Chapter 192: Return

When Lei Yin woke up, his entire body ached. It had been a long time since he felt this kind of soreness, as if he had overexerted himself during exercise. Last night’s fight had indeed been thrilling.

After freshening up in the bathroom, he saw Amy sleeping soundly like a little pig. He couldn’t help but smile.

At that moment, there was a gentle knock at the door. When he opened it, as expected, Naoko stood there, holding a tray with breakfast.

“Good morning, Lei,” Naoko greeted him with a gentle smile.

In the warm and bright morning light, seeing her smile and greet him filled Lei Yin’s heart with peace.

“Aren’t you eating?” he asked.

“I’ve already eaten,” Naoko replied as she tidied up his bed.

After she finished making the bed, Naoko quietly knelt beside him, watching as he ate his breakfast.

“What time is it now?” Lei Yin asked after finishing his meal.

“About 9:30 in the morning.”

As she prepared to take the dishes away, Lei Yin reached out and stopped her. “Leave that for now. Sit and chat with me.”

Obediently, Naoko sat in his lap.

“Did you enjoy this trip?” he asked.

Resting her head against his chest, Naoko said, “Yes. It’s been so long since I visited anywhere outside Tokyo. It feels wonderful.”

Gently stroking her hair, Lei Yin said, “There were a lot of people this time. Next time, if we get the chance, we’ll go somewhere just the two of us.”

“As long as I’m with you, it doesn’t matter if we go out or not,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist and nestling closer into his embrace.

Breathing in the faint fragrance of her body, Lei Yin felt a wave of emotion rise within him. He couldn’t resist holding her tighter.

After spending a quiet, tender moment together, Lei Yin asked, “How long have we been staying here?”

Naoko thought for a moment. “If I remember correctly, it’s been thirteen days.”

“It’s been that long already. Let’s head back in two more days.”

“Alright. It’s not good to inconvenience others for too long.”

Looking at her rosy lips, Lei Yin couldn’t help lifting her chin and kissing her. Naoko, as always, responded with gentle yet slightly shy affection. For a time, the room returned to tranquility.

That evening, Lei Yin called Bryn outside.

In a secluded area, Lei Yin took out a piece of paper and handed it to Bryn along with a paper bag. “Take this.”

Confused, Bryn accepted the items. “Mr. Gennai, what is this…?”

“The paper contains a prescription. Follow the instructions to buy the medicine and inject it into your brother. Remember, don’t let him taste blood or raw meat again, and don’t let him loose. Keep him tied to the bed. Otherwise, if he runs out and kills someone, it’ll become a huge problem.”

Bryn, overwhelmed with emotion, asked, “Can these medicines really restore my brother to normal?”

Lei Yin shook his head. “Your brother’s genes have already been altered to make him half-human, half-beast. Medicine can’t restore him to normal. These are strong sedatives that should suppress his beastly nature. Kitaba used similar drugs to control his own condition. However, if even these medicines fail to work,” he said, his expression turning serious, “then inject him with ten times the dosage. That way, he can leave this world painlessly.”

Bryn’s eyes reddened. “Is there really no other way?”

“With current medical advancements, it’s impossible to reverse mutated genes. It’s like cancer cells—they can’t be reverted back to normal cells. The best option is to eliminate or remove the diseased tissue. Even if the beastly nature can be suppressed, he may never be able to think like a normal person. What to do in the end is up to you. For him, death might even be a form of relief. There’s some money in the bag; use it to buy the medicine for him.” Having said this, Lei Yin slowly walked away.

Bryn stared blankly at his retreating figure. After a while, he squatted down on the ground and began to cry loudly, like a child.

When Lei Yin returned to the Takeda family residence, Amy was playing with Takeda’s younger cousins, catching fireflies in the yard.

Hearing the innocent laughter of the children, the heavy feeling in Lei Yin’s heart caused by Bryn’s situation seemed to lighten a little.

Sensing something, Amy instinctively turned her head and saw him coming in from outside. She immediately ran over excitedly and hugged him.

“Lei, will you help me catch those glowing bugs?” she asked sweetly, clinging to him.

“Sure, but Naoko has to join us,” Lei Yin said, patting her little head.

At the mention of Naoko, Amy’s lips immediately puffed up in displeasure. “No.”

Lei Yin gently pinched her cheek. “Didn’t you promise me yesterday that you’d get along with her?”

Hearing his words, Amy showed a troubled expression.

Seeing her furrow her brows like an adult, Lei Yin almost couldn’t hold back his laughter.

After thinking for a while, she finally gave in, albeit reluctantly. “Alright, but you have to catch a lot of bugs for me.”

“Deal.” Lei Yin extended his right hand toward her.

With a serious expression, Amy gave his large hand a high five before breaking into a smile again.

Naoko’s gentle personality and beautiful appearance had a universal charm, winning over everyone, young and old. Except for Amy, Takeda’s younger cousins quickly grew fond of this kind and pretty “big sister,” crowding around her to ask for help catching fireflies. Meanwhile, Amy happily stuck to Lei Yin, urging him to catch more. The yard soon became lively with laughter and chatter.

After a while, Takeda and Yoshikawa walked in, each carrying two watermelons.

“Hey, we’ve got watermelons!” Takeda announced, holding one up.

His younger cousins immediately cheered and rushed over.

Lei Yin smiled and said to Naoko, “Sometimes having a bunch of kids around can be a good thing. At least it keeps things lively.”

Naoko smiled and turned to look at the others, but Lei Yin didn’t notice the faint sadness in her eyes.

As they headed toward the side hall with the others, Lei Yin’s phone suddenly rang.

He glanced at the number displayed and deliberately slowed his pace before answering the call.

“I understand. I’ll get in touch with you later.”

After ending the call, Lei Yin wore a thoughtful expression.

No matter where they were, Naoko’s eyes always followed him quietly, so his current expression didn’t escape her notice.

When he caught up to the group, Naoko softly tugged his hand and asked, “Lei, is something wrong?”

Seeing the slightly worried look in her eyes, Lei Yin held her delicate hand and said, “Don’t worry. It’s nothing serious. Don’t overthink it.”

Noticing that he didn’t seem to be merely comforting her, Naoko felt somewhat reassured.

“You always like to worry about everything. Honestly, I don’t know what to do with you,” Lei Yin said as he wrapped an arm around her slim waist and continued walking toward the side hall.

As they walked, Naoko rested her head on his shoulder.

The next day at lunch, Lei Yin said to Takeda, “We’ve stayed here for quite a few days now. It’s about time for us to leave.”

Takeda, who was eating, immediately looked up and asked, “Why are you leaving so soon?”

“It’s not that soon. We’ve been here for almost half a month. I want to go back and check on my mother and the others.”

Takeda asked skeptically, “Are you leaving early because of what happened with Hayama?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. If that were the case, I would’ve left long ago. There’d be no need to wait until now. Naoko and I have already discussed it, and we plan to fly back tomorrow.”

Takeda looked disappointed. “Stay a few more days. There are still so many fun places in Kyoto you haven’t visited yet.”

“Come on, don’t make it sound like I’ll never have a chance to come here again. How about next summer vacation? I’ll stay here until you get tired of me and kick me out. And to return the favor, would you be interested in staying at my place for a while?”

Takeda scoffed. “What’s so great about Tokyo? As soon as school starts, we’ll be back anyway. Why would I suffer that misery early? By the way, have you booked your flight? Yoshikawa and I can take you to the airport.”

“I’ve already booked it. The flight is tomorrow morning.”

When Lei Yin and the others arrived at Haneda Airport, it was already 3 PM.

When Naoko opened the door to their apartment, she saw two girls in the living room in addition to Aiko. One was Murashima Mami, and the other, though unfamiliar, seemed to be Aiko’s university classmate.

“Big sister, you’re back!” Aiko exclaimed excitedly as she stood up from the sofa and walked over when she saw Naoko enter.

Naoko set down her small travel bag and smiled. “We just got off the plane. Hello,” she added, addressing Aiko’s two classmates.

Back in high school, among Naoko’s close friends, only Murashima Mami had attended the same university as Aiko. The others, like Kogure Ryoko and Aikura Ai, had gone to different universities. Despite being separated, the group of girls still frequently gathered to hang out.

Following closely behind Naoko was Lei Yin, who held Amy’s hand in his right and carried a large backpack on his back. The backpack contained most of their luggage, as well as some gifts and souvenirs they had bought the previous night while wandering the streets with Takeda and Yoshikawa.

Seeing Lei Yin, a trace of complexity flickered in Aiko’s eyes.

After putting down the large bag, Lei Yin said to her, “Aiko, long time no see. How have you been?”

Avoiding his gaze, Aiko lowered her head and replied softly, “I’m doing well. How about you?”

“Pretty much the same,” Lei Yin replied before greeting Murashima Mami and the unfamiliar girl.

As she looked at his face, which felt both familiar and slightly different, Aiko’s heart stirred with ripples of emotion.

Aside from the brief encounter at the hospital where her sister had stayed, she hadn’t seen him for nearly half a year. She had only heard that he was now studying at Teikyo University.

After half a year, his facial features had become more defined and mature. If he were to wear a suit, no one would guess he was just a first-year university student.

At this moment, she heard her friend ask him, “Gennai Masashi, is this little girl your sister?”

“She’s not my sister. Her guardian is very busy with work, so I was asked to take care of her temporarily. Amy, come on, say hello to Auntie Mami.”

“Hey, that’s not funny at all,” Murashima Mami shot him a glare.

“Don’t worry, she only understands English.”

“What? She’s not Japanese?” Murashima Mami looked surprised as she glanced at the little girl, whose Asian features were unmistakable.

“It’s a bit complicated,” Lei Yin explained. “In short, her nationality is Swiss, but her grandmother was Korean, so her father is of mixed heritage. Then her father married a Singaporean woman, and Amy was born. That’s why she looks more like an Asian.”

Murashima Mami and the other girl found the little girl increasingly adorable and couldn’t resist the urge to touch her face.

Amy immediately shrank behind Lei Yin.

“She seems really shy,” Murashima Mami commented.

“She used to have autism. Although she’s much better now, she’s still a bit wary of strangers. But once she gets to know someone, she’s fine.”

“Poor thing,” the other girl said, her maternal instincts kicking in upon hearing about Amy’s condition.

Naoko turned to Lei Yin and said, “Amy must be exhausted after such a long flight. I’ll go prepare a room for her. Why don’t you take a seat and rest for a bit?”

“Got it. You go ahead.”

After Naoko left, Aiko couldn’t help but ask, “Is this little girl going to stay here?”

Lei Yin nodded. “I have something to take care of today, so I’d like Amy to stay here for a couple of days. Once I’m back, I’ll take her home.”

“You just got off the plane, and now you’re heading out again?”

“Yes, there’s something I need to handle.”

After saying this, he crouched down and spoke to the little girl, “Hey, kiddo, be good and listen to Naoko while I’m gone. I’ll be back soon to pick you up.”

“Lei…” Amy’s eyes began to redden.

“Don’t cry. I’ll be back very soon. Remember to listen to Naoko, okay?”

Amy nodded and hugged his neck tightly, refusing to let go.

After a while, Naoko came downstairs and said, “Masashi, Amy’s room is ready. You can take her up to rest now.”

“Alright.” Lei Yin picked up the little girl and followed Naoko upstairs.

After they left, Aiko’s classmate asked, “Aiko, who is that guy? His English is excellent.”

Aiko stared blankly at the large backpack he had left on the floor and said, “He’s my sister’s fiancé.”

***

Under the guidance of a man in a black suit, Lei Yin arrived at a small passenger plane.

The man said, “Mr. Gennai, this is the plane prepared for you. It’s fully fueled. Also, Chairwoman Sakurai asked me to let you know that if you need a larger plane, she will be happy to arrange it for you.”

“No need. This size is perfect. Please convey my thanks to Miss Sakurai.”

“I will pass along your message.”

After sitting in the pilot’s seat, Lei Yin carefully examined the buttons and controls around him. Thankfully, it was an older model. Otherwise, given his nearly twenty years of not flying, it would’ve been a real challenge.

Although the takeoff was a bit bumpy at first, the plane eventually glided smoothly along the runway and lifted into the sky.

Watching from below, the man finally breathed a sigh of relief.

If anything happened to that person, he would be in serious trouble.