Chapter 151 - 149: Men Need Secrets_1

In the living room, the voice of the man in the suit was steady and powerful, with a hint of imperiousness that made him a perfect fit for the so-called "overbearing CEO" roles in TV dramas. However, Takahashi Saeko was not an easily manipulated, naive, and sweet female lead. She shook her head and said, "Sorry, I'm not interested in this deal. Please leave." The expression on the suited man's face briefly froze, completely taken aback by the Street Cleaner's rejection. He said, "I represent the Sumitomo Group, and I assure you the price will satisfy you." "No matter what your offer is, I won't take this job." "Do you know who Dio is?" The suited man suddenly stood up, his face growing more shocked. He knew well how eager those above him were to get information about Dio. The one who provided that information would receive a reward beyond imagination. Takahashi Saeko shook her head again. "I don't know anything about Dio, but I dislike commissions that require a fixed schedule. My business principle is to maintain superiority; I never treat employers as particularly important. Once I take on a job, when and how to do it is my decision. I won't accept anyone telling me what to do. You want to pay me to follow your orders? That's impossible." Takahashi Saeko was never a greedy girl. She was rational and always able to precisely determine what she needed. She was interested in money. But she couldn't neglect school for the sake of earning it. In her eyes, school was a place to spend time with Iroha and the others. Although long absences wouldn't affect her relationship with Iroha—who would message her every few days, concerned about her well-being—Takahashi Saeko still preferred chatting with Iroha face-to-face. Seeing Iroha's stubborn demeanor and sunny smile always brought Takahashi Saeko a sense of inner peace. It was something precious that money couldn't buy. Besides, Takahashi Saeko genuinely disliked being ordered around. "If you want me to take this commission, you'll have to leave everything to me, not instruct me. If you can't meet that condition, then I can't accept the job." The suited man fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "That's not acceptable." "Then please find someone else. I do know some people with good marksmanship. If you want an introduction, the referral fee is 100 million Yen." She asked for an exorbitant price. The man in the suit's face darkened. "We have our own channels to find people; we don't need your introduction." "Goodbye." Takahashi Saeko showed the visitor out, thinking to herself how fortunate she was not to have made tea; otherwise, she would have wasted a cup of good tea on a failed business deal. 「Meanwhile, at the Morimoto household.」 Morimoto Chiyoda returned to Ayase Apartment, washed the rice, and put it in the rice cooker. She turned on the tap, cleaned the green peppers, pork, leeks, Napa cabbage, and small fish she had bought, and then started chopping. The sound of chopping vegetables differed from that of cutting meat. When cutting vegetables, the knife striking the cutting board made a crisp CLACKING sound. Meat required more force, yet the sound was softer. Humming a song, she finished preparing all the vegetables, arranged them on plates, and began to stir-fry them in sequence. She made green pepper pork stir-fry, small fish stir-fried with green peppers, and leek and egg stir-fry. The greens could be stir-fried separately without meat, but green peppers were a must. Both she and Aozawa preferred mildly spicy food. Morimoto Chiyoda finished stir-frying two meat and two vegetable dishes and placed them on the kitchen counter. A soft sound came from the door. Morimoto Chiyoda untied her white apron. The door opened. "I'm back, Chitose!" Aozawa called out loudly. He had timed his return by checking his phone, aiming for his usual arrival time, and closed the door behind him. Morimoto Chiyoda smiled from the kitchen. "Wash your hands before eating." Aozawa stepped forward and took a deep breath. "Smells delicious! Did you remove the heads from those little fish?" "Knowing you're lazy, I've already removed the heads and tails for you," Morimoto Chiyoda replied, rolling her eyes at Aozawa. His lazy habits had all been fostered by her indulgence. It wasn't just the small fish that needed their heads and tails removed in advance. If they were eating crayfish, she would also have to peel the shells for the pampered boy, on top of removing the heads and tails. It was her own fault; lacking experience back then, she had subconsciously given in whenever Aozawa acted cute and asked for help. Since she hadn't corrected these habits when he was young, they had become ingrained as he grew up. Morimoto Chiyoda would only grumble a bit but would still do the peeling. "Hehe, I knew Chitose was as kind-hearted as she is beautiful." Aozawa went to wash his hands. Morimoto Chiyoda got a bowl and filled it with rice for him. "Don't just wipe your wet hands on your clothes. Let me get you a paper towel." As she spoke, Morimoto Chiyoda walked around the counter, pulled a paper towel from the dispenser on the coffee table by the sofa, and handed it to Aozawa. He took the paper towel to dry his hands, just about to complain that Chitose's way of doing things was too fussy. Suddenly, Morimoto Chiyoda grasped his neck with both hands, her expression hardening. "Dio!" Her usually gentle tone carried a startling intensity, like a clap of thunder in winter. Her eyes turned exceptionally sharp as she watched Aozawa's reaction and felt for his pulse. In that instant, a gray filter enveloped Aozawa's vision. His heart THUMPED violently. Aozawa gasped, swallowing hard. His first thought was that he'd been exposed. But a closer look at Morimoto Chiyoda's expression allowed him to relax slightly. Just as Morimoto Chiyoda knew how to test if he was lying, Aozawa, in turn, was equally clear about her expressions when she was merely suspicious versus when she was certain. If Morimoto Chiyoda truly believed he was Dio, she wouldn't test his reaction in such a theatrical way. Instead, she'd reprimand him with a smile that hid a sharp edge. This current charade told him that Chitose wasn't actually convinced he was Dio. Aozawa had a response ready. He didn't want to tell Chitose he was Dio. It wasn't a matter of trust; he simply didn't want Chitose to be too controlling and desired some personal space. Dio was free. He could only silently apologize to Chitose in his heart. A man had to have his secrets. Aozawa used his X-ray Ability, glanced down, and gently used his Telekinesis to give his heart a light squeeze, then returned his head to its normal position. The gray filter vanished from his sight. The telekinetic pressure on his heart made his body stiffen briefly, then quickly relax. "Chitose, why did you suddenly yell like that? You scared me." "Just teasing you." Morimoto Chiyoda smiled, a flicker of suspicion in her eyes. She hadn't noticed anything unusual about Aozawa's expression; he genuinely seemed startled by the sudden shout, not flustered because his true identity had been exposed. Could it be that I guessed wrong? She mused internally, still not one hundred percent sure if Aozawa was Dio. Her suspicion stemmed purely from recalling an incident where she had mistaken Aozawa for a giant panda, even going to the hospital for a check-up. If Superpowers truly existed, then transforming into a giant panda or a foreigner would indeed be possible. Following this line of thought, Morimoto Chiyoda arrived at a chilling realization: all the incidents had begun last month, right after Aozawa's "middle school syndrome" had supposedly cleared up. Furthermore, after his hour-long night runs, no one knew what Aozawa did. This schedule also aligned with Dio's reported activity times. Getting off work early and having weekends off weren't just privileges for office workers; students had them too. Yet, Morimoto Chiyoda couldn't detect any signs of deception from Aozawa just now. She knew him very well; she knew how his body and expression would react when he was genuinely startled. Her abrupt question hadn't produced the reaction she'd anticipated. It felt as if Aozawa knew nothing about Dio. Was everything just a coincidence of fate? Morimoto Chiyoda suppressed her doubts. After all, she thought, Aozawa was just a high school student, not some character from an anime or movie. A teenager of his age, if he were capable of casually killing people, even bad ones, would exhibit a worldview and personality vastly different from normal. "Chitose, you're acting really weird today. Did something happen?" Aozawa feigned curiosity, deflecting with another question—his go-to coping mechanism. Morimoto Chiyoda glanced at him and shook her head. "It's nothing. Let's eat." "Are you sure you're alright?" "Honestly, don't ask so many questions." "But why did you suddenly shout 'Dio'? Who is he?" "Are you an elementary school kid, needing to ask about everything? Eat your fish." Morimoto Chiyoda didn't want to discuss her work, so she quickly put a few more small fish into Aozawa's bowl, urging him to be quiet and eat. "If you want to shut me up, you should at least feed me directly," Aozawa muttered, then lowered his head and continued eating, a slight sense of relief washing over him. Fudged my way through for now. Morimoto Chiyoda watched him eat. His features were well-defined, and his eyes and eyebrows had a remarkably sunny look. He didn't have the face of an extreme idealist. "Aozawa, do you have any ambitions?" Aozawa swallowed his food and replied, "To get into Tokyo University and become someone like you." "Haha." Morimoto Chiyoda laughed, her doubts easing. It must be a coincidence. Aozawa was like her, someone without grand ambitions; he couldn't possibly be an extreme idealist like Dio. "That's good. Maintain that uninspired ambition. Don't even think about starting a business or trying to reform anything." "Hey, normally, you should be encouraging me to aim higher," Aozawa retorted. Morimoto Chiyoda crossed her arms. "Don't underestimate the rigid class structure in Japan. In this environment, if you dare to start a business, you'll quickly lose everything and end up saddled with debt. Then, creditors will come knocking at my door, saying, 'Oh, Miss Chitose, your Mr. Aozawa owes our company quite a bit of money.'" The familiar lines made Aozawa unable to resist quipping, "Chitose, you're not being entirely honest yourself, secretly watching those things." "I don't know what you're talking about." Morimoto Chiyoda shrugged, her eyes and expression suddenly becoming extremely gentle, as soothing as a steaming hot spring. "Aozawa, it doesn't matter if you don't achieve great things. All I hope is for you to live a safe and peaceful life." "Yeah." Aozawa lowered his head and continued eating. It was precisely because he knew this about her that he was reluctant to tell her the truth. He could be mediocre, but his alter ego could not.