Tokyo Soft Rice King.

"Wow, Ah Ming, you can read palms?"

"I learned it from the old man in my family before."

Kuroba Akira found an excuse to associate palmistry with the old man, because things that are somewhat metaphysical would be more convincing if they were learned from an old man.

Ms. Tashiro was also very interested in this. After releasing Kuroba Akira, she spread her hands in front of him and said with an expectant look on her face.

"Okay, then you can take a look for me. I remember you can see things like the life line, marriage line, and career line. I hope I can become a rich woman in my later years!"

"Well... I'll see."

Leaving aside life and marriage, one can get a general idea of ​​one's career.

First is the right hand, which has writing on it.

Only then can one become a "Beauty C".

Her skill level wasn't very high, but it was enough to make a living. With that skill, Ms. Tashiro shouldn't be doing too badly. How could she have ended up needing to drown her sorrows in alcohol?

Judging from her appearance, she doesn't seem like someone with zero emotional intelligence. As long as she manages her superiors well and handles her relationships with colleagues properly, she shouldn't be targeted or given a hard time...

Does this mean they haven't discovered their own talents yet?

Thinking this, Kuroba Akira continued to look at his left hand, and then he realized that his speculation was completely wrong.

What's truly astonishing isn't the talent in his right hand, but rather the proficiency in his left, especially two of them, which almost blinded Kuroba Akira.

"Makeup Level 4"

"Massage Level 4"

Level 4 proficiency, or two.

The higher the proficiency level, the harder it is to increase. The time it takes to train ten different proficiencies to level 1 is less than the time it takes to train one proficiency to level 3.

As for level 4, that level can be called 'master', a level that can only be reached by dedicating oneself to a single task for decades.

This level of skill is definitely not something that Ms. Tashiro, who appears to be twenty-four years old, could have accumulated. Even if makeup can be accelerated by talent, massage has absolutely nothing to do with any talent related to beauty.

This suggests that her mental age is indeed much older than her physical age, just as Kuroba Akira had guessed.

Ms. Tashiro was probably in her forties or fifties in her previous life.

So, her mature charm isn't actually a 'mature older sister' vibe,' but rather a 'mature woman' vibe'?

The mature woman with a sophisticated vibe... seems to have triggered a strange reaction, making her feel even more... well, more unique.

Just from these two proficiency levels, one can roughly guess where Ms. Tashiro works. Since she can do both makeup and massage, she probably works at a beauty salon.

However, the working environment must be terrible, either because the boss is very demanding or because of customer complaints.

However, Ms. Tashiro has already reached level 4 in both skills, which is better than the veteran technicians. Will there really be dissatisfied customers?

Perhaps they were hired by other stores to cause trouble?

Moreover, if there is a top-notch technician who is good enough to support the entire beauty salon, the boss would definitely be eager to keep her and would go to great lengths to curry favor with her. Only someone with a screw loose would target such a top-level master in the industry.

It's so strange... something feels off about everything.

Kuroba Akira felt that his prediction this time was probably off somewhere, but he couldn't figure out what the source of the error was.

If he couldn't figure it out, he stopped thinking about it and continued to check. Then he discovered a very special level of proficiency.

Braille Level 2

Ms. Tashiro can even read Braille?

Its level is also quite high, reaching level 2. This is no longer just a hobby; it requires frequent use in daily life to reach this level.

Furthermore, looking at other skill levels, there are things like sound localization and spatial awareness...

Combining these highly specialized levels of proficiency can only prove one thing.

Ms. Tashiro is blind.

It should be said that she was probably blind in her previous life.

But she is not blind now...

However, the wounds and scars suffered in the previous life will also appear in this world, as evidenced by the scar on Kuroba Akira's eye.

In other words, has Ms. Tashiro not yet encountered an event that could cause her to go blind?

Will she encounter him again in the future? Is it inevitable?

Damn it, does this mean there really is such a thing as 'fate'?

Kuroba Akira, who had only wanted to test Kuroba's talent and proficiency, was suddenly gripped by a sense of panic.

He felt as if he had glimpsed some truths he shouldn't have known, based on a small detail.

Is fate... something that cannot be changed?

No matter how hard I struggle, will I end up like in my past life, becoming a corporate slave and working myself to death?

No way... this shouldn't be happening!

What's the point of time travel then? Is it just to bring despair a second time?

What a joke!

At this moment, Kuroba Akira just wanted to look up and shout out that particularly cringeworthy line.

I control my own life!

Chapter Ten: Greatness in the Ordinary

"Amin?"

Akira Kuroba was brought back to her senses by Kaori Tashiro's voice. She asked with a worried expression.

"You look terrible... Is it because my palmistry is bad?"

Kuroba Akira composed himself, shook his head, and said.

"No, it has nothing to do with you, Ms. Tashiro. I just suddenly thought of something..."

He forced a smile, hoping to reassure Tashiro Hongxiang.

"I'm sorry, I scared you. I really didn't mean to hide anything from you. You don't need to trust my skills too much. Palm reading is just for fun."

But this explanation only seemed like a cover-up, which made Tashiro Kouka take it more seriously and care more about the fortune-telling results.

"Amin, just tell me directly. You don't need to lie to me. I can accept whatever the outcome is."

"..."

Although Kuroba Akira was not the kind of person who was optimistic and motivated, he never believed in fatalism.

If a person's entire life is governed by fate from beginning to end, then all the struggles to avoid tragedy become a joke.

Indeed, fate is fickle and no one can completely control it, but Akira Kuroba is willing to believe that people can give full play to their subjective initiative, create more options for themselves in life, and then choose the path they will not regret. That is enough.

As long as I resolutely refuse to go back to work, I will never become a corporate slave!

However, in order to dispel the unease in his heart, Kuroba Akira hesitated for a moment before deciding to ask Ms. Tashiro.

"Ms. Tashiro...were you blind in your past life?"

"...!!!"

Tashiro Kurenai looked utterly shocked, her eyes wide open like saucers, and her mouth involuntarily agape, forming a perfect "O" shape, as if an egg could fit inside.

She never expected that Kuroba Akira could tell such a thing from palmistry.

"How could you know...! I didn't tell anyone about this!"

"Miss Tashiro, you really can't see the words on your hand."

"The words on your hand?"

"Actually, I don't know how to read palms. Instead, after time travel, I gained a special ability that allows me to see a person's talents and skills through their hands."

This was the first time Kuroba Akira had revealed his cheat ability to anyone since he transmigrated.

The reason he told Ms. Tashiro was that he wanted to gain her trust first, and then obtain the information he wanted to know.

"I saw that you know Braille, Ms. Tashiro, and you said that you can only read a few novels. Is it because there are very few novels translated into Braille?"

This world ultimately belongs to most ordinary people, while the disabled are the most vulnerable group, unable to enjoy even the most basic entertainment.

“I also saw a series of other abilities that ordinary people rarely develop... but now you have normal vision, so I guess you were blind in your past life.”

"……I see."

Perhaps because she had already experienced something as absurd as time travel, she quickly accepted that Kuroba Akira possessed special abilities.

She quickly realized why Kuroba Akira had looked so worried.

“I know what you’re worried about, Amin. You’re afraid that you’ll end up in this world with the same fate as in your last life, right?”

　"Yes……"

Ms. Tashiro is a smart person; she can understand the source of Kuroba Akira's unease without much explanation.

"Regarding this, I don't think you need to worry, because we are now 'on different paths in life,' so we won't encounter the same things. That's my opinion."

"Um……"

"I'm not just speculating, I have some evidence to back it up, so let me tell you about my past life... Ah Ming, would you like to listen?"

"I'm all ears."

Then, Tashiro Kurenai began to recount her life story from her previous life.

"First of all, I was blind... Yes, I was indeed blind in my past life."

"Although I am a college student, I still chose a major related to my interests. At that time, I studied cosmetic production technology."

"Because I have good makeup skills and know a lot about various cosmetics, plus I have excellent grades in my major courses, I was able to join a well-known cosmetics company as a product quality inspector after graduating from college."

I see. Ms. Tashiro recognized her talent a long time ago, and she also happened to be interested in it.

Although the talent level is only C, hobby itself is the strongest motivation. Doing what you like will naturally improve your proficiency very quickly.

"At that time, I was full of hope, believing that even if I came from a poor background, I could still achieve success through my own efforts. But soon I encountered the event that changed my life..."

Tashiro Hongxiang took a deep breath, composed herself, and realized that after so many years, when she brought up this matter again, she still felt a trace of resentment... a sense of injustice.