She seemed unable to tell what was happening and asked in a puzzled tone, "Does it hurt?"
"..."
"..."
The atmosphere suddenly froze.
Ryougi Shiki frowned. She noticed that Touko had not used any force at all when pinching her cheek; the gentle motion could be called a caress. Yet this girl named Fujino was crying out that it hurt.
In other words, this girl named Fujino could not distinguish pain through sensation.
The feedback called "pain" was actually being judged through common sense.
"...Sorry, Fujino~"
Nearby, Fujino's mother was sobbing so hard she could barely breathe. She weakly collapsed onto the floor, covering her face as she cried and repeated her apologies.
"..."
Witnessing this scene, Asagami Kōzō's expression grew increasingly grim. He felt a chill and helplessness in his heart. By now, he had recognized exactly who the red-haired girl was: the owner of the pharmaceutical company Umbrella.
In a short period of time, she had swallowed up a large number of companies through unknown means, expanding her influence into an unfathomably powerful conglomerate.
She also possessed extraordinary influence in Japan. Even if she killed him at the Asagami Family home, she could use her extraordinary influence in Japan to erase the matter without a sound.
In other words, even if he called the police and escaped now, he could not guarantee his own safety.
"...Does it hurt that much~"
Aozaki Touko sighed softly and affectionately stroked Fujino's hair. Seeing this, Asagami Fujino fell silent. She no longer knew whether she should continue maintaining her pained expression.
"It must be hard, pretending to have a sense of pain."
With a gentle expression, Aozaki Touko lightly stroked Fujino's purple hair.
Because she feared that losing her sense of pain would cause her to be persecuted again, she had desperately