Kisogawa Kusunoki Otohiko, who stole my wife from me. Let’s rewind the timeline a bit.

The story picks up right after Okaya got fired from a major publishing house, Takanawa...

“Ahh, Rie-san. I’m so sorry about today.” The location was a certain love hotel in the metropolis.

Beside Kusunoki, who was stark naked, sat Jikanai Rie, equally exposed and bare.

She was the former editor-in-chief of the publishing house where Okaya had worked.

Today—or rather, today as well—Kusunoki had repeated his small mistakes over and over again.

“No, no, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“You’re something else, Rie-san! That’s real adult composure right there! I’m learning a lot!”

He had once again angered an author under Takanawa’s contract.

The cause was the same as with Hakuba (Kurohime): he ignored the author's wishes and commissioned illustrations from an illustrator on his own.

Despite making the exact same mistake, he hadn’t learned a single lesson from that previous error.

“But, Kusunoki-kun... if possible, next time, please report issues before they become major problems... mmph!"

Kisegawa forcibly covered Jūken’s lips.

Using the techniques he had honed, Jūken was completely drained of his spirit...

"Phew. Did I say something, Rie-san?"

"...No, nothing..."

Deflating with a sigh that seemed to come from her bones, she laid her head against Kisegawa's chest.

(You're such an easy mark, you old hag.) Inside, Kisegawa smiled wickedly.

Before Jūken, Kisegawa had also been involved with Okaya's wife, Misae.

He had enlisted the editor-in-chief as an ally to have his mistakes wiped clean.

(That Misae old hag was easy game too. That bastard... phew! He didn't even realize until the very end that he was just being used to take out my frustrations lol)

...Yes, sleeping with Misae had been an act of revenge against Okaya.

Revenge, though—I mean, Okaya hadn't actually done anything to him. He had just been irritated by him.

(He's just some old man's lackey, yet he orders me around like he owns the place. Made me sick. So I took what was mine; let that be your punishment!) He did have a pretty face, though.

He had never once lacked for women. His first time had been in the sixth grade of elementary school.

For over a decade, he had used his chiseled face to devour every woman who came along.

The result was that he mastered the art of killing women... of draining them dry.

This face, and his sexual prowess. Those were Kiso's strengths.

(Man, life's just super easy for me lol. You just gotta treat women with a little gentleness, and they fall all over me, totally at my feet. And guys? As long as you hook 'em up with a woman, they'll listen to whatever you say most of the time, yeah? lol)

...Through utterly vile means, the man known as Kiso rose to the top. High school, university, and then the corporate world.

In all of it, he used his face and his prized asset to remain at the very top of the hierarchy.

He had never once put in an ounce of effort; he lived deftly on the talents fate alone had bestowed upon him.

(As long as I've got this face and these tricks, I'm gonna stay in the winner's bracket forever, yeah lol)

...And that was just how complacently he could carry on... until now. ★

"You're fired, you piece of shit! You damn worthless scummmmmm!" Smack!

...The dry sound echoed through the Takanawa Books editorial office.

Kisagawa stood frozen, staring at Jūnikan, who was seething with rage before him.

Chronologically speaking, this happened around the time Jūnikan had gone down to the Kaita Highlands after meeting with the chairman of the Kaita Group.

"W-w-what are you doing... Editor-in-Chief...?"

Suddenly, out of nowhere, he was struck and sent flying by none other than Jūnikan himself.

"You! So you've been cheating on me!?"

For some unknown reason, Jūnikan had suddenly lost his temper.

"...Cheating? ...What's that supposed to mean?"

Ripples of shock began to spread through the editing department. Kisagawa hurriedly denied the accusation.

"W-w-what are you talking about!? I haven't cheated at all!"

"Don't joke with me! You worthless piece of trash!"

Jūnikan's face twisted into an expression of fury, having learned that he had been cheated on.

"Are you telling me you've been sleeping with Okaya-san's wife!? While I'm right here? Was I just a toy to you!?"

Got grabbed by the collar by Juugen, Kiso felt a cold sweat break out down his spine.

(Shit shit! This situation is... bad!)

The editor-in-chief had found out about his affair with her. He’d pissed her off, and now he was on the verge of losing his job.

"N-no, there's been a misunderstanding..."

"What misunderstanding! You slept with me! I was just a game to you, wasn't I?!" And sure enough, that’s exactly what it had been.

Or rather, he’d only used her as a means to smooth over his work performance.

"Wait, what do you mean by that!?"

One of the female staff members raised her voice.

"Kusunoki Otoko! So you were having an affair with the editor-in-chief too? Right under my nose!"

She was famous within the editorial department as the second most beautiful woman (the first being Sakubei, in charge of author Kaminatsu. He had already quit).

"Huh!? You... you were cheating on me with someone else too!?" Juugen, and the second girl.

Cornered by the two of them, Kiso broke into a heavy internal sweat.

"Was it just the editor-in-chief, or were you sleeping with all the other guys too?"

"Even with Tomo-chan? Don't fucking joke with me!"

Tomo-chan was the name of the second woman Kazekawa had been involved with.

She was the Madonna figure within the department. (Since Sakuhei had no interest in men other than Kaimatsu, she was unpopular among the editorial staff.)

Cheating on a Madonna like that—and even hooking up with the editor-in-chief, to boot... and then sleeping with Okaya's wife... Well, of course... "Don't you dare! Die!" "Get lost, you piece of trash!"

He was instantly despised by every single person in the editorial department, male or female.

"S-staff! Please calm down... Ahh!"

A paperback thrown by a male editor had struck Kazekawa in the eye. "Grrr..."

As Kazekawa cowered on the floor, the entire editorial staff unleashed a barrage of insults upon him. "Die, enemy of women!"

"Get out of here, you fucking pervert asshole!"

He had thought things were going well, but it was all a castle in the sand.

In the end, he was just a man who was good for his face and his dick.

He had never once made the effort to be liked by others, nor had he done work good enough to earn their recognition.

As a result, it came with little surprise when Kisonogawa was ousted from one of the major publishing houses. ★

A few days later, Kisonogawa found himself at a café near the station.

"Damn...! That trash editing department! Go to hell!"

Kisonogawa slammed his coffee cup down with a thud. "Damn it all! I'm pissed!"

He scratched his scalp hard.

The anger toward the department that had pushed him out was making him lose his mind. "I hope they die..." Just then. "Um, sir?" "H-huh?!"

When Kisonogawa glared at her, he saw a blonde beauty standing there.

(Whoa, look at that gorgeous girl. To think you'd find a woman of such high caliber in a café right by the station!)

Her name tag read 【Ina】.

Ina smiled and spoke to Kisonogawa.

"Since it's bothering the other customers, would you please stop slamming your cup like that?"

Kisagawa quickly zeroes in on his target.

"Ah, sorry~. You're Ina-chan, right? How old are you? You're cute~."

Kisagawa says this in a deliberately suave manner.

But Ina just waves it off with a casual "Oh, hey there~," brushing him aside effortlessly.

(...This is strange. With a face like this, most women would either fall in love with me or become my slaves...)

...Needless to say, that female shop employee named Ina was none other than Ina Akari.

Akari was sharp-witted, and above all, she had already set her heart on a man named Okaya.

Therefore, she had absolutely no interest in a shit-headed guy like this who relied solely on his looks. "Well then."

"Ah, just wait a sec, Ina-chan~"

Kisagawa reaches out toward her, but Akari withdraws her body with a fluid swoosh and stylishly ignores him entirely.

"Boss, I'm heading in for my break."

Without even glancing his way, Akari swiftly heads off to leave. "…………"

It was more than obvious that Kiso had just tried to pick up a woman and failed miserably.

"……Ugh, what the hell was that?" "……How tacky." "……Look at his dumbfounded face."

The other patrons around them suppressed giggles, their laughter tinged with mockery.

Kiso gritted his teeth in frustration.

"W-What are you all looking at?! I'm not some freak show exhibit!"

With a loud bang, Kiso kicked his chair away. Just then— "Ah, there's the other Kiso-kun. Sorry to keep you waiting."

Entering the cafe was a man wearing glasses, with a gentle smile on his face…… "Ah! It's Uematsu-san……"

The former deputy editor-in-chief had arrived at Kiso's side.

"That wasn't good of you, Kiso-kun." "I-I'm sorry……"

(Tch! What does this old man think he is, looking so self-righteous……! ……Meh, I'll bear it. Right now, finding a new job is the priority.) Kiso, having been expelled from Takana.

But as long as he was living in modern-day Japan, he needed to work.

Using his usual network of connections, Kiso had tried to get accepted by the next publishing house, but……

【Sorry, Kisosawa. I just can't let you in】

【Wha-? But whyyy!?】

...As it turned out, Kisosawa had been rejected by every single publishing house that sought him out.

【They say you got a girl introduced to the president and slipped into the company through some shady scheme. Right?】 【!？ W-Well, about that...】

【I'm sorry, but we can't employ someone like that around here. So sorry about that.】 ...That was how it went down.

All the connections Kisosawa had painstakingly built up had been systematically crushed by 【some unseen hand】.

Still, when all was said and done, he had indeed used underhanded methods to get hired, so in a way, he had only himself to blame.

His network of contacts had been wiped out one by one.

The only remaining tie to a publisher... was Uematsu. That was all that was left.

(Truth be told, I hate that old man with a passion, but there's no other option left... For now, I guess I'll just have to grit my teeth and bear it)

"So, Kisosawa-kun. What's the business?"

"Could you please get me into the new publishing house Uematsu-san just started up?"

...Right, the truth is, Kisogawa had been trying to get into SR Bunko. However...

"I'm sorry, but I have to pass." Kamimatsu replied without hesitation.

"W-what!? Why?!"

Rejected by a woman just moments ago, and then rejected by the publisher on top of that...

Psychologically pushed to the breaking point, Kisogawa finally let his true nature show. "I'm useful, right!?"

"No. You are completely useless. To be blunt, you're not even worth considering."

Kamimatsu firmly rejected Kisogawa.

"What do you mean 'not worth considering'!?" "It means exactly what it says." "B-but I can handle the work, right!?"

"No. You can't handle the work either. Before anything else about being a professional, you're done as a human being."

"T-that's way too harsh! You don't have the right to say that!"

Kisogawa slammed the table with a bang, causing a cup to fall over.

Akari immediately moved to pick up the broken cup, but Kamimatsu gestured with his hand to stop her.

「Kisogawa. You're the one who broke the cup. Clean it up yourself."

"What the hell, you damn old bastard! Don't order me around like a dog, you scum!"

Uematsu let out a heavy sigh.

"That's exactly what's wrong with you, Kisogawa."

Behind Uematsu's glasses... a look of utter contempt was etched on his face as he stared at Kisogawa.

"You have no respect for others." "Respect?!"

"Yes. For instance, you broke the cup and made a mess because of your own clumsiness. You don't feel even one bit sorry to the staff who has to clean it up, do you?"

"Are you out of your mind! I'm a customer, right!? It's the staff's job to clean it up!"

"That might be true. But when you do something wrong, you say sorry to the person affected. Even an elementary schooler knows that, no?"

"Shut up! I haven't done anything wrong!"

Uematsu let out a heavy sigh again.

"What did you come here for again? Looking for a job, right? Is this really the attitude to have in that situation?" "Ah..." The anger instantly drained from him. "S-sorry... I mean..."

"Stop it, you don't need to apologize. No matter what happens to me or what you say, I will absolutely never hire you."

"N-no way! Please wait!"

As she tried to grab his hand to stop Kamimatsu from leaving, he swatted her hand away.

"Just so you know, you won't be able to work in the publishing industry ever again." "What!? Why?!"

"Because your bad reputation has already spread throughout the entire industry."

"But... why would you do something like that..."

"I happen to have quite a few friends in this industry. They all said the same thing: Kisogawa Kuranuo is the worst kind of person."

Kisogawa dropped to his knees with a dull thud.

"Well, there are jobs outside the publishing industry if you want to survive. Go make a living there... though I doubt anyone will hire you unless you fix your attitude," he said, looking down at her.

"Besides, you hurt my dear Okaya. I had no intention of hiring you, since you'd only get in the way of his new life."

Kamimatsu left Kisogawa alone and walked toward the register.

"Lady, I apologize for the trouble. I'll clean it up, but could you lend me a mop?"

「Oh, no! Please, I'll stay here for a while.」

Uematsu bowed to Akari and left the shop. "Dammit..." Kiso gritted his teeth in frustration.

"Damn it! Damn it, damn it, daaaamn!"

...And so, he lost his place in this industry.

But there was no way his fall would stop at something this minor.

...His hell was just beginning.