Tokyo Psychic

Page 145

In short, Ebizuka Tomo's concept of relationships between men and women is extremely vague, even comparable to students in girls' schools like Tsukinomori, where rules and regulations are extremely rigid and strict.

She nervously clutched the hem of Lai Xixiao's clothes, especially when she thought that he was her band's drummer boyfriend. The strange sounds she had heard outside Anhe Mao's bedroom door the night before immediately flashed through her mind, and a bright blush quickly rose on her face.

Fortunately, the setting sun was just sinking below the horizon, which conveniently obscured the girl's unfortunate rosy cheeks.

The motorcycles started moving, and the roar of cars speeding by filled the air from all directions. The crowds on both sides of the street were noisy, and the advertising screens hanging between the high-rise buildings were playing the trailer for the new theatrical version of "Phoenix Squadron: Flying Feather Resurrection!" The special effects drama's cringeworthy lines, combined with the powerful roar in the background, created a lively and crowded scene during Tokyo's evening rush hour.

Ebizuka Tomo's hands, which had been clutching Kurusu Akira's clothes, unconsciously moved to his waist. As the motorcycle sped onto the Central Loop Expressway, it immediately began to accelerate. She practically clung tightly to his waist, her expression somewhat pale as she cried out, "Slow down!"

Akira Kurusu wasn't wearing a helmet. His exaggerated reaction speed, combined with the "Dioscuri" that kept flashing behind him like a ghost, made all the vehicles on the highway look like a PowerPoint animation playing frame by frame in his eyes. Only when he floored the accelerator and pushed the speed to the limit could he feel like he was driving.

But the real reason he did this wasn't to enjoy the thrill of high-speed driving—

His intuition suddenly caught a whiff of an indescribable sense of danger, and an extremely faint hint of hostility.

who is it?

Akira Kurusu twisted the accelerator to the floor, and "Dioscuri" solidified completely, recording all the information along the entire highway.

Countless vehicles were quickly left behind by Akira Kurusu. The drivers were terrified by the boy's reckless driving, and car horns blared incessantly behind them.

Suddenly, a dark black, extended Maybach rapidly enlarged in Ebizuka Tomo's vision. Tears welled up in her eyes, forming thin silver threads that seemed to break in the gale. Forgetting all about the difference between men and women, she almost screamed as she clung tightly to Kurusu Akira's waist, "We're going to crash!!"

The bright red motorcycles looked like a herd of galloping horses, and with remarkable agility, they veered off course the instant they caught up with the Maybach's rear, almost brushing past it as they overtook it.

The old man sitting in the back seat had just picked up his cup and taken a sip of black tea when he saw the figure of the boy he had seen countless times in photos and videos flash by outside the window. He suddenly spat the tea out of his mouth onto the car window, and the black-clad bodyguard sitting opposite him quickly stood up and took out a brand-new handkerchief to wipe it off.

If the wasted tea were calculated at market price, it could probably buy the motorcycle that Qixiao is currently driving.

The gold thread sewn along the edge of the handkerchief continuously cut through the old man's vision under the car's interior lights. He hurriedly gestured for the bodyguard to sit back down, then put down his teacup and stood up to walk towards the driver's seat.

He looked through the windshield at the bright red motorcycle gradually disappearing into the twilight, and the young men and women on it; his thick, short eyebrows furrowed instantly.

"Nonsense."

The deep voice echoed in the carriage. The bodyguard, who was nervously tidying up the seats, immediately straightened up. As one of the most trusted subordinates of the head of the Toyokawa family, he knew very well about the existence of "Amamiya Ren".

After all... that's the person the family's only heir is currently dating.

Under the solemn gaze of his confidants in the car, the elderly man named Toyokawa Sadaharu slowly returned to the back seat. He gestured for the bodyguard who had stood up to sit down, saying, "Since it has already happened, there is no need to dwell on it any longer."

“We can’t just let him continue doing such dangerous things,” the bodyguard whispered. “He often goes out late at night, and he’s even been seen with that Anhe Tiantong’s granddaughter…”

Toyokawa Sadaharu shook his head. "Don't worry about his feelings. He's an excellent kid, full of energy. It's understandable that he might be a little distracted."

The man in black opposite him immediately fell silent, like a robot whose language module had been turned off. He sat up straight, and every detail of his clothing was meticulously crafted.

Toyokawa Sadaharu changed seats so that his voice could be heard clearly by his confidants in front of him.

“Let me take this opportunity to remind you again. You should try to understand, be tolerant of, and be considerate of what young people want, and then give them support—what you want, they will only want even more than you do.”

"If you want to write novels, make money and gain fame, you should help with that."

"If you want to develop a deeper relationship, and you're both men, then you especially need to help..."

The slightly younger-looking, white-haired woman in a kimono raised her hand. "However, the young lady's personality is very..."

“She has grown up.” Upon hearing the topic of “Toyokawa Shoko,” Toyokawa Sadaharu seemed to have forgotten the dangerous move that Kurusu Akira had just made, and sighed with great satisfaction, “She has really learned a lot during the time she was away from home… In this regard, I must find an opportunity to thank that boy in person.”

"Is the young lady really not going to mind?" the elderly woman in the kimono couldn't help but ask.

Toyokawa Sadaharu glanced at him. “A woman who is aware and determined to bear the Toyokawa name, I believe she has the magnanimity to tolerate the shortcomings of a sufficiently excellent husband outside of his career... If she can’t, it means she is not yet capable of shouldering the responsibility of managing the family in the new era.”

Although not a single sentence or word mentions Toyokawa Shoko's father who was kicked out of his home, it seems that every word is inseparable from that man who was once so decadent that he frequented detention centers and even gambling dens.

As he spoke, Toyokawa Sadaharu's voice gradually became calmer. "I know that you often criticize Amamiya Ren's infidelity in relationships because of the young lady... This is wrong. A boy as outstanding as him is absolutely unable to escape the favor and pursuit of the opposite sex. A young man with a sound mind and body cannot be so steadfast as to reject all these temptations."

“If he really could give up all the pleasures in his life for Xiangzi, then you should suspect that he has ulterior motives.”

Toyokawa Sadaharu swallowed hard, and someone immediately brought him warm water.

He raised his glass and took a sip. "Anhe, that little girl, is quite nice. She's pretty, obedient, knows her place, and is very popular with boys... Plus, her background and life are very clean, which is great."

"However, I still hope that the future son-in-law of the Toyokawa family, even if he is promiscuous, should at least find some women who are worthy of his future."

After he finished speaking, Toyokawa Sadaharu shut his mouth and quietly drank his water.

The retainers in the carriage looked at each other, realizing that now was their chance to prove themselves.

So someone suggested, "Wakaba's daughter would be perfect."

Immediately, someone chimed in, "Yes, she and the young lady are also very close friends."

"If he likes those idol-type girls, could he perhaps contact some of the young lady's old friends again?"

"You mean the Triangle family...?"

"That's right, I remember seeing a record of that Miss Nagasaki before..."

"I almost forgot, there are also those two from the Yoshizawa family..."

"..."

Toyokawa Sadaharu listened to the surrounding discussion and nodded with some satisfaction. "Then from today onwards, don't let me hear you commenting on the romantic entanglements between young people in various places anymore. That's nothing... Understand?"

A series of neat responses immediately filled the carriage.

Toyokawa Sadaharu put down his water glass and said as if finalizing a plan, "Those of you in charge of the entertainment industry can pay more attention to his personal safety. But don't follow him too closely. Like Xiangzi, he is very young and needs enough space and time to grow into a better person."

“For example, what happened today,” Toyokawa Sadaharu said, a shadow falling over his face. “I don’t want to see it happen again.”

The voices responding in the carriage grew even louder.

......

at the same time.

After exiting the highway, Akira Lai looked at the sparse traffic ahead with some confusion.

Ebizuka Tomo, still shaken, clung to his waist, tears of fear still glistening in the corners of his eyes.

The phantom thief, with a serious expression, drove his motorcycle, carefully observing the surrounding vehicles.

The distorted wave of desire I had just felt vanished without a trace in an instant.

Did we lose them? ......

"Dioscuri" immediately appeared, flipping through a stack of videotapes in his hand.

With the activation of the [Memory Reading] ability, every detail experienced on the highway was fully presented to Akira Kurusu.

The images of speeding cars were frozen in his memory, and he kept searching among them for that intuitive sense of something amiss...

found it.

Akira's gaze settled on a Mercedes-Benz that looked very conspicuous, and then she memorized its license plate number.

Dioscuri immediately pulled out another stack of videotapes.

Akira Kurusu quickly found the corresponding news in her recent memories.

It turned out to be the shuttle bus for that South Korean shogi player who caused such a stir online with his "zero wins and one loss" record.

He was clearly taken aback for a moment.

In his recent experience, the moment his gaze fell upon that car, those twisted fluctuations of desire suddenly vanished, along with that barely perceptible hostility!

The answer is obvious: it's not that the enemy is in the car, but that there's an item in the car that the enemy used.

Considering the personal safety of Ebizuka Tomo behind him, Akira Kurusu did not choose to follow the car, but continued on his way to his destination.

I drove the car into Seijo Station and then parked it in the underground parking garage near the office.

Only after the motorcycle stopped did he prepare to apologize to Ebizuka Satoshi behind him and explain the reason for what had just happened.

Akira Kurusu was even mentally prepared to be slapped across the face by the other party—

Unexpectedly, Ebizuka Tomo just stared blankly at Kurusu Akira's back, as if savoring the thrill of the high-speed chase, and one could even vaguely sense the excitement and joy in her heart.

I almost forgot, this is a girl who likes to keep snakes, lizards and other reptiles as pets, so she's not exactly a normal girl.

He covered his face in distress, thinking that it was fortunate that Ebizuka Tomo's interest was limited to raising reptiles and had not yet developed into the abyss of raising arthropods.

"We've arrived, let's get out of the car." Lai Qixiao turned off the engine and then got out of the car while holding onto the car body.

Ebizuka Satoshi was about to leave the motorcycle with him when her knees and thighs suddenly went weak. She felt a sudden soreness in her lower abdomen and a feeling of wetness that was about to burst out. She was immediately ashamed and wanted to disappear.

Akira Kurusu noticed Ebizuka's embarrassment and helped her out of the car.

He pointed to the elevator lobby in front of him and said cryptically, "Take the elevator from there to the second floor and you'll find the ATLUS office. It has all kinds of facilities."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Ebizuka Tomo staggered and ran in the direction he had just pointed.

You could vaguely see that she was probably about to burst into tears from embarrassment and anger.

Akira Kurishi took out her phone and contacted her agent.

[The Thinker in the Attic: Mr. Iwai, we've arrived at the office. Ms. Ebizuka from the band went upstairs first; she needs to use the restroom urgently. Could you please show her the way at the entrance?]

[Iwai Munehisa: I understand... You can't do this yourself?]

[The Attic Thinker: The relationship is a bit awkward right now.]

How could that not be awkward? They might end up living in the same house, and "Fujiki-ju" only has one bathroom and one washroom specifically for bathing... This is exactly the problem that Ebizuka Satoshi has been struggling with. Considering the young girl's feelings, he has to avoid this issue to some extent, at least for the time being.

But Munehisa Iwai probably misunderstood.

[Muneya Iwai: Although you're a freelance artist and manage all your online accounts yourself... shouldn't you at least be mindful of the impact? If news of your promiscuous private life gets out, even if it doesn't harm you, it will put the other members of the band in a bad position.]

Akira Kurusu was too lazy to explain anymore.

[The Thinker in the Attic: Rest assured, I know what I'm doing.]

After sending that message, he turned off his phone, put it in his pocket, and headed for the elevator.

......

【PM. 7:55】

ATLUS Agency.

The sigh of the central air conditioning condensed into dew between the aluminum ceiling panels, and a drop fell into the black coffee on Fangze and Yan's table. In the ripples, the reflection of the thousand statues of Kannon in Sanjusangendo seemed to emerge.

Yoshizawa Kazuhiko stared at the boy in front of him with a grim expression, as if trying to see any shame or remorse on his face.

Under the menacing aura of this figure standing at the top of the workplace ecosystem, Ebizuka Tomoya began to feel somewhat uneasy.

Fortunately, Mr. Yoshizawa, who held a high position of power, did not intend to make things difficult for the young girl. He lowered his voice and said, "Ms. Ebizuka, you may leave now."

After signing the temporary employment contract for Akira Kurusu, Tomokazu Ebizuka felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He gave Akira Kurusu a sympathetic look and then quickly left the office.

Only Akira Kurishi and her boss remained in the office.

Facing her superior's scrutinizing gaze, Akira Kurusu remained unfazed, looking directly into Kazuhiko Yoshizawa's eyes with composure.

Finally, a warm night breeze drifted in through the open window, lifting a corner of the proposal document. A pen rolled down the page, leaving a thin, elongated mark on the overtime application form.

Yoshizawa Kazuhiko slammed his hand on the desk, causing the coffee in his cup to spill out in countless ripples.

He shouted sternly, "Ren Amamiya!"

"Please speak."

"Do you know exactly how much money the PR department needs to spend to smooth things over if an artist from an agency is exposed for having a messy private life?!"

Akira Kurusu casually said, "First of all, I am not a debut idol. I have no interest in acting coy in movies and TV dramas, nor do I have a chaotic private life."

Yoshizawa Kazuhiko put on his glasses, his eyes wide with anger. "So you mean... you just happened to join two bands full of beautiful girls, and then just happened to find two girlfriends in those bands, and then you... with me..."

Lai Qixiao promptly interrupted his rant, preventing the elderly father from saying anything inappropriate in his emotional state. "I swear to God that my concept of love is 'devotion, loyalty, and focus'."

"Do you even believe that yourself?!" Yoshizawa Kazuhiko almost laughed out of anger.

"If I were truly a person with an immoral private life, I would have already gone to the home of some big star or powerful person to seduce their daughter."

Yoshizawa Kazuhiko thought of "Toyokawa Shoko," who had recently visited the agency, and his breathing quickened. "You bastard...aren't you worried about being dumped by your girlfriend?!"

"Don't you dare slander the pure relationship between my girlfriend and me!"

"You mean... Miss Toyokawa knows you're two-timing?"

Lai Xixiao snorted coldly, refusing to answer his question at all, and then made a swearing gesture, "Unless a famous artist or sponsor comes to invite me to their home right now, saying 'My daughter wants to meet you,' your argument is completely fabricated 'one-sided opinion'! It's slander!"

"Great, great! You've started dating the eldest daughter of the Toyokawa family, and now you're talking to your boss so rudely!!" Yoshizawa Kazuhiko looked at his "scumbag to the end" look and immediately thought of his daughter's lovestruck expression every day. His heart felt like it was being squeezed by a red-hot iron clamp.

Akira Kurusu said frankly, "You can't impose those stereotypes on me. How do you know that the girl you saw is my girlfriend?"

Do you think I'm blind? Those two girls are practically staring at you like crazy! They practically want to cling to you and cuddle you!