We're Not Even Blood-Related
Today was Friday, the graduation day for the new trainees who had completed a month of intensive training at the Human Resources Development Center. The trainees had whined and begged for a graduation party at the center itself, but since Taira Yukiko asked me to drive her, I ended up playing chauffeur for the entire day. The secretary who usually doubled as her driver had taken time off, only for a sudden long-distance schedule to appear.
The other teams were holding their own graduation parties too, so I had no choice but to soothe my team members and the other trainees I'd grown close to by promising we'd hang out from Saturday evening until Sunday lunch. Even so, the weekend was shaping up to be ridiculously busy. I had to deliver my master's autograph to Hanasaki Sayaka at lunch on Saturday, a full-blown sex party would likely run from Saturday evening through some unknown hour on Sunday, and then I had to meet Aris on Sunday night.... No time to breathe. Should I dump my next level-up points into stamina?
"Here we are. I'll be out in less than two hours, so wait for me, won't you?"
"Yes."
Taira Yukiko wore a black dress accented with luxurious gold details that perfectly complemented her refined image. The striking contrast between her full breasts and narrow waist radiated a powerfully seductive charm.
I watched her step out of the car and enter the mansion. The Hiramoto family, was it...? It wasn't quite on the scale of the main Taira residence, but it was still an impressively large and dignified traditional Japanese estate. Judging by its appearance, it belonged to an old and storied lineage. The surname Hiramoto suggested it was a branch family of the Taira. From what Taira Yukiko had told me, they were hosting a garden party. She mentioned having a deal to make with someone there, but could business like that really be conducted in a place like this?
"Two hours, huh.... Now what do I do?"
I reclined the driver's seat and muttered to myself. The usual driver-secretary was on vacation, so I'd been pulled in. Taira Yukiko had insisted on paying me for the gig and immediately wired the money to my account. Two hundred thousand yen.... Roughly an hour and twenty minutes of driving plus two hours of waiting came to about four hours total. That was excellent pay for part-time work. In Korean terms it worked out to about five hundred thousand won per hour. As expected from the daughter-in-law of a massive conglomerate, she had a generous touch.
Since Health Miracle stock hadn't hit its peak yet, I hadn't cashed out. Most of my funds were still tied up in it, leaving me short on everyday spending money. Receiving this payment felt like a weight lifting off my chest. It was honestly too much for four hours of work, but from the perspective of a chaebol daughter-in-law it was probably the same as giving her son ten thousand yen in pocket money. Still, thanks to her I could keep going until I sold those shares. Thank you, Yukiko-mom!
Might as well raise my telekinesis proficiency while I had two hours to kill. I lifted my smartphone into the air; it was the one object I absolutely couldn't drop. Levitating it helped me concentrate better and increased my proficiency faster. The phone floated gently in midair as though suspended in zero-gravity space. I'd practiced so often lately that simply holding something aloft no longer felt difficult.
I made it perform 720-degree spins, shuttled it rapidly back and forth between the back seat and front without hitting the glass, and tried every car-friendly exercise I could think of. After about twenty minutes my head began to spin as if I were anemic.
When I opened my status window to check, telekinesis had already reached level 4. I'd caught up to and surpassed Shinkaiyatsude, who was still sitting at level 3. I wasn't sure whether it rose quickly because it was easier than martial-arts training or whether Shinkaiyatsude's mythic-rank nature simply made its proficiency gain slower, but the growth felt smooth and steady.
"Time for a break.... Huh?"
I'd just slipped the phone into my pocket when Taira Yukiko opened the Hiramoto gate and stepped out. She'd said two hours, yet here she was already. Her expression, however, was anything but good. I opened the car door and got out. Whatever had happened, she needed comfort.
She must have been distracted; she stumbled and nearly fell. I rushed over and caught her before she could hit the ground.
"Yukiko, are you all right? You said it would take a while...."
"Hic...."
The moment she saw me her eyes reddened and tears began to spill.
"Get in the car first."
Aware of prying eyes, I guided the still-weeping Taira Yukiko into the passenger seat.
"What exactly happened?"
"Well...."
At my gentle prompting, Taira Yukiko told me everything. How the three main succession candidates had long coveted the Director position at the Human Resources Development Center. How she had been quietly gathering shares of Taira Bio and Taira Robotics—the keys to controlling the entire Taira Group—in order to protect both me and herself. And how the Hiramoto family had humiliated her in the process.
Hiramoto Masajiro. I burned that name into memory. A mere branch-family member daring to make such a filthy proposal...! Rage simmered in my chest, but I forced it down and pulled Taira Yukiko into my arms, gently patting her back.
"It's all right, Mother."
I hadn't called her that in a while. She looked up at me with a complicated expression—surprise, relief, and a trace of disappointment all mixed together. The disappointment seemed stronger than I'd expected. Maybe she preferred her name? I'd switch back to calling her Yukiko.
"Shall we head home first, Yukiko?"
"...Yes."
Even while driving I kept stealing glances at her profile. She seemed lost in thought, her face clouded. Wanting to reassure her, I spoke up.
"And don't worry. As long as Grandfather remains healthy and in charge, there's no chance you'll lose the director position."
"But...."
"If you're still anxious, I'll go to the main house and speak with Grandmother myself."
Taira Shizuku, the matriarch of the Taira family and biological mother of the late Taira Saburo, had treated me warmly from the moment we met. She was the classic doting grandmother who always told me to come to her with any trouble.
Partly out of calculation—knowing her influence might prove useful someday—and partly from the ingrained Confucian habit of respecting elders that this body had carried before my possession, I kept in regular contact and sent her occasional gifts. She was always delighted. I later learned that the reason Taira Danjo had visited the center to give me pocket money was because Taira Shizuku had nagged him relentlessly until he did. Grandmother really was the best.
"So stop worrying."
Perhaps Taira Saburo's sudden death had left her with a kind of survival obsession. I considered telling her about the personnel department head and Suzuki Chisami that Taira Jiro had planted inside the center, but it felt like the wrong time. It would only make things worse right now; I'd save it for later.
"I understand. I'm sorry. All I ever do is receive comfort from you...."
"No more apologies."
The Taira Yukiko I'd come to know was a confident, dignified career woman. Today, however, she seemed deeply shaken.
I kept offering soft words of comfort as I drove, and before long we arrived back at the Human Resources Development Center.
"Wait here! Don't come in yet."
I hurried inside, switched on the garden lights, filled two champagne flutes, and came back out. The housekeeper had already left for the day; the house was empty.
When I returned, Taira Yukiko stood in the small park-like garden in front of the annex. It couldn't compare to the Hiramoto estate, but it was still beautifully maintained.
"You came out early and couldn't even enjoy the party properly, right? Let's overwrite those awful memories from the Hiramoto family with happier ones—ones with me."
I handed her a glass. Champagne swirled inside. She accepted it with a faint smile. When I raised my own glass and called out a toast, she gently clinked hers against it. The clear ring of crystal echoed softly.
I took a sip and looked at her. She was simply holding her glass, not drinking. She kept staring at me with eyes full of unmistakable longing.
"Yukiko."
The moment I took a step closer, she drained the champagne in one swift motion. The alcohol seemed to deepen the dreamy haze in her gaze. The glass slipped from her fingers and landed softly on the thick grass. I closed the remaining distance until our breaths mingled and I could count her eyelashes.
"We can't. I'm your mother."
She pushed against my chest, but there was no strength in her hands. I caught the hand that was pushing me away.
"We're not even blood-related, are we?"
"Still... mmh!"
Before she could say anything else, I sealed her lips with my own. The hand that had been pushing me relaxed and soon rose to cradle my face.
The kiss went on for a long, long time.