Starting With The Sefirah Castle In The Anime World-Chapter 154 - : The Hidden Meaning of Revenge (BONUS)

With her improved physical abilities and heightened senses, Ran overheard the conversation between Ren and Kaguya behind her.

This caused the anger on her face to shift into something more complicated.

How should she put it?

Now that she understood the full picture, Ran couldn't help but feel like Matsumoto-sensei accepting this fate was almost insulting to herself.

Wait—did Matsumoto-sensei never investigate the full truth of the incident?

It wasn't her father who had directly caused the accident, so why was she taking responsibility for it?

Ran pondered this for a moment before pausing.

Right... It's because that person blamed her father for his mother's death.

And because of that, Matsumoto-sensei found herself unable to make a choice, leaving her with only one option: to end the cycle of hatred with her own life.

But... wouldn't it be better to just clarify the truth?

Ran didn't deny that Matsumoto Kiyonaga bore some indirect responsibility for the woman's death.

However, it was nowhere near enough to justify a "life for a life."

If revenge was necessary, then shouldn't it be directed at the actual criminal who was still in prison?

...Could it really be that, because they couldn't take revenge on someone behind bars, they simply redirected their hatred elsewhere?

Ran tried to calm herself, but no matter what, she couldn't suppress her anger, not at the groom, but at Matsumoto-sensei herself.

She reached out and held back Sonoko, who was about to speak.

Then, she took a step forward.

"Matsumoto-sensei, your father didn't directly cause the accident."

"Huh?"

Still trapped in her own pain, Sayuri Matsumoto froze.

She fell silent, her mind briefly shutting down before rebooting.

"My father... didn't directly cause it?"

"But I read in the investigation report that my father was chasing the criminal and caused the accident—"

"???"

This time, even Ran was thrown off.

Her prepared words got stuck in her throat.

She instinctively turned to look at Ren.

But then she remembered—the power Ren possessed.

There was no way his divination was wrong.

Which meant... Matsumoto-sensei's investigation itself had been flawed?

Oh. That's unexpected.

Even Ren was caught off guard.

He had divined both today's wedding and the past car accident.

But he hadn't specifically divined what Matsumoto Sayuri knew about it.

And now, it turned out that the information she received had been distorted.

Huh.

Had the details simply been lost over time, or had someone deliberately manipulated the truth?

Either way, this misinformation seemed to have targeted Matsumoto Kiyonaga, who was still a police officer at the time.

Or perhaps...

Someone had wanted to sabotage his career.

Ren took a maple leaf gold coin from his pocket, flicked it into the air, and caught it.

It landed flat.

Tsk—just as he thought.

It wasn't that the truth had been completely buried, but rather, certain key facts had been deliberately concealed.

If the Metropolitan Police Department hadn't valued Matsumoto Kiyonaga so highly, they wouldn't have bothered covering up the incident for him.

Whoever had orchestrated this behind the scenes... must have been deeply disappointed when their plan failed.

Ren flipped the coin again.

Flat.

Tsk—this is turning out to be even more complicated than expected.

So, the person responsible must have already been transferred out of the MPD, right?

Another flip.

Flat.

Ah... so they were forcibly transferred after their scheme got exposed?

Yeah. That tracked.

In a career like law enforcement, there were always people lurking in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to stab you in the back.

Ren thought for a moment, then flicked the coin one last time.

Had Takasugi Toshihiko been manipulated by someone?

The moment the coin landed, the answer became clear.

Someone had planned this from the very beginning.

It wasn't just about personal revenge, this entire situation was engineered as part of a larger scheme against Matsumoto Kiyonaga.

Takasugi Toshihiko was merely a pawn.

And Sayuri Matsumoto?

She was a fool who had been used.

Not just her—even the person who originally investigated the case 20 years ago had been used.

Realizing this, Ren felt a chill run through him.

Twenty years.

Someone had held onto this grudge for twenty years.

All because they got transferred.

That level of resentment was insane.

But Ren set aside those thoughts for now.

The current situation still needed to be handled first.

"Ran, Sonoko, switch places with me."

Still reeling from everything they had just learned, Mouri Ran and Suzuki Sonoko stepped back without question.

Ren turned his attention to Sayuri Matsumoto.

"Matsumoto-sensei, shall we play a little game?"

"...Game?"

"Takasugi Toshihiko... That man is planning to avenge his mother by hurting you.

Do you still think he's someone worth marrying?"

"..."

If it had been before, Sayuri Matsumoto wouldn't have hesitated to say yes.

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

But now, after hearing the truth from Ran, she wasn't so sure anymore.

Ren gave a slight nod.

At the very least, she wasn't completely blinded by love.

"Seems like you've realized the problem."

"If this man was truly someone worth entrusting your future to... then as someone directly involved in that car accident, he should understand better than anyone that your father was only fulfilling his duty as a police officer."

"Yes, your father failed to notice the injured woman. That much is true. But that level of negligence doesn't justify taking his life in return.

And more importantly—

The real criminal is still alive, living comfortably in prison."

"Yet Takasugi Toshihiko placed all the blame solely on your father."

"He sees you and your father as his only outlets for revenge."

"If he truly sought justice, he should be going after the man who actually caused his mother's death, not you."

Ren's words were straightforward.

Yes, Matsumoto Kiyonaga bore some responsibility.

But the absolute truth had already been recorded, there was no room for argument.

And yet, instead of seeking actual justice, Takasugi Toshihiko deliberately got close to Sayuri Matsumoto just so he could manipulate her.

"Now tell me, even if you view him through the rose-tinted lens of childhood love.

Is this really a man worthy of entrusting your life to?"

"If he's willing to kill someone over an indirect connection to the accident, do you think he wouldn't use more insidious, drawn-out methods to get revenge in the future?"

"..."

Sayuri Matsumoto bit her lip.

For the first time, she hesitated.

Even before she had learned all this, when Takasugi Toshihiko broke up with Kazumi to pursue her, she had already felt guilty about it.

Now that she knew everything?

Now that the veil had been lifted?

She realized it was finally time to remove her childhood-colored glasses.

"...What kind of game are you talking about?"

(To be continued.)

***

Bonus for 200 PS next bonus at 400 PS.

Checkout my Profile for my new fics xD.

For every 200 PS = 1 extra Chapter. Support me on patreon to read 50+ advanced Chapters: patreon.com/Blownleaves.