Chapter 49: Ice heart.
Shiho was in her study, sipping a cup of sencha tea. When she was done she set the cup on the table in front of her.
If all goes as planned Kuromorimine will win the match against St. Gloriana and advance to the final, where he will have to face either Saunders or Pravda.
She thought.
Her lips curled into a malicious smile.
And this time the victory will be ours... There will be no unexpected events like last year!
She thought, with great satisfaction.
Since the end of the previous tournament she had been waiting for nothing else… The day when Kuromorimine would regain the title of sensha-do champion, unfairly stolen by the reigning champions of Pravda high school. She harbored a strong hatred both towards them and towards Miho, her deceased second daughter, who through her stupidity had exposed her team to a humiliating defeat.
That stupid bitch… Leaving the flag tank unattended! Because of her we couldn't win 10 times in a row! And Kuromorimine's career is irreparably tainted!
She stood up.
Unfortunately the damage is done... And there is no remedy. But at least Miho is dead and, hopefully, we will take back the title by winning the final!
At that moment someone knocked on the door.
"Who is?" She asked.
"Sumimasen, Nishizumi-sama, but there are visits for you." Kikuyo informed her.
"Who?"
"Director Kodama."
"Okay, let him in."
After a couple of seconds the door opened and Shichiro Kodama, director of the sensha-do federation, appeared, a bald middle-aged man with dark brown eyes and a black mustache, wearing a dark gray kimono and a cream hat. He sat down opposite her and greeted her with a bow.
"Nishizumi-sama…"
"Kodama-sama… To what do I owe your visit?" The landlady asked him.
"First of all, I wanted to renew my condolences for the grave loss that has befallen your family." He replied.
Shiho snorted. She wanted to say that for her it had been an insignificant loss, but she didn't want her interlocutor to be scandalized. Then he bowed and said:
"Thank you, Kodama-sama."
Shichiro didn't like at all the cold and formal tone used by his interlocutor. Yet he was a guest, she was the owner, and he didn't want to start an argument.
"And staying on the subject… I don't know if you are aware of it, but bitter controversies have arisen over this matter for some time."
Shiho shook her head bored.
"I prefer to avoid controversies… Whether they concern politics or news events. I'd rather spend time at work or some hobby than listening/reading people gossiping and arguing."
"In that case, you can't, Nishizumi-sama, since they're hitting you directly." Shichiro declared, giving her a stern look.
The woman looked at him blankly.
"Myself?" She asked.
He nodded.
"More precisely your attitude of icy indifference towards the deceased Miho. And I'm not just referring to that."
"And to what else?"
The man let out a sigh before answering.
"Some of your daughter's friends have told the press that you have disowned her."
Shiho nodded without hesitation.
"It is so, in fact. Her reckless actions caused her team to lose in the final last year, and she deviated from Nishizumi's style. To me she was just a heretic, and a weak one."
A heretic and a weakling…
Shichiro mentally repeated, while the disgust he felt towards his interlocutor increased.
"There are people on the web (and not only) who accuse you of insensitive behavior towards her, and of driving her to suicide, disinheriting her."
Shiho, not at all upset, waved a hand casually.
"A wolf pays no attention to what a deer says."
"Not even if the accusation is founded?"
Shiho looked at the man with irritation.
"I didn't force her to do anything..."
Shichiro interrupted her.
"Yes, Nishizumi-sama. By disinheriting her you have condemned her to death. That poor girl had nowhere to go back… Ooarai was doomed to closure, and she would not be welcome either in her old school (aka Kuromorimine) or in her house, since you disowned her! That's why she decided to reach Aokigahara, where she kill herself!"
Increasingly nervous, Shiho clenched her fists.
"If you have come all the way here to lecture me…"
She was interrupted again, which made her bad mood worse.
"No… I'm here to tell you that your petty behavior doesn't help your reputation, and consequently not even the Federation, of which you are a prominent exponent. At this rate you may be forced to resign."
Shiho felt as if a dagger had been thrust into her right hand. If there was one thing she didn't want to give up, it was her position as president of the pro league.
"I see… What should I do to avoid this?" She asked.
The man glared at her.
She just think about her career…
He thought, with a sense of revulsion towards the woman she had before him.
"Make a few statements… Feign grief over your daughter's passing."
Though annoyed, Shiho nodded.
"Okay... I'll do it as soon as possible."
"Good… And try to be persuasive, or yor position will worsen." The director warned her.
The woman nodded.