"Hey, kid~ Thanks for the pocket money. I left you a little to buy yourself a bento. When you run out in a few days, come to me for more. Make sure you work hard~ Hahahahaha~"
After watching the two thugs take the few thousand yen left in his wallet and leave, Inuyama Heita looked at the handful of coins inside and sighed. It wasn't nearly enough to buy a decent bento. Still, he knew he'd get the money back sooner or later—if Qian Xiaoyi's guess was right.
So he took out his phone and called Qian Xiaoyi, but the call was rejected. A little while later, Qian Xiaoyi sent him a message.
Qian Xiaoyi: You've just gotten out of school around now. Looks like they've already extorted you, huh? But don't contact them in a hurry. Take the train to work first, then get in touch with that guy on your way home tonight. That way, you'll come across as torn between hatred and hesitation. Make sure you stay in character. Don't mess up the performance.
It was no surprise that Qian Xiaoyi had guessed. Inuyama Heita replied: ...Got it. But what you're saying sounds like we're filming a movie.
Qian Xiaoyi: Hahaha, pretty much~ Don't blow our cover, or the whole plan will fall apart~ I'll leave it there for now. I'm out investigating some things. I'll contact you later.
Inuyama Heita put his phone away and took the train to work at Shanwai Lou. He'd run out of cash, but he still had his transit card, so getting there by train wasn't a problem.
He quietly endured the rest of the day. That evening, Inuyama Heita came home carrying a freshly packed meal. After taking his time eating, he worked himself up emotionally, then took out his phone and called the number on the flyer Matsui had left him.
The call connected quickly. A gentle woman's voice answered on the other end. "Hello, you've reached the Lucky Mutual Aid Society. How may I help you?"
"Um..." Inuyama Heita chose his words carefully, then said, "My name is Inuyama Heita. Mr. Matsui said I could get in touch with him if anything came up."
"Mr. Inuyama Heita?" the woman said. "Mr. Matsui mentioned you. If you'd like to reach him, please call this number..."
Inuyama Heita memorized the number, hung up, took a deep breath, and called Matsui.
"Hello, this is Matsui. Who's calling?"
"Mr. Matsui, I... I'm Inuyama Heita..."
Inuyama Heita tried to sound panicked as he asked Matsui whether there were any paid jobs he could do. He didn't simply tell him he was being extorted and needed someone to deal with the two thugs. That was what he and Qian Xiaoyi had agreed on. Because of the unspoken social rule of not wanting to inconvenience others, people here tended to be very... indirect, both in what they did and what they said. So, given Inuyama Heita's "character," he wouldn't directly ask Matsui for help. After all, an ordinary student would surely be afraid of making a fuss and would hesitate to speak up. And without parents to back him up, Inuyama Heita had even more reason to worry. If Matsui really had sent those two thugs after him, he definitely wouldn't pass up this opportunity.
"There are paid jobs available, but I'd still rather you join our organization... Also, Heita-kun, it seems like something's troubling you?" Matsui had indeed become a caring older brother. He asked patiently, "From what I've seen, Heita-kun, you don't seem like the type to ask others for help. You must have run into something you can't handle on your own, right?"
"N-no, it's nothing. I'm just a little short on money lately. Nothing else..." Inuyama Heita hesitated, while Matsui kept reassuring and coaxing him. After several minutes of back-and-forth, Inuyama Heita finally told Matsui the truth about being extorted.
"I understand. Leave this to us, Heita-kun. Don't worry about it. Just focus on school." Matsui hung up after saying that.
Inuyama Heita's expression returned to its usual blank calm. He even felt like laughing a little. He shook his head, then went to wash up and go to bed, looking forward to whatever show awaited him tomorrow. The call had confirmed that Matsui's side had planned the whole thing, so he naturally didn't believe a word the man said.
The next day, the show finally began. After school, Inuyama Heita took his usual route straight to the station, then headed to work at Shanwai Lou. Just as expected, the thugs suddenly appeared and stopped him again.
Here they come. Inuyama Heita put on the same uneasy expression, though he was eager to see what would happen.
"Hey, Inuyama! You went to work yesterday, didn't you?" one thug called out. "Buy us a drink. We're friends, aren't we?"
Inuyama Heita was baffled about when they'd become friends, but he pretended to be frightened and stammered, "I... I didn't go to work yesterday, so I don't have any money to give you."
"What did you say?!" The other thug grabbed Inuyama Heita by the collar with his uninjured hand, then showed him his other hand, which was wrapped in a bandage. He snapped, "You little punk, have you forgotten who hurt my hand? It hurts like hell every night, and it's all your fault! Are you saying you won't own up to it? Do your classmates and teachers know Inuyama Heita is this kind of person? Well, then I guess it's my duty to show them your true colors. What do you think, Inu-yama?"
"I... I..." Inuyama Heita kept up his timid act, but the next moment, he saw a crowd suddenly stream in from every direction, surrounding him and the thugs.
"Don't touch the kid," said a familiar voice.
Inuyama Heita froze, then looked incredulous. "Mr. Matsui?!"
Matsui wore his usual smile. More than a dozen people stood with him, and Inuyama Heita vaguely recognized a few of them as members of the Lucky Mutual Aid Society.
"You're Inuyama-kun, right?" A middle-aged man who'd come with Matsui gave him a hearty smile. "When Mr. Matsui told us you were in trouble, we all came." Inuyama Heita vaguely remembered the man's name as either Kuroda or Kuroki. He'd spoken at the gathering.
"Heh heh heh~ Picking on a young man like this? There's no way your big sis here would allow that!" A strong, heavily made-up man with a scruffy beard draped an arm over one thug's shoulder and squeezed slightly...
"Ow, ow, ow, ow!" The thug's face twisted in pain as he cried, "Down with violence! Down with violence!"
Seeing this, the other thug shouted with a show of bravado, "Hey, who are you people? If you keep this up, I'll call the police!"
"An extortionist threatening to call the police?" Matsui said with a faint laugh. He nodded to Inuyama Heita. "Wait here a moment, Heita-kun. We'll have a little chat with the two of them."
"Leave it to us." One of the older men gave Inuyama Heita a thumbs-up.
The group surrounded the two thugs and led them into a nearby alley.
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