“Da—zai—”
When Chuuya walked out of the hotel, what he saw was the scene of Hiiragi Eiji coaxing Dazai Osamu to talk.
He had wanted to settle the score with this person ever since the road over here. If it weren’t for the fact that it was inconvenient to make a move on the plane, and he had ridden a motorcycle on the way here, he definitely would have pressed this mackerel into a snowdrift.
Now, he had finally found an opportunity.
New hatred and old grievances combined; Chuuya speed-dashed to the front of the two. He stepped between the two, reached out, pressed down on Dazai Osamu’s head, and hooked his neck. Although this was a very intimate movement, only Dazai Osamu, who was at the center of the event, knew that the force in this slug’s arm could simply snap his neck.
“The post on the forum, you were the one who sent it, right?” Chuuya’s face carried a “nuclear-friendly” smile. Because Hiiragi Eiji was right next to them, he deliberately lowered his voice.
Dazai Osamu almost suffocated. He nimbly bent his waist and pulled his head out from Chuuya’s arm restraint.
Hiiragi Eiji: “…” This “good son” of his really needs to exercise his taijutsu.
“Is it popular to make accusations without evidence now?” Dazai Osamu rubbed his own neck.
But Chuuya calmed down quickly. Heh, isn’t it just causing destruction? He had anticipated it when he originally wanted to ask for leave for Eiji. Is it hard to shake off Dazai Osamu? There are hot springs and ski resorts here; the venue is so big, he’s not afraid of being unable to avoid him.
Thinking this way, Chuuya calmly walked to Hiiragi Eiji’s side, inviting him to go into the hotel to drop off his luggage together.
Hiiragi Eiji agreed immediately. He raised his hand and patted Dazai Osamu’s shoulder casually—he originally wanted to pat his head, but thinking that this bear-child’s friend was still behind, Hiiragi Eiji considerately restrained his actions.
…Recently, he had to formulate a training policy aimed at Dazai Osamu’s current situation.
“Then I’ll go first, you go and join your friends, too.”
Dazai Osamu: “…?” Why does it feel like something is not quite right, but it can’t be put into words?
Standing behind the three, Sakaguchi Ango was completely silent.
He adjusted his glasses, remained calm for a few seconds, then adjusted them again. “…Why is it that among the three, I see friendship, and I also see a Shura-field (dramatic confrontation), but even that aside, the scene of the father and son parting at the end actually blended in without any sense of dissonance! That was definitely a father-son separation, right! Each looking for their own friend circle, excellent old father never interfering with his son making friends or something!”
Oda Sakunosuke had an expression of sudden enlightenment; he nodded in approval. “Indeed, this is a very good behavior.”
“…You should at least complain, complain! Don’t you feel that this is full of things to complain about! Vortex-kun seems to be only three years older than Dazai?! Is this a case of ‘happy to be a dad’ (unexpected fatherhood)?!”
Oda Sakunosuke was a bit surprised: “Is this age not okay?”
Sakaguchi Ango: “…” He completely despaired of these two people.
He walked to Dazai Osamu’s side with a faint breath and found that the bandage-freak was staring at the backs of those two people with ill intentions.
Sakaguchi Ango understood almost immediately what he wanted to do. It was probably some primary-school-level act of breaking them up, but, but the seniority is wrong! Even if it succeeds, it will be different from what you expected! Sakaguchi Ango roared in his heart.
“…Speaking of which, Odasaku, Nakahara-kun told you before we set off, right?” Sakaguchi Ango suddenly said.
This keyword immediately attracted Dazai Osamu’s attention. He subconsciously looked at Sakaguchi Ango.
Oda Sakunosuke, who had followed him over, reacted for two seconds before slowly nodding. “Yeah, he told me.”
“Told you what?” Dazai Osamu asked suspiciously.
“Today is Vortex-kun’s birthday. Nakahara-kun seems to be planning to celebrate his birthday for him; he probably prepared quite a bit.”
Sakaguchi Ango secretly observed Dazai Osamu. He was gratified to find that the look of “eager to cause trouble” on Dazai Osamu’s face disappeared because of this.
…Suddenly felt even more cruel! This is clearly very emotional!
But the next second, Dazai Osamu made Sakaguchi Ango fall into contemplation once again.
“Is that so? I didn’t prepare a gift at all,” Dazai Osamu said, his auburn eyes turning, and he said with a smile: “But just now, I have already thought about what to give to Eiji!”
Sakaguchi Ango: “…” Don’t tell me he’s going to harm Vortex-kun!
Hiiragi Eiji began to feel something was wrong. He observed the red-haired teenager sitting in his room calmly. Very strange.
Chuuya seemed to have become somewhat absent-minded since arriving here. He frequently looked at his phone, but as if he didn’t want to be discovered by him.
After enduring for a while, upon discovering Chuuya looking down at his phone yet again, Hiiragi Eiji finally couldn’t help it. “Chuuya, did something happen? If it’s very urgent—”
“No!” Chuuya denied it immediately. He glanced at Hiiragi Eiji awkwardly, and the phone rang exactly at this moment. The red-haired youth looked down at the phone screen, and then, those deep blue eyes lit up instantly.
He stood up abruptly and reached out his hand to Hiiragi Eiji, “Going down? I have something I want to show you.”
Seeing the excited expression on Chuuya’s face, Hiiragi Eiji immediately grasped his hand. “Alright.”
…He was really a little curious about what could make Chuuya become this happy.
But when he was pulled by Chuuya into the hotel’s auditorium, the person who had been holding him suddenly let go of his hand. The entire auditorium was pitch black.
“…Chuuya?” Hiiragi Eiji called Chuuya’s name softly.
He sensed that there were many people in this room, and someone who seemed to be bound and struggling constantly, but everyone for some reason remained silent.
Just when Hiiragi Eiji wanted to find the switch for the auditorium lights, a door behind the auditorium was suddenly opened, and light shone through.
Hiiragi Eiji only had time to see that it was Chuuya pushing a food cart over, and then he was drowned in streamers.
“Happy Birthday, Vortex-kun—!”
The people who had been quietly staying in the auditorium up until now “came to life” at this moment, and the big lights of the auditorium turned on along with it.
Finally, Hiiragi Eiji was able to catch a glimpse of the entire auditorium. It had been decorated, filled with colorful balloons everywhere; it was a very childlike banquet hall.
At this time, Chuuya pushed the food cart to Hiiragi Eiji’s front. It was a huge three-layer cake, no flashy decorations, just filled with fruit.
Chuuya looked a bit embarrassed. “…I didn’t know what kind you liked. Someone suggested I customize one with a black suit for you, but in the end, I chose a fruit one.” As he said this, his deep blue eyes looked at Hiiragi Eiji. “Taste is the most important thing, right?”
Hiiragi Eiji was already stunned on the spot. After a long while, he looked at the huge cake. “…This is for me?”
Chuuya was also stunned. “Isn’t today your birthday?” His speaking speed couldn’t be controlled as it became faster.
Hiiragi Eiji immediately recalled the information he submitted to the Port Mafia. The birthday written on it was indeed today.
Watching Chuuya’s expression become increasingly chaotic, Hiiragi Eiji insisted, “It is my birthday, I just—” He pursed his lips and smiled, “was too busy and forgot about this matter.”
Chuuya’s heart fell back heavily. “…Don’t work so hard,” Chuuya muttered softly, taking the opportunity to insult the bandage-freak who squeezed Eiji twice, and finally, he took a deep breath, and a shallow smile appeared on his clean face. “Happy Birthday, Eiji.”
Hiiragi Eiji smiled and said: “So, being so preoccupied all day today was to prepare a birthday party for me?” Not giving Chuuya a chance to refute, he said softly: “Thank you, Chuuya. I am very happy.”
[Nakahara Chuuya Favorability +5]
Hiiragi Eiji: “…”
Wait! This is clearly him being moved! Why is Chuuya the one gaining favorability?!
Hiiragi Eiji was fiercely healed once again! As expected of his good friend!
And just at this time, Hiiragi Eiji heard another subtle sound. He subconsciously looked at the source of the sound. Through the layers of people, he vaguely saw the figure of his “good son.”
Seeming to notice his gaze, the people blocking in front of Dazai Osamu all revealed awkward expressions, and then moved to the side, allowing Hiiragi Eiji to see Dazai Osamu better.
He saw his family’s bandage-freak being pressed into a chair, one on each side, by the deep-looking Sakaguchi Ango and the calm-faced Oda Sakunosuke.
Seeing him look over, Sakaguchi Ango smiled very elegantly and explained calmly: “Afraid he’d cause trouble.”
Hiiragi Eiji was silent.
…It seems that when he first walked in, he did indeed hear some kind of peculiar sound; it looks like Oda Sakunosuke and Sakaguchi Ango had subdued Dazai Osamu.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
When Hiiragi Eiji expressed his gratitude to the two, Chuuya started calling him from behind, “Not coming to make a wish, Eiji?”
Thus, the old father turned his head coldly, no longer looking at Dazai Osamu’s wide-open eyes.
Chuuya lit the number 21 candle on the cake. “Because singing the birthday song together—” he touched his nose, “is too ‘un-Mafia,’ so this part was omitted.”
Chuuya, explaining with a straight face, successfully made Hiiragi Eiji laugh. After the lights in the auditorium went out again, Hiiragi Eiji put his hands together and closed his eyes.
Hope to be able to protect everyone he wants to protect, hope everyone can be happy and joyful.
After opening his eyes, he blew out the candles in one breath.
After the lights were turned on again, he found that Dazai Osamu had actually appeared by his side. This black-haired teenager was tilting his head and looking at him. “Eiji, what wish did you make?”
“Hey! Wouldn’t the wish not come true if you say it out loud!” Chuuya said anxiously.
Hiiragi Eiji was actually very calm. “It’s fine, Chuuya, my wish is one that can be achieved by myself.” As he said this, he used a plate to cut the cake neatly and handed the first two pieces to Chuuya and Dazai Osamu.
Chuuya looked down at the cake in his hand, and curiosity suddenly flooded in.
…Speaking of which, he seems to have never known what Eiji wants to do, or why he joined the Port Mafia.
“What is it?” Dazai Osamu asked again.
At this moment, Chuuya suddenly felt that this mackerel wasn’t so unpleasant anymore.
“Hope to be able to protect everyone I want to protect,” Hiiragi Eiji said calmly.
Chuuya felt his heart jump heavily. He stared blankly at Hiiragi Eiji. “…The people you want to protect?”
Hiiragi Eiji nodded as a matter of course. “Friends, family.” Although his family had been gone for a long time. But if he didn’t say that, it would seem very strange, right?
After he finished speaking, he discovered Chuuya’s head hanging lower and lower, and his ears gradually stained with a hint of red.
[Nakahara Chuuya Favorability +5]
Hiiragi Eiji: “…” Is he that easy to move?!
And looking at Dazai Osamu—
“Eh—” the bandage-freak responded lazily, “How long will it be? It won’t have no time limit, right?”
He reached out and lightly scraped the small plate holding the cake; his finger was instantly stained with a piece of cream.
Just as Chuuya was about to be unable to restrain himself from beating up this guy who wasted his cake, Hiiragi Eiji gripped Dazai Osamu’s wrist with quick hands and eyes, and before he could cause trouble, shoved that cream-covered finger into Dazai Osamu’s own mouth.
Confirming that he had swallowed it completely, Hiiragi Eiji then released his hand. “If you cause trouble again now, I won’t help you anymore.”
Miraculously, Dazai Osamu actually retracted his hand slowly, really holding the cake and standing there without making any more trouble.
Hiiragi Eiji looked at him twice. “Is the cream delicious?”
Dazai Osamu responded vaguely.
Hiiragi Eiji nodded to himself. He felt this stinky kid’s performance was quite good, so he reached out and took Dazai Osamu’s portion of the cake, scooped a piece with a small fork, and naturally shoved it into his mouth. “Don’t worry, as long as I don’t die, this wish will continue.”
As long as he doesn’t die, he will continue to stay in this world, working hard to fulfill everyone’s wishes.
Although there might be lies and scams in this, Hiiragi Eiji knew that no matter what others thought, he would not abandon these people who needed his protection.
When shoving the plate back into Dazai Osamu’s hand, Hiiragi Eiji noticed that his movement of receiving it was a bit sluggish, as if it took quite a while for him to realize that Hiiragi Eiji had shoved the cake back into his hand.
He was probably thinking about something; his long eyelashes fluttered slightly.
Strangely, his mouth always seemed to have a hint of wanting to curl up, but he controlled it himself and suppressed it.
…What is this stinky kid thinking about again?
Hiiragi Eiji, who was quietly observing his “good son,” did not discover that, during this process, Chuuya was also observing him.
He looked at Hiiragi Eiji’s movements and suddenly realized that something was wrong.
…Why would this expression, this meticulous movement, actually carry such an intense feeling of loving-kindness…?
However, Chuuya felt that he was even stranger. He seems to have been staring at Eiji for too long lately. Why?
As long as he looks for a little longer, he subconsciously feels a dryness in his throat.
Chuuya couldn’t help but look away and grabbed the ice water at hand and drank it all.
…It seems he wants to continue looking.
Is this really a normal reaction between friends?
It was also at this moment that Hiiragi Eiji received a notification from the system.
[Dazai Osamu Favorability -5]
[Dazai Osamu Impression has been changed]
[Nakahara Chuuya Favorability +10]
[Nakahara Chuuya Impression has been changed]
Hiiragi Eiji: “…”
[Dazai Osamu Impression: Liar]
[Nakahara Chuuya Impression: “Friend” ?]
Hiiragi Eiji’s pupils shook (seismic shock).
What is this?! Why did he suddenly have a huge trust crisis?!