I brush at the soot clinging to Milady Mikaela’s fur.
No use—she’s still pitch black. Definitely needs a proper bath.
“But what were you doing down here?”
“Meow!”
“Hiding from the fire, huh? Smart move. No flames made it underground, so you picked the safest place. That’s our Milady Mikaela.”
“Meowww~”
“What’s wrong, Milady?”
The little furball presses tight against my chest, as if trying to say something.
I can practically hear her paw pads going squish-squish against my collarbone.
She’s so cute I could lose my damn mind.
“You gotta stop that, Milady. Act too adorable and your loyal retainer might snap.”
“Meow! Meow!”
“Oh no, no no. Please stop. Oh—”
Too late. She’s got her front legs locked around the back of my neck, clinging like a lifeline.
I can feel her desperation not to be left alone.
She’s purring like a chainsaw. Cute enough to kill.
I can’t help but hug back.
Everyone knows cats can drive people insane. But among them, Milady Mikaela—fluffiest of all fluffballs, a Norwegian Forest Cat of the highest floofy rank—is weaponized. One cuddle from her, and even battle-hardened Mages fall.
Not one person in the Akai household could resist. Two years ago, she launched a calculated, strategic campaign of treat acquisition.
She grew round. She grew powerful.
No one could stop her.
So they called me in.
I was the only one in Coral Eldarian with the guts—and the diet plan—to manage Milady Mikaela. I was her handler and gatekeeper.
Even so, she’s too much for me, Ikaku Akamuro.
Pampered at close range like this, I can feel my brain sizzling.
But I can’t put her down. No way, that’d be too cruel.
I won’t do it.
Sniff sniff. “You smell like smoke, Milady.”
“Meow~ meow!”
“What’s that? You don’t want me sniffing you?”
“Meowww!”
Still cuddling and sniffing the Akai family’s living national treasure, I leave the vault.
Outside, a woman waits—stern as a blade. Lady Kimiyo Akachi.
“Ikaku Akamuro? So you’re alive. What a reckless man you are, charging in alone.”
“I ask for your pardon. It involved the Akai family’s property.”
“Property? You’d do better earning my favor. Strange, that you’re still loyal to the Akais. You don’t strike me as a fool.”
“I don’t see it that way.”
“Hmph. I want to inspect the vault. Step aside.”
“I cannot allow that. Without Lord Jinichiro’s permission, no one enters.”
“Jinichiro is dead. You know that better than anyone.”
“His orders remain—as do the rules of the Akai Clan. They still stand.”
Her stare sharpens, heavy enough to crush air.
Sumire’s face is its usual blank mask. Lady Ren shrinks behind her.
Milady Mikaela covers her ears with her paws, trembling. Guess even she’s scared of Lady Kimiyo.
“In this disaster, not a single guest escaped the fire. No noble here had a duty to fight, and yet all died. That tells us how far beyond normal this was.
The Akai family stood alone on the front lines. Jinichiro is dead. The four sisters are gone. We’ll be finding corpses of their kin soon enough.
The Akai are finished, and you know it, Ikaku Akamuro.”
“…”
“And still, you cling to loyalty. To a ghost. Why?”
Her voice is quiet, but the weight behind it presses hard.
I don’t hesitate. “Because I owe them.”
“…Is that all?” She narrows her eyes, confused.
Repay those who helped me. That’s my rule. That’s the Ikaku Way of Life.
It’s been with me since long before I was Ikaku Akamuro. Even before I was Ikaku Tanpakushitsu.
It goes back to my last life.
I was dying in the gutter when a kind office lady tried to help. I gave her my bank PIN. That was the last thing I did in that life.
She was confused. I wasn’t. It was just me, following my code.
A life with no regrets. Choices without guilt. Clean endings. Solid outcomes. Distant glory. Justified action.
I know the simple way to get all of that.
“I owe the Akai family. I’m the one left behind. My abilities might be limited, but I’ll do what I can. Earning your favor comes after.”
“You’re setting your priorities right in front of me, commoner? That’s bold.”
“I mean no disrespect.”
“What if I forced my way into that vault?”
“I’d do what I must.”
“You’d try to stop me? Think you can really manage that? Or are you underestimating me because I’m old? You don’t have nearly enough lives to try me.”
“…One of my last orders was to survive, no matter what. So yes, in that sense, I’d value my life. You aren’t someone I should die fighting, Lady Kimiyo. But if you’re asking whether stopping you is possible or not… I believe it’s not impossible.”
The air cracks. Not with sound—something deeper.
Something you feel in your gut, your bones, your pulse.
Sumire’s poker face falters. Lady Ren vanishes completely behind her shield.
Kimiyo’s stare drills into me.
Her gnarled hand brushes the top of her staff. Two feet of carved oak, winding with flowers and vines. Elegant. Old. Powerful.
She doesn’t draw it—just lets her fingers rest there, skin stretched thin over bone.
“…Gutsy little brat. Not scared. Not cocky. Just solid. I like that. Fine. You’ll serve as the Akai family’s representative regarding their assets. Once their bloodline is confirmed gone, succession will pass to the Akachi as it should.”
“I’m grateful.”
The pressure lifts, and the weight in the air peels back.
Lady Kimiyo turns, placing one foot on the stairs.
Then, she looks back.
“Even among nobles, finding a truly loyal retainer is rare. In that sense, Jinichiro was a fortunate man. He had someone like you to entrust things to.”
She gives a slight nod.
Then she’s gone.