RBCT Chapter 79 Bloodshed
Chapter 79 Bloodshed
Having suffered a great deal of anger at Rito's place, Rena Nounen's manager returned home increasingly fearful, tossing and turning all night without sleeping. While he was the type of person who never looked for faults within himself, he was quick to judge others by his own standards. If someone, even a minor character, repeatedly displeased him, he certainly wouldn't let them off the hook. Overwhelmed by fear, he got up early the next morning and proactively went to President Honma Ken's office, preemptively and skillfully recounting the events of the previous day.
In his version, yesterday's story goes like this: Rena Nounen was repeatedly late, had a terrible attitude, and was disobedient during filming. Out of a sense of responsibility to the agency, he severely criticized her. It just so happened that Rito Kubo was visiting the set, and because he was too loud, he angered Kubo. Kubo flew into a rage, reprimanding him in front of the entire crew, and explicitly expressing his "extreme disappointment" with Lespros' artist management style—and this disappointment was entirely due to Rena Nounen's unprofessionalism.
"It's all because I was too strict with him that I angered President Kubo. If he has any complaints about Lespros because of this, I will definitely go to apologize in person." The manager choked up, wiping away imaginary tears. "I admit that I didn't manage Nounen well. Please punish me, President."
Kenjiro Honma sat behind his large president's desk, listening silently to all the veteran employees' statements. His fingers tapped lightly on the smooth surface of the desk, once, twice, three times, at a steady, unhurried rhythm.
Frankly, he didn't believe a word of this seasoned veteran's nonsense. As a powerful president who had navigated the entertainment industry for decades, founded Lespros, and launched the career of Aragaki Yui, one of their four pillars, if he didn't even know who his long-time employee was, there was only one possibility: he was suffering from dementia. Nounen might be a bit delicate and not very rebellious, but he wasn't that bad. However, he neither cared nor cared about the truth. Most importantly, he believed the other man was neither brave nor stupid enough to tell him something completely fabricated. Therefore, it was a fact that Kubo Rihito had already formed a negative impression of his agency, and how that impression came about was irrelevant. What mattered was how to clear up this misunderstanding and prevent it from affecting future collaborations between the two agencies.
He hesitated for a moment, then spoke.
"What's your impression of Nounen, Mr. Kubo?"
"Uh—" The agent's face stiffened, realizing that his trick had been completely seen through, and he let out a hoarse, unpleasant cry like a duck being choked.
"Is it good or bad?" Honma Ken glared at him impatiently.
Seeing the violent glare in his boss's eyes, the manager was immediately stunned and shuddered. He knew his boss's temper well. After all, as an agency with a strong personal touch, Lespros was known for its harsh management style. The probability that the president, Kenji Honma, was a nice guy was probably not zero, but it was about the same as an asteroid hitting the earth tomorrow. He hurriedly recalled the scene from yesterday, but he couldn't remember Kubo Rito's attitude towards Nounen. However, since he had protected him several times, he must be alright.
"It should be good," he honestly replied.
"I understand. Go back and rest for a few days, and don't show up at Nengnian's place for now. I'll handle the rest."
The agent, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, bowed repeatedly and left the office. The moment the door closed behind him, he breathed a sigh of relief, feeling as if he had been reborn.
In his office, Kenji Honma leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and pondered for a long time. He always believed in the life motto that crisis is opportunity. When his subordinates caused trouble, his first thought was not how to hold them accountable, but what he could gain from it. However, he also knew that if he tried to snatch chestnuts from the fire, he might get burned. After thinking hard for a long time, he finally decided to find a middleman to sound out Rito Kubo's opinion.
He found a producer with considerable connections in the industry, and coincidentally, they bumped into Rihito at a dinner party. At his request, the producer casually brought up Rena Nounen's matter, carefully expressing his apologies.
Rito, who was about to leave, frowned slightly upon hearing this topic. He didn't have much feeling for Rena Nounen, but the memory of the girl's helpless state that day made him feel a little sorry for her. However, he didn't want to interfere too much in Lespros's family affairs, nor did he want his statement to be misunderstood, so he carefully chose his words and said this:
"I didn't take that matter to heart. I think Rena Nounen has a lot of potential. I hope Lespros can nurture her well and not waste her talent."
To be fair, there's nothing wrong with that statement. However, in the subtle and ambiguous context of the Japanese entertainment industry, a young, wealthy, and not-so-good-reputed company president saying he "has high hopes" for a rising young actress inevitably carries an extra layer of meaning for those with ulterior motives.
Kenjiro Honma sensed his opportunity had arrived.
He convened a private meeting with several trusted confidants overnight and finally reached a consensus: Kubo Rihito had his eye on Nonen. Nonen wasn't the type the agency wanted to push; she had too many ideas, and her looks weren't the type that the higher-ups favored. Her selection as the female lead in the morning drama was completely beyond their expectations. Trading her for an opportunity to befriend the Kubo family was entirely worthwhile—the Kubo family's influence in the entertainment industry and even the entire business world far surpassed Lespros's. If they could use this opportunity to establish a connection, it would be a huge boon for the agency.
Whether Rena Nounen is willing or not is not within his consideration.
The next day, Rena Nounen discovered that everything had changed.
Her dressing room was moved from one end of the corridor to the most secluded end. The variety show originally scheduled for the promotional period was temporarily canceled. Although her manager did not return for the time being, a series of suggestive statements were instead delivered.
She was brought before Kenji Honma. The president spoke to her in a tone she had never heard before, almost amiably: "Rena, you're a smart girl. I don't need to spell things out for you. Take the initiative with President Kubo. It'll be good for you and good for the agency. You should 'work harder' and not let everyone down."
Rena Nounen clutched the hem of her dress, head bowed, saying nothing. Of course, she knew what "taking the initiative" meant. She wasn't hearing about the rules of this industry for the first time. But she never imagined it would happen to her.
But that was certainly not the future she wanted. She came to Tokyo because she wanted to act, because watching the actresses glittering on TV in her small house back home planted a dream in her heart. She was only twenty years old and didn't want that kind of future.
She refused, the first time, the second time, and the third time.
Then everything became extremely difficult. After each refusal, someone would come to talk to her. First, they would try to persuade her with kind words, then they would make veiled threats—"Do you know how long your contract has left?" "Do you know how much resources the agency has spent to develop you?" "Do you think that role in the morning drama came about?" "If you don't take this role, you will never get another role." The language became more and more direct, the tone more and more impatient, and finally all pretense was torn away, turning into naked pressure.
Rena Nounen's sleep began to get shorter and shorter. She was afraid to turn off the lights, afraid to look at her phone, and afraid to answer any calls. When she went to film, the crew noticed that she had lost weight, and her once-fitting costumes now looked loose and baggy.
The director asked her if she was sick, and she shook her head and said she was fine. Then she turned around to touch up her makeup, but after taking only a few steps, she lost her footing and fell in the dressing room.
One day, during the filming of a morning drama, Rena Nounen suddenly stopped. She had already positioned herself, the camera was pointed at her, the supporting actor opposite her had finished her lines, and it was her turn to take over. But she just stood there, motionless and silent, her eyes empty like two drained wells.
The set fell silent. The director called "cut" several times, but she didn't respond. After being picked up by her agent, she became completely unreachable. The crew was furious, but Nonen's agent said he couldn't contact her either. Helpless, the production had to be suspended.
The news of the boycott quickly reached Kubo Rito's ears. Although he didn't pay much attention to Nounen Rena, he was still uneasy thinking about the scene at the beach that day, so he asked Arimura Kasumi to inquire about her.
Kasumi Arimura returned quickly, but when she came back, there was no smile on her face. She deliberately kept a distance from him, did not speak, and just stared at him with an obscure gaze.
"What's wrong? Does this have anything to do with me?" Li Ren asked, completely bewildered.
Kasumi Arimura didn't answer. She just looked at him with a gaze Rito had never seen before, a gaze filled with doubt, anger, and a deeply hidden hurt. She recounted what she had learned, word by word—that after Rena Nounen was brought back by Lespros, she had been under immense pressure every day, and the rumor was that it was because she had caught the eye of a powerful figure and refused to submit, which led to her current predicament.
"Do you know why she became like this?" Kasumi Arimura asked, her voice eerily calm. "You must know it yourself, Rito Kubo."
"No, you don't actually think that important person is me, do you?"
Rito was both amused and exasperated. Putting aside whether he had feelings for Nonen or not, even if he did, with his abilities, he couldn't possibly have made such a big fuss. Wasn't this just providing material for Bunshun? How could he be so stupid?
The two stared at each other for a few seconds, and Kasumi Arimura's eyes gradually became more suspicious. Indeed, although they hadn't known each other for very long, thinking about how they got along, her new boss didn't seem like the type to play these games. He wasn't some old geezer. If he really liked Nounen, he would have plenty of opportunities to interact with him normally. Why resort to coercion and bribery?
"But Hashimoto Ai said..."
"What did she say?"
"She said she asked Nonen, and Nonen said that you colluded with her president, Honma Ken, to force her to accept unspoken rules, and even threatened her with a blacklist and breach of contract penalties."
After hearing this, Li Ren's face turned gloomy, and he didn't raise his head for a full half minute.
"Damn it, Kenji Honma is such a bastard."
Suddenly, he slammed his hand on the table, cursing angrily, "That bastard must have taken money from Wen Chun to deliberately frame me, right? When did I ever let him do this? Just you wait, I'm going to his house right now to demand an explanation!"
"Wait, Hashimoto messaged me, wanting me to go see Nounen." Seeing his angry expression, Arimura Kasumi had already believed most of it and was planning to go to Lespros with him, but just then, a message appeared on her phone. She glanced at it, her expression changed drastically, and she immediately stopped him.
"Really? Then let's go together. It'll be good for me to explain to Neng Nian."
Liren was overjoyed upon hearing this, grabbed her hand, and rushed out of the office.
The two arrived at the building where Hashimoto Ai lived. When Hashimoto Ai opened the door and saw Rito, her expression was complicated. She had already received Rito's solemn assurance from Arimura, and there must be some misunderstanding. After a slight hesitation, she decided to help.
"Neng Nian has been locking herself in the apartment I lent her these past few days. She won't answer my calls or open the door, but she should be inside. You can go."
She gave them the spare key to the apartment; she had work to do and needed to leave soon, so she had to ask someone else for help.
The apartment she mentioned wasn't far from here, about a ten-minute walk. Neither Rito nor Arimura spoke on the way, each contemplating what to say when they met Nounen. Upon reaching the apartment door, Arimura Kasumi knocked. No one answered. She knocked several more times and waited a few more minutes, but the inside remained deathly silent.
Just as they were at their wits' end, the elevator doors opened at the end of the corridor. Hashimoto Ai ran over, panting, clutching a bunch of keys in her hand.
"I guessed she wouldn't open the door for you, so I borrowed the neighbor's key too. I saw from downstairs that the balcony door wasn't locked, so we should be able to climb over from there."
As she spoke, she handed the key to Rito, letting him decide whether or not to use it. Rito took it without hesitation, inserted it into the door of the next room, and the lock clicked open.
Following the route directed by Ai Hashimoto, he climbed over the connecting balconies and entered the apartment where Nounen lived.
The living room was empty, the curtains were drawn tightly, and there was an indescribable stuffy smell in the air.
Rito tentatively called Nonen's name, but for some reason, he suddenly felt a little dizzy. He stopped at the end of the corridor and pushed open the half-closed bedroom door. The moment the door opened, the smell became even stronger. He saw several unopened cardboard boxes piled on the floor, with an iron basin on top. The charcoal in the basin was crackling softly, and bluish-white smoke swirled and rose in the dim light, mixed with the pungent smell of burning plastic, pouring out from the crack in the door and filling the entire room.
"Arimura—call emergency services immediately!"
He stopped mid-sentence. A woman suddenly stood up from the corner.
Rena Nounen held a ceramic flowerpot that had been resting on the edge of the table, its surface decorated with a field pattern. Instead of gripping the bottom, she pressed down on the belly of the pot, slamming it to the ground with all her might. The sound of shattering ceramic was sharp and piercing; shards grazed his cheek, leaving a faint red welt, but Rito paid no heed. Rena Nounen had already picked up the sharpest piece from the shards and held it to her throat. She trembled violently, as if possessed, and with a flick of her wrist, hurled the broken pieces at him.
"No, Neng Nian, it's not what you think—" he shouted, but only saw the girl rushing straight towards him. It turned out that the porcelain shard was just a cover. Suddenly, there was a tremor in the sleeve of her other hand, and the sharp metal blade reflected a terrifying cold light in the dim room.
Rito dodged to the side, intending to grab Nonen's wrist, but the ceramic shards he stepped on caused him to lose his balance, his body swaying to the side. The sharp fruit knife in the girl's hand sliced across his left forearm. A cold touch brought initial shock, followed by a brief surge of heat and then a sharp pain. Crimson blood seeped from the edge of the cut, quickly soaking the sleeve of his white shirt.
"Damn, no wonder the electronic Guanyin Bodhisattva said I'm incompatible with the knife."
Enraged, Li Ren cursed loudly, slapped the fruit knife out of her hand, and pounced on her, pinning her to the ground.