Crossing over, and then being blocked by a rich JK.

Chapter 520 Ryoko Wants to Participate in a Stage Play

After getting out of the car, Watanabe Yu, dragging his suitcase, took Hamabe Ryoko's hand and strolled along the cobblestone path of the 'resort town'.

"He's not staying at the same hotel as us?"

Ryoko Hamabe turned her head away, looking at the van they had arrived in with a puzzled expression.

Whether in TV dramas or in real life, for trips like this, shouldn't the driver stay at the same hotel as the passengers so that it's convenient to call for help if anything happens?

Although making a phone call is the same thing.

"The hotel we booked was full, and the town is so small that we don't need a driver every few steps."

Watanabe Yu slowed his pace and began to look around the streets of the small town with great interest.

Like other 'resort towns', the streets in Hakone are unsurprisingly clean, and the buildings along the street are all in the same style, which looks very comfortable. However, unlike the main road for cars, the sidewalk they walk on is a gravel road.

It's not the old-fashioned, rough cobblestone path, but the kind of cobblestone path you see when you go for a walk, the kind where your family will let you take off your shoes and walk on it to massage your feet.

"That's it..."

Ryoko Hamabe nodded thoughtfully, a look of understanding flashing in her eyes.

If that's the case, then it makes sense.

However, she felt that You seemed to be doing this intentionally, as if you were just going with the flow.

Perhaps he didn't want the details of his interactions with her to be accidentally seen by the driver and then reported to Ayana.

But there's no need for that.

She never doubted the saintess's magnanimity. If the saintess were really so concerned, she would have been determined to possess it exclusively during the initial competition, rather than sharing it.

"Don't get the wrong idea, I'm just feeling embarrassed."

Without even observing, Watanabe Yu could tell at a glance that Ryoko was overthinking.

Ayana already knew about this, so there was no such thing as 'being afraid of her finding out'. Or rather, it would be strange to have this thought of 'being afraid of her finding out'.
"Excuse me?"

Ryoko Hamabe didn't quite understand what he meant.

Would you engage in intimate gestures with your loved one in front of people you know well?

Although it felt strange for him to say these words, and he felt inexplicably ashamed when he uttered the word 'lover,' he still had to say it; he had to make it clear.

"That seems to make sense?"

Upon hearing this, Ryoko Hamabe nodded thoughtfully, understanding now.

“Let’s go a step further.” Watanabe Yu coughed lightly and succinctly gave a similar example, “Would you use your phone when you teachers are making rounds?”

"Of course not."

Ryoko Hamabe gave her answer without even thinking.

"Similarly," Watanabe paused, "would you kiss someone you like in front of your teacher?"

Holding hands is commonplace among teachers and students at Chengnan Private High School, but kissing is something that's not so commonplace.

Some teachers even intervened when they saw this.

This has exceeded what they are allowed to do.

"will not."

Ryoko Hamabe shook her head.

"So, that's why." Watanabe Yu let go of her hand, then stretched out a big yawn. "We finally got to go out and have some fun together, and I don't want anyone following us."

The lean, middle-aged driver was not only a driver but also a bodyguard. However, because Ayana's schedule was very fixed, he had basically never performed his bodyguard duties.

"I don't want to either."

Ryoko Hamabe nodded in agreement.

"so."

Watanabe Yu took her hand again and continued walking along the slightly rough cobblestone path.

The hotel he booked was easy to find; it was located right in the center of the town, in the 'core area,' and was also the largest and best hotel in Hakone.

"Speaking of which, does Yu know anything about this place?"

Feeling the warmth from his palm, Ryoko Hamabe exhaled a puff of white breath and then started talking.

"I don't really know much about it. After you mentioned it, I just did a quick look at the information and then contacted them to book a hotel."

Yu Watanabe gave a very honest answer.

He's not the kind of person who, when he travels to a place, will read all the publicly available information about it. He'll just glance at it to see what the place is for, how long it's been around, and how many famous attractions it has.

As for more detailed information, his idea is either to experience and witness it firsthand after arriving at the location, or to find a local tour guide to provide a detailed and straightforward introduction.

"Shall I give a basic introduction?"

Ryoko Hamabe quickened her pace slightly, then turned her head, her eyes full of anticipation.

Although she loved how Yu shone when he displayed his talent, she also occasionally wanted to show off her own strengths in front of him.

My own shining place.

Although this is just a relatively written introduction, it can hardly be considered 'sparkling'.

But so what?

She just wanted to do it in front of him.

"Please speak, tour guide Ryoko."

Watanabe Yu adopted an expression of being all ears.

"Hakone was originally just a small town on the Tokaido route where travelers would stop and rest. At that time, there were two historic hot spring inns in the town, which served the locals and travelers."

As Ryoko Hamabe spoke, she raised her eyebrows and looked at the distant mountain scenery.

It's interesting that it snowed in Tokyo, but there's no sign of snow here. Apart from the weather being a bit colder, it feels more like autumn than winter here.

At least it looks like it.

"However, because it is located in a natural hot spring area, the quality of its hot springs is quite high. So, the two owners had a bright idea and found an opportunity to publish their hot springs in the newspaper, while also indirectly boasting about the quality of their hot springs, similar to the current advertorial marketing method."

As she spoke, a hint of emotion appeared between her brows.

In every successful business case, you can see the influence of self-promotion and self-praise.

So, is this considered a commonality?

"That's pretty ahead of its time. That boss must be someone important."

Watanabe Yu chimed in with a comment.

This wasn't something he said intentionally; it was a genuine feeling. Being able to grasp these business strategies so early was enough to prove that he truly had talent.

“That’s right. They were the ones who spearheaded the integration of this area into a tourist town and made the guarantee.” Ryoko Hamabe continued, “Now let’s get back to what we were talking about.”

"Coincidentally, people at the time were quite serious, so after they finished their promotion, some well-known contributors to travel magazines actually came."

"After experiencing it firsthand, he wrote a travelogue, describing in detail the hostel and the surrounding scenery."

"In short, he felt that the hot springs here were of excellent quality and the surrounding scenery was also good, making it a great place for travel and vacation, especially suitable for travelers who do not want to go far."

"So, the slogan they wrote in the newspapers really came true, and they gradually made a name for themselves in the Kanto region, becoming a well-known hot spring hotel in the area."

"In a sense, they also benefited from being one step ahead?"

She wasn't sure if her analysis was correct, but that was the feeling she got. She did the right thing at the right time, and positive feedback followed.

"more or less."

Yu Watanabe agreed with her statement.

“So choice is more important than effort, or rather, seizing the opportunity is the key, that’s really how it is.” Ryoko Hamabe shook her head and continued, “Later, as the domestic economy was siphoned off by Tokyo, the hot spring hotels gradually could not meet the needs of the small town.”

"So they joined forces, with the two hot spring hotel owners taking the lead and making guarantees, and the town began to transform and vigorously develop the tourism industry."

"By the way, the reason why those people were so easily persuaded was that they could no longer make a living by relying on their original professions."

"The hotel expanded and Western-style hotels appeared. Cruise ships appeared on the shore of Lake Ashi, and the mountain road was renovated into a hiking trail."

"In recent years, due to the high degree of commercialization in Hakone, coupled with its previously accumulated reputation, it has begun a second round of renovations, gradually forming a comprehensive tourism industry chain."

"There are hot spring resorts, mountain railways, cable cars, cruise ships, a newly built art museum, and lakeside sightseeing."

"So my description at the time was actually inaccurate. This resort or town was not a recent development; the people there had been famous for a long time. However, it was just being renovated and reopened."

But it's also good. If she hadn't been drawn to this place because it was new, she might not have known about its profound history.

"There is no such thing as instant success. What people see is mostly the result of years of hard work and gradual accumulation. It's just that some people are so talented that they seem like child prodigies."

Watanabe Yu uttered this sentence at just the right time.

He wasn't some kind of genius; he was just using a tiny bit of power that was beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.

So, would you consider Brother Tongzi to be an 'extraterrestrial demon'?
"You shouldn't be saying that."

Ryoko Hamabe's voice had taken on a strange tone.

To put it more bluntly, he has no right to say that, because he is the biggest 'genius boy'.

Even though she didn't know much about the music scene today, just seeing how those singers were being firmly suppressed by You, she already understood that feeling.

"..."

Watanabe hesitated for a moment, but still didn't ask the question 'why'.

After all, if he were to ask, it would sound a bit like he was putting on airs.

"Speaking of which, has Yu ever played any pranks before?"

Ryoko Hamabe scratched his palm, naturally changing the subject.

"Why do you ask so suddenly?"

Watanabe Yu was somewhat curious.

With Ryoko's explanation, they had already covered two-thirds of the distance and were only a little distance away from their destination.

As for how he knew, it was because he glanced at the navigation map on his phone.

"It's just that this topic suddenly started being discussed in the class group chat."

Ryoko Hamabe provided the answer.

She didn't speak in the group yesterday, but she did spend a long time engrossed in looking at her phone.

How come she never noticed before that everyone in the class has a talent for playing pranks?

There were those who put spiders in other people's drawers, and the other person got scared and slapped the spider away, causing it to disappear from the classroom. There were also those who stole other people's lunchboxes, only to find the lunchbox had leaked out of their own backpacks.

In short, there are pranks that succeed, and there are pranks that backfire and end up costing you more.

It can only be said that each has their own talents and room to showcase them.

"Does smearing mud on someone else's chair and then casually remarking count?" Watanabe Yu shrugged. "But I didn't do it; it was done by a friend of mine at the time."

He doesn't have the classic "I have a friend" line; he's not much of a prankster, but he loves watching pranks.

That's really bad.

Ryoko Hamabe understood what he meant and nodded with a smile.

This kind of prank is so bad that it might take a whole semester to completely reverse the damage to one's image. Even if the prankster has a change of heart and comes out to explain, it will only go from being a major stain on one's reputation to a minor one, and it will never completely disappear.

And most importantly, the rumors and negative reputation within the grade level cannot be made up for.

"There are also those who go to tutoring with classmates and stay up very late that night, usually past 10 p.m. Then the two of them take the elevator, and suddenly the boy says, 'Why is the elevator so crowded?' and then he runs out of the elevator like crazy."

Watanabe Yu shook his head. "I think I've already mentioned this, haven't I?"

Bringing this up again is just repeating the same old tune.

However, it did leave a deep impression on him, and if nothing unexpected happens, he will remember it for the rest of his life.

"Said."

Ryoko Hamabe nodded; in her memory, this was the second time.

"So what happened next?"

Although it was mentioned twice, the follow-up was never explained.

"What happened later?"

Watanabe Yu didn't quite get what she meant.

"It's about how the girl reacted after the boy scared her, and how she behaved the next day."

Sometimes she even thought You was a bit silly.

Isn't it obvious?

"At the time, the girl was terrified." Watanabe Yu paused. "It's said that her mother came to pick her up that day, and the next day, after the boy explained the situation, the girl was so angry that she chased after him and hit him for a long time."

To be honest, that girl did have a pretty good temper. If it were someone with a more explosive personality, she probably would have grabbed a stool and chased after her.

Don't ask why, just know that this is the style of Sichuan.

"Deserved it."

Ryoko Hamabe uttered those two words succinctly.

Although it sounds funny, it's not funny when you actually put yourself in the situation, especially for those who already have a negative resistance to the word "paranormal".

We've arrived.

Watanabe Yu stopped in his tracks, but his gaze involuntarily fell on the notice board at the entrance of the hotel.

Those who receive recognition will be awarded special rewards and exclusive access to ultra-large suites that are not available for public booking.

Besides this slogan, there is also a large arrow pointing to the left side of the hotel, which is the small square in the center, or rather, the stage.

"This is?"

Ryoko Hamabe clearly saw the sign as well.

"Today's stage play is about a prince and princess."

He looked in the direction indicated by the sign.

Then he saw the classic white tuxedo and the tailcoat that looked like a prince.

and so……

"Yu, should we give it a try?"

Before he could speak, Ryoko Hamabe, her eyes lighting up, blurted out those words first.

(End of this chapter)