Chapter 21 – Don’t rely on People’s Opinions

Third person POV

 But then, as everything is about to take a turn for the worse, Valentino finally spoke up, "Enough!" Everyone in the derelick warehouse then looked at him upon hearing that. 

 "Why would you rely on people's opinions to build your identity?" he asked Kuchisake-Onna directly while being cold. 

He then walked towards her. "Why not relying on your own opinions to build your own identity?" 

Now seeing a chance to rescue, Akira and Hachi went around the female entity to untie the two office workers, who had been stuck being tied up for days now. 

 "Thank you so much, kid," one of the men said to one of the youngsters, before getting up and dusts his clothes. 

The other man then wants him to get out of the warehouse with him, but he and that man were stopped by Akira and Hachi, who then told them to stay just in case Kuchisake-Onna would break her attention on Valentino and attack them. 

But, back at Kuchisake-Onna, Valentino said to her, "Look, I'm like you. I'm a half-German, half-Italian who was framed by my former coworker and manager and had to transfer here in Japan. At first, I was ostracized by their lies, but now, I had accepted my new life and moved on. I don't rely on their opinions to build my identity after I lost that place in Italy, but rather, I build it myself here in Japan. Relying on other people's opinions to build your identity is a fragile thing to do to yourself." 

Akira, Hachi, and the two men are watching this with wonder and astonishment. 

 "That's why," Valentino continued his saying, "you should go and create your own identity yourself, based on facts about you." 

Because of his statement, Kuchisake-Onna dropped her bloody scissors and fell on her knees in relenting and repenting, regretting what she had been doing for years. 

She then shed tears of sadness as a result. 

 "Okay, I'll build my own identity then," she spoke up. 

 "Good, now apologize to those victims," Valentino told her while redirecting her to the two men with Akira and Hachi. 

She did so, and apologized to the two men and even to the Akira and Hachi with a bow while still on her knees. 

 "It's okay," one of the men responded. 

 "Yeah, no hard feelings at all," the other added. 

 "That's okay, too, Kuchisake-Onna," Akira happily replied back. 

Now being forgiven by them, Kuchisake-Onna became happy and although she was free to move on to the realm of the supernatural as a happy, free spirit, she decided to remain and do one thing to Valentino. 

 Soon after that, with the two men now safe and sound and reunited with their loved ones, Masashi declared their case as missing perons closed and solved. At the same time, while having some ice cream with Akira and Hachi as a celebration of their first case being solved, Valentino expressed to Akira how doubtful he was to him and his intelligence. 

 "That's okay, same goes to me," responded Akira back. "I sometimes doubted my intelligence. That one is better than bragging about it." 

 "I see. That's nice."