A few days after the summer festival, somewhere in Tokyo.
Two men sat side by side at the counter of a certain bar.
One was a mild-mannered-looking man with blue eyes and black hair.
Takasegawa Kazuya.
Yuzuru’s father, and the current head of the Takasegawa family.
The other was a stern-looking man with amber eyes and black hair.
Tachibana Toranosuke.
Ayaka’s uncle, and the current head of the Tachibana family (though he insists on calling himself the “acting” head).
In front of them sat empty glasses.
It looked like they’d already had quite a bit to drink.
“Speaking of which, I heard something on the grapevine, Kazuya.”
Toranosuke called him by name in a familiar tone.
Just as Yuzuru and Ayaka were close, the two of them also shared that kind of relationship.
At least in private, they were on first-name terms.
“Hm, a rumour? And… is it a good one, I wonder? A result of my usual good conduct, perhaps?”
“It might well be the result of your usual conduct. Though… what I heard was a bad rumour.”
The bartender silently placed fresh cocktails on the counter.
Toranosuke and Kazuya picked up their glasses and took a sip.
“They say Takasegawa bought a woman with money.”
“…Heh.”
Kazuya neither confirmed nor denied it.
But his eyes narrowed slightly.
Toranosuke, for his part, spoke with a tone of disdain—yet his eyes were smiling as he rebuked him.
“If you want help, hand over your daughter, is it? As dirty as ever. You Takasegawa lot.”
“You do have a way of making things sound ugly. …You’ve got the order backwards. I provided a loan to support the family of my son’s beloved. Don’t get that twisted.”
Kazuya idly swirled the cocktail in his glass.
“And whether this marriage works out or not… I intend to continue doing business with Amagi Naoki.”
“Oh?”
“He has something our family lacks. …I’d rather not become an outdated clan.”
The Takasegawa—
Or rather, the Japanese business world as a whole—
lagged behind overseas when it came to the IT industry.
Amagi Naoki possessed the ability to bring that to Takasegawa.
At least, that was Kazuya’s judgement.
That was precisely why he’d invested such an enormous amount of capital.
“Perhaps it’s just because I’m his father, but Yuzuru’s at least passable as a man. He won’t have trouble finding a wife. There’s no reason to pay money. You understand, don’t you?”
What mattered was business—and money.
The support for Amagi Naoki was based on the expectation of significant future returns for the Takasegawa family.
It was, by no means, a “purchase price” for Arisa.
The Takasegawa family was not one that dabbled in human trafficking.
Kazuya made his case as he drank.
“Which is exactly why, isn’t it?”
“…What are you getting at, Toranosuke?”
“You didn’t want to let a money tree slip away, so you demanded a hostage, didn’t you?”
“You really do have a nasty way of putting things.”
Kazuya picked up a piece of chocolate served as a snack.
“What I asked for was a ‘proof of trust’. And it’s also a ‘proof of trust’ from my side. It was mutually agreed upon. Amagi Naoki was also favourable towards forming a blood tie with us. It benefits both sides.”
With such a massive loan, if the other party ran off, it would be a catastrophic loss.
And for Amagi as well, being stripped of his technology and knowledge by Takasegawa and then discarded was something he wanted to avoid.
That was why both Amagi and Takasegawa offered up their precious children.
In other words, the primary goal wasn’t economic benefit—support and funding for Amagi—
but political benefit: a declaration that Amagi Naoki had come under Takasegawa’s umbrella.
That was how Kazuya explained it to Toranosuke, but—
“A sophism. Think about the balance of power. You people are as slick-tongued as ever.”
“Honestly… even after I’ve explained it this thoroughly, you still don’t understand? Perhaps a money-grubber like Tachibana can’t appreciate this warm, human exchange between our families.”
In truth, for Amagi Naoki, the engagement between Yuzuru and Arisa was likely a very welcome development.
After all, it was proof of how highly Takasegawa regarded Amagi.
That said… the disparity in power between the two families was obvious.
Even if both parties agreed, there would always be those—like Toranosuke, though he was merely teasing and didn’t truly mean it—who would interpret it as Takasegawa using money and power to coerce.
But such people could say what they liked.
The Takasegawa family had plenty of enemies to begin with.
It was impossible to be on good terms with everyone in the world.
That was something you simply had to accept.
“Still, there’s something that bothers me.”
“Oh? What part raises doubts?”
“Why did you choose the daughter who isn’t blood-related? Amagi has another daughter, doesn’t he? And a son, too.”
Amagi Naoki had, besides Yukishiro Arisa, a biological daughter and son.
Whether as a hostage or as a “proof of trust”…
A blood-related child would serve that purpose far better than one who wasn’t.
“This stays between us, but…”
“Go on.”
“At first, the plan was to go with Amagi’s… biological daughter.”
If asked which they’d prefer—the blood-related daughter or the non-blood-related one—Takasegawa would obviously choose the former.
And for Amagi as well, offering the non-blood-related daughter would be… rather disrespectful towards Takasegawa.
So it was only natural that the biological daughter would be chosen.
“However, she was still in her final year of primary school. …Yuzuru absolutely refused.”
“Well, that’s fair.”
“Right? So we thought we’d wait a bit longer. …We planned to ease him into the idea—dropping hints about a marriage proposal—and then have them meet at the proper time.”
Specifically, about four years later.
The original plan was for them to meet when Amagi’s daughter turned fifteen and Yuzuru nineteen.
“I see. Then… what made you rush it? Don’t tell me it was the Tachibana trade with the continent?”
“Well, that did factor in somewhat. But the biggest reason was something else.”
“…And that is?”
Kazuya didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he slowly savoured his cocktail.
Then, with a faint flush from the alcohol on his cheeks, he said:
“My son’s love.”
“…What?”
What on earth is he talking about?
Toranosuke tilted his head.
Kazuya explained.
“You see, I already knew Yuzuru and Arisa… that is, Amagi’s non-blood-related daughter, were in the same class.”
“I see… and?”
“When I started hinting at a marriage proposal to Yuzuru… he suddenly said, ‘I’m not getting engaged unless she’s a blonde, blue-eyed beauty!’”
“…”
Yukishiro Arisa wasn’t literally blonde and blue-eyed.
But her hair was close to blonde, and her eyes close to blue.
And above all, she was beautiful.
And Yuzuru, who sat in the same class as her, had suddenly declared he wanted “a blonde, blue-eyed girl”.
Which meant—
“It makes sense he resisted the proposal. My son already had someone he liked.”
At that point, it was practically the same as naming Arisa outright.
Yuzuru was essentially saying, “If it’s not Yukishiro Arisa, I’m not getting married.”
“I see… so it fell into your lap, did it?”
“Well, something like that. I’d like to support my son’s love, after all.”
The engagement between Takasegawa and Amagi was meant to strengthen ties—
and conversely, it was nothing more or less than that.
So there was no absolute need to insist on a direct blood relation.
That said, it would be problematic for Takasegawa if she didn’t formally become part of the Amagi family through adoption before the marriage.
But that could wait until after an official engagement.
For now, it was still provisional.
There was no need to rush.
“By the way, what does Amagi Naoki think of all this? From his perspective… wouldn’t his biological daughter be more convenient?”
If you’re strengthening ties, it’s only natural to want to marry off your real daughter.
The Takasegawa family was one of the country’s most prestigious.
Between a blood-related daughter and one who wasn’t—
most would dote on the former, and want to secure a better match for her.
“He seemed pleased. Said that if it’s the Takasegawa family, he can rest easy.”
“Hm… the old ‘I don’t want to marry off my real daughter because she’s too dear to me’ line?”
“Who knows…”
Kazuya shrugged.
He wasn’t about to pry into Amagi’s family circumstances.
Nor did he care.
To Kazuya, Arisa’s standing within her household wasn’t particularly important.
The only thing that interested him was Amagi’s next head—
but even that wouldn’t change the bigger picture.
If the successor proved capable, they would simply continue the relationship.
If incompetent, they could take everything using the established blood ties.
After all, a child born to Takasegawa Yuzuru and Amagi—Arisa would have the right to inherit Amagi’s assets.
Calm, ruthless, and cold-blooded.
That was how the world viewed Takasegawa Kazuya—or rather, the Takasegawa family as a whole.
“And what about the two themselves? Amagi’s daughter… Yukishiro Arisa, was it? If she hates your son, then there’s no point.”
“True enough. I’d like to welcome a woman who loves my son into the family.”
Kazuya did not deny arranged marriages.
If anything, he actively endorsed them.
But he had no desire to force one.
Internal strife within the family would cause serious damage.
He had no interest in planting the seeds of conflict.
If Yukishiro Arisa truly despised Yuzuru…
then they would have no choice but to abandon the idea.
However—
“From what I can see, the two of them care for each other. I do hope they marry… and show me some adorable grandchildren.”
“So you’ve taken a liking to her as well.”
“Of course. Good personality, good looks. Not unintelligent. A fine cook. She knows how to support Yuzuru. As a bride for Takasegawa, she’s ideal.”
Kazuya said this in high spirits.
Perhaps due to the alcohol, his tongue began to loosen a little.
“She seems like the kind who’d bear and raise healthy children.”
“Don’t say that to her face. Unless you want your daughter-in-law to hate you.”
“I know, I know. But grandchildren are better when they’re cute, aren’t they? Grandchildren, huh… We’ll be grandfathers soon enough…”
“Grandchildren, hm. Means nothing to me—I don’t even have children.”
Toranosuke snorted.
He wasn’t married, and had no children.
That said… his late brother’s daughter, Ayaka, ensured the Tachibana bloodline wouldn’t die out.
“You’ve got a lovely niece, don’t you? …Speaking of which, how’s it going? Ayaka-san, the Uenishi daughter, and Soichiro-kun…”
“Don’t ask.”
“From the look of you, that mess still isn’t sorted out.”
In contrast to Toranosuke’s exhausted expression, Kazuya was in high spirits.
With things seemingly going well between Yuzuru and Arisa, he likely felt a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
“This matter doesn’t leave Takasegawa uninvolved either. If your son had obediently gotten engaged to Uenishi, things would’ve been much simpler.”
“I told you earlier—nothing can be forced. As for repairing relations with Uenishi, I’m pinning my hopes on Yuzuru’s child.”
“Hmph. Selfish.”
“You’re the selfish one. If you’d had a son or daughter, you could’ve married off Ayaka-san—to Satake, to us, or anyone else. Though it’s a bit late now.”
“Ayaka is the heir to Tachibana.”
“Stubborn as ever…”
“Say what you like.”
Until late that night,
the two of them continued drinking.
