Atem asks for a ring — two of them — and Seto works backwards through everyone she could possibly have got the idea from before granting it.
The photograph of his left hand takes about a day to reach every publication on earth.
In the afterlife, Priest Seto is trying to work, and Mahad will not stop asking why.
This is a translation of an original work on Pixiv.
Original Title: 12 Vena Amoris
Original Author: 葉人(@Hathor_yuki)
Personal site: https://prideshipping.sakura.ne.jp
How many kisses in was it? Atem had come out with something strange.
Which number she'd said it on was something Seto's memory could have counted up, but he stopped himself.
He started to ask what that was supposed to mean, and stopped that too. Impossible to explain was written on her face. Ask, and she was certain to answer that she didn't really know.
Besides, Atem saying odd things was nothing new, and when it mattered she always told him.
Calming, reassuring, trust — meanings in that region were the likeliest.
In any case, peace was as good as it got, Seto concluded.
One day, Atem came to Seto's room and opened with this:
"There's something I want."
Atem rarely wanted anything. Online orders and the like she could do herself, and at most it was a pack of new cards she wanted the moment it released.
Feeling it was unusual, he would nonetheless grant a wish of Atem's easily enough. Seto Kaiba was that sort of man.
"What do you want."
"A ring."
"Understood. Hold out your hand."
"Not only me, you know?"
I see. He grasped the intent.
"You'll wear one too."
So that was it.
He would grant a wish of Atem's easily enough. But.
"Do you understand what will happen?"
"A tremendous scandal. For my sake."
She laughed, enjoying herself. Challenging eyes.
But did she understand that what those words represented was a binding? Knowing Atem, there was a possibility she didn't grasp the unconscious lurking in her own wish and her own words.
The possibility of being chased about herself seemed not to have occurred to her either. According to the reports she'd been surrounded after the autumn festival, but she appeared to have forgotten that entirely.
She was surely thinking only of Seto being chased about for her sake.
Whose idea had this been?
Yugi. He had looked at the ring drafts, but he wouldn't stoke something like this. There was a possibility the news would spread to Atem. He wouldn't want that. Not him.
Gardner. The party who had gone through a difficult time over that business. She might speak of it dreamily, but she wouldn't impose the same pressure on Atem. Not her.
Among the other little friends, one who seemed to have a partner — Joey, for instance. With Mai he was neither close nor distant; no progress. Not him.
He shouldn't have a partner, but the one popular with women was Bakura. That one preferred food to romance. Not him.
Who, then.
Whoever it was, for Seto there was no option of not taking it up.
"There's no possibility of my failing to grant a selfishness of that size."
"The third finger of the left hand is the heart. It's connected to the heart."
Atem said it dreamily, smiling calmly.
So that was it.
Vena amoris, the vein of love. The origin is said to be either ancient Rome or Egypt.
She had apparently acquired it from the afterlife.
In that case the source to be deduced was that one, but he was the rational and logical type, not a romantic who would talk about the vein of love. Not him.
He drew the chart of relationships in the afterlife in his head and eliminated, one after another, everyone who couldn't be a candidate.
What remained was one of those close to Atem: Mahad. But Mahad was a man of serious temperament. Even if Atem had consulted him about something, he wouldn't propose a solution that dragged in a third party like this. Even if the one dragged in were someone Mahad found less than agreeable. Not him.
The other one, then. Mahad's apprentice. Learn the customs of the modern age and she'd cheer a romance on innocently and push and push. He could picture it: the culprit was probably Mana.
As a result, was he to praise her for a job well done, or be angry and tell her to keep her unnecessary opinions to herself? Either way, Seto decided he would at least lodge a complaint.
"I see. I understand roughly."
"That's how it is."
The seat of the heart is the brain. But that was not something to convey now, to an Atem holding out her hand so happily.
The wish to be connected was of course the same for Seto.
Heavier security for Atem. Thorough monitoring of any reporter entering Domino, camera-equipped devices included. What else was there to do?
Making his calculations in his head, Seto took a box from the drawer.
Two matching rings side by side.
"These are a pair ring. For now."
He took her hand and slipped the silver one onto her finger. The streamlined shape suited the slight Atem well.
"Wait? Not the straight one? I don't feel this is the shape that suits you."
"I'll have as many rings prepared as you like."
"It's good because there's only one. Give it here — I'll put it on you."
He handed her the ring, and because she forced it on, the skin stung and it was upside down besides. He didn't ask delicacy of that sort from Atem, but it would hurt when she put it on again as well.
"It's backwards."
"Sorry. There, done. It suits you unexpectedly well. This shape too."
"Are you satisfied?"
"Wear it always."
"I know."
"You really don't get embarrassed, do you."
"Do you want me to be?"
"Who knows. You always look so composed. Now and then you should learn how I feel."
I see. So the objective is binding, and a small piece of payback.
Mana, damn her — and Atem. What sort of conversation led to this? Should he look into the logs?
Seto let out a small sigh.
"How could I be composed in front of you?"
"That. That's exactly it."
Atem went red and protested.
"You could simply say what you think, honestly."
"That's the odd thing about a woman's heart — it apparently doesn't come out as words properly. I've tried any number of times and it's never worked."
That was Atem simply being dense, and of course Seto understood that.
"Does it work in this so-called girl talk?"
"No, it didn't."
There you have it. That's the sort of person you are. But that too arrived safely, within Seto, at Atem is dear again today.
This whole exchange was as good as a confession that the origin this time had been girl talk, and that the one she'd consulted was Mana.
The staff would want at least one press conference. During last year's business, requests for interviews had poured in, and some of them had had their work disrupted.
Whether it was made public or not, enquiries would come either way, but they might well want to know.
Lowering his profile would settle it, but that wouldn't hold as a strategy for Seto Kaiba. And Atem's desire was satisfied by making both work at once.
Once they were together, keeping up the pretence would no longer be possible. But he still wanted to give Atem a little more peace.
Even when it came to that, he hoped she'd be able to accept this taste of peace, whatever it was.
"It comes to the same thing in the end, doesn't it."
"Even so, I'm satisfied, so it's fine."
Holding the ring up to the light, half shy, Atem was very beautiful.
"If it's satisfaction, then I'll satisfy you as much as you want."
"Seto?"
Watch closely.
Atem's desire — proof of being connected, at any time, in any circumstance.
There was something wrong with Isono as he drove. His hands were shaking on the wheel. There was a possibility it would be better to drive himself, but no report meant that driving at least presented no obstacle. Judging so, Seto decided to let him go on driving.
He did, however, set the panel in front of him so that he could switch to automatic instantly.
Nor did he forget to turn every light they approached green; Domino was already under his control. Traffic signals were the bottom rung.
But as he was wondering what had happened, he was abruptly congratulated. He seemed overcome; not only his hands but his voice was slightly unsteady.
"M-Master Seto, congratulations!"
Among the new projects, none had been announced as urgent. He hadn't heard that any division had posted results. As far as he knew — which was to say, everything — operations were running normally.
Isono was not a man to make a pointless fuss over that sort of thing in the first place.
"About what."
"Ah — have you not married Lady Atem?"
Don't turn round; if you're driving, face front. He indicated ahead with his chin and Isono hurriedly faced forward.
He decided that if Isono did one more thing he'd put him out of the car. Three points to start with; one remaining. Where it would normally be one point, today Seto was extremely generous.
"Not yet."
"I... see."
"You'll be invited to the ceremony. Preparations?"
"Ready at any time."
Seto Kaiba was KaibaCorp's advertising face.
In the course of controlling everything, going out in front himself was unavoidable. Powerful, overwhelming persuasiveness was something a commercial using some talent or other could never approach; there wasn't enough force in it. He himself was nothing but a weapon. And so Seto Kaiba gained still more power. That was how it had been done.
He dropped his eyes to his left hand. The ring matching Atem's.
Even Isono was like this. The influence of this one ring would be beyond calculation. But if so, then he would simply build it into the calculations.
He would not hide it. There was nothing to feel guilty about. She was not a presence small enough to be dismissed as nothing.
Atem was everything. The one and only, precious existence he had finally found.
Seto let a smile show at his mouth alone. In the mirror, the eyes watching Isono were not smiling.
"Hm. It's going to get considerably noisy. This is the highest-priority matter this time."
"Understood. And the press conference?"
"Denied. Let them run wild."
"Then, as you say."
Isono had probably worked out that Atem's true identity was what had been inside Yugi.
Her origins — how she had appeared in this world as a separate body, that sort of circumstance — he wouldn't arrive at no matter how much he thought about it.
A goddess. Who would believe such a thing?
"...Isono. How much do you know?"
Isono let a slight smile show and answered quietly.
"I know nothing whatsoever. Lady Atem is Lady Atem."
That was the answer. No points deducted. Exactly so.
"Yes. That will do."
A shock ran through the world.
KaibaCorp President Seto Kaiba (20) Married?!
The internet, television programmes, newspapers, weeklies, even fashion magazines with no apparent connection.
Every medium there was seized on the ring on Seto Kaiba's left hand.
Even the internet-sleuth types got moving, throwing themselves into finding the partner and the maker of the ring, but it was far too late; everything they wanted to know had been reached and crushed.
Atem rarely appeared in public and she had a security detail. Furthermore, security had been instructed to keep reporters from doing as they pleased in this town. The ring was an in-house one-off; there was no chance of finding it.
On social media, people got their hearts broken in droves without being asked to, and the tag #HeartbrokenOverThePresident, presumably arranged from behind the scenes by PR, spread nicely.
It had already left its original meaning behind and was being used as a joke, but that was within expectations.
There wasn't a day he didn't see a camera flash. Lenses tracked Seto's movements constantly, and every day someone sidled up trying to extract something.
Who is she, since when, and are you already—
Skimming past all of it, Seto did no more than smile thinly today as well.
Unfortunately, this side was the decoy.
"Welcome back."
"I'm home."
The uproar showed no sign of settling. Because nothing was being done to settle it.
Atem must have been seeing the daily coverage and the rest of it too.
"You've become something incredible..."
"This much is within the range of what I anticipated."
"No, it's beyond what I imagined. I'm startled."
She really was surprised. Eyes round, wearing a face that said unbelievable.
Unbelievable or not, the uproar had in fact happened, and the names of any number of presumed candidates were being put forward without permission. This surely could not be entertaining for Atem.
But the person Seto wanted was not among them.
How would she be jealous next? Might she go out in front herself? That would have to be stopped.
For the sake of Atem's peace.
For that reason, Seto would not talk either. If the object was to stir up the world, a meaningful smile in answer to questions was quite sufficient.
Even in that state, wearing the proof that he was spoken for, being bound — it was only because Atem had wished it.
Seto cupped Atem's cheek and murmured sweetly.
"If it still isn't enough, I could declare that I have a lovely lover."
"Hon— honestly. You!"
She clung to him as though hiding her reddened face. With her face buried like that he couldn't kiss her.
He stroked her head, and when she finally came away he met her eyes.
When he leaned in quietly, Atem closed hers.
Kissing in light touches, he tasted the sweetness of it. Ordinarily Atem went red and slipped away, but today she wouldn't let him go for a long while. This was from jealousy.
"Atem. For me there is only you."
Wishes get granted.
From the very depths of the heart, firmly connected.
Who belongs to whom — you understand it well now, don't you. There's nothing to concern yourself with. I have been yours for a long time.
Atem. Is this enough?
If the proof still wasn't enough, he turned over what hand to play next.
Things considered impossible, things nobody had so much as conceived of — he had done them; that sort of thing was Seto's speciality.
Because there were any number of ways.
"Oh! So the living world is a festival."
"Mahad, remove that person."
"This is the sight the King wished for. Is it that one's doing?"
"If you've come to play then get out along with her; you're obstructing my work."
Seto was in an extremely poor mood.
He had connected Atem to Mana at her request, and the result was a great uproar in the living world. That was fine; the affairs of another world were no concern of his.
The problem was that a complaint had come in. That required handling.
He had summoned Mana and her supervisor Mahad and reprimanded them sharply about it. And then, freshly reprimanded, Mahad had asked for the state of the living world, and was so persistent and so loud that he connected the feed on condition of a ten percent increase in a week's work.
Connecting to Atem directly seemed likely to stop any work getting done, so he had genuinely selected the state of the living world. Whereupon the daily bulletins came flooding in all at once. All of it that one.
Having lodged a complaint, that attitude of not being remotely chastened was slightly irritating, but it was also as he'd imagined. He'd known he wasn't a man to be chastened by anything ordinary.
What Atem saw in that one was, in that region, still unexamined and therefore unknown.
He was the man who had carried off the King, and his conduct the first time he stormed in had been impossible in this world. He had said he behaved that way knowing it was impossible.
Given how devoted Mahad had been to Atem, he surely harboured no good feeling toward him; he had made a scene to the very end trying to have him detained. The single largest factor in the prolonged calming of that day's uproar had been Mahad.
It wasn't that he disliked that one. He worked hard, his thinking was logical and precise, and as someone to entrust Atem to there was no problem. Especially — yes, work. The way he executed work with such vigour was something he'd have liked in his own ranks. Had he been of the afterlife he'd have made him a priest or an official.
Seto had, after all, come to the afterlife and worked even there.
By Seto's own reckoning that was simply remote work, an ordinary state of affairs, but this was the afterlife, where the so-called workstyle reforms had not penetrated. It was the one point on which Priest Seto hesitated to judge whether that visitor was normal or abnormal.
Mahad showed no sign of returning to work. Learn something from him. The thought of striking him surfaced. But if he actually struck him he might well abandon his duties, so he restrained himself and folded his arms.
"Why did the King wish for an uproar like this? Why is that one so at ease?"
"I don't know."
"Until I understand it, I don't think I can return to work."
"Threats are useless. Ask your apprentice. Do your work."
Still.
He looked at the screen.
Without telling a single lie, the skill with which he showed the populace what it wanted to see was admirable. Was the man laughing at his leisure in the footage an object of worship reigning over that world?
Mahad was still making a scene demanding to be told the reason.
At the root of it would be some small anxiety of Atem's. Cheerful in appearance and delicate underneath; that someone who put her own feelings last would lose sight of her confidence was easy enough to predict. In fact she'd lost sight of her own feelings entirely and contacted him about it. A troublesome predecessor.
And so anxiety became jealousy, became possessiveness, and when she acted to satisfy it, that one's excessive influence brought about a situation like this one. Something along those lines. It was nothing but conjecture, but it wouldn't be far off. He had an eye for people, and an eye for a situation.
He hadn't been king for nothing. A destroyed country. He had taken the throne in that state, unstable inside and out. Without even the time to use the Rod he had assessed and gone on fighting. Land on the verge of collapse, the anxiety of the people, diplomatic problems — no, enemies did not lurk only outside. They had been days too heavy to call memory.
That pain, the beginning of everything. He could bring it back vividly if he chose.
But Atem's seal had been broken.
Certainly he could recall that loss with the rawness intact.
He could recall it, but with Atem free now, sentiment of that kind was unnecessary. That event was fact, but it was past. Knowing that, Seto was not about to be dragged under by such a thing at this stage.
The contradiction of understanding the pain while it failed to resonate as feeling. He understood that this was the long years as king, after that battle, eroding the human part that had been within him.
Compared with that state, though she had been royalty from birth, there was still a possibility that Atem could be reached in time.
Seto had already acquired the language. His eyes followed the modern characters rewriting themselves.
Then he lifted his face from the screen.
I see.
"Seto!"
"Be quiet, get out, ask him yourself... I'll lend you a device. But do your work."
"Wait, I can't read these characters—"
"Learn them."
He seized him by the front of his robe and glared, and in the moment he flinched he threw Mahad out, then Mana, and finally set about his work.
If the opportunity for contact arose again, Seto decided, he would demand two additional devices.
The vein of love. Splendid, was it not.
