Confinement King

「I don't like it...」

I muttered to myself as I walked out of the main gate in the afternoon after club activities, heading in the opposite direction from home.

Last night, while I was lying on my bed, mulling over various thoughts in my head, that devil girl suddenly appeared.

I had no privacy, and the way she was talking to me, as if she could see through me, really touched my nerve.

I know exactly what is going on in the Confinement King's death game from my aunt.

However, I'm sure that some information is missing.

I've been trying to think of ways to fill in the gaps, but they were easily filled in by the girl who showed up.

She acted as if she knew everything that was going to happen.

When she comes all the way out here like this, I feel as if I'm being rolled around in her hands. It's annoying. Really annoying.

This man Fumio Kijima is small in scale.

He is clearly an ordinary man.

Despite all the power he has, what he does is very small. It is a waste of time.

That's why that devil girl is trying to use me to get him to step out into something beyond his size.

（I'll let her use me for now, but... you'll see）

I arrived at the house I wanted and rang the doorbell.

A man in a suit in his thirties or so came out, the same man who had come out when I visited with Fumio Kijima.

「You must be Shiratori-sama. The owner is waiting for you」

He seemed puzzled by my jersey-clad appearance because I was on my way home from club activities, but still pushed open the iron fence of the gate and led me into the premises.

I had made an appointment in advance.

The other party was a giant of the financial world, Seigo Fujiwara.

Normally, he would not be a person to whom a student without any backing could talk, but fortunately he seemed to have a high regard for me and the appointment was easily made.

I was ushered into a large Japanese-style room with a view of a Japanese garden, just like the other day. As I sat upright and closed my eyes, I heard the sound of a Shishi Odosho with the sound of cicadas in the background.

When I opened my eyes, I saw Seigo Fujiwara-shi, dressed in kimono, sitting across the table from me.

He skipped the greeting and suddenly said.

「Have you decided to come work for me?」

It seems that the elegance and etiquette of the upper class are of no great value to this man. Rather, it is the urgency of a businessman.

The people under such a man must be unbearable. They are constantly being rushed, and results are demanded of them.

But if I think it is reasonable, I can make a decision quickly.

He asks me a question, to which I reply with a faint smile.

「No」

「Then what is it that you want?」

「Would you be willing to invest in me?」

When I said this, he looked a little disappointed. It's true that it's not the most interesting thing for a youth to say to a businessman. But it is a necessary process.

「You know about the First Beauty Agency case, don't you?」

「Yeah, that's pretty trivial. Both the management and the people probably taking revenge for it now」

↓ Continue to Read ↓

「I'd like you to take the plaything away from those scumbags. I want you to buy up all the stock in First Beauty Agency and take it over. It's not a company with a very high stock price to begin with. On top of that, the stock is in the middle of a huge crash. Seigo-sama would probably have enough money in his pocket」

「Buying a ship that's sinking is a very interesting thing to say」

Although he said it was interesting, I could see a hint of disappointment in his face. This is also a common story.

He buys shares in a company that is about to go under and sends his best people to rebuild it. If he is a wealthy man, it may not seem like a very lucrative business.

「Even if I invest, what is the benefit to me?」

「There are only advantages. First of all, I'll double your investment in three years and pay you back」

「What evidence do you have? Do you have a business plan, a restructuring plan?」

「No, not in my mind. Instead, you can sell your debt to me」

Seigo-shi immediately turned sullen. I suppose that's true. The ravings of an ignorant student. I'd think so too if I were in the opposite position.

「Recklessness is the special prerogative of the young, but too much talk will get you killed」

「Well, let's show some tangible benefits」

「What is it?」

「"Aoi-Umidori-Return-to-the-Entertainment-Industry"」

Instantly, one of his eyebrows rose sharply.

「We'll start a new entertainment agency based on the First Beauty Agency, and we'll be producing her in a big way」

「Even if you don't do anything about it, I can still market Aoi-san as much as I want!」

His tone became harsher.

Well, it seems that "Aoi Umidori" is his sanctuary. It's annoying, but it's just as that devil's information says.

The last piece of the puzzle that was missing in order to move Seigo Fujiwara-shi. That is the information about the existence of Aoi Umidori.

「Then, why don't you do it?」

「I'm not going to force her! She has said of her own volition that she will never perform again, and I, her fans, will respect that!」

He glared at me, making no attempt to hide his displeasure. He gave me a good shake.

「So, here's the deal. If she voluntarily decides to return to the entertainment world, you promise to back her up?」

「Yes, of course! I'll take care of all the paperwork and everything!」

「Then, can you call her here? She's in this house, isn't she? Aoi Umidori-san」

Instantly his cheeks twitched.

「Where did you hear that?」

「Yui Kayama is my junior as well」

No, I heard it from that devil girl. She told me something I didn't know. It was definitely necessary information. That's why it pisses me off.

↓ Continue to Read ↓

Seigo-shi ordered the man in the suit, and a little more than ten minutes later, a woman in a maid's uniform came into the room.

The woman seemed to be in a quiet mood. She was a beauty of indefinite age.

Immediately, Seigo-shi turned his face away as if he could not look at her directly.

「Oh, Aoi-san, I'm sorry to bother you」

「No problem~」

（Puberty, huh?）

I couldn't help but think in my heart. The old man's blushing cheeks were a bit of a turn off.

Seeing me, she giggled softly.

「Oh...hello~. You wear the same jersey as Yui-san.... You two must be good friends~. I'm sorry, Yui-san, she went to school with Mai-sama」

If everyone got along with each other as long as we wore the school jersey, there would be peace in the world.

When I googled her name, I found that she was described as "natural" or "mysterious", but this was quite something.

「No... I'm not here for Yui-san today, but for Aoi Umidori-san. I'll be frank with you. Could you please return to the entertainment industry?」

She looked a little surprised, and looked back and forth between Seigo-shi and me. Then, with a troubled look on her face, she said.

「I'm sorry... but I can't do that~」

「...I see」

When I turn to Seigo-shi, he has a triumphant look on his face.

Nice face. It's fun to paint such a face with astonishment.

I stand up and walk over to her.

My legs were numb from sitting on the floor for so long that I felt like stumbling a little, but that would not look good here.

I clenched my fists lightly to overcome the numbness in my legs, and whispered into her ear the words of magic.

It was exactly what she wanted.

She looks startled for a moment, and then stares at me.

Then, after a pause for breath, she nodded her head as if she had made up her mind.

「I understand~. I'm coming back~」

「What!?」

Seigo-shi's eyes widened and he froze at the sudden change in her.

He looked as if he was stunned.

When he came back to himself, he looked up at Aoi-san and shouted.

「Oh, Aoi-san, there's no need to push yourself...」

「No, please, let me come back」

She smiled shyly, and Seigo-shi looked on in amazement.

Once again, I sat back down in front of him and opened my mouth.

「You will keep your promise, won't you?」

「I...will. Is it okay to use your name as the representative director?」

「No, I'm asking for a responsible adult. First, complete the acquisition, then call an emergency general meeting in a day or two and remove the President and the entire management team. Well, after all that has happened. I don't see how anyone can argue with your dismissal」

• The magic words will be revealed later.