Besides, he had that confidence. "What a boring little man."
Lust rolled her eyes at Chingetsu, but went no further. A dangerous, mysterious man.
He held a fatal attraction for women.
And that was exactly what Chingetsu was to Lust at that moment. Her eyes shimmered.
Having finally found a man she fancied, how could she give up so easily?
"Unfortunately, I have a mission right now. Otherwise, I'd definitely have some proper fun with you." Lust returned to her seat and stretched languidly. Unfortunately, Chingetsu had no time to appreciate her alluring display.
Time ticked by. Lust seemed to have settled down.
She did nothing out of line the entire time. Soon.
An announcement sounded in the cabin, informing them that they had reached their destination.
"Another train ride should get me to the village." Chingetsu opened the map on his phone as he stepped off the plane. The village where Mimiko and Nanako lived was not particularly notable.
But thanks to his powerful mental strength.
Chingetsu had managed to dredge up the village's name from his memory. An hour later.
Chingetsu arrived at the village entrance. A backward village.
That was Chingetsu's first impression of it.
Although it was only approaching evening, every household in the village was brightly lit.
"Those two Hasaba children are so pitiful. Hasn't the village chief gone a little too far?"
"Exactly. They're still so young, but they're locked in an iron cage every day. The village chief says they're the offspring of monsters."
"What? Monsters? Surely not?"
"I don't believe it either, but a lot of strange things have happened in the village lately. Two people have even died!" "The village chief must be right."
"Then we'd better keep them locked up!" Just as he entered the village.
Chingetsu heard the village women chatting.
Hasaba. They must mean Mimiko Hasaba and Nanako Hasaba. With that thought, Chingetsu approached the women.
"Excuse me, how do I get to the village chief's house?" The women did not respond. Chingetsu was very polite. But.
The villagers were clearly rather hostile toward an unfamiliar face like Gojo Chingetsu.
Chingetsu fell silent for a moment, then took two ten-thousand-yen notes from his wallet. "Tell me, and this is your reward."
As it turned out.
Money was always a good way to overcome any difficulty. Tempted by the money.
Chingetsu got the information he wanted. Meanwhile.
At the village chief's house.
"I knew we should have killed these two when they were babies!"
"Monster parents gave birth to monster children. It's all because of you that our village has suffered so much misfortune!"
A balding man over fifty glared viciously at the two little girls locked in an iron cage. The girls looked no more than five or six.
The sisters looked extremely similar, with only their hair colors clearly distinguishing them. The white-haired one was called Nanako Hasaba.
The black-haired one was called Mimiko Hasaba.
Now, however, the sisters were locked in a huge cage, their bodies covered in injuries. They trembled as they clung to each other, looking fearfully at the man before them.
"Nanako, I'm so hungry. I'm scared."
The black-haired Mimiko buried her head in Nanako's arms, her little hands gripping her older sister's arm. "Don't be scared, Mimiko. I'll protect you."
The white-haired Nanako held her little sister tightly. Even though.
She was terrified herself. But she understood.
If she broke down first, she would no longer be able to protect the little sister in her arms. "Dad, Mom."
Nanako did not understand why she and her sister were being treated like monsters. They were people too, living, breathing people.
Besides, many of those things had clearly been done by the sanctimonious village chief before them, yet the blame had ultimately been pinned on them, simply because they were the offspring of "monsters."
"Anyone, can anyone save us?" That was Nanako's strongest wish.
But locked in a cage without daylight every day, eating things even pigs would refuse.
Nanako was slowly beginning to despair as well.
But she could not fall yet.
Because she was not alone. She had to take responsibility for looking after her little sister, Mimiko, even though she was only a few days older.
But Nanako knew that if she was not strong enough.
The more timid Mimiko would never be able to survive. Yes.
Survive.
That was the sisters' simplest wish.
To live as people, rather than as monsters in other people's eyes. But.
No one knew what they were going through.
"Don't be scared, Mimiko. Someone will definitely come to save us." Nanako comforted the little sister in her arms.
Even though she herself understood.
It was almost impossible. Bang, bang, bang.
There was a knock at the door. "Who is it?"
The village chief called out in confusion. No one answered outside.
After hesitating briefly, the village chief went to open the door. In this village, he was the absolute authority.
Besides, the blacksmith he had hired to guard the sisters was right beside him. He was the strongest man in the village.
The village chief opened the door. A handsome youth with a cool air stood outside. A gentle smile rested on his face, making him look completely harmless.
The village chief relaxed a little.
He was just a boy. He posed no threat at all. "May I ask who you are?"
Looking at Chingetsu's expensive clothes and noble bearing, the village chief spoke tentatively. Someone like him would not come to this impoverished village without a reason. So the village chief carefully asked why Chingetsu had come.
Chingetsu ignored the village chief's probing and stepped sideways straight into the house.
In the middle of the room stood the iron cage holding the sisters. "Name your price."
Chingetsu spoke impassively. "You!!!"
The village chief had been about to scold Chingetsu for entering his house without permission. Chingetsu's next words shut his mouth.
"You mean you want to buy the two of them?" The village chief pointed at Mimiko and Nanako inside the cage. "Yes. Name your price."
Chingetsu crouched before the cage, looking at the wary faces of Mimiko and Nanako as he spoke. "Young man, they're premium goods, clean and untouched, and they're twins, too. Not only that, these two little girls have absolutely first-rate faces."
The village chief's eyes darted about.
To think someone would actually buy these two scourges. "Cut the nonsense. Give me a price."
Chingetsu looked at the sisters inside the cage, their faces sallow, emaciated, and full of wariness, and spoke impassively. "Since you're serious about buying, how about this much?"
The village chief held up one hand.
"Five hundred thousand? Fine."
Seeing Chingetsu agree so readily, the village chief suddenly felt he had lost out and hurriedly corrected himself. "No, no, no. I meant five million."
He could tell that Chingetsu was either rich or influential. He had not even blinked at five hundred thousand. Such an easy mark was a rare sight.
He would be doing himself a disservice if he did not fleece him.
The village chief's eyes brimmed with greed. Excitement even twisted his face slightly. "Five million?"
Chingetsu stood up.
He looked at the village chief with a faint, ambiguous smile.
"Yes, five million. Not a yen less." "I see. Understood."
There was an inscrutable note in Chingetsu's voice. "They've suffered quite a bit, haven't they?"
"Please don't put it that way. For children like these who've lost their parents, it's already generous of me to give them something to eat and keep them alive."
"They might not look good now, but wash them up and dress them properly, and they're beauties in the making." "Five million is absolutely worth it."
The village chief made no mention of the sisters' identities and simply kept trying to sell them to Chingetsu. Inside the iron cage, the sisters clung to each other even tighter.
"All right. Five million it is."
Chingetsu glanced back at the twins inside the cage. "It's inconvenient here. Let's go outside."
"You two, wait for me a moment."
Chingetsu gave the sisters a kindly smile. "Come on. Let's get your five million."
Before you continue