Because the other person had politely but coldly refused him, Inuyama Heita couldn't find any reason to get involved further. All he could do was tell himself that things might turn out for the better, and that even if he stepped in, he wouldn't be able to solve anything. So it wasn't that he was standing by idly—he was simply powerless.
But deep down, he knew that was just wishful thinking. People caught in that kind of quagmire rarely had a happy ending. Religious groups like that would often squeeze every last bit of value out of someone before letting go.
As the impulse brought on by the half-price bento gradually faded, the scales in Inuyama Heita's mind began tipping toward looking out for himself. He should just be like everyone else and ignore this sort of thing. Still, when Suzuki didn't come to school a few days later, he couldn't help feeling vaguely uneasy.
Just as Inuyama Heita was planning to put all of it out of his mind, trouble came knocking—and found him anyway.
That day, at Shanwai Lou.
"Inuyama, table thirteen's ready to order."
"Coming right up!"
The Chinese restaurant Shanwai Lou was still bustling as ever, and Inuyama Heita was struggling to keep up. He took the menu over to table thirteen, picked up his pen, and asked with his head lowered, "What would you like to order?"
"One serving of mapo tofu, one serving of Tianjin rice. And what a coincidence, Inuyama-kun."
At the sound of that oddly familiar, false-sounding voice, Inuyama Heita jerked his head up. The man sitting in front of him was none other than Matsui, the man in the suit who had harassed Suzuki's family a few nights earlier.
"It's you... Why are you here?" Inuyama Heita frowned, making no effort to hide how much he disliked the man.
"Hey, hey, I did order something, so technically I'm a customer," Matsui said with a smile. "Is this how your restaurant treats its guests?"
"Sir, you're joking," Inuyama Heita said sarcastically. "If all you're doing is ordering food, you're more than welcome here. But this isn't a maid café, so if you don't need anything, please don't chat up the waitstaff. As you can see, I have plenty of other valued customers to attend to." It would be one thing if he'd run into the man by chance while he was eating here. But if that wasn't the case...
Sure enough, what Inuyama Heita had feared came to pass. Matsui looked at him with a faintly amused expression and said, "How heartless, Heita-kun. You clearly have a serious grudge against me. I came here specifically to see you."
"We're not close. How did you know I was here? And why did you come looking for me?" Inuyama Heita fired off one question after another. He put on a tough front, but a trace of panic stirred inside him. Was the other man's religious group really that powerful? Was that how they'd identified him so quickly? But why had he come looking for him? Was he here to get back at him for ruining their plans?
"Come now, don't worry. It's not what you think. The Lucky Mutual Aid Society is a lawful, legitimate organization. We don't do anything illegal," Matsui said calmly. "That takeout box in the bag you were carrying that night had this restaurant's logo on it. It only took a little digging to find the place. As for why I came looking for you... It's because we need someone with your talent, Inuyama. You can see this child, can't you?"
A small, deathly pale hand flashed behind Matsui's collar. Inuyama Heita could even hear the faint, innocent laughter of a child drifting in and out beside his ear. Despite the restaurant being packed with people, the sound rang out with unnatural clarity, sending a chill down his spine.
Inuyama Heita feigned composure and played dumb. "Sir, I don't know what you're talking about. Can I get you anything else?"
"The German philosopher Nietzsche once said, 'When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back at you,'" Matsui said calmly. "Put more simply, Inuyama, the moment you noticed this child, the child knew you could see him too. So let's skip all the testing and get straight to the point. We need your talent. Come work with us. That's where your talent can truly shine, instead of you scraping by at this job to pay for your education. As far as I know, money's pretty tight for you, isn't it? By the way, Miss Suzuki told me that."
Since he never joined group activities and spent all his free time either working or on his way to work, Inuyama Heita was well known at school as a tireless part-time worker. Everyone knew he was short on money, so it was no surprise that Suzuki knew too. But the problem was...
"What did you do to her?" Inuyama Heita frowned. "Explain yourself, or I'll call the police!"
Matsui chuckled. "I already told you, we don't do anything illegal. We simply talked things over with her earnestly, and she gradually came to understand our beliefs. We've never done anything like restricting anyone's freedom."
"Then why hasn't she been here these past few days..."
"Inuyama, what are you doing over there? Is this really the time to chat with a customer?" a reprimand rang out from nearby. The manager was watching Inuyama Heita with displeasure, as if scolding him for slacking off.
"Heh, I guess I picked a bad time." Inuyama Heita watched as Matsui, ever considerate, took a folded flyer from the pale hand emerging from his coat and handed it to him. "How about this, Heita-kun? Our group's holding a gathering tomorrow afternoon, and Miss Suzuki will be there too. Why not come along, then decide for yourself? Get back to work. And don't forget my mapo tofu and Tianjin rice. Oh, since I've come all this way, I'll take an order of shrimp dumplings to go as well. This child wants to try some."
Another string of tinkling laughter sounded in Inuyama Heita's ear, raising goosebumps on his arms. But under the manager's watchful eye, he forced himself to resist the urge to turn and leave. He got back to work as usual, and the roar of the crowd helped calm him a little. When he finally managed to break away from the rush and looked over again, Matsui, the man in the suit, had disappeared. It seemed he'd finished eating and left.
"The Lucky Mutual Aid Society..." Inuyama Heita took the flyer from his pocket and read it carefully. In essence, it promised to help people escape misfortune and begin a new chapter in their lives. Like all those other strange religious groups, the Lucky Mutual Aid Society seemed shrouded in mystery. At the bottom of the flyer were the date and location of the next gathering: tomorrow afternoon, in a building in the middle of the busy downtown area—not some secluded place.
Curious and conflicted, Inuyama Heita eventually took the flyer and went to the gathering's location the next day...
Only to find himself standing at the entrance, staring at Qian Xiaoyi.
Before you continue