Chapter 21:

Heir to the Empire

Tokyo5: Prosper’s Law


Takeshi Takahara did not look entirely like a fitting heir to the Intraderma empire. Rinako and Kurama looked at each other a moment before looking back at him. Sitting in a gold egg shaped seat before them, swaddled in a brown velvet suit, his hair pointing in all directions as though it were receiving signals from planets all over the cosmos, sat a half shaven man in his early twenties. He looked like a child’s project to make a stuffed doll of a company CEO, with bits of straw and stuffing sticking out everywhere and one of the buttons for eyes hanging off. He was gazing wide eyed at a particular spot on the floor as if his tongue might shoot out and snatch up a cockroach at any moment.

‘Ahh Takahara-san..’ Kurama cleared his throat and stepped forward.

The boy’s eyes skittered wildly around the room, landing on Kurama after several abortive passes.

Kurama bowed slightly. ‘Uh. We have a few questions we’d like to ask you.’

The young man looked for a few moments, each of his eyes seeming to carry different emotions before he sat up straight. ‘I will not!’

Kurama looked up from his bow.

‘I will not sell! Mother! Tell them I will not!’

Lady Takahara came over from behind them and bent over beside her son, taking his hand. ‘Takeshi, these people are here about Natsuki-san. You remember,’ she said, ‘the geist that got in the other night…’

Takeshi was breathing heavily.

She looked nervously at Kurama and Rinako and laughed. ‘I’m sorry.’ She came back across the room. ‘It’s been a lot for him, you know, with his father’s passing and now this.’

The boy’s eyes were searching the room.

Is there a fly in here… ?

Rinako noticed then a few specks of white around his lips. There was a small bottle of tablets on the table behind him.

‘Perhaps if we might be permitted a few moments to speak with him alone. If he is the CEO...’ Kurama glanced up at Takeshi.

Rinako could hardly believe this sequence of words had come from his mouth.

Lady Takahara looked unsure, as though the unexpected outburst of etiquette had almost unseated her resistance. ‘… No… no, I’m afraid…’

The boy stood. ‘Mother, I am now head of the house. I will deal with these negotiations.’

‘Ah-haha…’ she laughed witheringly, then whispered to Takeshi. ‘Taki-waki, don’t you think that mommy ought to—‘

He glared at her. ‘I am CEO!’

She smiled holding up a hand. ‘Yes, of course.’ Then, looking rather worried retreated from the room. They could hear voices outside.

Rinako pressed the huge curved doors shut.

Light from another room to the left bisected the chamber making a glowing rectangle across the stone floor. Kurama looked at Rinako a moment and then to the entrance to the other room. She nodded slightly.

He then smiled. ‘Sooo, where would you like to start negotiations… ?’

‘Name your price.‘ Said Takeshi defiantly.

As they spoke, Rinako slunk around the side of the room pretending to examine the books, then slipped through the crack in the opened door to the other room. It was a large bedroom, a… whatever was above Emperor-sized bed in the center, covered in lilac satin sheets. It was so vast that it seemed to mutate into different rooms wherever you looked, a dining table at the back and a lounge with its chaise-longue along one of the sides. At the far side a row of windows overlooked a Mediterranean style courtyard. She pulled the sheer curtain to one side. Below her, several of the blue eyed servants patrolled in silence.

She let the curtain drop back in place.

Through the crack in the door she could just see Kurama talking to Takeshi who was out of sight. She went to a mahogany cupboard beside the bed where there were a couple more of the bottles of tablets.

Hydrosetaline 255… what the drak is that?

She was about to pull open one of the drawers when she noticed something on the floor.

‘…really and so you’re in charge of all those businesses…’ Kurama’s voice drifted in through the crack in the door.

She crouched down and ran her hand across the wooden parquetry. Scratches, radiating from one of the cupboard’s feet.

‘—no, and I expect there are a lot of people who would challenge your position…’

She bent down so that her head was next to the floor and shone a mini-light under the cupboard, holding it in her mouth. There was a large rectangular patch of the flooring that was markedly cleaner than the surrounding area.

Rinako returned to the central room and was relieved to see Takeshi was fully immersed in conversation. Kurama’s eyes only flitted to her for an instant.

‘… I expect you have a lot of business people come over.’ He said.

She noticed they both had drinks in their hands now.

‘Why, yes.’ Takeshi sipped at his. ‘Only recently—‘ his eyes then glazed over, and a puzzled expression appeared on his face.

The large curved doors swung open and Lady Takahara entered. ‘Please officers.’ She smiled. ‘I think that’s quite enough for today.’

‘… there was something…’ said Takeshi absently.

‘Now Chairman,’ said Lady Takahara. ‘The shareholders are arriving, you really should prepare.’

‘Ahhh… ahhh, yes of course.’ He finished the rest of his drink then bowed to Kurama and Rinako. ‘Gentlemen. I really must go. Business calls. And I really am sorry that I couldn’t accept your offer, Hatoshi-san.’

Kurama waved a hand, his face slightly flushed.

Lady Takahara glanced at the bedroom door in front of which Rinako stood, her hands behind her back.

They bowed to Takeshi before turning to leave. Just before they had gone through the door, Rinako turned back. She could feel Kurama’s gaze on the side of her face.

‘Ahh err Chairman-san?’

Takeshi looked up.

‘I just wanted to say it was a pleasure to meet you. You have the most beautiful chambers here.’ She looked around. ‘You must have had some work done recently as it looks as good as new.’

He smiled a moment. ‘Oh no,’ he said, looking around. ‘This house hasn’t been touched for a long time. It’s all original.’

Rinako smiled and bowed again, then walked from the room, Lady’s Takahara’s eyes following her.