Do I really have a thing for female voice actors?

After settling his luggage, Tazaki Toru dialed a number.

"Hello, I am Tazaki. I have bothered you before."

Mika Kohinata sat on the edge of the bed in the hotel room, quietly watching Toru Tazaki.

Tazaki Toru did not intentionally leave his seat, and even if Kohinata Mika overheard these conversations, it would not be a big deal.

After Tazaki Toru hung up the phone, Kohinata Mika finally couldn't suppress her curiosity.

"Tou-kun, can you finally tell me why we're here?"

"Well, I'm sorry I haven't been able to tell you this before."

"I came here this time to pay my respects at someone's grave."

"Sweeping the tomb?"

Mika Kohinata looked slightly bewildered for a moment.

"Yes, as you know, I grew up in the facilities."

Tazaki Toru then quoted a story from [his] childhood, referring to it as his own childhood.

That's all Tazaki Toru could say; it wasn't that he wanted to deliberately hide anything or deceive anyone.

Rather, he had already decided to live in this world as Toru Tazaki.

In that case, there is no point in discussing your past life.

Today, Toru Tazaki has things he cares about more.

For example, those two girl bands, and those female voice actresses with dreams.

For Toru Tazaki, these are the most important things.

As the song's creator, he looked forward to seeing them shine on stage more than anyone else.

No matter where he comes from or where he is going, this is the only thing that will never change.

Tazaki Toru glanced at the time and said, "Let's just wander around this afternoon. I've already made an appointment with them, and I'll have to trouble Mika to go to the cemetery with me tomorrow morning."

"Oh, I forgot to ask, does the shrine maiden have any taboos regarding this place?"

Tazaki Toru suddenly remembered that Kohinata Mika was still a country shrine maiden, and wondered if Minamibo had any special rules regarding these kinds of things.

"No, not at all. Even if there were, we're already here, why would we turn back?"

Tazaki Toru chuckled softly, "Thank you, Mika."

"The number of thank yous Tou-kun said today is more than the total number of thanks he's received in the entire past year."

"Doesn't that prove how much Meijia helped me?"

"But I didn't do anything, I just stayed by your side."

Tazaki Toru gently shook her head: "Being able to stay by my side is already the best thing."

"Tou-kun, you are such a sentimental person. No wonder you can write such touching music."

Miss Aoki seemed to have said the same words to him before.

Tazaki Toru smiled slightly, neither confirming nor denying.

That said, I really have to thank Ms. Aoki for making me decide to bring her some gifts when I return to Tokyo.

Tazaki Toru thought to himself.

277. No, how come there are bears in Aomori?

Tazaki Toru has already made an appointment with the other party to visit the cemetery tomorrow morning.

After settling into our accommodations today, we had some free time, so we decided to wander around with Mika Kohinata.

For both Tazaki Toru and Kohinata Mika, this was their first time in Aomori.

The roads were deserted and sparsely populated.

Compared to the South House, it was just as desolate.

Walking down the street, there were very few passersby.

Mika Kohinata wondered if all the people in Japan had flocked to Tokyo.

Compared to Tokyo, places like Aomori and Minamiboso are like ghost towns, seemingly existing in a different time and space.

This sense of disorientation allowed her a moment of respite amidst the intense pace of life in Tokyo.

Especially with Toru Tazaki by her side, walking on this unfamiliar land, Mika Kohinata felt an unexpected sense of peace and contentment.

It seems that because she was unable to tour Minamiboso alone with Tazaki Toru during the New Year's holiday, the gods have given her a brand new opportunity.

Walking together with Toru Tazaki in unknown lands, no one recognizes them, and they don't have to worry about any female voice actors suddenly appearing and disturbing them.

My inner peace was extraordinary.

It's late February now, and the temperature in Aomori is quite high. Walking on the street, you can often see signs that say "Beware of bears".

Quite novel.

I spent almost the entire afternoon in a state of having nowhere to go.

Tazaki Toru wandered aimlessly, and Kohinata Mika could only follow him blankly.

Tazaki Toru looked at the street, and the girl looked at Tazaki Toru.

"I'm sorry, it must have been boring coming out with me. We didn't talk much the whole way, which made the atmosphere dull."

"Not at all. I'm already happy as long as Toru is by my side."

"Moreover, if I knew that Tou-jun was here to sweep the grave of an old friend, and I deliberately acted like a clingy and cheerful person, wouldn't that make me seem too oblivious?"

"Then he's not just an idiot, he's a moron."

Tazaki Toru tilted his head slightly, somewhat puzzled as to why the word "idiot" was better than "fool" in this girl's mind.

However, perhaps that's what makes Mika Kohinata so adorable.

If you have to dig into even this kind of thing, it just makes Tazaki Toru seem like a boring guy.

As evening approached, I found a ramen restaurant nearby and had dinner there.

The shop was rather quiet, with only the two of them inside.

The shop owner was an elderly gentleman, but he was remarkably quick and agile.

After ordering, Tazaki Toru stared blankly at the handwritten menu beside him.

Mika Kohinata, standing beside him, secretly glanced at Toru Tazaki's profile.

Suddenly, the girl seemed to remember something, and a look of hesitation appeared on her face.

In the end, she couldn't hold back any longer and asked softly:

"Tou-kun, didn't you tell them you were coming out this time?"

"they?"

"It's Hina-chan and Rin-chan."

"I guess you could say that, but I didn't say where I was going, I just said I was going out for a while."

"Miss Aoki is a very sensible person and will not pry into my private affairs."

"As for Miss Tachibana, she is too busy taking care of herself to have time to inquire about my affairs."

Do you have a sense of propriety?

Are you talking about the same person as me?

Mika Kohinata hadn't forgotten how tough Hina Aoki had been when she was in Minamiboso.

It really is a cunning cat, with two faces.

Although she said she wanted to compete fairly, to this day, Mika Kohinata still couldn't figure out how she should compete with her.

She had no outstanding strengths to offer, and the only thing she could do was stay by his side and act as a mascot.

"Meijia, why are you so distracted?"

"No, I was just thinking about what I should do to make Toru rely on me more."

"Otherwise, it would be too unfair if I were always the one unilaterally acting cute and accepting your kindness."

The girl rested her elbows on the table, cutely propping her chin up with her hands. Her incredibly elastic cheeks, like bouncy balls, were squeezed together, poised to burst forth.

Upon hearing this, Tazaki Toru couldn't help but chuckle and gently shook his head.

"I feel it's unfair. I always get so much from you. If I don't reciprocate, I'll feel very resentful and depressed."

"In Tou-kun's eyes, I am simply too unattainable."

Mika Kohinata wanted to figure it out.

I want to know how he really sees himself.

Ever since she learned of Aoki Hina's feelings, she has been fantasizing day and night, imagining them being intimate in a place she can't see.

She knew better than anyone that Toru Tazaki wasn't that kind of person.

But such fantasies are like a broken faucet; no matter how tightly you turn it on, a broken string of water droplets keeps dripping down, hitting her fragile heart.

"Tou-kun, you once said that I was special, right? Why?"

"Is it because I saved you back then?"

Facing the hopeful gaze in the girl's eyes, Toru Tazaki nodded honestly.

"I suppose that's part of the reason."

"What about the rest?" Mika Kohinata asked impatiently.

"Is it really necessary to ask so clearly?"

"Because I'm just curious."

Faced with Mika Kohinata's nervous and anxious expression, Toru Tazaki simply couldn't brush her off.