Tokyo: To reiterate, this is not a dating system.

"Ugh—"

Genji Aoyama lay on the chair, his throat emitting a hoarse sound.

No wonder guys hate shopping.

Even if you're not physically tired, you'll feel mentally exhausted.

Genji Aoyama decided to take a bath; this was the first time he had done this since transmigrating.

Islanders really enjoy taking baths, and even this small, old apartment has a bathtub in the bathroom.

When the water was turned on, Genji Aoyama rinsed himself first before curling up and soaking himself in the bathtub.

The water temperature was slightly hot, but barely tolerable.

He let out a sigh that seemed to be relieved, and his tense nerves finally relaxed.

The heat filled the bathroom, rising and condensing on the ceiling, while the accumulated water droplets continued to fall. Genji Aoyama closed his eyes and cleared his mind.

I don't know how long it soaked.

Anyway, he wasn't dizzy from being soaked in water, nor was his skin wrinkled. He was woken up by his phone, which was placed aside.

buzzing...

It vibrated at a frequency of about once every three or four seconds, and you knew without even thinking who it was.

After thinking for a moment, Genji Aoyama picked up his phone.

[Saki: If Saki doesn't message you, will you just ignore her?]

[Saki: Are you there? Are you there? What are you doing?]

[Saki: I went for a check-up this morning and have been practicing with the sheet music all afternoon.]

[Saki: Oh right, I broke another bass string. Luckily, I bought two more a few days ago and have them at home.]

[Saki: My dad bought me super, super delicious snacks today. I'll bring them to the training room tomorrow.]

[Saki: Ignore people? ]

This is exactly like a clingy girlfriend who is energetic, has an exceptionally strong desire to share, and is also very strong.

Genji Aoyama smiled and quickly replied with his wet hands:

[Aoyama: Taking a bath]

The next second, Saki Izumo sent a video call invitation.

?

Even while they were playing, Izumo Saki was sending him messages, urging him to answer quickly.

Genji Aoyama smoothed his damp, disheveled hair back and answered the call.

"Hello Hello Aoyama-kun~"

The background appears to be the living room of a home, where Izumo Saki, wearing a pink hooded sweatshirt, is leaning against the sofa with a sweet smile. However, the moment she sees Aoyama Genji appear on the screen, her face flushes with pink.

"Good evening."

Genji Aoyama propped his head up with his elbow on the edge of the bathtub, held his phone in his other hand, and greeted everyone with a smile.

The unique reverberation in the bathroom made the youthful voice sound even better.

In the video, Saki Izumo makes a swallowing motion.

"So sexy..." she said, her voice slightly hoarse.

What makes it sexy?

Genji Aoyama glanced down and saw that he still looked rather thin, with only a thin layer of muscle.

"This isn't a video call for you to watch. If you do this, Saki, I'm hanging up."

"What else should I look at if not Aoyama-kun?"

"...Pick up your bass and check your practice."

"Will there be a punishment if I play badly?"

Saki Izumo seemed to be recalling something, a longing expression on her slightly pink face.

"I'm hanging up." Genji Aoyama said expressionlessly, but his hand was still propping up his head.

"Dameyo dame dame!"

Saki Izumo panicked immediately. She jumped up from the sofa and ran across the living room, which was many times larger than Genji Aoyama's entire room, while holding her phone.

A moment later the screen went dark, and when it lit up again, she was already carrying the bass.

"Okay, I'll begin then~"

"Um."

Then.

A deliberately lowered, androgynous, youthful voice, accompanied by low-frequency bass notes, flowed through the bathroom.

Genji Aoyama closed his eyes again and hummed along softly.

"How is it?"

Before he even realized it was over, Izumo Saki had already pressed her face against the screen.

"I feel soothed by Saki's voice," Genji Aoyama said with a smile.

"Is Aoyama-kun unhappy?"

"Hmm? Why would Saki ask that?"

Aoyama Genji was puzzled. According to past practice, Izumo Saki would happily chuckle after being praised.

"It's just that Aoyama-kun's voice sounds... oh well, it's nothing."

Saki Izumo's expression shifted from serious to cautious, and finally she smiled: "If you're unhappy, Aoyama-kun, remember to tell me~"

The two chatted for a little while longer before the video call ended.

Genji Aoyama closed his eyes again, lost in brief thought.

Are you unhappy? Not really, but I wouldn't say I'm happy either.

Forcing myself to do things I don't like is really tiring, not physically or mentally, but probably emotionally.

Having spent a long time in contact with beautiful girls who have all sorts of problems, Genji Aoyama couldn't be sure if he had any problems himself.

Feeling neither happy nor unhappy, Aoyama Genji, who might have a problem, got out of the bathtub, dried himself, and walked out of the bathroom. As he turned off the light, he noticed—

Under the dual lighting of the bedroom and bathroom, my shadow became fragmented and looked somewhat distorted.

Aoyama Genji glanced at it before putting on the clothes that had been prepared in advance, and the rest of the time was a rare moment of free time.

"Psychology is amazing."

He sighed, then went to his desk and began reading "An Invitation to Existential Psychology".

hum-

Just as Genji Aoyama read a particularly insightful sentence in a book, he heard his phone vibrate.

[Yuyuko: Regarding what I said yesterday, "There are some things I can't hold a grudge about," I thought about it and decided to be honest, probably because I didn't want Aoyama-kun to worry about me.]

Because of my mistake, I declined Aoyama-kun's date last week and even disappointed him by giving me the cake that day. So, tomorrow I'd like to go to that cafe first, and then go to the karaoke, is that alright?

[Aoyama: Of course, no problem]

After replying, Genji Aoyama took the strawberry cake out of the freezer, removed the plastic wrap, and put it in the microwave to defrost and heat it.

While waiting for the food to heat up, Genji Aoyama glanced out the window.

As night fell, Tokyo's base color turned a deep blue, tinged with a thin mist, making the distant streetscapes appear particularly hazy.

A minute later, a "ding" sounded, and Genji Aoyama looked away and took the cake out of the microwave.

The cake was frozen and then reheated, resulting in an unusually distorted shape.

He used the original knife and fork, which were sealed in plastic packaging, to cut and pick up the food, then put it into his mouth and ate it bite by bite.

Aoyama Genji's heart wavered once again, and he even felt pain because of himself.

That particularly powerful quote I read in a book has been looping in my mind—

"You cannot change these facts; you must accept them as your foundation. If you do not accept them, you will live on illusions."

Should I accept it? Should I change it?

He asked himself the question.

……

On Sunday morning, in the rehearsal room of the music academy, bass, drums, guitar and singing intertwined, while Genji Aoyama listened from the side and gave timely guidance after the performance.

Saki Izumo was exceptionally energetic today, playing and singing at the same time, and even managing to occasionally wink at Genji Aoyama.

Not only today, but last night she suggested in the group chat that we go to Shibaura Studio—the top rehearsal venue for top Japanese artists before their performances.

Of course, this was rejected by all members.

The band members felt they shouldn't spend other people's money, and that it would be a complete waste for them to go to such a place.

Genji Aoyama was somewhat worried that her condition might have worsened, as a strong desire to spend money is one of the symptoms of mild mania.

Even if Saki Izumo's family is wealthy, she still needs to be controlled.

"Sorry to bother you, your appointment ends in 10 minutes," came the staff member's reminder over the walkie-talkie.

Just as the music ended, after giving his evaluation and pointing out areas for improvement, Genji Aoyama announced the end of the training session.

After it ended.

Izumo Saki immediately hopped over like a little animal, her bright almond-shaped eyes sparkling with anticipation: "Aoyama-kun, are you really not coming with us? You seem really tired lately. Let's go to karaoke and relax!"

Aoyama Genji's gaze fell on his arm, which she was holding, and his heart was enveloped by strange emotions.

"Hmm...maybe next time," he smiled, "I have something to do this afternoon."

"you……"

Izumo Saki opened her mouth, but in the end, she couldn't say anything. The expectant light in her eyes faded, and then she smiled again. "Never mind, anyway, Aoyama-kun, remember to get some rest~ Have a good day~"

"Yes, I will," said Genji Aoyama.

Saying goodbye to Saki Izumo, Suzuki, Sugiura, and Shibuya—Takahashi couldn't come due to unforeseen circumstances.

Then, Genji Aoyama walked toward the tram station.

Should we ask them which karaoke bar they want to go to?

But would it be inappropriate to ask at this point?

The worst-case scenario he can think of right now—

As soon as the idea popped into his head, Genji Aoyama immediately stopped himself. He suddenly thought of a certain law, which was that the things you least want to happen are the things that will happen.

call--

Let's contact Yuko Asahi first and meet up with her.