In STARRY's performance hall, Ijichi Seika applauded the new band on stage.
Although she still maintained her expressionless, indifferent demeanor, familiar customers could feel that her mood was unprecedentedly bright at this moment.
Kawaragi Momoka turned off the microphone in front of her. "Everyone's performance today was great, especially Nijika. The rhythm was very stable. If we maintain this state, our roadshow tomorrow will definitely be fine!"
She was generous with her praise but still didn't speak too definitively.
Ijichi Nijika, hiding in the shadows of the curtain, put down her drumsticks and breathed a sigh of relief.
Yamada Ryo jogged over and patted her best friend's shoulder in encouragement.
Kurusu Akira, however, seemed preoccupied. He didn't join the band girls' chatter, bid them a brief farewell, and rushed off the stage with his guitar case on his back.
Under the awning outside the Livehouse, a red and black colored vehicle was parked—as a preface, Kurusu Akira, as the literal "all-around athlete" of Gekkoukan Private Academy, had, through the hard training of various Senpais in "S.E.E.S," mastered almost all techniques applicable to combat and mission operations.
This, of course, included driving and vehicle hijacking. After all, if he couldn't find a suitable vehicle during a mission, he could immediately snatch a ghost-fire youth's beloved car on the roadside and give chase to the target.
He had to thank Amamiya Ren's diligence. At 16, he had obtained all the licenses he could... including a "regular two-wheeled motorcycle license."
Now, this saved Kurusu Akira the trouble of retaking the driving test. The most suitable vehicle he could choose was a light heavy motorcycle capable of reaching 120 kilometers per hour at any time, equipped with a four-cylinder engine—and then full-speed sprinting on motorways or wherever necessary. If he encountered traffic congestion, he could even play "threading the needle" with his unfailing intuition, agile as wind and fast as lightning.
And even... it could be used as a weapon when necessary.
The Phantom Thief, with his guitar case on his back, straddled his beloved ride, twisted the key, and the roar of the engine exploded on the streets of Shimokitazawa.
Everyone looked up, seeing a crimson shadow flash by, then vanish without a trace.
...
The meeting point with Yoshizawa Kasumi was the very famous "Seijo Gakuen-mae Station" in Setagaya Ward.
Near the station was a large residential area, mainly composed of detached villas and high-end apartments. Further out were integrated schools, from kindergarten to university, with excellent educational quality, centered around "Seijo Gakuen."
The people living here were either rich or noble. Kurusu Akira's gaze quickly sharpened; no wonder that first-year junior could utter such an utterly ostentatious statement as "accidentally bought too much watermelon."
Was it truly from the heart?
Could this well-behaved, enthusiastic, ambitious, and righteous girl quickly take out some pocket money to support the Phantom Thief's cause?
Kurusu Akira looked at the architectural complex in front of him with some longing, recalling that the light novel he published should have already been exposed on the website.
So he started searching for "No Game No Life" on his phone...
The reviews were surprisingly good.
[Oda is the King of Esports: I finally found a normal light novel... A romantic otherworld where everything is decided by the outcome of games.]
[Oda is the King of Esports: Of course, if I could have the chance to face that pair of siblings, that would be great.]
[Doesn't feel as good as Tiger Wolf Pill: Is the person upstairs a primary school student? So much dreaming... They are clearly just characters in a novel!]
[Shunpei Robot: It's indeed an unheard-of otherworld novel, what a great idea!]
[Yuuki Elizabeth: Finished reading, looking forward to the next volume.]
Hmm? This ID... Kurusu Akira saw a very familiar name in the comment section; he had seen it on an advertisement screen in Shibuya a while ago.
But before he could figure out how to piggyback on this great writer's traffic, a rose-like vibrant color quietly bloomed beside him, accompanied by a highly alluring fragrance.
His gaze left the screen, and he indeed saw the first-year girl who had gained immense fame in Shujin right after her enrollment.
Yoshizawa Kasumi was curiously looking into Kurusu Akira's eyes.
When Kurusu Akira looked up and met her gaze, the girl's expression paused immediately, then she lowered her face and bowed deeply to him, apologizing very earnestly, "Sorry! I made you wait, Senpai!"
Yoshizawa Kasumi was a very polite child. Even if she accidentally touched someone's water bottle or stationery on the table, she would stop and apologize with a sincerity that made one feel guilty to the person she had disturbed, even if it was a trivial matter.
Even Kurusu Akira occasionally admired this "consistent" girl.
Sometimes, when he saw Yoshizawa Kasumi on the train, he would find that she was always willing to give up her seat to elderly people without seats or mothers with children, or boldly protest against passengers who hogged seats.
Even when no one was supervising her, she always maintained this frank and enthusiastic attitude towards life.
The only minor flaw was that she was a bit too bold...
Kurusu Akira looked at Yoshizawa Kasumi, who was practically pressed against his chest, her admiration for him completely undisguised in her expression, as if he had suddenly received a 10-point Willpower check.
Yoshizawa Kasumi was wearing a simple sports short-sleeved shirt and shorts when she left, revealing her fair and slender arms and thighs. Her rose-red hair was tied into a very thin single ponytail, revealing her small ears and a delicate neck that could be held in one hand. As she walked towards the sunlight, her skin glowed brilliantly white, and a sweet and lovely smile bloomed on her beautiful face, like a very light and subtle stroke made by a master painter after deep deliberation, a subtly curved arc, brimming with an unripe sensuality and an innocence untouched by society... It perfectly depicted the boys' naive and infinitely imaginative longing for love.
At such close proximity, he could fully perceive the girl's perfectly flawless, slender figure, honed by long hours of gymnastics practice. Below her fair neck was the exquisite outline of her collarbone, like a butterfly's wings. If he were to impolitely move his gaze further down, he could even see a large area of white bra fabric and straps, exposed without any guard towards Kurusu Akira. A rose-like fragrance lingered at Kurusu Akira's nostrils, as if constantly tempting him to do something criminal with the girl in front of him.
A metaphor must be used here, because he was very certain that Yoshizawa Kasumi would never resist their relationship moving beyond the scope of "friends" and developing into a deeper realm.
If the Phantom Thief's willpower hadn't already approached the MAX, representing the limit of human beings, he would probably have been captured by the terrifying charm of the junior student on the spot.
'Yoshizawa Kasumi, you are truly a woman burdened with sins.'
Kurusu Akira sighed in his heart, then, without changing his expression, he held her shoulders, "I told you, there's no need to apologize to me for such a small matter."
Yoshizawa Kasumi blinked, then looked up at Kurusu Akira's face with great respect, "Senpai is truly a tolerant and generous person."
It turned out that when a girl loved you without reservation, her gaze truly felt like burning flames on your face.
However, Kurusu Akira was not swayed. Rather than an instant infatuation, he preferred to trust his intuition—his intuition told him that if he were to accept Yoshizawa Kasumi's feelings right here, he would miss out on many equally important things.
The Phantom Thief calmly said, "Is Yoshizawa's home nearby?"
"Yes." Yoshizawa Kasumi saw Kurusu Akira's calm demeanor, and her expression became even more respectful, even putting away some of her smiles, answering him very seriously.
"I need to find a place to park my car, can you help me?"
"No problem! Senpai, you can use my family's garage space freely!"
"Then your family's car..."
"Senpai, no problem! Father is very generous, he definitely won't mind his parking space being borrowed!"
As Yoshizawa Kasumi spoke, she boldly took Kurusu Akira's sleeve and walked with him towards the side of the road, "Hmm... This is the new motorcycle Senpai mentioned in Line, it's very imposing!"
Yoshizawa Kasumi was a magical girl, graceful and proper in her demeanor, frank and enthusiastic, righteous and compassionate, polite and very fond of praising others... This isn't quite right, she seemed to praise Kurusu Akira most of the time.
Kurusu Akira remembered that last time he casually posted a screenshot of a game score, and this girl would still admire him and praise him with "Senpai is so amazing," and then immediately follow up with "Senpai, I haven't played video games before, can you take me to try them sometime?" or "Senpai, do you have time to play video games with me?"
In the Phantom Thief's impression, only Lavenza would give him this kind of almost doting, unreserved care and affirmation.
Now he somewhat understood the reason for his earlier wavering—
Why is it Lavenza's substitute again?
Is there truly no woman more perfect than Lavenza in human society?!
The Phantom Thief's inner cry was deafening.
...
In the Velvet Room, Lavenza, hearing the voice of her contractor, let out a pleasant laugh as she lay on the desk.
Just as Philemon always chose assistants for the Velvet Room's contractors that perfectly matched their preferences.
He, too, was searching for soulmates who could accompany his loyal employees for life.
Lavenza harbored a love for this contractor, who was destined to accompany her until the Sea of Souls dried up or even the world collapsed, a love that transcended human imagination.
...
Fifteen minutes later.
"I'm home!" Yoshizawa Kasumi's voice was as invigorating and enthusiastic as ever.
"Welcome ba..." Mr. Yoshizawa's voice, who was preparing dinner in the kitchen, suddenly stopped.
Mr. Yoshizawa felt a bit overwhelmed when he saw his eldest daughter, who had left home again after four hours, bringing back a seemingly sloppy boy.
And this feeling of being overwhelmed reached its peak when he clearly saw Kurusu Akira's face; his heart practically shattered into pieces—
"Amamiya Ren!" Mr. Yoshizawa, whose physique had become somewhat plump due to high-intensity work, almost lost his composure and roared, "How did you get into my house?!"
As the current head of the publicity department at Atlus Idol Agency, he had personally signed this high school student on the street last night, representing the agency with top-tier treatment.
He never expected that in just half a day, this newly hired employee would be brought home by his own daughter.
Mr. Yoshizawa, respected by countless artists, truly felt dizzy at this moment.
Facing the middle-aged man's loss of composure at the fleeting moment of happiness, Yoshizawa Kasumi showed a serious expression she had never displayed in front of Kurusu Akira.
She stood with her hands on her hips, lecturing him very seriously.
"Father! Don't lose the Yoshizawa family's etiquette!"
Mr. Yoshizawa was instantly struck by lightning, frozen in place, staring incredulously at his eldest daughter. Of course, this wasn't the first time he had been lectured by Yoshizawa Kasumi, but combined with the boy beside her, it only made him feel uneasy and afraid.
Kurusu Akira looked at the shrinking aura of the agency leader in front of him, a subtle sense of satisfaction flowing in his heart.
At this moment, light footsteps were heard from a corridor to one side.
A pretty girl with a voice very similar to Yoshizawa Kasumi's and an almost identical appearance walked into the living room, "Onee-chan, do we have a guest?"
She saw Kurusu Akira and immediately shrunk her neck, saying somewhat timidly, "Oh, it's Amamiya-senpai."
Yoshizawa Kasumi immediately looked over, her tone softening considerably, "Sumire, bring out the watermelon. Don't be like your father, who even forgot the Yoshizawa family's etiquette for entertaining guests!"
Compared to her twin sister, Yoshizawa Sumire seemed a bit introverted, not good at expressing her true feelings, and more dependent on others' guidance and commands.
She tiptoed into the kitchen, looking with a pitiful gaze at her father, who was leaning in the corner, staring incredulously at the ceiling and muttering incomprehensible curses, "Dad, move over, you're blocking the fridge."
"Sumire…" The middle-aged man called out his younger daughter's name, utterly distraught.
"Asking me for help is useless. Even Mother would severely scold you for neglecting guests," Yoshizawa Sumire belatedly remembered to use polite language.
By the time the Yoshizawa sisters' mother returned home, the TV in the living room was already on, playing an unnamed cartoon. Their lovely daughters sat on the sofa, with a uniquely handsome boy sandwiched between them. The three of them chatted and laughed, seemingly discussing interesting things from school.
"Kasumi, Sumire, aren't you going to introduce this young man?"
After the woman's gentle inquiry, a shrill, hungry ghost-like voice came from the kitchen, "Amamiya Ren, he's a second-year student from their school."
"When I took Kasumi and Sumire to school last time, I heard them talk about him. He's that 'legendary transfer student who scored two hundred points higher on the entrance exam,' isn't he?" The woman looked admiringly at Kurusu Akira's unkempt appearance, which seemed to pay no attention to his looks. "He looks like a good kid."
Unkempt, yet with outstanding, top-tier grades, indicating that Kurusu Akira must have been overly focused on his studies and neglected his personal life. At the same time, he didn't, like other boys his age, use his excellent looks and academic prominence to do many absurd things that even adults would find ridiculous.
He looked like a simple, sensible, and well-behaved child.
Mr. Yoshizawa's tone was almost overflowing with resentment, "A good kid? He clearly is…"
Mrs. Yoshizawa gave him a calm look, immediately making the middle-aged man meekly shut his mouth.
The three things successful Mr. Yoshizawa feared most in his life were: his eldest daughter's lectures, his wife's scolding, and his youngest daughter's tears.
Mrs. Yoshizawa looked at the watermelon rinds in the living room's trash can, her smile growing even more amiable, "Amamiya-san?"
Kurusu Akira, who was chatting with Yoshizawa Kasumi and Yoshizawa Sumire, looked up, "Hello, Auntie?"
"Auntie" is a word you can use? Mr. Yoshizawa, who was cutting vegetables, turned his head sharply, his eyes almost bulging out!
"It's fine, don't mind me," Mrs. Yoshizawa quickly waved her hand, "I just wanted to ask if you'd like to stay for dinner before you leave. My husband has been simmering beef ribs in the pot for a long time. The girls need to practice gymnastics, so they'll eat less for dinner. I was just worried about no one…"
"I don't want to." The person speaking was Mr. Yoshizawa in the kitchen.
Mrs. Yoshizawa glared back at him, and the high-ranking publicity department director immediately fell silent.
He could only glare at Kurusu Akira on the sofa, hoping the other party would quickly understand his "superior's" gaze and scram out of his house.
Kurusu Akira, however, seemed oblivious, showing a polite smile and bowing earnestly to Mrs. Yoshizawa, "Thank you very much for your kindness, but I have a part-time job tonight, so I won't disturb you any further."
Get out, get out. Mr. Yoshizawa nervously watched Kurusu Akira.
And the Phantom Thief, having finished an entire half-watermelon, contentedly walked towards the entrance. Yoshizawa Kasumi quickly got up to see him off.
This action immediately made Mr. Yoshizawa's heart sink to rock bottom.
...
He quickly leaned into his wife's ear, speaking nervously.
"Kasumi's eyes are practically glued to him…"
Mrs. Yoshizawa, however, calmly said, "I can see it. Our daughter's first love is a boy who excels in both character and academics. It's a good thing for them to learn from each other."
Mr. Yoshizawa was about to retort, but he found that he knew very little about "Amamiya Ren."
Regarding that boy, all he knew was that his academic performance was extremely outstanding, his appearance was excellent, and he had many part-time jobs and was very busy.
There seemed to be nothing worth criticizing.
So he reluctantly gave up.
He could only fantasize about severely exploiting the other party's disposable time at the agency in the future, and then... then he would probably see his daughter approach him with a pained expression, asking about his well-being.
As soon as he thought of this, Mr. Yoshizawa's heart seemed to ache fiercely.
The door closed, and Yoshizawa Sumire on the sofa suddenly found the content playing on the TV somewhat uninteresting.
Being a young girl in her adolescence, she would definitely prefer to chat with the super handsome, popular guy from school rather than watch cartoons that she could watch anytime.
Finally, she stood up disinterestedly and shuffled back to her room in her slippers.
----------------
"It seems a bit rude to visit without bringing a gift this time."
In the apartment building's elevator, Kurusu Akira said this to Yoshizawa Kasumi.
Yoshizawa Kasumi thought for a moment, then said very carefully, "It's okay, just make it up next time…"
Kurusu Akira heard that the girl had something more to say, but he pretended not to understand, "Thank you very much for your hospitality this time."
Yoshizawa Kasumi pursed her lips, looking down at her shoetips with a hint of disappointment, her tone dejected and unwilling, "I should be the one thanking Senpai… Senpai helped me a lot."
Kurusu Akira hesitated to speak, but in the end, he didn't dare to correct her words.
He looked at the slender figure reflected in the elevator door in front of him and couldn't help but think, 'Kurusu Akira, you truly are a man burdened by sin—'
The elevator quickly became quiet.
After a while, the elevator doors opened, and the two walked out of the apartment building one after another.
Before parting, the Phantom Thief got on the heavy motorcycle parked in the Yoshizawa family's parking spot and looked at Yoshizawa Kasumi beside him, "My band has a performance tomorrow afternoon at the South Exit shopping street in Shimokitazawa. Do you want to come and see it?"
The girl, who had been looking dejected, almost immediately beamed with joy, "Senpai's band performance? No problem! Please be sure to let me know the time then!"
Kurusu Akira waved to her and rode his beloved bike out of the garage.
A young girl, her face full of longing and joy, remained in place.
-
[Having received a warm welcome, the Phantom Thief's affection for Yoshizawa Kasumi greatly increased.]
[The Phantom Thief thought of his 'date' with Togawa Sakiko tomorrow.]
[The Phantom Thief's inner guilt slightly increased.]
-
Upon returning to LeBlanc, Kurusu Akira immediately took out his phone and contacted the girls of the Phantom Thieves in the secret communication room that Sakura Futaba had helped set up.
[Millionaire (Kurusu Akira): Can you gather at the entrance of Shujin at 8 PM? I've found Shinba Takakiyo's true Palace.]
[Pleia (Awa Subaru): Yes, Sir!]
[Working God of War (Togawa Sakiko): Understood.]
[Kumamoto Kumamon (Iseri Nina): How should I tell Sakura-san that I need to go out at 8 PM...?]
[Millionaire: I'll help you explain.]
[Kumamoto Kumamon: Then... I want to study, can I skip this time?]
[Millionaire: I tutor you every day, do you still lack this much time? Don't even think about running away!]
After simply arranging the investigation of the Palace, Kurusu Akira went up to the attic, opened his laptop, and began intense self-searching.
On Line, the editor from DB Bunko had already sent good news.
Within six hours of its initial promotion, 'No Game No Life' achieved an extremely high 'click-to-read' conversion rate. The Bunko's operations department was very optimistic about this work and decided to allocate more recommendation resources to it.
Additionally, publishing matters were being arranged with overtime. It was expected that in about a week, the official publication and release would proceed based on the online support volume of 'No Game No Life'.
Kurusu Akira sat by the bed, looking at the simple scene in the attic.
The day he would move out of this attic was already within sight.
He currently had over two million yen in assets. If he could make a fortune from light novels, he would certainly be able to pay off his debts quickly.
As for the band... Kurusu Akira already felt that they probably wouldn't bring particularly significant profits in the short term.
Although he had signed with Atlus Idol Agency, he wasn't going to debut as an idol.
Instead, like Suzumiya Haruhi, he would enter the public eye as a 'singer'.
The agency's subsidiary, 'Vanillaware,' commonly known as 'VanillaWare,' was a very famous record company in the industry, having even participated in the album production of top-tier bands.
For example, 'Imagine Dragons' famous song 'Odin' was completed with their help.
Kurusu Akira found two songs on his laptop that he had copied from his previous world, which, after collaboration with Yamada Ryo, had been transcribed into sheet music. After careful consideration, he sent them to his agent, Iwai Munehisa.
[Millionaire: Iwai-san, please ask Meguro-sensei if these two songs can be released?]
[(Millionaire uploaded 'Dakara Boku wa Ongaku wo Yameta' and 'Boku ga Shinou to Omotta no Wa')]
[Iwai Munehisa: No problem.]
After replying, the other party fell silent.
After a while, Iwai Munehisa's avatar lit up again.
[(Iwai Munehisa uploaded 'Life Will Change')]
[Iwai Munehisa: Meguro-sensei has carefully reviewed the songs you wrote. He hopes you won't release them for now. He said that this song he composed recently is more suitable for you.]
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