Chapter 323: Late Night Snack
“By the way, Kazumi, do you know about what happened tonight?”
Finishing the beef on the skewer in one bite, Sato Shinichi looked at Kazumi, who was diligently tending to the grilled meat on the pan in front of him, and asked.
“Hmm? What happened tonight?”
Flipping the grilled meat on the pan, Kazumi picked up a piece of crispy grilled meat, dipped it in sauce, and placed it in the boy’s bowl. She then looked up, her eyes holding a hint of confusion.
“Thank you.” “Eh, Kazumi, didn’t you feel it before? It seems like hostile forces invaded Kyoto Television, and there was a significant battle.”
Thanking his girlfriend for her concern, Sato Shinichi unceremoniously popped the heart-shaped grilled meat into his mouth. The perfectly cooked meat juice, accompanied by the spicy sauce and the girl’s affection, exploded in his mouth, elevating the taste of the entire piece of grilled meat.
“I felt it, but hasn’t the official notification come out yet?”
Nodding subtly, the girl’s expression became a little subtle at that moment, but she still went along with her boyfriend’s words.
“Yeah, Kyoto hasn’t experienced an enemy attack of this magnitude in a long time.”
“And, let me tell you, even Uncle Shunmuki went.”
Sato Shinichi glanced around at the customers eating their late-night snacks, then leaned in towards the girl, lowering his voice conspiratorially to share the gossip.
“……”
“So… will there be any problems?”
Boys subconsciously want to show off in front of girls they like, and Kazumi completely understood her boyfriend’s thoughts. After a moment of silence, she put on a worried expression, as if reacting normally, and asked.
“It shouldn’t be to the point of martial law yet, right? The Association people have already gone, so we’re fine.”
Placing a piece of grilled meat from the pan into the girl’s bowl, Sato Shinichi shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.
On one hand, the customs of this psychic world had indeed become much simpler. On the other hand, Kyoto, as the capital of Neon, was very large.
Even if a terrorist incident occurred in the northern part of the city, the people in the city center appeared largely unaffected. The customers at the late-night snack stall where they were located were as numerous as usual.
“Oh.”
Her gaze lingered on the tip of the boy’s chopsticks for a moment, then shifted to the grilled meat in her bowl. Finally, she picked up the meat and put it into her mouth, Kazumi replied.
“Kazumi, don’t underestimate Uncle Shunmuki just because he usually seems a bit untidy. He’s actually very strong.”
Sensing the girl’s slightly strange expression upon hearing Shunmuki’s name, the boy quickly tried to salvage some image for his somewhat slovenly elder.
“I know, Uncle Shunmuki is the eighth-ranked hero in the Association, you know.”
Looking at her boyfriend with the eyes of someone looking after an idiot, Kazumi knew that even though her impression of Shunmuki had been shattered into that of a lecherous uncle who told dirty jokes, they were both students of Shikoku Gakuin’s Regular Department. They had learned about the abilities of the Association’s heroes, especially the older heroes who ranked high, in their hero textbooks.
“Heh heh, it seems like you don’t really like Uncle Shunmuki.”
Sensing that his thoughts had been seen through by the girl, Sato Shinichi sheepishly touched his nose.
“I definitely know about Uncle Shunmuki’s strength, but no girl would like a lecherous uncle who tells dirty jokes to people he’s meeting for the first time, right?”
Gave Sato Shinichi a playfully stern look. The boy’s cautious demeanor made Kazumi somewhat unable to get angry at him. She seemed to think of something else, and her expression suddenly turned extremely serious.
“Shinichi, you absolutely cannot become a greasy person like that, understand!”
“No, no, I won’t. Grandpa beat me up pretty badly when Uncle Shunmuki took me out to play before.”
Raising his hands in a gesture of surrender, Sato Shinichi quickly explained. As if recalling a painful memory, even his expression showed a hint of heartache.
“Hmph.”
The girl was very pleased with the boy’s assurance. She picked up a grilled skewer from the side and took a bite, giving a slightly proud hum.
This guy really knows how to hit a sore spot. Just half an hour ago, she had been killed multiple times by the “Uncle Shunmuki” the boy mentioned, and now he wanted her to have a good impression of him.
But Kazumi couldn’t possibly say this out loud. She couldn’t just say that she was present at the scene and was the one cut down by Shunmuki, could she?
“However, if the Association hasn’t issued an emergency notice, it should be a small matter that can be handled.”
Seeming to sense the girl’s dislike for Shunmuki, Sato Shinichi rubbed his forehead with some helplessness. He had also suffered from Shunmuki’s impertinent personality. After all, he was an unreliable elder who had taken him to the red-light district in elementary school.
Of course, he had also ended up lying in the hospital for a week after being struck by lightning.
Since his girlfriend didn’t like him, he would just mention him less. After all, he and Kazumi were the ones who would spend their lives together, and their elders’ blessings were enough.
“Yes, but the activities of the hostile organization seem to have become more frequent recently.”
Sensing Sato Shinichi’s slightly abrupt topic change, the girl didn’t expose him. She finished the remaining tea in her teacup and spoke subtly.
“Yeah, good thing even Grandpa is on a business trip. I heard that many heroes have gone to support other cities this time.”
Unaware of his girlfriend’s attempt to probe for information, the boy carelessly shared some intelligence that he knew as someone from a hero family.
“Then Shinichi, please remember to tell Grandpa Sato to rest well. Isn’t Grandpa too old to have not officially retired yet?”
“Eh, the old man just can’t sit still. Even though he’s injured, he still goes to help whenever the Association has something going on.”
Finding a rare opportunity to confide in someone, Sato Shinichi opened up and complained to his cute little girlfriend about Hamano Tsukasa’s disregard for his own health.
“The conviction of Grandpa Sato’s generation of heroes is very firm…”
“but also…”
“Excuse me, do the two of you need any drinks?”
The sudden voice of the waiter interrupted their brief chat. A waiter pushing a drink cart happened to walk up to their table.
“Thank you, I’ll have an orange juice. Kazumi, do you want milk?”
Just as he finished his tea, Sato Shinichi nodded and then turned to ask the girl opposite him.
“Umm… I want… that.”
Her slender, fair fingers slowly lifted. Following the direction of her fingers, past the milk, was Erguotou?
