“Qiong, aren't you leaving yet?” Early the next morning, Harukaze Tetsu stood at the entrance of his home, calling out to the room.
“Wait for me, I'll be right there.” Qiong hurriedly packed her things, almost losing her balance and falling a few times, making Harukaze Tetsu jumpy.
“I told you to get up early, but you wouldn't listen. If you had just gotten up earlier, there wouldn't be these problems.” Harukaze Tetsu acted like a nagging mother, constantly muttering.
“Brother, you're so annoying. You were the one who told me to change clothes, and now you're saying I'm slow. I don't want to talk to you anymore.” Qiong pouted, looking as if she had been wronged.
But Harukaze Tetsu was unmoved: “It's your choice of clothes that's the problem. I told you yesterday, it's only April, you can't wear a crop top yet.”
“I just wanted people to envy you when we walk outside together, brother.” Qiong lowered her head in grievance, using the action to conceal a hint of cunning in her eyes.
“The fact that I have a sister is already enough to make people envious, there's no need for these tricks.” Harukaze Tetsu said nonchalantly.
“Hee hee.” Hearing Harukaze Tetsu’s words, Qiong finally broke into a satisfied smile.
My brother is still such a blockhead, it’s great!
…
“Brother, I’m leaving then.” At a fork in the road, Qiong waved goodbye to Harukaze Tetsu.
From this intersection, the two of them worked in completely opposite directions, so they would always walk together to this point before parting ways.
Incidentally, Harukaze Tetsu's workplace and the place he went to draw were in the same direction.
“See you tonight, remember to send me what you want for dinner later, otherwise I'll eat whatever you have to eat.”
“Got it, you’re always like a nagging mother, watch out, you might not find a girlfriend.”
“That’s fine, women only affect my drawing speed.”
…
Arriving at his usual spot for setting up his stall, Harukaze Tetsu was surprised to find a blonde girl already waiting there.
And judging by her impatient expression, she had been waiting for quite a while.
“Should I change locations?” Harukaze Tetsu was momentarily conflicted.
This current location was carefully chosen by him. While not the busiest spot, it was definitely the best place for gathering inspiration and finding scenery.
Of course, what Harukaze Tetsu considered the best might not be the same as others.
What normal person would see bustling Tokyo as a restrictive cage and busy crowds as hopeless puppets?
But he really didn't want to get involved with someone like Sawamura Spencer Eriri, a lady of such wealth and status. If she sneezed, it would be more than he could handle.
Thinking about it, Harukaze Tetsu decided to leave quietly. If he lost this location, he could always find another, but if he got caught up in trouble, it wouldn't be something he could escape from with just a few words.
Besides, he had a sister and a house now. Although he didn't have much savings, as long as he could get close to that famous light novel author, he wouldn't become a rich man, but at least his financial condition would be much better than before.
What more could he ask for?
Unfortunately, his little plan was foiled. Just as he was about to turn around, Eriri, with her sharp eyes, spotted him.
“You’re finally here.” He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he heard a hint of coquettishness and grievance in the girl's tone.
No wonder the seniors summarized the three great illusions of life, when facing such a beautiful woman, people always unconsciously have some unrealistic fantasies.
Even someone like Harukaze Tetsu was no exception.
“Sawamura-san, good morning.” Harukaze Tetsu hesitated for a moment before deciding to play dumb.
He knew why the girl was looking for him, what else could it be besides art-related matters?
Was she looking to date him?
He knew, but he wouldn't say it. Yeah, just messing around.
“You know me?” To Harukaze Tetsu's surprise, Eriri asked a question that caught him off guard.
This girl must be crazy, right? Didn't she already say hello yesterday when he gave her the painting called "Living"?
If I knew she didn't hear it then, why did I even bother, just turning around and leaving wouldn't have been bad?
But the words had already been spoken, Harukaze Tetsu couldn’t just leave. Although he didn't care about other people's opinions, he didn't want to be isolated and bullied at school.
Living a peaceful life, blending in with the crowd, that was his pursuit, but if he were to be hated by a beautiful girl, those two words might be out of reach.
“Come on, come on, there can't really be a Toyonozaki student who doesn't know Sawamura-san, can there?” This was old-fashioned yin and yang.
Although he didn't want to offend her, he was still upset!
When did I become so stupid?
This is called self-destruction.
But compared to the vast and profound culture of neighboring countries, Japan has almost no cultural heritage.
The crude language is completely unlike Chinese. The same words combined with different tones can convey completely opposite meanings.
In the context of Japanese, a certain little fool actually thought Harukaze Tetsu was praising her.
“So you're also a Toyonozaki student.” Knowing that she was from the same school, Eriri's attitude became even better.
But why haven’t I seen this person in school before? With such painting skills, if he joined the art club, even if my title as the ace of the art club still held, it wouldn't be a one-man show anymore.
“Sawamura-san, if you have nothing else to do, I’ll go first.” Seeing Eriri lost in her own world, Harukaze Tetsu felt that if he didn't make a run for it, he'd be missing an opportunity given by heaven.
“Wait!” Just as Harukaze Tetsu was about to leave, Eriri grabbed his sleeve, then retracted her hand as if she'd been electrocuted.
“Anything?” The boy was genuinely confused. She wouldn’t tell him what she wanted, she wouldn’t let him go, doesn’t she know this will only delay him from making money?
“I...I...” As a typical tsundere, expecting Eriri to say she wanted to learn about painting techniques would be harder than killing her.
But without a proper reason, just stopping someone like that would be rude, wouldn't it?
Just as the atmosphere was about to become awkward, the blonde girl suddenly thought of a suitable reason.
“Can you draw a portrait for me, just like you did for those two girls yesterday?”
“Of course, I'll pay you, five thousand, no, ten thousand, how about that?”
Harukaze Tetsu, who had originally planned to leave, felt as if a thousand pounds of weight had been attached to his feet when he heard the price Eriri quoted.
He really didn't want to stay, but she was paying too much!