Isn't it very scientific to use the Death Note to kill people?

The witch's eyes widened slightly.

Before she could react, Lin Jiashu's voice blended into the surrounding noise and clearly reached her ears: "But it still feels a bit too abrupt."

……

Koizumi Akako was completely stunned.

He... actually considered it?

He wasn't looking at her like she was an idiot, nor was he being sarcastic; he had genuinely considered sending her flowers. This completely overturned his previous attitude of avoiding her at all costs and always speaking with resistance and distancing himself from her.

After the initial shock, a surge of smugness instantly clouded her judgment.

Look!

As expected, the magic worked!

His previous resistance was in vain; now he finally succumbs and becomes a prisoner of her love!

"Hehehe!!"

She finally couldn't help but burst into triumphant laughter, ignoring the astonished stares of passersby. Her cheeks flushed with excitement, and her eyes shone with an astonishing light: "Finally! Lin Jiashu! Have you finally realized my charm?! Have you finally fallen for me?! Now you know you should try to please me! Hahaha!"

She was even starting to anticipate seeing Hayashi Yoshiki looking embarrassed or struggling, or perhaps even infatuated under the influence of magic.

However, Lin Jiashu simply watched her quietly.

He only chuckled when Koizumi Akako's smug smile gradually froze and could no longer be displayed.

"Hongzi, confidence is a good thing. But if you fantasize too much, you need to wake up a little."

"Uh?!"

Koizumi Akako's laughter stopped abruptly, as if she had been choked, her smug expression frozen on her face.

This...this reaction is wrong?!

Shouldn't he have taken this opportunity to confess his feelings?! Shouldn't he have been even more attentive?! Why did he revert to his old ways?!

"..."

asshole!

The smugness that had just begun to rise was suddenly punctured, and Koizumi Akako was somewhat annoyed.

Lin Jiashu stopped looking at her expression, which was as if she had been exposed to a riot of color, and turned around to blend into the crowd naturally. His voice came gently: "Let's go. There's nothing to see here, is there?"

Koizumi Akako stood there, stomping her foot in anger as she watched his tall, straight back, but ultimately gritted her teeth and followed him.

hateful!

This man is still so annoying!

Tokyo is notorious for its crowds.

As the most bustling and vibrant area in Tokyo, Shibuya's intersections are among the busiest in the entire city.

Halloween is a day off, and today's crowds were even larger than expected.

Although it was only daytime, all sorts of "demons and monsters" had already begun to mingle with excited tourists.

Koizumi Akako caught up with Hayashi Yoshiki and walked alongside him.

"What a noisy and childish holiday."

Koizumi Akako frowned slightly as she watched a child wearing cheap vampire fangs run past laughing, her tone full of disdain.

"After all, it's Halloween, so everyone should just have fun."

Lin Jiashu responded with a smile, his gaze sweeping gently over the surroundings; he didn't dislike the lively atmosphere.

His gaze lingered briefly on a narrow section of road not far away, crowded with people taking photos, before he turned to Koizumi Akako with remarkable ease and said, "There are a lot of people over there, be careful."

"..."

Hearing this, Koizumi Akako couldn't help but feel that he was really different today.

That subtle, almost imperceptible thoughtfulness made her feel a surge of pride welling up inside her.

Just as the two were walking forward, several excited children chasing and playing came stumbling over, while at the same time, several tall boys tried to squeeze through from another direction.

Almost instinctively, Hayashi Yoshiki reached out and gently grasped Koizumi Akako's upper arm, pulling her a step closer to him while subtly using his body to shield her from anyone who might bump into her.

His movements were quick and gentle, touching and separating in an instant, but the warmth of his palms seeped through the thin fabric, brief yet clear.

Koizumi Akako was slightly taken aback, and her heart skipped a beat.

She looked up and saw only Lin Jiashu's beautifully shaped jawline and his profile, which seemed focused on the road ahead. He didn't seem to care about this small physical contact at all.

(Hmph... You're putting on a very calm act. You're clearly starting to care about me, and you don't want anyone else to bump into me, right?)

Koizumi Akako chuckled inwardly, her smugness rising even higher.

Let's see how long you can keep up this act!

Just as she was about to say something more to show off her victory, her gaze was drawn to a girl dressed as a witch on the roadside.

The girl was wearing a black lace dress, with exaggerated smoky makeup, a pointed hat, and holding a dry grass broom, posing dramatically for a photo.

What's going on?

Koizumi Akako found it a bit cringe-worthy. "Witches aren't like that at all, okay? Seriously, a bunch of clueless idiots!"

Lin Jiashu followed her gaze and chuckled, "After all, it's Halloween. But speaking of which..."

"what?"

"Halloween is a holiday for ghosts and monsters, isn't it? But I didn't expect witches to join in the fun... Or are witches actually a type of ghost or monster?"

"what!?"

Being directly categorized as a ghost or monster angered Koizumi Akako: "How rude! Who is in the same category as those lowly ghosts and monsters? Witches are noble and mysterious beings, not something to scare children!"

However, she doesn't look noble or mysterious at all now.

Seeing her huffing and puffing, Lin Jiashu finally couldn't help but chuckle.

Are you laughing at me?

"No, no, I was just joking."

"Humph!"

"I heard the limited-edition Halloween drinks at that dessert shop up ahead are pretty good." He changed the subject very naturally. "Want to try them, Hongzi?"

Koizumi Akako glared at him fiercely, and still managed to snort through her nose, which could be considered a reluctant agreement.

At this moment, she was certain in her heart: this hateful man must have started to act strangely because of the influence of magic. One moment he was gentle and the next he was infuriating. Maybe it was his pitiful rationality making its last struggle!

She wanted to see how long he could hold out.

Lin Jiashu took her to the dessert shop he had mentioned earlier, and sure enough, there was a long queue behind the door.

The pumpkin-shaped string lights wrapped around the porch created a nice atmosphere. The two waited quietly for a while. Lin Jiashu was relaxed and occasionally checked his phone, while Koizumi Akako raised her chin slightly, seemingly not finding the wait boring at all.

"I want this one."

She pointed to the featured drinks on the menu.

It was a deep purple "witch potion" with suspicious bubbles, while Yoshiki Hayashi's was a chocolate-flavored drink decorated with mini pumpkins and cookie tombstones.

"Why does the witch's potion look so suspicious?"

She frowned and muttered something, but without any fear, she took a sip of the drink.

"So it's not so suspicious after all? In my memory, witches always add strange things to their potions, like rat tails or dried bat meat..."

"Who would add that kind of stuff?!"

She almost exploded.

Lin Jiashu just smiled.

Holding their drinks, they didn't find a place to sit down, but instead continued their stroll along the bustling street in tacit agreement.

Koizumi Akako ultimately couldn't resist.

She tucked her long, wine-red hair behind her ear, a simple gesture that exuded a strong feminine charm—though her personality wasn't exactly likable, she was undeniably a stunning beauty.

At this moment, her moist lips released the straw, a hint of teasing and slyness in her voice: "So tell me quickly, why did you suddenly ask me out so readily?"

It must be because I said last time, "I will never contact you again."

She hoped to see the same unexpected expression on Lin Jiashu's face as before.

"Because it's Halloween today, I wanted to find a ghost to go out with me... but I couldn't find any ghosts, so I asked you for help."

ha!?

This is treating witches like monsters again, what a joke!

Koizumi Akako was furious and about to lash out when she inadvertently caught a fleeting glimpse of a change in Hayashi Yoshiki's expression.

—Just as he spoke, a fleeting shadow crossed his eyes, which always held a gentle smile. Or was it melancholy…? It was like a small patch of mist suddenly drifting across a clear sky, though it was instantly replaced by his usual gentle smile. Koizumi Akako was certain she hadn't misread it.

Is something on his mind?

This discovery made Koizumi Akako subconsciously swallow back the words that were on the tip of her tongue. She looked at Hayashi Yoshiki suspiciously, but he had already returned to normal, and she felt that even if she spoke, she would be brushed off.

Have you thought about where to go?

"No."

Because she hadn't heard what she wanted to hear, Koizumi Akako looked listless. "Besides, I'm doing you the honor of coming out with me, so you can't expect me to plan where we're going on a date, can you?"

"...So you really are this type of girl."

"How to say?"

"No, it's just that I find it rather rare to see someone like you with such a pure and utterly spoiled princess temperament."

"It's as if you're surrounded by all sorts of girls."

Koizumi Akako wrinkled her nose, a sudden surge of defiant resentment stirring within her. She recalled Hayashi Yoshiki's earlier statement, "I'm trying to like someone," but she couldn't recall ever hearing of a girlfriend for the famous detective Hayashi Yoshiki… She narrowed her eyes teasingly and asked in a deliberately lighthearted tone, "By the way, didn't you swear you were going to like someone? So, Mr. Detective, have you successfully fallen for anyone yet?"

She was prepared to watch Lin Jiashu either look embarrassed or try to save face by pretending to be natural.

Unexpectedly, Lin Jiashu nodded.

"Yes, I tried to like some people, but I ended up liking several, so now I'm juggling several relationships... I never thought I would become so fickle. It would be terrible if I got caught."

He spoke very frankly.

"..."

Koizumi Akako was utterly speechless.

Then she scoffed, "You're kidding me!"

A guy who's obsessed with saving face.

She felt that Lin Jiashu was actually quite easy to understand. He seemed gentle and approachable, but in reality, he was more guarded than anyone else. How could someone like him easily fall in love with several people? Besides, even if he did fall in love with her, she would probably be the one at the top of his list.

But as she laughed, she vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

Although Lin Jiashu was smiling and speaking in a relaxed tone, his occasional glances at the crowded people seemed to carry a hint of detachment that was hard to detect.

"It's so lively, so nice..." he said softly.

"It's so crowded, what's so good about it?"

"Let's go, I'll take you to one of my favorite places for afternoon tea."

Ignoring Koizumi Akako's critical attitude, Hayashi Yoshiki laughed.

In fact, it wasn't that Koizumi Akako was ignorant of social etiquette. At least when she was at school, people who didn't know her true nature would find her elegant and easy to get along with... It's just that in front of people who knew her true nature, she was indeed excessively arrogant, but this arrogance didn't come from belittling others or comparing herself to them.

Lin Jiashu took out his phone.

The current time is 2:41 PM.

As Hayashi Yoshiki led Koizumi Akako toward their destination, they suddenly heard some commotion among the passersby ahead.

They were gathered there talking about something.

Have you heard?

"An explosion has occurred in the residential building ahead..."