Murder At The Rainy Mansion ~The Never Ending 100 Tales~

Chapter 67: The truth about the Rainy Mansion

“Hey, why don’t you leave this place already? Aren’t you bored staying here?”

That was what Chizuru always said to Satoshi. She herself knew very well that their relationship would end once he leaves that place.

Satoshi was just a personality floating in the toilet. Such unreliable existence was no match for Kengo, a living person. Once Satoshi leaves the toilet, he would definitely be absorbed back by Kengo and cease to exist.

“Go away! Or better yet, please just disappear from this place!”

Satoshi was pretending not to notice the anguish in her words. There was no way that she had feelings for him. Such audacious thought should be put away. Being together with her was something so inconceivable, more ridiculous than going on an adventure in Egypt.

But after seeing Akito and Toru who never stop loving Chizuru even after getting married and having kids, Satoshi started to feel annoyed with himself. What annoyed him more was Chizuru giving birth to a fatherless child.

Then all of a sudden, an opportunity had come – though Satoshi was unsure if it could really be called an opportunity.

After repeatedly witnessing Toru and Chizuru’s affair, Akito finally lost his patience and strangled her inside the storeroom. But eventually, Akito couldn’t bring himself to end her life.

After Akito left, Kengo happened to walk past the hallway. Satoshi realized that it was his only chance to use the fallible Kengo’s hands to kill Chizuru.

Even if he had become a separate personality without his original memories, both of them were basically the same person. Their hearts had always been connected to each other.

Just one more push, and she would be gone. Both Satoshi and Kengo thought so. Once she was gone, no one could ever win her heart anymore. And she wouldn’t bore another man’s child ever again.

Chizuru was barely breathing. Kengo used his hands to cover her mouth and nose while Chizuru stared straight at him. She reached out her shaky hand and stop right before it touched Kengo’s cheek.

Although Kengo’s hand was covering Cizuru’s mouth, he could see from her eyes that she was smiling. Tears were flowing down Kengo’s wrinkled cheek as he wondered why he was trying to kill this young woman.

Satoshi couldn’t stop his tears from falling but he continued to put strength into Kengo’s hand. He could sense someone was standing outside the storeroom but he didn’t have time to care about it.

“Hey, why don’t you leave this place already? Aren’t you bored staying here?”

He knew that he wouldn’t be able to listen to her gentle voice calling his name anymore if he continued to suffocate her. …He had a dream once. He was traveling on a desert far away. In that dream, his younger self and Chizuru was riding a camel.

* * *

Ayano was in the precipitated memories in the Rainy Mansion.

Natsu rarely interacted with her but she always treated all the kids inside the mansion fairly. There was one time when Ayano climbed up the veranda after playing and was scolded by Natsu because her hair was messy.

“Come here.”

Ayano followed Natsu into her room and saw her taking out a hand mirror from the drawer chest. Natsu then told Ayano to hold the mirror. It was a beautifully crafted red-colored round-shaped hand mirror.

Ayano was a bit surprised that Natsu had something like this. Natsu normally wore elegant but plain colored kimono, so Ayano didn’t expect that Natsu would have bright colored ornaments.

Ayano sat in an upright position while holding the mirror. Natsu sat behind her and started to comb her hair.

“Your hair is so pretty. Your mother also had beautiful hair and pretty face.”

Natsu continued to comb her hair without talking a word for a while.

“It’s done. A girl should always take good care of their appearance.”

After she finished tying up Ayano’s hair, Natsu put her bony fingers on Ayano’s shoulder. Inside the mirror, Ayano saw Natsu’s face reflected beside hers. Natsu was looking at Ayano with sharp eyes through the mirror.

“You are really— You have such a pretty face.”

When Natsu passed away, all family members received remembrance token, an article that belong to the deceased when she was alive. And somehow, that hand mirror was given to Ayano.

Actually, Ayano could guess why the mirror was given to her. Natsu had always know about everything. Natsu must have known who Ayano’s father was. That was why Natsu cursed her – it was actually a warning.

Ayano must not fall in love with Takato.

Ayano must not fall in love with her half-brother, Takato.

Natsu had been watching over Ayano, a child born from the woman she hated and the grandson she loved, from inside the mirror.

* * *

Natsu let out a sigh before saying, “In the end, it seems the great grandchildren that I’m most worried about was you.”

Takato’s face tuned pale when he heard the sentence.

“Well then. It is time for me to leave. I believe you all will protect this storeroom,” Natsu said.

“… Natsu-san.” Natsu heard a soft voice calling out her name. Satoshi showed himself at the corner of the hallway. “Natsu-san.”

Satoshi had finally left the toilet. He picked up a comb that was on the ground nearby Natsu’s feet and held it out to her. “Is this thing unnecessary to you? I know I’m insensitive and this was my first and last gift to you.”

Natsu took the comb and stared at it fixedly. The next moment, Ayano realized she was standing at the veranda under the bright summer sunlight. Next to her, Natsu was sitting while watching the garden.

“I was born in the summer. That is why my name is Natsu. I once complained to my parents for giving me a name perfunctorily but they told me that they gave me that name because the summer sky seen from here was so pretty on the day I was born.

Even though I’m like this, my parents loved me. After my first marriage failed, my father arranged for me to marry Kengo. It was not for my family business. It was because he knew I like Kengo. Well, for Kengo, it must have been a nuisance though.”

Natsu smiled gently unlike her usual self. It gave a different vibe from the constantly serious Natsu who lived as the heir of the Rainy Mansion.

Ayano had a feeling that this must be Natsu’s true self. “Everyone likes you, Natsu-sama. They respect you.”

Well, it was more like respect out of fear actually.

“Even if the family admire me, the heart of my most important person was never mine.” Natsu held a red colored hand mirror on her knees. “Everyone thought this mirror was a worthless gift from others because it didn’t fit my style. They thought I kept it because I didn’t want to waste. But they were wrong. I bought this mirror myself.

It was my only luxury in my whole life. No— Perhaps the true luxury I had was forcing Kengo to marry me.” Natsu looked at her face shown in the mirror and sneered at herself. “If only I was a bit prettier.”

“Natsu-sama. You are beautiful.” A voice suddenly came from behind them.