Tokyo Wingman King

Majima glanced twice at the girl with the lily of the valley hair clip in her hair.

He took the sketchbook from the girl.

The album cover looks familiar.

She recognized that the picture book was a free gift.

This was a bonus item from Death Warrior's previous album, "W!".

A free gift with a Dead Samurai album with zero Mai content.

Unlike their previous EPs and mini-albums, this album is Death Warriors' first true full-length album.

She practiced every song on the album for a long time.

Correspondingly, she can also find the shadow of Shizumi Asama in most of her songs.

She remembered what Rize Shinazugawa had teased her about during their first rehearsal, words that only the two of them could understand—

"Mai quickly found that poignant yet not overly sorrowful feeling! I knew it~~~ Our little Mai is the perfect person to sing these songs~"

Mai Majima believed that her judgment was correct.

Shinazugawa deliberately condensed his confession into music, and then had people all over the world play these confessions on repeat billions of times, broadcasting them to every street and alley in the world.
This is far more romantic and sincere than those impromptu confessions on TV shows. It's the most public way to express the most private feelings.
As expected of the genius girl Rize Shinazugawa, she always manages to do bold things without making a sound.

如果
But if
If she waits until Death Samurai releases a compilation album and then performs songs from that album, wouldn't that mean Mai Majima has become the one confessing her feelings?
As Mai Majima looked at the cover of the art book, a flurry of thoughts that had previously crossed her mind.

Before the atmosphere became awkward, the band's lead singer, with his breezy and aloof demeanor, snapped out of his reverie and smiled at the girl in front of him.

"Miss Yue Hanchuan, is it alright if I just sign the name of the dead samurai on it?"

The girl quickly waved her hand and said...
"No, no, no, that's not what I meant! Ms. Mai, you've misunderstood. I'm also a fan of yours, please be sure to sign your name."

Majima sensed the girl's kindness, but in the instant the girl waved her hand, she saw the various scratches on the girl's wrist.

It seems that this is a common situation among Death Samurai fans.
Depression, feelings of frustration, family problems. BA Ling, some people also treat it as a personal style or fashion item.
She composed herself and asked,
"It's alright, no need to use honorifics with me, Miss Yue Hanchuan. Besides your signature, is there anything else you need to write?"

"Huh? Is that okay?"

"It won't delay anything."

The girl pondered for a moment, then smiled and said...
"Keep your head down! That's tough!"

"Iron head?"

"Uh, it's said to mean having strong willpower and resilience. It was given to me by Asama-sama~!"

By the way, Ms. Mai and Asama-sama are good friends, right? I've seen the movie you two made together! It's a pity some people said that the movie negatively impacted views on marriage and the birth rate, so it's been taken down from all online platforms now, and I don't know where I can watch it anymore. I really envy the students at Toyo Eiwa High School for being classmates with Ms. Mai, Rise, and Asama-sama. I wish my parents would send me to Toyo Eiwa. It's such a shame I missed the Eiwa Cultural Festival last time; it's not convenient to skip classes at my school. Ahhh... Sorry, sorry, I've rambled on for so long!

Jing Shui, how many lovely girls did you secretly meet while we weren't around?
Majima bowed his head, wrote his signature and a message, then clipped the pen to the sketchbook, handed it back to the girl, and shook his head, saying...
"It's alright. We don't go to school often these days, so we probably meet more often. I know you, Ms. Yue Hanchuan, who was in the front row and cheering diligently at both of your live performances."

"Eh!! Mai-san actually recognized me! Isn't that Rise's special skill?"

"Don't underestimate the dead samurai."

Majima imagined Shinazugawa's smile and mimicked it by winking.

"Oh my gosh! I never knew Miss Mai had such an energetic side! What a contrast!!! So cute! I could die happy!"

Tsukikawa Mika tilted her head back, clenched her fist, and revealed an expression of extreme emotion.

"."

Gejima was somewhat speechless, but he didn't show it on his face.

It has been said that many music fans were people with unstable mental states before they came across the band Death Samurai.
"By the way, Miss Yue Hanchuan, you're still a high school student, right?"

"Huh? Hmm?"

"Still out so late, you can't be waiting for me to sign your autograph, right?"

"Ah ha ha"

The girl rubbed her hands together, a bitter smile on her face.

Sure enough.

Majima didn't say things like, "Aren't you afraid your family will worry if you're still wandering the streets so late?"

She thought to herself that even someone as serene as Jing Shui wouldn't risk lecturing someone by touching on their sore spots.

Where are you planning to go next?

"Uh, it's not convenient to talk about that."

Looking at Tsuki Hanaka's expression, Jiandao knew that the girl was most likely not going home.

"If you haven't decided yet, how about coming to my house?"

"I have somewhere to go??? Wait, Mai invited me to her house!?"

With a click, Majima suddenly took a picture.

"No fans have ever been to my house before, you're the first. As a memento, is it okay to take a photo together?"

"What an honor! I am truly honored!!!"

"I have a cat at home. Are you allergic to cats?"

"Mai, do you have cats? I sometimes feed Ciao~ cat food to the stray cats in the park!"

"That's good"

Majima smiled and nodded, then led Tsukikawa Mika to another street corner and hailed a taxi.

During this process, she sent the photos she had just taken to Asama.

In the past, she would never have allowed a stranger to stay at her home, but because of someone like Asama Shizumizu, she no longer had any worries about doing good deeds.

The girl, wearing pink polka-dot tights, stretched out her legs and said with a bored expression,

"After seeing Teacher Erjian, to be honest, I regretted it a little. Men can't be looked at closely. They are all abstract paintings. From a distance, they look like people, but up close they are just scribbles."

"Yasuda-kun, is this all the result of your observations over the past two days?"

At the dating counseling department of Toyo Eiwa, the acting manager, Futami Tsukimi, sat upright at the other end of her desk, holding a form and trying her best to maintain a calm expression as she listened to the new client's complaints.

After a long 48-day wait, the fourth daughter of the Yasuda family finally made it to the love counseling department this Monday.

Her consultation focused on how to choose between four men she was interested in: one gentle and patient, one handsome but unassuming, one humorous and cultured, and one noble yet humble.
The response given at the time was that Yasuda had likely combined the strengths of the four men to create an ideal boyfriend image, a situation that aligns with the principles of multi-object infatuation effect, choice preference diffusion effect, and choice overload effect.

To figure out which one you truly like, try to discover their flaws and find the kind of guy whose flaws you can't help but defend. If you can accept a guy's flaws, it means he has the potential to provide Yasuda with the necessary courage—the courage to forgo other emotional rewards. Clearly, the frequent [X] marks on her chart indicate that the four guys who previously captivated Yasuda's fourth daughter weren't worth her compromise and tolerance.

"Teacher Erjian, you said last time, [If the flower field is big enough, then people will never be able to pick the biggest and most beautiful flower, but can only pick the one that suits their taste during the flowering season.]"
The problem is, the flowers I truly desire have already been picked. My life isn't limited to choosing from these four. Thinking about it carefully, it's clear that settling for second best in matters of the heart is the most irrational idea. What moves me is only one aspect of them, not the whole picture. Look at their tarnished records. If I give in to them now, I'll definitely regret it later.

Erjian circled the phrase "[Barry Schwarz, the choice paradox]" in his notebook and asked,

"Regret, specifically in what aspect? Is it the fear of changing one's mind and feeling morally burdened; or is it not wanting to make the wrong choice and worrying that once in a relationship, one might meet someone better?"

"The one in the back, I guess."

The acting head of the love counseling department fell into deep thought.

Her advice was to find the flaws, but Yasuda quantified this process into a series of deductions on an evaluation form. When emotions become a calculation, it exacerbates the dilemma of choice paradox.

Yasuda was indeed caught in the paradox of choice overload.

In this era, the more choices there are, the more difficult it is to choose. Abundant choices greatly raise the standards for selection and also greatly reduce the cost of missing out. With the mentality of "[The world is so big, it won't make a difference if I don't find someone else]" and "[I'll always meet someone better]", many people have become "wait-and-see" parties.

It's more important to pursue what's suitable than perfection.

Most people become cautious and passive, which only gives more power to those who are proactive and unpredictable, turning love into an increasingly risky gamble.

"So, Yasuda-san isn't planning on dating?"

"After all, I'm not a frivolous woman. I can just continue to maintain this ambiguous relationship with them; they don't deserve my true love."

"."

Maintaining ambiguous relationships with four people at the same time is unrealistic, unsustainable, and will not lead to love, because love is exclusive.

In Futami's mind, the image of Asama frowning and rubbing the bridge of his nose came to mind.

Even though most people in Japan have read Asama's Love Manual, very few of them can truly take love seriously.

Many people even regard a passage from Asama's manual as a guiding principle—

Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre likely held the following views on love: they were open to sexual relationships, rejected the constraints of traditional marital and romantic morality, embraced a spiritual alliance, did not treat each other as their private property, did not interfere in each other's romantic relationships, faced up to and restrained jealousy and possessiveness, respected each other's boundaries, gave each other sincerity, carefully cultivated their friendship, and were unrestrained and free. What they pursued was not simply indulgence and pleasure, but a kind of romantic relationship that could only be established by people with extremely free spirits.

Toyo Eiwa even has a club called [Freedom Friends Club]. Due to the suspicious nature of the club's activities, it has been listed as a key target for observation by Arima and his student council.

They never consider how difficult the kind of romantic relationship Asama described is; they just want to use the label of "friends of freedom" to gain sexual access.

Futami sighed inwardly. If it were Asama, he might have already started to teach and correct Yasuda's unhealthy views on love by now, right?

"Does Yasuda-kun think that all it takes is ambiguity?"

"Of course not, I'm not so stupid as to not be able to distinguish between food to fill my stomach and rare delicacies. Sigh, I understand now why Asama-sama said he wasn't interested in romance."

The relationship counseling department fell silent.

Yasuda, who had been slumped over the table, suddenly stood up and explained,

"Teacher, I didn't mean you weren't worthy!"

Erjian shook his head and said seriously.

"You're right. Jing Shui-kun doesn't want to be in a relationship because I haven't met his standards as a good girlfriend yet, and I'm not capable of addressing his concerns. But it should be noted that Jing Shui-kun isn't the type to maintain ambiguous relationships with girls with a half-hearted attitude."

Yasuda's expression became even more panicked, and he stood up.
"Futami-sensei, what are you saying? I had no intention of slandering Asama-sama!"

"Yasuda-kun, even if that's true, it's alright. Shizumizu-kun isn't the kind of person who would take slander to heart. If you idolize Shizumizu-kun, please try to understand him a little better. Regarding matters of love, even if his caution is excessive, it doesn't mean he would consider whether someone is worthy of him."

Yasuda didn't seem to understand Futami's veiled advice, but instead breathed a sigh of relief and sat down again.

"As expected, it's you people around Futami-sensei who understand Asama-sama better. I'm so envious. By the way, did Asama-sama tell you when he's going back to school? The Ryushin-kai people are saying that the Five Households' top-level advanced training trials won't end for at least three to five years. Will Asama-sama attend the art festival next month?"

Futami poured out the cold tea in front of Yasuda and poured her a fresh cup.

During the last consultation, Yasuda spent nearly 40% of the consultation time trying to find out information about Asama Shizumizu.

Nimi now suspects that even those four boys were just an excuse Yasuda used to gather information about Asama.

"I'm not sure about that either. Besides, Shizumizu-kun has never claimed to be the tutor of the Five Regents. Having the ability to educate the children of the Five Regents does not mean that he has the right to do so. Yasuda-kun, you don't need to pay too much attention to these rumors."

"Teacher, some responsibilities cannot be shirked so easily. Putting aside the matter of disciplining Yi Tiao and Che, if it weren't for the Five Imperial Tutors, who would have dared to interrupt the competition between those two young ladies ahead of time?"

"Yasuda-kun has actually answered his own question. What is needed to interrupt the competition is not status, but courage and ability. The title of Five Imperial Tutors is just a label of arrogance that someone with ulterior motives has put on Shizumizu-kun."

"Is that how it is?"

Yasuda then chatted with Futami about the filming of their relationship counseling movie, such as whether there would be any sequels, whether Hachiman would participate, and whether it was possible to bring investment to the production. Before the 90-minute consultation ended, she left the room with a gift (unsold items from the relationship counseling department).

Nijian sighed.

Even if you try your best to improve your professional skills, you will still feel helpless when dealing with people who come to the relationship counseling department but don't actually offer relationship counseling.

Yasuda probably comes to the dating counseling department to chase after celebrities, but she can't help but consider the remaining 20% ​​possibility.
If it were Shizumizu-kun, he wouldn't agree to just kick people out, would he?

Despite repeated emphasis that the Love Consultation Department is currently only a Love Consultation Department that also handles the business of the Service Department, it is not a money box for Asama Shizusui, nor is it a broker who can connect with Asama Shizusui.

But people like Yasuda, who can come up with a legitimate reason to successfully make an appointment through the mini-program, are still coming in droves.

After tidying up the desk and boiling another kettle of water, Erjian started taking notes.

[Accepting everything in imagination, criticizing everything in reality. Although Yasuda hasn't shown it, the possibility of fear-based attachment cannot be ruled out—a conservative, defensive dating strategy.]
Thump—thump thump thump.

"Please come in."

Hearing the unique knocking rhythm, Futami knew that the visitor was Phoenix Institute Haruka—currently the only permanent member of the Love Counseling Department.

"I just saw Yasuda. Judging from her expression, her ridiculous consultation has been perfectly resolved?"

He shook his head twice.

"This kind of thing can't be resolved in a day or two."

"Don't you suspect that she was just sent by Konoe Chiyo to gather information?"

Niji nodded, took a new cup, and poured tea for Phoenix Inuyasha.
"We can't provide any information. Perhaps Yasuda just uses this place to relax. Also, Yasuda's ability to fall in love with anyone but not be attracted to anyone else has contributed to enriching our case database."

"Thank you. That's fine then. Let these people pay the consultation fee if they want. Has Hitotsubashi Kokoro arrived yet?"

"Yes, the agreed time has indeed passed."

"Sorry for the short delay."

The last person to consult today, leaning against the doorframe, spoke breathlessly. (End of Chapter)