There are so many geniuses in the anime compilation! What's wrong with me joining?

"You can just call me Ryo, I'll grant you that privilege." Yamada Ryo chimed in while slumped over the table.

"Understood, Nijika-san, Ryo-san."

Ichiji Hoshika tapped the table, but quickly realized it was too noisy for anyone to hear, so she cleared her throat twice to draw the attention of the person in front of her.

"Anyway, you're an employee of Starry from now on. Take note of the working hours."

"Starry opens for ticket sales at five in the afternoon. You can come in whenever you like before then, and we usually finish before the trains stop running. The workflow is simple; you'll see how it's done once you watch it once."

"If you have classes, it won't interfere with your school schedule. Any questions?"

"No, I think these hours are great." Sakurakoji Talent shook his head.

"Good, then." Ichiji Hoshika nodded, though her gaze suddenly turned puzzled as she hesitated, "By the way, how old are you? Are you a High School Student?"

Ichiji Nijika and Yamada Ryo looked over with curiosity, wanting to know the answer as well; after all, looking at his appearance, it was impossible to tell how old he was.

"Hmm—something like that, though I'm not currently attending school."

"Eh! Why?!"

"Ah, you did say you just returned from overseas."

"No classes or exams, pure bliss."

The three of them gave different reactions.

"Well, that's about it."

Ichiji Hoshika signaled her understanding and didn't dig into the reasons; everyone had their own circumstances, and prying into personal matters wasn't something an adult should do.

"Then that's settled. You can start working tomorrow, no problem, right?"

"Yes, that should be fine."

"..."

He stayed at Starry until ten o'clock, waiting for the performance to end, helping everyone pack up their instruments and equipment, and doing a quick cleanup before Sakurakoji Talent finally left.

Although his job started tomorrow, he hadn't come for the meager wages; his main goal was to leave a good impression on them and increase his opportunities for contact.

Walking out of the narrow staircase and stepping out of Starry, Sakurakoji Talent smiled.

He could feel that the pain caused by his Strange Illness had lessened by a few ten-thousandths. Although it was still minimal, the fact that a change had occurred was undeniable, confirming that there was indeed a possibility of his body successfully healing.

At this rate, one day, he would be able to become a normal person!

After walking a block away, he could no longer hold it in.

"Haha, hahahaha..."

"Hahahaha!"

"Woohoo!"

"Oh yeah!"

"Abba abba!"

"..."

At the same time, unsurprisingly.

"Are you crazy?! What the hell are you screaming for in the middle of the night!"

"Get lost if you're having a fit! Keep shouting and I'll kill you!"

Some residents on both sides couldn't take it anymore, running to their balconies to curse at him.

Facing their verbal abuse, Sakurakoji Talent, who was jumping around in a great mood, didn't get angry.

He simply smiled and raised both middle fingers at them, then turned and walked away with a swagger as the sound of the other party stomping down the stairs echoed behind him.

Image: "Bocchi who is too socially anxious to appear", Location: "Images/1753692339-100446961-113650639.jpg"

Volume 1: The Daily Life of Attracting Bees and Butterflies : Chapter 8 Warm Family Relations

The next day, Whether it was because he returned late last night or because his body felt uncharacteristically comfortable, Sakurakoji Talent slept in quite late.

After a quick wash, he called for Ichiyo and asked her to help him look up the names of all the high schools in Tokyo.

"Young Master, do you want to go to school?"

Yashiro Ichiyo's voice was filled with astonishment. One had to know that due to his physical condition, Sakurakoji Talent had never attended school since birth, relying instead on private tutors or his brilliant parents to teach him personally.

"Yes, I have that intention." He didn't hide it and nodded in admission.

If one were to talk about where events in an Omni-Anime world frequently occurred, aside from the fact that most locations were in Tokyo, the timing was also largely concentrated in high school.

Don't ask why; if you do, the answer is that Japanese high school students are invincible.

Genius scholars, musical prodigies, novelists, chefs, detectives, idols... if they didn't have some kind of special skill, they wouldn't even be embarrassed to call themselves Japanese high school students.

Through his contact with the Starry group last night, he already had a basic hypothesis: the method to solve his problem should be interacting with characters from the Omni-Anime world. The more people he knew, the more effective it would be in resolving his symptoms.

He just didn't know if this effect would increase in tandem with the depth of his relationships, or rather, his bonds. That remained to be further researched.

He hoped that was the case; otherwise, at the rate of progress from yesterday, he feared he would have to meet thousands of people to completely shake off this parasite-like companion.

"That's wonderful! If the Master and Mistress find out, they will be so happy!"

"However, is your health really alright?"

Beyond her joy, Yashiro Ichiyo also expressed her concern for him. If he were to faint in the middle of class, it would be quite the spectacle.

After hesitating for a moment, Sakurakoji Talent decided to tell the truth. There was no need to hide anything from these Mansion Elders who were like family to him.

"I think I've found a way to solve my health issues."

"Really?!" Yashiro Ichiyo was shocked, unable to control her volume as she shouted out loud.

"Yes, but it still requires further verification," Sakurakoji Talent nodded, "though it shouldn't be much of a problem."

"A celebration! We must celebrate! Sakura Mansion is throwing a party today!"

Yashiro Ichiyo's eyes blazed with excitement, her joy evident as she was genuinely happy for Sakurakoji Talent from the bottom of her heart.

To her, both he and Ashiri were children she had watched grow up; they were no different from her own. She knew better than anyone how much mental energy and suffering the kind-hearted master's family had endured because of the Young Master's strange illness. She had seen it all, and it weighed heavily on her heart.

But even the masters, with their heaven-defying resources, hadn't found a solution, let alone a mere maid like her.

Now that she knew Talent had found a lead, she was naturally overjoyed for him.

Pursing her lips and shaking her head with a smile, he let her summon the maids of the entire mansion to spring into action, while he returned to his bedroom.

Not long after, he was bombarded with phone calls and well-wishes, primarily from members of the Sakurakoji and Okura families.

Needless to say, Yashiro Ichiyo must have told them.

It took a full two hours before he finally put down the phone, collapsing onto his soft bed in exhaustion.

"Phew~ I'm dead tired."

Having overly concerned parents and family members is a burden in its own right.

His parents, of course, fussed over him, asking for every detail. Even though he had only been away for a few days, they worried about him as if he were a wanderer who hadn't returned in years.

After hearing the news, Okura Iyo also inquired about the specifics, but he brushed it off, saying it was just a preliminary lead that still required observation.

The other party offered to provide anything he needed, and upon hearing that he had asked Yashiro Ichiyo to investigate the school, he even suggested buying him a residence in every ward of Tokyo to make his commute easier. Talent hurriedly refused; he had no use for that many properties.

Even a certain tsundere Great Aunt who always had minor complaints about him called to express her concern, which came as quite a surprise.

Others, such as his Great Aunt who was three generations his senior but several months younger than him; his second uncle far away in Europe; his aunt who was a world-class designer; his centenarian Great-grandfather... all of them, busy leaders in their respective fields, expressed their delight one after another.

After talking for several hours straight and constantly managing their responses, he felt a bit dizzy and parched.

However... it didn't feel bad.

Sakurakoji Talent wore a soft smile, devoid of any calculation. Once he truly recovered, he would be able to fully enjoy all of this, right? Wrapped in high-end silk velvet, he gradually drifted back into a dream.

He didn't wake up again until three in the afternoon. After tidying up a bit, he prepared to head out once more.

Today was his first day on the job, and he couldn't afford to be late; he had to leave a good impression on his boss and colleagues.

"Young Master, are you going out again?" a maid cleaning the courtyard asked.

"Yes, I'll be back around the same time as last night, don't worry."

"That's fine, but what exactly are you going to do?"

Facing the gazes of the maids, Sakurakoji Talent wore an inexplicably proud expression.

"Going to work!"

"Huh?" x N

At four-thirty in the afternoon, Sakurakoji Talent stood once again before the entrance of Starry.

Unlike a certain social anxiety sufferer who didn't dare to enter, he pushed the door open decisively and strode inside.

He had chosen to take the train on his way over, not letting the driver take him.

Firstly, it was to avoid being seen by acquaintances and breaking his persona, and secondly, he wanted to replicate the lucky coincidence of meeting Yamada Ryo yesterday to see if he could bump into any more lone Little Red Riding Hoods.

But reality was not as coincidental as in movies; Tokyo was so large that trying to run into his target by chance among tens of millions of people felt a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack.

"Tsk, that's not how it plays out in anime. Didn't they say Japan and Korea are just like one big village?"

"If I don't even have this bit of luck, am I really the protagonist?"

"But then again, if I had good luck, I wouldn't have been born with this affliction."

If someone said they were willing to trade his conditions for a life of wealth and prosperity, he could only chuckle. Only those who have never felt pain would have such naive thoughts. He could only say that once you've had a toothache, you learn to be humble.

"Good morning." Descending the second flight of stairs inside, Sakurakoji Talent greeted everyone.

[Image: "If you don't bookmark this, Ryo-nee will snipe you", Location: "Images/1755650883-100446961-113651474.jpg"]

Volume 1: The Daily Life of Attracting Bees and Butterflies : Chapter 9 The Girl at the Convenience Store

"Oh, good morning. You're quite early," Ichiji Hoshika, who was playing on her phone, replied indifferently.

"Good morning~" PA, who was tuning the tracks for the band's audition, also turned to look at him, greeting him with a smile.

She had already learned yesterday that Sakurakoji Talent would be working here from now on, which left her exceptionally excited. In this dark, sunless basement live house, had a human she could actually talk to finally arrived?

"Good morning, PA."

As the employee who arrived latest, Sakurakoji Talent consciously headed to the kitchen behind the bar to begin today's preparations.

Although, there wasn't really much to prepare; aside from a few simple Drinks and cocktails, Starry provided almost no other food. The only machine behind the bar was a drink dispenser.

Sakurakoji Talent wore a look of confusion. With just this, you have the nerve to call yourself a restaurant? Apologize to every restaurant in the world!

While he knew that such a simple job wouldn't be complicated, the fact that it was simple to this degree still greatly exceeded his expectations. All he had to do was add drinks and ice cubes in the back; it was so easy anyone could do it.

Giving his all in everything he did was his personal aesthetic, because his time could not afford a single moment of waste. Since he had already accepted this job, he could not allow himself to just slack off.

It was too late for today, so he would just have to make some preparations later. Thinking of this, he turned to look at Hoshika.

"Boss, can we add some items to our menu? Having only Drinks doesn't seem right, does it?"

"Hm?" Ichiji Hoshika looked at him in confusion. In this day and age, there was actually a chosen worker who would volunteer to add tasks to their own workload?

"It's possible, I suppose, but I'll state this beforehand: I can't cook."

"Besides, when you say you want to add things, what exactly are you planning to add?"

He had almost forgotten; Ichiji Hoshika was apparently a complete disaster in the kitchen.

"For example, desserts like ice cream, matcha parfaits, coffee, or milk tea?"

"That shouldn't be a problem, but are you sure you can handle it?"