Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 170, Section 11: "Alcohol is the only solution to eliminate troubles."

Not far from Hankyu Sannomiya, there's an old izakaya (Japanese pub) in the shopping street.

"welcome!"

The moment you step into the shop, you are greeted by the sound of the bell hanging on the door and the owner's cheerful greeting, and the aroma of sauce wafting from the exhaust fan is quite strong.

The blonde beauty who entered squinted as she peered into the dimly lit shop.

"This shop looks really old." Kurokawa Mio frowned after looking around.

The tiled floor underfoot was greasy, and you could hear a sticky "splattering" sound when you stepped on it.

"Mio-neechan, you don't understand. This shop has been in business for over 20 years and has a very high rating on Google Maps."

The girl who spoke was Chiai, who recommended the dinner spot for tonight.

Are there any stores with low ratings on Google Maps?

Kurokawa Mio's retort lacked force, as if she were simply stating a fact calmly. Chiai was momentarily speechless, then emphasized it earnestly.

"In short, the food at this restaurant is delicious. I highly recommend the braised chicken skewers with scallions, the oden, and the offal hot pot! Even spicy girls love it."

“Emphasizing about what hot girls like to eat,” Masumi retorted.

"Hey! Qian'ai, did you bring your friends?"

A stylishly dressed female shop assistant stepped forward to greet her.

Her dazzling blonde hair with wavy curls, striking makeup with a shimmering powder texture, and flashy manicures under the lights, even though she wore an apron over her casual clothes, couldn't hide her flamboyant and carefree nature.

"Hey, she's a real hot girl," Mami muttered to herself.

"Good evening, Sayaka."

Chiai greeted the hot female shop assistant familiarly; the two were probably friends or college classmates.

"I thought it was just your childhood sweetheart, but it turns out there are so many people."

The hot female shop assistant sized up the man and five women who stepped into the store, gave a soft "Eh," and said meaningfully, "Qian Ai, you've always been so generous."

"What does 'generous' mean?" Qian Ai blinked in confusion.

"This dinner was paid for by Masumi-nii, it has nothing to do with me."

"Huh? Is that true?" This was the first time Masumi, the person involved, had heard about it.

“Of course, Masumi-kun, the male model for the magazine.”

Asami squinted mischievously, nudged his side with her elbow, and teased, "You've become a big star now, with so many inserts, your income must be considerable, right?"

“I was photographed without my knowledge, and the only money I received indirectly was 25,000 yen from Ms. Shiratori,” Masumi answered slowly and deliberately.

"Wow, 25,000 yen? That's pretty good for a new print model's debut fee."

Mami nodded solemnly, but her composure crumbled in less than a second, and she burst into uncontrollable laughter.

"Puhahaha! Masumi-kun's awkward expression as he's surrounded by a bunch of fierce high school girls is really hilarious!"

Her gloating was excessive.

"However, thanks to Masumi-kun's good looks, the store has really seen a lot of new customers lately, and there are more posts on Instagram with the hashtag #StarrySky#."

"This is what they call the celebrity effect, right?"

She said this sarcastically, while forcefully slapping Masumi's shoulder from behind.

"Mami-nee, this is a public place, please be a little more discreet." Rinne sighed, rubbing her forehead in exasperation.

Kurokawa Mio, with a succinct and killer-like gaze, said: "She's too close to Masumi."

"I'm sorry, gentlemen, I got a little carried away."

Asami jumped back like a cat splashed with water, putting distance between herself and Masumi.

The sexy saleswoman smiled as she looked at the scene before her, then spoke in a cheerful voice with a subtle rise in pitch at the end of her sentence.

"Please follow me, guests."

"Thank you for your trouble, Miss Shop Assistant." Rinne bowed slightly, maintaining proper etiquette.

"will not."

"Miss who's lost in thought, please follow me."

The hot female shop assistant gently reminded Haiyue.

"Ah."

The jellyfish girl nodded expressionlessly.

The first floor, with only two tables and a few seats by the counter, was already full of drunken customers. The hot female employee walked ahead and led the six people to a private room on the second floor.

A ukiyo-e print of Mount Fuji hung on the wall, but it still looked a bit greasy.

Mami sat cross-legged on the tatami mat in the private room without any hesitation.

Today she was dressed in a T-shirt and cropped pants, so she didn't have to sit upright like the other three girls, Chiai, Rinne, and Mio, who were wearing dresses.

"Hmm, this restaurant has quite a wide variety of dishes."

Asami looked at the izakaya's menu with amusement and nodded as if making a decision, "Since it's an izakaya, let's start with six draft beers."

"Sister Mami, there are still some people here who aren't old enough to drink," Chiai reminded them.

"Hey, Chia will be 20 in a few days, so let's celebrate in advance," Mami said nonchalantly.

"You can't be so unprincipled," Qian Ai shook her head helplessly. "I just want ginger ale."

"I want to drink beer."

Haiyue, who had remained silent since entering the store, suddenly spoke, a few strands of her flaxen hair falling over the front of her sweatshirt.

"Haiyue is the same age as me, right? She's not old enough to drink alcohol yet."

"Oh."

"Are the other three alright?" Mami asked.

“I want lemon soda,” Kurokawa Mio said.

Knowing her own alcohol tolerance, she didn't want to embarrass herself too much in front of Masumi.

“Me too,” Rinne agreed.

Mami nodded, "Then two draft beers, two lemon sodas, two ginger ale, and a bottle of Junmai Ginjo."

"What kind of dishes would you like to eat?"

"For yakitori, I recommend the scallion-grilled chicken skewers and the chicken neck skewers."

"No problem, we'll accept it."

"The oden here is also good."

"We can have more oden, after all, we need to eat at least thirty different kinds of food every day," Mami said solemnly.

"Huh? Asami-nee eats so much in one day!" Chiai exclaimed in disbelief. "No wonder she's so heavy..."

She quickly covered her mouth to stop the words that had slipped out unconsciously.

"Ok?"

Asami squinted, revealing a ghostly, almost demonic aura.

"I was talking about the healthy eating principle of 'eating at least 30 different foods a day,' Chiai doesn't even know that? She'll definitely fail her civics class."

“You wouldn’t teach this kind of thing in a civics class,” Qian Ai sighed.

"Besides, I'm not from Japan, how would I know?"

"Tsk, isn't Chihiro's nationality criteria a bit too flexible? No, it should be called cunning."

Beside her, Masumi listened expressionlessly to the girls chatting freely about everything under the sun, seemingly enjoying themselves immensely. However—

"Yesterday I read through the whole section about stars in that magazine very carefully."

After ordering, Qian'ai rekindled the words that had been burned to ashes.

"A food magazine actually published so many photos of baristas. Is Masumi-san some kind of gourmet food?"

"It's like a childhood sweetheart teasing me," the girl joked.

"When Mio was looking at the magazine, she definitely had that look in her eyes that said, 'I want to take advantage of her.'" Rinne said calmly.

Chiai nodded, "What Mio-neechan said is indeed conceivable."

"Rinne, who puts magazines on her bedside table, has no right to talk to me like that, does she?" Kurokawa Mio said coldly, arms crossed.

"Huh—Rinne?"

Chiai's eyes widened in surprise. "It's the desk by the bed, please don't take things out of context," Rinne corrected. "Isn't it natural to put books on a bookshelf?"

"I see." Qian Ai looked shaken, lightly touching her chest. "You scared me half to death."

"Seeing how relieved Chiai looks, I feel relieved too," Kurokawa Mio said with a smile.

"What's that like?"

"Alright, alright! Let's toast, everyone!"

The warm-toned lights illuminating the room were dim and hazy.

At Mami's urging, the man and five women sitting in the private room raised their glasses to each other and gently clinked them together, making a crisp sound.

Asami and Masumi are drinking draft beer.

Rinne and Kurokawa Mio are drinking lemon soda.

Qian'ai and Haiyue drank ginger ale.

"Wow! That was awesome!"

The voluptuous woman downed her entire glass of wine in one gulp, ignoring the foam on her lips, and let out a satisfied moan.

"Asami-nee's drinking style is so unrestrained," Chiai remarked.

"He actually drank it all in one go, just like those drunk uncles at the counter earlier."

“Islanders’ dining etiquette is all about observing their surroundings and imitating them,” Asami said matter-of-factly. “So, in an izakaya, you should drink big gulps of alcohol.”

"If you get completely drunk, no one will take you home," Masumi reminded him.

"Ugh, that's so heartless. Can't you carry me back like you did with Mio last time?"

"It would be fine to carry me for a short distance, but please spare me from the Three Palaces to the Stars."

"That's so mean!" Mami pouted, looking dissatisfied. "My yoga practice lately has been very effective, you know."

"Could it be that Asami-nee really lost weight?" Chiai wondered.

"of course."

Asami's lips, smeared with teriyaki sauce, curled up in a smug smile.

"I weighed myself this morning and I've lost a full two pounds!"

"At this rate, I might soon have a figure as perfect as Keiko Kitagawa's."

She squinted her eyes with a deep sense of happiness, as the shop assistant brought her Junmai Ginjo sake.

Her luscious lips pressed against the rim of the overflowing cup, glistening alluringly after being moistened with sake.

"Huh? Really?" Qian'ai looked incredulous. "Is yoga really that effective?"

"It's probably because of my exclusive secret recipe."

Asami chuckled smugly as she picked up a piece of daikon radish from her miso oden with her chopsticks.

Peeled and chopped white radishes, stewed until tender in a pot, absorb the delicious broth and are incredibly appetizing.

"An exclusive secret recipe?"

"That's right, there's something called muscle memory, right?"

Masumi nodded. "And then?"

Asami raised her index finger and continued speaking with a smug look on her face.

"Because yoga poses can help with weight loss and body shaping, I wear yoga clothes regularly to trick my body into thinking I'm doing yoga, thus controlling my endocrine system and allowing me to lose weight without actually doing yoga."

After imparting her exclusive secrets in one go, Mami tilted her head in puzzlement as she looked at the silent group.

"Huh? Why aren't you all saying anything?"

"Perhaps they were shocked by my amazing wisdom? Oh dear, I only came up with this idea in a flash of inspiration, just like when Newton was hit by an apple tree."

Mami scratched her head, looking embarrassed. "Newton got hit on the head, but this guy got hit on the brain?" Masumi thought to herself.

Representing the four who remained silent, Rinne spoke up:
"Sister Mami, if your secret recipe really works, it can be published in Nature or Science magazines."

“A magazine? But I’m not a writer like Ms. Shiratori.”

Rinne continued to patiently explain, "This is an academic journal, and the articles in it are all the latest research results from the scientific community."

"Really!? I'm that amazing!"

Upon hearing this, Mami's eyes lit up. Holding the bowl of oden, she gulped it down in one go. The light broth was like a bonfire flickering in the cold night, warming her body and soul.

"But never mind, the scientific community is too far removed from my life."

"And I can't just share such an effective and exclusive secret so easily."

Seeing that she was actually seriously considering this matter, Masumi couldn't help but speak up:
"Is your basis for this just a mere two-pound weight change?"

"What do you mean by 'a mere two jin,' Masumi-kun?"

Mami lightly patted the table with her palm, pouting with dissatisfaction: "I've only been practicing yoga for a few days."

"...Mami, I want to tell you something."

"Is this Masumi-kun's apology? I'll take a look."

"A person's weight is not constant, but fluctuates within a certain range. The weight measured before and after meals, before falling asleep and after waking up will be different."

"so what?"

Mami still tilted her head in confusion, poured herself another glass of sake, and looked at Masumi with a hint of drunkenness in her coffee-colored eyes.

"Therefore, your results may simply be based on normal human weight fluctuations."

"..."

Upon hearing his words, Mami's expression immediately changed, and she slammed the bottom of her cup heavily onto the table with a "clatter".

"Ugh, Masumi-kun is so inconsiderate. Can't you be a little gentler with me?" Mami slowly shook her head.

Upon closer inspection, her eyes lost their luster, and her fingers, gripping the glass, had turned white and discolored from gripping it too tightly.

"Well, of course I know this method is unrealistic, and it might not even work at all."

She spoke in a flat, monotone voice, with a melancholy expression on her face.

It's absolutely useless.

"But Masumi-kun, isn't it a bit inconsiderate of you to so blatantly shatter my hopes?"

Mami made an unhappy face, slapped the table with both hands, and continued to protest.

"As a barista, isn't it your duty to please customers unconditionally and without limits?"

Even male escorts wouldn't go that far, and it's not business hours right now.

"..."

Perhaps because Masumi remained silent and took the best approach, Mami quickly gave up on verbally pursuing him and let out a self-deprecating tone.

"Well, this is fine too. At least I won't have to wear such tight clothes when I'm not practicing yoga..."

So it wasn't the body that was being deceived, but the guy himself. Masumi sighed.

However, in a sense, both of them are self-deception.

“I agree with Masumi’s opinion. Ms. Asami is also lazy in her yoga progress.”

At this point, Kurokawa Mio interjected, "Only the basic downward-facing dog pose is practiced fairly well."

"Hey, so it turns out Mami-nee is all talk and no action." Chiai retorted.

Mami simply gulped down her drink in silence.

Masumi sighed and stood up, leaving the tatami mat.

"Hey, what's wrong, Masumi-nii?" Chiai asked.

"I'm going to the toilet."

"Do you need me to come with you?" Kurokawa Mio propped herself up from the tatami mat.

"No need," Masumi replied without hesitation. "If Mio were here, I wouldn't be able to get up."

"Ah~ that one, right?"

Asami snapped out of her lifeless state and gave a mischievous smile. "I heard it's because they share a passageway, so boys feel pressured in that state... mmm!"

Rinne reached out and covered her mouth, raising her wine glass high.

"Excuse me! I'd like a refill!"

(End of this chapter)