The room was quiet.
The Angel's voice suddenly rang out:
"Hey, young Yi Chen, is school out for vacation?"
"Your universe-defying, spiral-stunning, beautiful, kind Angel is here!"
Yi Chen, who had had his eyes closed, instantly opened them wide and stared at the Angel in front of him.
The Angel floated in the air with her legs crossed.
She spoke with a lazy expression:
"This Angel was worried you'd be lonely during vacation, so I've arranged a new mission for you."
"Don't fall in love with me, okay~"
Hearing this, Yi Chen's expression changed.
He pursed his lips.
"So you're just giving me a mission? I thought there'd be a reward."
The Angel cleared her throat.
"Mission issued:
Summer Rehabilitation Special Training: 18 days
Mission details:
Complete 18 days of daily training before school starts on August 1.
(0/18)
100 push-ups
100 squats
10 kilometers
Mission reward: One Gold Card
Mission failure: Erasure"
Yi Chen was just about to get up and complain to the Angel,
but she blew him a kiss, then giggled nonstop before instantly disappearing.
Watching that kiss, Yi Chen felt nothing but disdain. He sighed helplessly.
Yi Chen looked at the mission.
"18 days?"
"From the 13th to the 31st."
"Wait a second!"
"Does today count too?"
Yi Chen sprang up in a flash and started doing push-ups, counting as he went.
"That's right, today counts too!"
Yi Chen checked his phone. It was already 9:30 p.m.
Furious, Yi Chen completed the mission while grumbling the whole time.
Fortunately, the Primordial Flower Hand he'd obtained earlier had greatly enhanced his physique.
Yi Chen quickly finished 100 push-ups and 100 squats at home.
He didn't dare relax.
Luckily, Yi Chen lived on a mountain, and there weren't many people out at night. He quickly finished the 10 kilometers.
After finishing all that,
for some reason, Yi Chen no longer felt like complaining about the Angel.
He was drenched in sweat.
After completing the mission, Yi Chen went to the bathroom.
He looked at his phone.
It was 10:40. Had all that only taken about an hour?
Yi Chen was once again amazed by his own physical fitness.
He put on some music on his phone, showered, and checked the system mission.
Just as he'd expected.
(1/18)
The mission progress had gone up a little, and an inexplicable anger welled up inside Yi Chen.
Good thing the shower washed it right off.
After chatting briefly with Ichinose, Yi Chen said good night to her.
Since he'd just showered and had just woken up, Yi Chen performed two sets of the Primordial Flower Hand.
He thought about a lot of things, played on his computer for a while, and watched some Japanese TV.
He finally fell asleep at 4 a.m.
July 14.
He got up around 8 a.m. after sleeping for just over an hour.
He got up and replied to Ichinose's message.
Then he got up and washed up.
Yi Chen quickly finished that day's workout in the morning.
He played on his computer for a while that day and chatted with his classmates.
He talked on the phone with Ichinose and worked out.
That afternoon, Ichinose sent him a message:
"Yi Chen, I miss you. Do you have anything important to do tomorrow?"
"Are you free?"
Yi Chen replied:
"What is it? I miss you too. I'm pretty free right now."
Ichinose:
"Let's go out together tomorrow."
"The two of us can go on a date somewhere else in Tokyo."
"Hehe."
Yi Chen:
"Of course! What time? Where should we meet?"
On the other side of the screen, Ichinose excitedly pounded her bed.
Her cheeks turned faintly red.
Ichinose:
"Let's meet at Shinjuku Station at 8 tomorrow morning."
"I've always wanted to go to Akihabara. Let's go together."
Yi Chen:
"OK."
Ichinose hugged her phone in her room.
Then she put something into a box and tucked it into her backpack.
Yi Chen put down his phone after replying and looked at the computer screen.
A hint of delight stirred in his heart.
Thinking about his date with Ichinose tomorrow, he couldn't help smiling.
"Is this what those romance plots in anime are like?"
"Even though Ichinose and I are always together anyway,"
"I still can't help looking forward to it."
But then Yi Chen
remembered the Angel's unfinished mission.
"Never mind. I'll get up early tomorrow and finish it quickly. I wonder how long we'll be out on our date."
That night, Yi Chen washed up early.
He set his alarm for 6.
Lying in bed, he briefly rehearsed tomorrow's date in his mind.
It was important to run through what might happen so he wouldn't get awkward or be caught off guard.
Before long, he fell asleep while rehearsing.
July 15.
Yi Chen got up in the morning, washed up, completed the Angel's mission, and took a shower.
He wore pretty much the same outfit.
A beige short-sleeved shirt.
Black casual pants.
White sneakers.
A white shoulder bag.
Once he was ready, Yi Chen arrived at Shinjuku Station right on time.
Before long, he saw Ichinose walking toward him with a light step.
Ichinose was wearing a kimono and carrying a cloth-wrapped bag.
She'd dressed up carefully today, and looked especially sweet and lovely.
"Yi Chen!"
Ichinose greeted him with a smile, her eyes full of delight.
"Morning. Have you been waiting long?"
Yi Chen scratched his head as he replied.
Ichinose looked at Yi Chen warmly.
"Yi Chen, why are you wearing this today too?"
Yi Chen asked casually:
"What about it?"
Ichinose gently told Yi Chen:
"It's the Gion Festival these days."
Yi Chen didn't really understand, but he got the general idea.
After that, he couldn't be bothered to change.
Yi Chen offered to carry Ichinose's bag, but she refused.
Ichinose said softly:
"Yi Chen, I'll carry this myself~"
Yi Chen didn't mind.
The two of them walked side by side to the ticket counter and soon bought tickets to Akihabara.
They waited for the train, at the station and along the way.
They chatted and laughed, sharing amusing things from their lives.
Ichinose talked about getting home, her younger sister and family, and all the cleaning and other things she'd had to do.
Yi Chen didn't have much to share. He just said he'd stayed home playing games.
When they reached Akihabara Station, they took a taxi to the city center.
The anime-merchandise stores and arcades lining the streets were all new to Yi Chen.
He was astonished.
But not too much.
Yi Chen liked watching anime, but he wasn't some mindless fanatic or hardcore fan. He only watched shows when he was bored.
Still, there was no denying that the whole anime scene was pretty over the top.
Ichinose pulled Yi Chen from shop to shop.
Whenever she saw a plushie or figurine she liked, she excitedly picked it up to show him.
Yi Chen patiently kept her company, occasionally laughing at how cute she was.
Afterward, the two of them went for a walk in the park and visited an underwater world.
They had plenty of time to enjoy the day.
At five in the afternoon,
as the two of them walked down a street, they came across something Yi Chen found very novel.
The street was packed with people.
A huge crowd of Japanese people wore blue or white clothes.
Many people carried a huge palanquin, with a child in a kimono riding on top.
Yi Chen and Ichinose stared, transfixed by the grand procession.
"So this is the Gion Festival."
Yi Chen couldn't help feeling envious. Japan really knew how to make people feel welcome.
By evening,
the night market here was bustling, with all sorts of stalls.
There was so much to take in.
The streets were bustling that evening, crowded with people coming and going.
Yi Chen and Ichinose wandered through the lively night market.
The tempting aromas of all kinds of food wafted toward them. Stalls were lined with snacks like grilled takoyaki, fried noodles, and barbecue.
Ichinose's eyes sparkled as she tugged Yi Chen from one stall to the next, stopping to look here and rushing off to check out something new there.
"Yi Chen, that takoyaki looks so delicious. Let's buy some and try it."
Ichinose tugged on Yi Chen's sleeve, looking at him expectantly.
"Sure. If you want some, let's get it."
Yi Chen smiled and nodded. Seeing how excited Ichinose was made him happy.
The two bought some snacks and continued strolling as they ate. The laughter of the people around them mingled with the vendors' calls.
Yi Chen was having a wonderful evening.
As they walked, Ichinose spotted a ring-toss game stall by the roadside.
It was piled with all kinds of adorable plushies and delicate little accessories.
Ichinose perked up and pulled Yi Chen over.
"Yi Chen, shall we play? I want that little bunny plushie."
Yi Chen took a look and realized he wanted to play, too.
So he joined Ichinose in trying his hand at the ring toss.
He missed the first two throws, but Yi Chen was a pro.
He got it on his third try.
Yi Chen handed the bunny plushie to Ichinose.
Ichinose jumped up and down with joy, looking absolutely adorable.
Yi Chen had played games like this before.
But he'd never been this happy.
Time slipped by amid the relaxed, cheerful atmosphere.
Before you continue