"Dad, don't move yet. Let the doctors check you first." Yukinoshita Yukino spoke as gently as she could to her father.
"I know." Mr. Yukinoshita's voice trembled. His forehead was covered in sweat, clearly struggling to endure the pain.
Several medical staff crouched beside Mr. Yukinoshita, carefully examining his condition. Occasionally, when they lightly touched his body, he couldn't help but suck in sharp breaths from the pain.
After a while, one of the medics stood up and reported to Mrs. Yukinoshita, who stood nearby: "Madam, based on our initial assessment, it looks like fractured ribs. The situation isn't too serious at the moment, but he needs to be taken to the hospital for treatment."
"Just fractures? That's a relief." Hearing that her father had only fractured his ribs after falling from the second floor, Yukino finally let out a breath of relief. Had her father suffered any truly irreversible consequences because of her reckless actions, she knew she'd never forgive herself.
Though, to be fair, even fractures were already a serious outcome. Not to mention… Yukino cast a quick glance at her father, then quickly looked away, unwilling to dwell on it.
What Yukino didn't know was that Mr. Yukinoshita, in his current sensitive state, immediately noticed her glance.
"Yukino… actually, nothing happened just now." Mr. Yukinoshita struggled to defend himself.
"I understand, Dad. Nothing really happened just now," Yukino calmly and rationally reassured him.
She wasn't someone who liked to lie. Lies always represented deceit, something negative in her worldview. Yet, at this moment, she suddenly realized that not every lie was born from malice. Some lies were told out of kindness.
As for whether something really had happened just now… the truth had already become clear to Yukino the moment her mother rushed over, forbade her daughters from approaching, and instructed Haruno to fetch pants.
Hearing her words, Mr. Yukinoshita's expression crumbled. At that moment, even the pain of his fractured ribs couldn't suppress the sorrow overwhelming him.
"Really… nothing happened…"
"I know, Dad. Just treat it as a nightmare. Once you wake up, everything will be fine."
Beside them, Haruno Yukinoshita couldn't help but soften her tone as she consoled him. At the same time, she shot Yukino a warning glance, silently telling her impatient younger sister not to provoke their father any further.
Seeing that, Yukino immediately took a step back to show she understood.
Haruno nodded in satisfaction, then turned to the medics preparing to move their father. "It was just a nightmare, Dad. Once you wake up, everything will be fine. What you need to do now is rest."
"I-I really… there just wasn't enough time… nothing actually happened…" Mr. Yukinoshita's voice had already begun to break.
At this moment, Mrs. Yukinoshita frowned as she watched her usually composed husband in such a pitiful state. Yet, for once, she didn't criticize him as usual. Instead, she sighed softly.
"Alright, Haruno, Yukino, stop saying things that make your father uncomfortable. Let the doctors take him for treatment."
After saying this, Mrs. Yukinoshita's expression, unusually gentle, softened as she reassured him: "Dear, you've already done well enough. Focus on recovering. I'll handle the rest."
"Even you're saying that…" Mr. Yukinoshita opened his mouth but, considering his wife's typically domineering personality, he suddenly found her current tenderness rather pleasant. Perhaps… perhaps this wasn't such a bad situation after all?
Could it be that, after all these years of being henpecked, he might finally regain some of his masculine dignity?
Thinking it over carefully, that didn't sound like such a bad trade… At the very least, it felt like his monthly allowance might see a significant increase.
Lost in thought, Mr. Yukinoshita was lifted onto a stretcher. Just then, from around the corner of the lawn, Luo Shu—dressed sharply in a suit—and Takina Inoue—wearing her usual school uniform while carrying a sniper rifle—approached.
"And who are they?" Mrs. Yukinoshita asked the medic in protective gear standing beside her.
The medic, helping carry her husband, explained casually, "That's Mr. Luo Shu, the person in charge of this operation, and Miss Inoue. Alright, Madam, please step aside. We need to get your husband to the hospital. If you have any questions, please contact the city's general hospital."
With that, several medics carried Mr. Yukinoshita toward the gate. As they passed Luo Shu and Takina Inoue, they nodded politely in greeting.
"Only one injured?" Luo Shu glanced at the middle-aged man being carried away, slightly surprised. "Well, I suppose that's the best outcome we could've hoped for."
Takina nodded in agreement. "Yes. Statistically, the probability of a demon killing an entire household exceeds 80%."
Listening to Luo Shu and Takina nonchalantly discussing how it was lucky their entire family hadn't been wiped out, Yukino's expression tightened visibly, almost unable to hold herself together.
However, unlike her, both Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno maintained their composed, unreadable expressions as they stood before Luo Shu.
"And you are…?" Mrs. Yukinoshita extended her hand politely. Luo Shu looked at her with mild surprise before shaking her hand and introducing himself, "Luo Shu, agent of the Special Data Sorting Division. This is my partner, Takina Inoue."
Takina offered a light, formal bow—the typical greeting in Japan upon first meeting someone.
In contrast, Luo Shu's simple handshake felt entirely un-Japanese.
Yet, from his name alone, Mrs. Yukinoshita had already guessed a few things. Curiously, she asked, "Special Data Sorting Division? What department is that? Part of the National Police Agency?"
Luo Shu's smile deepened as he explained, "Not exactly. We're a department equivalent to the garrison forces."
Hearing the word "garrison," Mrs. Yukinoshita's eyelid twitched slightly. She immediately understood that this seemingly young and easy-to-manipulate man was anything but harmless.
Had he been with the police—even the Metropolitan Police Headquarters—the influence of a prefectural assembly member like herself would still carry some weight. After all, while the headquarters held national authority, any individual officer wouldn't dare offend a local power too easily.
But now, Luo Shu had introduced himself as someone from a department equal in status to the military garrison. That rendered the Yukinoshita family's influence utterly meaningless.
Before a department on par with the garrison, whether she was a prefectural assembly member or an ordinary civilian made little difference.
Realizing she couldn't rely on roundabout methods to achieve her goals, Mrs. Yukinoshita could only proceed directly. "Luo-kun, may I ask how this incident will be handled?"
Luo Shu glanced at this graceful yet sharp woman, then exchanged a quick look with Takina.
"According to standard procedure, after you sign the non-disclosure agreement, we'll submit a detailed report to both the garrison and the Cabinet. Compensation discussions will also take place, and we'll strive to ensure the victims are reasonably satisfied."
Hearing this, Mrs. Yukinoshita's composed expression almost cracked. A non-disclosure agreement? And what if they refused to sign? As for "strive to ensure victims are satisfied"… that "strive" carried far too much ambiguity.
Most importantly, the mention of reporting to the Cabinet? That was as good as reporting directly to the major zaibatsu conglomerates.
The large corporations received Cabinet reports faster than ministers themselves. Once the ministers got the report, the real regional powers would also be informed. At that point, even a single leaked detail would make it impossible for the Yukinoshita family to keep this crisis hidden.
Mrs. Yukinoshita's expression changed slightly. She hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Is it possible to report only to the garrison?"
If only the garrison knew, her family wouldn't face too much trouble. But once the Cabinet was involved, the risk of leaks—and the resulting political fallout—became extremely high.
With that thought in mind, Mrs. Yukinoshita shot her eldest daughter a look. Haruno, standing at Luo Shu's side, suddenly produced a bank card from nowhere and, as if it were nothing, slipped it into Luo Shu's pocket.
Noticing both Mrs. Yukinoshita's request and Haruno's subtle movement, Luo Shu's expression turned subtly amused.
"Madam, you're really putting me in a difficult spot."