Chapter 388: Let Me Help You Kill Him.
"No need. If I go out now I'll only cause trouble for everyone."
Shinomiya Kaguya fully understood her current situation.
If she went out carelessly, it would only draw more attention; she felt being invisible like this wasn't so bad.
Hearing that, Shirley said no more.
She had come to care for Kaguya on Sakurai Saki's orders, and there was no need to be overly concerned about Shinomiya Kaguya.
After a few seconds of silence, when Shirley retreated to the backyard, Shinomiya Kaguya picked her phone up and played with it again.
A few days earlier she had been practicing calligraphy and flower arranging, but after realizing the Shinomiya family wasn't paying any attention to her, she gave up those refined pastimes and chose a simpler, more ordinary entertainment — playing on her phone.
Why write by hand when you have a phone to play with?
Bored, huh?
Half an hour later, Kaguya's posture grew lax; she lay sprawled out in a 大 shape on the tatami floor, looking no different from a dried fish sunbathing.
[Just lying like that, don't you plan to do anything more meaningful?]
'Who's there?'
Shinomiya Kaguya suddenly noticed a voice appearing in her head, neither clearly male nor female.
[Hmph hmph, I can even control her body, interesting.]
The next moment, Shinomiya Kaguya discovered her right hand was no longer under her control.
She panicked immediately.
Right after that, she felt her soul leave her body — her viewpoint shifted from first person to third person.
Kaguya could see the back of her own head, even her own face.
For a moment, she couldn't understand what was happening at all.
[Who are you?! What do you intend to do?!] Kaguya shouted in a hurry.
In her vision, her body rose from the tatami floor and the corner of her mouth curved into an elegant smile: "You want to escape your current situation, don't you, Shinomiya Kaguya?"
"If you don't have the power, then let me help you fulfill that wish."
[Are you male or female?]
"Do you care about that?"
[... I already have someone I like; if you dare look at my body, I'll kill myself for you!!]
"Sorry, I'm not interested in your poor body. As for gender, you may regard me as female."
'Shinomiya Kaguya' moved her body a little and remarked: "The power is so-so, but compared to my original body it's much weaker."
[What's your purpose? You must tell me this, right? And your name too!]
"Your body's been taken over by me and you still have the nerve to ask that? Fine then, you may call me Professor X. As for the purpose, I already told you."
[You think I haven't seen X-Men, huh?]
"...Do Ojou-sama nowadays even watch superhero movies?"
[A warning to you. Don't use my body to do weird things.]
"Your rate of comprehension surprises me."
"Professor" straightened the folds of the kimono.
[You have no ability to resist; other than accepting it, what else can you do?]
"There's someone coming; you deal with that part yourself, I'll observe the situation first."
When the words ended, Shinomiya Kaguya felt she had regained control of her body.
What on earth was that a moment ago?
Was it another personality of mine?
Kaguya, whose body already contained many personas like "Ice Kaguya", "Baka-guya", "Child Kaguya", thought this was probably a newly born personality.
[Personality? Don't demean me like that.]
Shinomiya Kaguya was about to speak.
At the small gate, a male servant stepped in.
"Kaguya-sama, Oko-sama invites you over for tea."
[Tea? I'd say it looks more like a pig-slaughtering party.]
Shinomiya Kaguya paid no heed to that voice, quickly took Shirley, and followed the servant to Shinomiya Oko's residence.
...
In the main compound of the Shinomiya house, many people passed back and forth, all looking exhausted, as if they had been busy for a long time without rest.
Since the head of the Shinomiya family — Shinomiya Gan'an — was hospitalized, under pressure from the Shijo family the Shinomiya's living space had been steadily shrinking.
Among everyone's gazes, Shinomiya Kaguya entered Oko's courtyard.
It was a building facing a pond where rare fish were raised.
Outside, beside the pond, the flowers, plants and bamboo looked different from the last time she'd seen them — they seemed to have all been renewed.
Following the path beside the pond, Shinomiya Kaguya knocked on the sliding door and then entered the Japanese-style room.
"Onii-sama, good afternoon."
"Kaguya, how do you think of those flowers?"
Shinomiya Oko peered through the half-open sliding door and asked her who was standing outside.
Shinomiya Kaguya ignored the antique decorations and luxury valuables in the room and turned to look outside.
A few seconds later.
"Not the same as when I last saw them, but still very beautiful."
"Do you know why?"
Kaguya didn't answer.
Shinomiya Oko continued: "Because I replaced the gardener. The old gardener killed one of my flower pots, so I 'dismissed' him."
"Dismissed"?
Knowing her brother's character well, Shinomiya Kaguya didn't believe this was literal.
It was a warning.
Simple, but effective.
"Useless tools are discarded and replaced. What the Shinomiya family never lacks is tools."
Shinomiya Oko's gaze was fox-sharp; he stroked his beard and gave a thin smile: "My adorable little sister, about that thing I asked you to do before, you did it well, didn't you?"
"I did it." Kaguya nodded.
"Your close friend certainly has loyalty — willing to give up a man for you."
Shinomiya Kaguya lowered her head.
"But that's still not enough. That brat Sakurai Saki won't help the Shinomiya house; he only helps you."
"Onii-sama, this really isn't his affair…"
Shinomiya Oko sneered and cut her off: "Not his affair!? Do you know who's backing the Shijo family? Not his affair?!"
At first he'd wondered why Jinguuji Tamaki didn't dare oppose the Shijo family.
After investigating thoroughly, he came to understand.
The supernatural force behind the Shijo family has deep ties with Sakurai Saki!
A force behind the Shijo family?
Shinomiya Kaguya could not imagine why a gigantic financial clan like the Shijo would even have a power behind them...
Seeing her expression, Shinomiya Oko immediately lost interest in the conversation.
After all, she was just a foolish woman.
Conveniently, the Shijo family had sent over a step to descend on; simply follow along.
When that old man dies, he'll sit firmly in the position of head of the Shinomiya family — not a terrible outcome.
In the future, if Kaguya bears a child for Shijo Mikado, then him seizing control of the Shijo house would not be impossible.
"The Shijo family has sent a proposal of marriage alliance."
"I refuse!"
Kaguya's face clearly showed opposition.
"Don't be hasty, I haven't accepted it yet."
Shinomiya Oko stroked his beard and continued: "I'm not forcing you."
"Only that, as a descendant of the Shinomiya family, you should do a bit for the family. Your pure body has already been taken by that scum; now the Shijo have someone willing to marry you, you should be glad. Once you're no longer a virgin, the value of the merchandise drops sharply. Know this: some men only like virgins; not to mention lovers — if the wife is seen as second-hand goods in their eyes, it's humiliating."
[Kaguya, I can help you kill him.]
Kaguya looked at it with a blank expression.
[He treats you like merchandise, and you can still endure that? If you wish, I will kill him now — seven bleeding holes, ten thousand arrows through his heart, whatever death you want. How do you want him to die?]
"If you refuse, I will not force you."
Shinomiya Oko watched Kaguya's expression and noticed she had relaxed a bit.
Huh, a foolish woman will remain a foolish woman.
"Tonight, the Shinomiya family will hold a family banquet. The executive directors of the subsidiary companies will all attend — don't forget to be present."
"Yes."
Kaguya replied softly.
[Kaguya, have you ever heard of Death Note? I can predict his death.]