Chapter 40 – Released
Chapter 6, Part 7
Novel Title: 融愛~Melt Down~ (Melted Love ~Melt Down~)
Author：風結子 沙野 (Fuyuko Sano)
Illustrator：雅良 水名瀬 (Masara Minase)
Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)
Protagonists: 葉越海理 (Yougoshi Kairi -MC), 葉越翼久 (Yougoshi Tasuku -ML)
*Please read at Novels Space.space, the original site of translation. TQ*
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He looked seriously into Youhei’s reddened eyes.
“Can I ask you to do this? Can you save my brother?”
Youhei nodded deeply and smiled a little.
“Leave it to me. I don’t have any family, so even if I get caught, no one will be sad except for myself. I’ll be fine.”
***
The detective who had left the interrogation room after being called by a colleague barged back in with a grim expression. He kicked the leg of the desk in front of Tasuku, glaring at him.
“The questioning is over. You’re free to go.”
“……”
Tasuku, his eyes bloodshot, stared blankly at the detective’s square face. He was unable to comprehend the situation.
The detective kicked the leg of the desk again. This time, the desk jolted with enough force to switch Tasuku’s numbed nerves back on.
“Does this mean I’m being released? Why so suddenly?”
However, the detective had no intention of explaining the situation, nor did he offer even a token apology.
“Quit looking so clueless. If you don’t get up from that chair right now, I’ll gut that guilty belly of yours. You’re the type who’s probably got a history of fraud, tax evasion, and assault—I’ll shake a little and the dirt will come flying out.”
Tasuku was rushed out of the interrogation room. His belongings, including his phone, were returned to him, and he was told he could leave.
…Forty-five hours that felt like a week had come to an abrupt end. Just moments ago, Tasuku had been consumed with the thought that he was about to be prosecuted, possibly having other crimes pinned on him. He imagined years of imprisonment, falling deeper and deeper into a bottomless pit. The reality of his release didn’t feel real. Yet, even though he couldn’t fully grasp it, his legs started moving faster, and before he knew it, he was nearly running as he burst through the front doors of the police station.
A flash of yellow enveloped him.
The evening wind and light brushed against his cheeks.
A car honked impatiently on the road ahead, the sound leaping high into the sky.
The familiar everyday world unfolded at eye level.
As Tasuku’s gaze swept across the scene, it gradually settled on a figure. His eyes widened in surprise and excitement.
Standing in the middle of the sidewalk was a young man in a suit, looking right at him. The wind that had brushed through his honest, black hair now reached Tasuku. The man’s black eyes, still fixed on him, softened gently.
“…Kairi…”
Tasuku’s heart pounded.
He started walking, almost as if pulled toward Kairi. As he did, Kairi also walked toward him.
The moment they were close enough to touch, Tasuku embraced his brother… No, perhaps he was the one clinging to him.
Kairi’s gentle hands patted his back softly.
“It’s okay now. You did well.”
Kairi’s voice carried the warm, protective tone of an older brother. But there was also a slight tremble in it.
With his precious brother in his arms, Tasuku could finally feel, in every cell of his body, that everything would truly be alright.
Once his emotions finally calmed down, Kairi gently slipped out of the embrace.
“Let’s go home, Tasuku.”
As they started walking, Tasuku mumbled in a weary voice,
“…I don’t get it at all. Why was I released so suddenly?”
“Youhei-kun told the police about how he and Tatsuya had been selling drugs at ‘Blossom’. He also testified that they hid the drugs in your locker.”
Tasuku looked down at his brother’s face in shock.
“Youhei… did that?”
“He’s being questioned about it right now.”
Kairi glanced back at the police station over his shoulder as he spoke.
Tasuku stopped and looked up at the building, now bathed in the red glow of the sunset.
――Youhei… helped me?
The memory of Youhei’s misguided attempt at repaying him with a bag of drugs flashed in his mind. A sharp pain gripped his chest.
“What he did isn’t something that can be forgiven. But… I don’t want to use the words ‘he had it coming.’”
There are places people get trapped in, especially when they grow up in difficult circumstances.
Maybe that thought was tinged with a bit of self-justification.
Feeling his wrist being grasped, Tasuku turned his gaze back to his brother.
“Let’s go.”
“…Yeah.”
As they walked, Kairi spoke, as if pulling Tasuku along with him. “Tasuku, a crime is still a crime. Whether you’re judged for it or not, your heart knows what’s right.”
Who was he referring to, and what was he talking about?
As they walked down the road, now dyed red by the sunset, Tasuku looked inward to examine his own heart.
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*Translator’s Note: The external conflicts are over now but I’m still damn mad at the unapologetic detective. -K
*GLOSSARY:
- Onii-san / Onii-chan / Nii-san / Nii-chan / Aniki = (Big/Elder) Brother
☝🏻I’ll be using these throughout my translation.
Next update: 2025.02.04
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