Tokyo Psychic

Page 143

"Just how despicable?" Lai Xixiao walked onto the street, feeling the heat coming from all directions, and felt a dry mouth.

"So despicable... that you can make me say 'I love you' without even realizing it."

"Okay, I love you." Without waiting for a reply, Lai Xixiao pulled her into his arms, embracing this girl who was greedy yet selfless in her love.

All the scheming smiles on An and Subaru's faces crumbled. She raised her face, looking helplessly into Akira's eyes, feeling as if she were falling into a bottomless abyss, unable to climb to the other side, struggling again and again, failing again and again, and then willingly succumbing to it.

......

The tin buckets in front of the LeBron store are filled with the midday silence, and the willow catkins floating on the water are slowly sinking into the inverted cloud shadows.

Suddenly a hot wind swept in, swallowing the willow catkins in ripples, and the drifting clouds in between shattered into creamy patches.

Jing Qinren quickly pressed down on the hem of her restless school uniform skirt.

The clothes hanging on the balcony of a nearby detached house seemed to come alive, their indigo and crimson hues dancing in the sparse dappled sunlight.

Soon, the wind stopped.

She looked up at the boundless blue sky, her eyes slightly narrowed.

On a pleasantly drowsy summer afternoon, you can't help but stretch and then want to find a place to lie down and take a nap.

It's the weekend, and I'm so bored... Izayoi took out her phone and randomly scrolled through her Line message list, hoping that the phantom thief would send her a text message saying something like "Let's go out and have fun" or "Let's go to such-and-such place to study such-and-such homework".

Yes, the band's training is going well too.

The weekend after exam week suddenly felt like time was moving so slowly, making me feel listless and unmotivated no matter what I did.

Jing Qinren quickly opened the account called "Attic Thinker" and typed a message to send it.

[Jingqinrencai: Amamiya, what are your plans for the weekend?]

The message was sent, and unsurprisingly, it remained unread.

Jing Qinrencai spent a full five minutes in the "Diamond Dust" fan group, but still didn't get a reply from Lai Qixiao. Feeling a bit annoyed, she strode over to LeBron in front of her, intending to go directly to the attic to ask him.

Pushing open the frosted glass shop door, Sakura Sojiro was busy behind the counter as always.

"Oh, it's Jing Qin. What brings you to the shop all of a sudden?"

The regular customers around also cast kind glances at the girl in front of the counter.

"I've come to find Amamiya!"

She did say that.

Everyone thought to themselves.

So they waited for the low footsteps to come from the attic, and then the hastily dressed boy would come downstairs with a helpless look on his face.

But after waiting for several tens of seconds, no familiar sounds came from the attic.

Sakura Sojiro placed a cup of freshly brewed coffee on a porcelain plate. "Amamiya has been away for quite some time."

"Huh?" Izana was taken aback. "He usually stays in the attic on weekends reading comics or playing games..."

"Maybe a classmate invited him to go somewhere fun today."

“He didn’t reply to my texts on Line,” said Ishigami Renna, somewhat annoyed.

"Hmm... then let's wait a little longer." Sakura Sojiro looked at Iori Nina, ultimately unable to bring himself to tell her the truth.

Serena seemed to perk up immediately. "Then, Mr. Sakura, please give me a latte, with ice!"

“No problem,” Sakura Sojiro said, taking out a can of coffee beans he had prepared that morning and slowly beginning to grind them.

Jing Qinren sat down at an empty table in the corner of the restaurant, propped up her phone, and swung her porcelain-white legs back and forth in front of the sofa. Her cotton-white socks below her calves were particularly eye-catching in the sunlight.

The red and white sneakers banged against the base of the dining table, like the girl's growing impatience as she waited.

A message suddenly lit up in the chat room after the band ended.

She clicked on it with a thrill, expecting it to be Akira Kuriki sharing some interesting anecdotes she found online, just like always...

[Empty wallet, begging for help (Yamada Ryo): I'd like to ask if there are any particularly good boosting services on my list? I need two to max out my Konbini and PayPal accounts, bank cards are fine too, it's urgent.]

[Nijika Ijichi: (Panic emoji)]

[Niji Natsumi: Have you run out of living expenses again?]

[Empty wallet, begging for alms: Yes, yes.]

[Niji Natsumi: Didn't you just get your allowance from your aunt and uncle last night?!]

[Empty wallet, begging for handouts: While browsing videos on YouTube, I saw a blogger recommending some really interesting effects.]

[Nijika Ichi: Even effects pedals couldn't possibly cost that much!!!]

[My wallet was empty, so I'm asking for handouts: I also bought a tube speaker while I was at it.]

【Kawahara Momoka: ?】The only adult in the group began to feel fear about Yamada Ryo's terrible spending habits.

【...】

The chat room quickly became lively, but looking at the constantly flashing chat bubbles on the screen, Ishigami Rina couldn't muster the urge to join them.

Why is Ren Amamiya still ignoring me?

She switched to the page for the "Attic Thinker" account.

The message I sent more than 20 minutes ago is still in the "unread" status.

Jingqin Renna held her phone with some disappointment, suddenly finding even social media boring. So she turned off the screen, propped her chin up with her hand, and looked at the TV in the store. Even though the hottest news about the shogi tournament was playing, and the announcer's voice was right next to her, she couldn't seem to hear a single word; her thoughts instantly drifted away into a vast emptiness.

...She was lost in thought.

It wasn't until Sakura Sojiro placed the coffee on the table that the clinking sound of the porcelain plate and cup snapped Izayoi Nina out of her daze. "Amamiya! You..." She saw Sakura Sojiro in front of her, and her voice immediately softened. "I'm sorry. I mistook you for someone else."

Looking at her lovesick expression, Sakura Sojiro's eyes grew increasingly disappointed, but thinking of the boy who was deeply entangled in love, he finally sighed and shook his head, "Aren't you going to hang out with your friends at school this weekend?"

Looking at her reflection in the brownish liquid in her coffee cup, Jing Qinrencai said, "I feel bored."

"So what do you find interesting?"

"Hmm... I don't know!" Izare Nina clenched her small hands into fists in frustration, then banged them against her knees. "I want to ask Amamiya, he should know!"

"But... but he ignored me."

As she spoke, she sounded as pitiful as a kitten abandoned by its owner.

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(P.S.: January is almost over, please vote with your monthly tickets!!!)

(PS2: The supplementary content in Chapter 113, "Kurusu Akira and Anwa Subaru's First Experience," has been posted to the group files of the book club. You can find it in the "Group Files" - "Supplementary Chapters of 'Psychic Thief in Tokyo'" section.)

126. Boqi, you've been optimized (three-in-one)

The afternoon sun slanted across the glass railing of the terrace, leaving a dozen or so amber-colored cracks on the teak floor.

A petite figure flickered across the gray screen of the LCD TV. Tiny feet, encased in black knee-high stockings, stepped through the shimmering light. Her porcelain-white calves rose, the hem of a deep purple pleated skirt covering her from the knees. A fashionable belt cinched her waist, emphasizing her excessively slender figure. Above that was a white, fitted-sleeve blouse, and a large, fuchsia headband topped her head with a prominent bow…

Her fashionable attire did not add much maturity to her; instead, it highlighted her innocent and naive nature, like a child star forced by adults to walk the runway at a fashion show.

Ms. Ebizuka has a natural talent for making any outfit look cute.

To be precise... at her age, with such a pretty, youthful face and an air of pampered privilege, she should have lived in the respect and flattery of many, gradually inheriting the wealth that came with her surname in an absolutely safe environment, and then living a peaceful and wealthy life.

The reality is that she is now living in a completely unfamiliar big city, worrying about daily necessities, and feeling lost and conflicted about her dreams that have not yet begun, completely deviating from her original life trajectory.

Akira Kurusu entered the room carrying a bottle of sugar-free cola. Looking at the indifferent-looking Tomokazu Ebizuka in the living room, she met Ebizuka's wary and uneasy gaze. For a moment, she felt that Akira was somewhat similar to a hedgehog struggling to break free of its quills to protect itself, or a snake stretching out its body to intimidate its enemies... At least before she opened her mouth, Akira was a kind of cute and pitiful creature.

Ebizuka Satoshi asked Kurusu Akira with some annoyance, "What musical instrument are you good at?"

After she finished speaking, she gave a barely perceptible look of annoyance, as if she was disgusted by her own rudeness.

Clearly, that rude attitude I just displayed was a subconscious decision.

Ebizuka Satoshi probably didn't know how to discuss the topic of "co-renting" in front of a stranger of the opposite sex, so she subconsciously wanted to avoid it, or to make Kurusu Akira back down. During the time she ran away from home and lived alone in Tokyo, because of her outstanding beauty and age that easily aroused criminal desires, she gradually figured out a set of "defense strategies" of her own through one passive decision after another.

Rupa, who was sitting on the sofa, was about to get up and help explain.

Akira Kurusu replied as if she didn't care at all, "Guitar. I'm planning to learn more instruments recently."

Rupa immediately breathed a sigh of relief, then sat back down and looked at An and Subaru behind her with a somewhat probing gaze. An and Subaru silently responded with a smile.

Ebizuka Tomo said softly, "But we already have a guitarist here... I heard you used to be the rhythm guitarist in 'End Band'?"

She thought of Goto Doku, who was always stage-frightened in front of others and could hardly perform at his true level even when wearing a cardboard box, and said with some difficulty, "However, the band may need a more stable lead guitarist for a while."

"No problem. I'm ready to be the lead guitarist for the band if needed."

Looking at Akira Kurusu's nonchalant expression, it seemed that it was insignificant for Ebizuka Satoshi to suddenly step out from the commonly perceived "supporting role" of rhythm guitar and take on the role of lead guitar, one of the "protagonists" of the band... So this is what "profession" is.

She twisted her hands in frustration, then looked up at the boy in front of her. "You really can just hand over that song you wrote to us like this?"

"A song is always meant to be performed."

“I…” Ebizuka Satoshi hesitated several times before finally mustering his courage, “Could you please show us the sheet music first? I want to try playing it as soon as the band members arrive.”

Akira Kurusu readily agreed, "Sure, then add me to your band's Line chat group first... Subaru said that you guys seem to use Line more than MSN."

Ebizuka Tomo cautiously approached Kurusu Akira with his phone in hand, and then gave her his account name.

The two quickly became Line friends.

Having witnessed the entire process of "making friends," Rupa watched with some surprise as Ebizuka Tomo repeatedly restrained the coldness and harshness he was used to in daily interactions, trying his best to become gentle and approachable... Her eyes were filled with a mixture of relief and heartache, and then she looked with even more confusion at An and Subaru, who were doing nothing in the entryway.

"Why don't you help them?" Rupa leaned closer and asked An and Subaru.

Even at noon, she took the initiative to help Akira Kurusu negotiate with Tomokazu Ebizuka.

An and Subaru fiddled with a strand of hair by their ears. "From now on, we'll all be members of the same band. I can't be the one communicating in the middle of everything, can I?"

“What I mean is… he’s your boyfriend, and you just leave him with Zhi…” Rupa’s expression was strange as she carefully chose her words, “Don’t you feel any pain at all?”

"Feeling unwell?" An and Subaru blinked. "I don't think it's anything."

Rupa looked at An and Subaru in surprise, "Did you learn about Satoshi's experiences from her sharing at our last gathering?"

“Mm.” An and Subaru nodded calmly.

Rupa quickly lowered his voice, "If we recruit such a powerful professional singer into the team, and he really succeeds in leading this band onto a professional path, Zhi will definitely develop a liking for him, given his personality."

"I know."

Rupa's words came to an abrupt halt. As an adult, she vaguely guessed An and Subaru's true thoughts at that moment, and felt immense absurdity and shock.

An and Subaru smiled sweetly, "I don't mind."

Rupa said with some difficulty, "You're using intelligence..."

“Because you can’t truly be Zhi’s support, Miss Rupa.” An and Subaru’s answer immediately left Rupa speechless.

Born into a South Asian-Japanese family, Rupa also experienced a very painful family upheaval and went to Tokyo alone to make a living. During the time she met Ebizuka Tomo, she gradually became someone he relied on.

But she knew that this dependence was wrong...

Rupa cannot help Ebizuka Tomoko embark on a path that appears as bright and straightforward as possible.

Because she herself is one of the countless survivors in this vast city, lost between reality and dreams.

As adults, how can we help a girl who should be in middle school find the right direction if we can't even have a clear answer about our own future?

Rupa clenched her fist and then relaxed it, looking at An and Subaru with a complicated expression. "You're right, but why did you do this? Zhi can't give you the corresponding return, and your own relationship might even be affected because of it..."

"Shh..." An and Subaru put their index fingers to their lips, startling Rupa into quickly shutting his mouth.

At this point, Akira Kurusu and Satoshi Ebizuka had already added each other as Line friends and were then pulled into a discussion room called "Shibuya Fujiki-i".

Ebizuka looked at them with some curiosity. "What were you talking about just now?"

An and Subaru frankly stated, "We're discussing the band's future direction."

Ebizuka Satoshi immediately lost interest. "Alright, Goto and Kita are already on the train. Could you please ask Subaru to go to the station and help greet them? I'm planning to discuss the band's future direction with Mr. Amamiya along with Rupa."