.
*
Three days later after school, I was called by Yondaime to show up at Hirasaka-gumi's office.
"Send this to Rikako on your name.", Yondaime said, putting a small cardboard box in front of me.
"...Why don't you send it yourself?" I knew it was because he was too shy to do it, but I still wanted to hear his reply. Maybe I am as malicious as Alice.
"Shut up. Just send it. And don't look inside the package."
If you tell me that, I can't help but open the box as soon as I get home. I have something called curiosity. Also, I have to write what the product is in the voucher of the express home delivery company.
Inside the box, there was a sash made of silk with a splendid design of a wolf embroidered with festive-colored threads. It was a bellyband.
With just looking at it, one could tell it was handmade. So far, I haven't seen anyone else capable of making such a perfect embroidery in such a short time.
Since female dogs give birth without complications, they're used as a symbol to pray for a safe childbirth. Suitengu at the center of Japan has a Day of the Dog, honoring pregnant women, that has extended all over the country.
I apologized around ten times to Yondaime in my heart and put the sash back in its package.
When I was writing 'To Hinamura Rikako-sama' and the address, I started thinking about Hinamura Souichirou's soon-to-be-born little brother who would be 21 years younger than him. I wonder if he would be consider my sworn brother too. She might be a sister.
Someday, when that child grows up, it would be nice if the four blood-related members of the Hinamura family would sit together around the kotatsu with a mahjong board. They wouldn't play for money, but for something trivial like who would get to use the remote control. That's what family mahjong really is.
*
On the weekend, I finally showed up at the mahjong parlor Tenhou Club again. I had been prioritizing my schoolwork so once the winter break had ended I hadn't been concerned with all the mahjong bears matter, but after the problem with Genichirou-san came to an end I thought I couldn't let that other matter unsolved forever, so I went to see how things were going.
"Ah, Fujishima-san, thank you for your work."
The punch-permed delinquent manager greeted me. I wish he wasn't so formal, because a young employee that didn't know I was a regular customer kept giving me suspicious looks, but he let me enter the office and even served me tea.
"The guys from Hirasaka-Gumi told me about what happened with Sou-san's father and all that. Must have been though."
"Ah, haha, haa, yeah well..."
I'm sure those idiots in back T-shirts said something exaggerated.
"But you're really something, Fujishima-san, undergoing a 60-40 sake ritual with a yakuza boss from Kansai..."
"That's a lie!" I knew they would say something like that!
"But yeah, since it was Sou-san's father, he was clearly unrelated to the mahjong bears..."
I nodded.
"If he hadn't been unrelated, it would have been unmanageable for Yondaime and I."
The manager also smiled bitterly.
"Certainly, that person's so strong that he's like a monster. Compared to him, these other guys are just kids. They're just strong enough to make easy money."
"Ahh, have those guys came recently?" I asked. The manager scratched his chin.
"Yesterday, that guy who wears glasses and is as skinny as a burdock came. But he just played for a round. He hadn't been showing up at all at the other parlors lately. I was thinking it would be nice if they just disappeared altogether, but..."
"He won big and went home yesterday too?"
"Midway through, he started winning by continuously making tsumo, but he suddenly looked ill, like he was about to puke, and went home."
He showed me the footage from the security camera. Since it was a hidden camera, the image wasn't too clear, but I could still see one of the three suspicious customers. His figure was weird because despite the heat inside the parlor, he was still wearing a jumper. The way he moved was somewhat scary.
"Fujishima-san, are those guys really a group? Not even once have they entered the parlor together..."
"Probably... Because they do the same strange things when they play. For example, here", and I pointed at the footage."On his turn, he has a pair of number 1 circle suit tiles and a pair of West winds, Dama-Ten on his eight turn. You can see he has four number 2 circle suit tiles. There's no way he would keep his number 1 tiles."
"Certainly."
The conversation with the manager was quick."Something tells you to keep the right tiles" sounds like something out of a mahjong manga, and the actual situation was more like "when you're playing, you have to get rid of the tiles that won't help you win first."
When you play Shogi, once you're checkmated there's nothing you can do to avoid it, no matter how good you are. But a skilled player won't let the circumstances lead him to get checkmated, and will probably lead his opponent to checkmate. Mahjong's the same.
Yet, if someone could avoid being checkmated, that would be--
"I wonder what kind of trick is he using.", the manager murmured."I also looked carefully if there was someone spying from a window or something, but..."
"He probably looks at the tiles' flaws."
My words made the manager knit his brows.
"No way. We don't use those kind of cheap tiles here."
That trick consists on telling the tiles apart because of their small cracks and so. There's also people who do their own marks to the tiles. Of course, even knowing how to tell just some of the tiles apart is still overwhelmingly advantageous.
"But I can't think of anything else. Keeps losing but starts winning halfway through, constantly making tsumo, seeing through the probabilities with the double pairs, and all that..."
When I exited the parlor together with the manager, I checked all the tiles that had been used by the skinny glasses guy from yesterday.
"They're as good as new, you see? I even buy new tiles to replace the old ones quite often.", the manager said as he stroked one of the brand new tiles in his hand with a finger.
The feeling that something just wasn't right was curdling in my stomach. I took the number 1 suit tile, thoroughly scanning it.
I felt like I had already experienced this same feeling that something wasn't right before.
But, it's impossible--
I stood up, still holding that tile, and walked to the counter. I borrowed a water-based sign pen from the employee and scribbled over the back of the tile.
"...Ah......"
A dry groan escaped from my throat.
A transparent part that couldn't be scribbled over with the ink surfaced on the tile.
I ran back to the board to check the other three number 1 suit tiles. They all had the same sign.
"...Fujishima-san? That's..."
I interrupted the manager's words by standing up once again. The toilet. The other strange thing about those guys was how they often went to the toilet. I rushed to the toilet and crawled on the tiled floor and looked under the washbasin and the urinals.
And then I found it. Under the water closet, there was a red fine powder.
I couldn't breath for a moment. Unable to get up yet for some reason, I held onto the wall of the private room. Finally, I supported myself with the urinal and got up.
I took out my cellphone. My hands were shaking so bad that I almost dropped it.
What the hell is this? It can't be.
Why are you here? Why are you still here!? Weren't you supposed to have been reduced to ashes, withered, vanished without a trace already?
My throat was trembling. The bitter taste, the taste of blood and the electrifying pleasure came back to my mind. Even though it should have all remained deeply sunken. Now, the memories of the pain, the fever, the singing voice were all gushing out, overflowing like wounds throughout my body.
Yet, my thoughts were eerily calm. The first person I called wasn't Yondaime or Alice, it was Major.
"...Ah, it's me. Please come to Tenhou Club. Oh, and, you have tools to pick up a spilled drug from the floor, don't you? ...Yeah....Uhm, err, it's a powder. It's an extremely small quantity....Yes, yes... Please, I want you to examine it as soon as you can."
My request of having him examine it immediately was probably involuntary. I wanted my conjecture to be proven wrong. That's why I thought about Mayor first.
After hanging up, I took a deep breath, and this time I called Yondaime.
"I'm at Tenhou Club....Yeah, it's about the mahjong case....I think I might have understood those guys' modus operandi. Using the toilet... Yes....No, it's still just a theory, but it's probably--"
I bit my lip, feeling unable to breath, resting my back on the wall, and I glanced down, looking at the filthy, dim red under the urinal.
It's not a conjecture. I know it even know. My body remembers it more than anything.
"--Angel Fix."
| ← Ch. 56 | Ch. 58 → |