"Forward this to Mr. Kanzaki, and say we said it's reliable. Just copy it word for word. Don't ask questions."
Of course, the information provided by those housewives was false, specially crafted to make Mr. Kanzaki, their powerful investment partner, take a fall.
But Tamako, who knew nothing of it and didn't understand the numbers or the technical terms on the paper, simply passed the information under their names as instructed.
Not only that, but since Kanzaki was used to the housewives sometimes using assistants or intermediaries, and Tamako had forwarded harmless things before, he did not doubt the authenticity of the information.
He acted on the information without hesitation.
And then, he lost big.
The fallout came fast, and the next day, the housewives summoned Tamako.
Gone were their smiles, and even the previous warmth and brightness of the living room had turned cavernous and cold.
"Tamako, how could you send such misinformation?"
"We never told you to do that."
"You betrayed us."
"Our relationship ends here."
After learning what had happened and then hearing these words, Tamako felt her knees give out, and she slumped onto the floor with her hands shaking uncontrollably as she tried to speak.
"I didn't, I only sent what you gave me. Please, please, I swear—"
She tried to explain desperately, but those housewives only viewed it all as if watching a boring show and left without laying a hand on her.
However, this was worse because even Tamako knew that it was the quiet before her impending doom.
She felt like the world was closing a door on her, and she understood that she had been schemed against.
As expected, the real blow came that night when her phone buzzed at 11:43 p.m., and a policeman told her that her husband had been robbed. And as he stumbled away, he was hit by a car that immediately fled the scene.
He was alive but still in the hospital receiving treatment.
When she heard this, Tamako clutched the phone so tightly her nails cut into her palm.
She knew it wasn't random. It wasn't some horrible coincidence. This was retribution from Kanzaki, the man she had "misled," the man the housewives had schemed against.
His message was clear:
"Your husband suffered for your mistake. But this is just the trailer."
Perhaps the only good thing was that Nobita and Doraemon were away. They had won a "lucky draw" trip to Okinawa and were safe for now.
Tamako, however, had no idea that their trip was no coincidence. It had been secretly arranged by Mio, who was acting under Takashi's orders, to ensure the only obstacles were out of the way.
All Tamako knew was that her son was temporarily safe and that she had to find a way out soon.
A desperate part of her mind thought of Doraemon and his magical gadgets from the future, but she didn't believe much of it. Just like in the cartoon, she never thought of him when faced with difficulties.
Not to mention, Doraemon still hadn't made a deep impact on her due to the short time since his arrival and his current absence.
Left with no choice, Tamako frantically called one housewife after another, hoping to ask for forgiveness and seek a way out, hoping they wouldn't target her anymore and would help her.
One after another, the calls went to dead air. They had all blocked her.
All but one.
Mio.
The beautiful spider who had lured her into the web.
Mio answered on the first ring, but she didn't give Tamako a chance to utter a single word.
"Tamako. Listen carefully."
Her voice was calm. Too calm. It was not a demand, not a plea, but a command.
"There is one way out. One task. One chance. All you have to do is… You have twenty-four hours to give your response. Until then, your family will remain untouched."
And then she hung up.
That night, Tamako didn't sleep.
She sat at her kitchen table, like a ghost in her own home, watching the clock on the wall tick away the minutes of her collapsing life.
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
Every second was another hammer blow to what little resolve she had left.
By the time the first light of dawn seeped through the window, something inside her finally settled. It wasn't courage nor calm, but the cold, hard stone of inevitability.
Since there was no other way, no other choice, and every path except obedience had already been cut off, she would do the task.
And that was what brought her here, to this luxurious hotel room that looked like something prepared for a honeymoon couple, wearing this one-piece silver dress, barely covering her private parts, and making her look like some high-class escort.
This was where greed had led her.
At least, that was what she kept telling herself because it was easier than facing the truth that she had been tricked, cornered, and molded like soft clay by people who smiled as they ruined her.
Now she was waiting for a man who was not her husband… and the thought of what was about to happen alone made her stomach twist into a knot of shame and dread.
She didn't know his name or his face, but she had spent the last hour imagining him to be a monster, and she was ready to be devoured.
But when the door opened and she saw the person who entered, Tamako's eyes widened in disbelief.
In a heartbeat, she thought she was hallucinating, that her exhausted mind was projecting the wrong face onto the right danger.
She was shocked, and her lips moved before she could stop herself, exclaiming.
"Takashi?!"
It was him.
Takashi. The ten-year-old boy. Her son's best friend. The kid who had eaten snacks in her living room.
"Well, well, Auntie. Surprising, isn't it?"
He said with a lazy smirk, but before she could process the impossible, he was already in front of her. His foot shot out and struck the inside of her thigh, making her stumble and fall to the ground as he shouted.
"What are you doing standing in front of your Master? Kneel. Back straight. Legs apart. Don't waste my time."
His cute, humble smile was gone, replaced by the cold, predatory gaze of a creature that had never been a child at all.
Although he didn't use his full strength, it was still a hard kick, and the sharp sensation made her groan softly. The moment she groaned, his foot stepped on her breast without hesitation and stomped down.
"Did I ask you to speak? Or are you trying to rebel against your Master?"
Master.
Yes, that was what he was supposed to be, and she was his slave for the whole upcoming month. That was what she had agreed to.
Tamako bit her lower lip, shame making her face turn red, but she couldn't utter a single word.
Receiving no answer, Takashi's eyes grew even more displeased, and he stomped his foot harder.
"Answer."
She took a deep breath, her voice trembling, and said, "No...no."
Smack!
Before Tamako could react, a slap landed on her face.
"No manners. Call me Master."
Tamako was an only child, and since she was young, although she couldn't be said to have been pampered, she rarely even received a harsh scolding, even after marriage, let alone a slap.
So at that moment, when Takashi's slap showed no mercy, it hurt her more than anything, but for some reason, as soon as his hand touched her face, a tingling sensation spread through her body, especially between her legs, and her face flushed.
Instead of crying, getting angry, or feeling any other such negative emotion, she was feeling a bit… excited?
And immediately, as if he saw the change in her, Takashi smirked and slapped her again.
"Feeling good? Oh, so it turned out you are a masochist."
Of course, it was all a lie. The pleasure, the heat, and the excitement coiling in her gut were all due to Takashi's skill [Eros Touch].
This was the first time he was trying this skill, and he had only used just a fraction of its power, yet it was already this powerful, which surprised him a little, but more than anything, it made him excited, and he couldn't help but laugh devilishly in his heart.
'Hehehe, now this will be fun.'