"Mm, Mr. Toshiyuki is right."
Amamiya Rin nodded, his flat tone still unchanged as ever.
This impervious reaction left Toshiyuki feeling a little stifled in the chest, as though he'd thrown a punch straight into a wad of cotton.
Toshiyuki was just about to say something more when, from the back seat, Tomie suddenly let out a soft laugh, cutting off the words he'd been brewing in his heart.
Tomie abruptly turned around, stretched out both arms to wrap around Amamiya Rin's neck, and pressed her whole body against him.
The next second, her lips were imprinted upon his.
Without the slightest reserve, she pried open his teeth, carrying a cloyingly sweet fragrance and a force that brooked no refusal.
The space inside the car had been cramped to begin with, and now it was all the more filled with ambiguous sounds.
The viscous, wet noises were distinctly audible within the compartment, the interlacing breaths growing somewhat short and ragged.
In the front passenger seat, Toshiyuki Eide's expression froze over completely.
He sat half-twisted around, his mouth still slightly agape, his whole being as though someone had pressed the pause button, staring fixedly at those two tightly pressed silhouettes in the rearview mirror.
Twang!
It was as if a string had snapped.
A surge of fury interwoven with jealousy rushed straight to the crown of Toshiyuki Eide's head, searing until his temples throbbed and twitched, and burning through the very string that held his reason together.
"You—let go of her! Let go this instant! Miss Tomie!"
He sprang up violently from the passenger seat, his head striking the car roof with a 'thud' that he paid no mind to, his eyes bloodshot as he roared at Amamiya Rin at the top of his lungs, the veins on his neck bulging out, that composed bearing of a moment ago already shattered spotlessly clean.
One hand gripped the seatback for dear life, while the other nearly reached into the back seat to drag someone out; in his agitation, flecks of spittle all but sprayed forth, and the driver was so startled the steering wheel gave a jolt.
Tomie released Amamiya Rin and drew her body back a little, a faintly visible silver thread quietly snapping apart.
She panted slightly, her cheeks tinged with a flush, exuding a bewitching, seductive charm.
The arm Toshiyuki Eide had stretched out was likewise slapped aside by her backhand.
"Toshiyuki Eide, you're so crude."
Kawakami Tomie's eyes flicked toward Toshiyuki Eide as she spoke without any courtesy.
"I'm crude…"
Faced with Kawakami Tomie's reproach and displeasure, the rest of Toshiyuki Eide's words lodged in his throat, nearly choking him.
His face flushed red then went pale by turns, his eyes spitting fire, trembling all over with rage, and yet unwilling to vent his anger at Kawakami Tomie.
Toshiyuki Eide glared viciously at Amamiya Rin, wanting to say something, but when he opened his mouth no words would come out.
"What did you suddenly throw yourself at me for?"
It could be seen that Amamiya Rin's expression hadn't changed much compared to before; he merely wiped his moist lips and grumbled flatly.
Boom!
A surge of wicked fire mixed with an intense sense of frustration scorched Toshiyuki Eide's insides.
This was precisely the reason the words had reached the tip of his tongue yet he hadn't known how to say them.
Amamiya Rin had done nothing; the one who had taken the initiative was his most beloved Tomie—so with what could he hold Amamiya Rin to account?
"I just suddenly felt like kissing you, that's all."
Tomie's voice was sweet, coquettish, and soft, like a child seeking affection, as she clung to Amamiya Rin's arm.
"That's a bit much."
Amamiya Rin snarked even as he withdrew his arm, pushing away that lovely face that had pressed up against him.
"Hehe, we've finally got time to spend together, so of course we have to get a little intimate."
Kawakami Tomie said with a giggle, utterly without that cold manner she'd shown toward Toshiyuki Eide.
Witnessing this scene, Toshiyuki Eide's face flushed the color of liver; he stared fixedly at that helpless expression on Amamiya Rin's face, then looked at Tomie nestled against Amamiya Rin's side and brimming with joy, and the steady, magnanimous successful-man façade collapsed utterly.
"Amamiya Rin, you penniless little brat who came running here from the countryside, a hoodlum who couldn't even get into university! What kind of future could you possibly give Miss Tomie?"
Toshiyuki Eide had already flown into a panicked rage, his chest heaving violently as he angrily denounced Amamiya Rin.
"Is everything you've got on you put together even enough for one of Miss Tomie's afternoon teas? You think that with just a face, relying on sweet talk, you can get by in Tokyo? Naïve! This is a playground for the rich, and a fellow like you who can't even touch the threshold—what do you have to support her with? What do you have to give her happiness? Or do you mean to have Tomie squeeze onto the commuter train with you? Eat convenience store boxed lunches? Rent some palm-sized cheap apartment?"
He sneered, his eyes brimming with disdain.
"I advise you to wise up and let go sooner rather than later—it's better for everyone. Don't go wasting Miss Tomie's youth, and don't go courting your own humiliation here. Once you walk into tonight's party, you'll realize just how out of place you are. Be sensible—there's still time to get out of the car now. I can give you a bit of money, consider it a way of saving you some face."
Amamiya Rin remained unmoved throughout, and only after Toshiyuki Eide had finished saying his piece in one breath did he kindly remind him.
"Mr. Toshiyuki, standing like that is very dangerous. You'd best sit down to talk."
"You…!"
Toshiyuki Eide felt a rush of blood surge straight to his head, his vision going somewhat dark.
He'd said so much, and this fellow's reaction was actually like this! Could he not understand that he was being put down and mocked?
The car happened to drive up to an intersection just as the red light came on, and the driver eased into a gentle brake.
Toshiyuki Eide, already worked up and standing, failed to keep his footing this time; carried by the inertia, his whole body staggered, and he nearly sat down onto the dashboard behind him.
"Mr. Toshiyuki, your emotions are a bit worked up. Behaving like this in a moving car is very dangerous. You'd better sit down and calm yourself a little."
Amamiya Rin admonished.
These words of his were spoken in all sincerity.
Although Toshiyuki bore him ill will, he didn't take it to heart.
In his eyes, Toshiyuki Eide was purely being led around by the nose by Tomie's irresistible charm, like a marionette on strings—pitiful and pathetic.
But heard in Toshiyuki's ears, these words were simply oil poured onto the fire!
"You…!"
Toshiyuki braced himself against the seatback, his fingers clenched until they went white.
He glared at that unruffled face of Amamiya Rin's, feeling as though his chest was so blocked up it was about to explode.
What on earth was the matter with this kid? Could he not understand plain speech? What was up with that tone, that look in his eyes? Pitying him?
Intense negative emotions surged through Toshiyuki Eide's heart, driving him nearly to madness.
"All right, all right, you can sit down now—I've seen quite enough of your sorry display."
Tomie let out a snicker, her gaze flowing with ripples, full of mockery.
This was the sort of spectacle she loved best—men obsessed with her charm, putting on all manner of sorry displays before her.
And Tomie's single remark, by the time it reached Toshiyuki Eide's ears, had only the first half left, the latter half automatically filtered out.
Tomie cares about me, she has me in her heart!
Toshiyuki Eide was greatly heartened and hurriedly sat down, then said to Tomie expectantly.
"Miss Tomie! What on earth is good about a worthless, futureless fellow like this? He doesn't deserve you at all! I'm the one who can give you everything! A mansion, a yacht, jewels—whatever you want…"
"I already said it! I've seen quite enough of your sorry display!"
The smile on Tomie's face instantly vanished, replaced by an expression of undisguised annoyance; her red lips parted lightly, and the words she spat out were like ice picks stabbing straight into a person's heart.
"The two of us are a match of talent and beauty, a couple made by heaven itself—is it your place, you monster, to object?"
The words, far too blunt, were difficult for Toshiyuki Eide's brain to reconcile; as if struck by lightning, his face went deathly pale, wearing an incredulous expression, unable to accept that such cold words could come from Tomie's mouth.
____
👻🔥+40 ch on Pátreon: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: DanMachi: But I am a Monster — read it on The_Mikudayo
📚 Forty chapters of advanced reading at Walnut-chan, and it goes straight into keeping the translations on schedule
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