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> The Maiden of Darkness shall never Succumb to Goodness

Chapter 52: Consultation

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The moment Yomikawa Tsuko’s words left her mouth, the expressions on Takada Shōji and Katayama Mao’s faces froze solid.

Beads of sweat, large as soybeans, began to roll down Takada Shōji’s forehead. He let out a forced, strangled laugh, his voice a strange, exaggerated squeak. “Wh-what are you talking about, Senpai? Secret photos? That’s… that’s something I would absolutely never, ever do! Right, Katayama?”

Katayama Mao, snapping back to reality, began to nod his head so vigorously he looked like a chicken pecking at grain. “N-no, of course not! That kind of immoral act… we would never do something like that! You can rest assured, Senpai!”

“Is that so…” Yomikawa Tsuko leaned forward, her body closing the distance between them, her eyes fixed on Takada Shōji’s face. He couldn’t meet her gaze, his own dark pupils darting frantically back and forth, like cornered animals seeking an escape that didn’t exist.

Seeing that he looked like he was about to burst into tears, Yomikawa Tsuko let out a soft, almost contemptuous, “hmph.” She changed the subject, her tone suddenly light, almost playful. “Well, I’ll take you at your word. For now. You two were just discussing Takada-kun acting as a model, weren’t you? When were you planning on doing this shoot?”

Takada Shōji let out a small sigh of relief. “Yeah... Sometime soon.”

“In that case, let’s do it this weekend,” Yomikawa announced, making the decision for them. “Come to the school on the weekend. And I will be there to properly supervise you.”

“Wh-what?” Katayama Mao was stunned.

Yomikawa Tsuko shot him a sideways glance. “What, is that a problem?”

“Oh, no, I… no, it’s not a problem,” Katayama Mao stammered, clearly wanting to refuse but lacking the courage to do so.

“Then it’s settled.”

With that, Yomikawa gave them one last, long, unreadable look, then walked past them, heading towards her classroom.

Takada Shōji and Katayama Mao watched her retreating figure, then looked at each other, their faces a mask of pure, unadulterated misery.

“This is all your fault! You and your big mouth! Senpai must have overheard you! She’s definitely angry now!” Takada Shōji lamented. And now she probably thinks I’m some kind of pervert who wants to take secret photos of her too. My image in her eyes is completely ruined.

“Me? I was just making a suggestion!” Katayama Mao protested, unwilling to take the blame. “How was I supposed to know she has supersonic hearing? I was just trying to do you a favor, get you some nice pictures! And now I’m dragged into this mess too! I have plans this weekend! There’s a new game coming out, I’ve already pre-ordered it! Now my whole weekend is ruined!”

“I was planning on playing basketball this weekend! My plans are ruined too!” Takada wailed, his face a mask of despair.

“Can’t you go and talk to her?” Katayama Mao pleaded, the more he thought about it, the more impossible the situation seemed. “If you get on your knees and beg for forgiveness, maybe she’ll let us off the hook. My photography skills are nowhere near a hobbyist’s level! I’m good at taking candid shots, sure, but sports photography? She’s setting me up for failure!”

The thought of getting on his knees and begging made Takada shake his head so violently it looked like it might fly off. Yomikawa hadn’t explicitly called them out, which meant she was already showing him a great deal of mercy. If she were to subject him to the same kind of “public execution” she had given Ōgami Yōsuke, he would be socially dead. There was no way he could be the one to bring it up. “Why should I be the one to beg for forgiveness? The secret photos were your idea, you’re the one who said it! You’re the main culprit! I, at most, was just an accomplice who failed to stop you!”

Katayama Mao just shook his head in disgust. “And you, a coward like this, you actually think you have a chance of winning Senpai’s heart? Pathetic.”

“What the hell! Are you saying you’re any better than me?” Takada shot back, his pride wounded.

“Me? Of course, I’m much better than you,” Katayama Mao said, puffing out his chest with a show of false bravado. “You just watch. On Sunday, I bet I can even get Senpai to model for me.”

“Bullshit! The only thing you’re better at than me is bragging!”

......

After school, Yomikawa Tsuko took the subway to Yazaki Hitomi’s climbing gym.

“It’s been a while, Hitomi-obasan.”

Yazaki Hitomi was sitting behind her office desk, wearing a green dress with several cut-out sections that revealed glimpses of the pale skin beneath. She looked mature, and very sexy.

“Tsuko-chan! What brings you here? Is something wrong?”

“Nothing important, really.” Yomikawa walked around to the back of Yazaki Hitomi’s office chair and leaned on the backrest, watching her examine a spreadsheet full of data. “I was just a little bored, so I thought I’d wander over.”

“Ah, to be a student again,” Yazaki Hitomi sighed wistfully. “If you’re bored, you can go play around in the gym downstairs. Get some exercise.”

Yomikawa didn’t respond to that directly. Instead, she asked, “Have my mother and father said anything about when they might be coming back?”

“Hm?” Yazaki Hitomi suddenly turned around. “Are you missing them?”

“Not really. Living alone is quite liberating. It wouldn’t be a problem if they didn’t come back for a while.” This was the absolute truth.

But Yazaki Hitomi just assumed she was being shy. “It’ll probably be a few more days. Your summer vacation is coming up soon, isn’t it? They’ll definitely be back by then.”

Is that so. Then it would be better if they didn’t come back at all. Yomikawa was planning on using the summer vacation to catch up on all the schoolwork she had missed. If they saw their daughter suddenly studying first and second-year material, they would definitely find it strange.

It would be best if they had some other business that required them to leave again during the summer. Or… I could leave. Find some excuse, a trip or something.

The idea was actually quite feasible. Her family wasn’t short on money. A month-long trip would be no problem financially, and likely wouldn’t raise any other issues either.

“What’s wrong? You seem unhappy.” Yazaki Hitomi, not having heard her speak for a while, turned to look at her.

Yomikawa Tsuko snapped back to the present. “Oh,” she said, then quickly changed the subject. “I was just thinking about something else. By the way, Hitomi-obasan, as a woman, it must be quite difficult to start your own business, to be the boss, right?”

Yazaki Hitomi was taken aback, surprised by the question. “What’s this all of a sudden? Is Tsuko-chan thinking of going into business in the future?”

“Not really.” She thought for a moment, then asked, “I was just curious. How do you view your own identity as a woman, Hitomi-obasan?”

“Business, work, being a company president… these are all fields dominated by men, aren’t they? As a woman, you must… you must be treated differently, viewed differently, right?”

“Besides the stereotype that women must be a ‘Yamato Nadeshiko,’ there must be other, more unpleasant things, right? Like… the feeling of being looked at like a product on a shelf. And the constant comparison between women, almost like products competing with each other. Honestly, it’s a bit… disgusting.”

“Feminist ideas?” Yazaki Hitomi was startled. Her own generation hadn’t fully experienced the peak of Japan’s feminist movement, but she had certainly heard about it. “Tsuko-chan, you haven’t been reading some strange articles, have you?”

“It’s not about feminism, of course,” Yomikawa Tsuko said, thinking for a moment, trying to describe her feelings more precisely. “This morning, on my way to school, I suddenly felt like… like a commodity. Being selected by men, being compared by other women. It was a very uncomfortable feeling. Have you ever felt that way, Hitomi-obasan?”

Yazaki Hitomi finally seemed to understand what she was getting at. She nodded thoughtfully. “To put it simply, you’re talking about the male gaze, and the jealousy of other women…”

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