The Framed Accountant and the Cold Vice President's Doting Love
One mistake was all it took to bring Ren Mise's quiet life crashing down. Six years of honest work at Katsuragi Corporation's Accounting Department mean nothing when a forged approval log bearing his ID surfaces—thirty million yen, funneled through a system he never had the authority to touch. With no way to prove his innocence and whispers spreading through the office like wildfire, Ren finds himself on the verge of resigning. But just as he's ready to give up, the executive elevator doors slid
The Framed Accountant and the Cold Vice President's Doting Love - The Ice-Cold Vice President's Secret — Your Past and My Past
Katsuragi Tower, 12th floor. The air on the accounting department floor had been heavy ever since that morning.
After Ren was framed for embezzlement, people vanished from around him. No—more precisely, people stopped coming near him.
Island-style desk layout. In the center of the floor where forty accountants worked, Ren's seat was the kind of place everyone could see but no one ever noticed. But now it was different. Everyone deliberately avoided looking at him. Pretending not to see, while their gazes stabbed into his back.
Ren stared at his computer screen. KFN—Katsuragi Finance Network. The core system for expense settlements. Approval authority belonged to department heads and above. Yet records remained showing approvals made under Ren's ID.
*(Something's wrong. I don't even have approval authority.)*
Ren tightened his grip on the mouse. His fingertips were slightly red. A habit of flipping through his notebook had always made them flush easily.
A full week had passed since the embezzlement came to light.
Every day, Ren re-examined the KFN logs. It was a direct order from Himuro Rei, the vice president himself. Ren had been granted log access through executive-level permissions that even accounting staff shouldn't have been able to touch.
*(Himuro-san is going this far for me.)*
A warmth spread slowly through his chest. But at the same time, he felt guilty.
Lunch break. Ren headed alone to the employee cafeteria "Grand Katsuragi" on the basement floor. A spacious cafeteria with a capacity of three hundred. He lined up for the daily set meal at 650 yen. The two employees ahead of him noticed Ren and shifted a step to the side.
*(Ah. Again.)*
Ren said nothing, took his meal, and sat at the farthest corner seat in the cafeteria. A small table against the wall. Here, he'd attract as little attention as possible.
He took a sip of miso soup. Warm. But tasteless.
"Hey, did you see? That person was having lunch with the vice president again today."
He could hear it. Voices meant to be overheard. Ren stopped his chopsticks. He didn't look up. If he did, their eyes would meet.
"Currying favor with the vice president—what a disgrace to the accounting department. Everyone's saying he's using his looks."
"It's always the plain ones you can't trust. Who knows what they're doing behind the scenes."
Ren sipped his miso soup. His throat was dry. No—that wasn't it. Deep in his chest, he was parched.
It was the same as in college. When a seminar friend framed him for data falsification, everyone had been like this. No one listened to Ren. They decided on their own that he was guilty. Neither the professor nor his friends believed him.
*(Again. The same thing.)*
Ren set down his chopsticks. He couldn't eat anymore. He picked up his tray and stood. As he walked toward the return counter, voices pierced his back again.
"That guy's still acting like nothing's wrong. After embezzling thirty million."
Ren didn't stop walking. If he stopped, something inside him might crumble.
Afternoon. Ren returned to the accounting floor and silently continued re-examining the logs. KFN logs were retained for three years. It was an enormous amount of data. Ren faced the numbers all day.
Only while facing the numbers could he forget the unpleasant things.
Evening. Just past six o'clock, Ren's smartphone buzzed.
A message. From Himuro Rei.
*Come to the vice president's office tonight. I want a progress report on the investigation.*
Ren read the short text over and over.
*(Himuro-san is calling for me.)*
The center of his chest warmed, just a little. Ren gripped his smartphone and left the floor.
The elevator for the executive floor. He held up his employee ID. A soft beep. The doors opened.
Ren steadied his breathing before stepping in. He pressed the button for the 33rd floor. The doors closed. Up. Up.
The elevator stopped, and the doors opened.
The 33rd floor. The executive floor. The air was different. It was a completely different world from the accounting floor on the 12th. Thick carpet covered the hallway, swallowing footsteps. Heavy wood-grain panels lined the walls. The lighting was soft, yet somehow cold.
Ren stood before the vice president's office. A heavy door. He raised his hand to knock, then stopped.
*(It's fine. Himuro-san believes in me.)*
Ren took a deep breath and knocked.
"Come in."
A low, calm voice. Ren opened the door.
The vice president's office. A heavy leather sofa, a wall of bookshelves lined with economics and literature. The window offered a full view of Tokyo Bay. The night sea glimmered black in the distance.
Himuro Rei sat at his desk. His silver-tinged dark gray hair was slicked back, and his ice-cold blue-gray eyes fixed on Ren. Tall—over six feet. He wore a black suit to perfection, his tie knot flawless.
"Sit."
Ren lowered himself onto the leather sofa. Himuro rose from his desk and sat across from him.
"Tell me your progress."
Ren straightened his back.
"Yes. I've been re-examining the KFN approval logs. I've found several irregularities. There are traces of expenses that should have been approved on one date but were actually processed on another."
Himuro watched him in silence. His eyes were cold, yet somehow warm. Ren continued.
"I don't have definitive proof yet. But there are multiple cases where the records showing my ID was used don't match the actual processing timestamps. There's a high probability someone deliberately tampered with the logs."
Himuro nodded slowly.
"Keep going. At your own pace. Don't rush."
Ren felt the tension in his shoulders ease, just a little.
"Thank you. Just knowing you believe in me, Himuro-san, I..."
The words wouldn't come. Himuro was looking straight into his eyes.
"Ren."
Himuro called his name. Only when they were alone did Himuro use Ren's first name. That voice was different from the cold one he used at the office.
"Why did you apply to the accounting department?"
Ren was momentarily at a loss for words.
*(Why I applied to accounting.)*
Ren looked at his own hands. His fingertips were slightly red. These hands hadn't been able to save his father's factory.
"...My father ran a metalworking factory in the old downtown. It was a small place, but he worked with pride."
Ren began to speak, little by little.
"In high school, my father's factory fell into crisis when a client went bankrupt. Buried in debt, we moved in the night, practically fleeing. I couldn't do anything. I knew nothing about money."
Himuro listened silently. Those blue-gray eyes gazed straight at Ren.
"If I'd had accounting knowledge. If I'd had the ability to read numbers. Maybe I could have saved my father's factory. That's what I thought when I applied to accounting. A job managing the company's money. A job facing numbers and never letting fraud slip by. I take pride in that work."
Ren forced the words out.
"...And now I'm treated like a thief. I couldn't save my father's factory, and now I've supposedly stolen from the company. It's absurd, isn't it. Really, truly absurd."
Tears spilled from Ren's eyes. Without realizing it, he was crying.
Himuro stood and sat beside Ren.
"Ren, lift your head."
Ren looked up. Himuro's blue-gray eyes were right there.
"You've done nothing wrong."
Himuro's hand touched Ren's cheek. It was a cold hand. But that coldness felt good against Ren's flushed cheek.
"Will you tell me about your college days too?"
Ren wiped his tears and nodded.
"In a college seminar, a friend framed me for data falsification. It was made to look like I did it, and neither the professor nor the other students believed me. No one did. Back then, I was alone. I couldn't talk to anyone about it. I carried it all by myself."
Ren continued, his voice trembling.
"After that, I became afraid of relying on people. If they won't believe me anyway, I have to do everything alone from the start. That's what I started to think."
Himuro released Ren's cheek and took his hand instead.
"Ren, I believe in you."
Ren's chest tightened.
"I know you're not the kind of person who would do such a thing. Your seriousness, your earnestness—I know them better than anyone."
Himuro's voice was low and quiet.
"So I will protect you. No matter what happens, I won't let you go."
Tears spilled from Ren's eyes again. This time, they weren't tears of sorrow.
"Himuro-san... I believe in you. You, and only you, I will absolutely believe in."
Himuro's expression softened slightly. The ice-cold vice president's face, for just a moment, became innocent as a boy's.
"Ren, will you listen to my story too?"
Ren wiped his tears and nodded.
Himuro began to speak slowly.
"I was born the eldest son of the Himuro family. For generations, the Himuros have produced executives for Katsuragi Corporation. From childhood, I was forbidden to show emotion. Don't cry. Don't laugh. Don't get angry. Just be excellent. That was all I was taught."
Himuro's voice was matter-of-fact. But Ren could tell that deep loneliness hid beneath it.
"Through a family political arrangement, I was engaged to the daughter of the Ichinose financial conglomerate. Ichinose Kaede. A beautiful, brilliant woman. But I couldn't love her. I didn't know how to love."
Ren caught his breath. Ichinose Kaede. Himuro's former fiancée. Even within the company, that name was whispered about.
"When I broke off the engagement, she said: 'You will never be able to love anyone for the rest of your life.' I thought she was right. Raised with emotions forbidden, I couldn't possibly love someone."
Himuro gripped Ren's hand tightly.
"But when I talk with you, for the first time I feel I can be human. Watching your earnestness warms my chest. When you smile, I feel happy too. Is this what emotion is?"
Ren's heart pounded violently. The center of his chest burned.
"Himuro-san..."
Ren squeezed Himuro's hand back.
"I believe in you. Your loneliness, your pain—I'll accept all of it."
Himuro's blue-gray eyes wavered, just slightly.
"Ren."
Himuro's hand touched Ren's hair. Gently, slowly.
"Thank you. I'm truly glad I met you."
Ren's heart felt full to bursting.
*(I want to expose the truth for this man. Absolutely.)*
Ren swore it fiercely in his heart.
That night. Ren returned to his apartment and collapsed onto his bed.
He was exhausted. Body and soul.
But somewhere in him, there was also warmth.
*(Himuro-san told me about his past.)*
Ren stared at the ceiling. Himuro's lonely profile floated behind his eyelids.
*(I want to know more about him. I want to be closer to him.)*
Ren placed a hand on his chest. His heart was still beating a little fast.
*(Is this what love feels like?)*
Ren shook his head as if to dispel the thought.
*(No. Right now, exposing the truth comes first.)*
Ren picked up his smartphone. He opened the message from Himuro.
*The investigation is progressing. Tomorrow, re-examine the KFN logs.*
Ren read the short text over and over.
*(Himuro-san is taking action for me.)*
Ren gripped his smartphone.
*I will absolutely expose the truth.*
He sent the reply.
Immediately, the read receipt appeared.
*(He saw it.)*
Ren felt his chest warm.
The next morning. When Ren arrived at work, an unfamiliar piece of paper lay on his desk.
Ren picked it up. White copy paper. On it, written in violent handwriting:
*Sycophant who curries favor with the vice president.*
Ren's fingertips trembled.
*(What... is this?)*
Ren looked around. No one was looking at him. Everyone pretended to be focused on their work.
Ren crumpled the paper and threw it in the trash.
*(I won't lose. Like hell I'll lose.)*
Ren booted up his computer. Opened the KFN logs. Today too, he would continue the investigation.
Lunch break. Ren went to the break room to make coffee.
Outside the break room, two female employees were whispering. When they saw Ren, their voices grew slightly louder.
"Hey, did you hear? That guy Mise
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