Chapter 14

## Chapter Chronology

**"'Tis Folly To Be Wise"** (知 (し) るが煩 (ぼ人) 悩 (のう) , *Shiru ga Bonnō*) serves as the fourteenth chapter in the *Gokurakugai* manga series, a work written and illustrated by Yuto Sano.

## Summary

Tao encounters Yoru, who refers to her as "big sis," which shocked her. She shoots him, demanding the truth. Yoru claims to be Yoru, revealing Jin's death because of her.

Flashbacks reveal Tao and her brother's past, suffering abuse from their father. Tao offered to work for an organization to protect Jin from their father's brutality. Wanting to leave the organization, Tao was imprisoned by her boss. She sacrificed her arm to escape but returned to find her father dead and Jin missing.

In a critical moment, Yoru attacks Tao, but Alma intervenes, rescuing Tao from Yoru's grip.

## Plot Details

As Tao entered the Meito Shrine, an individual resembling her younger brother, Jin, greeted her with an uncanny smile reminiscent of him, which happens to be Yoru. Moving closer, Tao aimed her gun, demanding answers from this familiar yet unknown person to her. Yoru, still wearing the unsettling smile, claimed to be Jin, urging Tao to remember. However, she remained resolute, warning him not to move.

Yoru, persisting with the eerie smile, revealed a scar hidden beneath his bangs, provoking Tao to shoot, intentionally missing him but making her threat clear. Her anger was evident, demanding his true identity and what had happened to Jin. Yoru, displaying a scar concealed by a choker, asserted that he wasn't Jin, adopting the name "Yoru" since the day he received the scar.

Despite Tao's insistence, Yoru continued teasingly, alleging that she already knew the truth—Jin's death, implicating her to be the one at fault of her own brother's demise.

Tao recalled an unsettling memory from her past during those days where she was still at the age of ten. Her mother, a devoted adherent to an unseen deity, returned home as a stack of money. Seated comfortably, her father, a menacing figure, counted the bills in front of Tao and Jin, warning them against discussing the matter with anyone else, threatening to sell them off in pieces.

This heartless man was Tao and Jin's father, a person Tao described as nothing more than a vile being. At that moment, Tao foresaw a shift in her life; she anticipated becoming the new target for her father's wrath, taking the place of her departed mother. Despite the situation, Tao found herself unable to shed any tears over parting ways with her mother.

As Tao attempted to rest in the shared bedroom with her younger brother, Jin inquired about her day, expressing concern about whether she had been subjected to any mistreatment by their father. She's just responding him with a simple nod and closing her eyes. Suddenly, Jin's question about their mother visiting "God" caught Tao off guard, prompting her to open her eyes and face her younger brother. Though she chose to respond with a nod, gently comforting Jin by patting his head and offering reassurance.

Expressing words of solace, Tao comforted Jin, ensuring him that he needn't worry. She promised to shield him, affirming their shared dream of breaking free from their current circumstances one day, allowing them both to live a life of freedom.

The anticipated change Tao had hoped for seemed elusive. At the age of fifteen, a drastic upheaval occurred in her life. Their father, entangled with an organization that resorted to violence within their home, found himself indebted to them. To settle the debt, Tao was relinquished for servitude under a beastman, the representative of the organization.

Battered and bruised on the floor, Tao faced the beastman's scornful interrogation. Mocking their father's reprehensible actions, the beastman taunted Tao, highlighting the despicable behavior of the man she once knew as her dad. Despite her distressing situation, the beastman offered a twisted form of empathy, acknowledging the hardship she endured, hinting at extracting money from her once their father's debts were paid.

In a vivid contrast to her past, Tao's transformation was starkly illustrated. Memories flashed back—her childhood filled with treats and candies gradually morphed into a teenage life marked by deprivation, depicted by a wrist patch. From holding a cigarette pack to possessing a stash of money, Tao's evolution continued, evident in her transition to handling firearms and now adorning a tattoo on her wrist, representing the harsh realities she had come to embrace as she grows older.

While sharing a bedroom with her younger brother Jin, Tao noticed his reluctance to wear short sleeves despite the warmth. When she touched Jin's wrist, he winced in pain, prompting her to discover his badly bruised arms. Shocked, Tao inquired about when their father began hurting Jin in such a manner. Jin revealed that the abuse started around the time Tao began frequenting on the Beastman's place to work. Feeling remorseful, Tao sat with Jin, expressing regret and the need to save more money.

Their father's violent tendencies were a frequent occurrence. He aggressively demanded money from Tao to clear his debts, leading to physical confrontations. During one such altercation, Jin shielded Tao, taking a hit to his forehead from their father's rage-fueled attack. Tao, terrified and realizing the severity of their situation, attempted to placate their father, promising to hand over the money if he spared Jin.

Later, in their bedroom, as they prepared to sleep, Tao expressed her remorse to Jin for failing to keep him safe. Jin, however, reassured Tao, acknowledging that she had protected him by giving in to their father's demands. Seeking comfort, Jin asked to sleep beside Tao, who consented, promising to earn more soon and expressing their shared desire to escape their abusive situation as they hugged each other before drifting off to sleep.

As the days passed, Tao continued working under the Beastman. On her birthday, Jin surprised her with a cupcake adorned with chocolate and stick-shaped biscuits forming a candle figure, a gesture they both shared. Expressing gratitude, Tao encouraged Jin to eat the remaining treats, finding joy in knowing he was satisfied. While indulging in the food Jin had prepared, he couldn't suppress his concerns.

Jin gently questioned Tao about quitting the perilous work she was doing. He expressed worries about her safety, fearing she might meet the same fate as their mother if she continued taking risks. He wished for a return to their previous life when Tao stayed at home, away from danger. Feeling disheartened, Tao explained the necessity of her actions, emphasizing that their freedom depended on earning enough money to escape their situation. Despite Jin's worries, Tao reassured him of her protection and hugged him tightly.

Reflecting on her thoughts, Tao realized that Jin's safety and the need for money had become her sole preoccupations, overshadowing everything else in her life.

Within the confines of the Beastman's hideout, Tao faced the reality of her predicament. Her boss made it clear that leaving the situation wasn't an option; she was held captive and subjected to relentless beatings day after day. Reflecting on her circumstances, Tao acknowledged the futility of asking for release. Days blurred into a nightmarish continuum, each passing moment further solidifying her desperate need to return home. In a decisive moment, Tao resolved to fight back. Trapped by heavy chains, she took extreme measures to free herself, sacrificing her own arm to break loose and eliminating the man responsible for her torment.

With adrenaline coursing through her veins, she sprinted back to their home, her breaths heavy and erratic. Upon arrival, she was met with a devastating scene—a destroyed house greeted her, her father's lifeless body lying in the entrance. However, Jin was nowhere to be found. Despite the chaos, Tao's hope clung desperately to the possibility of her brother's survival, even if it meant he had committed a grave act.

Recollections flooded her mind, memories of a conversation with Tatsuomi resurfaced—a warning about the potential transformation of the person she sought into something unrecognisable, which is becoming a Maga, a notion she hadn't deeply contemplated until now.

In the present moment, Tao found herself in shock, unable to respond as Yoru began strangling her. In a moment of desperation, she struggled to speak, uttering a question about Jin's supposed death, her mind overwhelmed by memories of her younger brother. Just as the situation seemed dire, a sudden interruption shattered the tension. Alma, appearing abruptly mid-air, intervened in an attempt to stop Yoru from strangling Tao further, his anger palpable as he demanded an explanation for Yoru's actions towards Tao.

## Quick References

### Chapter Notes

* Tao encounters Yoru, resembling her brother Jin, who provokes her, claiming to be Jin, and insinuates Jin's death was her fault.
* Recalling her troubled childhood with a devoted mother and a menacing manipulative father, Tao foresees becoming the new target of her father's wrath after their mother's death.
	+ At 15, Tao faces an upheaval when her father's debts lead her into servitude under a beastman, marking her transformation from a childhood of treats to a life of deprivation, marked by her determination to earn money.
	+ Concerned about Jin's bruises, Tao discovers the abuse from their father started when she began working for the beastman. She expresses remorse and vows to save more money.
	+ Tao and Jin endure their father's aggressive demands for money, leading to physical confrontations, with Jin shielding Tao from their father's attacks.
	+ Despite regrets, Tao reassures Jin, and they seek comfort in each other's presence, sharing their desire to escape their situation. Her preoccupation with Jin's safety and the need for money becomes all-consuming as she continues working under the beastman's control.
* The turmoil intensifies when Tao confronts the beastman and ultimately frees herself, causing severe harm to escape.
	+ Returning home, Tao finds devastation—a ruined house, her father's lifeless body, and Jin missing. Despite chaos, hope lingers for Jin's survival.
* In the present, Yoru begins strangling Tao, triggering memories of Jin's supposed death. The tension is broken by Alma's sudden intervention to protect Tao from Yoru's actions.

## Characters in Order of Appearance

**Tao**
**Yoru**
**Jin Saotome**Flashback
**Father**Deceased
**Beastman**Debut
**Tatsuomi**Flashback
**Alma**