Original subtitles

Do you know how much I've spent to make you number one?

I am a host after all.

I know.

Yes, you are a host.

I'm just happy to hear that you're well.

Don't call me anymore, okay?

Bye.

He put on an act for me.

Now, I need to move forward too.

I'm going to move out.

Manami!

You need to calm down.

There's no need to move out in such a hurry!

My heart is set.

You poor thing.

- That host drove you mad. - No.

This is how you act when you're blinded by something!

Remember?

Hey, don't remind her of that incident!

I'm not being reckless this time.

And, I'm just going to go see an apartment today.

I'm not running away from home.

Can I trust you?

See you later.

EITA SAKURA ARE KAORU AND TAKECHIYO ALL RIGHT?

I SAW THIS ONLINE ARTICLE

AN ASSAULT IN A HOST CLUB IN KABUKICHO

A HOST FROM "THE JOKER" INJURED

TAIGA TAKAMORI

How's the scene looking?

He got cut here.

- Apparently, a host got stabbed. - Is he dead?

I heard a woman did it.

- Here! - The police took her away.

- Any info on who's injured? - Uh…

- Call the local news desk. - Yes!

- And check social media. - Noted!

- Shoot it this way. - He's still inside?

I want to see Tsubasa!

- Excuse me. - Get back, please!

Manami?

Hey, Manami! What are you doing here?

Momoko, what happened?

TEMPORARY CLOSURE

Tsubasa!

I don't know if it's true yet, but…

I heard Tsubasa was the target, someone got hurt protecting him.

Just go home for now.

Coming to the crime scene is so stupid!

But…

Even if it is Kaoru, there's nothing you can do!

What happened to not seeing him again?

Ms. Chihuahua!

Ms. Chihuahua!

What are you doing here?

Were you worried about me?

Don't flatter yourself!

Hey, Manami!

You're overreacting.

Hey, what's wrong?

Miss?

- Miss? - Manami!

Why did you want to stab Tsubasa?

Were you trying to kill him?

There you go…

Let's see.

I remember you used to often get a fever before school trips and stuff.

Stay here tonight.

Your dad would be furious if you went home in this state.

Right then, Miss…

Take care.

Wait a minute!

Can I ask you who got stabbed?

It's Takechiyo.

Apparently, he protected Tsubasa.

Hard to picture, right?

How bad is the injury?

He got a few stitches in his arm, I think.

Who did it?

I heard it was a customer.

I see.

Well, I need to go back to work.

Take care of her.

What?

We can't leave her on her own.

And the club's closed, right?

Me?

Here. Use this to make an ice pack.

You're used to working with ice, right?

Yes, I am.

Thank you!

I'll leave the rest with you.

What should I do?

How do you use it then?

SEIJI OGAWA

Hello, this is Kawahara.

When is the wedding?

Huh? Why are you calling so late?

I asked you, didn't I?

To take her hand and lead her because she's indecisive!

I'm sorry, but I'm still not sure yet, so…

That is unacceptable!

You can't become an executive if you can't even handle this!

Should you be doing this as the executive of the harassment response department?

People are too afraid of harassment to say what they want to say,

and it's damaging this society!

Don't you get it?

He hung up.

Why do I have to get scolded at? Why?

Ow!

Where is Manami? What is she doing?

She betrayed my trust again.

We have to act now or it'll be too late.

- Um… - Hm?

Can I ask something?

Are you really off work because of Manami?

It's been a week, right?

Is that not a problem?

Not in my position!

All good.

Did you sleep?

Ms. Momotaro's gone back to work.

Ready for the ice pack? Here goes.

Whoa, that's cold…

Are you okay?

What about you?

Your injury…

is it healed now?

You knew?

Should've told me!

You too. You should've told me!

Can I ask you…

how it happened?

Right.

I fell down. I was drinking with a customer and got too drunk.

I thought hosts were good at lying.

I'm telling the truth!

I'm clumsy.

You need to learn more to become a top-tier host.

You're so harsh!

I am your teacher.

Oh, man…

We went all the way to Miura Beach to say goodbye, yet here we are again.

We're both pathetic, huh?

Yes. Pretty pathetic.

This is why I hate it…

when you care about someone,

you become lame.

Were you always cool until now?

Yeah. Of course, I was!

I've always been cool, all my life.

I see.

Opposite to my life then.

You do look like you've pursued lameness your whole life.

That's awful!

But I finally told my parents that I'm moving out.

They're against it,

but I'm 35 and I need to see this through.

Well done, Ms. 35!

This 23-year-old supports you!

Hey, don't mention our age gap!

Maybe I'll leave my dormitory and move in with you.

What?

You probably can't cook or clean well, right?

Ouch.

I've lived on my own for a while, so I'm quite good.

What do you think?

No.

What if I said I'll quit my job?

If I weren't a host,

could we meet up and chat and stuff like normal people?

I thought being a host was your calling?

My boss told me I should quit.

Maybe you should retire as a host.

Undisciplined people will never become number one.

Maybe I'm not cut out for it.

I've talked too much.

Why aren't you asleep yet?

I'm back!

- Hi. - Welcome back!

- Ichinose. - Yes?

- Is the narration script ready? - Yes!

A bizarre crime in Shinjuku committed by a woman in her 50s.

Was the target a host she was obsessed with?

What do you think?

Make it shorter.

- Okay. - Yomoda!

Any info on Tsubasa? The one who was targeted?

No injury, but he's seeing the police again tomorrow.

Why?

We know him, so we have to get an interview.

- I'll ask him myself. - Thank you.

You're so reliable.

- Can you just start fixing the script? - Yes!

MS. CHIHUAHUA YOU'RE PRETTIER WHEN YOU ARE ASLEEP

TAKE CARE TAIGA TAKAMORI

Pretty?

YOU'RE PRETTIER WHEN YOU ARE ASLEEP

OBON FESTIVAL

MS. CHIHUAHUA YOU'RE PRETTIER WHEN YOU ARE ASLEEP

What?

Like this, and then another line, and then straight…

Miss…

On the left.

That's not right!

Sorry.

It doesn't fit.

Perfect.

MS. CHIHUAHUA YOU LOOK

You're…

Pretty…

PRETTIER

Prettier.

Is that right?

There and then…

He had learnt some new kanji.

Writing this letter must have been more difficult for him

than making me breakfast.

There, done!

TAKE CARE TAIGA TAKAMORI

OBON FESTIVAL

She's moving out?

It makes no sense to move out before getting married!

So I need you to decide the wedding date right away.

But I can't decide that on my own…

Yes, you can!

No, but…

- I'm back. - Welcome back.

You're back!

Yoji and I were just talking about the wedding!

You're indecisiveness is a huge issue.

So I asked him to hurry up and marry you.

- Sir… - What?

Can I talk to Manami alone?

Okay.

I'm so sorry that my dad kept calling you.

No, I asked if I could come over today.

I had a question for your dad.

But I couldn't ask him.

What is it?

Well…

I thought your dad was acting strange.

He's being beyond overprotective of you, right?

So, I didn't want to intrude,

but I did some research on your dad's company.

His company is a client of my bank, so it wasn't difficult to do research.

And?

Your dad's subordinate filed a complaint of power harassment.

Your dad got isolated at work as many agreed with the claim.

He's been told to stay at home for now, but he'll probably be forced to resign.

I think he's been rushing us to get married because…

he wanted us to seal the deal before he had to resign from work.

I do understand how he feels, being a company employee myself.

Because the more you succeed, the worse it is when you fail.

Why don't you talk to him properly?

I will.

Hey, Kaoru! Why are you here?

I felt restless.

I spoke to the police.

An officer I know told me indirectly

that Ms. Akina is also the prime suspect in the murder of the number one host.

You must be joking.

I don't know what happened, but I think it's also connected

to this incident.

No way.

So, we drove her into madness?

I'm sure the police will suspect there was an issue with our sales methods.

I'll need to think carefully about the future of this club

and notify everyone.

Boss!

Did you tell me I should retire because you knew this might happen?

You won't close the club, will you?

I…

I will always be grateful that we met that day.

Hey!

- You guys are just full of energy. - Come on.

Let's go.

Go!

Slow down and chew properly.

You made me realize that…

even a dumb jerk like me deserves to live.

Kaoru.

I actually have…

a criminal record.

I tried to quit my host club because I fell for a girl,

but the owner forbade me to quit so we got into a fight and…

I killed a staff member who tried to stop us.

It's been 23 years already, but I'll never forget it.

One thing I promised myself when I opened this club

was to step away from this business if anything happens

that threatens a person's life.

If there's anything I can do, please tell me.

Okay.

Let's see.

In that case…

Start by cleaning this place up.

Right, let's start.

How do you feel about the fact that Ms. Akina tried to stab you?

I wasn't surprised.

I had a feeling she was the one who murdered that number one, Jin.

Why was that?

I was friends with Jin.

He told me he had some issues with Ms. Akina.

You knew about it yet you kept her as a customer?

I leeched off her as much as I could before passing her on to Kaoru.

I'm an awful person.

Do you want to apologize to Ms. Akina?

Not really.

She spent her money to have a good time.

It's her own fault.

Her own fault?

Do you not realize that you ruined that woman's life?

- You can talk. - Huh?

You were attracted to me, too.

You used your work as an excuse to see me.

Don't be so sly.

Independent-looking women like you are the most persistent ones!

- Stop it! - You want to sleep with me?

Hey, stop! Let go of me!

For a short period of time, I did think about becoming your customer.

But unfortunately, I didn't get hooked.

I get it.

Any woman can get into…

Ms. Akina's situation.

In total?

At least 100 million yen, I think.

According to our research,

you even helped Jin cover the deposits for his car and apartment.

How could you afford that?

You know it all already, right?

In the beginning, I paid for Jin with my own money,

but I soon ran out.

As soon as I ran out of money,

he changed his attitude and became cold.

Then I will kill myself!

- Stop that! Stop it! - No!

So are you saying you didn't mean to kill him?

I don't care if you believe me.

Pour it!

Pour it!

I was scared of getting caught.

To try to forget reality,

I went to JOKER and got addicted to Tsubasa.

I wanted to make him number one.

So I started using my company's funds.

But the company found out,

and a board meeting was scheduled to question you.

I just wanted to see Tsubasa one last time and say…

"Whatever happens,

I will always be rooting for you."

But…

He looked at me like he was looking at something filthy.

I thought, "I see.

He knew that I killed Jin and was milking money out of me!"

So you decided to kill Tsubasa instead?

Not just him.

All men who exploit women.

All of them!

I wanted to kill all of them!

I've worked so hard by myself.

I wanted to be someone's number one.

I wanted…

to be genuinely thanked by someone.

I wanted someone in my life

who can't live without me!

On the 18th of this month, Ms. Utsunomiya,

tried to stab hosts with a kitchen knife at the club "THE JOKER" in Kabukicho.

Ms. Machida, Ms. Akina's case was sent to the prosecutor.

- Okay. I see. Thanks. - She also confessed to murdering a host…

Thank you for lending me this book.

Are you okay?

You tend to struggle to let things go.

Even with students, you try too hard and get disliked by them.

To be honest, I was worried about you teaching Kaoru.

Is that why you helped me?

It's my duty as your assistant teacher.

But I do feel relieved now.

Nothing good can happen from a teacher being associated with a host.

It's the right choice.

The right choice.

That's it.

I've always chosen the right path.

I didn't know how else to live.

- I'm back! - Welcome back!

I also washed yours.

Sorry! Thank you!

By the way, why did you protect Tsubasa?

Well, I don't really know,

in the moment I saw him as a friend.

It's weird 'cos I hated him.

I'm not surprised.

- Ow. - Give it here.

Sorry.

- There you go. - Thank you.

I'm worried about the club.

Will there be fewer customers because of the incident?

I don't know.

Oh!

- It's from the club. - What?

Hello.

Yes.

Okay.

Yes. See you later.

They're reopening today!

- Really? - Yeah!

- I'm so happy! Ouch! - Hey, take it slow.

I'll get ready and head out.

Okay! I'll head there a bit later.

Let's do this!

All right!

REOPENING TODAY AT 7:00 P.M.!

All right.

Excuse me!

Whoa, you scared me!

Hi.

Hi? That's all? After what you did?

Wait, I…

Whoa, what is it?

- I really… - You scare me.

I really am…

sorry!

It's fine.

- I'm busy with the reopening, so… - Wait.

- It's not open yet, right? Can I come in? - What?

I want to know more about you.

Hey, wait.

Please! Is this okay?

- It was written down! - Morning!

- Morning! - Hey, good morning!

You're fit to work now?

I'm good! Very good!

- I'm glad. - Sorry, I worried you.

Right, this guy…

He's my friend.

He wants to become a host.

- What? - Right?

Yes. I'm his friend and I want to be a host.

- Nice to meet you! - You too.

Walk properly if you want to become a host!

Yeah.

It's a completely different world.

Nice, right?

So? How can I help?

Yeah. You…

You didn't tell Manami or the police that I was the one

who injured you.

No.

W-Why didn't you?

I didn't want to trouble her.

If you get arrested by the police for assault,

you'll lose your job.

And I bet you work for a good company.

I thought that'll derail the marriage plan.

By "marriage," you mean…

mine and Manami's marriage?

Who else?

Sorry.

It's okay.

I never hit anyone before.

When you hit someone, you get injured too, huh?

That's obvious.

Are you okay?

Can you really make her happy?

- I think so. - You think so?

You need to say, "Definitely".

Hey, Kaoru! Long time no see!

Hey, long time no see!

Let me know who's coming.

Yeah, okay! Will do!

Right, that's the end of your trial! Get home safe.

It's been a while!

- It has! - Hi, guys! Yeah!

Take it slow, okay?

- I'm totally fine! - It must be nice to be young!

Kaoru!

There you go.

Oh gosh, shit!

See? What an outrageous incident! I'm glad you weren't part of it!

Now get a move on and get the wedding plans going

while he's still obsessed with you!

Mr. Kawahara said I should talk to you

before we start planning the wedding.

Talk about what?

About your company.

I heard about what's happened.

I'm sorry, I had no idea.

Nothing for you to worry about.

Once you're in a higher position, you become a target!

I will not lose!

They can't get rid of me this easily!

Is your life over if you lose your job?

No, right?

Tell us everything.

That's unnecessary.

It's my fault for being unreliable and making you worry all the time.

You always had to act tough, even at home.

I'll move out now.

The marriage…

My work…

I need time to think on my own.

So dad, you can stop…

pressuring yourself.

I'll find a place during the holidays and let you know.

HOST MURDER INCIDENT IN KABUKICHO

MANAMI OGAWA

Can I stay over for a while?

- Ms. Machida, could you check this? - Okay.

Did you finally convince your dad?

I need to get out for now.

Okay. I support whatever you decide.

Thank you.

I think it's my only chance.

Perfect. I wanted someone to talk to tonight.

- Bye. - I'll try to get home early.

JOKER's reopening today!

What? Really?

- Ouch! That's not it! - What? This hurts? Sorry…

- I'll do it slowly. There! - Ouch!

- You did that on purpose. - No… Ouch!

- It hurts. - We're so fragile.

I'm sorry about what happened.

How's your arm?

It's better.

If anything happens to me, help me then!

In that case, me too!

- Thank you! - Thank you!

Meeting's about to start!

- Gather around! - Yes!

Welcome back.

Thank you!

Is everyone here?

Yes!

I'm sure you've been anxious,

but as of today, THE JOKER will reopen!

- Yeah! - Wow!

However, it's just for tonight.

- What? Why? - Just tonight?

For the last ten years,

THE JOKER has been a place filled with dreams for so many people.

But sadly, one of our customers has committed a crime.

Not saying it was our fault, but this club did play a role in it.

We can't justify staying open.

Hang on a minute!

Is there nothing we can do?

I'll work hard! I'll do anything!

I want to keep working here.

I've built relationships with many princesses!

I want to keep working, too!

- Boss! - Let's not give up yet!

- Please! - We can do this!

Boss!

The best solution is for me to quit, right?

No. I'm taking all of the responsibility.

A day consists of daytime and nighttime.

Humans also need some time out of the sunlight

where they can show their vulgar desires.

The outside world is tough,

so I wanted to provide a safe space for men to compete.

That was my dream.

It's also why I riled you up.

However, the incident made me realize that my ideas were wrong.

Stop crying!

I'm sorry.

Kaoru, well said.

It's already been decided!

We still have tonight! Let's go out with a bang!

- Yes! - Yes!

Everyone, start getting ready and smile!

Yes.

Smile, everyone. We need to smile! Okay?

What is it?

I…

I'll give it my all today and make it a hell of a night.

No.

All you need to do is enjoy it.

- I was wrong. Sorry. - Really?

- I'll go, let them know. - Thanks.

We have no customers coming in!

That's so weird.

I've let my girls know we're open today.

I also called my girls.

I think we all have.

Do you think it's because of the incident?

Is that why?

We have a customer! Welcome!

Welcome!

Watch your step.

Yukari!

I missed you.

I felt hesitant, but I still came!

Thank you.

Welcome!

Welcome!

This way.

We have a customer! Welcome!

Welcome!

- Kaoru! - What?

- Finally! - Sorry, I'm late!

Let's make it a great night.

Welcome!

OBON FESTIVAL

MS. MANAMI OGAWA

TAIGA TAKAMORI

MS. CHIHUAHUA YOU'RE PRETTIER WHEN YOU ARE ASLEEP

Let's play the King's Game!

- The King's Game? - Yes!

Can I join you?

- What? - The King?

- Really? - You too?

I'll be your assistant today, Kaoru.

Drinking with the top two hosts? Are you kidding me?

We're rivals, but I guess I'll make an exception!

In that case, as a gift for the both of you,

I want to order the most expensive drink!

Really? Are you sure?

You scared me!

Dad?

Open the door!

What are you doing? Open it!

JOKER's last champagne is a whopping five million yen a bottle!

Thank you very much!

Thanks!

On top of that, to celebrate today,

here's a special champagne tower as a gift to everyone from THE JOKER!

Gather around, please!

- Let's go. - Okay!

This is amazing!

You took too long!

Open the door! Please!

Hey, this is insane!

You're not capable of anything! I can't let you go!

Why would you say that?

Do you think you got into that publisher all by yourself?

I asked the CEO to hire you!

You got to work in that department not because your exam score was good,

but because I asked!

After you fell for that stupid guy and quit,

I asked your school principal to hire you as a teacher!

You can't do anything without my help!

Don't you get it?

I know that!

That's why I told you I'm moving out!

Enough already!

Manami! Go!

- Hurry! - Move!

Hurry up and go!

- I'll be fine! - Manami!

Manami!

Looking back was not an option.

I ran.

The streets I knew well didn't feel familiar.

Thank you all for coming on THE JOKER's final night!

"That night THE JOKER was the place to be in Kabukicho."

I want people to remember us that way.

So I want all of us here tonight to party until we drop!

Let's go!

- Let's go! - Let's go!

Let's go!

- Let's go! - Let's go!

Let's go!

- Let's go! - Let's go!

- Kaoru! Please take over! - Sure!

- Well then! - Yeah!

- JOKER's last night! - Yeah!

- The special champagne! - Yeah!

- Let's open it! - Yeah!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Pour it!

Fever JOKER!

Fever JOKER!

He cares about you more than I do.

I was hoping you and Ms. Chihuahua would get together.

I can't live the life you want me to live.

Ms. Chihuahua!

THIS DRAMA INCLUDES BUSINESS PRACTICES THAT COULD BE CONSIDERED VIOLATIONS

Subtitle translation by: Emily J.