Chapter 4

Chapter 4 Everything carries a risk, but all we can do is minimize that risk as much as possible. To leave myself a way out, I had to consider the off chance that Yoshikage Kira might actually get lucky enough to see that letter exposing him. Because of this, I didn't directly write Kira's name, but instead framed it as if I were a housewife falling back in love with her husband. Currently, the main characters are also looking for the hidden Yoshikage Kira. Among them, the mangaka Rohan Kishibe is a man driven by intense curiosity and extreme paranoia—suspicious to an absurd degree, really. I was ninety percent sure he would grow suspicious upon seeing the letter. After that, it would just be a matter of waiting for them to show up. Although it was a bit passive, as an ordinary person in a world of superpowers, all I could do was provide them with clues while preserving my own safety as much as possible. Taking advantage of the moment when Photo Dad's gaze wasn't around, I quickly wrote the letter and deliberately ran to a mailbox on another street to drop it in, doing my best not to leave any room for error. However, I had no idea how long it would take for the mangaka to see my clue. Until then, I had to keep playing the role of a good housewife—pretending to return home after throwing out the trash to start preparing my husband's lunch. Today's menu was still one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and a soup. I wasn't making it this lavish and healthy just for Kira; I had to eat too, after all. After carefully prepping the ingredients and starting to toss the meat in the wok, I felt Photo Dad's monitoring gaze return. At this time, the elementary schooler had already gone to school and couldn't be wandering around outside. Even if the old man kept staring at Hayato Kawajiri, he wouldn't gain anything, so he probably chose to come back and keep watching me to see if I showed any anomalies. Of course, I wasn't stupid enough to poison the food. After conscientiously finishing lunch and preparing to go out to deliver it to Kira, I suddenly heard a faint noise coming from the house's storage room. I froze for a moment, wondering if Kira had suddenly returned. However, since I hadn't been exposed, I walked toward the storage room without feeling guilty at all. To my surprise, it wasn't Kira. A cat was lying on a sack of stored potatoes. It was a solid grey British Shorthair. When it saw me, it didn't even move, merely letting out a lazy yawn. A crack of the storage room window was open, so it probably came in from outside. "Oh my, hello kitty! Hee-hee, kitty~" A bit surprised, my heart instantly filled with joy, and I greeted it in an ultra-high, squeaky voice like Lady Shiji. I used to own a cat, and my landlady when I studied abroad in the UK also kept a British Blue. Although they shed like crazy and could be a bit feisty, I loved all cats! Handsome or ugly, cute or skinny—as long as they weren't hairless. This British Blue looked a bit plump. Logically, a cat with an owner shouldn't be wandering around outside, but I quickly noticed what looked like a hole in its throat. Could it have been abandoned after being abused? That would certainly explain why a pretty British Blue had crawled into my storage room through the window. However, it wasn't bleeding, and its condition didn't seem abnormal. Generally speaking, British Shorthairs are quite guarded; the one I used to raise would viciously beat up strangers. Therefore, I didn't rashly try to pet it, deciding that if the little kitty was still here when I got back from delivering lunch, I'd decide whether to rescue it then. After packing up the bento, I braided my hair, dressed up nicely, and left for Kosaku Kawajiri's company. Perhaps due to what happened last night, when I met Kira at his office today, he seemed to be in a genuinely good mood. He had a smile on his face, and his attitude toward me became softer and more natural. "Thank you, Shinobu. I am the happiest man in the whole office right now." His tone was calm and gentle as always, constantly reminding me of Sephiroth's soft voice lines. With a fake smile, I handed him the bento, blinked, and asked, "Are you coming home for dinner tonight, honey?" "I would love to spend time with my wife, but the company is announcing promotion selections at a meeting this afternoon, and everyone will celebrate together tonight. I will come back as early as I can." He looked full of apology and sighed softly. Bingo! I secretly celebrated in my heart. Salarymen were always like this! No matter who got promoted, they had to treat everyone to celebrate—nobody could escape team bonding! "It's alright, honey. Work comes first. Just drink less alcohol and don't push yourself too hard." Acting like a good, considerate wife, I comforted him, matching his dramatic acting skills. He smiled, wrapped me in a gentle hug, and said, "To give our family a better life, I have to work hard." "Mm-hmm, keep it up, honey!" If I didn't know he was a psychopathic serial killer, I might actually fall for the illusion that he's a model husband... After exchanging hypocritical pleasantries, I left the company under the envious eyes of his colleagues. On the way back, I deliberately loitered around for a while. Sure enough, as a background NPC, the probability of randomly running into the main cast was far too low; I still came up empty-handed. The moment I got home, I immediately ran to the storage room. The cat hadn't left! It was still lying in the same spot, sleeping on the potato sack. However, as I approached, it instantly sat up alertly, staring at me with high guard. Looks like a very vigilant British Shorthair. I became even more convinced it might have been abused and abandoned. But if it wouldn't let me get close, I couldn't rescue it, though it didn't seem to want to leave either. After thinking for a bit, I turned around, went to a nearby pet shop to buy canned food and cat treats, and returned to the storage room. What's the trick to gaining a cat's trust? Feeding it, of course! "You must be hungry, kitty. Come eat something delicious~" Squeezing my throat to alter my voice, I tore open a cat treat tube and carefully approached the cat. Sure enough, no feline can resist cat treats. After sniffing the scent packed with attractants, the British Blue seemed a bit hesitant, but ultimately climbed down from the potato sack, cautiously walked up to me, and licked the cat treat. It licked rapidly. Although a hole had been opened in its throat, it didn't seem to affect its eating—it just looked terrifying. I needed to find a chance to take it to the vet. After finishing the treat, the British Blue retreated to the corner again. However, compared to its initial hostility, it had relaxed considerably and was no longer as guarded. Still, I didn't plan on catching it myself. Taking it to the hospital right now would definitely make it hold a grudge, and I might get scratched, which would mean getting rabies shots. I planned to wait for Yoshikage Kira to come back and have him catch the cat, put it in a carrier, and take it to the vet. Since he was pretending to be my husband anyway, he couldn't just do nothing, right? I was going to use this opportunity to order him around. Thinking about a dangerous serial killer having no choice but to follow orders just to hide his identity felt strangely satisfying. So I poured cat litter into a tray, opened another can of food, and slowly placed it in front of the cat under its watchful eyes. "Eat slowly, kitty." I did my best to appear harmless as I backed out of the storage room. Only after the British Blue stared at me moving further away did it slowly approach the bowl and begin devouring the canned food. By late afternoon, I went to feed the cat again. This time, its attitude toward me had improved significantly. It even allowed me to pet it while eating, and after a little chin scratch, it rolled over to expose its belly. I also noticed the litter box had been used, showing a clump of urine. It seemed it really wanted to stay here. I brought over a cushion for it, and without ceremony, it lay down directly, raised its head to squint at me, and let out a big yawn. Great, it looked completely relaxed now. Satisfied, I left the storage room, waiting until Kira returned late at night to bring it up with him. "Honey! A cat came into the storage room and stayed at our house all day! It seems to be injured—there's a hole in its throat. Can you help me catch it and put it in the cat carrier so we can take it to the vet for treatment?" I pretended to be extremely worried. Kira seemed to listen to me patiently. Originally, he didn't seem interested in the cat at all, but upon hearing about the hole in its throat, he suddenly froze. "Wait a moment, I'll go take a look." He comforted me, took the cat carrier I handed him, and went to the storage room alone. ... "A hole in its throat? Could it be a Stand user created by the 'Arrow'...?" Yoshikage Kira stared guardedly at the storage room. His father, Yoshihiro Kira, possessed an "Arrow." He had heard from the person who gave it to him that the arrow was made from an extraterrestrial meteorite containing a mysterious virus. If an organism survived the virus, its latent potential would be unlocked, granting supernatural powers—becoming a so-called "Stand user." His Stand, "Killer Queen," was an ability awakened after being pierced by the arrow. When those people started searching for his identity, his father was using the arrow everywhere to create Stand users and distract them. Kira suspected the hole in the cat's throat was also caused by his father's arrow. Deciding to confirm this, he summoned Killer Queen directly in front of the cat. As a humanoid spiritual entity appeared before the cat, the cat's fur immediately stood on end, and it hissed at him. A smirk gradually appeared at the corner of Kira's mouth; he knew he had guessed correctly. Only Stand users can see another person's Stand! This cat is a Stand user! Since it was a Stand user created by his father, utilizing it well could work to his advantage. However, it might also possess an ability that could expose his existence. Before determining what the cat could do, it was better to make it disappear. Except Kira couldn't blow the cat to pieces in front of his current wife without raising her suspicions. So, he intentionally made Killer Queen advance on the cat. The cat trembled all over and bolted straight out of the room! ... "Ah! The cat ran out, honey!" The cat zipped past my feet and ran straight out of the house. Immediately after, Kira walked out holding the cat carrier with an expressionless face, saying apologetically, "Sorry, Shinobu. It was too fast, and I couldn't catch it..." "Sigh, really..." The cat ran away shortly after he went in. Was it because animals could sense the dangerous aura of a serial killer? I felt a bit disappointed, but Kira comforted me again, "Don't worry. I'll help you look for it on my way to work tomorrow. Maybe we'll see it again." "Mm, I'll look for it too. I blame myself for being too scared to catch it and having to trouble you with this," I sighed, feigning sadness. "It's only right. It's too dangerous for you to catch it yourself. If you got scratched, I would be heartbroken. Leave things like this to me." He pulled me into his arms, gently patted my back, and comforted me softly. He looked so much like a good husband. But just as he was putting effort into his acting, another realization suddenly hit me out of nowhere. Wait a minute, how could he fail to catch a single cat? This guy is Yoshikage Kira! The main antagonist of this story! He hadn't failed a single thing in over a decade—how could he let a cat escape from his hands? ...Could he have actually done it on purpose? I couldn't understand the point of letting a cat go on purpose. His personality was the type that disliked meddling in extra trouble; he shouldn't care whether I wanted to rescue a cat or not. Furthermore, he didn't abuse animals and was actually quite mentally healthy in that regard. Could there be something wrong with that cat?