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The taxi arrived at a two-story building, standing alone a short distance from a residential area. I approached the building while waiting for the taxi. From the outside, there were no lights on. I walked around the square building, each side about 15 meters, but couldn't see inside. Still, judging by the size of the building and the parking lot, it must be a company with 10 to 15 employees. Of course, this was just a guess.
I pressed the intercom at the front door, but there was no response. It was 3 a.m. I knew it, but I could confirm that my wife wasn't still at work. I had no idea where to look. She might have gone home. Or maybe she would come back. All I could do now was wait at home. That was all. No, that was all I could do. And so the night continued.
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On the fifth floor of a beautiful office building, the automatic doors slid open, revealing the beautifully designed office inside. Despite it being 11 a.m., there was a single person who appeared to be a customer.
"Welcome," a smiling woman greeted me.
"Come this way," she said.
The room was like a nice real estate agency with a counter. I sat down opposite the woman. I had the impression that a detective agency would be a room in an old building, but this place was different. Employee training was also thorough. I felt uncomfortable talking about my situation directly. However, here I felt an atmosphere that I could leave it to them.
"What can I do for you today?" the woman asked.
"Well, my wife hasn't come home since yesterday, and I'm embarrassed to say this, but it seems like she's actually cheating on me. That's why I'd like you to find her and also find out the address of the man she's having an affair with," I said.
"Your wife's whereabouts, you say. Was she coming home normally until the day before yesterday?" she asked.
"Yes, she was coming home, but I think she found out that I'd been cheating on her, and that's why she hasn't been coming home," I replied.
"Is that so… Have you tried to get in touch with your wife?" she asked.
"She called me once and said she'd explain the situation, but it seems she's turned her phone off since then," I said.
"So I'd like you to find her as there's a good chance she's with her lover, right?" she clarified.
"Yes, but I myself don't know what's going on, and I don't even know if they're together or if she's alone," I admitted.
"Does your wife usually carry her bankbook or something with her? It would be good if she had enough money to get her through for a few days, like cards or cash, but if not, she's probably with her lover or has gone home to you. So in addition to our investigation, you should also consider the possibility that your wife may have come home," she suggested.
And without mentioning the DVD of my wife, I requested an investigation. The receptionist's expression remained unfazed as she listened to my story. I wasn't sure if she was used to hearing this kind of story or if she was just being considerate of her client, but it reinforced my impression that this was a reputable company.
I felt sad and ashamed that I was spending even a little of the money I'd saved for my children's future and my own on something like this. After completing my request, I left the detective agency and headed straight to my wife's company. She might be at work. I rang the intercom and, hiding my identity, asked for her.
But what I heard back was exactly what I expected: "She's off work today. Who is this?" I left without a word.
I sat on the sofa at home, watching the TV. They said they'd investigate immediately, but I didn't know what to expect. I gave them various details, including my wife's company and her parents' home. They said they'd look into everything they could find.
I could tell I was exhausted, both physically and mentally. I hadn't slept a wink last night, feeling depressed and drained. There was a good chance she'd be home. How much easier it would be if she came home and said she'd had a few too many drinks and stayed at a hotel. It still felt a bit unreal. But as time passed, my wife seemed to drift further and further away, and the reality of her not coming home became more apparent.
She'd vanished… and we had a child. In the end, my wife still hadn't returned by night. What should I tell my daughters? She hadn't come home since yesterday, and I was there on a day when she normally wouldn't be around. What could I say in this situation so they wouldn't suspect anything and believe me? The only thing I could do was say that she'd had to go on a sudden business trip. I told my daughter exactly that, and that I'd come back because I had work to do. Today was the last day of my paid leave. I had to go to Kitakyushu tomorrow.
Waiting at home while I took time off from work wouldn't do much. The best I could do was wait for a call from the police and the private investigator. The next night, after finishing work in Kitakyushu and returning to my apartment, I got a call from home. "Oh, Dad? I got a call from Mom's company today saying she wasn't at work today but please contact me."
Wasn't my wife taking time off work? So, it wasn't her who contacted the company, but rather she had taken time off work without permission. So when I visited, they told me she was off work. Still, I ended up worrying Mana unnecessarily.
"Oh, Dad called, too, and they said it was a mistake. They thought I was on a business trip, so they mistakenly contacted me," I said. It was all I could do to deal with that. I quickly called my wife's company. It was past 7 p.m., but the call was connected.
I told them Noriko was sick and would be taking time off. They said she'd only be there for two or three days, but with no idea what the future held, there was no way I could tell them she'd disappeared. But I didn't have time to think about the future.
A week later, while I was working at my workplace in Kitakyushu, I received a call from the private detective agency. They were supposed to give me a weekly status report, but because it was far away, I had them contact me by phone.
"I investigated for a week and spoke with two of her colleagues, but they said your wife hadn't even come to the office, so I couldn't find out where she was. I still can't confirm that she was cheating, but from what I can see, many of her colleagues at work seem busy and often on business trips. It's hard to imagine she was doing something while off work," the detective said.
In the end, I had no idea where she was. I'd told my wife's company that she'd be taking some time off. I knew that excuse wouldn't be accepted at work, but there was nothing I could do about it now. I wondered if further investigation would yield any clues.
It was the following Thursday. A familiar envelope had arrived at my apartment where I was working away from home. No, it was an illusion. It was a regular A4-sized brown envelope. However, it was rare for items to arrive at this apartment. The only other time it had happened was when Noriko's DVD arrived. It was a different A4 envelope from the previous one, but I could easily guess that it was from the same sender. It could be a clue to Noriko's whereabouts, or perhaps a letter directly from her. I could feel what was inside.
I opened the envelope and took out the contents. It was a letter and a DVD. Not again… But right now, this was my only connection to Noriko. I read the letter.
"I'm sorry. I choose this. I know you're telling the detective, but please stop. I have my own life. I've had so much fun these past 20 years with you and our children. You were the most important thing to me. But I have no right to continue spending time with you. The more time I spend betraying you, and our children, the more guilty I feel, and I still can't forgive myself for continuing to betray you. It's all an excuse, but I'll tell you everything honestly. Please watch the DVD."
As I read it, I felt like I'd been punched in the chest over and over again. The blood flowing throughout my body increased, and I felt something was wrong. Whatever the reason, Noriko had clearly rejected me and our children. It was a sign that she was abandoning herself as a wife and mother. This wasn't just Noriko's problem. This was a family that should have been there, a life based on that. I wondered if she understood that it was all going to be destroyed in an instant.
Even though she understood, I couldn't help but want to confirm her true feelings by choosing this path. The image of Noriko in the DVDs I'd seen so far seemed to confirm her intentions. I then inserted the DVD into my PC and started playing. It showed Noriko sitting at a desk in her room, clad only in her shorts, writing a letter. I couldn't see her expression, but she looked very lonely. The screen showed a close-up of the letter.
It was the letter I had just read. After finishing writing the letter, my wife, urged by the man, went to the bed and spread her legs toward the camera. The man's hand played with Noriko's private parts through the gap in her shorts. A vibrator was removed from inside. She had been forced to write the letter with the vibrator inside her. It became unclear whether the letter I had just read was her true feelings or if she was being forced to.
The camera was then fixed in place, the man lay on his back on the bed, and Noriko straddled him. She faced the man's legs and began to move her hips while looking at the camera, which was an extension of their length. "Okay, Mrs., we'll stop enjoying this and tell your husband. The truth," the man said, lifting my wife's thighs with both hands so that the camera could see where they were joined together.
Noriko looked down, unsure of what to do. "I have to tell you quickly. Look," Noriko began. "As you know, as you can see right now, I am this kind of woman. I am the kind of woman who loves this kind of thing and can't let go. At first, I didn't want to, but as I was made to do more and more things, my body began to feel pleasure, and no matter how hard I tried to control myself with my reason, my body wouldn't listen to me. Even though I knew that it was a betrayal of you all, the thought that if only you didn't know, if only you wouldn't find out, made my reason shrink more and more…"
Suddenly, the man began to move his hips lightly. My wife looked down and endured it. I didn't want to hear my wife confess that she was engrossed in sex with another man. But my mind was so confused I couldn't even tell if it was real or not. My wife was sending me a message while straddling another man…
"Come on, say it properly, Mrs.," the man urged.
My wife spoke again. "The reason why this happened is… well…"
Beep… what? The sound disappeared. The video was playing normally, but there was no sound. I rewound and watched again, but the sound was still gone. The reason? All sound was gone except for the video. My wife kept talking in the video. I wanted to hear the sound. I wondered if it was the DVD that was causing the problem and waited for the sound to return. After about three minutes, the sound returned.
"That's me," Noriko said.
I felt my blood boil. I was filled with anger toward this man, not out of reason, but instinct. This wasn't a problem with the DVD. The sound was intentionally muted in post-production. Only the part where my wife confessed. Was that because it's something they didn't want me to hear? No, it's not. If that were the case, there was no need to send me the DVD. Why would he turn off the sound even after sending me the DVD? There was only one reason. He enjoys making fun of me.
With nowhere to go, my anger turned toward the cup on the table. I picked up the cup and threw it onto the floor with all my might. The table flipped over, and the PC fell to the floor. I felt like I was going crazy with rage, not knowing what to do with it. Anger that couldn't be contained even if I destroyed everything. Normally, when something unpleasant happens at work, I endure it or respond like an adult. But when I felt true anger, none of that worked. I had only one thought. I was going to destroy this man.
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