Scene 13.

"Adoption."

[Domino City, Japan. Friday. 12/21/1990. Morning. Hongo Orphanage, Dining Room].

"... So, what do you say, Hotaru? Will you go with Mrs. Fuchi? Think it over carefully, this could very well be your last chance to be...!" Mrs. Koizumi exclaimed, looking me directly in the eyes. She seemed quite agitated, concerned about my decision.

However, her phrasing was immediately interrupted by Mrs. Fuchi's raised hand.

"Please, Makoto, don't pressure the boy like that. I don't want to cause friction between us. No. Frankly, this isn't a decision that should be rushed. Hotaru, I'll be back on Sunday. Um, I hope by then you'll have a definitive answer for me. As I mentioned before, I'm very interested in adopting. You especially meet the requirements I have in mind. You're intelligent, focused, disciplined, and above all, versatile, something essential in business." Mrs. Fuchi offered while taking a small sip of her tea. "Um, the tea was delicious as always, dear Makoto. Hehe. But enough with the compliments." She added with a chuckle.

After finishing her drink, Mrs. Fuchi stood up. "I think it's time for me to leave," she said, her usual stoic expression returning.

Mrs. Koizumi followed suit not long after. "I'll walk you to the door," she offered.

As for me, I remained seated, systematically contemplating the woman in front of me. "Hmm."

Certainly, Mrs. Fuchi emitted a strange sense of authority. A regular person would say that such a feeling came from Mrs. Fuchi's high status in society; after all, she was a quite successful businesswoman nowadays. Others might attribute it to the ways she displayed her wealth, whether through extravagant necklaces, expensive earrings, or clothing from well-known brands. I had encountered many people like that in my previous life. As a lawyer, big shots like the one in front of me were not uncommon in my daily life, so I was quite used to dealing with them.

Still deep in thought, I nodded towards the woman in question. "I will, Mrs. Fuchi, I will. Goodbye, and have a nice day." A well-practiced fake smile painted my lips along with my response.

Mrs. Fuchi gave a slight smile in my direction and then headed towards the exit of the dining room. "The same to you, young man, the same to you," she repeated as she crossed the threshold of the door.

Mrs. Koizumi followed her, not without giving me a somewhat odd look, as if negatively judging the way I had behaved earlier. "We'll talk later, Hotaru. You can be sure of that. Humph!" She scolded me under her breath.

Naturally, I ignored her. After all, the ultimate decision in this charade was mine and mine alone. "Heh-heh." I smiled faintly to feign guilt.

The two women left the dining room not long after.

I slowly got up, collected the dishes from the table, and then made my way to the kitchen. It was my turn to do the dishes according to the chores schedule.

On another note. "This is unexpected, for sure." I murmured to myself, lost in my thoughts.

In the short time I had lived this life, I couldn't have imagined a development like this.

"Honestly. What are the odds of something like this happening?" I pondered with a long sigh.

They were definitely very slim, mainly considering that I was a teenager. No one in their right mind would want to adopt a teenager. They came with too many issues. Quirks, rebellious behavior, stealing, lying, cheating, among many other negative aspects to consider. And while the previous owner of this body might have been the exception, it was quite suspicious that someone from the upper echelons would take an interest in him overnight, instead of, say, a small child who was easier to mold. There were many such children in the orphanage, more than twenty, in fact.

Mrs. Fuchi was behaving in a really suspicious manner. No one was that charitable, especially not someone with a business background. Sanctimony didn't exist in that circle.

Upon reaching the kitchen, I placed the dishes in the sink and turned on the tap to rinse them.

"Hmm. There's definitely something fishy going on here. What does that person want from me?" I wondered with a clouded expression.

"But anyway." I sighed, shaking my head.

I couldn't afford to waste time on baseless assumptions.

Consequently, I continued washing the dishes.

Simultaneously, my mind drifted to recent memories.

To my priorities. Priorities related to the Monster Duel, naturally.

Thanks to my preparations for the competition, I had managed to secure the top spot in my participant group.

Now, I just had to wait until next weekend to decide who the district's representative would be among the four winners from the groups that participated in District 4.

Patiently, I dried my hands on a towel. There was nothing left to wash.

Subsequently, I set about placing the dishes in their respective places.

"Hmm. As I suspected from the beginning, I'll end up facing one of those three brats in the end. God, what a drag." I sighed again, stressed.

Kotsuzuka, Satake, and Takaido had been distributed among the other three groups of the district at the start of the competition. Two of them, Kotsuzuka and Satake, had managed to make it to the semi-finals, while Takaido had been eliminated by Kotsuzuka in the initial stages of the tournament within the participants of the third group.

I already knew that this Saturday I would be facing Kotsuzuka.

"Oh, but if it isn't Hotaru. I was wondering where you were hiding. So, you were here in the kitchen after all," I heard a quite familiar voice behind me, a truly unpleasant voice.

I quickly identified the person. 'Speak of the devil.' I sarcastically thought. By now, I was practically immune to his appearing behind me.

I turned around to face him. "Kotsuzuka," I greeted, nodding in his direction.

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To be continued...