Their Fortune-Telling

Kitagawa Ryo clearly couldn't refuse Sakayanagi Arisu's request at this moment, so he simply agreed without hesitation.

Anyway, after his seven-day vacation on the cruise ship, most of the First Year students witnessed and knew about his close relationship with girls Sakayanagi Arisu. So, it wasn't a big deal for him to openly enter a room. After all, rumors about him and the girls were already flying everywhere, and some upperclassmen even came to him specifically to ask for advice.

After returning to her room without incident, Sakayanagi Arisu eagerly grabbed her clean clothes and went into the bathroom. Only when the hot water from the showerhead slid over her entire body did every muscle seem to truly relax, and an indescribable, immense sense of satisfaction slowly welled up from the depths of her soul.

The single rooms in the student dormitory weren't actually that big, so Sakayanagi Arisu could clearly hear the various sounds Kitagawa Ryo made in the kitchen next door as he brought ingredients and cooking utensils from his room. The sounds of knives hitting the cutting board, the gurgling of food stewing, and the footsteps moving back and forth all rustled together, to the point that Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly began to enjoy this everyday atmosphere.

She was taking a shower in the bathroom, while Kitagawa Ryo was making breakfast for the two of them in the kitchen next door. After she finished showering, she could naturally take two sets of bowls and chopsticks from the cupboard, and then sit with him on either side of the dining table, looking at each other with their hands clasped together, saying, "Let's eat."

Even what exactly is on the plate might not matter.

Starting from the morning of the second day after returning to school, Horikita Suzune, who works in the Student Council, began her busy work mode without stopping.

Although it is still summer vacation in terms of time, the suspension of classes does not mean that club activities have stopped as well. On the contrary, most clubs are taking advantage of the free time during the holidays to carry out their own training or choose to go out to participate in various competitions. All kinds of applications and approvals are naturally sent to the Student Council office all at once.

Just as Horikita Suzune, who was on duty at the time, got up from her seat to stretch her body a little after reviewing an application submitted by the Basketball Club for a competition that would take place a week later, the door to the Student Council Office was knocked on once again.

"Please come in."

"Hello, I'm here to submit my club's application to leave campus -- Oh, so it's Suzune here today."

Upon seeing that Horikita Suzune was on duty today, Kitagawa Ryo's previously serious and businesslike expression instantly relaxed. He casually closed the door and placed the application form in his hand on the desk next to him.

"The thing is here."

"Hmm, let me see... There shouldn't be any problems. I should get the approval result around tomorrow."

After quickly glancing at Kitagawa Ryo's application, Horikita Suzune put it back and gave an affirmative answer, but then asked with some doubt:

"However, this time you've been gone longer than before. Is something wrong, Liang?"

"Well, didn't I promise Honami I'd go with her to meet her mother? And there are a few other things to take care of, so let's leave it at that."

After giving a somewhat vague answer to the question, Kitagawa Ryo immediately changed the subject:

"By the way, does Suzune know about those newly opened stores on the fifth and sixth floors of the Keyaki Mall?"

"Hmm? I think I heard Senior Tachibana mention it, but I've been too busy these past few days to go see it in person. I think it's some kind of event the school is organizing?"

"Yes, the most popular shop among students right now is a fortune-telling shop. Suzune, if you're free tomorrow, how about we go check it out together? Because I heard from Sudo that the shop seems to only accept one male and one female customer at a time."

"Is Ryo still interested in divination?"

"It's alright, I just wanted to observe it in person. It feels a bit strange, Suzune. Let's treat this as a date between the two of us. After all, I'm leaving school in a couple of days, and by the time I come back, school will have already started."

Kitagawa Ryo smiled and extended an invitation to Horikita Suzune.

Horikita Suzune was quite tempted by Kitagawa Ryo's invitation. After all, the fortune teller's condition of "only giving readings to couples" was practically a blatant admission that he only offered readings to couples. Thinking about it that way, the other party was probably a master of love and marriage fortune telling.

With that in mind, Horikita Suzune was even less able to refuse Kitagawa Ryo's invitation. Although the Student Council was indeed busy, she had already worked hard for several days, so taking a little break shouldn't be a problem. She could always ask her brother Horikita Manabu and Tachibana-senpai for help.

"I understand, let's go take a look together tomorrow."

So, Horikita Suzune finally nodded in agreement.

Afterwards, according to Tachibana Akane, who was present at the scene, Horikita Manabu had a great time working overtime the next day.

Written request for leave

My daughter is going back for the Lantern Festival, but as usual, she's stuck in traffic because of the weather. The weather is quite bad, so it's unlikely she'll be able to come back and update. I'll have to ask you to help me send out a leave request again.

My daughter has been quite busy lately, and she's at a crossroads in her life, so she's been taking more leave than usual. Please bear with her and let her settle down.

Chapter 267: Their Divination (4k7)

The next day, in front of the Keyaki Mall.

"Has Suzune ever had her fortune told before?"

After successfully meeting with Horikita Suzune, Kitagawa Ryo asked this question with great interest.

"No, I just glance at it when I'm watching the news in the morning; it's something like a horoscope for a certain zodiac sign."

Horikita Suzune simply shook her head upon hearing this. Today, she was dressed in the same ordinary casual clothes as usual, with her close-fitting capri pants beautifully showcasing the straight and well-proportioned legs she had developed through years of training. In Kitagawa Ryo's memory, he didn't seem to have seen Suzune wear a skirt more than a few times.

Is it cold?

After answering Kitagawa Ryo's question, Horikita Suzune smoothed a strand of hair behind her ear and asked back with a similarly curious expression.

"This is kind of the first time, with Suzune."

Kitagawa Ryo gave a somewhat vague reply. He remembered that he had come here for a fortune telling in a simulation of Karuizawa Kei in the past, but considering that the real timeline and world line had been skewed in another direction by him, the fortune teller he came to today and the result of the fortune telling might be different, so it could be considered as his first time.

"I see."

Horikita Suzune probably didn't understand Kitagawa Ryo's addition of the second half of the sentence, "With Suzune." She nodded thoughtfully, and the braid hanging by her ear swayed, making Kitagawa Ryo glance at her again with some concern.

Among the girls he was close to, the vast majority had long hair. Among them, Horikita Suzune was probably the one who cared the most about her hairstyle. Although at first glance it seemed like she was just letting her hair down, Suzune would always carefully braid a delicate braid on the side of her ear, which always made Kitagawa Ryo feel an urge to grab her.

There were more people gathered here than Kitagawa Ryo had imagined. Even though the store officially opened at 10 a. m., he and Horikita Suzune, who arrived half an hour early, only managed to get the seventh number from the staff in charge of pre-sales. They were told not to leave while queuing or they would lose their number, so the two of them could only stand in the middle of the line and start chatting.

"Long queues are, in a sense, one of the most effective forms of publicity."

"Indeed, and waiting like this indirectly increases the sunk costs for each couple. So once the queue starts forming, fewer people will leave halfway through. At the same time, looking at the queue behind them, they will also feel a sense of comfort, which will encourage them to continue queuing."

After making such a rational statement, Horikita Suzune lowered her voice somewhat helplessly:

"Actually, before I met Ryo, I probably would never have thought of coming to a place like this for so-called fortune telling."

For those who personally experienced those simulations, Kitagawa Ryo's existence might be considered a supernatural phenomenon. If it were the former Horikita Suzune, she would probably just say indifferently, "It's just cold reading," "A simple application of psychological techniques," "I don't want to waste my time."

"That being said, I reckon the chances of encountering a genuine, mysterious fortune teller in a place like this are definitely higher than discovering that my sister is actually a god."

Kitagawa Ryo shrugged and made this comment, then quickly changed the subject, asking Suzune a question:

"I remember Suzune is an Aquarius, born on February 15th, right?"

Horikita Suzune didn't quite catch Kitagawa Ryo's first sarcastic remark, assuming it was just a casual joke:

"Um, is there something you need, Ryo?"

"Don't divination often use birthdays or zodiac signs? I remember when zodiac signs were at their peak, many people seriously looked for partners based on the compatibility between different zodiac signs. Back then, labels were used like 'Aries man' or 'Gemini woman'."

"Now that you mention it... it does seem to have been popular for a while when I was in elementary school, but I think judging a person's personality and life based on the movement of stars in the sky is a bit far-fetched."

As they chatted leisurely with Horikita Suzune, more than an hour passed without them realizing it. Thinking about it, it seemed that even the time allotted for couples to chat while queuing had been taken into account by the school. Not only the two of them, but the couples in front of and behind them didn't seem to be annoyed at all. On the contrary, they were becoming more and more expectant as the queue slowly moved forward.

"Then, please come in next."

Following the staff's instructions, I bent down slightly and entered the divination room, which was specially designed as a tent. My first impression was that the brightness suddenly dimmed. The dim lighting deliberately created a mysterious atmosphere. The only light source I could see seemed to be the large crystal ball on the table in front of me, and the hooded diviner was sitting behind me.

Please sit down.

Judging from her voice, the fortune teller was probably an elderly woman. The hand that extended from her sleeve to point at them also had wrinkles from age. After sitting down in the two backless round chairs prepared for guests, Kitagawa Ryo and Horikita Suzune both looked in her direction.

"First, please select your preferred package and pay the corresponding fee."

But the next second, the fortune teller's speech and the sudden appearance of a small card reader for payment from the audience shattered the atmosphere that had been so carefully cultivated. Speechless, Kitagawa Ryo accepted the form handed to him and casually ordered the most expensive package. However, Horikita Suzune, who was always thrifty, was clearly not particularly interested in the fortune telling and simply ticked the cheapest option.

Although it's advertised as the cheapest package, it actually exceeds the Private Points.

Perhaps because it was the cheapest option, the fortune teller chose the straightforward and convenient method of palm reading. Kitagawa Ryo listened as the fortune teller talked about his life line and love line, showering him with compliments on academics, wealth, and love as if they were free.

Upon closer inspection, Horikita Suzune was still nodding repeatedly, with an expression of approval that said, "Oh my god, this is exactly me."

Hey, do you really think the lines on your palm can better judge a person's character and predict their future life experiences than the movements of celestial bodies?

Subconsciously, Kitagawa Ryo lowered his opinion of the fortune teller in front of him. When the fortune teller finished his conversation with Horikita Suzune and solemnly began to ask him about his birth date while taking out props such as astrological charts and tarot cards, Kitagawa Ryo casually replied with a couple of sentences, ready to hear what the fortune teller had to say.

"Pluto is in your first house; it's your ruling planet, symbolizing misfortune, death, and reincarnation."

To Kitagawa Ryo's surprise, the fortune teller didn't continue with ambiguous platitudes to appease him. Instead, he made a solemn pronouncement, which made Horikita Suzune, who was standing next to him, nervous. She subconsciously grasped his hand and held it tightly in her palm.

"But your fortune is very strong; your birth chart contains a lucky grand trine formed by Venus, Jupiter, and the Moon."

The fortune teller's next words had just brought Horikita Suzune a little relief, but then, in one swift motion, he delivered his verdict:

However, the Shinomiya, symbolizing family, the fifth house, representing love and children, and the eleventh house, representing friendship and desires, are all caught in the middle and obliterated.

Seemingly puzzled by the divination result himself, the diviner hesitated before reciting the final result:

"But the eighth house, which symbolizes death and inheritance, corresponds to lucky Jupiter, meaning one will receive good fortune at the time of death, and it's also associated with the ruling planet Pluto... No, no, this doesn't make any sense."

After muttering to himself thoughtfully for a long time, the fortune teller finally just shrugged and said to Kitagawa Ryo:

"This is beyond my capabilities and understanding. How about I refund your money?"

"So, what's the situation with Liang? Didn't you just say my love life is going smoothly? If mine is going well, then Liang should be fine too, right? He's my boyfriend, isn't he?"

Before Kitagawa Ryo could answer, Horikita Suzune fired off four rhetorical questions in quick succession, but the fortune teller, who was holding her head in distress, seemed not to hear her and continued to mutter something to herself in confusion.

"Alright, alright, it's normal if the divination doesn't reveal anything. Let's leave it at that. I won't pay then; this one is for my girlfriend."

With a smile, Kitagawa Ryo Horikita Suzune reached out and pulled the slightly agitated Horikita Suzune back into the room. He waved lightly to the fortune teller, swiped his phone to send Private Points, and then decisively led Horikita Suzune out of the room, whispering in her ear:

"Suzune, don't worry too much. After all, you know my situation. Plus, we've saved 20,000 Private Points. Let's go—I'll take you shopping and we can buy some new clothes, how about it?"

"... Yes, indeed, there's nothing to believe about that anyway."

After taking a few deep breaths, as if to comfort herself, Horikita Suzune calmed down, but she still held onto the hand tightly.

During her junior high school years, she occasionally visited temples and shrines and saw couples behaving intimately while drawing fortune Matoba. If one person drew a very lucky one and the other a very unlucky one, the former would often playfully put their hand around the latter's hand, give them a passionate kiss or hug, and say, "I'll share some of my good luck with you."

"The fortune teller just said that my love life will always be smooth sailing."

Kitagawa Ryo suddenly heard Horikita Suzune mutter something to herself in a low voice beside him. He turned his head and met the girl's very serious eyes.

She still tends to get stuck on things a bit, so she repeated it again.

"So if Ryo continues to date me, things will always go smoothly."

The fortune-telling shop on the fifth floor of the Keyaki Mall was still bustling with activity, with couples from all three grades crowding together affectionately.

It's like a drop of water flowing into the sea, or a tree hiding in the forest.

They embraced and kissed so naturally.

"... Hey, Hotaru, I'm taking you to Asahina Nazuna's place in a couple of days. You definitely know her, she's the one you helped retrieve the amulet."

"You can't refuse, it's all your own fault. Just stay there quietly for a couple of days and don't let anyone find out."

Patting the somewhat reluctant kitten's head, and looking into its pitiful, fluorescent eyes, Kitagawa Ryo, lying on the bed, unconsciously recalled the fortune-telling he had done with Horikita Suzune yesterday.

For some reason, he felt that the result of the divination was somewhat in line with his experiences in his previous life: death and reincarnation, luck and misfortune.

But after only thinking about it for a short while, Kitagawa Ryo casually put it out of his mind again. After all, even if the result corresponded fairly well to his past life, it had nothing to do with his present life.

He protected all the houses that had been previously suppressed: the Shinomiya representing family, the fifth house representing romance, and the eleventh house representing friends and wishes.

Just as Kitagawa Ryo was lost in thought, reminiscing about the past, his phone, which was lying to the side, suddenly vibrated again. He lazily reached out and picked it up to see that it was a call from Shiina Hiyori.

"Hello, this is Kitagawa Ryo."

"Ryo, let's go get our fortune told together!"

Before Kitagawa Ryo could finish speaking, Shiina Hiyori on the other end of the phone enthusiastically extended an invitation:

"I heard from Nishino that their most expensive package uses a method similar to traditional astrology, and I really want to try it out."

"Liang should know why, right?"

Just like at the casino on the cruise ship last time, Kitagawa Ryo, once again facing the test of tacit understanding with Shiina Hiyori, achieved a high degree of overlap and resonance with the literary girl on a reading level without any pressure:

"The Tokyo Zodiac Murders, right? Hiyori's recently reread it?"

"Mmm, as expected of Liang!"

As the debut and representative work of Soji Shimada, a famous Japan mystery novelist and hailed as the mentor of the new orthodox school, "The Tokyo Zodiac Murders" is considered one of the top mystery novels in the world. Not long ago, it was selected as one of the top ten mystery novels of the 20th century by the Japan Mystery Writers Association Award, and it was also ranked third in the list of the 100 best orthodox mystery novels from 1975 to 1994 compiled by the Detective Novel Research Association.

The Western astrology mentioned by Shiina Hiyori is the absolute main thread and the foundation of the mystery in this mystery novel, which explains why Hiyori, who rarely goes out, would take the initiative to invite him.

"Okay, let's meet at the entrance of the Keyaki Mall in thirty minutes..."

"No need, I'm already at Liang's dorm room door."

"They're here, they're here."

In an instant, Kitagawa Ryo sat up in bed, slipped on his slippers, walked to the door, and opened it. He immediately saw Shiina Hiyori standing there, holding "The Tokyo Zodiac Murders" in her arms.

"Let's set off together, Ishioka!"

She was as excited as a child going on a spring outing, almost cheering. The "Ishioka" she mentioned was the surname of the narrator in "The Tokyo Zodiac Murders," roughly equivalent to Watson in the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

"Very well, Mitarai."