The email from the chairman's secretary office contained only a single line of body text. "Please come to the chairman's office on the 32nd floor at 5 PM today." No subject line. No reason given. Sender: General Affairs Department, Chairman's Secretary Office. That was all. That night——the sensation of fingertips casually straightening the collar of his suit in the dimly lit shop on the sixth floor of Ginsei Building still lingered somewhere. Just as Ryuichi's consciousness was about to recall that sensation, this email snapped it back in an instant. The 32nd floor of Soujin Holdings. The exclusive floor of Chairman Takatsukasa Genzou. Within the company, there was a persistent rumor: "Employees called to that floor are working at a different company by the next month." No one knew who started it. But Ryuichi, who had been at this company for over ten years, knew that the rumor wasn't mere gossip. The Soujin Group Internal Conflict Incident——in 2010, just before his chairmanship, the eldest son of the founding family, Takatsukasa Kanichiro, suddenly resigned. The official explanation was "health reasons," but within the company, it was said that Genzou had evidence and forced the resignation. Since then, anyone who tried to face Takatsukasa head-on in this company had quietly, cleanly, disappeared. At exactly 5 PM, Ryuichi stepped into the elevator. When he pressed the button for the 32nd floor, the automatic doors slowly opened. The hallway was quiet. The air was different from the sales floor on the 22nd. The carpet was a darker color. Footsteps were absorbed into it. A woman who appeared to be a secretary silently guided Ryuichi to the chairman's office door. The door opened. Ryuichi's feet stopped. It was vast. Approximately 120 square meters——he knew this as a fact, but seeing it before him in person, he could only think "vast." The wall facing him was entirely glass, and the Marunouchi skyline spread out in the evening light. In the right corner of the room, in a large leather chair, sat Takatsukasa Genzou. Silver hair slicked back. A build of about 170 centimeters, but even sitting in the chair, his presence filled the room. Deep wrinkles carved around his mouth. A cigar in his left hand. Smoke rising slowly toward the ceiling. Takatsukasa didn't stand when Ryuichi entered. He had judged there was no need to. "Have a seat," Takatsukasa Genzou said. His voice was low and calm. But only the voice was calm; beneath those words lay a complete pressure that said "this is an order." Ryuichi answered "Excuse me" while confirming the sofa in front——or trying to. The sofa was one step further back than he'd expected. He walked while keeping his gaze up, and the back of his knee caught the edge of the sofa, causing him to stumble slightly. It was a small thing. Just a single beat. But in the quiet room, that one beat felt oddly drawn out. Takatsukasa said nothing. His expression didn't change. He simply took a drag from his cigar. That "saying nothing" made Ryuichi feel oddly uncomfortable. He thought being laughed at would have been better, and quietly settled onto the sofa. For a while, Takatsukasa said nothing. His gaze remained on the buildings outside the window as he slowly exhaled cigar smoke. Ryuichi placed his hands on his knees and kept his back straight, waiting. He was accustomed to waiting in silence from over ten years of negotiation experience. When the other party falls silent, the one who speaks first out of nervousness loses. He knew that. But this wasn't that kind of silence. The silence of a negotiation partner is readable. What is this person thinking, where will they give, what are they waiting for——with years of intuition, you can generally tell. But Takatsukasa's silence was unreadable. It was like staring at glass without knowing what lay beyond it. "The contract renewal with Niwa Heavy Industries," Takatsukasa Genzou said. It was about a minute later when Takatsukasa finally spoke. "Well done," Takatsukasa Genzou said. Some tension drained from Ryuichi's shoulders. A call to praise him, then. That's what he thought. But in the next moment, he realized that was naive. "This quarter's numbers are also progressing smoothly. As the section chief of the Third Sales Division, you're meeting expectations," Takatsukasa Genzou said. Takatsukasa knew the exact figures. He grasped the transaction status of the five companies under Ryuichi's charge as if he saw them every day himself. The chairman was directly tracking a section chief's numbers. That in itself was wrong. Part of Ryuichi's brain quietly began to alert. "Thank you very much," Ryuichi said. "Your dedication to work hasn't changed since long ago," Takatsukasa Genzou said. Takatsukasa placed his cigar in the ashtray. Then, just slightly, he shifted his gaze from the window to Ryuichi. "I hear you've been frequenting Ginza recently," Takatsukasa Genzou said. Something inside Ryuichi's body froze. Around his stomach. Silently. Rapidly. Takatsukasa's tone hadn't changed. Calm, low, as if making small talk. But embedded in those words was the clear fact: "I know." "It was just a meal with a client, by chance," Ryuichi said. Ryuichi answered, striving for composure. His voice was steady——he thought. At least it didn't shake. "I see," Takatsukasa Genzou said. Takatsukasa nodded. That was all. He didn't pursue it further. But his gaze didn't move from Ryuichi's eyes at all. The fact that nothing followed the words "I see" carried its own pressure. "I already know your answer, and I'm asking anyway"——that kind of atmosphere filled the room. After a beat, Takatsukasa continued. "I hear Gettou is quite a refined establishment," Takatsukasa Genzou said. That was the moment. Takatsukasa's expression changed——or rather, it changed so subtly it couldn't quite be called a change. The depth of the wrinkles around his mouth increased ever so slightly. Something other than dignity flickered in his eyes for just an instant, then vanished. Sentimentality? Attachment? Ryuichi couldn't judge. But something was definitely there. "...Yes," Ryuichi said. That was all he could answer. Not another word came out. Why did this person know the name Gettou so precisely? What was that change in expression when he spoke that name? He couldn't possibly ask. In this room, facing this person, Ryuichi had no position to ask. "I have high expectations," Takatsukasa Genzou said. Takatsukasa picked up his cigar again. His gaze returned to the window outside. The conversation was over, the signal was clear. "Excuse me," Ryuichi said. He stood from the sofa and left the chairman's office. The door closed. The moment he stepped into the hallway, the carpet beneath his feet felt normally firm. Until just now, the floor had felt too soft, unstable. ——What was that expression? As he pressed the elevator button, only that single point was spinning in Ryuichi's head. Takatsukasa's eyes when he spoke the name Gettou. That change wasn't that of someone who simply knew about a place as a topic of conversation. It was a memory from somewhere closer, bleeding through for just an instant——that kind of change. There was something between Takatsukasa and Seiya. That much was certain. But what—— The elevator arrived. Ryuichi stepped in. The doors closed. During those few seconds down to the lobby, Ryuichi saw his own face reflected in the mirror-like elevator doors. His usual face. Suit, necktie, expressionless face. But only the depths of his eyes held a slightly different color. --- When Ryuichi left Soujin Tower, the October night breeze touched his cheek. The Marunouchi night was clean and clear. Being a business district, fewer people remained after dark. Ryuichi loosened his tie slightly before hailing a taxi heading toward Harumi. In the back seat, watching the city flow past the window, Ryuichi tried to think only about buying a bento box at a convenience store. Tonight's dinner. Just that. It didn't work. When he arrived at his apartment on the 27th floor of Residence Harumi Tower in Harumi, he put the convenience store bento in the microwave. While the timer ran, Ryuichi sat on the sofa and looked out at Tokyo Bay. Rainbow Bridge glowed orange. The same light every night for three years. The microwave beeped. He took out the bento. Placed it on the table. Picked up chopsticks. While eating, he realized he was thinking about something else. It was a story from twelve years ago. When Ryuichi was twenty-three, there was a woman he dated at university. Someone from the same seminar, quiet and fond of reading. After dating for about a year, she told him they should break up. Her reason was brief. "When I talk to you, I feel like I'm not a person but a case file." That night was just as quiet as tonight. Ryuichi didn't understand what he'd done wrong at the time. Even now, he doesn't know exactly. Only the fact that he'd hurt the other person remained. Since then, Ryuichi had carried the premise that he "wasn't suited for romance." He hadn't consciously decided it that way; he'd simply lived with that understanding. Three small sausages lined up on the edge of the bento box. (Am I going to do the same thing again?) That thought surfaced with unusual clarity tonight. When talking with Seiya, Ryuichi certainly felt it was "easy." There was no need to search for the business angle, just the ability to say what he thought——that sensation. But——could he feel that sensation as "easy" only because the other person was a professional? Wasn't it the "sense of security" created by someone living in the night world for their clients? Ryuichi poked one sausage with his chopsticks. It rolled. (What am I thinking?) After finishing the bento, he placed the plate in the sink. He showered and got into bed. He stared at the ceiling. A quiet room. On the night of the breakup twelve years ago, Ryuichi had returned to his room alone and stared at the ceiling the same way. Tonight was the same. The only difference was——tonight, he couldn't stop thinking even though he didn't want to. Back then, he couldn't think at all. Because he didn't understand what was wrong. Tonight, he was trying to understand something. Though he still didn't know what. --- The next morning on the 22nd floor of Soujin Tower was as usual. The sound of the copy machine, phone rings, keyboard clicks. Ryuichi made coffee and sat at his desk. As he opened his screen, he was turning over yesterday's chairman's office visit in his mind. Takatsukasa knew the name Gettou precisely. He was aware that Ryuichi frequented Ginza. How many times had Ryuichi gone, when, to which shop——how much did he know? His credit card history came to mind. Transit IC card records. Security cameras. He'd heard rumors within the company that the chairman of Soujin HD had private investigators. If he was actually doing it—— Ryuichi drank his coffee. It was a bit too hot. But he drank it anyway. (Should I contact Seiya?) Should he, or shouldn't he? Should he ask about the meaning of that expression? But——without knowing what lay between Takatsukasa and Seiya, moving blindly was far too dangerous. There was a possibility he'd cause Seiya more trouble by stepping in without knowing anything. Ryuichi's feet were stopped by that judgment. Lunchtime came. The employee cafeteria on the 5th floor——400 seats, average lunch 650 yen——got crowded at this hour. Ryuichi carried his tray through the counter and sat in a corner seat. A set meal. White rice, miso soup, salt-grilled mackerel, small side dish. The combination he always chose. While eating, he suddenly noticed something. The seat across from him was empty. That was true every day. When eating alone, there was no one across from him. It wasn't unique to today. But today, for some reason, it caught his eye. The empty space across from him. Something he'd never paid attention to before. He broke a