Translator: imperfectluck Editor: Kurisu

Chiaki was currently looking at her cell phone.

Her cell phone screen was actually blank as she wasn’t doing anything with her cell phone. She was simply staring at her cell phone’s blank screen.

“What’s the matter?” Mika noticed this and wondered what was going on.

“Nothing… I was just thinking about if I should call my dad to tell him about what I’m going to do.” Chiaki flashed a smile.

Mika fell silent in understanding.

Chiaki using herself as bait to lure out a potentially vicious god was something highly dangerous. Even with Seiji and the entire knight order present, there was no guarantee of Chiaki’s safety.

In such a circumstance, should Chiaki call her only relative and tell him about it… that was indeed a dilemma that she had to face.

“I can already imagine what he’ll say if he hears about it, so I don’t want to tell him,” Chiaki continued in a soft voice. “But, it also feels illogical if I don’t tell him.”

Illogical… Chiaki had referred to logic rather than emotion.

Mika felt bad for her friend, but she didn’t allow herself to show it on her face. “I think that you should contact him,” Mika suggested.

Chiaki fell silent for a moment before speaking up again. “If it was you, what would you say in such a phone call?” The tomboy started smiling up again with some slightly evil intentions as she asked her best friend this question.

“This…” Mika paused momentarily because she hadn’t expected Chiaki to ask such a question. “I would tell him about the situation…”

“And then? Only tell him about the situation?”

Mika was unable to continue.

Although she knew what she would say, that was her idea, not Chiaki’s.

Mika had her mother, while her father was deceased. And, she had an excellent relationship with her mother, unlike Chiaki and her father.

That was why Mika couldn’t say anything else… she felt that she shouldn’t.

Chiaki smiled slightly as she saw her best friend falling silent.

Such a little joke would only be effective against Mika. Seiji would definitely react with a retort.

Mika had many weaknesses that were easy to take advantage of. Although Seiji had weaknesses as well, Chiaki felt that his weaknesses were much fewer, or at least to a lesser extent. And whenever he got serious, it felt as if he had no weaknesses whatsoever, which made him seem incredibly reliable.

Seiji and Natsuya made a perfect pairing. He was also an excellent pairing with Mika.

As for Seiji and her… although they also made a nice pair, even if she wasn’t here, he would…

Chiaki felt that Seiji would surely scold her if he knew what she was thinking right now.

It was quite easy for Chiaki to imagine her boyfriend being angry with her.

However, she didn’t intend to change her way of thinking, because she considered it a fact.

She was indeed quite important, incredibly important to everyone. But, even without her around, everyone else would be able to live their lives.

That was good.

That was fine.

That way… even if the worst happened to her, she wouldn’t need to worry about anything.

“Mika… thank you.”

“Eh?”

The twintailed girl was surprised at her friend’s unexpected thanks.

Mika then saw Chiaki stand up and walk away while holding her cell phone.

Chiaki went outside and took a deep breath while looking up at the night sky.

She then used her cell phone to dial her father’s phone number.

Shingo picked up after a mere two seconds.

“Good evening, Dad.”

“What is it?” Shingo still spoke in the same light tone as always.

“Nothing much… would you believe it if I said that?”

Shingo remained silent.

Chiaki chuckled lightly.

“It’s really nothing much… to you, that is. Everything about me didn’t mean anything to you… I used to believe this in the past. Although things are different now, yet… our relationship is still the same. Both of us have cold blood in us… towards others and towards ourselves… I don’t know how to describe it, but I think you’ll understand. We’re… actually quite similar as father and daughter… We’re both… incompetent and unseemly… as father and daughter.”

Tears began to pour out of Chiaki’s eyes as she said this.

She didn’t know why she was crying.

Maybe it was for the past, or for the future, or for the present.

“Dad… I’m sorry… and… thank you. You haven’t been a good parent… but you’ve actually done really well… it’s fine to just stay like this… it’s fine to stay as cold as you are…

“If… a miracle occurs… then everything will become much better.

“And if… something not so good happens… then please don’t blame Seigo. He’s definitely tried his hardest.

“I’m going to where mom is… Once I see her, I’ll tell her that you’re the only person who still remembers her… that you were a good husband.

“And if… you slowly forget about us in the future, you don’t need to pay it any mind… Just properly live your life… that would be good.”

Chiaki did her best to not have her voice be affected by her crying. She tried as much as she could to speak these words calmly and steadily.

Why was she tearing up? Why was she crying? She truly didn’t know.

This was too unseemly.

It sounded like she was leaving a dying message… even though that clearly wasn’t the case.

She just wanted to tell him.

She should have calmly and lightly said those words to her father that she hardly ever saw and barely had any feelings for…

“I’m going out, and I might not come back.”

That was all there was to it.

That was it.

This was all there was to their father-daughter relationship.

Chiaki had once hated such a relationship, but now she actually felt it was fortunate.

But… why…

“Where are you right now?”

Her father’s voice on the other end of the phone no longer sounded light and distant.

Shingo now sounded anxious and worried.

“Tell me, Chiaki. Where are you right now? Are you at the Uehara apartments? Hurry and answer me!”

Chiaki reflexively answered in the affirmative upon hearing such a question.

“Stay right where you are. I’ll be over there immediately.”

Shingo hung up right after saying that.

Chiaki was stunned for quite a while before she regained her senses.

“Dad…”

Shingo Wakaba abandoned the important work he was currently dealing with and drove as fast as he possibly could to the Uehara apartments.

Shingo was expressionless as he drove. However, his eyeglasses reflected a fierce glint as he took the shortest path possible to the Uehara apartments. His car’s speed was right on the borderline of illegal or even being close to causing a car accident!

Shingo knew quite clearly just where the Uehara apartments were and how to get there.

Chiaki didn’t know that ever since she started living at the Uehara apartments instead of the luxury apartment her father had provided for her, Shingo had driven over several times to the Uehara apartments. It was just that he never went in to see her.

It was enough for him to know that she was doing well there.

He didn’t want to see his daughter. But, this didn’t mean that he didn’t care about her.

He knew that he was a poor father to Chiaki… but no matter how poor, he was still her father!

He rushed over and parked close to the Uehara apartments. He got off the car and walked over swiftly without even locking the car door.

He saw Chiaki immediately.

Shingo walked over swiftly towards her, with the turbulent emotions within him reaching a boiling point. He raised his right hand…

*Smack!*

A loud and clear slap on Chiaki’s face resounded in the air.

“What foolish things were you saying! Idiot!!”

Anger… and also a mix of other emotions that even Shingo couldn’t describe were all contained in his sentence.

The famous artist’s current expression was angry, but his expression also seemed sad, regretful, and helpless…

“Dad…” Chiaki held her cheek as she looked at him.

When was the last time her dad had hit her?

She couldn’t remember at all.

This seemed like it was the first time.

This was the first ever time that he had ever hit her or scolded her like this.

Shingo took a deep glance at his daughter.

Then, before his sense of reason could react, his body started moving on its own. He slowly reached out with his hands and hugged Chiaki.

“Chiaki… I’m sorry…”