In front of the Statue of Hachikō, a boy with faint dark circles under his eyes tugged at his dark hoodie and lowered his gaze to his casual pants.
He felt totally Lwo.
Was this really what he wore for his first real date?
But helplessly, aside from hoodies and sweatpants, his wardrobe only had plain T-shirts left.
“Should be here soon…”
Yuki Asahi turned toward the entrance of the station.
And immediately saw Jiang Jian Yue, dressed in a dark hoodie and casual pants.
Eh?
Both of them froze.
Yuki Asahi held his phone with his mouth slightly open, while Jiang Jian Yue had her hands in her pockets, emotionless eyes fixed on him.
After a long silence, Jiang Jian Yue pulled out her phone and typed:
“Let’s hit a clothing store before Meiji Shrine.”
“Predecessor, even you…”
Yuki Asahi recalled last time, when Jiang Jian Yue was dressed up like a dark, elegant flower.
But now, she just had her hoodie pulled up, her hair unkempt, her face expressionless, looking almost sinister.
Well… last time was so flashy because she didn’t know how Kuninori Tsuruoka found people, so she tried to attract the culprit’s attention.
In the end, it was pointless.
Originally, Jiang Jian Yue had planned to dress up a bit, tidy her appearance, and even try some makeup she’d learned from maids.
She didn’t have any stubborn thoughts like, “Ah, I’m a guy, I shouldn’t do girly things like makeup.”
Anyone who thinks that way is already a total sissy, and doesn’t need makeup anyway.
Looking at her pretty face in the mirror lifted her mood, and just that was enough to let her set aside that silly “dignity.”
You can’t buy happiness with money; being carefree is the true essence of a man.
But then she wondered, if she dressed up too nicely, would it make Yuki Asahi, this little Chunan, overthink things?
Why flirt if you’re not getting married!
Jiang Jian Yue didn’t want to deceive anyone’s feelings.
So she just grabbed the plainest, most convenient outfit.
Like sneaking out to pull an all-nighter at the net cafe with friends, she just grabbed her phone and left.
Yuki Asahi, on the other hand, was overthinking everything.
As they say, “A woman dresses up for the one she loves,” so Senior Jiang probably had no romantic feelings for him.
Well, that’s normal.
Random, baseless talk is the ultimate “delusion”—he’d let his imagination run wild!
“Weren’t you grounded, Predecessor?”
Yuki Asahi cleared his throat, trying to change the subject.
Jiang Jian Yue nodded, her tone flat.
“So I climbed down from the terrace by hand.”
Eh?
Another cold joke?
Should he laugh or roast her?
Yuki Asahi never even considered that she might have actually climbed down from the fifth-floor terrace.
The joke was just a bonus!
While Yuki Asahi’s mind was spinning, Jiang Jian Yue pointed westward.
“Let’s go.”
“Uh… clothing store?”
Yuki Asahi didn’t have much money on him, and though he’d been saving, buying more clothes might blow his budget.
“To eat.”
Jiang Jian Yue turned her phone toward him, showing a map app with a nearby pork cutlet restaurant.
“This one? High in calories… Predecessor, are you sure?”
Yuki Asahi was a bit surprised.
Don’t treat me like some High School Girl who cares about others’ opinions!
After a few minutes’ walk, they reached the pork cutlet shop and quickly finished lunch.
Then Jiang Jian Yue dragged Yuki Asahi into a clothing store and picked out a matching set.
Calling it a set was an exaggeration; it was just a coach jacket over his hoodie, and his sweatpants swapped for paratrooper pants—suddenly, he looked much cleaner and more comfortable.
“Very good.”
Yuki Asahi held the bag with his old pants inside, a little heartbroken for his wallet.
Kacha——
While paying, Yuki Asahi suddenly heard a shutter click.
He turned, and Jiang Jian Yue was holding her phone up, pointing it at him.
She lowered the phone a bit, exposing her eyes, and asked:
“Permission to shoot?”
Umm…
That angle and pose were a little too exciting.
Yuki Asahi’s cheeks burned. He turned his head away and muttered softly,
“Whatever.”
With the idea of making a CG Collection, Jiang Jian Yue started snapping away at Yuki Asahi.
Even after leaving the clothing store, she kept clicking the shutter behind him.
“I mean, Predecessor, isn’t this a bit much?”
Yuki Asahi turned around, helpless.
But then he noticed she was staring at her phone, motionless.
“What’s wrong?”
Yuki Asahi walked up and saw she was staring at a photo of him.
“Nothing.”
Jiang Jian Yue didn’t look up, only glancing out of the corner of her eye at a spot not far away.
In the photo, she’d seen a member of “The Light Extinguishers” from the fourth episode of the animation.
Green-haired, sunglasses-wearing guy.
Even though he didn’t have his hair tied up or a mask on, she recognized him.
Dragged into the plot again?
Jiang Jian Yue showed no surprise—in fact, not much could surprise her.
The next date activity was touring Meiji Shrine.
The walk from the station to Meiji Shrine took more than half an hour.
The weather was nice, and the two abnormal people weren’t afraid to use their legs.
Arriving at the first torii of Meiji Shrine, Jiang Jian Yue looked up at the chrysanthemum crest atop the gate, eyes narrowed.
Seeing her so interested, Yuki Asahi looked up too, but didn’t spot anything odd.
Walking the approach, the scenery wasn’t as impressive as in photos. It felt just like an ordinary park, only with taller trees.
After looping through Meiji Shrine Garden, everything in sight was green and yellow—really, nothing much to see.
Jiang Jian Yue snapped a few photos of Yuki Asahi, and used the front camera to observe the green-haired man tailing them.
Based on the animation, the green-haired guy’s power was similar to Air Blade—definitely worth keeping an eye on.
But what was his goal, tailing them like this?
“Predecessor, as a girl, don’t you like taking pictures of yourself?”
Yuki Asahi asked, totally unsuspecting.
“I can take pictures of you instead?”
Jiang Jian Yue didn’t have the habit of selfies, but she didn’t dislike it either.
Standing before Kakurega Pavilion, she awkwardly made a peace sign, expressionless at the lens.
With the hood up, stray hair escaping down her pale neck, draping across her flat chest, she looked completely like a “depressed girl.”
Eh… Senior Jiang, you really don’t look like a girl…
Yuki Asahi pressed the shutter, then noticed in the photo the girl’s blood-red eyes were looking toward his side.
“You’re not looking at the camera. Let’s take another—”
Someone bumped into him from behind, and suddenly his butt felt wet.
“Ah, ah, I’m so sorry!”
Behind him, a red-haired man in a mask, holding an empty water cup, bowed repeatedly.
“It’s fine…”
Yuki Asahi didn’t get angry.
That was just his nature.
He said to Jiang Jian Yue,
“I’ll go clean up in the restroom.”
Jiang Jian Yue nodded coolly, ignoring Yuki Asahi, eyes locked on the apologizing red-haired man.
Her hands slipped an Invisibility Wristwatch from her pocket, strapping it on inside her jacket.
Worst case, she’d just turn invisible and slip away.