『MV:INEBCEBTH』Arc-1 Ch-1

At the top floor of the Teia Tower in Daiba, Tokyo.

inside the lounge where the completion unveiling party for the Teia Group’s new project was being held—I quietly gazed out at the forest of skyscrapers beyond the glass.

In the original scenario, this was where my engagement would be annulled—the moment that sealed the downfall of both me and my family.

At least, that’s how it went in the game I knew.

This place was the setting for the final scene of the otome game I had once played, Let’s Talk About Love Where the Cherry Blossoms Fall.

Even now, I sometimes feel bewildered when I catch sight of my own reflection in the window.

I didn’t have such beautiful blonde hair.

I wasn’t this fair-skinned.

I wasn’t this seductive.

And I certainly wasn’t this much of a villainess.

✧✧✧✧✧

“I’ve been looking for you, Runa.”

I wasn’t called Runa—nor was my name Keika-in Runa. When I turned around at the voice from behind, I saw the man who was supposed to be my fiancé.

Teia Eiichi.

The heir apparent of the Teia Group—a young man who had already proven his ability within the conglomerate. His gaze was as cold as glass.

“Oh? Eiichi-san.Why don’t you go to Mizuho-san instead of me?”

I tried to brush him off with feigned disinterest,

but Eiichi-san continued to stare straight at me.

His eyes were filled with suspicion.

“What exactly are you doing?”

His voice wasn’t one that whispered love—

it was a voice that condemned. And yet, I had no choice but to accept that condemnation. In the game, this was where I would be denounced and ruined.

“I thought I’d taken measures to avoid causing trouble for the Teia Group.”

“That’s not the point!!”

Eiichi-san’s angry shout was almost pleasant to my ears. A handsome voice from a handsome man—normally, that would be a reward in itself. If only it weren’t me being condemned.

“Why didn’t you talk to me about it! Mitsuya and Yujirou were worried about your actions too!

And Mizuho… she’s been so concerned about you!”

He stopped mid-sentence when I turned my gaze back toward the night view. A blatant rejection.

Gotou Mitsuya—the prodigy from a bureaucratic family, his father the administrative vice-minister of the Ministry of Finance. Izumikawa Yujirou—the heir to a powerful political clan, his father a ruling-party Diet member. In the game, the three of them were supposed to stand together and publicly denounce me—thus bringing about my downfall.

It was the classic reincarnation villainess scenario. The result of my desperate efforts, armed with memories from my previous life,

to avoid the ruin that awaited me. And yet, despite everything, I still ended up clashing with these handsome men in this way.

“Well, it’s impossible to hide it from the three of you—Eiichi-san included, isn’t it?”

I said it casually, as if it were nothing.

What I’d done wasn’t even that big a deal.

I’d merely set up a paper company in a tax haven, raised some funds, and become the financial backer for traders who moved according to my will. After all, connections are everything.

“Runa-san!

Why won’t you rely on us!

Didn’t we say we were friends!?”

The protagonist, Takanashi Mizuho, could no longer stay hidden and burst in. Her entrance was exactly as it had been in the game, and I couldn’t help but laugh. In the end, I couldn’t even play the role of a proper villainess.

“What are you laughing at, Runa-san!?”

The angry Mizuho-san was adorable—just like always. That’s why, at the very least, I decided to play my part to the end, and exit the stage with a graceful lie.

“Mizuho-san.

Did you know?

I’ve always despised you.”

I smiled at the stunned pair, marking the end of the scene. As a good loser, I would draw the curtain on this story myself.

“Be happy.

Farewell.”

Leaving the two dumbfounded, I turned and walked out of the lounge.

✧✧✧✧✧

Just outside, my personal maid, Tachibana Yuka, was waiting quietly.

“Young lady.”

Her expression was filled with worry—perhaps she thought it was a scene of sorrow. But I only prompted her to speak. I hadn’t expected her to come at this hour, though a faint intuition had told me she might.

In my previous life—yes, the life I should call my past one—there had been an event that cast a long, dark shadow over my fate.

Even if this world was a game,

if it was set in modern Japan,

then it was bound to happen again.

And unfortunately… my prediction was right.

“A short while ago, the investment bank Lehman Sisters filed for Chapter 11.

The New York market has fallen into chaos.”

My previous life had been a miserable one.

My company collapsed.

I worked for meager wages at a black company.

My health deteriorated, I was easily dismissed,

and I lived out my remaining days at the bottom—

dying without anyone noticing.

Above all, the era itself had abandoned us.

This isn’t a story where I am condemned. This is the story of my revenge—our revenge—against the era.

“Perfect.

Now, let the game begin.”

┳⁠━━━━⁠━⁠⁠━⁠━⁠━━━⁠┳

Footnotes

┻━⁠━━━━⁠━━⁠━━━⁠┻

Tax Haven

A jurisdiction used for tax avoidance. Often the source of funds for illicit financial activities.

Paper Company

A shell or dummy company—one that exists in name only, used to enjoy the benefits of being a corporation.

Chapter 11

Chapter 11 of the U.S. Federal Bankruptcy Code—equivalent to Japan’s Civil Rehabilitation Law.

Creditors usually fare poorly under it, but not using it often leads to an even worse outcome.

September 15, 2008

In reality, the day the Lehman Shock occurred.