In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

Yukino's ankle bones emerged from the mist like finely carved white jade.

Shi Yu's arches resembled a crescent moon sweeping across a snowy plain.

In addition, Saeko's toes gleamed with the warm glow of coral beads, and her nails were adorned with a cherry blossom pink gradient...

That was really close... so close, just a tiny bit more!

Thankfully, she woke up and didn't need to change her clothes.

Oh, I forgot to mention, Eriri also made an appearance.

She was jumping around playing games and didn't join in.

I glanced at the time; it was already past five o'clock.

Yuan Qianye got out of bed and went to the bathroom.

During this process, we heard noises coming from the master bedroom.

This couple is truly in love.

And this house, we should definitely find an opportunity to move to another one as soon as possible...

The sound insulation is terrible.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

A few days passed after Christmas Eve.

Now that it's winter break, Yuan Qianye's schedule has changed compared to usual.

He spends most of his time helping out at the shop.

There are cases of influenza, which have begun to attract the attention of the Japanese government, but so far, the store's business has not been greatly affected.

Chiya changed his binding partner to Touma Kazusa, and he would start learning piano at the shop whenever he had time.

However, because his learning machine number five was not with him, his progress was slow.

The slow progress here refers to the speed at which he progressed compared to his previous learning of other skills.

But in the eyes of his parents, and Shihua, who also came to help out at the store during this time.

He made rapid progress in piano playing.

Even they could hear that there were often disjointed notes when he played the piano.

But now, he can even play a piece when the store is full and then receive a few scattered applause from the customers.

Could my sworn brother really be an all-around genius?

Shihua has gradually begun to have this idea.

On such a day, the time arrives at the day before the New Year.

On the same day, Yukino sent an invitation to Chiya, asking if he wanted to go to the shrine together.

…………

079: Both talented and hardworking

Chiya received Yukino's message while having breakfast at home.

The message was concise and clear, asking him if everyone wanted to go to the shrine to pray for blessings between New Year's Day and New Year's Day.

Yuan Qianye was a little surprised, not because of the blessing, but because of the fact that she took the initiative to send the invitation.

As he was considering how to reply, Rikka, who was standing next to him, noticed that he was staring at his phone and curiously came over.

Upon seeing Yukino's message, she seemed quite excited. Her small, pointed hand peeked out from the wide sleeve of her sweater and gently tugged at his clothes.

"Great idea! Let's go to the New Year's shrine together, Qianye. My luck hasn't been great lately, so let's pray together for a peaceful, healthy, and lucky year ahead!"

Is your luck not so good?

Both Yuan Qianye and Shihua on the other side of the table felt a tightness in their hearts, wondering if this silly girl had somehow found out about her parents' injury and hospitalization during their trip through some means they hadn't noticed.

"I've sent so many reader letters to Shonen Jump and manga magazines, but I haven't received a reply saying I've won a prize. It's the same with supermarkets during their year-end promotions. If you spend 1,000 yuan on a ticket, you can enter a prize draw. Last time I ran errands for my family, I went through the trouble of paying in four separate transactions, but all I got were consolation prizes of toilet paper. I feel like I need to pray to Ebisu, the god of fortune, to bring my good luck back."

"..."

The little fool is still the same little fool.

Shihua lowered her eyes and resumed eating peacefully.

Yuan Qianye was relieved and touched Rikka's spiky hair, which she hadn't had time to style since getting up, and which had an artistic flair with its upturned ends.

He expressed his concerns: "I'm actually a little worried."

Rikka asked, puzzled, "What are you worried about?"

At this moment, Toka and her sworn brother were of one mind: "Of course it's the flu. It's getting worse and worse lately. Our shop has started to pay more attention to disinfection and sterilization, and we've put hand sanitizer at the entrance. There will be a lot of people visiting the shrine during the New Year. With so many people crowding into the shrine, the risk of getting the flu will definitely be very high."

"Eh~" Rikka said with a droopy face: "But Chiya himself still went to the most popular place in Tokyo with other girls on Christmas Eve, being all lovey-dovey, and even enthusiastically and cheerfully accepted an interview!"

Yuan Qianye pinched her face, feeling its soft, smooth texture and full of collagen: "Who do you think I did all this for? Give me back the Kapibala doll, I'm not giving it to you!"

Shihua struggled and whimpered, but still argued her case: "I am happy to receive the doll, that's true, but that doesn't change the fact that you are hypocritical, opportunistic, and a double standardist!"

What is all this nonsense?

Shihua was quite pleased, as the exercise book she bought was indeed useful. Putting aside everything else, Liuhua's use of idioms in her speech is becoming more and more fluent, although she still doesn't quite express herself clearly.

"This is what I've always told you about the importance of setting a good example, and I've also told you not to spoil her so much. See, she doesn't dare to talk back to me like that anymore."

Gen Chiya released her grip, and Rikka covered her cheek, her rebellious spirits rising. She looked at her older sister with a sly smile: "My sister ate roasted sweet potato yesterday, and she kept going all night..."

"Shut up, you brat!"

"Qianye, let me tell you, I didn't sleep well at all last night! I ended up having to open the window to let in some fresh air..."

"boom!"

Shihua slammed down her chopsticks and approached menacingly.

Rikka took off running, but in terms of physical agility, she was no match for Toka, who had been training in flexibility every day. Before she could run two steps, Toka grabbed her and pinned her to the sofa, where she was instantly subdued!

From Chiyo's normal perspective, all she could see was Rikka's chubby little legs flapping around in mid-air, looking quite happy.

A moment later, Shi Hua felt refreshed and invigorated.

Liuhua, who had eaten several chestnuts, covered her red forehead with both hands and returned to the dining table with glistening eyes, much more behaving herself.

But she still wanted to go out and have fun with everyone.

"You don't need to look at me with those pitiful eyes. I just said I was a little worried, but I didn't say I wouldn't go."

Gen Chiya showed his phone to Rikka.

He replied to the message and set the meeting time for the third day of the new year.

Japan also has a familiar tradition similar to vying for the first incense offering, so there will definitely be a lot of people at the beginning of the New Year, while the flow of people will definitely decrease a lot on the third day.

Since it was a rare instance of Yukino taking the initiative to invite him, it wasn't easy to refuse.

This can be considered a perfect compromise that takes into account both the practical situation and Yukino's feelings.

"If you'd already decided, you should have said so earlier..." Rikka muttered to herself, which led to her getting a beating from her mother, the shrew.

This is the living room of Yukinoshita's house at this moment.

Seeing her younger sister smiling as she looked at her phone, Yang Nai became somewhat concerned and quietly approached the sofa.

"Oh, not bad, you've already made plans with Chiya."

"...!"

Her older sister's voice suddenly appeared in her ear, and Yukino, like a cat startled by a cucumber, instantly stood up and turned around.

Yang Nai rested her chin on her hands on the sofa, her body bent at a 70-degree angle, revealing a beautiful curve in her waist and hips.

She smiled and said, "But I think what Mom meant when she said that was that she wanted you to invite him alone. The 'everyone' message you sent seems a bit redundant. What's the difference between that and when you're just playing around together?"

Yukino was very unhappy that her phone messages had been read: "That was my own choice, and I don't need my sister to worry about it."

Yang Nai shrugged: "Is that so? I hope you can say those words from the bottom of your heart without regret in the future."

After she finished speaking, she walked towards the courtyard, but then suddenly turned back and said, "By the way, Yukino, you said it was 'everyone,' so can I go with you on the day you visit the temple?"

Seeing her sister's astonished reaction, the wicked Haruno was satisfied. She left with a "just kidding" comment, put her hands behind her back, and walked away.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

As usual, Yuan Qianye arrived at the store with her father around 11:00 a.m. today.

The two of them cleaned the windows and floor of the shop together and arranged the tables and chairs neatly.

Shihua will be arriving at the store a little later today.

The weather was nice today. In addition to washing and hanging up everyone's clothes as usual, she also planned to take down all the bed sheets and duvet covers and wash them.

And the big house cleaning is also done today, because it's a new year and a new look, so the house should be clean and tidy.

Rikka was naturally dragged along to help, but she was quite happy to do so, as she was eager to help her sister with household matters.

It has absolutely nothing to do with the two thousand yen that Onii-chan secretly slipped into her pocket before he left!

Yuan Qianye has grasped the general pattern of the current customer situation at the March 7th Bar.

There aren't many customers during lunchtime until around 2 PM.

There are many customers during afternoon tea hours, from 2 pm to 5 pm.

After that, there's a little free time of about an hour, and then from 7 PM until the early hours of the morning, business is booming.

The same is true today.

The shop had been open for over an hour, and it was already past noon, but only two tables of customers had arrived.

Minamoto no Sanada could handle it all by himself.