The azure sea, but a lonely, fulfilled life.

They replied? It was clearly a self-directed performance.

"Hey, Iori, where are you guys? Huh? I'm in front of the Mitarai house right now."

"What? You're right at the door?"

"Where are you? I don't see you."

"Hey."

A crackling sound came from the doorway. Yu Mitarai pressed herself against the door, wiggling her hips despite Rie Ohashi's questioning gaze.

Is it the same terrifying scene as last time? Once it's over, it won't work the second time. A survivor won't be defeated by the same move twice.

"Mitarai." The other person's indifferent voice rang out. "Iori and the others said they were right behind you, so why didn't you open the door?"

Ah, what's behind him?

Even though she was already familiar with this kind of plot, Mitarai still quickly turned around and glanced back. Apart from Rie, there was no one else in the room.

"Oh, and they also said you got a girlfriend."

Ah, the tail's showing now.

"I'm so happy for you. You have such a virtuous girlfriend who is not only beautiful but also has such a lovely name."

The next part of the plot is just revealing the name Ami, what a cliché plot.

Just as Mitarai Yu was feeling smug, thinking he had seen through his opponent's moves, a voice rang out.

"Not at all, you're too kind."

A tired but gentle female voice rang out, causing Mitarai to widen his eyes.

They even hired an actress? That's quite a big spender!

"Hey, Yu-gege, what are you doing?"

Because of the distance, Rie Ohashi did not hear what was said afterward. She got out of bed and went to Yu Mitarai's side. Just then, the woman's voice spoke.

"I'm so sorry, Yu-kun has been hanging out with different girls until very late lately, so he's probably still asleep."

"Oh, I see. So, miss, are you also here to see Mitarai?"

"Yeah, this guy clearly said he'd come to the hotel with me tonight."

A loud bang came from behind the door, startling Hachiman so much that he trembled. After calming down, he gestured to Kohei with his eyes to continue the performance.

"He was probably too tired. After all, last night, I... was a little too happy."

Thump—thump—thud!

The door was suddenly pushed open, and a girl angrily walked out with her eyes closed, heading towards the stairwell. Taking advantage of this moment, Hachiman quickly hid next to the trash can.

Goodbye! Don't look for me again!

"Rie-chan!"

Yuya Mitarai, who had just finished dressing and hurriedly chased after Rie Ohashi, was watching her retreating figure when someone grabbed his shoulder.

"It's right behind you!"

He turned around and saw a man with his hair standing on end like a hedgehog and a resolute face.

Phoenix!

"The phoenix can be reborn continuously!"

"Don't try to glorify yourselves, you bunch of incorrigible bastards!"

After breaking free of her restraints, Mitarai Yu hurriedly went down the stairs and caught up with Ohashi Rie. Everyone else also went downstairs and hid in the bushes, eager to watch the drama unfold.

"It seems this trial has failed."

Kohei sighed, "Ami-chan, he avenged you."

"No, not yet."

Iori, having removed her wig, pointed solemnly at Mitarai under the lamppost.

"That person's eyes are still cloudy."

How did you tell his eyes were cloudy just by looking at them with them closed? Hachiman looked in that direction too, but he couldn't see it at all.

"I understand. I won't bother you anymore."

Mitarai Yu stroked his head. After his attempts to explain failed, he gave up. However, there was still something he wanted to say to her.

He looked up at the full moon overhead; the moonlight was truly beautiful tonight.

"Let me say one last thing."

Iori and the others stared at him, feeling utterly disgusted with this traitor, yet they still wanted to witness this historic moment.

"what?"

"Since we're no longer lovers," Mitarai Yuu said, a bright smile on her face. "Could you introduce me to your best friend next time?"

Rising Dragon Fist, Crescent Moon Kick! A combination that even Hachiman couldn't see clearly was unleashed, and his figure soared into the air.

Watching Mitarai glide slowly through the air, he couldn't help but wonder if something was wrong with this world.

Chapter 41 Akihabara - Morning Tea

On a bright summer day, the streets are bustling with people, the noise and hustle and bustle hidden in the city alleys, and the dazzling sunlight reflects off the glass windows of the high-rise buildings, refracting colors like bubbles.

This is Akihabara, rumored to be the most popular place for anime and manga fans. Various anime merchandise sales and large-scale offline cosplay gatherings are common activities here, making it a holy land for otaku.

He was suddenly woken up early in the morning, his nerves still drowsy, and Hachiman Hikigaya's butt was already intimately in contact with the high-speed train seat. After a journey of more than two hours, he arrived here and stood on the bustling street.

He covered his head and let out a soft "hmm." The back of the high-speed rail seat was too hard; he must have bumped into something while he was fast asleep.

Frowning, Hachiman Hikigaya looked at the furtive Kitahara Iori, rolled his eyes, and said irritably.

"I'm telling you, aren't you being a little too neurotic? How can you be so sure Kohei came here on a date with someone? Isn't it common for someone like him, who's obsessed with anime and manga, to frequent this place?"

Yes, the reason why someone who has absolutely no interest in anime and manga suddenly came here is that a guy named Kitahara Iori suspects that his best friend Imamura Kohei came to this place alone without telling them, in order to secretly meet a woman. In order to confirm his suspicions, he dragged another unlucky guy along to find out.

That's right, Hachiman Hikigaya was the unlucky guy. Who told him to live with him? As it turns out, being a roommate of a troublemaker never ends well.

"I saw."

Kitahara Iori looked around, searching for the best hiding place, and walked forward, with Hachiman following helplessly behind him.

[At this moment, Kohei Imamura was still at the ticket gate of the high-speed rail station, seven minutes before he was to board the Shinkansen.]

"What did you see? The echo of his proof that he's no longer single?"

Hachiman Hikigaya took out his phone from his pocket, took a picture of the anime character advertisement on the high-rise building, and sent it to Chisa. When she called him for breakfast that morning and found that he wasn't there, she called him many times, but he only answered the last one.

There was nothing he could do. Ever since the incident with Mitarai who cheated him out of sex, that guy had been pestering him like he was getting revenge. He wasn't asking him to introduce him to anyone or anything, but he was just relentlessly getting him drunk, which led to him spending all his time with alcohol. Last night, he even drank all night.

It's really amazing. This guy in front of me had been drinking all night, just like me, and didn't go back to the store to sleep until almost 2 a.m., but he was dragged out of bed and put on the bus before 7 a.m.

These guys are really enthusiastic about whether their friends can find a partner.

Looking at the photos on his phone, Hachiman Hikigaya sighed that the titles of anime series these days are getting weirder and weirder. "My Youth Blue Journey Is Definitely Problematic" is such a long title. Does anyone actually watch this kind of anime?

Maybe some people are reading it, after all, the male lead looks quite like him, what an insightful author!

As Kitahara Iori walked, he looked at the tall building, which was almost entirely covered with anime characters, with a surprised gaze. In response to Hachiman's question, he said in a calm and firm tone, "I saw it. He had a lewd smile on his face."

It was witnessed after a sudden reunion. That guy was actually holding his phone and chuckling to himself from time to time. Not only that, he was also typing. Typing! It's unbelievable that someone who has no friends at all would actually use a keyboard.

So, he must be talking to someone about something! And it's very likely a girl! No one can smile so lewdly in front of a burly man!

"Lewd laughter?"

This touched on a blind spot in Hachiman Hikigaya's knowledge. He had seen these two guys' silly smiles, foolish smiles, wicked smiles, and lewd smiles, but he had never seen them lewd smiles before.

What is lewd laughter like? Is it the laughter of a pervert?

Kitahara Iori nodded. He stepped out of the building's shadow and embraced the sunlight, the warm light casting a halo of holy light around him.

"Hachiman, do you still remember?"

"I do not remember."

"We're determined to help our best friends see women for who they really are, to let them know that they can't find girlfriends just by their charm. It's all a conspiracy, and they're just after something from them."

Kitahara Iori smiled slightly. At this moment, he seemed like a deity who had issued a divine decree, or rather, a despicable god with an extremely wicked personality.

“I don’t remember ever having this memory.”

Hachiman Hikigaya squinted his dead fish eyes, clutching his stomach. The poor little guy was crying out that he was hungry. Damn it, doesn't he know that breakfast is the source of energy for the day?

"Besides, Kohei's train ticket is for eight o'clock. Why did you drag me here at six o'clock? He might have just left not long ago."

"Arriving early allows for better preparation and makes it easier to track the situation by observing the streets."

"Are we filming a crime drama, chasing a fugitive?"

Hachiman Hikigaya was utterly speechless. This guy must have something wrong with his head, like a meteorite crater!

He turned and walked away. He didn't want to stay near him and get infected, otherwise people wouldn't be able to tell who had the problem.

"Hachiman, where are you going?"

"Let's see if there's anywhere nearby that sells sandwiches. You're not hungry, but I am."

Now that you mention it, I think I'm a little hungry too.

"..."

That's really something.

-

Sitting on a small wooden chair, Hachiman looked at the prices on the menu, his hand trembling slightly. So expensive! The breakfast at this shop is so pricey!

"Hey, Hachiman, didn't we say we were going to buy sandwiches? Why did you bring me to this shop with a sign written in kanji?"

Kitahara Iori whispered, glancing at the smiling staff member in the distance. He felt a little uneasy; this was his first time in a store in another country, and he was worried about language barriers later.

"How was I supposed to know that none of the convenience stores around here were open yet?" Hachiman replied quietly. He had smelled a delicious aroma while looking for a convenience store and followed it in.

"The staff at this restaurant don't seem to be from Tokyo. Could they be Chinese? I haven't studied Chinese characters much, what should I do?"

"Calm down, calm down. I've learned a little bit about this. I'll explain it to you later."

Hachiman Hikigaya calmed down Kitahara Iori's somewhat agitated emotions. As the third-ranked student in Japanese literature, he had studied some other languages ​​in his spare time. Although he was not proficient in any of them, and even found it difficult to pronounce some of them, Chinese was the language he was most proficient in.

Even if you tell him to take the Mandarin proficiency test, he might only get a single-digit score.

After calming him down, Hachiman looked at the menu. Well, since he was already there, it would be awkward to leave without ordering anything. But the prices were really expensive; a crab bun cost 1500 yen.

He works eight hours a day and only earns 3000 yen! One steamed bun can eat up four hours of his work! Indeed, work is really not worth it.

When will he finally find a young, beautiful, and wealthy woman who can see through his strength and marry him?

Reluctantly looking at the bun again, Hachiman Hikigaya glanced at the other items below. Fortunately, apart from the bun, the rest were still within his budget. However, he had never heard of any of these things before.

Chicken feet, chicken feet? Are these edible?

And what is rice noodle roll? How can there be rice noodles inside intestines? Whose intestines are they?

The dazzling array of snacks overwhelmed Hachiman. He covered his eyes, wanting to shout "OMG!" to the heavens, "Are these things really edible?"

"Hello."

Hmm—

Hachiman Hikigaya shuddered and looked at the waitress who had somehow walked up to him. She was dressed in a gorgeous dress embroidered with peonies and greeted him in fluent Japanese with a smile in her eyes.

"Good morning," he replied, which was great that he wasn't speaking Chinese.

"Is this your first time visiting our restaurant? We are a Cantonese dim sum restaurant, and many of our dishes are different from those in the local area. If you have any questions, please call my name and I will answer them for you."

As the woman spoke, she puffed out her chest. A silver name tag hung on the upper side of her clothes, with her name engraved on it.

[Tang Lingmei]

That's a really unique name.

"Um, are there any pairings for these dishes?"

Hachiman asked, suggesting that it would be better to get a combination of things rather than something he didn't understand.