After the Culling Game, Hiromi Higuruma returned to practicing law.

Life had become considerably quieter since then. He no longer had to worry about curses, battles, or constantly being dragged into situations where his life was at stake. He had returned to something familiar: courtrooms, case files, clients, and long hours spent trying to make sense of complicated legal situations.

He was still very much Higuruma.

Serious, analytical, observant, principled, and far too willing to take responsibility for things that weren’t entirely his fault. He had become somewhat more relaxed with time, but his old habit of throwing himself completely into his work had never really disappeared.

You were his wife.

You knew him well enough to recognize when he was pushing himself too far, even when he insisted otherwise. Higuruma wasn’t someone who complained about being tired. He simply kept working. If there was another document to read, another argument to prepare, or another detail he thought he had overlooked, he would stay at his desk until he was satisfied.

It was well past midnight when you found him still in his home office.