In Tokyo: They are heavily dependent on me

Chapter 1. No money? The only option left is... to sell the ramen shop.

"elder brother."

"I absolutely will not allow you to sell the ramen shop that Mother left behind!"

At the dinner table, Hoshino Rin braced her hands on the table and looked at her older brother, who was not related to her by blood, sitting opposite her.

Her expression was indifferent, the paper cup in her hand was twisted into a ball, and the air around her smelled of gunpowder.

This is the third time the older brother has mentioned selling the ramen shop left by their mother.

In front of her lay a paper contract that could serve a legal purpose. If it weren't for the female lawyer in a suit sitting next to her, she would have loved to cut it to shreds with scissors or burn it to ashes with a lighter and flush it down the toilet.

"Rin, you know we're in a tough spot right now, we're really short on money. If we don't sell the ramen shop our mother left us, we might be..."

"Shut up!"

Upon hearing her brother mention the words "lack of money," Hoshino Rin suppressed the anger rising within her and struggled to control the urge to punch him in the face.

The female lawyer standing nearby watched the two arguing, stood up, bowed to them, and said, "Excuse me, I'll wait outside for a moment."

The noren curtain bearing the name "Hoshinoya Ramen" was lifted, obscuring the lawyer's figure.

Rin gritted her teeth and tilted her head back slightly.

Her gaze lingered on her older brother, Hoshino Kaoru, who was about a head taller than her.

"Do you know how tiring it is for me to make ramen every day? You're the older brother, you should be taking responsibility for taking care of your younger sister, but you're always out playing until late and now you have the nerve to tell your sister you're short of money?"

"Rin... listen to me, I have my reasons."

"Difficulties? Hmph, yes, brother has his difficulties."

Rin took out her phone, found the photos in her album, and showed the screen to her brother.

It was a luxuriously decorated café, and through the glass, Hoshino Kaoru sat in her seat with a smile on her face.

Sitting in front of him was a girl with a dignified appearance, and the two seemed to be very close.

She flipped to the next photo.

It's her brother again, but this time the photo was taken at a dessert shop that sells parfaits, where he's feeding another girl a strawberry parfait.

Family restaurants, playgrounds, department stores...

The girl in each photo is different.

Among them were a high school girl who looked to be about the same age as her, a wealthy middle-aged woman who seemed quite mature and like a housewife, and a hot girl wearing revealing low-cut clothes who walked hand in hand with him intimately.

"I don't care how chaotic my brother's private life is, or how many women he's cheating on, but the ramen shop is my only bottom line. If you're planning to sell it and waste the money on these sluts, I absolutely will not allow that!"

"You knew all of this...?"

Hoshino Kaoru never expected that her usually obedient younger sister would send a private investigator to follow her.

He looked down at the paper contract in front of him, his eyebrows furrowed.

This marks his tenth year in this world with his new identity.

He was adopted by a middle-aged couple who were unable to have children a long time ago. Later, for some unknown reason, the woman suddenly became pregnant, and he inexplicably became the older brother.

They thought the family of four would live happily ever after, but one day, the mother was diagnosed with a heart-related disease, and all the family's money was sold off, leaving only this old ramen shop.

"It's all because of you! You jinx! If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have become so unlucky!"

He could never forget that rainy night when his father pointed at him and kept hurling insults at him. No matter how much he tried to dissuade him, his father eventually left the family.

Unable to withstand such intense work, his mother passed away soon after, leaving behind a mountain of debts that amounted to an astronomical sum for him.

In the end, he was left to live with his sister, who was not related to him by blood.

With a ramen shop like this, one can certainly live a worry-free life.

Most of the debt has been paid off, and life is about to get back on track.

However, while sorting through the letters left by her mother, Kaoru unexpectedly discovered that her younger sister also suffered from the same heart disease as her, and would be in danger of death if she did not receive a heart transplant.

In Japan, a heart transplant from a regular hospital costs 20 million yen, but he found out that a heart could be obtained for only 5 million yen on the black market.

Nevertheless, it was still a huge sum of money for him.

In order to raise the five million needed for the surgery, he was forced to become a male escort, a lucrative profession where he could earn a lot of money simply by having customers spend money on him.

In less than a year, Hoshino Kaoru raised five million yen thanks to her excellent looks and various skills.

He thought everything would go smoothly, but he never expected that after he paid the money, the other party would completely disappear without a trace.

He realized he had been scammed, but it was too late.

To avoid worrying his sister too much, he kept the matter a secret, planning to tell her only after he had raised the money needed for her surgery.

"No matter how my brother explains, I will not sell this ramen shop! It holds memories for my mother and me, and I will not sell it no matter what!"

Seeing his silence, Rin reiterated her stance in a firm tone.

As siblings who have lived together for over ten years, Hoshino Kaoru knows his sister's personality very well.

Stubborn and obstinate, once they've made up their minds about something, they won't easily change their minds.

Once she's made up her mind about something, no one can change it.

"No matter what my brother says, I won't change my mind!"

The sound of someone going upstairs could be heard, followed by the bedroom door being slammed shut.

Feeling a bit down, Hoshino Kaoru pulled back the noren curtain, intending to go outside for some fresh air.

My sister's condition is more serious than my mother's. If she doesn't receive a heart transplant before she turns twenty, there may be no chance of a cure.

There are still three years until my sister turns twenty.

Let's think of another way; we still have three years.

Even if he doesn't sell the ramen shop... he can still please those rich, neglected women.

He was confident that, with his outstanding looks, he could earn ten million within a year.

In this way, my sister's heart can be saved in just two years.

Bathed in the warm glow of the overflowing lights, Hoshino Kaoru rubbed his forehead, his mind filled with images of himself with those heavily made-up middle-aged women.

He knew very well that doing this kind of thing was not honorable, and if it were exposed by the male escort club, his life would be completely over when faced with a barrage of news.

However, there is no other way to earn 20 million in three years.

"Is there really no other way...?"

......

However, his thoughts immediately changed when he noticed a high school girl in uniform crouching under a nearby telephone pole.

No, there is another way.

How to earn 20 million.