Chapter 271: Christmas: The Beginning
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 271: Christmas: The Beginning
Christmas.
Originally a Christian holiday to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, its meaning in modern Japan has long since faded.
It is said to be the day with the highest conception rate of the year.
It is said to be the day with the most motel and hotel visits of the year.
a.k.a. Couple's Day.
It's a major holiday with all sorts of nicknames attached to it.
That's why most single people grow dispirited around this time and lock themselves away at home.
Just a year ago, I was one of them, spending Christmas in front of the TV saying, "Christmas is best spent with Kevin from Home Alone." But this year is different.
Because this year, I have a girlfriend.
In fact, I have two girlfriends, both of whom are far too beautiful for a big guy like me.
Some might misunderstand and think I'm two-timing, but I'm officially dating both of them at the same time, with their full permission.
It's made my life a lot more complicated, but what can I do?
If I want to protect this overwhelming happiness, I'm the one who has to work for it.
*
Sunday, December 24, 2017. Weather: cloudy.
As if this year was destined to be a white Christmas just like the last, it snowed heavily last night.
Most people would look at the fluffy white snow and think it's beautiful, but from my perspective—having wasted two years in the remote mountains of Gangwon Province—it's nothing more than trash.
And that opinion hasn't changed one bit, even after possessing Kim Yoo-Sung's body.
Because whenever the front yard gets covered in snow, it's always my job to clear it.
This morning, the moment I opened my eyes, I felt a chill in the air and remembered it had snowed during the night.
"...I don't want to go out."
But unlike my brain, which whined about not wanting to work, my workout-addicted body was brutally honest. I shuffled out of my room, grabbed my tools from the storage shed, and went outside.
"Hoo—"
A white puff of breath bloomed with every exhale.
The biting, razor-sharp wind made my ears turn red.
It's cold.
Incredibly cold.
Maybe it was too reckless to come out with no winter gear on.
Unable to bear the fierce midwinter cold any longer, I hastily wrapped my entire body in Yang Energy.
My body warmed up instantly.
Feeling as if I'd covered myself in hot packs, I let out a sigh of relief and started sweeping the yard with a broom again.
About thirty minutes into my silent snow-clearing session, Mrs. Lee Mi-ja came down the stairs, yawning. She spotted me sweeping the yard in a t-shirt and shorts and asked, her eyes wide with surprise.
"Son, aren't you cold dressed like that?"
"It's bearable."
"What do you mean, bearable?! Get inside right now!"
Dodging the hand flying toward my back, I made an emergency retreat indoors. After washing off the precious sweat of my labor in the shower, I ate the curry Mrs. Lee Mi-ja had made for breakfast.
Normally, after refueling on calories, my routine would be to head straight to the gym... but not today.
Today was Christmas Eve, the day for lovers.
I had spent all last night messaging my two wonderful girlfriends, Kumiko-senpai and Rika, and planned to leave the house in time for our date.
Of course, I didn't forget to let my parents know first.
"Dad, I might be staying out overnight."
"...Are you meeting with Miss Saionji?"
"Yes."
My father, who had been reading the newspaper, silently took out his wallet and pressed three 10,000-yen bills into my hand.
"Have a good time."
"I will."
After a strange moment of eye contact between father and son, I put the 30,000 yen of allowance he'd given me into my wallet and headed to the nearby station to catch the subway.
*
Early morning, the Kishimoto household.
"Mama! Help me pick an outfit!"
Rika, giddy with excitement for her first-ever Christmas date, came downstairs with an outfit in each hand.
Seeing his daughter, the head of the Kishimoto family, Kishimoto Sojiro, asked with a hardened expression.
"Daughter, where are you going so early in the morning?"
Startled, Rika tilted her head. "Huh?" she asked.
"Papa, did you finish this week's manuscript?"
"It's almost New Year's, so I decided to take a break this week. ...More importantly, don't change the subject. Answer me."
Faced with Sojiro's unusually angry expression, Rika averted her gaze and quickly called for reinforcements.
"Mama~"
In response to her daughter's call, the number one in the Kishimoto family hierarchy, Kishimoto Maria, walked out slowly from the kitchen.
"What is it, dear?"
"Papa's being mean to me~"
As Rika whined while hugging Maria, Sojiro opened his mouth with a troubled look.
"No, honey, it's not like that..."
"Sojiro?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Rika is seventeen now. She's not a little girl we have to protect forever."
"But it's Christmas, so the whole family should spend it together..."
"Tsk! It's because you're like this that the young editors are always calling you an old fuddy-duddy!"
"......"
Hitting a sore spot, Sojiro fell silent.
Ignoring him completely, the mother and daughter, who looked so much alike they could be mistaken for sisters, secretly exchanged whispers.
'How was that, Mom?'
'Perfect!'
'Just in case, make sure you take a condom. The younger you are, the more important it is to be safe.'
'It's not like that?!'
'What do you mean, it's not like that? You can't fool your mother.'
As Maria said that, gently pushing Rika's forehead with her index and middle fingers, Rika could only pout and rub her head, unable to argue.
Because everything Maria suspected was true.
So, Rika decided to be honest.
'Mama, I might stay out overnight...'
'Leave it to me. I'll make sure Sojiro never finds out.'
Maria's playful wink was an incredibly reassuring sight for her daughter, Rika.
*
"Today's the day."
"Indeed it is, my lady."
A certain building in Tokyo.
Saionji Kumiko, the talented woman who had devoured nearly 70% of the Saionji family's total shares after a fierce, 100-day internecine war following the great incident in autumn, murmured to herself as she gazed out the glass window.
The new 'Chairwoman' of the Saionji Group.
Saionji Kumiko.
So much blood had been shed within the family just to obtain that one title.
If she hadn't had her trump card, 'Kim Yoo-Sung', far more sacrifices would likely have been necessary.
Her beloved, 'Kim Yoo-Sung', had become a new titan of Japan's underworld.
And for good reason. His track record over the past year was nothing short of spectacular.
He was the top disciple of Fuma Kotaro, the former strongest man in Japan, and had defeated the current strongest, Hattori Hanzo. As if that weren't enough, he had also taken down Ivan Romanov, the head of the Seven Fist Masters and the so-called strongest in the underworld, not once, but twice.
Though Kim Yoo-Sung was initially treated as a sudden rising star, he was now regarded as the new strongest in Japan, without any dispute.
A group that worshiped him as 'Guardian King' Kim Yoo-Sung had even formed without his knowledge.
Thanks to that, Kumiko was able to gain major concessions from underworld organizations just by borrowing his name.
'I also received a great deal of help from Miss Sasha and Miss Tojo.'
With the backing of the 'Toseikai', the top yakuza organization in eastern Japan that controlled all of Tokyo, and the 'Easter Egg Company', a Russian multinational corporation, Kumiko had seized control of her family at a pace that could only be described as unstoppable.
It wasn't that there were no factions left opposing her.
But it wouldn't be long before they, too, were suppressed.
After all, she had Shinjiro and Minami, her incredibly capable subordinates.
"My lady, I have prepared about twenty outfits for your date today."
"Thank you for your hard work."
As Minami, looking every bit the capable secretary, said this and wheeled over a clothing rack, Kumiko's icy expression melted away, replaced by a girlish one.
The sheer gap in her demeanor made Shinjiro flinch involuntarily, but he quickly lowered his head as if nothing had happened.
A ninja on duty must not easily reveal his emotions.
"My lady, would you prefer a sexy concept or a cute one?"
"Hmm, which do you think Yoo-Sung would like more?"
"According to the data I've accumulated, he would likely prefer the sexy one."
"Then let's go with sexy."
"Understood."
Bowing, Minami then jabbed Shinjiro, who was standing silently beside her, hard in the ribs.
"Keuk!"
Reacting to the sudden attack, Shinjiro looked at Minami with a questioning expression. She said one word.
"Out."
"Ah."
Only then realizing that his presence was preventing his dear lady from changing, Shinjiro scrambled out of the room.
*
And now, the present.
At the designated meeting spot, two women faced off, both dressed in daring knit sweaters that emphasized their voluptuous figures—a far cry from their usual attire.
Their outfits were strangely similar.
Anyone could see they were both dead set on seducing their innocent boyfriend. Sparks flew from the eyes of the two women who shared the same man.
'To this woman,'
'To this person,'
'I will absolutely not lose!'
'I'm not going to lose!'