"No... do you really think bowing and apologizing solves everything? Besides, what condition shows more sincerity than money?"
Amamiya Rin was speechless. He sighed and rubbed his slightly stinging temples.
Thinking for a moment, Amamiya Rin spoke slowly.
"Miss Hashimoto, and everyone else, I understand your difficulties. You must be able to see the damage and aftermath this accident has caused me. I don't think 30 million yen for emotional distress is excessive."
He paused slightly, his gaze sweeping over the four pretty faces before him, trying to catch a glimpse of emotion, but found nothing.
"Considering I've already woken up, and the hope for recovery is high... 25 million yen. That is my bottom line. This amount should greatly relieve your pressure while being enough to guarantee my future recovery and life."
Amamiya Rin decided to take a step back. He needed money to guarantee his livelihood, but he didn't want to make the relationship too rigid. After all, driving things to an absolute dead end is never beneficial.
However, this number did not satisfy Hashimoto Ayaka and the other three.
Hashimoto Ayaka looked troubled as she spoke: "25 million? Thank you very much for your concession. However, that number is still... for us..."
"Very difficult..."
"We need some time to raise it."
"Indeed."
Four people, one sentence each, maintaining the exact same posture.
(Still no good?)
Amamiya Rin frowned slightly.
Is their financial situation really that desperate? It doesn't make sense.
But having spoken the words, he didn't want to change them again.
25 million, this was already his bottom line.
"Sorry, Miss Hashimoto, that is the lowest amount I can accept."
Although Amamiya Rin's tone was peaceful, it carried an unquestionable firmness.
"I also need this money to handle my future life and potential follow-up treatments. I hope you can understand."
The air in the Hospital Ward stagnated for a moment.
Hashimoto Ayaka and the others straightened their bodies. The apology and pleading expressions on their faces gradually faded, replaced by a kind of near-indifferent calmness.
The expressions of the other three changed in synchronization. Their eyes, the curvature of their mouths, and even the minute twitching of their facial muscles presented a weird sense of unity, as if four faces were being controlled by a single will.
"Mr. Amamiya."
Hashimoto Ayaka leaned her body forward slightly, and the other three almost simultaneously assumed the same forward-leaning posture.
The pale light overhead stretched and twisted their shadows. Four strips of shadow overlapped and merged on the hospital bed, transforming into a patch of unsettling darkness that completely shrouded Amamiya Rin's face.
Their breathing rhythms seemed completely synchronized as well. The inhaled and exhaled breath seemed to converge into an invisible current, bringing with it an uncomfortable sense of oppression.
A cold chill shot up Amamiya Rin's spine, and his pupils involuntarily constricted.
Hashimoto Ayaka spoke first, her tone becoming hard: "We hope you can reconsider the compensation amount. This would be beneficial for both of us."
Mikami Yui spoke gently: "You have just awakened. Future recovery will still require a lot of money and time, won't it? If you agree to lower the amount now, we can immediately pay a portion in cash to give you some financial leeway."
Hatano Yua reminded him: "Getting entangled in legal procedures is also a huge drain for a patient like you. We don't want to see you obtain a judgment, only to fall into a predicament due to a long enforcement period."
"After all, the road to recovery is always full of uncertainty. If, during the enforcement period, some regrettable accidental relapses were to occur, that is also a common situation in medicine. Quiet recuperation with reduced external stimulation is the best choice for you."
Momonogi Kana's gaze swept over the monitor and IV bottle by the bedside, finally fixing on Amamiya Rin's pale face. Her pointed words revealed a scent of threat.
"So, regarding the compensation amount, we believe a more reasonable number is more favorable for the physical and mental health of both parties. What do you think?"
The four of them had formed a semi-encirclement imperceptibly. Although there was no physical contact, that highly synchronized gaze and the gradually hardening tone brought an inexplicable sense of oppression.
"I say, are you guys actually threatening me?"
Amamiya Rin was laughed into anger by these four women.
So it's true what they say? The Japanese really only care about superficial etiquette?
When 'Sumimasen' and bowing don't work, you just start threatening?
"Using honorifics while threatening people—who the hell are you putting on an act for?"
Amamiya Rin pulled a smile that wasn't a smile, politely delivering his greeting.
"Threat? No, just a well-intentioned reminder."
The corners of Hashimoto Ayaka's mouth curved up slightly, forming a cold smile.
Almost the instant her voice fell, the lights in the Hospital Ward seemed to flicker slightly.
In the blink of an eye, Amamiya Rin suddenly saw the four pairs of eyes staring at him change. The whites of their eyes were spreading at a speed visible to the naked eye, the pitch-black pupils seeming to shrink, until the entire eye socket turned into a lifeless, pure white!
Four pairs of pure white eyes, indifferently focused on him!
Cold, hollow, inhuman!
An extreme terror, like a basin of ice water poured over his head, made Amamiya Rin's scalp tingle numbness.
All the blood in his body seemed to congeal. His breathing stopped abruptly, his heart pounded wildly in his chest, and he couldn't even move his fingertips.
That inhuman gaze lasted only for a fleeting instant.
The next moment, the four women's eyes returned to normal, as if everything just now was merely an illusion caused by the lighting.
Hashimoto Ayaka raised her hand and gently tucked her short hair behind her ear, her movements natural.
(Was that really... an illusion?)
A strong sense of unease rose in Amamiya Rin's heart.
"We hope to resolve this matter peacefully, Mr. Amamiya."
Hashimoto Ayaka's voice sounded again.
"Please seriously consider our proposal one more time. 10 million yen in compensation. This is good for everyone."
"10 million? Are you trying to pay off a damn beggar?!"
Rising anger instantly suppressed that brief unease. Amamiya Rin almost squeezed this sentence out through clenched teeth, his face, pale from weakness, flushing with a trace of crimson due to rage.
"You don't agree? What a pity. It seems words are unable to make you understand our feelings."
Hashimoto Ayaka narrowed her eyes slightly. The faces of the other three underwent the same change, and a weird expression surfaced simultaneously on four pretty cheeks.
The four of them opened their mouths at the same time.
In that instant, Amamiya Rin's breathing stagnated abruptly.
Behind those four pairs of cherry-colored lips, deep within the scarlet throats, something seemed to be wriggling.
That was absolutely not a human tongue or tonsils, but an existence like tiny tentacles twisting inside the mouths of the four women, and one could faintly see a needle-point sharp cold glint!
What is that thing?!
Intense nausea and fear slammed into Amamiya Rin's heart. He wanted to resist, but he had no strength. His exhausted body was powerless to move, and he could only watch helplessly as that horrifying thing gradually extended out toward him.
___
New Story: ZZZ: Mr. Ethereal Does Not Want to See a Tragedy
✅ Read 40 chapters ahead on all series.
✅ Get exclusive content and updates.
Help us hit our targets:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 free chapter for all
🚀 140 MEMBERS = +5 bonus chapters (all stories)!
👻 P - Walnutchan