Chapter 187: Is This Really Worth It? (4000 Characters Free)

Upon hearing footsteps, Akiwara Yuto subconsciously raised his head and looked toward the open shoji door, but he froze the moment he saw who it was.

A woman with a slightly slender build, wearing a blue bathrobe, walked in—her hair was pinned up, revealing a slender neck and delicate ears; her features were refined, her eyes exceptionally bright, and she possessed an air of independence and self-confidence.

Akiwara Yuto had originally intended to take his leave, but for some reason, his heart stirred, and he halted his movement.

The woman in the bathrobe walked in, frowned at the little girl who had run in earlier, and said, "Miho, we have a guest, mind your manners."

She then turned to Akiwara Yuto, bowed her head, and said, "Hello, I am Toyama Miho. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Akiwara Yuto snapped out of his daze and immediately returned the greeting: "I am Akiwara Yuto. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Just a moment ago, for some reason, his heart had skipped a beat—something that had never happened since he transmigrated into this world.

But after thinking it over carefully, he felt his thoughts were highly inappropriate. If he were to fall for someone just by seeing them once, wouldn't that be nothing more than being led by his desires?

As of now, other than her name, he knew absolutely nothing about her.

"Akiwara-sensei, this is my eldest daughter, Toyama Miho," Toyama Shuichi said with a smile from the side, then patted the little girl on the head, "and this is my youngest daughter, Toyama Miho."

Toyama Shuichi continued: "Miho has already passed the independent admissions for the Faculty of Letters at the University of Tokyo. When the cherry blossoms bloom next April, she will be moving to Tokyo to attend university and settle down."

After saying this, he sighed softly: "Poor me, an old father."

"Dad, don't I still exist?" the 15-year-old girl said with dissatisfaction, wearing a look of disdain.

"Yes, yes, there is still Miho," Toyama Shuichi said, smiling as he stroked her head again.

Hearing this news, Akiwara Yuto could not help but feel a sense of admiration.

The University of Tokyo was the top institution in Japan, equivalent in status to the top universities back home. In his previous life, even if he had worked himself to the bone, his grades would have barely scraped the minimum cutoff for that key university he attended.

If not for the memories of works from his previous life in his mind, the gap between him and her would likely be as vast as heaven and earth.

Just then, Toyama Miho also walked in, knelt on the tatami, and asked in a puzzled tone: "Akiwara-sensei? May I ask if you are the author of *The Devotion of Suspect X*?"

When she first heard the name Akiwara Yuto, she had suspected it might just be a coincidence of names, but upon hearing her father address him as "Sensei," she became 70 or 80 percent certain.

Akiwara Yuto nodded, confirming his identity.

"That's wonderful," Toyama Miho smiled, a smile that made Akiwara freeze for a second once more.

But he immediately heard her continue: "Akiwara-sensei, I am a fan of your books and I really like your writing style. I have written an article myself and hope you can offer some guidance."

After Akiwara nodded, she stood up and left the tea room.

Seeing this, Akiwara Yuto could not help but look at Toyama Shuichi, who was teasing his youngest daughter, with a questioning gaze.

The man had said he would introduce his daughter to him, but now that she was here, he hadn't mentioned anything of the sort—what was the meaning of this?

A look of helplessness appeared on Toyama Shuichi's face.

His eldest daughter, Toyama Miho, had a very independent and strong-willed personality. After rejecting his suggestion that she attend Kyoto University, she had gone off on her own to take the independent entrance exam for the University of Tokyo.

If he were to say anything unnecessary in front of her now, he would likely lose face.

Therefore, he hoped that once Akiwara Yuto saw how excellent his daughter was, he would put in some effort himself...

Following footsteps in the hallway, Toyama Miho returned with a stack of papers, knelt on the tatami, and said politely: "Akiwara-sensei, I hope you will take a look."

Akiwara Yuto hesitated for a moment, but still took the manuscript.

Her demeanor did not look like that of a fan at all; rather, it felt more like a student seeking advice from a teacher.

In other words, if another writer had come today, this Toyama Miho would likely have said she liked their work as well and asked for their guidance.

Never mind, since she had made the request, he would play the part of a tool for once; it wouldn't take much time anyway.

Just then, Toyama Shuichi suddenly coughed, then pulled his youngest daughter, Toyama Miho, away, saying he wanted to see how her homework was coming along. The latter, though unwilling, was dragged away.

For a time, only Akiwara Yuto and Toyama Miho remained in the tea room.

Akiwara Yuto did not overthink it; he picked up the manuscript and felt its thickness, estimating it to be over 30 pages, roughly ten thousand words.

He first looked at the title and found it was called *The Deceased Mother*.

Under Toyama Miho's nervous gaze, he turned past the title page and began to read.

"The story takes place in a slum in Osaka. The police receive a report from a resident of an apartment building saying that a foul odor is coming from the room next door and there is no response to knocking.

Upon receiving the report, the police rush over and have the apartment manager open the door. They immediately discover the corpse of an elderly person who had hanged themselves.

The police do not think much of it; suicide cases among the elderly in Japan are endless, so it is not worth much attention.

Thus, they simply comfort the neighbor who reported it and notify the elderly person's daughter.

However, among these police officers, a rookie feels that something is not quite right.

According to knowledgeable people nearby, the elderly person's daughter would come to visit and care for her parent every so often, so why was she unaware even when the corpse had already begun to emit a stench?

Furthermore, a notebook was found at the scene, but other than the daughter's name, it was basically blank. However, there was a torn page in it.

These two suspicious points kept the rookie officer troubled. But when he reported these matters to his superior, he was told that it was clearly a suicide, so it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble.

The rookie officer, feeling indignant, decides to investigate privately. After a series of shadowing and probing, he finally learns the truth.

Because the daughter could no longer bear the hardship of caring for her parent, she had secretly written 'I hope you commit suicide' in her notebook. Beyond that, she had even placed the rope and other tools in a corner of the kitchen where the parent could find them.

Just like that, so as not to be a burden to her daughter, the parent chose to end their own life and used the rope to do so.

After obtaining evidence and a confession, the rookie officer immediately reports this to his superior and has the daughter arrested.

But just as the prosecution is preparing to indict and sentence the daughter for 'inciting suicide,' the rookie officer learns new information from the hospital.

That is, the day before the suicide, the parent had learned from the hospital that they were suffering from cancer. To avoid adding a burden to the daughter, they had decided to end their life...

And the rope used for the suicide was purchased by the parent themselves, not provided by the daughter.

But by then, the charges had already been confirmed and could not be changed.

The superior warns the rookie officer that if he dares to do anything more, he will be fired or transferred.

Faced with his own interests, this rookie officer, who firmly believed in 'justice,' falls into hesitation...

After reading the entire story, Akiwara Yuto felt something indescribable in his heart.

This rookie officer had insisted on justice at the beginning, even defying his superior, and through constant effort, had sent the person he perceived as the culprit to prison.

But the facts he investigated were all wrong. The true reason for the parent's suicide was likely their own decision, not the result of the daughter's incitement.

But by this point, the prosecution had already made the corresponding judgment based on the suspect's confession provided by the rookie. If the verdict were changed, everyone, including the rookie officer, would have to bear significant responsibility.

In short, this work was less of a mystery and more of a satire.

It contained the perfunctoriness of the Metropolitan Police Department, the impatience of children toward caring for their elderly parents, and the protagonist's hesitation when weighing justice for others against his own interests.

Seeing that Akiwara Yuto had finished reading, Toyama Miho scrutinized him for a few moments, then asked cautiously: "Akiwara-sensei, do you think this work is good enough to debut?"

Akiwara Yuto hesitated for a moment, then gave an objective reply: "It is enough to debut, but I think there are still some problems."

Toyama Miho became serious and asked: "Please offer your guidance, Akiwara-sensei. Do not worry about my feelings."

Akiwara Yuto nodded and began to express his views.

"Regarding the protagonist, his humanity is too abrupt; there is a sense of inconsistency. For example, he can uphold justice at the beginning, but falls into hesitation when his own interests are at stake, so you should add some background for him."

Toyama Miho nodded in confusion, waiting for Akiwara Yuto to continue.

"For instance, since the theme of this work is a mother, you could give this officer a background of having a mother he is very close to who is suffering from a serious illness. At the beginning, he thinks of his own mother, which is why he keeps pursuing the culprit. But in the end, he has to consider the trouble his unemployment might cause his mother, which is why he falls into hesitation. That way, everything becomes very logical."

Toyama Miho listened very intently; after all, although her father was a professor in the Faculty of Letters, he only had a deep understanding of literary theory. His level of actual literary creation was actually limited.

After finishing his critique of the protagonist, Akiwara Yuto spoke about the design of the trick, pointing out that the woman's method of using a diary to induce the mother to commit suicide was too abrupt and should be supplemented with a step-by-step progression. For example, the relationship between mother and daughter had always been good, the mother's reluctance to see her daughter suffer, the mother's own background, and so on.

In this way, the reader would be able to accept this trick of induced suicide in their hearts.

Toyama Miho was completely convinced. She had thought that after much deliberation, this work was foolproof, never expecting so many flaws to be picked out.

It seemed that compared to a well-known author like Akiwara-sensei, she was still far behind. This guidance from him had saved her a lot of effort.

However, was there any way to get him to guide her more?

Toyama Miho hesitated for a moment, then immediately made a decision. She knelt with her knees together, and under Akiwara Yuto's surprised gaze, performed a *dogeza* (prostration).

"Akiwara-sensei, although it is too abrupt, I would like to ask... could you take me on as your disciple?"