I won't be a loser.

As Xianren walked towards the dining table where the Kawasaki family was, he couldn't help but think in his heart as he approached.

"Sorry, I'm a little late."

A familiar voice fell into Saki Kawasaki's ears. The girl, who had lowered her head, raised her head and saw the wise man in front of her. She pursed her lips, nodded at him, raised her hand and pointed to the empty seat next to her.

A dining table can seat about four people. Saki Kawasaki's parents sat together, and Kento naturally sat on Saki Kawasaki's side, vaguely forming two different camps.

Saki Kawasaki's parents, who had been waiting for a long time, saw Xianren appear in front of them. Their eyes fell on his fair and elegant face, and they had a bad impression in their hearts. They did not expect that Xianren was so young, and... he looked so handsome. He could not give them any sense of security at all.

In the minds of both of them, a female sponsor is more reassuring. Someone like Xianren does not meet their expectations. Even though they have been mentally prepared, they still think it would be better to reject Xianren's sponsorship.

"You two are Miss Kawasaki's father and mother, right? I'm Miyamizu, Kento Miyamizu. You should already have a general understanding of the details of this meeting, but to ensure there are no misunderstandings, I think it would be better if I explain it in detail—"

"No, there's no need to explain it again. You want to support our daughter so that Shashi doesn't have to work part-time. You also want to help her go to school. We already understand all of this."

Before Xianren could start to explain his relationship with Saki Kawasaki, a middle-aged man with wrinkles on his face and looking a little prematurely aged interrupted Xianren.

It was indeed rude to interrupt someone before they had finished what they wanted to say, but the wise man did not take it too seriously and nodded slightly.

"That's it."

"I'm sorry, but we don't think it's appropriate for you to support Shashi. My husband and I are fully capable of raising our daughter and allowing her to continue her education. We don't need your financial support."

Saki Kawasaki's father looked at the wise man in front of him and gave his answer. The wise man, who was sitting in the family restaurant, had a slightly subtle expression and looked at Saki Kawasaki's father in front of him with some curiosity.

"As far as I know, Mr. Kawasaki, your family, besides Miss Saki Kawasaki, has another son and a daughter. The son is in middle school and will soon have to consider further education. The daughter is a little younger, but will soon be of school age. I imagine the tuition expenses for both of them are not an easy task. Even if both of them attend public schools with relatively low tuition, it is still not an easy task for an ordinary family. In addition, Miss Saki Kawasaki intends to continue her studies. No matter which university she enters, the tuition is not an easy figure to pay."

The Kawasaki family even had a mortgage to repay. Under such double pressure, Kawasaki Saki's father claimed that he could handle it, which really made Xianren difficult to understand.

"...These have nothing to do with you. We can handle our family affairs ourselves."

Seeing the strong-looking father of Saki Kawasaki, such an attitude made Xianren feel that he had no way to communicate with the other party for a while. He looked at Saki Kawasaki's mother with a bitter face and said nothing.

When the wise man looked at her, she pursed her lips.

"I...I think—"

"That's it. We appreciate your idea of sponsoring Shahi, but we don't need your support."

Before Saki Kawasaki's mother could speak, Saki Kawasaki's father, who was sitting next to her, interrupted his wife again, causing the wise man sitting next to Saki Kawasaki to nod his head.

"I understand your attitudes, Mr. Kawasaki. It seems that you have a lot of concerns. So, I won't waste any more words on you. Let's end our meeting here today."

Saki Kawasaki, who was sitting next to her, also didn't say a word. Perhaps she had already argued with her father before coming here, or maybe she had other concerns. In short, she seemed very silent.

Xianren didn't get any positive feedback at all and felt that staying any longer would be a waste of time, so he stood up, said goodbye to the three people, and left the family restaurant. The Kawasaki family stayed behind, and Kawasaki's father looked at his daughter and was silent for a moment.

"If you want to continue your studies, I can find a way to get the money together, but it's better not to casually contact a man with an unknown background like that. I still have work to do, so let's leave it at that for now."

Saki Kawasaki's father stood up and left the family restaurant, while Saki Kawasaki's mother stared at her daughter in silence for a while, then sighed and stood up and left with her husband. Saki Kawasaki was left sitting at the computer, falling into silence for a long time.

After just one meeting, Xianren could already see the status division in the Kawasaki family. In a family like this, having such a strong father must be quite stressful for Saki Kawasaki.

After Kawasaki Saki's father made his attitude clear, Xianren knew that even if he continued to communicate, it would only be a waste of each other's time. If the other party was interested, he wouldn't mind having an in-depth communication with the other party, but the other party had no intention of understanding from the beginning and was resistant, which made Xianren feel dissatisfied.

He had no interest in such thankless tasks as persuading Saki Kawasaki's father.

After finishing the meeting with the Kawasaki family, Xianren came out of the family restaurant and returned to his home. When he entered the house, he saw four people sitting in the living room and had not yet gone to rest.

"You haven't gone to rest yet?"

"Ah."

"Xianren has been going out a lot lately, and always comes home late at night. Did he meet some friends outside?"

Both Enno Ningning and Fujiwara Momoka looked at Xianren who had returned home and asked him why he was out and didn't come home until late at night. Xianren entered the house and slowly unbuttoned his collar. When he was about to answer, the phone in his pocket vibrated slightly.

I picked it up and took a look, and found that it was a text message from Saki Kawasaki.

"Tonight, at the bar."

The brief content did not prevent Xianren from understanding the other party's meaning. He stared at the message for a while and then returned to his bedroom.

He prepared an alarm clock and closed his eyes to rest for a while. Late at night, Xianren in the bedroom slowly got up, combed his hair a little, and left home. He went to the bar called "Angel's Staircase" and met Saki Kawasaki who was working.

"Gin."

He ordered a glass of wine and his eyes fell on Saki Kawasaki.

"It seems that your father has a lot of say in the family and doesn't seem like someone who can be easily persuaded. I don't mind supporting you directly. What are your thoughts now?"

Staring at the girl standing behind the bar, Saki Kawasaki's face showed some hesitation. She pursed her lips slightly, looked at the wise man in front of her, and sighed softly.

"He's always been like that. I'm sorry."

"No, I haven't lost anything. So you don't need this funding now?"

"..."

Saki Kawasaki didn't know how to answer this question.

Doesn't she need it?

No, she really needs it.

However, after what happened in today's meeting, she felt a little heavy-hearted, not knowing whether she should accept this kindness from the wise man.

"If it was someone else...like Yukinoshita and Yuigahama last time, when they needed help, would you lend them a helping hand?"

"There are no ifs in this world. Those two people don't look like they need help, but if they really have something particularly difficult, I wouldn't mind helping them."

Faced with the question raised by Saki Kawasaki, the wise man sitting at the bar thought for a while and gave his answer.

Even if he doesn't like people with a personality like Yukinoshita Yukino, but if the other party really has any difficulties and it is not a big deal for Kento himself, he probably won't mind lending a helping hand and giving the other party a little help. But it mainly depends on the other party's attitude. If the other party is in a very bad situation and shows a hint of arrogance towards him, then Kento will not only not lend a helping hand, but he will even have to consider whether to kick them.

The answer was not special, and Saki Kawasaki fell into silence. She stood quietly behind the bar and sighed softly.

"I see. Let me think about it for a moment."

"Ah."

The sage looked at the girl who seemed a little conflicted, but he didn't care too much. He sat quietly in his seat, holding the wine glass and shaking it gently. After drinking the wine in the glass, he stood up and left the bar.

For a period of time afterwards, Xianren rarely went to the bar, only once every three days or so.

It was on Saturday night that Xianren, who came to drink, was stopped by Saki Kawasaki and asked to wait for a while. Xianren, who was sitting in the bar, looked at Saki Kawasaki and didn't know what she wanted, so he ordered two glasses of gin and waited while drinking.

It was not until the bar closed in the early morning that Xianren, who was sitting at the bar, fell asleep. A pair of hands fell on his shoulders and gently pushed him, causing the sleeping Xianren to slowly open his eyes.

He turned his head to look at the person next to him and found that Saki Kawasaki was wearing rare casual clothes, not the white shirt and black vest uniform she wore at work.

"Hmm...Hmm...Hmm... Finished work?"

After stretching his body, Xianren's eyes fell on Saki Kawasaki and he asked casually.

"Ah."

"So, now is it?"

"Walk with me for a while."

Kento had no problem with Saki Kawasaki's request. The two left the bar and the hotel, walking side by side on the road.

It was a late autumn morning, and there was thick fog.

After walking for an unknown length of time, Xianren felt a little wet and uncomfortable, so he stopped and stayed at the door of a hotel not far from his workplace.

"Can you help me get a room?"

Xianren, standing on the road, rubbed his forehead, then looked at Saki Kawasaki who was biting her lips in front of him. He was silent for a moment, tapped his forehead lightly with his fingers, and looked a little confused.

"seriously?"

"Ah."

"...You don't like me, do you?"

“I don’t have a great affection for it, but I don’t dislike it either.”

"Should I be more reserved at this moment, to improve your favorability, and would it be better to reject you?"

Saki Kawasaki didn't answer, but just stared at Xianren.

"No regrets?"

"There's nothing to regret. It's only a matter of time. There's no point in just holding on. I can't see my future."

Looking at Saki Kawasaki, who was standing in front of him and seemed a little blurry in the fog, Xianren, who had been silent for a long time, chuckled softly, slowly walked in front of her, and extended his hand.

Saki Kawasaki hesitated for a moment and placed her hand on the sage's palm.

"Let's go."

Saki Kawasaki nodded, and was led by the wise man's hand as they walked towards the hotel.

A thin mist enveloped the girl, as if she were wearing a pure white wedding dress. The two of them stepped into the dimly lit door...

- - - -

Thank you all for your monthly tickets and blades! Thank you all for your recommendation tickets!

Chiba New Story: 459. Cheers to your eyes

Saki Kawasaki has very mature tastes and doesn't look like a high school girl.

Even among the girls Kento knew, those who liked pure black lace were extremely rare. The only person he had seen and known was Saionji Yuko who often wore it, and he rarely saw other people. Perhaps they all understood Kento's interests and were not that... mature?

She seems to have a cold personality, but when Kento approaches her, she shows a very shy side, which is a huge contrast to the Saki Kawasaki that Kento knows. However, this contrast on Saki Kawasaki makes people more interested.

"Are you leaving now?"

Afternoon, 14:27

Saki Kawasaki, who had just woken up, bit her lips lightly, endured the pain, silently got out of bed, picked up the clothes that fell on the ground, dressed herself, and prepared to leave the room.

The wise man, who seemed to be sleeping, was lying on the bed. He slowly turned sideways to look at Saki Kawasaki who had already walked to the door. The girl couldn't help but stop and looked back at the wise man lying on the bed.

"Aren't you worried that I'll just disappear in front of you?"

"I already have some regrets."

Saki Kawasaki, who was standing at the door, sighed and looked back at Xianren lying on the bed with a hint of disappointment in her eyes.

"Ok?"

"Last time we talked, you seemed to have a lot of female friends. I believe it now."

"Ah...did you think I was just joking at that time?"

Xianren, who was lying on the bed, slowly sat up, his eyes fell on Kawasaki Saki, and he smiled softly at her. Kawasaki Saki looked a little conflicted. She didn't have much expectation at first, but now when she felt the reality, she couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.

"You haven't doubted my ability to support you. From before I met your parents until now, I haven't proven my ability, have I?"

"I guess there's something wrong with my brain. I trusted someone I hadn't known for that long, and now...ah-ha...I regret it. Let's just pretend that nothing happened today. From now on, we'll just treat it as an ordinary relationship."

Saki Kawasaki lowered her eyes and slowly walked to the door. Her hand fell on the handle, and when she was about to leave, the wise man lying on the bed sat up.

"Wait a moment."

"Is there anything else?"

Just as Saki Kawasaki was about to open the door and leave, the wise man lying on the bed slowly stood up, picked up his clothes and put them on himself. Under Saki Kawasaki's gaze, he quickly regained his "human appearance" and slowly came to the door.

Taking advantage of her slight height advantage, she lowered her eyes slightly and met Kawasaki Saki's gaze, which was forcing her to remain calm.

"Please come with me for a while. It's the end of the week anyway. You don't have anything to do today, right?"

I recalled that today seemed to be Sunday. The other party didn't need to go to school, and his part-time job also took place in the evening, so he had quite a long time in the afternoon.

"It's been a day. If I don't go back home now, my younger brothers and sisters will be worried."

"Stay with me for a while."

He walked in front of Kawasaki Saki, opened his arms, and embraced the girl in front of him. A blush appeared on Kawasaki Saki's face. She lowered her head and was silent for a moment, but did not refuse the wise man's request...

For a period of time afterwards, Saki Kawasaki accompanied Kento and the other person to the central district of Chiba. They went shopping together in this relatively prosperous area of the city. Kento still held Saki Kawasaki's hand, and their fingers were hooked. Saki Kawasaki felt particularly complicated.

She felt inexplicably shy, which made her lower her head and follow the wise man, and her body couldn't help but move closer to him.

"Try this dress on and see how it fits."

“…I don’t need it.”

"I need you to."

"..."