I practiced as a monk alone in Japan.

Chapter 120 again?

Chapter 120 again? (4000 words~)

Perhaps some people realized that the scene would be different when this girl appeared, after all, judging from her appearance, temperament and clothing, she was definitely not someone that an ordinary family could raise.

But wasn't her very first sentence a bit too frightening?
They were treated as if they weren't even human.

Does this mean they want to kick people out?
No, who are you?

You think you can just kick people out like that? Do you own this bar?!
However, because the girl's appearance was so shocking and abrupt, the group hadn't even had time to react and were just staring at each other in astonishment.

The boy, who had no intention of making a big scene, simply stood up.

"Let's go to the second floor, I don't know them well."

It's true that I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, and it's also true that I didn't want to give Yuriko any face.

Yuriko's face, which had been able to maintain a normal expression, suddenly flushed red. It was rare for her to be so openly denied her worth. Moreover, she still harbored some disdain for Tsukino Gen.

But everything changed because of the appearance of this girl?
How can it be!

But Tsukino Gen and this girl with a unique temperament were already preparing to go up to the second floor.

At this moment, someone next to Yuriko realized what was happening.

"Wait, that girl was way too aggressive! What did we do? Why was she chasing us away? Who is she?!"

"Exactly. Yuriko, why does your friend only know all sorts of strange people? I don't think there's anyone worth exchanging contact information with, and he even said he's not familiar with you."

Some boys would sneakily kick someone when they're down at such times.

"He doesn't look like a wine seller. Wouldn't it be more accurate to call him a gigolo?"

"Ha ha ha ha."

This kind of joke, which attempts to forcibly reverse the situation, can also be a form of comfort; whether it's a form of Ah Q mentality is hard to say.

Their relief was short-lived, however, as they saw a well-dressed man with a manager's name tag hanging around his neck rushing hurriedly upstairs. The manager, seemingly indifferent to all customers but maintaining politeness, was bowing and scraping repeatedly to the young woman, as if apologizing for something.

The girl seemed to have only said a simple sentence, and the shop manager turned to look at Yuriko.

Then, Tsukino Gen and Asagiri Rin went upstairs and disappeared from their sight.

The group of people who were unaware of the situation remained where they were until the store manager finally arrived, and he still spoke politely.

However, the content is clearly different.

"Didn't you find a suitable spot? You can also look around elsewhere. Please don't linger in the aisles; with people coming and going, it's not good to bump into someone or be bumped into."

"."

The group exchanged bewildered glances. They weren't fools; the manager's change in attitude clearly conveyed a message.

That means the girl must be someone special. Despite being so young, she's enough to warrant such careful treatment from the store manager. So, what exactly is her identity?
At this moment, Yuriko gritted her teeth and suppressed her intense resentment, "If there are any empty seats, please take us to sit down. I'm sorry for disturbing your store."

She didn't want to leave.

If she just leaves like this, wouldn't she look like a cowardly deserter? A complete loser?
She had stolen his life, so why did he seem to be living a better life than she had imagined? He was even able to meet such an incredibly beautiful girl, and she even had a respectable background.

Essentially, this resentment is a form of unease.

She was afraid that he was actually doing better than she imagined, and that her deliberate attempts to "market" herself and steal his opportunities had turned into a laughable clown performance in his eyes.

The store manager, neither humble nor arrogant, calmly arranged for them to sit down.

Yuriko couldn't help but look up and ask.

"By the way, manager, who was that girl just now? I didn't mean anything by it, it's just that there might have been some misunderstanding between us. If it's alright, I'd like to offer her a drink to express my apology."

Having been an orphan herself, Yuriko understands the value of being able to bend and stretch.

Life is a long marathon, and can we really determine who wins before the very end?

The store manager gave her a dismissive look.

He said, "The whole shop belongs to her, are you going to buy her drinks?"

".What?"

Yuriko stared wide-eyed in disbelief, as if she had misheard something.

The store manager straightened up, and a strange smile appeared on his face, as if he had thought of something.

The smile was unsettling, like the expression of a mastermind plotting against someone behind the scenes.

"By the way, Miss's friend said that you'll get a 50% discount on your bill today, and please don't mention knowing him again. He said he doesn't really know you."

"."

The store manager then left.

Yuriko sat alone in her seat, her expression like that of a sculpture whose soul had been emptied. It felt as if she was still sitting there, but she had been gone for a long time.

Her friends next to her were also looking at her strangely; they had heard the manager's words clearly.

The situation seems to be completely different now.

That handsome and unique boy seemed to be someone they couldn't afford to mess with from the very beginning.
They were all worldly people, so they naturally knew what kind of power it represented to be able to open such a bar in a location like Qingchi District, and it seemed that this was just the tip of the iceberg.

Indeed, both Yuriko and he are orphans, but there seem to be differences even among orphans.
Yuriko, who was just fantasizing about the marathon theory of life, now has a blank mind.

She had completely forgotten why she had decided to go out with her friends for drinks and fun tonight; she just had this inexplicable feeling.

I've already run one lap of this marathon.

But looking back...

The young man stood calmly on the podium, holding his gold medal and trophy.

She was left with only a trembling, powerless emptiness.

……

"Friends from the orphanage?"

Asagiri Rin muttered something strange.

In this private room, where she had never brought anyone else before, everything seemed to slowly quiet down.

The background music, played at the perfect volume, flowed quietly, and the excellent soundproofing made it almost impossible to hear the noise and bustle outside.

The boy opposite was excessively pleasing to the eye.

Gen Tsukino shook his head. "We're not really friends, just acquaintances. We haven't been in touch for a long time."

Asagiri Rin scoffed, "How long have you been here?"

"Not long, I guess."

"You're capable of getting into trouble so quickly."

Faced with the girl's sarcastic remarks, Tsukino Gen laughed out loud.

"What does this have to do with me? If you had come earlier, none of this would have happened."

Rin Asagiri was instinctively annoyed when she heard this.

Why couldn't you have come earlier? Open your dog eyes and see clearly! Do you think it doesn't take time for me to look this beautiful tonight?

You're complaining even though I've given you a feast for the eyes!
But just as I was about to say something, a strange thought occurred to me. Did the other person mean they were depending on me?

If he shows up, he'll be out of trouble.

For some reason, the anger dissipated and turned into a slightly strange awkwardness.

"Don't you have my number? You're getting impatient, don't you know to call me?"

I regretted it even more as soon as I said it.

Is this something I should say? Why does it sound so much like Sakura Kazama being coquettish?
Tsukino Gen was also taken aback when he heard this, and looked at the girl opposite him with suspicion.

Why are you dressed as Sakura?
"You come so quickly when I urge you?"

"Dream on, no one dares to urge me to do anything."

Asagiri Rin quickly adjusted her mindset and, before Tsukino Gen could say anything else, took the initiative to ask, "What would you like to drink? I'll have someone bring it up."

The boy shook his head. "I just had a Negroni, and I don't know what to drink now. You order, I'll just have the same as you."

You're drinking the same beverage as me? Well, we're sitting at the same table.

Is Long Island Iced Tea safe to drink?

Long Island Iced Tea is not a low-alcohol beverage as its name suggests. On the contrary, it contains a lot of alcohol, so the alcohol content is not low, and it is very easy for people with a low alcohol tolerance to get drunk.

"Yes, you can drink it."

"What about double?" Double naturally means double the alcohol, which is something no one would easily try under normal circumstances, and the taste would also be noticeably different.

"What? Trying to get drunk again?"

Gen Tsukino had a feeling that this girl's intentions tonight were not pure.

I don't know if it was a deliberate act of revenge, or if they were thinking of something else.

The girl glared at him. "I already said, I wasn't feeling well last time."

"You might not be in good shape today?"

"It's none of your business. If I'm still drunk, you don't need to worry about me. Morita will take me home."

Hearing this, Asagiri Rin felt inexplicably strange.

Will this bastard think I'm alluding to what happened last time? It can't be that I'm deliberately trying to drown my sorrows in alcohol, right?

"That's a very thorough explanation, but who knows if you'll go crazy when you're drunk."

"You're the one who's crazy. Anyway, I've already ordered, and if I'm scared, I'll go back now."

Gen Tsukino sat leisurely on the soft sofa, and one couldn't help but admire how well this girl knew how to enjoy herself, having made such a luxurious private room.

It's perfect for relaxing on the sofa while having a drink and falling asleep instantly.

"If I were to go back, I'd rather not have come at all. Can you stop talking nonsense, Miss?"

Tsukino Gen looked at her with amusement.

The girl scoffed, "Didn't you talk back to me for no reason first?"

"This is called communication."

That's also ineffective communication.

"Okay, I'm going to play on my phone now."

Rin Asagiri:? ? ?

Of course, it was just a joke, but the wine hadn't arrived yet, so anything we said seemed like a joke.

When the waiter arrived, Tsukino Gen discovered that there were not only two Long Island Iced Teas with double the alcohol, but also a single Macallan with ice.

Tsukino Gen suspected that she wanted to drink herself to death here and then take him down with her.

The girl picked up her wine glass without a second thought, and Tsukino Gen looked at her.

"Do you usually drink like this?"

Asagiri Rin slightly raised her eyes, her beautiful lips pressed against the rim of the cup.

"I drink like this whether there are people around or not."

"Really? I thought you always drank alone."

Gen also took a sip, but made no intention of clinking glasses with the other person, as that would seem too deliberate and inappropriate for the current atmosphere between them.

"What, does the thought of me possibly drinking with other men make you feel uncomfortable?"

The strong liquor seemed to dispel reason.

Or rather, it's a desire to explore the boy's always uncertain feelings.

What does he want to ask, what does he want to understand, and what does he want to gain?
"If you were really that kind of person, we wouldn't be sitting together right now."

The boy's expression didn't change, but what he said made the girl even more unhappy.

What does that mean?

It's as if you're disappointed. Is it so hard for you to say that you're upset?

"You talk as if you know me very well."

Gen Tsukino shook his head. "I'm not that arrogant. Who dares to say that they truly understand someone else? Besides, things are different now than when we were kids."

"Are you going to bring up the past again?"

Asagiri Rin glanced at Tsukino Gen with displeasure, then subconsciously picked up her cup and took another sip.

Then I saw the other person's ambiguous smile.

"That's not what I meant. If you don't want to talk about it, then don't."

It's not that I don't want to bring it up, it just seems sentimental to bring it up now. Shouldn't we talk about that after things have gotten better?
Having absolutely no experience drinking with people, Asagiri Rin immediately changed the subject.

Why did you accept Saionji's invitation?

"Your friend, and a senior at that, has invited you like this. It wouldn't be right not to give her face, would it?"

"So now you're trying to drag me into this?"

That's really malicious.

You're using everything as a shield, aren't you?

She didn't believe that this was Tsukino Gen's true feeling.

The boy smiled and said, "That's true. If she had invited me and someone else, I wouldn't have considered going."

Why would you go if it were me?

Tonight seems a little different.

It seemed she didn't need much effort to dissect his heart.

“You probably find that kind of place boring, but having me around might make it more fun.”

"Vanity."

So he was thinking of himself? He just said it out loud? Was he not afraid of being misunderstood, or was he deliberately trying to make himself misunderstand?
I didn't drink enough, which is why I fell into a passive situation of actively overthinking.

"Like I said, I'm telling the truth most of the time."

"What if we invite Kazama Sakura?"

Asagiri Rin pressed him for answers.

But they didn't realize that their hands were actually gripping the cup very tightly.

The handsome young man had long eyelashes that drooped slightly.

For some reason, the sound of my heartbeat seemed to foreshadow a countdown.

However, Gen Tsukino did not hesitate for long. He raised his head and met the gaze of Rin Asagiri who was looking at him.

Today, the girl is clearly dressed to the nines, like a perfect gem surrounded by diamonds, deserving of all the praise.

"You know, I'm an orphan."

Rin Asagiri:? ? ?

No.

What is this supposed to mean?
"That's why I always need more warmth, and I'm willing to give you more warmth too."