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 - Ichinose Kaede's Declaration of War—The Only One I Love Is Ren
Setagaya's upscale residential district. A ten-minute walk from the station, the top floor of a low-rise apartment building surrounded by deep greenery. Ren stood before its imposing entrance.
(Why am I in a place like this?)
In his hand, a single sealed letter. On pure white stationery, in flowing brushstrokes: "I would like to meet you once. Tomorrow, two in the afternoon, please come to my residence." The sender: Ichinose Kaede. Himuro Rei's former fiancée.
Ren pressed the intercom. His fingertips trembled slightly. The fingers stained red from his habit of leafing through ledgers stood out starkly against the white wall.
"Welcome. You must be Mise Ren."
The voice from the speaker was beautiful, like a rolling bell, and yet its core was cold. Ren steadied his breathing and pushed the heavy door open.
The elevator stopped at the top floor. When the doors opened, it was another world. Polished marble floors. A chandelier hanging from the ceiling. A faint, sweet scent of flowers drifted through the air.
"This way, please."
Led to the reception room, Ren stood frozen before the sofa.
Beyond the window, the streets of Setagaya spread out. Afternoon light poured softly into the room.
And at the center of that light, Ichinose Kaede sat.
Long chestnut curls rippled glossily over her shoulders. Her amber eyes pierced Ren straight through. On the ring finger of her right hand, a large diamond ring. Her white dress emphasized her flawless contours.
(She's beautiful.)
That was Ren's honest impression. The same overwhelming presence as Himuro Rei. But different from Rei's coldness. More radiant, more sharp. As if a blade were hidden behind that smile.
"Please, sit."
Kaede smiled. A perfect smile. But her eyes weren't smiling.
Ren lowered himself onto the indicated sofa. The cushion sank beneath him. He straightened his back, placed both hands on his knees. His heartbeat was unbearably loud.
"Would black tea be all right?"
"Ah, yes. Thank you."
With elegant movements, Kaede poured tea from the pot. The amber liquid filled the white cup. Not a single flaw in the sequence of motions.
"Here you are."
Ren accepted the cup. The warmth of it seeped into his fingertips. He took a sip. A refined fragrance spread through his mouth. But he couldn't really taste it.
"...Um, what business do you have with me today?"
Ren asked, mustering his courage.
Kaede slowly set down her cup. A small clink.
"I'll be direct."
Kaede's voice changed the air in the room. The sweet fragrance suddenly felt cold.
"Ren-kun. You're just exploiting Rei's social standing, aren't you."
Ren's breath stopped.
"That embezzlement case. I hear you've been making a fuss about being framed. But is that really true? Aren't you just ingratiating yourself with Rei, gaining the vice president's backing, getting yourself protected?"
"Th-that's not it. I never intended—"
Ren's voice trembled. He wanted to argue back. But pinned by Kaede's gaze, the words wouldn't come.
"Not it? Not what?"
Kaede tilted her head. A perfect gesture. But her eyes were cold.
"You haven't noticed it yourself? From the moment Rei said she'd protect you, you've been clinging to Rei's power. A lowly accounting clerk, protected by the vice president. That's nothing but exploitation."
"I just want to uncover the truth—"
"The truth? Don't make me laugh."
For the first time, emotion entered Kaede's voice. It was unmistakable mockery.
"Do you really think a plain, worthless man like you has any right to stand beside Rei? Know your place."
Ren clenched his fists. His nails dug into his palms. It hurt. But compared to the pain in his heart, it was nothing.
(Say something back. Say anything.)
He knew it in his head. But no voice came out. Kaede's flawless beauty and merciless words crushed Ren's spirit.
"Rei is just playing with you, you know."
Kaede picked up her cup and elegantly sipped her tea.
"Rei is someone who can't love anyone. I know that better than anyone. There's no way she'd be serious about an ordinary man like you. She's just amused for now. Once she's bored, she'll discard you immediately."
"...Himuro-san isn't that kind of person."
Ren finally forced the words out.
Kaede's eyes narrowed sharply.
"Oh? What would you know about Rei?"
"I know. Himuro-san believed in me. She listened to what I had to say, properly. She's not a cold person."
Ren's voice was still trembling. But his eyes looked straight at Kaede.
Seeing those eyes, Kaede's expression vanished for just an instant.
(This man... he's not just a timid pushover.)
Deep in Kaede's heart, something gave a sharp creak. It was a feeling akin to inferiority. The straightforward trust that Rei had never directed at her—this man possessed it as though it were only natural.
"...How cheeky."
Kaede said quietly.
"But fine. Go home for today. I've said what I wanted to say to you."
Kaede stood. A signal that the conversation was over.
Ren stood too. His legs wobbled slightly.
"Excuse me."
Ren bowed and tried to leave the reception room.
Kaede's voice chased after his back.
"Ren-kun. Rei was mine. Don't you forget that."
Ren stopped. He didn't turn around.
"...I don't belong to anyone. And Himuro-san doesn't belong to you either."
With that, Ren left the room.
He thought he heard Kaede say something behind him. But Ren didn't look back.
He took the elevator down to the first floor. Left the building, walked the deeply green streets.
(I was scared.)
Ren murmured in his heart.
(But I didn't lose.)
Fists still clenched, Ren headed for the station.
Evening. Katsuragi Tower, 33rd floor. The vice president's office.
Ren sat before Himuro Rei. A heavy leather sofa. A wall of bookshelves. Through the window, Tokyo Bay stretched out in full view. The setting sun reflected off the water's surface, glittering.
"So. What did she say?"
Himuro looked at Ren with ice-cold blue-gray eyes. Silver-tinged dark gray short hair, slicked back. Perfectly dressed in a black suit, his tall frame casting a shadow in the sunset.
"...That I'm just exploiting your social standing. And that you're just playing with me."
Ren reported honestly. His voice sank a little.
Himuro was silent for a while. Then he let out a small breath.
"That's just like her."
"Himuro-san. Why is Kaede-san so fixated on you?"
Ren asked what he'd been thinking about all day.
Himuro looked out the window. The sunset dyed his profile orange.
"She simply can't forgive herself for not being chosen by me."
Himuro's voice was bitter.
"I couldn't love her. She was the perfect young lady. Beautiful, cultured, impeccable pedigree. But my heart didn't move. She sees that as her defeat."
"Defeat..."
"Yes. To her, love is winning and losing. Not being chosen by me is the only blemish on her perfect life. That's why she fixates on me. She believes that if she obtains me, the blemish will disappear."
Himuro turned toward Ren.
"But you're different, Ren. You were chosen by me. I chose you of my own will."
Deep in Ren's chest, something throbbed violently.
"Himuro-san..."
"Don't worry about Kaede. You're fine just as you are."
Himuro's words seeped into Ren's heart.
(This person's words always put me at ease.)
Ren gave a small nod.
"Thank you. I'm all right."
Ren's catchphrase. At those words, Himuro's expression softened just a little.
"Yes. You're all right."
Ren felt a warmth spreading deep in his chest.
The next morning. Katsuragi Tower, 12th floor. The accounting department floor.
Ren came to work as usual. He booted up his computer and checked the KFN logs. The unnatural patterns in the expense data approved under Kurabashi Atsushi's ID. Since then, Ren had been scrutinizing the data every day.
(Something's definitely off.)
Ren stared at the screen. There were indeed multiple cases where the approval timestamp and the processing timestamp didn't match.
(This is the evidence of the frame-up.)
Ren tried to print the data.
That was when it happened.
The air on the floor changed in an instant.
Clack.
Footsteps came from the elevator hall. One person. But those footsteps belonged to no one in accounting. Heavier, quieter, more intimidating.
Ren looked up.
Himuro Rei stood on the accounting floor.
Forty accountants drew in their breath all at once. No—their breathing stopped.
Himuro slowly surveyed the floor. Ice-cold blue-gray eyes pierced each person in turn.
"...Listen, all of you."
Himuro's voice sliced through the silence.
Department head Saeki Yasuo scrambled to his feet.
"V-Vice President Himuro. What is the meaning of this?"
"Department Head Saeki. What I'm about to say concerns the entire company. Listen carefully."
Himuro merely glanced at Saeki, then surveyed the whole floor again.
Ren's heart pounded painfully.
(Himuro-san, what are you—)
Himuro looked at Ren. That gaze softened for just a moment.
And then, clearly, in a voice everyone could hear, Himuro said:
"The one I love is Mise Ren, and no one else."
The floor froze.
Time had stopped, Ren thought. All forty employees were looking back and forth between Himuro and Ren. No one could make a sound.
Ren felt his face turn bright red. Even his ears burned. He looked down. His heart pounded as if it would burst.
(Wh-what are you saying, Himuro-san?)
Ren screamed inwardly.
"Mise Ren has not embezzled anything. He's been framed. And I believe in him. No matter what anyone says, I'm on his side."
Himuro's voice was unshakable.
"I will not forgive anyone who slanders him. Everyone on this floor, engrave that in your minds."
Having declared it, Himuro looked toward Ren.
"Ren. I'll be waiting in the cafeteria at lunch today."
Ren couldn't lift his head.
"...Yes."
Ren's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
Himuro gave a single satisfied nod, then quietly left the floor the same way he'd come.
Afterward. The accounting floor was wrapped in a stillness like the calm after a storm.
But it didn't last long.
Lunch break. The break room.
"Hey, did you hear? That public declaration."
"Hear it? It echoed across the whole floor. Was the vice president serious?"
"Serious? That was a love confession. The vice president, to a lowly accounting clerk."
"No way. That plain Mise-kun? He must have some kind of hold on her."
"I heard he's a fraud. He's fooling the vice president to escape the embezzlement charges."
"There's no way the vice president would be serious about a man who just uses his looks to charm people. She's the one being used."
The rumors from the break room spread across the floor in no time.
Ren endured it silently at his desk.
(I can hear it. I can hear all of it.)
He stared at the computer screen. The numbers blurred.
(A fraud who fools the vice president. A man who uses his looks. Just being used.)
All of it was about Ren.
(That's not it. That's not what I intended.)
Ren clenched his fists.
But no one listened to Ren's voice.
Afternoon. Ren was summoned by Department Head Saeki Yasuo.
"Mise-kun. We need to talk."
Saeki's face was darker than usual. A gentle fifty-five-year-old department head. But now he was clearly at his wit's end.
"Department Head. What's the matter?"
Ren stood before Saeki's desk.
Looking reluctant, Saeki held out a sheet of paper to Ren.
"...Take a look at this."
Ren took the paper.
On it was a typewritten statement.
'Mise Ren's investigation lacks fairness. He has a personal relationship with the vice president and is using the embezzlement investigation for personal ends. For such a person to continue the investigation would disrupt order within the company. He should be removed from the investigation immediately.'
It was an anonymous denunciation.
Ren's fingertips trembled.
"...What is this?"
"It was left on my desk this morning. The sender is unknown. But the content is a denunciation of your investigation."
Saeki continued in a heavy tone.
"Mise-kun. I underst
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