Chapter 137 The World Changes Too Fast
Bristol lies to the west, facing the Irish Sea, and has the oldest port in Britain. In the Middle Ages, it was also Britain's most prosperous city. Centered around Bristol and including surrounding satellite towns, it formed a metropolitan area with a population of over one million.
For comparison, the Tokyo metropolitan area—including Chiba, Saitama, and Kanagawa—has more than 37 million people, and the Pearl River Delta region of China has over 57 million. Even for Britain, with a population of only around 60 million, Bristol's population isn't large, but it is the largest city in the southwest. The surrounding areas are mostly rural counties surrounded by mountain ranges.
The entire city is traversed by the Avon River, connecting it to the tourist city of Bath, and it borders Somerset County to the southwest.
For Shirou, this city wasn't completely unfamiliar. In his previous life, when he studied magecraft at the Clock Tower, he had also come here with Tohsaka. After all, it's only about 160 kilometers from London—just an hour and a half by train.
He vaguely remembered the old Gothic-style church near the train station. Back then, he and Tohsaka had come to the city to visit Glastonbury Castle, about twenty kilometers away. There lies one of Britain's most famous purported tombs of King Arthur. They weren't sure if it was genuine, but at the time, they had gone there to pay respects to someone important.
He never expected that so many years later, he would come here again—this time in another world, where everything had changed, evoking a sense of melancholy.
When the plane landed, Hiratsuka Shizuka and Shirou went straight out of the airport and took a taxi to a hotel near the branch school.
Normally, exchange students were assigned to stay in the dormitories of the Bristol branch, as the school occupied a vast area and had sufficient, well-equipped student housing. Thus, the Chiba branch students were placed directly into the dorms and became part of the Bristol branch. Over the next two weeks, they would continue to stay there, enjoying the artistic lifestyle of the city.
However, for convenience, Da Vinci had already handled public relations and arranged for Shirou and Hiratsuka to stay at a large hotel near the school. The Bristol branch agreed to this request since Shirou had arrived a week later than the other students, missing the optimal time to adapt to the environment.
Two teachers from the Chiba branch accompanied their students to the hotel to welcome the two.
The group leader at Bristol was a man in his early thirties, wearing glasses, honest and steady—a painting teacher named Takishō. The other was a woman in her twenties, a music teacher named Yamanaka Sawako.
After Shirou and Hiratsuka settled in, the two teachers took them to a nearby Japanese-style restaurant for a group meal. The teachers and students walked in as if very familiar with the place, suggesting they had been there before—though in truth, there wasn't much exceptional food there.
Inside, the décor was all Japanese-style, like in Chiba, with posters of Noh theater and geisha, and various masks with different expressions. Not far inside was a large counter where hand-rolled sushi was prepared.
Behind the counter stood a small-eyed middle-aged man in a sushi chef uniform, wearing a checkered hat, smiling and nodding to the customers.
"Good evening," Hiratsuka greeted warmly in Japanese.
"Sony, I can't… speak… Jap-anese. I grew up in the UK. Huh… uh…" The chef owner responded with a friendly smile.
"Eh? Ok, ok…" Hiratsuka replied awkwardly.
The leading teacher laughed and explained, "Haha, Hiratsuka-sensei, don't worry. The owner is actually Chinese. Let's go to the private room."
"I see… ah, eh?!" Hiratsuka blinked in surprise. Why is the owner of a Japanese restaurant Chinese? Is Chinese cuisine competition really that fierce?
The experienced leader, Takishō, spoke directly in Mandarin: "Boss Qin, one large sushi platter, one seafood platter, and also your specialty—crispy duck and roast goose. Usual spot, please."
"Alright, alright, please wait a moment, the dishes will be ready soon." The small-eyed middle-aged man smiled, squinting his eyes, replying in Mandarin with a regional accent.
Since there were over ten people in their party, they went into the private room to sit, and soon a waiter came over smiling.
The lead teacher guided the students to their seats. When the dishes arrived, he raised his cup and stood.
"First, let us welcome Hiratsuka-sensei and Shirou-kun to Bristol. Cheers, everyone!"
"Cheers!"
"Come, Hiratsuka-sensei, the sushi here is very good."
"Thank you, I'll start eating." Hiratsuka replied politely.
The teachers clinked glasses and drank some sake.
After a few rounds of drinks, the female teacher next to Hiratsuka, Sawako, suddenly reached over and hugged her, gossiping: "By the way, Shizuka-chan, you must have met quite a few young male teachers in China,
right? How were they? Were there any handsome ones? I heard the men in Jiangnan have such tender skin, even better than the girls!"
"Oh, they were all very nice! They were very enthusiastic when hosting us. A few even drank generously, but their alcohol tolerance wasn't good—they all got knocked out by me! Hahaha!" Hiratsuka laughed proudly.
"Shizuka-chan… that's why you're still single…" Sawako said, face in hand, mournfully.
"What? You're the same, Sawako-chan! Why act like you're already taken and superior?" Hiratsuka retorted, annoyed.
Sawako slapped the table, stood up, and laughed triumphantly: "Hahaha! You asked! Finally asked! Yes! That's right! We've decided to get married! Wahahaha!"
Sawako smiled brightly, grasped Takishō-sensei's hand, and raised it like a boxing champion's victory pose.
"Eh-eh-eh-eh!!!" Hiratsuka's mouth dropped open in shock, unable to close it.
"?" Shirou looked at the other students, all calm and indifferent, as if they had seen this scene countless times—like drinking water, perfectly normal.
"Yes, that's how it is. Please look after her, Hiratsuka-sensei," Takishō said, laughing lightly while holding Sawako's hand.
That Sawako, who liked death metal, pretended to be gentle in front of students, could be won over with cake and tea, and played electric guitar with her teeth—was getting married!
Hiratsuka, still in disbelief, asked, "When did you two start dating? And you're getting married so quickly?"
P.s. Yamanaka Sawako= K-on music teacher
Read ahead (60 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting