Synopsis
Reiko Ryūgū is the biological mother of Rena Ryuuguu, known mainly through flashbacks in Tsumihoroboshi-hen of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai. She began her career as a clothing designer at a small manufacturer in Okinomiya, where she met her future husband. After Rena's birth the family lived for a while with Rena's paternal grandmother, until financial trouble at Reiko's employer led her to take a new design job in Ibaraki.
In Ibaraki, Rena's father gave up his own job to run the household while Reiko's project became a major professional success. Her hours grew longer, and she often stayed out late or didn't come home at all; she also began taking Rena on outings, including her coworkers' barbecues, without her husband's knowledge. Around this time she started an affair with a fellow designer, Akihito, was later headhunted into an even higher-paying position, and eventually asked Rena to leave her father and live with her and Akihito instead.
Rena refused, saying she would not stand between her mother and Akihito but would not allow her parents to divorce, and her mother then revealed she was pregnant. Afterward Reiko cut off contact almost entirely, refusing to speak even to a lawyer sent on her husband's behalf. Her last meeting with Rena ended in silence, when she would not read a letter Rena's father had written to her.
Later material reveals that "Ryūgū" was her married name and her maiden name was Hōtani; after divorcing Akihito, her second daughter, Hōtani Nao, took up that original surname. Reiko is voiced by Miki Suga in Japanese and Karen Strassman in English, and was portrayed by Ryoko Takizawa in the live-action series Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Chikai.
