Chapter 34: Who Is That Woman?!
How did A Jian get in the car?
And he sat in the front seat!
The driver was a woman, right?
Natsume Mio felt like her heart was suddenly gripped by an invisible hand, her breathing becoming rapid.
She had originally just planned to glance at his place downstairs before heading to her convenience store shift, since it was on the way anyway.
But who could have imagined she would witness such a scene!
Who is that woman?!
She looks very mature, dressed sharply too.
A Jian’s relative?
No, during all three years of high school, she never heard A Jian mention any relatives; he lived alone, which was why things were so tough financially before.
Natsume Mio’s mind raced, various possibilities flashing through her head.
But every deduction ultimately pointed to an answer she couldn’t accept…
A Jian, is it possible you already have another woman?!
She didn’t have this thought without reason.
In the memory from that dream, A Jian got into another woman’s car!
The White Toyota slowly turned around, its tires crunching over the gravel by the roadside, making a faint sound.
Natsume Mio quickly stepped back, hiding in the corner.
She watched helplessly as the car drove toward the main road, a strong sense of powerlessness surging in her heart.
What to do?
Chase after it?
How could she possibly catch up…
Even if she did, then what?
She… she and him… actually have no relationship at all…
She had no right to interfere with who he spent time with usually…
Just as her mind was in turmoil, she noticed the car didn’t head straight onto the main road but turned into an alley at the intersection ahead.
She was very familiar with this area.
In that dream, she and A Jian had strolled countless times through this residential area, holding hands, walking every path.
In a quieter corner of the Civic Park here, they even…
It was a moonless, pitch-black night; she covered her mouth, nervous and on edge.
Luckily no one came by for a full half hour; just thinking about it made her blush and her heart race.
Natsume Mio hurried into another alley, made a few turns, and just then saw the White Toyota slowly approaching, moving very slowly, clearly looking for a spot.
It finally stopped in front of the Myo-in Temple parking lot, then drove in.
Natsume Mio hid behind a thick tree trunk, secretly observing the situation over there.
…
Sakamoto Ken and Kaji Keiko got out of the car.
A young man in monk robes was sweeping nearby; spotting Sakamoto Ken, he quickened his pace and walked over.
“A Jian? Long time no see, what brings you to the temple?”
“Da Gu.” Sakamoto Ken smiled and waved at him. “Got something today. This is my editor; mind if we borrow your parking lot?”
He introduced to Kaji Keiko: “This is my friend, Da Gu, you know, Da Gu from Ultraman Tiga.”
“Hahaha, hello hello, what an interesting name.” Kaji Keiko smiled with crinkled eyes and said.
“Sis actually knows Tiga!” Da Gu was slightly surprised.
“Sis believes in the light too~” Kaji Keiko clasped her hands together toward the young monk, bowing slightly in greeting: “Hello, nice to meet you. Sorry for the trouble.”
Da Gu waved it off; seeing it was a pretty big sis who even knew Tiga, he flicked his stylish bangs again and said: “No problem, plenty of spots in the parking lot, park anywhere. Wait, hold on? A Jian, you just said this is your… editor?”
Kaji Keiko smiled and introduced herself: “Yes, I’m Sakamoto Sensei’s editor-in-charge.”
“Huh… like from a publishing house or something?”
“Shueisha.” Kaji Keiko nodded and said.
“Shueisha?!” Da Gu’s eyes went wide; he looked at Sakamoto Ken in shock. “A Jian, you debuted drawing manga?”
Sakamoto Ken nodded: “Yeah, something like that.”
“Already published? I gotta check out your manga!” Da Gu said.
“Currently serializing on WEB, but starting the Monday after next, it’ll be in《 Weekly Shonen JUMP》.”
“JUMP?!” Da Gu’s voice rose a few notches. “Nice one! I’ll definitely buy it then! Oh, what’s the manga called?”
“《 Chainsaw Man》,” Sakamoto Ken said. “Pen name is my real name; you’ll know it when you see it.”
“Got it! I’ll remember!” Da Gu gave Sakamoto Ken a thumbs-up. “Knew you’d make it big someday, A Jian!”
Sakamoto Ken waved at him, then turned to Kaji Keiko: “Editor, where should we chat?”
Kaji Keiko thought for a moment and asked: “Sakamoto Sensei, is your place convenient?”
Sakamoto Ken hesitated slightly but nodded: “It’s not impossible, just the room’s a bit rundown; don’t mind.”
“No worries,” Kaji Keiko waved quickly and said. “Just wanna discuss some arrangements from the company face-to-face; won’t take long.”
“Alright then, the apartment’s that way.” Sakamoto Ken said, leading the way toward the old apartment building.
The two walked side by side on the quiet path; Kaji Keiko curiously glanced back at the temple and asked casually: “By the way, you know the monks here?”
“Known Da Gu for a few years; he’s been a monk here since junior high graduation.”
“No high school?” Kaji Keiko was a bit surprised.
“This temple was founded by his father; back then his dad got seriously ill and urgently called him back to learn the temple’s affairs, to prepare him to inherit the family business.”
“Oh…” Kaji Keiko nodded. “So Da Gu is the head priest now?”
“No.” Sakamoto Ken shook his head. “His dad’s illness got cured later.”
“Oh oh, that’s really a pity… ack ptooey, sorry sorry, slip of the tongue…” Kaji Keiko realized her mistake, covered her mouth, her face showing an awkward expression.
Sakamoto Ken couldn’t help laughing: “It’s fine; we used to tease him about it all the time.”
Kaji Keiko finally relaxed; looking at the imposing temple building, she sighed: “This temple looks like it has some history; so his father founded it…”
“His father is 87.” Sakamoto Ken added.
“Huh?” Kaji Keiko was even more surprised. “Then Da Gu this year…”
“Da Gu’s my age.” Sakamoto Ken said. “His mom is not even 50 yet; she came to the temple to bury her husband’s ashes, knew Da Gu’s dad; pretty impressive, right.”
“Ha… yeah, that’s impressive…” Kaji Keiko’s mouth corner twitched slightly, hard to comment; she asked again, “So you two played together a lot as kids?”
“Not really; I haven’t lived here long.” Sakamoto Ken shook his head. “But we’re close; there was a time I came to the temple a lot for free meals.”
“Free meals?” Kaji Keiko looked at him doubtfully.
Sakamoto Ken shrugged, saying flatly: “Yeah, was broke back then, barely had food; thanks to Da Gu’s family and the store manager grandma at the convenience store next door.”
By the time they finished talking, they had reached the apartment building downstairs.
Sakamoto Ken stopped and pointed at the building before them, its exterior walls covered in rusty sheet metal.
“I live here.” He turned to Kaji Keiko and said.
Kaji Keiko carefully sized up the house, which was probably twice her age in years built, calmly hummed “mm,” and followed Sakamoto Ken inside.
