"Alright, let's eat first."
Ayanokoji smiled, left the bar first, sat down, and after taking a bite, his eyes lit up. He enthusiastically called Miharu Taki over: "Senpai, come quickly, the food this chef made is quite delicious!"
Who exactly is the owner here? This bar is our family business...
Miharu Taki Sakura also knew that Ayanokoji didn't want to discuss this topic right now, so she could only give a helpless smile, temporarily pushing the topic to the back of her mind, and walked over to sit across from him.
Never mind, let's eat first. Anyway, she was just informing him this time, and she didn't expect him to join the Student Council.
The dishes were served. These were all home-style dishes that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka liked. The chef, using unknown quality ingredients, made the flavors far exceed Ayanokoji's expectations, reaching a level comparable to "System-produced" food.
Of course, the food at Private Hyakkaou Academy's cafeteria wasn't bad either, but usually, to accommodate Meari and the others, they ate cheaper options.
This wasn't a difference in chefs, but a difference in ingredients. Ayanokoji didn't pretend to be reserved in front of Miharu Taki Sakura, happily enjoying a hearty meal, barely saying a few words to Miharu Taki.
Miharu Taki Sakura thought this was Ayanokoji Kiyotaka deliberately immersing himself in eating to reduce interaction with her, to avoid awkwardness on this topic, which made her look at Ayanokoji with increasingly gentle eyes.
She had only eaten with Mibuomi Aoi a few times. The only times were during family gatherings where they sat together, watched by a large group of people, feeling restless and unable to focus on eating, only thinking about how to respond to family members' remarks.
When she was with Mibuomi Aoi, she seemed to have never truly enjoyed the deliciousness of food.
Is this food really that good?
Miharu Taki Sakura, seeing Ayanokoji's hearty appetite, found it amusing and also focused her attention on the delicious food in front of her.
When Miharu Taki discarded her distracting thoughts and savored the food, her eyes lit up. Chinese cuisine was indeed delicious and stimulated her appetite. She felt a sudden anticipation for the dishes in front of her and quickened the pace of her chopsticks.
Miyako sat inside the bar, leaning her head, secretly observing their reactions, and nodded with satisfaction.
That's right... food should bring smiles to people.
Before, when the young lady came here, she was always preoccupied.
Even when she used the highest quality ingredients and meticulously prepared the dishes, the young lady would always be preoccupied when she tried them, only taking a small taste, and then politely saying, "Thank you, this dish is delicious."
This always discouraged Hojo Miyako. Chinese cuisine was clearly very appetizing, capable of making someone eat three bowls of rice with one dish, but Miharu Taki never did that.
Today, finally, something was different.
Seeing Miharu Taki Sakura raise her hand and signal Miyako, politely asking her to serve her another bowl of rice, Miyako, with a joyful smile, eagerly ran to the back kitchen and filled a heaping bowl for her, almost overflowing with white rice.
Seeing Miharu Taki Sakura give her a reproachful glance, but say nothing and pick up her chopsticks, seemingly accepting this "gift," Miyako became even happier, as if her cooking skills had finally been acknowledged.
What on earth was going on? She had never eaten so much when she came before. Was there something different this time?
After thinking for a while, and eliminating all other possibilities, Hojo Miyako's gaze fell on Ayanokoji, and she nodded secretly.
That's right, the only difference was that the young lady had invited this boy this time.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka... She savored the name.
Hojo Miyako was aware of Miharu Taki Sakura's engagement to Mibuomi Aoi, and she also knew that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was not a sibling of Miharu Taki within the family.
Who exactly was this boy? Why was Miharu Taki happier and ate an extra bowl of rice when she was with him?
Watching the two of them chatting and laughing, a bold speculation gradually formed in Miyako's mind—could Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Miharu Taki Sakura be secret lovers?
Although Mibuomi Aoi was Miharu Taki Sakura's fiancé, a powerful and influential young noble, Miharu Taki didn't like him, but instead fell for a poor boy from her school...
This kind of love, transcending class and rationality, always ignited a girl's imagination. In just one meal, Miyako had conjured up a romantic drama.
She imagined Miharu Taki as a princess whose kingdom was about to fall, and Ayanokoji as a royal knight protecting the princess. To refuse a marriage proposal from a neighboring prince, the two lovers decided to escape.
Now, it was a crucial moment as the two of them discussed their escape plan. This was their last comfortable dinner; once they got through tonight, they would begin their life on the run!
The more Miyako thought about it, the more excited she became. After the two finished their meal, as she was clearing the dishes, she said excitedly, "Keep fighting! I'm always on your side! I'll be a qualified gatekeeper for you, blocking all pursuers!"
Although Miyako was a chef hired by the Miharu Taki Family, this bar was considered Miharu Taki Sakura's private property. She, more than an outsider, was naturally willing to side with Miharu Taki Sakura.
Carried away, she even put down the dishes and demonstrated her martial arts with whooping and hollering: "I've practiced kung fu!"
Watching her whoop and holler next to him, Ayanokoji felt a bit bewildered.
Although this chef was beautiful, had a great figure, and cooked delicious food, it seemed... she might have some mental issues?
Feeling the whoosh of air with every punch thrown beside him, Ayanokoji wisely kept silent.
After the other party finished clearing the dishes and went into the back kitchen, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka finally breathed a sigh of relief. He almost thought this chef was threatening him, trying to make him join Zenshoukai.
Ayanokoji placed a bank card on the table: "Senpai, thank you for inviting me today. This is for the meal."
"This place is my family's property, you don't need to pay," Miharu Taki Sakura frowned.
"It's fine, I'll pay." Ayanokoji smiled: "After all, I'm a guy, I can't let a girl treat me."
Saying that, he stood up, his smile as pure as ever, as if nothing had happened: "Senpai, see you tomorrow."
"Mm, see you tomorrow." Miharu Taki Sakura saw Ayanokoji's intention to leave and didn't try to keep him, but a lingering sense of loss remained in her heart.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka walked out of the bar, feeling the evening breeze. He rubbed his face, wiping away the "pure" smile, and sighed softly.
Whenever he saw Miharu Taki Sakura, he didn't know why, but he always thought of his first private tutor, Shizuka Hiratsuka.
The two of them were very similar; beneath their serious and earnest exteriors, both concealed a warm and gentle heart.
This "pure" smile was also something Ayanokoji had specifically practiced in the past, to portray himself as a child of his age in front of Shizuka Hiratsuka Sensei.
He used the 'empathy' acting method, treating Miharu Taki Sakura like Hiratsuka-sensei, which allowed him to maintain that 'boyish' smile.
Speaking of which, where is Hiratsuka-sensei now? It's been three or four years since they last met; she should have established herself in society by now, right?
Could it be... she's already married?
Thinking of such things, Ayanokoji's mood became a little heavy.
He shook his head, dispelling these thoughts, and as he took a deep breath, his eyes suddenly caught sight of a suspicious figure.
The person wore a baseball cap, a mask, and glasses, completely covering their face. They were sitting on a long bench, reading a newspaper under the light.
It looked strange no matter how you saw it.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka walked towards the person without a sound.
She was a girl, and next to her chair were a bottle of milk and a half-eaten piece of bread.
When the person saw Ayanokoji approaching, she trembled all over, as if wanting to get a closer look, but quickly lowered her head to read the newspaper, pressing her face against it, using the large newspaper to block her face.
Ayanokoji walked past her as if he hadn't seen anything, not even glancing at her.
After a while, the person dared to take the newspaper off her face, looking left and right. She saw that Ayanokoji had left and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness he didn't notice..." She patted her chest, muttering to herself with great relief.
"Didn't notice what?" A voice suddenly appeared behind her.
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