When Asakura Toru issued the invitation, calling him out by name, the atmosphere in the living room instantly grew subtle.
Kumano Nobuyuki's drink stopped halfway to his lips, a "what's going on?" expression of surprise on his face, while Morimoto Kengo remained calm, as if a suspicion he held had just been confirmed.
The band member's gaze shifted between Asakura Toru and Michiya Gōshin, his cool eyes now holding a hint of inquiry.
Michiya Gōshin was also a bit surprised.
However, he quickly stood up, trying his best to make his tone sound natural. "Alright, I'll go have a taste."
Walking from the main hall into the kitchen, a rich aroma washed over him.
The scent of sweet mushrooms and beef wafted from the stew pot, forming a steamy haze in the warm light. Kurokawa Akane was standing at the stove, stirring the pot, an off-white apron tied in a neat bow at her waist. When she heard the noise and turned around, a faint smile immediately appeared on her face.
Asakura Toru walked straight to the counter, picked up a bowl of soup that had already been served, and offered it to him. The rim of the bowl was still steaming.
"This is it, Michiya-sensei."
Her fingertips were far from the rim, clearly afraid of the heat, yet she insisted on holding it herself, only letting go when Michiya Gōshin reached out and took it.
On the other side, MEM-cho also seemed to be eagerly awaiting Michiya Gōshin's reaction. All three young women watched his face with a hint of nervousness.
"Hoo~"
Michiya Gōshin blew on the hot soup and took a gentle sip.
The smooth, warm broth slid down his throat. The savory saltiness of the miso blended with the clean sweetness of the kombu, perfectly awakening his taste buds.
"It's delicious."
He gave his most honest assessment. "The miso ratio is just right, and the savory flavor of the kombu dashi has been fully drawn out. It seems your cooking skills are truly impressive."
"MEM-cho-san was the one who led this, so you should praise her."
"Impressive."
"And Asakura-chan worked really hard, too. She was just preparing the vegetables the whole time."
"Is that so? Does Asakura-san know how to cook?" Michiya Gōshin asked with a smile, looking at the girl with light purple hair.
"Just a little. I was just helping out."
"That's still worthy of praise."
Michiya Gōshin smiled and offered a few more casual compliments before leaving the kitchen again. After all, he couldn't just stay there and disrupt everyone's progress.
After he left, some subtle thoughts began to form in the minds of the girls in the kitchen.
For instance, MEM-cho, being the shrewd observer she was, had been keeping an eye on the seemingly less emotional Asakura Toru since yesterday.
She seemed to have a special interest in Michiya Gōshin. After noticing this, MEM-cho had proactively suggested that Asakura Toru go outside and ask one of the guys to come in and taste the soup. She hadn't expected her to actually call for Michiya Gōshin.
Now this was... interesting.
Standing on the other side, Kurokawa Akane was also a bit concerned. Although Asakura Toru didn't seem like the type to show her emotions openly, when it came to attention and understanding of Michiya Gōshin, she clearly had the upper hand.
Seeing Michiya Gōshin walk in behind Asakura Toru instantly raised her guard.
As for Asakura Toru herself, she didn't seem to mind the little interlude. She just noticed that Michiya Gōshin seemed to really enjoy the soup and quietly made a mental note of it.
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At lunchtime, the six of them sat down around the long table.
Thanks to the efforts of the three girls, the table was laden with six or seven steaming hot dishes. The stew pot sat in the very center, bubbling away, the slices of fatty beef inside coated in egg and glistening with an alluring sheen.
Kumano Nobuyuki ate with the most gusto, his cheeks stuffed as he praised them with a muffled voice, "This beef is so delicious!"
"It's so good it's putting pressure on me."
Michiya Gōshin glanced at Morimoto Kengo beside him. "What should we make for dinner?"
"Let's not even try to compete. We'll just be laughed at."
"Hahaha."
Overall, since they were all young people in their twenties, the atmosphere was very relaxed.
After lunch, the afternoon was free time.
Everyone had different professions and jobs, so the director didn't require them to stay in the villa. They could leave at any time if they had things to do, but they had to return to rest here at night.
Kurokawa Akane and Asakura Toru left the villa in the afternoon. One was heading to her theater troupe, the other to her agency for idol group practice.
Since he didn't have much work at the moment, aside from checking on the sales of Love Letter, Michiya Gōshin also chatted with MEM-cho about live streaming.
The second day of the dating show quickly turned to evening.
As the six of them gathered again in the main hall, a field director walked in with an envelope, announcing with a smile, "Everyone, the director's Heartbeat Task Card has arrived!"
Everyone immediately gathered around. Facing the cameras, the reality show participants all wore expressions of anticipation.
Opening the envelope, the field director took out six cards printed with the show's logo and distributed them to everyone. "These are the detailed rules for tomorrow's 'Heartbeat Outing' plan. Please read them carefully~"
Michiya Gōshin opened his card, which detailed the rules explicitly.
[First Heartbeat Outing Plan]
Plan Submission: Before midnight tonight, the girls must each submit a "One-Day Outing Plan" (anonymously, marked only as A/B/C). The content must include a brief description of the destination and activity schedule.
Note: As everyone's professions are public, try not to make the plans too characteristic of your job. This is to facilitate a better selection process.
Plan Reveal: At 10:00 AM tomorrow, the production team will reveal the three plans (with names hidden) for the boys to view.
Application Phase: The boys must choose one plan and submit an application before 12:00 PM, including a "Reason for Application" (which must explain why they believe the plan belongs to a specific female contestant).
Selection Phase: The girls can view all the male contestants who applied to their plan and their reasons, and they will have two hours to decide whether to accept a boy's application.
Results Announcement: The results will be announced at 2:00 PM tomorrow.
If a girl accepts a boy's application, the two will go on the outing together the day after tomorrow to carry out the plan.
If a girl does not accept any application, or if a boy does not apply for any plan, they can continue with their free activities.
After reading the rules, Michiya Gōshin gained a new level of appreciation for Director Aoyama's bold approach to filming the show.
He actually set up a system where if you didn't apply or weren't chosen, you could just continue with free activities. If someone wanted to slack off, couldn't they just collect their two-week appearance fee for the variety show for free?
"Anonymous applications? And we have to guess whose plan it is?"
Kumano Nobuyuki rubbed his hands in excitement after reading the rules. "This is basically a massive on-site chemistry test!"
MEM-cho waved the card in her hand and asked the field director before them.
"The rules say 'it's suggested not to have too many professional characteristics.' That's not a mandatory requirement, is it?"
"That's right. If you insist on adding professional characteristics that can be identified at a glance, that's also acceptable. The director has not made it a mandatory rule."
The field director wore a gentle smile.
"Well, that's certainly... something to look forward to."
The girls immediately fell into thought, and the living room suddenly descended into silence.
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