Chapter 129: The location of the next shogi-related relic!

At night.

Around ten-thirty.

"Ruri, I'm turning off the lights," Natsume Chikage said softly, standing by the switch on the wall.

"Mm..." Natsume Ruri, wrapped in her quilt, gave a groggy response from the bed, clearly half-asleep.

Click—

The switch was pressed.

The small three-mat room was instantly swallowed by darkness, with only the faint halo of streetlights from outside filtering in.

Natsume Chikage, guided by the dim glow of his phone screen, fumbled his way back into his bedding.

He intended to prepare for his great writing endeavor, as he did every night.

Just as he opened his document.

Several unread LINE messages popped up at the top of the screen, from Xiyuanji Qilai, Classmate Tengyuan Kui, and Jiu Jing Ziyuan respectively.

He pondered for a moment and tapped on Xiyuanji Qilai's chat box first.

【Xiyuanji Qilai: Natsume-kun, are you there?】

【Natsume Chikage: I am, what's up?】

The message turned to "Read" almost instantly, and a reply popped up immediately after.

【Xiyuanji Qilai: Um... why did you suddenly ask for leave today? Are you sick?】

【Natsume Chikage: No.】

【Xiyuanji Qilai: You're really not sick?】

【Natsume Chikage: Really not. Why are you asking like that?】

【Xiyuanji Qilai: Well... it's just that the teacher told me to help you take notes or something, since you asked for leave. If you were sick and couldn't come tomorrow either, I was thinking of bringing the notes to you after school.】

【Natsume Chikage: Thanks for the concern, but there's really no need to go through the trouble. I'm truly fine.】

【Xiyuanji Qilai: Then... are you coming back to school tomorrow?】

【Natsume Chikage: Yes.】

【Xiyuanji Qilai: (*^▽^*) That's good. See you tomorrow.】

【Natsume Chikage: Mm, see you tomorrow.】

Ending the conversation with Xiyuanji, he swiped his fingertip and opened the message Classmate Tengyuan Kui had just sent.

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: Σ(⊙▽⊙" Natsume-kun, when I passed by your classroom today, I heard your classmates saying you asked for leave. Did something happen?】

【Natsume Chikage: Not sick, just participated in a shogi tournament, went to play shogi.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: What? You participated in a shogi tournament? Could that shogi tournament be the 'New Sharp Shogi Tournament'?】

【Natsume Chikage: Yeah, how do you know about this tournament too?】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: I occasionally watch TV with my family, and I've been seeing ads for this tournament a lot lately, so I was wondering if you might be participating in it. Now it seems it's actually true! So, how did it go today? Did you win?】

【Natsume Chikage: Mm.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: o(￣▽￣)d That's great, congratulations on your victory!】

【Natsume Chikage: Thanks.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: I saw on TV that this tournament isn't just one match, it seems like seven or eight matches or more? And after consecutive wins, the prize money seems to keep doubling?】

【Natsume Chikage: Yes, it's about as you said.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: When is the next match?】

【Natsume Chikage: Not sure yet, have to wait for news.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: I see... By the way, didn't you tell anyone else about you playing shogi? How come your classmates seem to have no idea at all?】

【Natsume Chikage: Didn't tell them.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: Could it be... you only told me?】

【Natsume Chikage: Mm.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: (? ò? ó?) Why only tell me...】

【Natsume Chikage: Because you were the only one who asked.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: ∑(￣□￣*||| This... is that so.】

After a brief pause, she sent another message.

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: (???)? By the way, you don't have anything shogi-related tomorrow, so you'll be going to school, right?】

【Natsume Chikage: I will, why?】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: I remember you saying you wanted to look for a club, right? If you plan to visit clubs after school, remember to call me. I'm also curious about what clubs the school has, and I want to walk around the school too!】

【Natsume Chikage: Mm, I'll call you then.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: (〃'▽'〃) Mm-hmm, then it's a promise.】

【Classmate Tengyuan Kui: (? 3【▓▓】 It's getting late, I won't disturb your rest. Good night.】

【Natsume Chikage: Good night.】

Finally, he tapped on Jiu Jing Ziyuan's profile picture.

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: Natsume-kun, you asked before about where those two shogi-related relics of your father's were, have you gone to look for the Yasui family's child these past two days?】

【Natsume Chikage: I have. The Yasui side said they are in the storage room at home, it will take some time to find them, and they will give them to me immediately once found.】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: That's good. However, I'm looking for you today because I've already found the location of another relic...】

Seeing this line, Natsume Chikage felt a surge of energy, and joy appeared on his face.

【Natsume Chikage: Where is it?】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: Just like before, the person who has this relic is also a woman. She used to be called Kono Manatsu, but she married into the Yutang family many years ago, and is now called Yutang Manatsu...】

【Natsume Chikage: Yutang Manatsu? Then how should I contact her?】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan:... Actually, I don't have that person's contact information either, but even if I did, I wouldn't want Natsume-kun to contact her to find this relic. This time, I hope you give up and don't look for the relic in Yutang Manatsu's hands anymore...】

The tone became solemn.

【Natsume Chikage: Why?】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: The reasons are very complicated... In short, the Yutang family is very mysterious in Japan, and their background is also terrifying. Nothing good ever comes from ordinary people getting close to them... So I strongly advise you not to look for this relic.】

【Natsume Chikage:... Giving up is fine, but can you tell me in detail what the Yutang family is like? I want to know the reason. If it's truly something I cannot touch, I will absolutely not go near them.】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: That's true... Actually, I don't know much about the Yutang family either, but I only know that the Yutang family has influence in both the underworld and the legitimate world in Japan, and their power behind the scenes is overwhelming. You can even see traces of the Yutang family in many aspects of life, for example, the Private Moonlight Academy you are currently attending, nearby supermarkets, shopping streets, commercial buildings, railways, etc., are actually many of the Yutang family's assets.】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: I was also very surprised when I found out Manatsu married into there, and because of that, I don't advise you to get close to this Yutang family. Rather, even if I wanted to tell you, I don't have Manatsu's current contact information... Do you understand now?】

【Natsume Chikage: Understood. Since I can't get it, that's fine, it was just a thought anyway.】

【Jiu Jing Ziyuan: It's best if you can think that way. It's getting late, rest early. Good night.】

【Natsume Chikage: Good night, Aunt Ziyuan.】

Exiting the chat interface, Natsume Chikage let out a soft breath.

He truly hadn't expected the clue for this last relic to point to such a thorny family.

But it didn't matter if he couldn't get it.

Anyway, his real goal was those "special equipment" items that could provide attribute bonuses.

In a situation where he couldn't determine if that relic was special, there was indeed no need to touch a behemoth that was clearly dangerous.

Casting aside distracting thoughts, Natsume Chikage refocused his attention on the document, his fingertips tapping rapidly on the screen.

In the quiet room, only the subtle sound of the touchscreen and his younger sister's steady breathing remained.

It was almost midnight, and the continuous tapping made him feel a sore, aching pain in his finger joints, and waves of sleepiness began to wash over him.

He stopped his movements, rubbed his tired eyes, and checked today's progress.

The total word count of the document was 110,000 words.

It was around 80,000 words when he saved it yesterday.

This meant that on the entire day he took leave from school, he had managed to tap out 30,000 words on his phone.

The price was that his fingers felt like they were about to cramp, and his fingertips were slightly burning.

However, the results were gratifying.

There were only 30,000 words left until the completion of the book. ===== CHAPTER 130 =====