Chapter 150

He endured it for two seconds, but he still couldn't stand Ishikawa Hayato's smug expression.

He reminded him through gritted teeth.

"Kid, let me tell you, girls are very good at pretending. Don't be fooled by their cute expressions and delicate actions in front of you. Once they get jealous, they won't hesitate to fight back."

Ishikawa Hayato was startled.

Pretense? Jealousy?

He was more attentive to the situation at the dining table than to his own family members. He glanced thoughtfully to the side and carefully took a sip of soup.

"That's a little scary."

Ishikawa Hibiki pouted, suppressing his anger as he looked at his father.

Whether it was his earlier comment about the girl or something he had said that struck a chord with her, she suppressed her guilt and anger, put on a cute smile, and turned the conversation to her father.

"How does Dad know so much? Dad is so amazing!"

Hearing his daughter's sweet voice and seeing her bright and lovely expression made Ishikawa Jinpei so happy that he felt like his soul had flown to the heavens.

He instantly became smug, completely ignoring his own vigilance, his eyes wide open as he boasted.

"Of course, Dad had tons of girls who liked him back in the day! Hayabusa learned that from me."

Ishikawa Shizuka never expected that her silly husband would actually fall for it. She sighed and joined the game.

She raised her hand gently, even making it appear cute with only half of her arm showing on the table, and looked at Ishikawa Jinpei with admiration.

"Honey, I have a problem."

Ishikawa Jinpei, unaware that something was amiss, turned his head.

"Um?"

"Didn't we know each other in junior high? Which girls liked you back then?"

The moment his mother raised her hand, Ishikawa Hayato moved his dinner closer to him. After finishing, he looked up expectantly at his father, who had taught him by example with his life.

She hoped he could teach her how to get out of this predicament.

But large beads of sweat were seen streaming down Ishikawa Jinpei's face.

Before him stood his daughter, her face a mixture of admiration and curiosity, and his wife, her expression a mixture of calm and doubt as she listened to his "heroic" deeds.

He understood what it meant to have a smile that conceals a dagger; it was a smile that truly conveyed the chilling edge of a blade.

"Help me!" Ishikawa Jinpei cried out, his eyes flashing frantically at Ishikawa Hayato.

Seeing that this man couldn't offer him any experience, Ishikawa Hayato ignored him and began to mentally simulate how he would save himself if such a situation arose.

However, after thinking for a while, he realized that Bocchi probably wouldn't let him get into such a predicament. He could get Nijika to agree if he begged her, Kita? Did she even have any fighting ability? As for Ryo...

She's definitely the kind of person who'll cause a huge scene and make you look good.

However, others would have to be willing to go against her. Nijika wouldn't, Bocchi wouldn't, and Kita wouldn't go against Ryo.

It seems my harem is as secure as iron.

Ishikawa Hayato nodded in satisfaction, watching his father's "happy" state as he was being dominated by his wife and fawned over by his daughter, caught in the middle of the situation.

The next day, even without going to the Starry Night, Ishikawa Hayato subconsciously went to Shimokitazawa.

He hadn't originally planned to come today, but he realized it only after he got on the tram.

He's been coming to Shimokitazawa every day lately, and it's actually become a stronger habit for him than going to school.

There's nothing to do here today. Fanxing doesn't open this early, and the three of us in Shimokitazawa probably won't be able to get a date.

Nijika is probably busy with family matters, Ryo is probably still sleeping, and Kita is definitely taking photos with her friends in various places.

But Ishikawa Hayato isn't the kind of person who has nothing to do except hang out with girls.

The band's development and his earning potential are urgent issues he needs to address, but there's one more thing he needs to do soon in Shimokitazawa.

He had previously agreed to rent a place with Bocchi here, and he planned to first find out about the situation and select some potential rental properties.

This way, it will be easier to bring Bocchi to choose a rental house.

Although he didn't know how much Bocchi could handle right now, just thinking about taking her Shimokitazawa made Ishikawa Hayato picture her swaying and completely out of it.

Upon arriving at the real estate agency, Ishikawa Hayato first determined the house's decorating style, preferably in a traditional Japanese style, since that's what Bocchi's rooms were like, but other houses could also be considered.

However, good soundproofing is even more important, since it wouldn't be good if they occasionally played musical instruments at home and disturbed the neighbors.

There should also be three bedrooms, in case we suddenly need to stay overnight here and have nowhere to sleep.

Ishikawa Hayato is a very upright person. He would never have any abnormal thoughts, and since he has money now, he naturally chooses the best options.

If money is no object and you only care about the environment, choosing a house is quite easy.

After visiting several houses with the real estate agent in one afternoon, Ishikawa Hayato quickly made a decision.

He plans to bring Bocchi to see it later; if she's satisfied, then it's settled.

Having settled the housing matter, he planned to reconsider the band situation.

Ishikawa Hayato went into a coffee shop, ordered a coffee, sat by the window, and took out a pen and paper to think.

Objectively speaking, their band was no worse than other bands of the same era, referring to their musical level, though they were well aware that their performances were not yet mature.

This situation can be resolved by performing on stage more often and reflecting more on one's musical expression.

This kind of thing relies on the emotions of the moment, not on imitation.

In other words, they need more stages that can boost their confidence.

Ishikawa Hayato drew a circle around the performance opportunity on the paper.

There are so many music festivals in the summer, I wish I could attend a few more.

However, he then worried about whether Bocchi could handle it, and whether Kita could keep up.

To be honest, Kita currently only singing based on her natural voice. If she wants to go to a bigger stage, she needs to learn more scientific vocal techniques.

Thinking about it, Ishikawa Hayato felt that the band had a lot to worry about.

He also knew why the others didn't care. Nijika was afraid of pushing people too hard, Liang didn't care, she just wanted to play music, not to mention Bocchi and Kita.

However, if nothing unexpected happens in this performance, it will mark a transformation for them.

As Ishikawa Hayato was thinking, he started searching for information about Kita online. Just as he was finishing his search, a familiar figure suddenly appeared at the edge of his field of vision.

A blue-haired passerby was leisurely walking across the street from the other side.

Seeing that figure slowly stopping in front of a newly opened shop on the other side, peering inside, Ishikawa Hayato checked his phone. It was almost noon; no wonder he'd spotted this street urchin.

He took another sip of coffee, then bent down and half-hid behind the shop's advertising stickers to peek at Liang.

Liang hesitated for a moment in front of the store, touched her stomach, and took out her phone, rapidly tapping on it.

She waited a while, as if checking a message, then calmly picked up her phone again, this time holding it to her ear.

Ishikawa Hayato pricked up his ears to listen.

"Nijika ~~"

Liang called out in a coquettish tone, but her expression didn't change at all; it seemed she was very skilled at using this kind of coquettishness.

"I don't care about you!"

With Nijika's angry roar, the phone call ended.

As Ishikawa Hayato watched her pick up her phone again, he quickly took out his own phone and sent a message to Bocchi.

"Bocchi, Liang might ask you for money later, so whatever you do, don't lend it to her."

Bocchi took quite a while to reply.

"OK."

Ishikawa Hayato guessed she was probably struggling with this again, so he sent her another message.

"Is Bocchi forcing himself?"

This time, Bocchi responded very quickly.

"Falcon, I'm sorry! I don't have the courage to refuse others."

"Is this okay? When Liang sends you a message, take a screenshot and forward my message to you."

"Okay... Also, Liang Sang has already messaged me."

When Ishikawa Hayato saw Bocchi's message, he glanced furtively at Ryo, who was waiting at the shop entrance, and let out a cold laugh.

He carefully crafted his words from Bocchi's perspective, refusing Liang's request to lend him money.

Bocchi rejected Ryo, who stared at the shop door for a long time. She silently wiped away her tears, then turned and walked away.

Seeing her reaction, Ishikawa Hayato began to feel uneasy.

However, the thought of her not repaying the money she borrowed and her swindling and cheating at Bocchi made him feel no guilt whatsoever.

Seeing her leave, Ishikawa Hayato quickly packed his things, finished his coffee in one gulp, and went to the counter to pay.

He clearly remembered that Liang had tacitly allowed him to follow and stalk her, and now, this was the perverted act in progress.

Ishikawa Hayato is on board!

On the other hand, Bocchi was puzzled about the situation between the two.

However, after thinking for a long time, she still couldn't understand the situation from their Line conversation.

She could only guess vaguely.

"Hawk and Ryou-san are together..."

She sighed deeply, glanced at the guitar she had just put down, and then stood up to look at the calendar.

On the calendar, she drew an important circle around tomorrow's date, with the word "Rehearsal" written in the corner.

Ishikawa Hayato's level of perversion is legendary, reaching MAX level. His stalking skills are naturally also superhuman. Not to mention the dead, even passersby around him didn't notice he was stalking them.

He watched as Liang leisurely strolled around.

Surprisingly, she, like any ordinary girl, would go into clothing stores to try on clothes and also visit secondhand clothing stores to look at clothes.

It was just that I was hungry.

But she didn't stay long before leaving.

So far, her shopping trips have been very casual, as if she's just browsing to see if any stores have new arrivals, and then she leaves after taking a look around.

When she reached a shop, she turned and went inside without even looking back, as if she were going home.

Ishikawa Hayato went to check the area and then showed an expression that revealed no surprise whatsoever.

This is a slightly old-fashioned CD store. Judging from the weathered yet timeless storefront, this store would have been an extremely trendy shop a few years or even a decade ago.

The half-wall glass allows light to pass through while also showcasing a portion of the interior space. The naturally aged yet clean walls, combined with the shop's contents, create a unique ambiance.

Inside, the antique wooden shelves were filled with countless CDs, and even cassette tapes. Next to the shelves were players and headphones for listening to samples.

Liang was carefully searching through the CDs on the shelf.

She seemed to know that I wanted to listen to that CD, and soon she took it out, walked to the player, and inserted it.

Ishikawa Hayato suspected that she was continuing to listen from where she had heard it last time.

After watching her for a while, Ishikawa Hayato looked away and went about his business. The beautiful young woman with both beauty and handsome features was hard to look away from, but he thought that he still had a lot of time, and that a transaction he had today was about to start.

He took out his phone and started operating it.

And so, one person listened to music in the CD store, while another person scrolled through their phone in the alley, and quite some time passed.

After completing the transaction, Ishikawa Hayato looked at Ryo again and, seeing that she was still listening, went inside.

The midday sun streamed in through the window, casting sharp, clean edges on the floor and shelves.

The silhouette of the sunlight was dazzlingly white.