Sonoda Shigeru's conversation with an unknown person was heard word for word by Hayashizaki, who was sitting at the bar.
No way… Is this guy from the Star Religious Sect too? Yukinoshita Haruno's voice rang in his mind, sounding exasperated. Why do we run into these people everywhere?
Maybe it's just fate.
Hayashizaki found it a little funny. It was one thing to walk into a bar run by the Star Religious Sect, but running into someone discussing their upcoming mission was just too much of a coincidence.
"What's a Star Plasma Vessel?" Yukinoshita Haruno asked curiously.
"Some kind of special constitution, I guess. It's supposed to fuse with Tengen and keep his body from aging. His technique makes him immortal, but not ageless," Hayashizaki speculated.
"I think I get it. The 'evolution' the Pansheng Cult talks about happens when Tengen's body reaches a certain age. Since his technique prevents him from dying, it has to do something to stop him from growing too old."
"And the ones trying to stop this process are probably the people from Jujutsu High… So Tengen's evolution must have side effects, and serious ones at that."
"So we have to stop it, right?" Yukinoshita Haruno said without hesitation.
"Now you suddenly want to get involved?" Hayashizaki asked with a half-smile.
"We can't just let this cult kill an innocent person, can we?" The short-haired girl frowned, clearly unhappy that he was testing her.
She got the feeling that in his eyes, she had already become someone who didn't care about innocent lives. But he was the real devil here.
"Don't rush. Play your guitar first and make some money off them," Hayashizaki said casually, finishing his last glass of wine before handing control of the body back to Yukinoshita Haruno.
The moment she took over, the short-haired girl felt a light buzz she had never experienced before. A warm, gentle wave spread from her head to the rest of her body, making her relax unconsciously as a blush spread across her cheeks.
Instead of making her feel dizzy, this slight drunkenness actually sharpened her thoughts and senses.
She felt great—ideas were flowing into her mind like a clear spring.
Taking out her guitar from its case, Yukinoshita Haruno ignored the various looks from the customers around her and confidently stepped onto the small stage.
The regulars of all knew that this place never hired live performers. Music was always played through speakers. So when they saw a girl with a guitar walk onto the stage, they found it quite interesting.
The spinning, colorful lights flashed across the girl's face for a brief moment, like a fleeting blossom, stunning those who noticed her beauty.
Someone in the audience, already red-faced from drinking, whistled at her in a sleazy way. But in the next second, as if struck by an invisible force, he was sent flying backward, knocking over a table full of bottles.
The crisp sound of shattering glass was drowned out by the bar's noisy atmosphere. As the man, still dazed, got up from the floor, he found himself surrounded by several burly men dressed in black.
Confused about why he had been punched, he was then thrown out of the bar by security. It wasn't until he was lying on the cold, hard pavement of a Shinjuku street that he realized he had no idea how he had ended up there.
"Tch!"
He thought he heard a scoff and turned his head in confusion. "A… rabbit?"
Back inside the bar, Yukinoshita Haruno plugged her guitar into the amp and adjusted the strings and microphone.
"Ahem… Testing, testing?"
Her casual voice, rough yet captivating, instantly grabbed the attention of everyone in the room—just like her delicate fingers gently plucking the guitar strings.
As the audience eagerly waited to see what kind of performance this young, stunning girl would give, Yukinoshita Haruno strummed her guitar.
A string of messy, off-key notes blasted through the amp and into the ears of the audience. Instinctively, everyone frowned.
Wait… was this girl just a pretty face? Could she actually not play the guitar?
More chaotic notes followed, and grumbles of dissatisfaction spread through the crowd.
"Do you even know how to play?"
"If you can't, get off the stage!"
"Stop torturing our ears!"
As the situation started spiraling out of control, the bartender wiped away a cold sweat. He wanted to step in and get Yukinoshita Haruno off the stage, just as the customers demanded. But she was a special guest, personally allowed by Kanda. Offending him was the last thing the bartender wanted to do…
Meanwhile, Yukinoshita Haruno paid no attention to the complaints. She kept playing, pouring her emotions and inspiration into the guitar.
When the stage lights swept across her face, she had a flushed, intoxicated glow. Eyes closed, she was fully immersed in the music, playing freely without a care.
At first, the jumbled notes made the audience wince. But then, as if something had clicked into place, the sound transformed. The music, once rough and disjointed, became smooth and beautiful, flowing effortlessly through the speakers.
Yukinoshita Haruno opened her eyes. In the dimly lit bar, her bright gaze shone like stars.
Her soft pink lips parted slightly as she hummed along with the guitar, improvising a melody.
At first, the tune was light and cheerful, like a lark singing in the forest. Then, suddenly, it shifted—melancholy and sorrowful, carrying the weight of life's struggles and compromises. But just like in a fairytale, after the rain comes the sunshine. The sadness melted away, leading to a joyful crescendo. With a flurry of rapid strumming, the performance reached its peak.
The final trembling note faded into the noisy bar, lingering in the air.
Fueled by alcohol, Yukinoshita Haruno had just poured her life story into this impromptu performance.
Unfortunately, the audience didn't get it.
They couldn't connect with her emotions. They didn't appreciate the raw feelings behind the music. All they knew was that the awful noise from earlier had turned into something slightly more tolerable. And that was it.
But Yukinoshita Haruno didn't care what they thought.
Right now, she was completely satisfied.
As the vodka's aftereffects kicked in, her mind grew hazy.
"I'll leave the rest to you," she murmured softly, closing her eyes with a peaceful smile.
When the short-haired girl opened her eyes again, she looked down at the rowdy crowd below.
A hint of indifference flashed through her gaze.
"Finally, it's over! That was torture!"
"Yeah, just get off the stage already! Stop embarrassing yourself!"
Hayashizaki's sharp eyes swept over the hecklers.
They instantly tensed up.
The noisy crowd quieted, and an eerie silence filled the bar.
As the performance ended, the background music resumed playing over the speakers.
Then, cutting through the silence, the sound of clapping echoed in the room.
Sonoda Shigeru was applauding the short-haired girl on stage.
He was probably the only one in the room who had felt something from that seemingly chaotic performance.
Hayashizaki glanced at him, showing no reaction.
He simply slung his guitar over his back and stepped off the stage.
As he walked forward, people instinctively moved aside, clearing a path for him.
"Kanda, are we still paying them?" The bartender asked cautiously.
"Of course. Why wouldn't we? Do you think I go back on my word?"
Sonoda Shigeru pulled out his wallet, counted five Fukuda bills, and handed them to Hayashizaki.
"Consider it payment for the drinks."
Hayashizaki took the cash and immediately slapped it onto the bar counter.
"Another round," he said with a wave.
"S-Sure!"
The bartender snapped back to attention and hurriedly started mixing drinks.
This time, he skipped all the flashy tricks.
Sonoda Shigeru had received a mission from the Star Cult, but he wasn't in a rush to check his email just yet. Instead, he turned to Hayashizaki and struck up a conversation.
"So, what made you want to perform at a bar?"
Hayashizaki gave him a side glance.
Since the guy was being somewhat decent, he decided to respond.
"None of your damn business."
Sonoda Shigeru: "…."
The air suddenly grew tense.
Behind the bar, the bartender's hand trembled slightly as he held a bottle, barely stopping himself from laughing out loud.
His face tightened as he fought to keep a straight expression.
Well, that was awkward.
Serves him right for trying to be friendly.
He must not laugh. If he laughed now, his career as a bartender in this bar would be over.
Focusing all his attention on his work, the ponytailed bartender kept mixing drinks, pretending he hadn't heard a thing.
Sonoda Shigeru wasn't upset at being snapped at. His face remained as lifeless as ever. Ever since his wife and daughter had passed away, nothing seemed to stir his emotions anymore.
Let alone a small remark from a girl who looked no older than a high school student. If anything, he found it a little amusing.
She had been so polite when she first arrived—why did she suddenly turn rude after performing? Was it because she was drunk?
A teenage girl, carrying a guitar, coming to sing at a bar alone, lying about drinking… she was definitely in her rebellious phase, wasn't she?
If Yuna were still here, what would her rebellious phase have been like?
As these thoughts ran through his mind, Sonoda Shigeru watched as Hayashizaki downed one drink after another. In the end, he couldn't help but warn her, "A girl drinking too much in a bar isn't a good idea."
For a woman drinking alone in a bar, passing out was never a good outcome—especially for someone as pretty as her.
Hayashizaki glanced at him again, the corners of her mouth curving into a subtle smirk. "Heh."
But she had indeed had her fill for the night. Now it was time to get down to business.
She stood up, slung her guitar case over her shoulder, and got ready to leave.
The bartender watched the short-haired girl walk away, hesitating to say something.
You didn't pay enough to cover your drinks…
He quietly shifted his gaze to Sonoda Shigeru instead. The man noticed the look and, after a brief moment of thought, realized what was going on.
"Take the extra out of your paycheck."
Bartender: "???"
Staring in shock at the brown-haired man who had also stood up to leave, the bartender suddenly felt like it was time to quit his job.
Sonoda Shigeru left the bar and glanced around, but the short-haired girl was nowhere to be seen. "She left fast."
He briefly wondered if she might run into trouble on the way, but he quickly dismissed the thought. She was nothing more than a temporary stand-in for the daughter he had lost—he wasn't actually her father.
The interesting part of his night was over. Now, what mattered was the mission assigned to him by the Panstar Cult.
Two years. After two years of silence, they were finally making a move.
If they didn't give him something worthwhile to do soon, Sonoda Shigeru was going to start questioning whether their beliefs were even real.
The gaunt, brown-haired man started walking toward his apartment.
Meanwhile, Hayashizaki, who had left before him, wandered through the streets of Shinjuku, keeping an unnatural distance as she followed him from afar.
She didn't need to see Sonoda Shigeru himself—his cursed energy was as clear as a beacon in her perception.
The reason she had distanced herself before tailing him was simple: sensing someone else's energy meant they could sense hers in return.
If she had marked Sonoda Shigeru while still within his range of perception, he would have immediately realized she was also a sorcerer.
And for now, Hayashizaki wasn't ready to reveal any information about herself or Yukinoshita Haruno to him.
Stealth missions weren't fun if they turned into full-on brawls.
Sabotage had to be done quietly. If she exposed Yukinoshita Haruno's existence while messing with the Panstar Cult, it would only lead to a lot of unnecessary trouble later.
And she hated trouble. Killing off everyone in the cult might have been an easy solution, but it wouldn't sit well with Yukinoshita Haruno.
So, to avoid unnecessary trouble, Hayashizaki chose the slightly less troublesome approach.
Once she had pinpointed Sonoda Shigeru's apartment, her task for the day was pretty much done.
Checking the time, she saw it was already close to 10 PM. If she didn't get Yukinoshita Haruno's body back home soon, they were both going to get an earful again.
Just as she was about to summon Nue for a ride home, she suddenly froze, stopping the summoning process.
She had just realized something—
If she went home smelling like alcohol, wouldn't that be the same as announcing to Yukinoshita's parents that she had been out drinking again?
After thinking it over, Hayashizaki decided to send a text to Yukinoshita's mother, saying she would be staying over at a friend's place and wouldn't be coming home tonight.
After sending the message, she put away her phone and started thinking about how to spend the long night ahead.
She glanced in the direction of Sonoda Shigeru, estimating that he still had some time before falling asleep. Once he was asleep, she could suppress her presence, sneak into his apartment, and search his computer for emails related to the Hoshihoshi Cult.
With that plan in mind, Hayashizaki took control of the short-haired girl's body and decisively…
…stepped into a small pachinko parlor tucked away on the street.
…
(End of Chapter)
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