After several months, Dream Weaver once again stepped into the jiro household. Unlike her previous visits, where she had been groping blindly for the truth, this ti she carried a wealth of information in her grasp.
Today, Dream Weaver would settle things once and for all with jiro Asama at the jiro estate.
Following behind jiro Ramonu, Dream Weaver arrived once more before that deep brown door. Ramonu pulled it open for her but did not enter, instead leaning close to whisper to Dream Weaver.
"Go on. This is between the two of you."
Dream Weaver offered no reply, walking into the office without a backward glance.
With a heavy, dull thud of the closing door, jiro Asama, who had been standing with her back to the entrance, finally turned around. She studied Dream Weaver for a long mont, then slowly removed the green beret from her head, revealing the symbol that marked her as an Uma Musu.
A long silence stretched between them, so profound it felt as if ti itself had frozen in this small world.
The uncomfortable stillness grew heavier, the air in the office becoming so thick it was nearly suffocating.
After what felt like an age, Dream Weaver, who had never taken her eyes off Asama, finally spoke, her voice cool and asured.
"How does it feel to have your plan fail?"
Clearly, she was referring to jiro Asama's attempt to turn Northern Dreams into jiro Dreams during the press conference.
jiro Asama gently ran her fingers along the brim of the green beret in her hands and replied softly, "I thought Ardan would have bought at least a day of your hesitation."
"If I'd had a little more ti to prepare, perhaps we wouldn't have reached this point."
Seeing not a trace of remorse in the other's eyes, Dream Weaver's expression remained icy. "What if? How can soone your age still utter such words?"
Faced with her sarcasm, jiro Asama showed no anger. She even let out a soft chuckle and nodded. "You're right."
In truth, she had prepared a backup plan to avoid this very outco: relaying certain information through the forms Dream Weaver submitted for the Tenno Sho (Spring) to Sugimoto Kentaro.
Asama had previously investigated this man and believed his character would compel him to speak with Dream Weaver.
With that buffer, perhaps Dream Weaver wouldn't have said those irrevocable words in front of the journalists, and maybe Asama's plan could have succeeded.
But, as Dream Weaver had said, it was almost laughable for soone her age to try and excuse herself with 'what ifs.' So, Asama didn't argue.
Placing the green beret on the desk, jiro Asama leaned forward, her hands braced on the surface, and looked seriously at Dream Weaver. "But I assu you didn't co here just to mock an old woman, did you? Do you have any questions?"
Dream Weaver didn't stand on ceremony, answering bluntly, "Everything."
Hearing this brief response, jiro Asama fell into thought, as if considering where to begin.
A few seconds later, she nodded to Dream Weaver, gesturing for her to take a seat across the desk. "You must have heard quite a bit about your mother from Ardan and the Northern family by now. What's your take on it all?"
"The jiro family, blinded by greed, ignored my mother's physical condition and forced her onto the track to win the Tenno Sho. How does that assessnt sound to you?"
To Dream Weaver's surprise, jiro Asama listened and then nodded in agreent. "I think you're quite right... That's why, after your mother, the jiro family, while still obsessed with the Tenno Sho, never again allowed our descendants to pay such a high price for it."
"How comndable," Dream Weaver sneered. "The lesson learned by discarding a mother who only had half jiro blood was enough to wake the family up, without you having to pay any real price. How convenient."
This ti, however, jiro Asama shook her head. "You underestimate your mother too much. Her passing was a devastating loss for both the Northern family and the jiro family."
"The Northern family lost the best heir of that generation because of it, and the jiro family stagnated for over a decade after her departure, only beginning to recover recently."
"She should have been the Uma Musu to win the Tenno Sho after jiro Titan, but she lost her life because of my misjudgnt..."
As she spoke, an irrepressible regret welled up in jiro Asama's eyes.
The old woman, who had remained composed since Dream Weaver entered, finally seed unable to fully contain the emotions she had buried for years as mories flooded back.
"That is why I strove so desperately to beco the head of the jiro family, to use that power to promote cooperation with the Northern family. Aside from , only a handful within the jiro family know about the Limiter."
"And what is this? Atonent?"
"At best, it's just my own self-indulgence. Trying to atone after everything has happened is far too late."
jiro Asama let out a bitter laugh, her gaze fixed on Dream Weaver. mories surged, threatening to drown her. Looking into those stubborn eyes, so familiar, she felt as if she had been transported back to the past, to a ti before it all went wrong.
"The only thing I can do now is sothing for the last proof she left in this world."
"That's why I wanted to keep you in the jiro family..."
Dream Weaver responded with a cold laugh, thrusting back sharply, "Not for the Tenno Sho double crown?"
jiro Asama shook her head, a faint, self-mocking smile touching her lips. "For so of my generation in the family, that's likely the case. They care less about you as a person and more about your ability to win the Tenno Sho double crown for jiro."
"Are you going to shirk responsibility like jiro Ramonu did? Like grandmother, like granddaughter, I suppose?"
"I have no intention of shirking anything. Your potential to win both the Spring and Autumn Tenno Sho was my bargaining chip. Without it, I could never have persuaded those few to agree."
"Is the threshold of the jiro family really that high? I certainly can't see it."
"For what I want to accomplish, the threshold needs to be exactly that high."
jiro Asama paused, looking directly into Dream Weaver's eyes. "I want you to inherit everything I have."
"...What?"
"Everything, in the literal sense. My reputation, my wealth, all the power I hold within the jiro family. Only by having you fully beco a jiro Uma Musu would those old fossils agree to passing it all to you."
"Put in their words... they probably wouldn't allow this fortune to be handed to soone outside the jiro family. It's ridiculous. You clearly carry jiro blood, yet they still fuss over the details."
"..."
"I can no longer do anything for your mother. Supporting your grandmother in completing the Limiter is just a minuscule, almost negligible compensation. I've thought about it for many years, and finally concluded that the only fitting thing is to give you everything I've accumulated in my life."
As she spoke, jiro Asama pulled out docunt after docunt from her drawer, handing them to Dream Weaver.
"I'm sorry, Dreams... I feel what I've gathered still isn't enough, but this is the best I can do."
-- --
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.
Reviews
All reviews (0)