"Yukinoshita, do you know what an emperor means to farmers?"
"A ruler?"
"No..." Sogo Doma shook his head. "To farmers, an emperor is merely someone who tills the land with a golden hoe, because they simply cannot imagine what an emperor does in his daily life..."
Hearing that, Yukino Yukinoshita seemed to realize something. "..."
But before she could speak, Sogo Doma raised his index finger again. "Likewise, for you—and even for your Yukinoshita Family—an annual income in the ten digits is indeed considerable. But to me, it's really just pocket change..."
"..." Yukino Yukinoshita knew there was a significant gap between her family and the Doma Family, but surely it was not to that extent...
Wait!
"What about the Shinomiya Family?" No matter how powerful the Doma Family was, it was only the fifth family after the Four Great Zaibatsu. The Shinomiya Family, on the other hand, was a genuine member of the Four Great Zaibatsu. Yukino could accept that the Yukinoshita Family was inferior to the Doma Family, but to say the Shinomiya Family was also inferior to them...
In most people's eyes, the Doma Family still lacked some foundation compared to the Four Great Zaibatsu. Although the Shinomiya Family repeatedly suffered losses at the Doma Family's hands, its persistence—losing again and again yet never falling—had created an illusion for everyone--
The Shinomiya Family could afford to lose countless times, but how many times could the Doma Family lose?
Well, what they did not know was that the Shinomiya Family had remained standing mainly because Gan'an Shinomiya retreated decisively enough, and because Keiryu Doma had no intention of relentlessly pressing the attack. (It couldn't be helped—once he had made enough money, a certain Sogo simply gave up and slacked off!) That was what gave the Shinomiya Family room