From Strict Upbringing to Nightlife: Japan’s No.1 Delivery Health Girl Mariten’s Story

“I want to reach deep into my customers’ hearts.”

“The teacher who always scolds students, saying ‘You’re not good enough!’ calls for a delivery health service, enjoys the play, and then confesses, ‘I just can’t stop secretly filming people.’

In the relaxed atmosphere of pillow talk, people spill their deepest, most toxic secrets. I felt that was where true human nature lay, and that’s why I became a sex worker.”

Mariten (34), who was crowned the No.1 nationwide in Japan’s largest adult entertainment ranking contest, “Miss Heaven 2023,” shares her turbulent life in her debut book Sacred and Sexual: My True Story (Kodansha).

The book vividly recounts her upbringing as a second-generation member of a religious family, betrayals by lovers, a suicide attempt, and other dark past experiences.

“Since winning Miss Heaven at the end of 2023, people introduce me as a charismatic figure, and even girls I’ve never met say, ‘I admire you!’ I appreciate it, but I’m really not that great of a person.

My style of customer service is to shorten the distance with clients by sharing how messed up I really was. I want to get deep into their hearts, but this ‘amazing person’ image gets in the way. That’s why I decided to write about the real me.”

Just how messed up was Mariten?

The real me

Born in Aichi Prefecture in 1990, Mariten grew up in an ordinary household with a salaried father and a nurse mother. However, when she was in third grade, her younger sister’s sudden death led her mother to join a new cult-like religious group. Following its teachings, Mariten was strictly prohibited from listening to popular music, playing video games, participating in school events like sports festivals, dating, or even socializing with non-believers.

However, upon entering university and moving to Shizuoka to live alone, she began to take a path that was completely opposite to the religious doctrines she had grown up with.

“Perhaps as a reaction to my strict upbringing, I became a party girl at an incredible speed. I spent my nights aggressively picking up men, and within two years of starting university, my number of sexual partners had exceeded 30. My mother’s religion preached that the right way to live was to be pure and righteous, but what I saw in pillow talks with men was quite the opposite. They were clumsy, messy, and weak to their desires. But wasn’t that what being human really meant? That realization drew me even deeper into my wild lifestyle.”

In December of her senior year, a bad friend introduced her to escort work. She had already secured a job at a company in Tokyo, so she took it on as a limited-time social experiment just for fun.

“I still remember one of my early clients—a man in his 70s whom many of the other escorts had refused to see. He was physically strong, had a loud voice, and spoke roughly, using words like you and hey in a way that made him come off as a typical ‘boomer’ in today’s terms. But during our third pillow talk, he confessed that his wife had passed away three years ago and that she had been his only partner. When he said, ‘I don’t really understand women’s feelings, so if I’ve done anything unpleasant, I’m sorry,’ I felt a deep connection. It made me happy to reach that level of emotional intimacy.”

That feeling was so intoxicating that, despite initially working a corporate job, she quit after three and a half years and returned to the adult industry. Her ability to connect deeply with clients quickly made her one of the most popular escorts. At 25, she struck out on her own, opening a business in Ikebukuro, one of Tokyo’s most competitive areas. Balancing both management and her work as a high-end escort, she became known as the escort you can’t book.

“My highest single-session earnings were 5 million yen ($33,000). That was for a six-day, five-night trip to Hawaii with a client. Of course, he covered all travel and expenses, so his total spending was much higher. As for my annual income back then let’s just say it was around the level of a major corporate executive.”

While this may sound like a success story, the true defining feature of her life has been its unpredictability. A few years after becoming an independent business owner, the stress of management led her to attempt suicide, resulting in a forced stay in a psychiatric ward. While she was hospitalized, her ex-boyfriend took over her business, leaving her with nothing. After her release, she briefly worked at a regular company but ultimately found herself drawn back to the adult industry, where she continues to work today.

“I want to create a blank period in my life.”

Mariten, who has treated her work in the adult industry as a lifelong calling, announced her retirement on January 17, the release date of her debut book.

“This year, I turn 35. I had always considered 35 as my limit, thinking about the right age for having children. When I was writing the book, I was still unsure, but a recent health check revealed I have an endometrial polyp. So, I decided to make the book’s release a turning point and officially retire.”

She plans to continue working as an escort until the end of June. After that, will marriage and starting a family be next?

“I don’t have a boyfriend. I do want children, but I have no desire for marriage—I’d be fine being a single mother. It’s not like I can write anything in the occupation section when job hunting. After retiring, I vaguely imagine working in a field where I can interact with people without physical contact (laughs). But first, I just want to take a break. I want to create a blank period in my life. It’s a bit cliché, but I’m even considering going on a pilgrimage.”

Whether a former escort who has spent years immersed in human desires can rid herself of worldly attachments through a pilgrimage remains to be seen. But this, too, is just another step in Mariten’s journey to find her true self.

Check out Sei to Sei: Watashi no Hontou no Hanashi here!

From the March 7, 2025 issue of “FRIDAY”