Chapter 564: Last Night in Japan
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 564: Last Night in Japan
There’s an old saying, isn’t there?
Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.
In any case, it seems that a good thrashing is the most effective means of persuasion, regardless of time or place.
The three of us simultaneously turned our gaze toward the dagger resting on the table.
It was the same dagger Chichiko had placed there earlier to threaten me.
It looked expensive, but now it was snapped clean in half.
How on earth did that happen?
The question crossed my mind, but I didn't ask.
If I did, Senior Ju-hee would probably just give me a casual look and ask, “Why? Is this hard to do?”
Then I’d have to spend ages explaining that normal people can’t just snap a steel blade in two. There was no point in starting a meaningless conversation where neither of us would understand the other.
Anyway.
Our conversation, which began with a "Sumimasen," proceeded quite smoothly.
Before long, Chichiko couldn't even bring herself to look in Senior Ju-hee’s direction; she just kept her head bowed low.
She kept insisting she was just reading the contract... but who would believe that?
It was obvious to anyone that she was just scared out of her wits and keeping her head down.
“...Should I sign here?”
Oh, so she does know how to use honorifics.
As I let out a dry chuckle, Oh Yun-ji nudged my shoulder with her elbow and sighed.
“Look, we’re not trying to force you into a contract. We want to do this because it’s mutually beneficial. We think very highly of your talent as a broadcaster, Chichiko-san.”
“Ah...”
Chichiko nodded frantically, as if finally remembering what this meeting was actually about.
I suspect that even if that paper had been a contract for organ harvesting, she would have signed it anyway.
“First, let me explain the terms.”
Oh Yun-ji began explaining the contract, using a ballpoint pen with the tip still retracted. Whenever Chichiko seemed not to understand the Korean, Yun-ji would switch to Japanese.
“Would you prefer I explain it in Japanese?”
Halfway through, Oh Yun-ji offered to switch entirely.
“No! It’s fine! I can understand!”
Chichiko shook her head, looking remarkably well-disciplined. Perhaps because she was from a Yakuza family, her attitude shifted completely once the hierarchy was established.
Senior Ju-hee sat with her arms crossed, staring Chichiko down with a stoic expression. When I reached out and gently covered Ju-hee’s eyes with my hand, she looked startled, but Chichiko’s shoulders visibly relaxed.
“If you keep doing that, she’s going to be so terrified she’ll sign an organ harvesting contract by mistake.”
At my words, Senior Ju-hee looked at me sheepishly.
“Was I doing that? No, I just got a bit angry thinking about how she pulled a knife on you.”
“...Well, that’s fair. Should we glare at her together, then?”
When I spoke playfully, Senior Ju-hee let out a little chuckle. It seemed my joke had landed.
Then, a sudden curiosity struck me.
“By the way, Senior. Have you ever lost a fight? From what I’ve seen, you win every single time.”
Senior Ju-hee furrowed her brow at my question. She seemed to be thinking it over.
“Hmm, let’s see. I don’t think I’ve ever lost. Whenever I fight, everyone usually ends up lying on the ground beneath me.”
“That’s insane...”
Incredible.
But something felt off.
“Wait, but you couldn't have been that good at fighting from the very beginning. How did you never lose even once?”
Senior Ju-hee scratched her cheek as she answered.
“Well... I guess it’s because I fought them in order? Like, the weak kids would pick a fight first, and once I beat them, slightly stronger kids would come along, and so on.”
“Huh.”
“You know how it is in school. There’s the Rank 1, Rank 2, Rank 3 fighters. That kind of thing.”
Do high schools really have those?
I honestly didn't know, but apparently, they did at her school.
“So, because the weaker ones came in sequence, I think I just naturally kept winning.”
Society really did raise her to be strong.
“...Senior, you basically lived out a school gang webtoon, didn't you?”
It was the classic structure of those webtoons—the protagonist growing stronger while fighting increasingly powerful enemies.
Senior Ju-hee chuckled and nodded at my remark.
“I guess so, now that you mention it.”
While Oh Yun-ji and Chichiko discussed the contract, I chatted with Senior Ju-hee.
Chichiko was now reviewing the contract quite seriously. The Yakuza members who had been thrashed by Senior Ju-hee earlier slunk back and stood behind Chichiko.
“...Wow.”
Their faces were so bruised and swollen they were practically purple. I wondered just how hard she had hit them to make them look like that.
Once the explanation was finished, Oh Yun-ji spoke calmly.
“These are the initial terms. However, after seeing things today, I think there are a few more things we need to discuss.”
Oh Yun-ji’s cold gaze was chillingly professional, carrying a different kind of sharpness than Senior Ju-hee’s.
“Let’s get one thing straight. You mentioned the Black Fate Syndicate—you’re Yakuza, right?”
“A-Ah... my father is... the boss of the syndicate.”
“Hmm.”
Oh Yun-ji nodded as if she had expected as much. Then, she spoke clearly to Chichiko.
“Coming from a Yakuza background is one thing. But being an active Yakuza is not allowed.”
“...”
“Do you understand what I’m saying? You cannot bring your father’s profession into our business.”
“H-Hai.”
“These days, gangsters do Neutube, and people who’ve been to prison do Neutube. But the one thing they have in common is that they’ve all washed their hands of that life.”
“Hai...”
“She keeps saying 'Hai, Hai,' it sounds like she's just greeting us.”
When I muttered that, Oh Yun-ji nudged my arm with her elbow again.
It was a signal to shut up.
“Active Yakuza is a no-go. Chichiko-san, you look quite young. Have you ever been involved in any crimes?”
Chichiko shook her head vigorously at Oh Yun-ji’s question.
“No, no! Never! I-I’m still a minor... My father only let me watch. And these days, if you do... you know, violent stuff, everyone gets arrested, so we can’t do it.”
Well, things were rough in the past.
I’d heard that the Yakuza had lost most of their power lately.
“Then why did you bring a knife?”
Oh Yun-ji asked sharply.
The contract wasn't signed yet. She clearly wanted to verify everything.
Chichiko lowered her head sheepishly and explained.
“T-They said we had to establish dominance at the first meeting... M-My boys said—”
Chichiko glanced back at the Yakuza members. Though they couldn't understand the conversation, the Yakuza flinched when they felt our eyes on them.
Actually, they were probably flinching at Senior Ju-hee’s gaze.
“Sigh. Chichiko-san, I think you’ll need to stay with me in Korea for a while to adjust your activities and lifestyle. Would you be okay with that? Just having a Yakuza background creates these kinds of restrictions.”
Oh Yun-ji asked one last time if she was sure. In a way, it was asking for an extraordinary amount of effort.
After all, Chichiko was already doing quite well as a VTuber in Japan.
However, she clenched her fists tightly.
“I-I’ll do it. Honestly, I also thought I couldn't go on like this in my current environment.”
“...”
“I like being a VTuber more than being Yakuza. For the sake of my Chikoritas, I want to become a clean person.”
Does she raise Pokémon too?
I asked later, and it turned out "Chikorita" was the name of her fandom.
Oh Yun-ji nodded with satisfaction at Chichiko’s answer and handed her the pen.
“Then please sign here. I look forward to working with you.”
* * *
It was dinner time by the time we returned to the hotel.
Since the third meeting had ended more smoothly than expected, we were able to enjoy the hotel buffet.
“Phew, at least the last VTuber was normal. Right?”
As I spoke while eating, Senior Ju-hee nodded.
“Yeah. At least the last one was very modest and nice. She felt like what I imagined a Japanese woman would be like.”
I nodded in agreement.
Oh Yun-ji was also humming as she enjoyed the buffet. She seemed satisfied with having secured two out of the three, even if Hanae got away.
“I didn't expect all three to be successful anyway.”
Oh Yun-ji’s cool response.
Senior Ju-hee and I nodded.
You don't come into these things expecting a hundred percent success rate.
As we ate, the conversation naturally drifted elsewhere.
“Hmm, we’re heading back tomorrow, and I didn't get to do any sightseeing at all. I really wanted to go to a place like Akihabara.”
I’d wanted to go and buy a figurine or something, but all I’d experienced here was the "red pill" identities of VTubers.
“I wonder why I don't feel like coming back to Japan.”
Come to think of it, because everything was so expensive, we just stuffed ourselves at the hotel buffet and didn't even eat any proper Japanese food.
The only good memory I had was when Oh Yun-ji was on top of me wearing that latex suit.
“What time do we leave tomorrow?”
I wondered if we could squeeze in some sightseeing tomorrow at least.
“The flight is at 9 AM. So we have to sleep early tonight and leave first thing tomorrow.”
I grumbled slightly at Oh Yun-ji’s indifferent reply.
“Hey, why so early? Why are you so rushed?”
“You’re the one who kept pestering me to go back early because of the other girls, so I booked it for 9 AM, you bastard.”
“Ah...”
Right, I did do that.
“I should have kept my mouth shut.”
My mouth is always the problem.
* * *
After returning to the hotel room.
I was about to call the girls back home, but a message arrived first.
There was no need to ask why.
I had expected this to some extent.
We’d traveled all the way to Japan; if lovers didn't spend time together, who would they spend it with?
‘I can call the others after one round.’
I hopped up and headed to Oh Yun-ji and Senior Ju-hee’s room.
“Excuse me~”
I hummed as I walked in, but what met my eyes was a rabbit.
“...A rabbit?”
Yes, a rabbit.
I’d seen a dinosaur, and I’d seen a cat.
And now, there was a rabbit.
“Ahem, cough.”
Senior Ju-hee, dressed in a bunny girl suit, looked at me awkwardly and greeted me.
“Y-Young Master, you’ve arrived.”
