**Integrated Anime: My Five Senses Are Linked with the World's Top Daughters**

"What strange thing did Sister Belfast make you drink? This outfit looks like you're ready to go have afternoon tea at Buckingham Palace..."

"Miss Eriri said last month that 'Qiuqiu would definitely look great in a long trench coat,' you know."

Belfast, who had slipped away silently, appeared at the dining table nearby, holding a tray of black tea.

Her fingers, peeking from beneath the lace cuffs of her maid outfit, lightly touched her lips as she watched Eriri blush from the tips of her ears down to her collarbone. She blinked her Violet Eyes with elegance: "The design is my own handiwork, but the style was inspired by Miss Eriri's line art from half a month ago."

In truth, it wasn't just the design—everything Jiang Lianqiu wore from head to toe was personally handled by Belfast.

Hidden beneath that gorgeous exterior was a fusion of Ship Girl and Mech Servant technology, capable of advancing humanity's current technological level by hundreds or even thousands of years.

"Belfast!!"

The girl's flustered, angry scream startled the sparrows on the cherry blossom tree outside the window.

...Scene Break...

From the 1940s to the 1980s was the golden age of Japanese electronics, and back then, Akihabara was truly an electronics street.

Starting in the 1990s, with the rise of various digital products, camera and computer stores appeared here, and comprehensive malls like Yodobashi Camera became landmarks.

The invasion of otaku culture didn't begin until 2005.

Today, the proportion of anime and game stores here has exceeded 65%, making it the world's largest mecca for otaku.

Of course, the digital product elements that once defined Akihabara haven't been abandoned, so unlike what many imagine—that the whole of Akihabara is full of shut-ins—a considerable portion of the bustling crowd here doesn't belong to the otaku tribe.

Even so—

"Brother Qiu, you're still way too conspicuous!"

Baring her cute little fangs like a kitten guarding its food, Eriri scared off yet another wave of girls who'd come to strike up a conversation. She rolled her eyes in exhaustion and glared at the Youth beside her.

"Why didn't you change clothes before we left?"

"I don't want to let Belfast's good intentions go to waste." Jiang Lianqiu lifted his chin. "Besides, I'm not afraid of being recognized by people I know."

The systematic discrimination against otaku culture in this island nation meant that most otaku would disguise themselves low-key when going out to buy hobby goods. While Jiang Lianqiu would consider others' feelings to an extent, he absolutely wouldn't go so far as to make himself uncomfortable just to avoid being recognized while shopping.

Unlike Eriri beside him now, who'd put on a hat to cover her signature blonde hair, along with a mask and black-rimmed glasses—he could never bring himself to do that kind of disguise.

"Well, anyway, I want to go buy some things at the mall next door. Brother Qiu, can you wait for me here for a bit?"

Eriri had gotten used to Jiang Lianqiu being this way. She changed the subject on the spot, and even with her mask on, a faint blush seeped through her cheeks.

Jiang Lianqiu didn't pry. He just nodded and stepped into a nearby bookstore.

Seeing that Jiang Lianqiu hadn't asked, Eriri, who'd been on edge, breathed a sigh of relief and dashed off toward the mall next door.

"This girl..."

Jiang Lianqiu shook his head as he entered the bookstore.

Even if she didn't say it, everything Eriri was thinking was written all over her face. Plus, today was March 19th, and tomorrow would be March 20th.

It was their shared birthday—his and Eriri's. The Young Girl had called him out today not just for a date, but also to buy him a birthday gift.

Compared to Eriri, his own act of asking Belfast to prepare a gift for her seemed a bit too perfunctory?

Thinking this, Jiang Lianqiu ignored the countless gazes falling on him in the bookstore. His peripheral vision suddenly caught a pile of books in a corner.

The title on the cover caught his attention.

"Love Beat Volume One, by Kasumiko?"

His brow furrowed for a moment, then relaxed. Jiang Lianqiu suddenly remembered that in a few days, Toyosaki Academy would start its new term.

April 4th.

By then, Eriri would be entering her first year of high school, and Utaha Kasumigaoka would naturally move up to her second year.

Which meant that right now was exactly when that Black Stockings Senior had just debuted, with the first volume of her novel hitting the shelves.