Un'yo's mind raced. This high schooler was definitely no ordinary figure.

That phone was military-issue for IW combat officers of at least field rank. Rinji only had one thanks to connections.

Its purpose was wartime communication, able to call in fire support if necessary. Of course, the one Rinji lent Shirogane surely didn't have those functions. But its appearance alone was enough to deceive.

As Un'yo pondered, Shirogane placed the call.

"Hello? President, what's going on over there?"

"How much for one bottle of the drug?"

"Two hundred thousand."

"So expensive…"

"Dollars."

"Ah!?"

Shirogane nearly dropped the phone.

"Does it cost that much to produce?"

"No, just a few hundred yen."

"That's something only a black-hearted company would do!"

"That's the price. Don't worry, the Shinomiyas have plenty of money. They won't mind paying."

"…"

"By the way, President, are you calling me in front of Shinomiya Un'yo?"

"Ah? Mm, yes."

"…Forget it."

Rinji had originally intended to remain hidden in this deal, but Shirogane had now dragged him in.

Not that it really mattered. His name was already on Amano's shareholder list. The Shinomiya family would find it sooner or later, and even if they did, it wouldn't change much.

"I'll head over shortly. You just focus on finishing the deal."

"Ah… alright."

After hanging up, Shirogane looked at the sweating Un'yo. "Um… may I ask what this drug is for?"

He really couldn't understand why Rinji priced it so outrageously.

Un'yo began thinking again.

Was his father's sudden illness not part of their plan? Was this question just an act? No… from his look, he really seemed not to know. Could it be the three of them hadn't coordinated beforehand?

Realizing how murky things were, Un'yo finally said, "My father… suddenly fell ill with a very difficult disease. For now, only your company's drugs can treat it. But he must continue taking them, or his life will still be at risk."

"…"

Shirogane's heart trembled.

Selling life-saving medicine at such a price… it was pure exploitation.

He recalled Rinji mentioning his grudge against the Shinomiyas. Wanting revenge at this chance was understandable.

But still, it was morally wrong. At least, Shirogane himself couldn't do it.

Yet the choice was in his hands.

On one side was Rinji, who had supported him and his family. On the other was his girlfriend's father—and his own conscience.

He could choose to sell at cost, or take the initiative to lower the price.

Shirogane's brow furrowed deeply. The pressure now was heavier than ever.

He didn't want to betray Rinji's trust. But he didn't want to betray his own conscience either.

Yet… from the start, Rinji had never shown much conscience at all.

Are you forcing me to choose, Rinji?

And so, faced with the choice between morality and loyalty, Shirogane made his decision…

"Shinomiya-san, how much do you think is appropriate?"

He chose to throw the question back. Of course, this was only a stalling tactic. No matter what number the other side named, in the end he would still make the choice himself.

But that sentence made Un'yo's heart sink slightly.

'What I think? Is he asking me at what price I'll buy the medicine? Or is he asking how much I value my father? Or is he trying to test my stance?'

Un'yo also had his own calculations. He could more or less guess Rinji's identity. Most likely he was the son of IW's founder. Just that alone meant no one would dare criticize him. Even the Shinomiya family didn't amount to much in front of him.

And the Shirogane before him was clearly no ordinary person either.

Add to that his own sister, who already held a large share of the Shinomiya family's industries, and the struggle for power between siblings was inevitable.

So why not directly side with the one most beneficial to him?

And when the other asked, "how much is appropriate," it was to see his attitude.

Thinking this, he pulled out a check, drew several zeros on it, and handed it to Shirogane.

"This is for two bottles of medicine, please accept it."

"Oh… ah!?"

Shirogane took the check. On it were eight zeros.

A full one hundred million yen, about nine hundred fifty thousand US dollars. That made each bottle about 475,000 dollars.

"This…"

"I'll leave the rest to you, Shirogane-san."

"Oh… wait here, someone will come find you shortly."

Holding the check, Shirogane hurried to the door.

As soon as he opened it, he accidentally bumped into Rinji.

"President?"

Rinji helped him up and asked, "The deal's done?"

"…Yes."

Shirogane gave a subtle nod and handed him the check.

Rinji looked at it and smiled.

"Wow, one hundred million yen. President, you went harder than me, I never noticed that before."

"No… how should I put it… mixed feelings."

That choice had likely drained all of Shirogane's energy, but in the end both justice and duty were preserved.

"President, what's wrong? You look exhausted."

"And whose fault do you think that is?"

"Alright, you go rest first. I'll handle the follow-up."

"Yeah."

Head drooping, Shirogane walked out. Right now he just wanted a good sleep to wash away his fatigue.

Rinji pocketed the check and stepped into the conference room.

The moment he entered, his eyes met Un'yo's.

He had previously met the man using Kaguya's identity, but for Un'yo this was the first time in four years seeing Rinji again.

The corpses strewn about and that bloodstained childish face from back then seemed to reappear before his eyes.

"Takamine…"

"Don't be nervous, sit."

Seeing Un'yo so scared he rose to his feet, Rinji waved a hand for him to sit down.

He made no move to harm him, only walked with cold eyes to the cabinet in the conference room, opened it, and took out a bottle of red wine and two glasses.

"Have a drink, let's talk a bit."