Chapter 15: An Old Friend
It was evening at koto's apartment's rang bell when the door opened to reveal Tori Nakato, his childhood friend. Koto's eyes widened instantly—he was smitten at first sight. Tako, grinning, introduced her to Makio tori underhanded that "taki loves makio instead of her": "This is my wife." Tori forced a polite smile, hiding the heartbreak she felt.
Tako insisted on telling Tori about everything—the stones, the curse, the pyramid, and the cursed forest. Koto and Makio disagreed at first, but Tako was firm. "She's the one I trust most." Tori listened carefully and, because of her old crush on him, believed every word.
Her cold personality quickly became apparent to everyone except Tako. Koto, attempting a joke, called her "Miss Rude!" She didn't hesitate and smacked him across the face. Tako and Makio burst out laughing. "You totally deserved that, Koto," Tako said.
Suddenly, the cursed black stone's timer appeared, showing only thirty minutes remaining. The tension in the room spiked. Tako whispered to Makio, "Oh hell no… I'm tired of this all." Tori overheard him, her expression unreadable.
Without warning, Tori declared, "I'll come with you." Tako was shocked. "No! It'll destroy you." She stood firm. "Wherever you go, I'll go. We're friends." Inside, she thought, If there's danger, I'll protect him. Before Tako could stop her, she touched the black stone. "OH HELL NO! Why did you touch that thing?!" Tako yelled. Tori smirked. "Too late now." The timer ran down, and in a flash, they were teleported.
Tako, Makio, and Tori landed in the cursed forest. Demons and spirits rushed at them immediately. Makio struggled, remembering her first terrifying experience here. Tori, however, moved with calm precision, entirely composed. Tako noticed. "She's not even struggling…" Makio replied, "Of course not. She's a professional ninja."
Tori drew her twin blades, cutting through spirits with incredible speed and precision. She even pulled out a pistol, blasting enemies mid-leap. She smirked, clearly enjoying the fight. Tako was amazed. "…She's enjoying this." Makio said seriously, "…No. This is her battlefield."
After the forest battle on Wednesday, Tori turned to Tako and asked about his life: why he became a researcher, how the job had ruined his life, and why he had abandoned his dream of becoming a teacher despite being the smartest in his class. Tako explained:
"I became a teacher after high school, but my mother got thyroid cancer. To cure her, I needed money. The teaching job offered only ¥240,000, which wasn't enough, so I quit. I searched for another job and was offered two options: pilot or researcher. I tried the pilot test but failed—not because I wasn't intelligent, but because my skills weren't enough. I became a researcher instead. In about 4.5 years, I managed to cure my mother. For all the time I've spent as a researcher, I won't change my job anymore."
He continued, "The researcher job offered ¥1.6 million. My mother had anaplastic thyroid cancer, which only one in 500–1,000 people survive for about five years. She was incredibly strong and dedicated, and because of her perseverance and my hard work, she lived for 4.5 years."
Tako's eyes grew distant as he recalled the story of his father. "My father died when my mother was pregnant with me. He was so happy and excited to meet her that he was driving at full speed. In a turn, he saw a truck and tried desperately to stop the car, but it was too fast. Unfortunately, he died on the spot, before I was born."
Tori listened quietly, understanding the weight of Tako's past and the strength it gave him.