Tokyo Psychic

Page 137

"Don't wear oversized T-shirts anymore, or someone might see you naked."

"I won't let anyone else get that close to me!" Nina Izare grinned at Akira Kurusu. "I've been trying my best to maintain a safe distance!"

"Then why am I not at a safe distance?" Lai Xixiao hadn't given up and was about to give her another hint.

Unexpectedly, after thinking seriously for a few seconds, Izare Rina gave another unexpected answer from Kurusu Akira: "Because we are good friends."

Hopeless.

Lai Xixiao sighed, then reached out to stroke her head.

Jing Qinrencai obediently squinted her eyes and even took the initiative to raise her head to rub against his palm.

It is said that cats are very sensitive animals. If you see a cat quietly sitting in a corner watching you and occasionally blinking its eyes, you might think it is trying to be cute and affectionate. If you go over and scratch its chin, it will comfortably raise its head... At this time, you need to be careful about the degree of your actions. If you make the cat feel annoyed, it will run away on its own.

"Let's just leave it at that for now," he thought, to avoid Jingqin Rencai doing anything foolish.

Through Serina's conscious or unconscious attempts to please her, she successfully increased her popularity with Akira Kurusu—unfortunately, she seemed to have an overly naive yearning for love, to the point that she subconsciously dared not believe that she could actually date Akira Kurusu.

Even though Akira Laiqi tried to subtly approach her from the sidelines, using various methods—both direct and indirect—Ishigami Rencai managed to avoid them all.

He felt a strange sense of powerlessness.

"Go on," Izanagi urged anxiously, looking at Akira Kurishi, who was holding her hand but had suddenly stopped moving.

Lai Xixiao didn't even bother to sigh anymore, and expressionlessly dragged her into the clothing store.

What style do you want to buy?

He pointed to the mannequin on one side and asked Jing Qinrencai, who was standing next to him.

Jingqin Rencai selected several outfits, but was met with a barrage of criticism from Kurusu Akira, who said things like, "You're so unfashionable!", "Do you even know how to dress?", "Are you an old lady?", "Are you even a girl?", "Have you ever read a fashion magazine?"

She angrily tugged at Lai Xixiao's school uniform, "You dress like this every day, how dare you say such things to me!"

Akira Kurusu took out her phone, opened her photo album, and showed Serina Izayoi several artistic photos she had taken with An and Subaru in Akihabara.

As Ishigami Rensai scrolled through the photos one by one, he added insult to injury, "I wear my school uniform to keep a low profile and save time on dressing up... You're a girl, and the lead singer of the band. You're practically the face of the whole band. Can't you pay more attention to your appearance?"

Jing Qinrencai fell silent after looking at it for a while, her face downcast in frustration, finally realizing that she was not good at dressing fashionably.

"Then...then you help me choose," she said, shaking Lai Xixiao's hand and seeking his help.

The staff member who had been busy behind the counter finally managed to squeeze out a moment, stood up, and jogged over to the two of them. Her forehead was covered in sweat, and she said nervously and apologetically, "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Akira Kurusu picked up a cute-looking dress and handed it to her, saying, "I want this one."

Then there's the sophisticated-looking women's blouse and black pleated skirt. "I want both of those too."

"And then..."

Jing Qinren watched helplessly as the clothes she didn't particularly like were packed up and stuffed into her pockets. "Will I be wearing these from now on?"

"Is it wrong to dress up a little cutely once in a while?" Akira Kurishi asked her in return.

Jing Qinren said somewhat nervously, "Those clothes only look good on very pretty girls... I... I don't have anything particularly eye-catching about me."

"Can't you be a little more confident?" Akira Kurusu shook her shoulder. "I've said it before, haven't I? Actually, you fit the label of 'beautiful girl' in every sense of the word."

Jing Qinrencai was shaken like never before. "But in the last two months, no boys have sent me any love letters. Mingyugong's shoe cabinet is filled with love letters from girls both inside and outside the school every day."

"Remember the rumors? They all thought we were dating."

"I see," said Serina Iza, seemingly oblivious. "Although I do feel like I've become more popular lately..."

"Right? Every time after class, I see you surrounded by the 'popular' girls."

"I thought it was just because they thought playing in a band was cool."

"Be confident. If you're really just average-looking, even if they think playing in a band is cool, they won't approach you."

The two were talking as they headed towards the changing room with the various sizes of bags in their hands.

“Since Amamiya says I’m a beautiful girl… Ugh! This topic is so embarrassing!” Izare Nina forcefully tugged at Akira Kurusu’s shoulder, then turned around and shoved his back. “Okay, hurry up and get out! I need to change!”

The staff member following behind them reached out and touched the faint wrinkles on his face, his eyes showing a distant remembrance and emotion.

Ah, youth...

"That's wonderful," she said, unable to suppress a smile.

Just looking at them makes me feel younger.

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(It's the end of the month, and all my monthly passes are about to expire! Please give me your monthly passes!!)

(I'll start updating more frequently once I go back to my hometown in a few days!)

End of the month, twelfth update! Requesting monthly votes!

Plans have changed. I'm going back to my hometown this afternoon. I'll be back in top form on the 27th, with twelve updates before midnight!

There's a recent event where the monthly pass limit seems to have been increased to 23, so I'm asking for your monthly passes!

It's already the end of the month, and the monthly tickets will expire if you don't vote now!! (Hedgehog Cat refreshes monthly tickets on the last day of each month)

122. The trend of meal replacements is like a raging flood (5 in 1)

（月末爆更：1/12、2/12、3/12、4/12、5/12）

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Push open the door to the recording studio.

Wearing her costume, Ichiji Nijika sat on the sofa with a sullen expression. Her long golden hair was no longer styled in the usual side ponytail; it was all loose and secured with silk rose hairpins. Then, the hair on both sides was carefully braided into an arc-shaped updo.

She really looks like a girl from a noble family.

Ryo Yamada held up his phone and circled around his friend, repeatedly pressing the shutter button on the camera app with his thumb.

"Hongxia, you're so pretty... Give me a smile."

"Hey, you're totally treating me like a dress-up doll!"

Nijika Ichi reached out to grab her phone.

Unexpectedly, Yamada Ryo casually lay down on the sofa, held up his phone, and took a picture of the two of them together. "Beautiful Nijika, plus the charming me... If we ever run out of money, maybe we can sell this photo to newspapers and magazines."

"You can't have such strange thoughts! That's an infringement of portrait rights! ...It's a crime! A crime!" Ichiji Nijika crossed her hands, firmly rejecting her best friend's plan to sell their images.

Akira Kurusu stood at the door and noticed that Ryo Yamada was also dressed in a costume, but in a pure white knight outfit, with a thorn-removed rose tucked into his breast pocket in a rather flamboyant manner.

"Are you actors who just escaped from some theater?" Izayoi Nina couldn't help but complain as she followed Kurusu Akira into the recording studio.

Yamada Ryo finally managed to snatch her phone back and quickly hid behind Kurusu Akira. "Today, Nijika and I were both conscripted by the drama club next door. After filming a scene, they heard we had band practice, so they told us to leave quickly. We can return this outfit tomorrow."

"It sounds like a very lucrative job."

"Ah... actually, it's because the president has a very good relationship with my family." Yamada Ryo calmly explained while dodging Kurusu Akira's pursuit by Ijichi Nijika.

"So, did that company president lend you money?"

“You guessed right—” Yamada Ryo waved his phone provocatively at the panting Iji Chi Niji Natsu.

The recording studio doors opened and closed again. Toyokawa Shoko, dressed in a school uniform, was stunned by the scene of singing and dancing. After a brief hesitation, she sighed and covered her face. "Didn't everyone sign up for Morfonica's tour? Shouldn't we cherish this opportunity to practice?"

Momoka Kawara carried a heavy guitar case past Shoko Toyokawa. "We're a new band, and we only have one song to perform, so there's no need to be so strict with ourselves... Basically, as long as we reach the passing grade and don't make any mistakes overall, the audience will accept us."

Unexpectedly, Toyokawa Shoko immediately looked up at Kawaharaki Momoka and said firmly, "It can't just be 'passing,' it has to be 'excellent.'"

"Xiangzi," Laixi Xiao said somewhat guiltily, "let's start practicing now."

Shoko Toyokawa bit her lip, glared at him angrily, and then walked into the recording studio.

Seeing Toyokawa Shoko's preoccupied look, Kawara Momoka turned her questioning gaze to Kurusu Akira in front of her.

Akira Kurusu, seemingly oblivious to everything, called to the girls in the band to begin rehearsals.

Kawara Momoka hesitated for a moment, but still chose not to ask further.

She closed the door and placed the guitar case against the wall.

"Next, we need to make a decision—for the performance on the 27th, will we play the new song or our debut song, 'Because I Can't Be Someone Else'?"

"A new song is already ready? So fast! As expected of Momoka-san!" Izayoi, who was pulled next to the microphone by Kurusu Akira, exclaimed in amazement, her voice coming from the speakers all around.

Sitting next to the speaker, Yamada Ryo covered her ears. "Nina! You're too close to the microphone!"

Jing Qinren quickly turned off the microphone and apologized.

Toyokawa Shoko stared at her phone, seemingly preoccupied and replying to messages.

Akira Kurusu noticed his phone vibrate in his pocket; it was indeed a text message secretly sent by Shoko Toyokawa.

We're going to play a new song.

Lai Xixiao glanced at the message and put her phone back in her pocket. Without even looking at the screen, she smoothly typed a reply on the numeric keypad: "You were involved in the production of the new song too?"

[I've been discussing things online with Ms. Momoka for a while now... Nina and I have both written quite a bit of the lyrics.]

Akira Kurusu tapped on the screen: "Looks like you really like this song."

Because I needed to convey my feelings to certain people through this song.

Akira Kurusu thought for a moment, then asked, "Are they friends from your old band?"

Shoko Toyokawa tapped the screen harder, causing the pendant hanging from the end of the phone case to shake violently. [Yes, but it wasn't just them.]

While the two were talking in secret, the girls in the band had already started to express their opinions.

Ijichi Nijika had heard the audio recorded by Kawahara Momoka using a software called MAKOTO, and had also seen several drum scores made with the help of Toyokawa Shoko... The new song, which was not yet named, was more difficult for the drummer to play than "Because I Cannot Be Someone Else" when "End Band" debuted.

She was afraid she wouldn't be able to master the song in two weeks.

So she decisively cast a "no vote".

Yamada Ryo didn't care about the difficulty of the song; he simply thought the new song was more interesting and to his liking. So, he not only voted "agree," but also secretly whispered in Ijichi Nijika's ear, "There's nothing planned for the rest of this semester," "Exam week has been moved up, so we have plenty of time to rehearse," "Nijika probably wants to become famous too, right?"... These were the kind of devilish whispers that tempted him.

As soon as Momoka Kawahara threw out the "vote," Izare Nina excitedly raised her hand and shouted, "Debut song! I want to sing my debut song at the concert!"

Akira Kurusu, who was fiddling with her guitar, jokingly asked her, "So enthusiastic? You actually prefer your debut song to this one?"

“That’s not the reason…” Izayoi ran her hands through her hair in frustration. “I really like all the songs that Momoka writes.”

She hesitated, her little hands clasped together. "It's rare to have such a big stage, so I still want to play the songs I'm better at."

"Where's Ms. Momoka?" Akira Kurusu asked the former professional singer in the band.

After thinking for a moment, Momoka Kawara decided to respect Serina Ii's wishes. "I want to choose a debut song."

Akira Kurusu said, "But I like the new song even more."

Toyokawa Shoko quickly chimed in, "I also want to choose a new song."

Looking at their harmonious "husband and wife in harmony" posture, Momoka Kawahara's delicate eyebrows twitched. "Well, it's a tie now."

Just as she was about to pull out the old-fashioned method of drawing lots, Yamada Ryo actually managed to persuade Ijichi Nijika.

Although it was a band formed out of interest, Ijichi Nijika had also fantasized about "becoming a professional".

It's often said that it's difficult to balance studies and career, but there's always a chance of something going wrong.

For example, if a band suddenly becomes famous and wildly popular, their career path becomes smooth and wide, not only will the pressure of further education be swept away, but their older sister will also be proud of them...

Nijika Ichichi, seemingly resigned to her fate, said, "Can I change my mind? I want to choose a new song."

Akira Kurusu said to Momoka Kawaragi, "It's not a tie anymore," and then he gave Ryo Yamada a thumbs up.

Yamada Ryo smugly picked up a rose from his breast pocket, put it in his mouth, leaned against the wall, and winked at Akira Kurusu, looking dashing and debonair.

Akira Kurusu wasn't in the mood to play around with her; she asked Momoka Kawaharaki earnestly, "Does the new song have a name?"

"I haven't decided yet, but here are a few alternatives." Now that she had decided on the direction for the band's next practice sessions, she generously took out her phone, took screenshots of a few names from her notes, and sent them to the chat room where the band was ending.

Akira Kurusu immediately took a liking to the song title at the very top: