Chapter 216

The hundred and thirteenth chapter: Makoto Kanzaki gets dazed

Good news?

She had been caught by now, so what good news could there be for him?

“Do you still remember the producer who ordered the Selfish Beast to take away your voice, and that Miku Tachibana?”

Upon hearing Ash talk about serious matters, Makoto also reined in her gradually out-of-control thoughts, and her expression became serious.

“The producer surrendered to the police last night.”

“Eh?”

Hearing this unexpected news made Makoto pause for a moment.

“After all, the police in this world may not be useful against monsters, but they do perform their duties well when dealing with various issues, especially in major cases like these.”

“I suppose he will soon receive the punishment he deserves? After all, he did such an outrageous thing as taking someone’s voice away.”

Makoto was silent after hearing this. The person was indeed the villain who had taken her voice, acting as if it were justified and making her feel angry without even apologizing to her, so she naturally didn’t forgive him.

But upon truly hearing about his fate, apart from the satisfaction of the villain getting his due, she inexplicably felt a sense of unease.

“What about Future then?”

“You mean her? In short, her producer will definitely not come back in the near future.” Ash’s shrugging motion made Makoto feel inexplicably agitated. “Getting involved in something like this can’t help but have an impact.”

“It’s possible she might never make it as an idol again.”

“Why, Future clearly knew nothing about it! She wasn’t involved in this at all!”

Makoto was very surprised. Although Future’s provocation was bothersome, she firmly rejected taking away her voice, which made Makoto even more bewildered as to why things ended up this way.

“If it were originally like that, Miku Tachibana, who profited from it, should naturally bear the consequences too.”

“For example, because the songs of this quarter used your voice, they were all removed, and the results were nullified.”

“If this issue continues to escalate, her reputation afterward will likely become bad too.”

With each sentence Ash spoke, Makoto’s expression darkened slightly more.

“How, wouldn’t you be happy to hear that the one persecuting you has been punished?”

“This… this…”

Thinking of that day, the scene where Future said she wanted to challenge her again later made Makoto feel only sorrow and indignation.

“But how could I be happy about that!”

The birdcage hanging in the center of the Selfish Organization swayed violently due to the mood swings inside it.

Those two officers were sent away by Ash to do whatever they wanted; currently, there were only Ash, Arisu, and Makoto here. Arisu seemed to want to say something, but Ash stopped her.

“Why did it end up like this?”

“Why? Every cause has its effect, isn’t this a natural result?”

“But!” Makoto continued to argue stubbornly. “Isn’t everything happening because of your game?”

“Do you mean to blame me for that? Well, it is correct.” Ash would not deny this, after all, it was indeed he who provided the opportunity.

“But I simply handed the method of controlling the Selfish Beast over to him, and what followed naturally happened.”

Even Ash himself did not expect subsequent events to go so smoothly.

“The true cause lies in the desires within that person, their ‘self-centeredness’ to trample on others’ wills for their own dreams.”

Finally, Makoto exploded, she tried to pull herself away from the railing but failed, resorting instead to glaring at him with all her might.

“If you say that the producer has sold his soul to the devil,”

“Then, you are the over-the-top devil who tempts people!”

Absolutely!

Afterward, absolutely, you must apologize to everyone!

“Great, I am the devil.” Ash laughed in return upon hearing this, and his hand stretched through the bars toward the Makoto inside. Makoto tried to retreat and shake off his hand, but an inexplicable oppressive force kept her rooted in place. Finally, Ash gently caressed her cheek with his hand.

So cold!

The lack of warmth in Ash’s palm instantly stimulated her, making her shiver.

“So come, sing a song for me right now.”

“Sing a melody that brings misfortune, how about it?”

The girl’s soft cheeks were rubbed aggressively by his hand. Seeing Makoto’s teary face, Ash chuckled.

“I won’t… I definitely won’t!”

Makoto responded unclearly.

“I’ll never sing a song that brings misfortune!”

“Is that so? Then you better work hard.”

With a snap of his fingers, the birdcage opened. Grabbing onto the iron bars, Makoto desperately tried to escape through the opening.

“Aah!”

Thinking she would land on the ground, Makoto found herself caught and cushioned by something solid yet soft. Opening her eyes, she realized she had fallen into Ash’s arms.

“If you don’t want to do it, it doesn’t matter; you have plenty of time to change your mind.”

Realizing she was being held by an embrace, her neck suddenly warmed up, and she started squirming frantically. But since the transformed girl’s strength was no match for Ash, it amounted to little more than a soft protest.

“You are too much, no matter what, too much!”

Struggling was useless; Makoto’s weak resistance was completely engulfed by greater force. Ash sat back down on the throne, cradling Makoto like a doll on his lap.

“Just because I lost once before, don’t think I’ve given up. I must correct you—you heard me!”

“Hmm, wanting to correct someone else, interesting.” The red-faced Makoto still refusing to submit amused Ash and greatly piqued his interest.

No wonder those BOSS-tier characters I’ve encountered always keep several women around them; playing with them is so interesting!

Ash felt he understood those boss characters a bit better now. (Of course, he didn’t.)

“Well, if I could successfully correct them, please let me join such an interesting endeavor then,” Arisu, who had been smiling until now, raised her hand in agreement.

“Sure, give it a try then.”

“But Mr. Ash, you should consider the feelings of girls better; understanding them helps build relationships.”

Looking at the nearly unconscious Makoto, Arisu tried to subtly sway Ash’s thinking. However, he remained indifferent, just idly stroking Makoto’s soft purple hair.

“As the boss of the Selfish Organization, considering others’ feelings would be unbecoming.”

And why should I bother with building a relationship when she’s already my captive?

“She’s quite unwilling right now.”

“It’s nothing, she used to call me—”

“Stop it!” Hearing Ash bring up her past, Makoto panicked, despite the hand still disturbing her hair. She looked up at him with pleading eyes.

“Please… however you wish, just don’t say anything about this!”

“Do you really think that? If so, you have to listen.”

Facing Ash’s narrowed-eyed smile, Makoto hid her unusually distressed face in the defensive barrier formed by her arms.

“I… will listen. So, please don’t say anything about this, alright?”

“It’s so embarrassing…”