"That's right. A virus," Rinji nodded. "A new virus that hasn't been discovered in this era yet. It can only spread through blood, but its fatality rate is extremely high, and current medical technology can't treat it."

After speaking, Rinji headed toward the mountain behind the estate. "Even usin Shinomiya's body, I had more than a dozen ways to kill Gan'an on the spot. Why use poison? That ties into the next step of my plan."

"…"

"Ai, this might be the first time you've looked directly at my malice." Rinji turned to face her, meeting her worried gaze. "'Accept my sins' is easy to say, but truly doing it is very hard."

"Eh?"

"Very few women I've known could truly do that. I once tried to change, but in the end, I failed—not because of willpower, but because…" Rinji's voice grew heavy.

"I was born this way."

…

The Shinomiya mansion was vast, and the mountain behind it was also their property. Rinji walked there again, with Hayasaka following silently, lost in thought.

Just as Rinji had said, though she had once seen him storm into the main house, seeing him now poison Gan'an with such a strange method gave her a fleeting sense of fear. In school, Rinji might have been mischievous and loved causing trouble, but it was always within acceptable limits. Hayasaka had thought his fangs had been dulled by school life.

In reality, Rinji had never put away his fangs. When it was time to kill, he would never hesitate in the slightest.

After all, he was not someone suited to live in a peaceful society.

Just as Rinji had said, Hayasaka was not someone who could truly accept his sins. What she could accept was only the Rinji who used to be a bad person. She could not fully accept his evil like Ryuto Momo and Garuda could.

Even so—

"Rinji."

"Hmm?"

"Although it might sound ridiculous now, no matter what you do, I'll try to accept it." Hayasaka smiled. "I told you before, I'm ready to go to hell with you."

Hearing her words, Rinji was a little surprised, but he still smiled.

"Hell doesn't suit you, and I won't be going there either. A place like that couldn't contain me."

After saying that, Rinji turned his head and murmured, "Even for you, I'll restrain myself a little."

"By the way, Rinji, why did you suddenly come here?" Hayasaka looked around.

The vegetation in the back mountain was dense, and under the cover of night, there wasn't a single light, giving off a very eerie feeling.

"Because I'm waiting for someone."

"Waiting for someone?"

"They're here."

As soon as Rinji's words fell, a blinding light suddenly shone in front of them. Dense footsteps sounded, and a group of men in suits surrounded Rinji and Hayasaka.

Under the harsh light, Hayasaka squinted, but she could vaguely make out the silhouette of the man leading them. Wearing a suit, a coat draped over his shoulders, and black hair slicked back, it was the third son of the Shinomiya family—Shinomiya Un'yo.

A cigar hung from his mouth as he tilted his head back, looking disdainfully at the "Kaguya" before him and at Hayasaka.

"Where are you planning to go this late?"

"Master Un'yo…" Hayasaka looked at him nervously.

Although Un'yo was the weakest of the three Shinomiya sons, he still had far more power than Kaguya once did. He was also insidious, fond of using threats and other underhanded means, gathering under him a group of people forced into obedience.

Ignoring Hayasaka, his gaze fell on Rinji.

"Kaguya, you were the one who made Father collapse, weren't you?"

"What makes you say that?" Rinji, playing the role of Kaguya, smiled.

"Because I saw it with my own eyes. I watched you walk to Father's side, and after you left, he collapsed. Hayasaka was standing not far away, witnessing it all."

Un'yo threw his cigar to the ground and crushed it, his sharp eyes locking on the two of them.

"After striking, you planned to run away? Were you led astray by the rats of the Hayasaka family? Or maybe…"

"Please don't say that. This wasn't Hayasaka's doing," Rinji said with a smile. "And it wasn't the eldest young master either."

"…So you already knew."

Un'yo was slightly surprised. He knew that Shinomiya Oko had planted the still-young Hayasaka beside Kaguya long ago, but for his own reasons, he had never told Kaguya, letting his sister remain under surveillance.

"And you," Rinji asked, "since you know I was the one who did it, why didn't you tell your two elder brothers? Why come here with just your men?"

"…Because when you saw Father collapse, you realized this was your chance to turn the tables. You wanted to keep this information to yourself—it's your only chance to defeat your two brothers."

Un'yo frowned. Something felt off. His sister never acted like this. He knew her better than their father Gan'an did, and this wasn't her usual demeanor.

"You don't really think you just happened to see all this by luck, do you? If you hadn't been there, I might have acted later," Rinji said.

"I don't understand what you're saying, but your and Hayasaka's actions are a betrayal of the Shinomiya family. That means I can take extreme measures."

Un'yo raised his hand.

"Seize them."

His men drew their guns—but aimed them at Un'yo.

"What…"

Un'yo's eyes went wide. Rinji stepped forward, smiling at his shocked face. "It was easy to predict you'd come to me and Hayasaka alone to keep the intel to yourself. All your moves were within my calculations."

"You…"

"The law of survival on the battlefield is iron and blood. In peacetime, it's deceit and betrayal," Rinji said, his smile turning manic.