What? You Want Me to Become a Tanned Blond Guy?

I stared at my grandfather, my expression one of pure disbelief.

“...So what exactly is this plan of yours, Grandpa? There has to be something more detailed than just disguising me as a blond tanned guy, right?”

When I actually thought about it, a simple disguise probably wouldn’t cut it. There had to be a more sophisticated approach… and I was genuinely curious what it was. Given that Taira Danjo had specifically allocated six months for this, I was certain he had something solid in mind.

“Yes, there is.”

“Since I’m the one who has to do it, I’d like to know the details.”

At my words, Taira Danjo let out a low, rumbling chuckle.

“Don’t rush. First, let me explain the background of this operation.”

According to Taira Danjo, Minamoto Risa attended St. Francisco Academy—an ultra-elite boarding school reserved exclusively for daughters of Japan’s highest social strata. Incidentally, my younger aunt, Taira Kanna, who was still a high school student, attended the same institution.

St. Francisco Academy had been established by the Daigo family, a branch of the prestigious Ichijo clan. It was heavily isolated from the outside world.

The academy was a well-known all-girls combined middle-and-high school that most people recognized. It followed the so-called “escalator system,” where admission to the middle school division virtually guaranteed automatic progression to the high school division and even to the affiliated St. Francisco Women’s University run by the Daigo family. While exceptionally talented students sometimes advanced to prestigious institutions like Edo University, the majority of upper-class young women attended St. Francisco Academy due to its elite environment and seamless academic pipeline.

“You said it’s a closed-off school, completely isolated from the outside, right?”

“Correct. Unlike the St. Francisco Women’s University in Tokyo, the academy is located in Miya-shi, west of Mount Fuji.”

Ah, Miya-shi. I’d heard it was a relatively new city with a short history, but it was known as a resort town because so many conglomerate families maintained lavish villas there. The security was supposedly extremely tight.

It was the kind of place where outsiders could expect to be stopped and questioned by police three or four times a day. That level of vigilance was probably due in large part to St. Francisco Academy. After all, the daughters of the upper class made for very tempting targets for kidnappers.

“The more I hear about this, the more impossible it sounds. Am I wrong?”

“It would be, if you tried to go there as an ordinary civilian.”

Since I couldn’t reveal my identity as the youngest son of the Taira family, heading to Miya-shi would mean constant police stops and interrogations. Naturally, Taira Danjo had already accounted for that.

“Now, open the envelope in front of you.”

At his instruction, I picked up the manila envelope on the table and pulled out the documents inside. They contained personal information—name, educational background, and so on. But the name itself was… rather peculiar.

Yamashiro Ryuta… The surname was Yamashiro, but why was my given name attached to it?

Born in 2028, twenty-five years old… Graduated from Kanto University’s College of Education… Subject: Second Foreign Language—Korean…

The more I read, the more it felt like I was looking at a version of myself. When I finally looked up from the papers, Taira Danjo was wearing a sly, knowing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠smile.

“Heh heh. If infiltrating as a civilian is too difficult, then go in as a teacher. You’re good at Korean, so becoming a Korean language instructor should be perfect.”

“Wait, just because I speak Korean well doesn’t mean I can teach it!”

I had assumed something along the lines of a security guard. But Taira Danjo had completely surpassed my expectations. He wanted me to go in as a teacher—and for the absurd reason that I happened to be fluent in Korean, no less.

“There’s still plenty of time until the new semester, so you’ll just have to study up on teaching methodology. Or you can simply read from the lesson materials we’ve prepared.”

His words reminded me of a few teachers from my previous life who had simply read straight from the textbook during class. I used to curse them back then. Now I was about to become one of them.

“And if you focus the classes on conversation practice, it won’t be that difficult.”

This irresponsible old man. You still need to know what you’re teaching if you’re doing conversation classes. Taira Danjo ignored my glare and continued speaking.

“With the power of our family, we’ll place you in the special class where Minamoto Risa is.”

“What’s a special class?”

Special class? The name alone gave me no clue what it might be. Normally, when people said “special class,” I thought of students with disabilities. But that didn’t seem to fit here.

“It’s a class for students who have repeated a year, have weak constitutions, or have other special circumstances. The homeroom teacher for that class recently resigned due to some unfortunate incident, so it should be easy for you to take over the position.”

In other words, it was the class where all the problem kids were gathered. Since Minamoto Risa was the same age as me—twenty—she must have repeated a year and ended up there. The more I listened to Taira Danjo, the more my head started to throb.

“By the way, what about Kanna… my aunt? She attends the same school. How should I handle that? Should I pretend not to know her?”

Suddenly remembering that my younger aunt Taira Kanna would be at St. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Francisco Academy, I asked the question.

I was supposed to go in disguised as this Yamashiro Ryuta person. I wasn’t sure if she had been briefed. If she suddenly called me “Nephew” in front of everyone, the entire plan would collapse.

“There’s still a long time before the new semester begins. Why are you worrying about that now? I’ll speak with Kanna in advance, so don’t concern yourself with it.”

“One more thing. The Minamoto side probably has their own intelligence network. If someone named Yamashiro Ryuta suddenly appears, won’t they find it suspicious?”

The Minamoto Group was no less powerful than the Taira Group. They might grow suspicious of this sudden new teacher. At my question, Taira Danjo waved his hand dismissively.

“Around the time you appear, we’ll make sure the Minamoto side is too busy to pay attention—just like how they interfered during the Kurotsuki-do incident. Don’t worry. With the possibility of all-out war between us, who would bother caring about a single new teacher?”

Ah, so it was similar to what happened during the conflict between Kurotsuki-do and Taira Foods. Back then, the Minamoto Group had pulled strings to prevent the Taira Group from supporting Taira Foods. Now we would use the same tactic against them.

My questions had mostly been answered, but the most important part of this conversation still remained. It was an outrageous plan, yet I had kept listening for one reason.

The compensation.

Since this was a six-month-long project, I expected a substantial reward. If the compensation was too meager, I had no intention of going through with it.

“Since you’re asking me to invest six months of my time, I assume the reward will be significant, right?”

“You brat! Do I look like the kind of grandfather who would use his grandson without offering proper compensation? Of course, if you succeed, I will give you a substantial reward.”

I continued staring at him with an expression that clearly asked, “And what exactly is that reward?” Taira Danjo frowned, looking displeased, before finally speaking.

“You should trust me when I say I’ll reward you. To keep pressuring this old man with those suspicious eyes until the very end… I wonder who you take after…?”

“Since I’m your blood, I must take after you, Grandpa.”

At my remark about resembling him, Taira Danjo’s lips twitched upward slightly, as if he were mildly pleased. Then he revealed the reward.

“I will entrust you with Taira Foods Distribution.”

His words meant he would hand over control of one of the Taira Group’s many subsidiaries. I had expected something like cash or stocks, but giving me an entire company? It showed just how seriously he was taking this operation.

Having studied the group’s structure in advance, I knew that Taira Foods Distribution served as the crucial link between Nagumo Shian’s Taira Foods, Taira Kokoro’s Taira Department Store, and Taira Ichiro’s Taira Trading. It possessed a nationwide distribution network.

It was similar to Taira Logistics, which handled the national delivery system, but it specialized exclusively in food products, so it wasn’t one of the group’s largest subsidiaries. Still, handing control of an entire company to a twenty-year-old like me carried enormous significance.

It was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠essentially the same as granting me eligibility to compete in the Taira Group’s succession war. It meant that I, too, could soon take a real step into the battle for inheritance. Even if it was difficult now, in six months my power would grow significantly. This was definitely worth trying.

“Of course, that’s only if you succeed in this mission.”

“With an offer like that, I’ll definitely work hard.”

I gave Taira Danjo a wide grin and stood up from my seat, gathering the documents that detailed Yamashiro Ryuta’s background.

“Receive the rest of the materials from Fumimoto, who’s waiting outside.”

“Understood.”

When I left the office, Taira Danjo’s secretary, Fumimoto Takayuki, was standing there holding a large shopping bag. It was stuffed with books and documents. It looked pretty heavy. More than that, the thought of having to read all of this was annoying, but I had no intention of taking it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out on Fumimoto.

“Here are the materials, young master. They include resources for Korean language instruction as well as detailed information on St. Francisco Academy. Also, you should visit the Yamashiro family as soon as possible.”

He was referring to the Yamashiro family that Yamashiro Ryuta belonged to. It seemed the family was prestigious enough to produce a teacher suitable for an elite school like St. Francisco Academy. I’d have to look them up once I got home.

“Understood. Sorry to trouble you, but could you arrange a meeting with the Yamashiro family for me?”

“Of course. Ah, before she left, Lady Shizuku asked that you stop by to see her.”

Taira Shizuku? She wasn’t going to stuff me full of Japanese sweets again, was she?