After the first day of training under Mei Mei, both Maki and Mai looked as though they had been dragged through war.
Maki's hair was messy, sweat clung to her skin, and there was dirt streaked across her arms and cheek. Yet despite that, her eyes still burned with stubborn fire. She was the type to collapse only after deciding she had reached the finish line.
Mai, on the other hand, looked deeply offended by existence itself. Her steps were unsteady, her shoulders slumped, and she kept glaring back at Mei Mei every few seconds like she wanted revenge but lacked the strength to attempt it.
"You monster…" Mai muttered weakly.
Mei Mei only smiled pleasantly. "Thank you."
I nearly laughed.
Eventually, after throwing one last hateful glance over her shoulder, Mai followed Maki back toward the clan estate. Maki didn't complain aloud, but I noticed the way she rolled her shoulders and adjusted her grip on the naginata. Even exhausted, she was already replaying the session in her head.
When they disappeared beyond the trees, silence returned to the clearing.
Mei Mei brushed a strand of silver hair behind her ear and exhaled lightly, as though she had merely finished a casual walk.
"They are both untalented, especially Mai" she said matter-of-factly. "They'll hit their limits sooner rather than later."
I nodded. "I know."
There was no point pretending otherwise. In this world, talent was often less about effort and more about what absurd rules the cursed energy system decided to impose on your birth. Twins like Maki and Mai were treated as one existence in some twisted metaphysical sense. Because of that, neither could fully bloom while the other remained as they were.
Two people. One potential. A cursed equation from birth.
Mei Mei glanced at me sideways. "Then why spend money on them?"
Her voice remained neutral, but I knew that tone. She wasn't asking emotionally. She was asking economically.
"They are inefficient investments. Poor returns. High maintenance. Emotional liabilities." She smiled faintly. "By every sensible metric, they are a waste."
I looked toward the direction the twins had left.
"Just because."
She blinked once.
That answer genuinely surprised her more than if I had given some secret strategic explanation.
"Just because?" she repeated.
"I can't justify everything with numbers," I said as I shrugged my shoulder "Sometimes you do something because you want to."
Mei Mei crossed her arms. "Dangerous and Useless philosophy."
"Necessary philosophy."
I crouched down and picked up a fallen twig, snapping it idly between my fingers.
"Money is a means to an end, Mei. Not the way of life."
She laughed at that—an amused, genuine laugh that echoed softly through the trees.
"Money is the way of life," she replied. "There is nothing more honest than money. It reveals desire, fear, loyalty, betrayal, priorities. People lie. Money doesn't."
I smiled. She wasn't entirely wrong.
So many people who spoke of honor sold themselves cheap. Others who claimed love abandoned it for comfort. Currency had a cruel way of exposing what mattered most.
Still—
"Do you trust anyone, Mei?" I asked.
She shrugged elegantly.
"I trust money."
"Good."
That answer came from me instantly. She raised an eyebrow.
"Never trust anyone," I continued. "If you do, then one day you'll learn there are things even money can't put a price on."
This time she didn't laugh. Because I hadn't said it like a joke, their was no sarcasm either just the cold truth of how world work if you have big ambitions.
My downfall in another life had not come from poverty, competition, or bad luck. It came from trusting the wrong people. Loving the wrong people. Believing that loyalty existed simply because I had offered mine first.
Because of that, I lost my ambition.My future. Everything I had built.
I had money but I couldn't buy their truth or loyalty or love. It okay to chase money but In return don't ask for anything genuine. Since I am a failure maybe my point of view can also be wrong.
For the first time since meeting her, Mei Mei studied me unlike how she looked at me in the beginning. There was curiosity there now. Not enough to ask deeper questions—but enough to notice there was weight behind the words.
Then, as expected, she returned to familiar ground.
"Well," she said lightly, brushing dust from her sleeve, "with today's emotional lecture concluded…"
She extended her hand.
"My payment."
I stared at her for a moment, then burst into laughter. "You really don't waste time."
"Time is money."
"Of course it is."
I reached into my robe and handed over the agreed amount. She counted it with practiced speed, then gave a satisfied nod.
"Pleasure doing business with you, Naoya-san."
"You nearly killed two children today."
"I improved two children today," she corrected smoothly then she turned and began walking away through the trees.
Without looking back, she added—
"And for the record… 'just because' is a terrible investment strategy."
~~~
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