I Was Possessed By An Unknown Manga

EP.26 Golden Week

A long week passed, and Golden Week finally begun.

At this time, Japanese tourists from home and abroad were rushing back in the country.

However, my hardworking parents decided to open the restaurant again today.

Because of this, the school I went to every day and the local gym were closed, and I was lying on the floor of my room, cluttered with dumbbells and manga, breathing still.

‘Is the appointment with the president still far off?’

I woke up at 4 a.m. as usual, but I didn’t have to pack my lunch, so I had a lot of free time in the morning.

So, I simply ran jogging at dawn for exercise, but I didn’t work any muscle to that extent, so as soon as I got home, I worked out for about two hours.

Still, I had enough time, so I read a manga from the bookshelf, but it was not fun because I already read it.

I thought I should go to Akihabara to buy a new manga when I would have time.

When I was staring at the ceiling blankly, my mother, who was about to go to work at the restaurant, passed her head into the room and asked.

“Yoo-sung, I heard you’re hanging out with your friend today? What are you going to do for dinner?”

I suddenly raised my upper body when I heard that.

“I’ll contact you in advance if I think I’m going to eat outside.”

Then my mother nodded and took something out of her pants pocket.

“Here’s your allowance! Buy something delicious with this!”

What my mother gave me while saying that was a green bill.

It was also known as a Yukichi.¹A slang term for 10,000 yen. The term derives from the Japanese translator and political scientist Fukuzawa Yukichi, whose picture appears on the 10,000-yen banknote.

I received a 10,000-yen bill with a puzzled look on my face.

“Can you really give me this much all of a sudden?”

Then my mother slapped me on the shoulder and said,

“My son, who works out in the corner of the house every day, says he’s hanging out with a friend after a long time, so I can give him this much. Tell me if it’s not enough. I’ll give you more.”

“No, this is enough. Thank you.”

“Okay, then I’ll go down to the restaurant with dad, have fun!”

After saying that, my mother left the front door with a brave smile.

After I came out to see my mother off, I felt that it was almost time for the appointment, so I decided to wash up and prepare.

Because I was supposed to meet with the president in Asakusa by 12 p.m.

***

Asakusa was a temple and traditional street in Daito-ku, Tokyo.

It was also famous as a tourist attraction because many people come to Senso-ji Temple every year on January 1st and make New Year’s wishes.

I left home around 10:30 because it was taking about an hour by subway from Setagaya-gu, where I was living, to get there.

Unlike subways in Seoul, subway lines in Tokyo were extremely complicated, so the longer the distance, the harder the transfer process was.

Still, I somehow found my way and arrived in Asakusa at exactly 11:40 p.m.

What you could see when coming up from the subway platform were wooden buildings built in the old way.

In the new year, people were overflowing to the point of bursting, but the number of people walking around did not seem to be that high, perhaps because it was spring.

As I went to Senso-ji, which was the place of appointment, I saw a huge red light of Kaminarimon²The Kaminarimon is the outer of two large entrance gates that ultimately leads to the Sensō-ji in Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan., the symbol of Asakusa.

I saw a familiar figure in front of it.

“President!”

Unlike usual, the president, who always wore the black school uniforms, was standing in front of the door wearing a luxurious white dress and a small handbag on her shoulder, she looked back at my black straight hair, when she heard my voice.

“You’re late!!”

“What?”

“Do you know what time it is?”

When I heard the president’s prompt, I hurriedly took out my cell phone and checked the time.

[11:50]

“Uh… I came 10 minutes earlier than the appointment.”

“If you’ve made an appointment with a lady like me, isn’t it common sense for a gentleman to come and wait 30 minutes before the appointment?”

“Is that so?”

While I was stuttering for the first time in my life, I thought it could be because the president was from a powerful Chinese family.

When else would she have had the experience of coming to the meeting place and waiting for someone, when she was supported by people around her.

I acknowledged the lack of consideration and apologized to the president.

“I’m sorry I came late. Next time, I won’t make such a mistake.”

Then the president crossed her arms and said,

“Hm, Kim Yoo-sung is my subordinate, so I’ll forgive you just this once. Instead!”

“Instead?”

“You should buy me a green tea ice cream from that confectionery store!”

Easy!

While saying so, I saw the president pointing to a street stall selling green ice cream with her fan.

…If that was the only way to soothe the sulking president, it was a simple business.

Immediately, I ran to the stall and bought two 300-yen green tea ice creams and handed them over, and the president accepted the ice cream with shining eyes.

“Hmm~ It’s delicious!”

I tasted a bit of my green tea ice cream with the president, tilted my head and asked.

“Unexpectedly, you have a low-cut line for industrial products using green tea?”

Then the president answered with her ice cream in one hand.

“Green tea is more delicious when it’s expensive, but usually, industrial products like this only add green tea scent, right? No matter how picky I am, I don’t ask for great quality even for industrial products.”

“…You’ve grown.”

“Ugh! What’s that! That warm gaze!”

“No, just half a year ago, I remembered you cutting steak in the student council room, saying you didn’t want to eat ordinary people’s food.”

“That was a long time ago! I can eat at least the food of ordinary people now!”

The president gasped as she said so, but she didn’t seem to be really angry, but seemed more like she wanted to hide her shame.

It was kind of a dark story.

“Anyway, since we bought ice cream, let’s decide where to go first. Wasn’t today’s goal to buy a gift for a Russian student who will come to Ichijo Academy as an exchange student after this Golden Week?”

“Yikes.”

The president suddenly covered her mouth with her palm.

When I looked at her suspiciously, the president immediately opened the fan and covered her up with the usual lady’s smile.

“Oh, my! Don’t think that Saionji Kumiko forgot that! You’ve got it all wrong!”

It seemed to everyone that she was trying to gloss over what she had forgotten, but I decided to move on without pointing it out.

“Well, can I ask you a few questions first?”

“Ask anything!”

“What does the new exchange student likes?”

Then the president answered without much thought.

“I asked them on the phone last time, and they said anything related to traditional Japanese culture would be fine.”

“Traditional culture.”

Certainly, if so, it was the reason why the president chose Asakusa as the meeting place.

Because it was hard to find a street that had this in Tokyo.

“What’s their gender?”

“It’s a woman.”

“Then why don’t we look around paper umbrellas, Buddha statues, kimonos³The kimono is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan., and yukata⁴A yukata is an unlined cotton summer kimono, worn in casual settings such as summer festivals and to nearby bathhouses.?”

“Personally, I was thinking about Maneki-neko⁵The maneki-neko is a common Japanese figurine which is often believed to bring good luck to the owner which depicts a cat, traditionally a calico Japanese Bobtail, with a paw raised in a Japanese beckoning gesture., Temari⁶Temari balls are a folk art form and Japanese craft., and Ebisu, but that’s also good!”

“Then let’s take a look around Asakusa Shopping Center, focusing on the things that we said.”

“Great! I’ve been to Asakusa often, so I’ll show you the way today!”

The president confidently raised her nose as she said so and began to walk to lead the way.

I followed the president’s small back and took a big bite of my ice cream that had begun to melt.

***

At that time.

In the black limousine parked on the road around Asakusa, there were two people, like the spy war in a movie, who spread all kinds of communication equipment on the floor.

“Miss, there’s a shop selling paper crafts two blocks away from the spot. I naturally suggest that you go in there.”

“Lady, the point is to walk lightly with your hands behind your back. Men fall in love with women’s unexpected appearance. What? Isn’t this my type? No, what do you think I am?”

Akagi Shinjiro and Akagi Minami.

Their status at school were the vice-president and the student council accountant, respectively, but their real identity was the butler and maid who had been together since childhood to serve Saionji Kumiko, a direct descendant of the Saionji family.

The two were specialists specialized in all kinds of spy warfare and factor protection, as they learned all the skills of Kougaru, a ninja under the Saionji family.

Those two were now making all-out efforts for the date of their beloved lady to be successful!

“Lady, you can now appeal your charm by sweeping your hair slightly behind your ears.”

“Now that you’ve looked around enough paper crafts, let’s move on to the next store.”

But did they know?

Too many cooks spoil the broth!

The perfect discord was going to be created by Minami’s thorough personality and personal tastes and Kumiko’s own will and spirit!

Saionji Kumiko’s Asakusa date had only just begun!

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