Chapter 239: The True Motive
“Uncle Fukada!”
Looking at the tall man sitting upright in the living room, a trace of astonishment flashed through the young girl’s eyes, but she quickly adjusted. She wiped her slightly wet hair a couple of times with a towel, put on a faint smile, and walked briskly into the living room.
“Eh, Little Kazumi, why aren’t you asleep yet at this hour.”
Smiling and responding to the girl’s call, Fukada Akihiko looked at his beloved niece, who was as cute as ever, and still couldn’t quite reconcile her with the person described in the intelligence Kurokawa Iori had given him.
“I was busy with some things earlier and just finished showering. As for you, Uncle, have you finished dealing with things in Beidu? Is your work going smoothly?”
Casually walking over and sitting lightly on the sofa, the girl coiled the towel on her head to prevent the wet towel from wetting her pajamas. She looked at Fukada Akihiko, who had a complex expression on his face, her eyes flickered twice, and she asked with feigned concern.
“Ah, smoothly, smoothly. I thought I’d come and see you after work was done.”
Kazumi’s concern made Fukada Akihiko, whose mood was already a bit complicated, scratch his head awkwardly. Looking at the girl beside him, who was as cute as ever, he had a mouth full of questions but couldn’t ask them, so he could only answer them based on her question.
“Okay, Uncle, please sit down for a moment. I’ll go make you some tea.”
Her slender eyes narrowed slightly, and Kazumi didn’t expose his extremely clumsy lie. She nodded obediently and walked towards the kitchen.
After all, coming to visit her so late at night after finishing work was a bit unreasonable.
“No, no, it’s too late to drink tea.”
Waving his hand to stop the girl, Fukada Akihiko hesitated. His true purpose in finding Kazumi was to confirm whether the news he heard from Kurokawa Iori was true, but when he faced the girl, he, who was usually quick-witted, didn’t know how to ask the question he was reluctant to face.
“Kazumi, I just came here to ask you a few small things. It’s okay if you don’t want to answer. Uncle has always supported your decisions, and Masato and the others…”
“Um, Uncle just wants to ask, you told me before…”
“I’ve joined [Shadow].”
The concise and direct content rang out in the living room. The girl’s cold voice, with a slight trace of warmth, echoed in Fukada Akihiko’s ears, directly interrupting his somewhat hesitant question.
Fukada Akihiko’s intention was obvious. Both his appearance at this time of day and the distinct aura of malevolence that came from the [Shell] on him allowed Kazumi to instantly analyze the real reason for his visit.
In fact, in the depths of her heart, her joining the organization couldn’t be hidden. Fukada Akihiko was an executive not too low in rank within the [Dark] Organization, and he certainly had channels to know that she had joined the organization.
Even in Kazumi’s estimation, Uncle Fukada must have made arrangements within the organization to prevent her from being selected as a member.
But whether it was because [Shell] valued her innate talent or because their position outweighed Uncle Fukada’s, they completely disregarded his thoughts and directly listed her as a candidate member.
“Kazumi.”
He raised his head in disbelief, only to meet the girl’s extremely calm, jet-black eyes. It seemed like his emotions had also calmed down because of her gaze. Fukada Akihiko’s emotions finally settled down, and he asked earnestly.
“You still can’t let go of Masato and the others?”
She nodded slightly, then shook her head. The girl’s expression remained unchanged, and her cold and indifferent tone continued.
“Mhm.”
“But neither they nor I want you to get involved in this darkness anymore!! Our greatest wish is for you to live a peaceful life!”
The girl’s reaction chilled Fukada Akihiko to the bone. Although he had already foreseen this outcome that he least wanted to happen, when it truly happened, he couldn’t help but question her.
“Then when my parents left me alone at home when I was a child, did they consider letting me live a normal life?”
The girl’s answer was still disturbingly calm, but the content revealed in her indifferent words was filled with a kind of despair.
“Kazumi…”
Looking at the girl, who rarely showed her inner emotions in front of him, with some heartache, Fukada Akihiko reached out and touched the girl’s hair, which was wrapped in a towel, and sighed helplessly.
“Masato and them had no choice. In fact, they had already decided to leave the organization for you at that time, and the leader’s condition was that they had to complete the research and development of the last potion project, and then…”
Since things had developed to this point, Fukada Akihiko no longer wanted to hide the real reason for his parents’ death from the girl. At the very least, he couldn’t let the girl resent his deceased parents’ love for her now.
“Mhm…”
The girl lowered her head, seemingly moved by his words, her eyes flickering as she thought about something.
“Then Kazumi, why are you doing this? You don’t need to avenge Masato and them. What the organization is doing now is aimed at dismantling the Heroes Association. Leave these things to Uncle.”
“Besides, you should be aware of how dangerous it is to join the organization now, right?”
Sensing the emotional fluctuation in the girl at that moment, Fukada Akihiko hurriedly seized the opportunity, wanting to pull the girl out of this vortex of darkness as soon as possible. For this fifteen-year-old girl, facing such darkness was truly too cruel.
“Because… power.”
After silently listening to Fukada Akihiko’s answer, the girl slowly raised her head. A half-smile played on her stern face as she replied.
“Power? Why would you suddenly think that? Your current identity is not problematic at all, nor will you be harmed by it. And even if something happens, Uncle will protect you.”
The girl’s answer exceeded Fukada Akihiko’s expectations. He had initially thought it was simply for revenge, but he hadn’t expected Kazumi to have thought about this aspect.
“Then, Uncle, how long can you protect me?”
“At their status back then, Mom and Dad must have had powerful bodyguards, but in the end, they still encountered such an accident.”
The girl asked the question in a declarative tone. She lightly raised her hand to her head and took off the towel wrapped around her hair.
Her wet hair fell in clumps onto her face under gravity, obscuring her jet-black, deep eyes. Her light pink lips curved into a contemptuous smile, and her cherry lips parted slightly as she spoke again with a cold tone.
“This world is not a fair world to begin with, and I just want to have enough power to survive.”
(PS: Great Failure QAQ)
