A few days passed by in a flash.
One afternoon, Ryoma woke up on the living room sofa, groaning reluctantly as the remnants of alcohol faded from his system.
He immediately reached out, blindly searching the coffee table for a liquor bottle. Only when he was blackout drunk could he properly fall asleep, and only in his dreams could he reunite with his late wife and briefly escape the agonizing, crushing weight of reality.
But today, things were slightly different.
His hand didn't find a bottle. Instead, he realized someone was standing right in front of him. Blinking his bleary eyes open, he saw his daughter, MEI, looking down at him.
For some inexplicable reason, MEI—who normally wore a permanent, expressionless mask of exhaustion—actually had a bright smile on her face. She looked genuinely happy.
"Father, I paid off the debt."
Ryoma forced himself to sit up, his brain still struggling to process the information.
"The debt... oh. You mean the money I owed those people recently? Ah... you paid it off?"
Ryoma finally remembered. A while ago, fueling his gambling addiction, he had taken out a massive loan from some shady underground platforms. Lately, they had been hounding him with threatening phone calls day and night.
It wasn't a small amount of money. Having fallen so far, he had absolutely no idea how he was ever going to pay it back. So, he had simply chosen to ignore it, taking life one miserable day at a time.
Only now did it forcefully hit him that he wasn't alone. He had a daughter. The catastrophic messes he made didn't just affect him; they dragged MEI down with him.
He was supposed to be the father. Yet, it was his teenage daughter who had to clean up his apocalyptic disasters.
Looking at MEI's genuinely happy smile, Ryoma was suddenly transported back in time to when he first met his wife. He remembered feeling exactly like this—brimming with boundless hope for the future.
And thinking of his wife immediately brought back her dying wish: Please, take good care of our daughter...
In his mind's eye, he could vividly see his wife looking down at him from heaven, her eyes filled with profound, unbearable disappointment.
A tidal wave of guilt crashed into his chest. A thousand apologies bottlenecked in his throat, but ultimately, all he could manage was a hoarse whisper.
"I'm sorry, MEI..."
"Father, please. Don't let yourself be chained by the past anymore."
Seeing the pure, unadulterated hope in MEI's eyes only made Ryoma feel infinitely worse. Maybe she's right. Maybe I really should start over.
As if sensing her father's internal struggle, MEI pulled out a crisp banknote and handed it to him.
"Father, why don't you go buy some groceries? Let's have sukiyaki tonight."
Ryoma knew what was really happening. His daughter was incredibly smart; she had seen right through his suffocating guilt.
Asking him to buy groceries was just an excuse. Her true goal was to give him an out, allowing him to save face and giving him some time alone to adjust his mindset.
Ryoma remained silent for a moment. He accepted the money and stood up, preparing to leave.
But just as he reached the door, MEI gently grabbed his sleeve. Her eyes were pleading.
"Father... promise me. Promise me you won't touch those things anymore. Okay?"
Ryoma knew exactly what she meant. The gambling. The vice that had consumed him after his fall from grace.
He forced a stiff, unnatural smile onto his face.
"I won't touch them again. I swear it..."
---||---
Stepping out of the apartment building, the biting chill of the wind hit Ryoma's face, making him shiver. The lingering fog of alcohol in his brain instantly cleared.
Memories of everything that had happened since his wife's passing surfaced in his mind. The more he remembered, the more he realized... he really was a piece of trash.
It was honestly incomprehensible how far he had fallen.
Just a year ago, he was universally recognized as the brightest rising star in the scientific world. A year later, he had devolved into societal waste, entirely dependent on his high school daughter just to survive.
The guilt practically liquefied his insides.
"I can't keep sinking like this. I need to find a job..."
His past behavior had been incredibly erratic and bridges had been burned, meaning he had alienated almost every single friend he had in the industry. But if he completely swallowed his pride and begged them on his hands and knees, he could probably still secure a decent position somewhere.
"Ryoma, you idiot. You can't keep living like this. Your daughter is waiting for you at home!"
"Starting today, no more alcohol. No more gambling. I'm completely cutting ties with my past. I'm going to be a good father!"
Having made a solemn vow to turn his life around, Ryoma felt an immense weight lift off his shoulders. With a newfound spring in his step, he headed toward the grocery store.
However, as he walked down the street, his feet unconsciously came to a halt in front of a brightly lit storefront.
The exterior was plastered with anime murals, making it look like a harmless merchandise shop at first glance.
But inside, it housed a game that had taken the Far East by storm.
Metal balls were launched onto a vertical board, bouncing wildly through a complex maze of pins until they dropped into specific holes to earn points. Because of the constant, deafening ding-ding-ding of metal hitting pins, it was called Pachinko.
But Ryoma knew the truth. While masquerading as an innocent arcade game, Pachinko was a massive, completely legalized, open-secret gambling industry.
The points earned from the machines could be exchanged for "special prizes," which could then be immediately sold for cold, hard cash at a completely "unrelated" booth right next door.
How did he know all this?
Because he used to practically live in these parlors. Almost all of his family's savings had been swallowed by these machines.
Hearing the familiar ding-ding-ding pouring out of the open doors, a jolt of electricity shot straight through Ryoma's heart. A dark, insidious craving began to violently sprout in his mind.
Ryoma absentmindedly reached into his pocket, his fingers brushing against the crisp banknote MEI had given him.
I have the grocery money right here. Maybe I could just play one quick round...
The moment the thought materialized, Ryoma violently shook his head.
"No! I can't gamble anymore. I promised MEI."
"I am not the man I used to be. I've completely severed ties with my past!"
Using every ounce of his willpower, Ryoma forced his legs to keep moving. Gritting his teeth, he managed to walk past the entrance. He let out a massive sigh of relief.
"See? My self-control is actually incredible."
Ding-ding-ding-ding...
The crisp, intoxicating sound of colliding metal balls echoed down the street.
Ryoma spun around and walked straight into the parlor.
"I'm feeling lucky today! If I win big, I can buy MEI a nice present. She'll be so happy."
---||---
A short while later, Ryoma stood outside the Pachinko parlor, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.
He frantically patted down his pockets, desperately trying to hallucinate that the banknote was still there. Unfortunately, his willpower was not strong enough to rewrite reality.
It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over his head. Pure, unadulterated terror seized his heart.
The thought of returning home completely empty-handed—the thought of facing MEI and seeing that soul-crushing disappointment in her eyes—made his chest tighten so violently he could barely breathe.
As a man of science, he had never believed in the existence of gods.
But at this exact moment, he prayed with every fiber of his being that a god actually existed, and that they would perform a miracle right in front of him.
Perhaps a god really did hear his pathetic prayers, because suddenly, a sweet, melodic voice drifted out from nearby.
"Oh, lost soul... come hither. The Elf of the Elysian Realm is here to grant your deepest desires~♬"
Drawn by the voice, Ryoma instinctively turned his head. The sound was coming from a dark, narrow alleyway right next to the Pachinko parlor.
Driven by an indescribable desperation—perhaps clinging to the microscopic chance of a miracle—Ryoma stumbled into the alley.
To his shock, an ornate, incredibly lavish desk had been set up right in the middle of the grime. And sitting behind it was a breathtakingly beautiful girl with light purple hair.
"My, my... a new customer~"
"Who are you?" Ryoma instantly tensed up. No matter how you looked at it, finding a girl like this in a sketchy back alley was completely unnatural.
"I am the Faded Elf from the Elysian Realm! I specialize in making wishes come true." The girl calling herself the Faded Elf clasped her hands together, a flawless, radiant smile blooming on her face. "Though, of course, everything comes with a price~"
Driven by sheer, irrational desperation, Ryoma blurted out, "I need money. Just ten thousand yen..."
"Consider your wish granted~♬"
Miss Faded Elf produced a crisp ten-thousand-yen note from seemingly nowhere, placed it on the desk, and slid it toward him.
It was too easy.
Ryoma's paranoia spiked.
"What's the interest rate? When do I have to pay it back?"
The Faded Elf rested her chin in her hand, smiling sweetly.
"Oh, there's no need to pay it back. This is an exchange. The price is simply one day of your life."
"Take the ten thousand yen, and one day of your existence belongs to me~♬"
There were no contracts, and she didn't look like Yakuza. The entire situation was dripping with bizarre, supernatural red flags. Logic screamed at Ryoma that this was a horrific trap.
But the other voice in his head reminded him of MEI. If he went home empty-handed, he would have to face her utter, final disappointment.
In the end, Ryoma snatched the banknote off the table and practically sprinted out of the alley without looking back.
I'll just buy the groceries first. Tomorrow, I'll go out and secure a job. By the end of the month, I can pay her back. Hell, I'll pay her back double if I have to...
Ryoma marched down the street, fully intending to head straight to the supermarket.
But to get there, he had to walk past the Pachinko parlor again.
Ryoma quickened his pace, trying to hurry past the doors like he was fleeing a plague.
But just as he reached the entrance, his steps involuntarily slowed.
If I can just win one big jackpot, not only can I pay back that weird woman, but I can also buy a present for MEI.
SMACK! Ryoma slapped himself hard across the face. "Ryoma, what the hell is wrong with you?! How can you be this degenerate and despicable?! You cannot let MEI down again!"
He swore on his late wife's soul that he would never gamble again!
He was absolutely not going inside!
Ryoma turned his head away and marched forward.
Ding-ding-ding-ding... The hypnotic sound of colliding metal balls spilled out from the parlor.
Ryoma turned around and walked straight back inside.
Ten thousand yen is way more than enough for groceries. As long as I just set aside the grocery money... I can use the rest. If I win, I can buy MEI a present to make her happy.
That was the lie Ryoma told himself.
An hour later.
Ryoma stumbled out of the Pachinko parlor, his face deathly pale. His entire body shook like a leaf in a hurricane.
He dug his hands into his pockets. The banknote that was supposed to save him was gone. He was completely broke again.
Driven by sheer, animalistic desperation, he dragged himself back into the adjacent alleyway. To his immense relief, the woman calling herself the Faded Elf was still there.
It was almost as if she knew he would come back.
"Would you like to make another exchange?" she asked cheerfully.
"One day of your life for ten thousand yen. An honest trade for an honest price~♬"
Ryoma ground his teeth together.
"Give me another ten thousand."