Tokyo Rebirth: Start From Picking Up Sayu

Knock knock~

"Yinglili, are you in there? I'm coming in."

Kato Yusuke knocked on the door twice, waited for a moment, then opened the door and walked into the room.

What you see is darkness.

There was no one in the quiet room, except for a pair of ladylike white gloves lying on the bed.

"..."

He looked around first, then stepped forward.

Pushing open the door to the balcony, the winter night wind blew in my face.

It was clearly snowing, but the moonlight was soft and transparent, as if it had been waiting for a long time to come in.

The girl was standing quietly in front of the fence, looking up at the moon like thin ice, wondering what she was thinking.

The blond hair hangs down listlessly under the moonlight, but it is still delicate and elegant.

She gently crossed her arms, her skin showing a faint smoothness in the dimness of the night, and her fair skin was a little rosy, and her small figure looked a bit thin.

Although the light snow that lasted from morning to evening was not deep, its traces could still be seen on the grass and fences.

A thin layer of silvery white snow reflects the light of the moonlight and street lights.

Judging from the current time, the surroundings are still quite bright.

The orange light inside the mansion reflects the white snow, and it even looks a little warm.

Still, the snow melts and disappears with the slightest touch.

"Feel sorry……"

The girl whispered: "Give me a little more time, just a little bit, I will go back to your place right away..."

Kato Yusuke turned his head to look at her, then put a can of hot black tea brought from downstairs into his slightly frozen little hand.

"There's no need to be in such a hurry, you can take your time and it doesn't matter."

He said as he took off his coat and put it on him.

The girl's shoulders trembled slightly, but she didn't say anything.

He didn't care about it and just stood quietly admiring the night view.

The two fell silent.

In the swirling light snow.

The ridge was hidden in the depths of the night, with only a vague outline visible, making it hard to see clearly.

The lights of thousands of houses are shining brightly, spreading on the ground where night falls, like the Milky Way falling from the sky.

It is said that there is a saying in the world that snow absorbs sound.

Kato Yusuke doesn’t think so.

But the two of them were indeed silent at the moment, just listening to each other's breathing and staring at the quiet night.

"..."

Ying Lili held the can of black tea in her hands, rolled it gently to keep warm, and then slowly shook her head.

"That...will cause trouble for mom and dad. There are many guests here today, and I can't embarrass them."

"Then you can think of it as doing me a favor. I just want to get some air outside."

"Both of us disappeared from the banquet. That would make it even more problematic..."

"Uncle Leonard and Aunt Sayuri are the protagonists tonight. No one will care about two high school students."

"But, wouldn't it be easy to cause misunderstandings like this..."

The person involved muttered, making Yusuke Kato pause for a moment.

He turned around and stretched out one hand, flicking his finger on the other person's forehead with a "dong~" sound.

"it hurts!"

Yinglili screamed immediately and raised her hand to cover her forehead.

"What nonsense are you talking about? It's just that a brother and sister are missing. How can others misunderstand them?" Kato Yusuke said calmly, as if he was speechless.

"What! You're so outrageous and I didn't say anything. Why do you want to knock on someone?"

Yinglili frowned unhappily and said angrily: "Besides, where did you think you were going?"

Kato Yusuke was stunned for a moment, then looked away.

"...Anyway, since you are still in the mood to joke, the situation shouldn't be that serious, right? Then I'll leave first. It's very cold outside, so remember not to stay too long."

He turned around and prepared to return to the room, but...

"Wait a moment!"

A hand suddenly grabbed the corner of his clothes.

Kato Yusuke was forced to stop and looked back.

Her long, silky golden hair fell down, revealing her fair, petite and rosy face, and a pair of crystal-clear eyes looking at him.

"...Anyway, you are very free now. I want to have a life discussion, so you can stay with me..."

Warm white breath leaked from the soft lips like cherry blossoms and floated in the air.

"Life discussion...?"

Kato Yusuke murmured, his eyes unconsciously staring at those lips.

The scene not long ago suddenly appeared in my mind, and even there seemed to be a vague touch left on my lips...

He was suddenly startled when he thought of this, and then immediately looked away. His originally calm heart suddenly felt a throb, and for a moment he didn't know how to speak.

Seeing his reaction like this.

Yinglili was stunned at first, and then seemed to recall the same thing. Her fair face turned red instantly, and then she punched him hard on the back and said incoherently:

"You, you, you, you, where did you think you were? I'm not talking about that! I just... simply... just want to talk to you..."

The atmosphere became slightly awkward.

Kato Yusuke paused for a moment, moved his lips and said: "...Okay, I don't have any objections, let's go in and talk."

The girl nodded slightly, hummed inaudibly, then lowered her head and walked quickly into the house.

The latter followed slowly and closed the door to keep out the cold air.

When he turned his head, the sight in front of him made him freeze in place.

"...Why are you sitting on the bed?"

"What? Can't I sit down?"

"No, the question is how are we going to talk when you're like this?"

"..."

Ying Lili pursed her lips and looked at him, patted the empty seat next to her, "You can just sit here."

"..."

Kato Yusuke rubbed his temples, not wanting to cooperate with her.

After all, a boy sitting on a girl's bed is a very inappropriate behavior no matter how you think about it.

Especially after what happened some time ago, he didn't want to indulge himself.

As if seeing his inner resistance, a flash of hesitation flashed across Yinglili's face, then she jumped off the bed and sat on the ground with her skirt pressed down.

"You are so troublesome..."

The girl patted the place next to her again and said, "Well, if you sit on the ground, you'll be fine, right?"

‘Can’t you just sit on a chair? ’

Thinking this way, Kato Yusuke couldn't help but sigh, and then walked up and sat next to her.

The air conditioner in the room was turned on at full blast, and the slightest warmth continued to spread through the clothes into the skin, making it very warm.

Since there were no lights on, the room was still dark.

The two people sitting on the floor were hidden in the night. Only a small patch of moonlight illuminated their location, proving that there was someone here.

Yinglili was the first to speak: "...You saw it...yesterday."

This question was a bit confusing, but Yusuke Kato knew exactly what she was referring to, so he nodded in acquiescence.

"That's it..."

The girl stared at her toes that were pressed together and asked, "You didn't sign up to join the club, why were you there at that time?"

"Ms. Kousaka asked me to talk about something. When we came out, we happened to see you and Aki and the others. Because I was a little concerned, I followed you and took a look."

Kato Yusuke briefly explained the whole story.

As soon as she finished speaking, Yinglili hit his shoulder angrily and complained: "I should have said this earlier! It's really embarrassing for you to see my expression like that..."

Kato Yusuke touched his nose, smiled slightly and said:

"I didn't mean to hide it on purpose, but you couldn't have a good conversation when you were crying like that. This is considered force majeure."

"Idiot... I obviously don't want to be seen by you the most..."

"Don't worry, just occasionally, you can rely on me as your brother."

This was originally a joke to lighten the atmosphere, but the other party became quiet for some reason, and after a while, he responded in a low voice.

"Then... lend it to me..."

"Huh? What did you say..."

Before Kato Yusuke finished speaking, there was a light weight on his shoulders, making him swallow the rest of his words.

The fragrance of shampoo mixed with a light body fragrance, like a lily blooming quietly in the dark night, comes ethereally.

"...Now, can I start the life negotiation?" the girl asked.

"Well, if you're ready, I'll be fine at any time." The boy replied.

The girl hummed, stared into the darkness in front of her, and slowly said:

"...At this winter COMI, that girl... Izumi Hashishima, her book was a big hit."

"Um."

"Have you ever seen the notebook she drew?"

"not yet."

"As a painter, what is your impression of her?"

"Has a certain amount of talent and is diligent and studious."

"Then...do you think she is very powerful?"

Yinglili said with a hint of nervousness in her voice: "Do you even think she is more powerful than me...?"

Kato Yusuke turned his face thoughtfully.

The girl was lowering her head at the moment, making it difficult for him to see the expression on her face. He could only see the slender eyelashes trembling slightly.

Even through the clothes, you can clearly feel that the body is slightly tense, as if it is waiting for some kind of judgment.

He thought for a moment and then gave an answer thoughtfully.

"I don't know why you ask, but I've never thought about it that way."

Hearing this, Yingli Li suddenly raised her head.

Her pure blue eyes suddenly glowed with brilliance, mixed with a bit of uneasiness and expectation, and she gestured with her eyes for him to continue speaking.

Because that look was so endearing, Kato Yusuke couldn't help but put a hand on top of her head and gently stroke her silky hair.

"No matter what, you will always be the most powerful painter in my heart who introduced me to it. This answer will never change, and you can confirm it with me countless times."

His voice was very gentle, yet full of calmness, making people unconsciously want to believe him.

Ying Lili's eyes swayed slightly, and her eyes shone with little bits of light, reflecting his gentle and jade-like outline.

Faced with the answer he gave.

The girl first snorted slightly proudly, then lowered her head sadly.

"But, I have already lost to others... completely, completely lost..."

Her voice was filled with frustration, but her tone was gentler and calmer than ever.

"After actually reading the book, I understood this..."

Kato Yusuke took back his hand and asked: "Are you talking about the book of "Little Fantasy"?"

Ying Lili nodded affirmatively, holding the hem of her skirt tightly with both hands, and continued speaking like a memory.

"Honestly, this is the first time I've seen someone try that kind of creation with "Little Fantasy", and it really shocked me."

Because she didn't mean to be talked to, Kato Yusuke just hummed to show that he was listening.

"Generally speaking, when people draw fanfics of "Little Fantasy", they usually use daily jokes and erotic themes as themes. It's a shame that she can come up with such a long original plot."

"Um."

"Not only the plot, but the girl also put a lot of effort into the details. Although you can't see it in the first half, as soon as you enter the second half, it all comes out in one breath."

"Um."

"Both the characters and the background are all densely drawn with pencils, which are completely different from the previous pages. Although there are signs of rush work, the completion level is not inferior to the first half."

"Um."

"It would be better to say that she drew more and more finely in the second half. Looking at her like that, even if all the time spent in the first half is taken into account, the pencil drawings in the second half are definitely more labor-intensive."

"Um."

"Those dazzlingly numerous pencil lines actually make the outlines of the characters appear three-dimensional and full of enthusiasm on the paper. The same goes for the story. After advancing to the second half, the tension of the plot becomes terrifyingly high."

"Um."

"Especially the last five pages are particularly exaggerated. The level of effort is completely out of balance with the first half. The person who painted it must have worked so hard that he couldn't even control himself."

"Um."

"It's a book that doesn't even have a cover, but the content is so well described. Regardless of whether this approach is good or bad for the work, it's simply untenable as a product!"

"Um."

"Obviously she only drew what she wanted to draw, and put aside all the hard work that should be done on the surface. It should be said that when the girl was creating this book, she probably didn't think about anything..."

"Um."

Yinglili stopped for a moment while speaking, inhaled and exhaled as if adjusting her breath, and then continued.

"...Originally, according to her willful approach, even if she draws the best book, she usually cannot sell it."

"Um."

"After all, if you want to attract customers' attention, you have to start with the cover, including the overall packaging of the book. She is still far behind in this regard."

"Um."

"But if she has a partner who knows how to make a good book and can give good advice..."

The girl said somewhat self-deprecatingly: "For someone like me, she will probably overtake me in no time... Aha... Ahaha..."

Unable to maintain a nonchalant attitude, her slender voice began to tremble uncontrollably and was gradually on the verge of losing control.

"..."

Kato Yusuke turned his head slightly.

Unconsciously, that delicate and perfect little face was filled with tears.

…