Seeing her concerns, Talent shook his head. "It's fine, Ichiyo. You know it too, most of the time, I'm alright."
"Alright, but if anything happens, please make sure to call me immediately!"
"I, Yashima, will rush over right away!"
"Alright." Talent answered with a smile, turning toward the mansion gates. "Then I'm off."
"Travel safely, Young Master." Ichiyo still looked somewhat worried.
After leaving Sakura Mansion and the residential district, Talent wandered aimlessly through the January streets.
Image: "The male lead's outfit when going out", location: "Images/1755592699-100446961-113645009.jpg"
Heavy clouds pressed overhead, while occasional rays of sunlight broke through and lit the gloom. Winter had not yet passed, but the white snow had vanished, and few pedestrians could be seen on the empty streets.
He had no particular destination. On a whim, he simply wanted to walk around and see how much the scenery he had not seen in years had changed.
Although he returned with his family every year to visit Relatives, his parents were busy with work. Sometimes they arrived one day and left the next, leaving him with little spare time to wander about.
Even when time allowed, given his condition, he rarely wanted to go out for fun.
Taking the Ginza Line, Marunouchi Line, Tozai Line, and other subway and train routes, he wandered from daytime until dusk, from Minato Ward to Shibuya, then from Shibuya to Chiyoda, Shinjuku, Toshima...
Sometimes he even circled back to where he had started, but that was a novel experience in its own right.
He drew countless glances along the way and was approached several times, but he politely turned every one of them down with a smile.
He was even mistaken for a woman a few times. Fortunately, he did not run into any clueless punks who tried to drag him away by force. Otherwise, if a certain someone found out, Tokyo Bay might have gained another concrete-filled barrel tomorrow.
"Ah, it's raining."
He held out his right hand and caught several falling drops. Perhaps because night was approaching, the temperature had dropped again, and the rain clouds hanging above could no longer hold themselves together.
He had not brought an umbrella, yet he still did not want to go home. After telling Ichiyo, who had messaged to ask about him, "I'm fine, no need to pick me up," he continued strolling through the rainy night beneath the awnings of nearby shops.
He had walked all day today—almost as much exercise as he had gotten over the past month.
There were many record stores, cafes, and bookstores around him. The atmosphere made him feel comfortable, and the drizzling rain had driven away the somewhat dense crowds.
According to the map on his phone, he should currently be in a place called Shimokitazawa in Setagaya Ward. It seemed to be fairly famous.
"Hehe."
With the sound of rain, his body began hopping about of its own accord. His brown knee-high leather boots freely splashed through the small puddles on the ground. At times like this, people could feel even more cheerful.
Humans were strange, weren't they?
He had walked half a street like that when his gaze suddenly froze.
Out of the corner of his eye, a figure entered his view.
Beyond the curtain of rain, someone stood beneath a covered walkway. She had short blue hair, and her golden eyes seemed capable of cutting through the night.
"Why does she look a little familiar?"
A rainy night, blue hair, golden eyes... You're—
"Chuziliang?"
"Ah, no, wrong person. That's... Yamada Ryo?" Sakurakoji Talent asked in confusion.
Though the two looked somewhat similar in this setting, the person before him was clearly a woman. She carried an instrument case on her back and held a bright green plant in her hand, one that had clearly just been washed clean by the rain. Every so often, she stuffed a bite into her mouth.
Damn, she really cared about hygiene.
Sakurakoji Talent was momentarily dumbfounded before snapping back to his senses.
No, why are you here? Seriously?
He had thought that he had merely transmigrated into some gacha game and become the child of the male and Female Protagonist. No one had ever told him there were other characters in this world.
The only pleasure in his miserable previous life had been watching anime and reading manga. Though he had never played that game, thanks to a certain video-streaming site and the unpaid efforts of fan translation groups, he had managed to finish the general story on his old battered phone.
Of course, with the H-scenes removed.
On top of that, he had never encountered any other familiar characters over the years, so he had assumed this world followed that game's setting.
Wait, man? This was the Omni-Anime channel?
Sakurakoji Talent was deeply shaken. It felt like he had lived peacefully for more than a decade, only to suddenly see someone transform into Ultraman right in front of him one day.
He took a deep breath to calm his excitement. After thinking for a moment, he still walked toward her.
"Hello, um... you shouldn't eat that."
Yamada Ryo stood beneath a bus stop shelter, gnawing on the tender grass she had just picked from a roadside flowerbed. It was the end of the month, and to buy the newly released Bass, she had spent all her allowance again.
With no dinner in sight, she could only find some greenery to fill her stomach.
Fortunately, she was experienced at this by now. After several experiments worthy of Shennong tasting a hundred herbs—and several bouts of diarrhea—she could now easily tell which plants from roadside flowerbeds were edible.
Even more fortunately, it had rained today. The rain had washed the dust from the plants, making them taste much better than last time.
The fresh, fragrant taste bloomed in her mouth. After she chewed apart the vitality born from sunlight, soil, and sweet rain, that essence surged straight to the top of her head. She simply could not stop!
Rainwater with tender shoots had a flavor all its own.
"Mmph, mmph."
Come to think of it, wasn't this kind of behavior super rock and roll? She was so cool!
Hearing someone suddenly speak to her, she turned around and looked at the newcomer.
"An angel?"
Her golden pupils widened as if she wanted to burn the sight before her into memory. The powerful impact made her forget to keep chewing.
"Not quite, but close enough."
The corners of Sakurakoji Talent's lips lifted. He brushed back his beautiful hair, pleased by her reaction. The smooth texture slipping across his fingertips put him in an excellent mood.
Praise me. Keep praising me!
I'm this handsome, and I work so hard to maintain myself every day, all so ordinary people like you can praise me!
"Ah, sorry." After coming back to her senses, Yamada Ryo realized he was not an angel, but a beauty.
That made sense. A real angel should be someone like Nijika, but Nijika was still nowhere near as beautiful as him.
"May I ask what you need?"
"It's nothing major. I just saw you eating that." Sakurakoji Talent pointed at the remaining branches and leaves in her hand. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. This is edible, I guarantee it."
Yamada Ryo glanced at the food in her hand, then held it up before him. With her other hand on her hip, she straightened up and smiled, explaining with complete confidence.
"Uh, that's not what I meant... I wanted to ask why you were eating it."
"My allowance ran out at the end of the month."
At the mention of that, Yamada Ryo's momentum immediately wilted. She crouched pitifully on the ground and began drawing circles.
I know.
Sakurakoji Talent mocked internally, though his outward smile remained calm as he made an offer Yamada Ryo could not refuse.
"Then let me treat you to dinner. Eating only that isn't good for your stomach."
"Really?!"
Yamada Ryo shot to her feet, clasped his left hand in both of hers, and her eyes sparkled with stars.
Image: "Chuziliang", location: "Images/1755592737-100446961-113645009.jpg"
The Daily Life of Attracting Bees and Butterflies: First Meeting with Starry
A quarter of an hour later,
At a nearby Cafe, Sakurakoji Talent elegantly enjoyed the pork cutlet rice before him. The dish was golden in color, and after being drizzled with rich sauce, it looked especially appetizing.
Come to think of it, Uncle Iyo had mentioned before that he would find time to treat Ashiri and him to a meal at some pork cutlet rice restaurant, hadn't he?
He seemed especially fond of it. That was rather unexpected.
Across from him, Yamada Ryo was demolishing the pasta she had ordered like a whirlwind. Before he had even taken several bites, her plate was already empty.
"Would you like to order anything else?"
"Please!"
Sakurakoji Talent asked considerately. Yamada Ryo answered without hesitation, and he smiled slightly before waving over a server.
"Excuse me."
The young waitress hurried over in small steps, blushing as she looked at the two of them.
Both of these customers were stunning beauties, especially the white-haired one. Was he some kind of celebrity? No, even celebrities were not this beautiful, right? I wonder if I could ask for a photo together.
After eating her fill, Yamada Ryo rubbed her bulging stomach and let out a satisfied sigh.
"I'm alive again."
She could survive by eating grass, but humans really did need proper meals. The fresh fragrance of plants was utterly helpless before spices.
"Are you full?"
"Yeah, I'm full. Thank you for saving me."
Yamada Ryo raised a thumbs-up, looking radiant as she wore a victorious expression to convey her gratitude.
"Calling it saving your life is a bit exaggerated... Hm?"
Just as he was about to shake his head with a wry smile, he suddenly sensed something unusual, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
Just now, it seemed that the pain that had constantly tormented him inside his body had eased slightly?
After carefully confirming it, Sakurakoji Talent's eyes widened, his face full of disbelief. There was no mistake—it really had eased a little!
The sensation was extremely faint, perhaps only one ten-thousandth. But he had lived with this Strange Illness day and night for more than a decade, almost constantly growing used to the pain it brought him. He would not miss even the slightest change. This feeling could not be wrong.
What was going on?
For more than a decade, he, the Sakurakoji Family, and the Okura Family had tried countless methods, spent countless sums of money, and consulted countless top specialists, yet they had never been able to ease his symptoms even slightly. But today, there had actually been a reaction?
No, not today. Just now!
He abruptly looked at Yamada Ryo before him, his gaze burning.
There was no mistake. The person before him, Chuziliang, was the reason behind all this!
"W-What is it? Just so you know, I don't have any money on me!"
Faced with his strange gaze, Yamada Ryo felt creeped out by the way he stared at her. Hugging her arms, she spoke timidly, her voice trembling slightly.
"I don't want money! I don't want money!"
Sakurakoji Talent was overjoyed. If he could solve his body's problem, he would gladly treat Yamada Ryo to meals for the rest of her life!
Coming back this time had truly been the right choice!
In only a few days, he had found a clue to a problem that had eluded him for more than a decade! Although he still did not know the exact reason behind this phenomenon, it definitely had something to do with her. He only needed to keep a close eye on her.
Considering Yamada Ryo's identity, Sakurakoji Talent could not help but fall into thought.
A Bass player should not have that much power. As expected, was it related to Omni-Anime characters?
Was this scientific? Scientific my ass, it was not scientific at all! But... it was very Omni-Anime.
But why was he the only one getting this treatment? Was it because his soul was an outsider? What a joke, was this discrimination against outsiders? This was infuriating!
Frustrated or not, the most urgent matter now was to investigate the cause further.
"My name is Sakurakoji Talent. What is your name?"
"Ah, how rude of me. I'm Yamada Ryo. Thank you for treating me to dinner."
Remembering that she had not yet given her name to her benefactor, Yamada Ryo quickly lowered her head in thanks and introduced herself.
If not for him, she would have been in trouble tonight. There really were more good people in this world. It would have been even better if he could lend her a few ten-thousand yen bills.
"Miss Yamada Ryo, right? Are you heading straight home later?"
"No, I'm going to a Livehouse run by a friend's family. I formed a band with my friends."
Before you continue