Chapter 1944: with translation of chapter title

NO. 564: Mature says it is.

Although the matter already had some clues, in order not to limit reasoning to a story with fictional elements, that verification step still needed to be there.

Moreover, Aomo is also a fan.

Although it's questionable which group would dare to intrude on the horse girls' privacy first, legitimate opportunities are also scarce.

Of course there are also fans like the ailishuma teacher, who even when standing at the door hesitate whether to open it, and who will exhaust themselves trying to oppose their own selves in order to preserve the image of their favorite in their mind.

But evil demons will just kick the door down.

Things like the image in one's heart, getting too close would interfere with fan purity and filters and such; to him they aren't anything important.

He strictly follows only one premise: not to cause trouble for the other party.

In other words, as long as no trouble is caused, any operation is fine!

One can covertly gather information, and also interact within permissible limits, without letting oneself feel wronged!

Thus, amid the cheers below, he could even proactively suggest 'let's talk later,' a major defiance of making the idol wait for him.

Everything is just as long as one is at ease with oneself.

After two hours, before he goes on the winner's stage, he goes to the athletes' preparation room, praises the Sirius symbol, returns to the winner's stage audience seats, joins the main group, and waits quietly for the performance segment to start and finish—this whole procedure.

He finally managed to escape having to frequently communicate and respond with multiple companions, while still thinking about several things in his mind and worrying about the two 'patients and disease sources'.

For Aomo Lindun, acting alone in today's social network is somewhat difficult, especially with four energetic high school horse girls clinging to his various leisure activities.

But he has always been the type to think thrice before acting.

Since he himself created this situation, it was only natural that he prepared arrangements to deal with it.

Whether it's mental preparation or procedural plans, nothing is lacking; he again displays to those few high school girls the 'strategic gap' that still needs to be caught up on.

But frankly, the end of such advantage is already visibly short.

Whether it's that the four girls will eventually react, shed useless reserve and posture, and cooperate in tactical countermeasures; or they each fight on their own while also pulling in friends and relatives for strategic cooperation; or even after the Dream Cup long-distance race, the eight horse girls who have unlocked their 'shackles' will collide and intertwine into a complicated and troublesome situation—all of this is enough to give Aomo Lindun a strong sense of crisis.

Rather than saying it's a confrontational path, it's more like a completely disadvantageous route, akin to the light-energy tribe being hunted to their lair by deep-strike troops.

Without an invisible big hand lending a lift, there would be absolutely no way to survive.

But the light-energy tribe is the light-energy tribe, and Aomo Lindun is Aomo Lindun.

In interpersonal interactions, winning or losing only takes precedence when there is hostile intent; otherwise, whether dealing with friends, family, or lovers, there's no need to sort things out so clearly, unless the seeds of hostility have already been planted there.

As long as one thinks that they are currently in various event vortices, later they will merely be swept into the interpersonal vortex, and the demon will feel it's no different.

Anyway, it's a world that won't bore people; after clearing a combat dungeon you can still open an interpersonal dungeon, so such confrontation—even if you occasionally lose by going with the flow—is no problem; weighing losses to reward the victor is also the proper meaning of interpersonal confrontation, and overcalculating may turn out to be a blessing in disguise.

Then we return to the present moment of successful solo action.

Although the person he agreed to meet is Aomo, the location was set by the other party.

A cart-style izakaya.

As a typical example of a Jidong office worker getting off work, it would likely add a bold stroke to the current image represented by Qianming—but unfortunately she denied it.

Clearly it was his own typing, yet he said the location was designated by Luna, and after meeting, the latter even testified to that.

Aomo could only regretfully give up.

"What's the point of regretting! Do you really want to slap this label on me?!"

"Never mind! A contrast can also earn points! The development where a fresh-faced idol from youth is discovered after graduation to have a weary, office-worker look is also a popular trope in Jidong comics!"

"Really popular? To me it sounds like toilet paper."

"Can you not make toilet-paper sounds with that mouth? I'm asking."

"If even this isn't considered dirty talk, how can it not be said?"

"This is dirty talk; good horse girls must not say it, especially in front of fans."

"I've kept your fan secret for so long not to see you act like this; where exactly did things go wrong?"

"Start from the fact that you've recently been always looking for chances to tease him."

"That's just too heartbreaking; how could Luoduo come out and say such hurtful words right away!"

"Because she is the emperor."

The izakaya owner, placing two stacks of skewers and drinks on the counter, said this, then turned to look at Aomo: "Actually, we don't get many office workers here."

"It can't be that there are many horse girls, right?" Aomo's gaze swept to the edge of the izakaya's projected shading curtain.

Things like 'contemporary strongest vs historical strongest,' 'magical flower,' 'golden tyrant,' 'grassland orator,' 'British lady,' 'proud and beautiful,' etc. —all are slogans advertising horse girl races.

Even on the small projection screen at the side of the stall, there is a recording of a horse race from eight years ago.

"You don't understand this, huh~!" The annoyed boss then placed a cup of pale yellow liquid on the counter: "Honey special drink, want one?"

"No thanks, I've been exercising less lately."

"Then give it to the person beside you."

"Sure, sure!"

"She doesn't need it either; if she drinks it she'll have to run two extra laps and do more sit‑ups."

"Eh——"

"Emperor, I think your trainer is good, just too stiff." The boss was somewhat speechless.

But unexpectedly, the emperor who had just taken off his mask was still saying earlier: "Uncle Four, Qianming is shouting 'me' and shouting Luoduo."

"Uncle Four is still okay…" Aomo and Qianming's gazes simultaneously turned to that man, then swept past.

"Oh oh, that was just me being nosy."

"And the trainer is already quite relaxed here..." she said, then turned her head to look at the two who had moved out of their spots trying to sit in the middle, while she chose to sit on the other side of Aomo, where no one was.

Thus, with Qianming on left and right, they sandwiched him in the middle.

"I think they're both too relaxed."

Qianming, who was called one of those overly relaxed, saw Aomo's bewildered looking around gaze and instantly put on an evil smile.

The distance that had been moved apart was reduced again, and it progressed even further.

The fans' stiffness finally returned to the youth.

"Hey hey hey! I'm still here, can't you young people pay attention a bit?"

"At a time like this, can't you just pretend you don't exist? Boss."

Qianming, half-leaning against Aomo's side, although in Aomo's eyes it was completely like their first meeting, was also familiar to the point of seeming like an old friend.

But more accurately, it should be that this boss's affinity is too strong, making him seem like an old friend to anyone.

Aomo himself also felt that inexplicable sense of closeness from the other party quite often.

Then suddenly, he seemed to recall something.

"Demon?"

The so-called inexplicable sense of closeness is simply the aura of my hometown! Although I didn't stay there for many years, it still counts as a deep impression; as the earliest memory, it's as unforgettable as a hatchling's first sight.

"You only just noticed? You little half-demon, with the purity of your bloodline, I thought you'd have realized it from the start."

"I rarely tap into my own race's potential." Aomo reached out and took the stacked dishes from the counter.

"Obviously this kind of liberation?"

"Combat potential has been developed quite a lot."

"Sigh, so brave and combative~" The boss shook his head and pushed another stack of sushi onto the counter.

"Wouldn't a trainer who will become an emperor also be pursuing strength?"

"What strength could a past-his-prime athlete still have?" The emperor gave a wry smile and shook his head.

"Who would dare say the Dream Cup Short-Distance Champion has no strength!" The boss glared, "Saying that really doesn't give face to Qianming's representative."

"Fourth Uncle!"

"Ah, I'm fine," the Qianming representative, who was secretly sipping the honey special drink, hastily waved his hand, "No need to worry about this."

Taking advantage of this gap, a pale black magic claw reached out from under her armpit, brushed over the honey special drink, making her freeze when she turned her head, then she turned left and right, lowered her head, and turned back.

"Boss, did you take back the drink?"

"You should ask your nutritionist."

"Train——er——?"

"The miraculous honey special drink appears when a mature horse girl voluntarily admits her mistakes and takes guarantee measures; this is the contract of the honey special drink spirit."

"Can't you make it sound a bit more mature?"

"The contract is set up quite maturely."

Aomo said, pointing at the magic-glowing text on the table.

Upon hearing that, the boss also leaned in to look and gave his approval:

"Indeed."

"There are even classic pattern micro-clauses."

(End of chapter)