“Senior Aina, do you happen to know this Kawasaki?”
Chinatsu Ayase keenly caught the fleeting stiffness and the hard-to-conceal look of discomfort that flashed across Aina Saiten’s face the moment she heard the surname “Kawasaki.”
She immediately made a judgment in her heart:
This senior clearly knew her own half-sister, Rika Kawasaki, but she likely knew very little about her true background.
To probe further and to satisfy her own curiosity, Chinatsu Ayase adjusted her tone to be more casual and natural, as if she were just gossiping about something trivial.
She tilted her head slightly, her pale gray eyes reflecting the midday sun with just the right amount of curiosity as she looked at Aina Saiten.
“No… ah, well…”
Aina Saiten instinctively wanted to deny it, but the words got stuck in her throat.
She realized that her reaction just now had already betrayed her.
Trying to deny it now would only seem like a clumsy cover-up and might even spark unnecessary suspicion from Chinatsu Ayase.
She quickly adjusted her breathing and tried to make her expression look calmer.
She shifted her gaze slightly and lowered her voice, adopting a carefully maintained tone as if she were just recalling something by chance.
“A while ago… I think I saw her during a group dinner at an Izakaya I frequent. I remember… she seemed to be the granddaughter of that Izakaya Owner…”
She chose to tell a partial truth but skillfully omitted the key piece of information that Kazune had worked there.
She also minimized the extent of her “acquaintance” with Rika Kawasaki as much as possible.
“I see…”
Chinatsu Ayase trailed off and nodded slightly, a look of realization appearing on her face, though she was already planning more in her heart.
As for her own nominal grandparents, she had never even met them.
She knew the old couple had always been focused on running that small Izakaya.
They were both powerless and seemingly uninterested in the chaotic private lives of their daughter and son-in-law.
Naturally, they wouldn’t know that another granddaughter named Chinatsu Ayase existed out there.
And Rika Kawasaki had clearly never mentioned this half-sister to the two seniors.
At the same time, Chinatsu Ayase was certain that Aina Saiten was holding something back.
Through the detailed reports from the private investigator over the past few days, she had already grasped a key piece of information:
Aina Saiten’s exceptionally handsome boyfriend, Kaoru Hoshitani, had briefly worked at the Kawasaki family’s Izakaya not long ago.
She was almost certain that her sister, Rika Kawasaki, and that man named Kaoru Hoshitani had started “getting involved” during that time.
Thinking of this, a trace of hidden disdain flashed in the depths of her clear gray eyes.
She hadn’t expected that a man who looked as pure and beautiful as fragile glass in photographs and videos would be such a disgraceful character, capable of betraying a long-term girlfriend so quickly for a woman he had only recently met.
This realization caused her opinion of Kaoru Hoshitani to plummet instantly.
However, a hint of doubt also surfaced in Chinatsu Ayase’s heart.
If Kaoru Hoshitani really was such an easy-to-seduce “male tramp” who could betray his feelings so easily, then based on her understanding of her sister’s picky and dominant personality, Rika shouldn’t have shown the unusual “regard” or even “concern” that Chinatsu had witnessed during their date.
That was definitely not the attitude one had toward a mere plaything.
‘Is Sister temporarily blinded by that face and hasn’t seen his true colors, or… is there some other hidden detail I don’t know yet?’
Chinatsu Ayase’s thoughts raced, but she maintained an air of relaxed small talk on the surface.
‘Whatever, guessing is useless. Besides, won’t I get to see that Kaoru Hoshitani with my own eyes this weekend? I can observe and judge for myself then.’
Both women harbored heavy thoughts, yet they maintained the peaceful demeanor expected of colleagues and friends.
After walking into the brightly lit, air-conditioned lobby of the Izumimori Building, they naturally parted at a junction and headed toward their respective elevators and departments.
Only the crisp echo of high heels clicking against the marble floor remained in the air, gradually fading away.
As the newly appointed Accounting Sub-manager, Aina Saiten had her own private office, which, though small, offered a degree of privacy.
Once the heavy solid wood door closed, it temporarily cut off the outside world’s gaze and noise.
She placed her belongings on the desk and sat in the soft leather swivel chair. Her gaze fell out of focus on the stack of pending documents and the flickering computer screen.
However, she couldn’t concentrate on those dry numbers and reports at all right now. Rika Kawasaki’s identity, that glaring Blue Sports Car, Chinatsu Ayase’s meaningful words…
All sorts of information swirled and collided in her mind, leaving her restless.
She forced herself to open a document, but her eyes kept scanning the same few lines over and over, unable to grasp their meaning.
Time passed slowly in a blur of anxiety. Finally, it was 3:30 PM, the time for Afternoon Tea.
This was an unwritten rule of the Company, allowing employees a short break of about half an hour to relax, chat, or recharge.
The sounds of footsteps and murmurs began to drift from the public area outside the office. Aina Saiten took a deep breath, as if she had reached a decision.
She picked up the Phone on her desk and dialed the delivery number for the well-regarded coffee chain downstairs.
She ordered over ten cups of coffee in various flavors, along with some delicate pastries and snacks, requesting they be delivered to the Accounting Department floor as quickly as possible.
About 15 minutes later, the delivery person arrived on time, carrying two large paper bags.
Aina Saiten adjusted her expression, trying her best to make her smile look warm and natural.
Then, she personally carried the bags out of her office and began distributing the coffee and snacks to her Colleagues in the Department one by one.
“Everyone has been working hard. I’ve brought something for everyone to drink to help you stay sharp.”
She spoke gently as she handed out the items. The Colleagues were a bit surprised at first, but they quickly accepted the new boss’s kindness and thanked her one after another.
For a moment, the atmosphere became relaxed and harmonious.
Everyone just assumed this was a common gesture from a new manager trying to integrate into the team and build rapport, so they didn’t think much of it.
Taking the opportunity while distributing drinks and snacks, Aina Saiten also casually chatted with a few Colleagues who seemed more talkative or senior.
The conversation slowly shifted from work to trivial daily matters.
Holding her own cup of hot Americano, she pretended to bring up a topic casually with a hint of curiosity.
“By the way, when I returned to the Company at noon, I saw a very beautiful Blue Sports Car parked downstairs. It was quite striking. I wonder which client or…”
As expected, before she could even finish her sentence, a colleague who knew the inside story immediately picked up the conversation.
“Ah, Manager, you mean that blue sports car!” A young male employee’s eyes lit up, and he lowered his voice with a bit of gossipy excitement.
“You just got here, so you wouldn’t know. That’s not a client’s car; that belongs to our President’s daughter! She just started an Internship in the Market Department recently.”
“That’s right,” another older male colleague nodded and added.
“It’s indeed the President’s daughter. Some old-timers in the Market Department say that she used to visit the Company occasionally when she was a child. Even back then, she was… well, quite the character. She hasn’t changed much.”
“Isn’t that the truth? She drives such a flashy car to work every day; it’s hard not to notice…”
“I heard the President dotes on this daughter quite a bit. Even though she’s just an intern, no one in the Market Department dares to neglect her…”
The Colleagues discussed in low voices, their tones a mix of curiosity, envy, and a trace of subtle awe.
These scattered pieces of gossip were like the last few fragments of a puzzle, completely confirming Aina Saiten’s worst suspicion from noon — Rika Kawasaki was indeed the daughter of the President of Izumimori Corporation.
Her identity was far from being as simple as Aina had previously imagined.
Hearing these definite discussions, Aina Saiten’s heart sank bit by bit, and the palms of her hands holding the coffee cup felt cold.
However, she forced herself to control her turbulent emotions.
Her face still maintained a polite expression of listening and slight surprise, and she even nodded in agreement.
Returning to her small office, which had regained its silence, Aina Saiten finally allowed herself to show her true exhaustion and unease after closing the door.
She leaned against the back of her chair, closed her eyes, and rubbed her temples hard.
‘Calm down, Aina Saiten. Calm down.’ She told herself, trying to self-soothe.
‘That yellow-haired woman — Rika Kawasaki — she might not actually have any special intentions toward Kazune. What happened before might just be a coincidence, or maybe I’m overthinking it.’
She tried to find optimistic possibilities.
‘Besides, I’m working at Izumimori now. She might not even know about it. Even if she finds out, I got in based on my own ability, and I don’t have any direct interaction with her…’
However, another more determined thought, carrying a sense of burning her bridges, rose from the depths of her heart.
Like a tiny flame lit in the darkness, it carried an unquestionable firmness:
‘Even… even if the worst happens and I really can’t keep this job because of it, I will absolutely not… absolutely not allow anyone to coerce my Kazune in any way!’
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