story_gyuki_1_1

*pant*... *pant*... Matoimaru, tell me... we're almost there...

Yeah, real soon!

Pick up the pace! We've gotta stop him before he gives that scammer any more money!

Dammit, I'm not gonna let him do this...

*pant*... I've never heard you... talk about your family before...

What's your dad like...? Some kinda... super-burly Oni hulk?

Cause if he is... I dunno if I'll be any help talking him down...

Relax, Dad's not an Oni, just your average old Vulpo.

He adopted me when I was real young—didn't care I had Oni horns growing in. He raised me all the way.

I'm not gonna let him get dragged into any of the messes I've made since leaving home, so I've never really brought him up.

But since he’s the one who caused this mess, there’s nothing I can do.

Doesn't matter how, we've gotta get it through his skull he's being duped!

Scams like this have been on the rise in Higashi lately... I saw the news in Mitsukue reporting on it...

It's scary to think... Even your relative got hit...

Good thing you guys investigate fast. I woulda been way too late on my own.

We're here! This is the village!

Matoimaru maintains her breakneck sprint, her operator companion huffing for air as he straggles behind. The Higashinese village is still and quiet, a vista of peace in the rays of early summer.

A villager in thin clothes emerges onto the path to hail the two, only to halt upon seeing Matoimaru, whereupon he begins to wave enthusiastically.

Yo! If it isn't Matoimaru-chan! Finally made time to come back and visit us?

Hold on, what's the rush? Somewhere to be?

No time to chat! I gotta get home fast!

Matoimaru completely forgoes the usual pleasantries with the old man, merely jabbing in the direction of her house before dashing away from him.

The man stumbles back a step out of surprise, and shakes his head as he watches the Oni girl go.

Gone for so many years, and now she's suddenly racing for home? Is Eikichi in trouble?

...Surely not. Eikichi's not the trouble-finding sort.

Excuse me, sir, I'm sorry about this... Once I have the chance, I'll explain what happened...

Hold up, Matoimaru!

Watching the two figures speed off, the villager scratched his head in confusion.

And honestly, 'fake'? How can this be fake?

All I had to pay was a small processing fee, and they sent me the first payout just the day before. I've hit the jackpot, true and honest.

It's a fine opportunity, and I've no reason to pass it up—

What? You already gave them the money?

Matoimaru! I told you to stay out of this—why did you come back anyway?

You come home without a word, and look, you just barrel in! Look at the door! Look at the flower vase you knocked over! See?

Honestly, girl. Never mind the damage—what baffles me is I finally come into some wealth and all you want is to pull me away from it.

What do you want me to tell you, huh?!

Says you, Dad! I explained it to you and you still ignored me!

Lotteries like these are scams. I saw the exact same grift when I went to Kazimierz.

I've been around more than you now. It's your turn to listen to me. I'm serious. This is gonna screw you.

In fact, I'm so serious, I brought a coworker you can trust with me, he's... he should be here real soon.

We've looked into the scammer! We even know where he is, and what he's up to! That has to convince you, right?!

Yes, yes, Matoimaru, you've been places.

But you've been out there so long, you missed how Higashi changed. You don’t know what it’s like for us.

And don't tell me about Kazimierz. I know about Kazimierz, but this isn't Kazimierz. Higashi is in its boom era now, understand.

And you should learn to stop crying scam at every little thing. Remember Katsushi next door? I let you play at his place all the time when you were young.

He hit the jackpot too. He doesn't even live here anymore. I bet he's flying free in Mitsukue right about now.

Dad, be real for a sec!

Doesn't matter where in the land you are, you only get as much back as the effort you put in. I learned that in my very first year away from home.

It's because things are so much cushier now, because so many people want a quick and easy fortune, that all these scammers crawled outta the woodwork!

You can't give into greed like that! It just makes you into another mark!

Enough, enough! How can it be fake when I already got a payout? If this is how it's going to be, just get back to your job.

Look, once I get all the money, maybe you won't have to break your back out there anymore. We can move to the city and have ourselves an easy life.

Okay? Stop letting your anger speak for you.

Hold on... *pant*...

Sorry... Matoimaru... didn't think you lived this deep in the mountains...

Nice to... meet you, sir... I'm a colleague of Matoimaru's here...

Finally! Quick, help me talk to him! I suck at explaining all the details!

Listen to him, okay, Dad? We did the investigation. We know the truth. You'll understand once you hear it!

No, I know everything I need to. You're wasting your time, no?

(Takes a deep breath)

On the contrary, sir. Details in your letter raised Matoimaru's suspicions, and we amassed copious evidence while aiding her investigation to back our findings.

Scams disguised as notices of lottery wins have been reported all over Higashi. Did you receive a message telling you to pay a handling fee before you could receive your reward?

Just a little processing fee, yes. But look, I already got some money out from it, right?

How can this be a racket if they're paying me?

That's one of the methods these fraudsters use. They pay their victims part of the money, before asking you to pay even larger handling fees, bit by bit.

We've already tracked down where your messages are coming from, based on how previous incidents of this kind played out. The source is an insurance firm in Mitsukue.

If you could take a look here, these messages are all from the operating committee for a television program called 'Fortune 24/7', right?

But the reality is, someone from that firm is posing as this committee in order to send out these fabricated messages.

We advise you that you cannot trust any future communications that come from them, and you cannot continue to meet their demands.

Thank you!

See, here's an in-depth report from the Mitsukue papers. These are all the fake notices other people got, saying they'd won. They're basically the same as yours, aren't they?

You HAVE to believe us now!

Matoimaru pulls paper after paper from the operator's binder, and lays them all out on the tatami for her foster father to see.

She watches earnestly to see how he'll react, only for him to shake his head.

Settle down, Matoimaru.

You know we've never been wealthy. This is a chance for us to live the good life...

And none of the stuff you're showing me can prove the jackpot I hit isn't real.

Just go, the both of you. Don't try and test me with this rubbish.

Dad, even I learned not to get duped like I used to! How can you fall for this kind of scam?!

You—

Abruptly, Eikichi rises, and pushes Matoimaru out the door with both hands.

Enough! I have a life to live! Don't you bother me anymore!

Sir, please calm down! Sir!

But the operator's exhortations make Eikichi no less eager to get Matoimaru out.

She doesn't put up a fight. Removed from the room, she and her father stare each other down for a few fractious seconds, before she silently turns and leaves.

The operator can only hurry to gather up the scattered papers from the floor, before apologizing as he slips out of the room.

*Sigh*!

On seeing how the two have knocked over the entryway ornaments, Eikichi stamps a foot and sighs.

Matoimaru!

Don't give up. It's not over just because we didn't convince him. After all, it's true we don't have decisive evidence.

We're limited in how much we can investigate. Maybe we can wait for the authorities to step in after all.

The operator flips through his binder, poring over all the evidence within, failing to notice when Matoimaru suddenly lifts her head.

No. It's not catching the scammer that matters most. It's getting Dad to understand this whole thing's a racket.

Right, I've got it, the most decisive evidence there is...

If the scammer himself admits it, then there's no way Dad can keep claiming his win is real!

What are you implying?

We're gonna go to Mitsukue right now, and we're gonna get that sucker.

I'll make him confess, straight from the burdenbeast's mouth!

What? Matoimaru, we don't have the authority to just seize people like that. Without a warrant from the authorities, we—

Don't worry, I've got a plan. It starts now!

C'mon, stick with me!

Matoimaru!

We can take the car this time! Matoimaru!

Mitsukue, in the afternoon...

A speeding car brakes to a lurching stop outside an insurance firm, and the operator almost flies out of the passenger seat from the inertia.

We're finally here. You're sure that asshole works here?

Guh... Are you sure you're licensed to drive?

Whatever, I guess that bridge is crossed. Yes, as long as our results are sound, he's definitely in there.

But we still don't have confirmation of who he is exactly, and I don't think it's a good idea to just barge into their office like this.

I told you, I've got a plan.

Listen to me. You stay in the car, and keep in contact. I'll head in solo to handle things. We can't go letting 'em catch sight of Rhodes Island's uniform.

They'll think I'm just some Oni thug from the Mitsukue, here to see someone. Nobody'll even try to stop me.

People who only have the spine for dirty methods like this are all cowards. He'll fold just from the fright. I'll nab him, just you watch.

Are you sure about this? What if he clams up and won't confess?

Relax. When in Higashi, do as the Higashinese do. He'd probably run if the police came to make an arrest, but if he hears the Mafioso came knocking, he'll be REAL desperate to play nice.

Plus, we've got proof. It didn't win over Dad, but it'll definitely convince that little scammer there's eyes on him.

Sit tight, and I'll drag him out in a sec!

With that, Matoimaru swiftly hops out of the car, and strides for the office entrance.

How do I even write the mission report...?

It's afternoon in a small Higashinese firm, and its suited-up office workers are all buried in their desk work.

Suddenly, the sound of heavy stomping makes everyone lift their heads and look to the entrance.

There stands a robust Oni wielding a naginata, and on her left is the front desk receptionist in a stiff bow, looking somewhat hapless.

Listen close, I'm only gonna say it once! I'm here for someone!

The Oni's sudden bark, her voice loud and clear, makes everyone sit up straight in their seats.

One of you has been posing as the 'Fortune 24/7' Operation Committee, sending out a LOT of scam jackpot wins telling folks they'll get their prize as soon as they fork over a handler's fee.

Smells like someone's awful keen on getting rich. It's a nasty way to do it, I won't lie.

Well. I dunno who else you swindled, and right now, I don't care. But how dare you come after us!

We tracked you down from the notice you sent. You got nowhere to run.

Now step up and fess up! And even if you don't, you can't escape us forever. If we sniff you out, we'll sure you know what kinda treatment you get for not following our rules!

The Oni's grip on her naginata tightens. Each time one of her sentences ends, the office is silent enough to hear a pin drop. The desk workers are too terrified to even look away.

Following a brief hush, a single hand in the corner of the workplace slowly raises, and quivers as it weaves through the maze of desks and mountains of papers, eventually arriving before the Oni.

I beg you, please spare me...

I'll do anything you ask... I don't want to die...

The Oni looks over the fearful, stooped man. Her expression remains stonily fixed. She pulls out a sheet of paper from her bag, and unfolds it in front of the employee.

You the one sending these notices?

The employee timidly lifts his gaze, once-overs the words on the page, and nods promptly.

The naginata-wielding Oni says nothing more, dragging him backwards out of the office by his collar.

The silence in the building hangs for a while longer. Then it breaks, and the entire street can hear the sheer commotion coming from within.

*sigh*... Finally got it all arranged again. I put her own ikebana display here—can't be wrecking that.

But it's strange. They should've sent me my winnings by now, but I haven't heard a single thing from them since.

No, stop it. Katsushi got his payout, didn't he? Dammit, why did he have to vanish? If I could just ask him...

Eikichi paces the room, deep in contemplation, when he hears a familiar voice once more outside his door.

We're here, you little bastard! You're gonna apologize to my dad, personally! Are we clear?!

Dad, I caught the scammer for you!

You can hear it straight from his mouth just how he swindled the cash.

Get talking!

Wh-What's the meaning of this?

Eikichi looks down, and only then sees the suited man Matoimaru's dragged in with her. His face is deathly pale, and utterly fixed with fright.

Matoimaru, let him go! Look, you've scared the daylights out of him!

No, no, sir, please, I really did do it.

And I shouldn't have, not in a million years, not when it meant swindling you! I take all the blame!

I beg you, tell your daughter not to kill me! I was short on money and desperate—so desperate I thought up this scam of all things...

Hmm? How does that add up?

Isn't that Fortune 24/7 program supposed to be famous in Mitsukue?

No, sir, it was a guise for me to fool people. Trick them with talk of jackpots, and then once people in Mitsukue got wise to it, I moved to looking outside the city...

This coward kept his demands low at first, scared he'd be found out.

But once he discovered people outside Mitsukue don't have a clue about programs like this, he found way easier marks, so he began sending fake notices all over.

The—um, everyone around me had the cash to live it up, and I just wanted that too...

If I had more money, I wouldn't need to work in that cramped little office, and I wouldn't need to live cooped up in my stuffy little room...

So where's the money? Sounds like you're not exactly living it up yet.

Don't laugh at me, I...

Every time I got the money, I'd blow it all on cards and pachinko, and lose it all. I couldn't think of any other ways to get rich...

We work in insurance, so it's easy to get the customers' contact details. All we need is a name, and it's not hard to gain their trust.

Dad, if all that evidence before wasn't enough, you just heard the scammer confess it himself. No room for doubt now, right?

This was always a racket from the very beginning. You can't trust get-rich-quick crap like this.

But... but if it was fake, then what about the money Katsushi got?

Surely you're not telling me you forced an innocent man to confess to guilt?

Matoimaru, this is a line you just can't cross...

She did no such thing, sir, you have to believe me! You have to, or it's my head!

A younger me might've pulled some stupid stunt, Dad.

But my colleagues helped me uncover the evidence, and only then did I have the guts to haul this scammer out.

Besides—

Before Matoimaru can finish, a woman's shrill voice filters in from outside.

Get out here, you swindler! Matoimaru, bring him to me this instant!

Is... is that Akiyo?

Eikichi opens the door, only to be taken aback by a sizeable congregation of fellow villagers at his doorstep, his neighbor Katsushi's wife Akiyo at their fore.

Friends, what's going on here?

I haven't seen you in a long time, Akiyo. What brings you back? Where's Katsushi? Why isn't he with you?

Eikichi-nii, I owe a very deep debt of thanks to your Matoimaru.

If it weren't for her, I'd have gone the rest of my life not knowing where this waste of breath went.

Just now, Shigezou-ojisan caught sight of her lugging this cur back, her coworker explained the whole situation to him, and he came running over to our place.

Until then, I had no idea the man who scammed my Katsushi was back again and cheating you too.

Thanks to Matoimaru, we've finally caught the scoundrel!

What? Katsushi was scammed, you say? Then why did he never tell me? Why did you never tell me?

Didn't he win the jackpot and move away? I haven't seen hide nor hair of him in forever! I thought you'd gone with him!

How could I tell you? Not only did he never get the money, he was swindled to the point we almost lost our house and home.

After that, he went out looking for work to repay the debt, and I've not heard from him since.

How humiliating would it be if people learned of this, especially now that I'm on my own? How could I tell you, or anyone? I could only hole up and bear it alone at home.

Now I hear the cheat's finally been caught—I can... finally...

At that point, Akiyo's shrill voice falters, and the young wife breaks down in tears in front of everyone.

The villagers stare at the fraudster lying trembling on the ground, and at the stunned Eikichi in his doorway, and begin to murmur.

Goodness, look. Look at what he's driven poor Akiyo to.

The man's obviously a habitual crook! Just can't help himself, no matter how many he deceives! It's about time he was taught a lesson!

Exactly. How could anyone forgive him?

Matoimaru! Give this swindler a real what-for! Don't stop beating him until he can't draw breath!

Beat him!

Beat him!

Little by little, the villagers lift their voices in clamor. Again and again, the man bows as low as he can, his face pale as death, but he can no longer squeeze out any pleas for forgiveness.

In contrast, Matoimaru simply shakes her head before approaching Eikichi.

Calm down, everyone. This man's been out of control, I agree. He's hurt who-knows-how-many just for money. He even swindled my dad. I'm as pissed as you are.

But I didn't drag him here so anyone could vent on him.

If beating the crap out of him would've solved everything, then his breaths would've been numbered by the time I found him in Mitsukue.

Matoimaru...

I brought him here so others could learn not to get scammed as easy as I used to.

But... we can't just—let this scoundrel go...

All the money he cheated us out of...

Akiyo-nee, trust me, this guy's not escaping punishment, and there'll be settlement for all the money lost.

No matter what's happened, things WILL get better from now on.

Police sirens wail from the road outside the village. Matoimaru looks past the crowd and over toward the binder-toting operator who catches her gaze and nods the sign to her.

And don’t fret. People will be here real soon to handle him.

The sky begins to darken. The police apprehend and take away the fraudster. Soon, the crowd surrounding Eikichi's door disperses.

As a stick of bug-repellent incense burns, a small room is now host to no one but father and daughter. Eikichi sits in seiza on the tatami flooring, not quite certain where to rest his gaze.

Say, um. Matoimaru, you know. Your dad's been a fool. Shouldn't have gone blaming you like that.

Almost fell for that rotten gambler's scheme. Made a fool of myself in front of the whole village.

*sigh* I've no right to judge. I was blinded by the quick money, just like...

Matoimaru sits next to him, and listens. In lieu of an immediate response, she silently shuffles closer, until she's close enough they could lean on each other.

What're ya talking about, Dad? Doesn't matter if you got scammed. Just don't fall for it again.

If I was the old me, I woulda been no help. Bet I'd be stumped where he even got his hooks into you.

And besides...

The Oni girl awkwardly reaches over and holds Eikichi's hand resting on the tatami floor, as her face breaks into a grin.

Life's changed. I'm not a kid anymore. It's my turn to look after you now, Dad.

Eikichi glances at his adopted daughter, and his taut expression finally begins to relax.

Say, there's one more thing.

What you said to the village folk when they were calling for that cheat to be taught a lesson? That didn't sound like something you'd say.

Sure you didn't rough him up in secret? A younger you would never have let his kind off the hook, you know.

I told you, Dad. Someday I'd stop being that gullible little dummy.

And hey, you know the saying?

Even the most vicious Oni will discover peace someday.

Matoimaru turns her head, and glances over at the entryway with its warm lights overhead. There on a wooden shelf, her very own ikebana has been put on display.