Maiden

Maiden was an organization associated with Terahara whose collapse left its operation divided. Recalled by Lemon during a conversation aboard a train, its history explains the violent upheaval that followed the deaths of Terahara and his son and the departure of the young listener’s father for Morioka.

Identity and Collapse

The young listener already knows Maiden by name and recognizes it as Terahara’s organization. Lemon dates its collapse to six or seven years earlier. Terahara and his son both died, and the operation was split up in the aftermath. The account establishes the deaths and division as the defining facts of Maiden’s end, without specifying how the organization was structured or how its operation was apportioned.

Aftermath and Retelling

Lemon links Maiden’s collapse to the young listener’s father leaving town for Morioka. In his assessment, the father anticipated that events would turn ugly and withdrew before the consequences unfolded. The listener thanks Lemon, apparently taking his remarks as praise; Lemon immediately clarifies that he was not praising the father. This exchange keeps the account pointedly unsentimental: the departure is presented as a shrewd response to danger, not as an act Lemon admires.