"Toyokawa, you're looking pretty energetic today."
"Am I? Maybe it's because I actually talked things out with my daughter last night and we made up."
Inside the café, Toyokawa Ling—freshly arrived for his shift—took the apron the manager handed him. He'd noticed it when he washed up that morning: his face looked… a little better.
Of course, the main reason was simple. Last night he'd only had one beer, and he'd gone to bed early. The swelling had gone down, and with that dead, ruined aura replaced by him, the whole "washed-up drunk" vibe had evaporated.
And then there was yesterday's quest reward:
Synchronize with the original body.
Toyokawa Ling didn't actually want to turn completely back into his "original" self. For one thing, Sakiko might not even recognize him if his appearance changed too much. Still—he'd like to shave off at least thirty years if possible. Otherwise, what was the point of transmigrating? He'd be down twenty years of lifespan for nothing.
So far, the system seemed to have a shred of decency—changing him gradually instead of all at once.
"Kids in puberty… they get stubborn sometimes," the manager sighed.
The kind of complaint married men everywhere shared, though their "stubbornness problems" weren't always the same. In Sakiko's case, she wasn't stubborn—she was too capable.
And if nothing changed, she'd probably still go to work today.
Toyokawa Ling's bigger worry was how to interact with her as her biological father. It was his first time being anyone's dad.
Money, at least, had a direction.
This was a music-high-power world. Sakiko forming a "galaxy battleship" band to rake in cash wasn't impossible—just way too rushed. If it came to it, he could help. The old man's music theory wasn't useless. He could even "borrow" songs—either to stockpile for Sakiko or to sell.
But his own knowledge had gaps. He couldn't write full band scores yet. He could write piano sheets, sure, but for other instruments? Not really. His guitar skills were basically "bought a beginner model after watching Bocchi the Rock! and fooled around a bit."
He was probably not even as good as Aino Anon before she joined a band.
"Annoying…"
The goal was set. The work required to reach it was massive.
"Your coffee, ma'am."
After finishing the first cup of the day, Toyokawa Ling carried it to the customer.
"Thanks~!"
A bright, red-haired girl pressed her palms together politely as she accepted it.
Toyokawa Ling nodded and returned to the counter.
Kita Ikuyo.
Speak of the devil.
So this was one of those "merged worlds," huh?
Toyokawa Ling accepted the setting quickly. He'd seen enough fanworks to have immunity.
If that was the case, he'd just gained more options for his short-term "quick cash" plan—like blackmailing Bocchi for "friendship fees" by threatening to expose her.
(And, for the record, another plan was to slowly sell Sakiko's current situation to Nagasaki Soyo—bit by bit. By the time he sold her the location of their current place, he'd probably already "popped" enough cash to rent a new apartment and move. That was why he'd gone scouting near Tsukinomori yesterday.)
Judging by the timeline, it was either just before the main plot started or right at the beginning. Toyokawa Ling wasn't sure. But he did want to get involved somehow.
If he could work at STARRY, he could get hands-on access to instruments at zero cost. If he got familiar with Kessoku Band, he could ask for advice about instruments.
The problem was his identity.
He was an adult man. A middle-aged dad.
If only he were a high schooler.
Irritated, Toyokawa Ling brewed himself a coffee.
Right then, the café manager emerged from the storage room looking suspiciously excited. He leaned in close and whispered:
"Mr. Toyokawa… we can begin."
Toyokawa Ling walked over to the piano—the one that had been sitting there as decoration. He checked tuning quickly, set up a No Recording sign, and the manager gestured for him to start.
With a quiet sigh, Toyokawa Ling sat down.
"Welcome to the café. I'll be playing 'The Girl with Flaxen Hair.'"
The instant his fingers touched the keys, a strange sensation rose in him.
His hands began to move, hopping across the keyboard as if the body itself had taken control. The piano answered—clear, flowing, and warm.
Toyokawa Ling couldn't describe what he was feeling. It was like watching someone else play through his hands. Like his mind wasn't performing—it was merely issuing commands while his body executed them on autopilot.
Muscle memory.
A performance inherited, not owned.
He played a second piece—'Tracks in the Snow,' from the same composer.
When he finished, he stood, bowed, and returned to the counter.
Only then did the listeners—who'd been carried away into that "snowfield" of sound—snap back to reality and begin to applaud.
Toyokawa Ling didn't feel happy.
He'd found the flaw in the system.
Even with the piano skill "inherited," he was just running on muscle memory. He couldn't inject his own intent into the performance.
Another problem that would take time.
But time didn't pay rent.
He took the 8,000 yen performance fee the manager handed him and stopped at a cigarette vending machine to buy another pack. The café job was solid—good enough to improve their diet for a while. And the piano would be used regularly, which might help him "recover a feel for it."
He walked to the mouth of a nearby alley, leaned against the wall, and lit a cigarette.
"…Ah, it's the café staff guy!"
The sudden voice pulled him out of his calculations.
It was Kita Ikuyo again. She was holding a bottled drink—clearly she'd just used the vending machine nearby.
"Yeah. Hi," Toyokawa Ling said, extinguishing the cigarette and tossing the butt into the trash. Talking to a high school girl while smoking was a bad look.
"And… you were the customer earlier. I remember you."
"Your piano was so good," Kita said, palms pressed together again, eyes glittering.
It wasn't a polite exaggeration. During the second piece—Tracks in the Snow—she'd closed her eyes and genuinely felt like she'd been pulled into a dreamlike world.
"Thanks," Toyokawa Ling said. "If you liked it, come by the café again. I'll probably play often."
It was their first real conversation. He didn't expect the relationship to "advance" into anything. Just becoming people who knew each other was enough.
Still… if his intuition was right, Kita had followed him out of the café and all the way here.
Kita Ikuyo… so you're a stalker-type, huh?
"I definitely will!"
He watched her leave, then lit another cigarette.
She followed me just to say two sentences?
Toyokawa Ling was a "casual watcher," sure—but he at least knew Bocchi the Rock! was supposed to be upbeat. So something like this should be fine, right?
Toyokawa Sakiko couldn't focus in class today.
Her sleep quality had been far better than usual, but the moment she woke up, she still couldn't accept what had happened: her father had suddenly… pulled himself together.
It was too abrupt.
Just one day.
In the span of a single day, he'd gone from that hollow, drunken shell into someone full of drive—someone who even looked younger, more alive, and more attentive to her.
It made her wonder if she'd collapsed from hunger last night and dreamed everything.
But the leftover ribs in the lunch box weren't something she could've conjured out of thin air.
Lunchtime came.
This time she didn't go out—she stayed in the classroom. She picked up a rib, put it in her mouth, and with a gentle bite the meat slid off the bone.
Delicious.
Sakiko narrowed her eyes.
It was the second-best meal she'd eaten in the past half-year.
The best had been last night.
Even though her father had told her not to work anymore, she wasn't going to stop. Schoolwork wasn't too stressful. She could keep up as long as she set aside time now and then.
But she would adjust based on his income—cut her working hours if she had to.
The disgusting job ended.
Sakiko pushed open the door to their home.
The smell of food immediately proved yesterday hadn't been a dream.
"Sakiko's back. Dinner's almost ready."
Toyokawa Ling hadn't finished cleaning the kitchen yet. Sakiko had come home an hour earlier than yesterday—unexpected.
Maybe she wasn't as stubborn as he'd assumed.
Tonight's dinner was chicken curry with potatoes. Ribs at "two small bones for 1,000 yen" weren't something the Toyokawa household could afford every day.
"If you want to keep working, I won't stop you," Toyokawa Ling said. "But classes come first. If you can get a scholarship, it'll save the household a lot."
Japanese tuition still hurt—especially now.
And he needed to warn her, at least internally: be careful you don't get blindsided by the returning Aino.
"I'll be careful," Sakiko said, nodding. She was confident in that area.
"This is today's money."
Just like yesterday, Toyokawa Ling pulled 6,000 yen from today's earnings and handed it to her.
"The rest is enough for groceries tomorrow—and I'm going to dye my hair. Keep this with you. I'll keep what I need for daily expenses. How long do we have left on the rent?"
"Less than two months."
Sakiko put the money into her bag. She really did need to hold it herself—just in case her father suddenly "reverted."
But as she looked at the curry on her plate, she found herself thinking:
If that reversion ever happened, the money wouldn't matter.
At that point, it would mean the dream was over—and she'd have to wake up.
Keeping her expression neutral, Sakiko glanced at the gas valve's position.
Then she quietly helped him clean up the kitchen.
She looks a shade paler again…
Toyokawa Ling worried whether his interference would affect the birth of "Mujica." He'd been counting on Sakiko stepping into the spotlight, forming a band, and earning money.
But he also couldn't stand by and watch a girl walk toward the abyss while he stayed idle.
If it comes to it… I'll sell songs.
Toyokawa Ling had already decided:
Tonight, he'd start re-learning the music theory he never truly mastered.
-------
My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (180 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (190 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (130 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (200 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (89 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (140 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (90 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (150 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (70 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (70 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (123 Chapter)
Arknights : Batman System (30 Chapter)
Chat Group: Swapping Bodies with the Bad-Ending Herta from the Start (72 Chapter)
DanMachi: Why Did My Dungeon Turn Into a Soulslike Game? (92 Chapter)
Losing Money on Uma Musume...What Do You Mean You Actually Won? (93 Chapter)
I'm Gotou Hitori—Who Are You? (40 Chapter)
Were You Ever Even a Uma Musume? Stop Making Things Up! (75 Chapter)
Moon Project: A Full-Time Love Adventure for the Lobotomy Corporation (75 Chapter)
The Leisurely Days of the Hyuga Main House (65 Chapter)
Arknights : A Draco Surviving in a Matriarchal Terra (115 Chapter)
Arknights: What if My Luck Is Too Good? (105 Chapter)
Honkai: The Romance System Only Shows Up After I Marry Mei (55 Chapter)
Arknights: Who Are You Calling Repressed, X?! (105 Chapter)
The Chat Group Only Arrived After I'd Cleared the Game (42 Chapter)
Gojo Satoru Flat-Out Refuses to Admit He's a Supporting Character (40 Chapter)
Chat Group Isn't Supposed to Be Like This! (30 Chapter)
If You're Moriarty…then Who Am I? (56 Chapter)
Uma Musume: Since I "Can't See," They Take Turns Stealing My Underwear (50 Chapter)
Arknights: Why Are All My "Brothers" Girls? (54 Chapter)
Danmachi: Start Training Haki (59 Chapter)
Emiya Shirou's Rebirth (30 Chapter)
I Can Get Stronger Just by AFK'ing—So I Joined a Chat Group (50 Chapter)
Endfield: I Can Always Pull Out One Yuan (54Chapter)
Limbus Company : I Started a Company in Project Moon (50 Chapter)
Lobotomy: Do Cooks of Alley 23 Dream of Bloodfiend Knights? (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: Freya Familia's "One-Blade Shura" (60 Chapter)
DanMachi: Emiya, the Great Hero Becomes the Protagonist (76 Chapter)
TYPE-MOON: One Special Instance Every Week (40 Chapter)
From Danmachi: The Abundance Apothecary (63 Chapter)
Lord Shadow Descends on DanMachi (60 Chapter)
Fuse with Me, Exusiai! (41 Chapter)
Honkai: Star Rail — After I Die, I Forge Their Madness (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: The Last Zeus Familia (30 Chapter)
Endfield: Arknights Heroic Spirit Summoning (30 Chapter)
Toyokawa Family Finances (30 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it