While Michihiko Okaya and his crew were enjoying a vacation at an upscale hotel in Karuizawa, over on the other side of town...

As for Okaya’s ex-wife, Misae Nagano.

Misae was holed up in a net cafe. "Ugh..."

With a groan, she pushed herself upright from the sleeping bag.

The first thing that hit her was an intense chill. "Freezing... damn it."

The AC in this internet café was cranked to max.

In the middle of all that cold, Misae had piled up multiple layers of the complimentary loaner blankets, using them as a shield against the biting temperature. "Absolute nightmare..."

She was staying in the flat-sheet area of the net cafe.

It allowed her to lie down, but she had to curl up into a ball just to sleep.

Back when she was married, she’d claimed she couldn't sleep without a high-end bed and forced Okaya to buy an expensive one...

Yet now, Misae was stuck making do with this flat sheet. There was no other option. Simply because she had no money. "...Time for a shower."

Misae shuffled out of her pod, sliding the door open.

There were multiple browsing areas lined up, just like this one.

Private rooms existed too, but since they were more expensive, she had no choice but to use a flat sheet.

Honestly, the security couldn't be called perfect.

There was no roof, the walls were thin, and you could normally hear the person next to you speaking. "……"

Where she headed next was the shower room.

In recent net cafes, showers are available for free everywhere.

With towel rentals and decent amenities, it was a huge help for Misa, who had no money.

Just then, a happy-looking couple walked by from the front. "Which one do you like~?"

"The manga adaptation of Digital Monster is super fun"

"Oh! I'm gonna read it too!" "Then let's read together~"

Feeling the happy aura emanating from the couple, a dark emotion swept through Misa's heart.

Clicking her tongue in annoyance ("Tch"), Misa slipped past the woman's side.

Thud! She deliberately bumped into him, made a face of disgust, and brushed past.

"Geez, look at that hag..."

"Drop it, Kurose. She's an internet café refugee. Best not to get mixed up in this..."

Kashou...! Blood rushed to Misae's head.

Internet café refugee. It was the last thing she ever wanted to be called.

"Hey, you—! Who do you think you're calling an internet café refugee?!"

Misae raised her voice and lunged at the couple, attacking them verbally.

The couple flinched in fear, but quickly turned to glare at her with contempt.

"Oh, we all know you're an internet café refugee, hag."

"When did you last wash those clothes, honestly? You stink."

For a woman like Misae, having her odor pointed out was pure humiliation.

"S-stop it! That's defamation! I'm suing youuuuuu!"

Squealing in protest, she was interrupted at that very moment.
"Customer."
"What? What do you want!"

A staff member, who had heard the commotion, arrived at Misae’s side.
"Is everything alright?"

"This old hag started picking a fight and causing a scene out of nowhere. It’s really annoying?"

"Hah...!? What was that! You’re the ones who’ve been mocking us!" It was true that they had been making fun of her.

However, it was Misae who had made the scene so loud.

"Sir/Ma'am, I'm sorry, but could you please leave?"

Misae’s face went pale.

"W-why! We paid for the food!"

"This is how many times now? How many warnings have you received?"

The staff member looked at Misae with disdain.

That’s right, this wasn’t the first or second time there was such a commotion.

Right now, Misae was consumed by an unbearable jealousy toward every happy person who wasn’t her.

She’d watched couples and families with kids coming into the net cafe, and she’d thrown a fit several times.

Because of that, she had been warned on more than one occasion. "Please leave immediately."

"I can't! It's... I just..."

There was no one to shelter her, nothing she could rely on, and most of all, she had no money.

"Just get out. I'm calling the police."

Misae’s mind flashed back to a trauma from her past.

Having been caught once, Misae did not want to feel that humiliation ever again.

Her father had raged at her like fire, and her mother had looked at her with pure contempt...

She didn't want to go through something like that again...

"I get it! I'll leave, okay?!" ★ Late at night.

Kicked out of the net cafe, Misae headed for the next one. But...

"What's wrong with them! Why won't anyone let me in!"

She is currently sitting on a park bench.

For some reason, Misae had been banned from all the nearby internet cafés.

It was spreading like wildfire that she had caused trouble at net cafes across the area and had been thrown out each time.

"Come on... being a homeless vagrant..."!

But even staying at a business hotel would cost money.

And... right now, she was nearly penniless. "Damn it!"

Frustrated, Misae picked up the phone and dialed.

"Thank you for calling Speed Paradise Escort Service."

...Of course, this wasn't Misae using an escort service. She worked there. "Hey, boss!"

"Oh, it's Misamisa-chan. What's up?"

On the other end of the line was the manager of the escort agency.

"Misamisa" was Misae's stage name.

「There’s been absolutely no business lately! What the hell is going on, huh?!”

A girl who couldn’t even land a part-time job at a regular restaurant or convenience store had ultimately fallen back on working in the delivery health industry. At first, she got a decent amount of repeat bookings.

Even after falling from grace, Misae was still a damn fine-looking woman. Plus, she was relatively young.

Because of that, she kept getting called for at first… but then things started to slip up……

“Sorry~ I guess no one’s booking you specifically right now, Miss Misae.” “W-w-why not?!”

“Hmm. This might sound harsh, but lately, the guys haven’t exactly been giving you good vibes, Miss Misae.”

The manager’s tone was mild enough, yet there was an undeniable undercurrent of blame in her voice.

“We’ve been getting some rather... strong complaints from the clients.”

“What do you mean?! I’m making sure to [cum] on them properly, aren’t I?!”

“Look, we’re a service business, right? You need to be more welcoming. You always seem so fucking reluctant when you’re with them, Miss Misae.”

Misae’s heart gave an unpleasant jolt against her ribs.

“You know, given that you’re getting paid for it, that kind of attitude is really not okay.”

«W-w-what the hell! Just because I'm lending my body out to a bunch of creepy old farts, that don't mean I like them or anything! Can't you even muster up a single word of gratitude!?»

Misae had her pride. After all, she used to be the wife of an employee at Okatani, a major publishing house.

Perhaps because that sense of pride had lingered on for so long, she didn't even bother putting on a pleasant face for the customers…

As a result, the clientele kept drifting further and further away from Misae. "Umm, Miss Nagano." The manager's tone dropped to a low register. "You're fired."

«W-What!? Y-you're firing meee!?»

«Yeah. Fired. Good work today.»

But Misae panicked and shouted through the phone.

«Why? Why am I being fired, dammit!»

«Mm-hmm. You… you have too much of a sense of entitlement when it comes to working.» The manager said with a sigh.

«Listen. Work is the compensation for labor. Labor is the act of getting paid to do a job that someone else doesn't want to do.»

«I know things like that!? Are you calling me stupid!?”

«No, Miss Nagano, you clearly don't understand. Earning money by working is a heavy burden. The money you make doing sloppy acts belongs to the very old men you look down on; it’s cash they’ve earned through their sweat and tears.» The manager said coldly.

『Your work is way too sloppy. Or rather... you don't get what money is actually worth, do you? You've just been living in a world where cash rolled in without you lifting a finger, haven't you?』

“S-shut up! H-how dare you act so haughty! A brat like you—! W-who the hell do you think I am?”

『An oblivious hag too old to be called a woman.』 In an instant, her head exploded.

She was well aware that she was sheltered from reality, and she knew all too well that she wasn’t young anymore.

And yet, those were exactly the words she most didn't want to hear... “S-shut up! SHUT UP!”

But... no matter how much she screamed, the manager replied with icy calm.

『Look, it’s obvious. Twenty-nine... wait, you turned thirty, right? To act like that at your age means your personality is permanently set in stone. If you’ve lost your only advantage, even sex work isn't an option for you anymore.』

“Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!” 『Bye-bye, grandma.』 Thud...!

Alone in the park, head bowed, she trembled.

“I’m not sheltered from reality! I’m no old hag! I am... I am!”

But... flashbacks burst through her mind.

They were words spoken to her during a part-time job interview...

"Uh, twenty-nine? No, we're looking for someone a bit younger, actually."

"That's just way too dismissive of me. Honestly, you have the worst attitude of any candidate I've ever seen."

"We really can't afford to hire someone with as little social grace as you..."

...Yes. Misae was rejected over and over again, facing the same run-of-the-mill rejections every single time.

"Working is... finding a job is... it's been so... hard..."

Once upon a time, Okaya Motoo had been a light novel author.

Misae used to mock him for it.

He would write these childish stories with such ridiculous intensity, staying up until the dead of night just to get them down.

He skimped on sleep, constantly typing and deleting, nearly ruining his health in the process, yet he kept writing.

What an idiot, Misae thought.

Did a piece of trash literature really warrant pouring so much effort into it?

And despite all that hard work, Okaya's books never sold.

When the editor delivered the verdict: cancellation……

Okani collapsed on the spot, tears streaming down her face. Watching this, Misae thought, "Eh… I feel sick…"

She had absolutely no idea why her husband was crying.

Part of her even thought, if he's going to get cut anyway, he could just scribble something half-assed and toss it in the box.

She simply didn't understand anything.

Not the hardships of working, nor the reason behind the sweat and tears he shed…… And then, at that moment. "Hello? Good evening?"

It was a police officer who had called out to Misae, likely because she had been making noise in the park late at night.

Misae was already traumatized by the idea. Was she going to get arrested again?

"I-I didn't do anything! I didn't do anything! Nnnghaaaaah!"

Misae hurriedly fled the scene.

Fleeing from the police in terror made her feel just like a criminal.

That fact was nothing short of humiliating.

“Fucking hell! Damn youuuuuu!”