Hakuto checked his phone, but Nao hadn't replied to his message. She was probably getting back at him—after all, he had ignored her for an entire day.
"Well, at least I know the concert venue..." Hakuto waved his hand dismissively. He had his reasons for not replying. Worst case, he'd let Nao punch him a couple of times.
...
At the concert venue, Hakuto walked around with his coat in hand, looking for Nao.
There weren't too many people around, so it didn't take long for him to spot her.
She had her hair tied up in a high ponytail today, wearing a light pink dress and carrying a small bag on her back. She was fiddling with a camera by the roadside.
"Long time no see~ President!" Hakuto greeted her. Don't ask why he didn't wave—his whole body was still sore.
Hearing his voice, Nao stopped what she was doing and turned her attention to him.
"Oh! I thought you'd already been locked up in some research lab."
"If any scientist could catch me, I'd have nothing but respect for them. They'd be—" he held up a thumbs-up, "—a legend!"
"(눈_눈) Chibicon, huh... but at least you're not late today."
She waved her hand. "There's still some time before the concert starts. Let's walk around first."
"Hey, hey, I even put on earrings for today. Aren't you going to say something about it?"
"Huh? Say something...?"
Hakuto felt an inexplicable pain in his chest, along with a faint sense of existential crisis.
"You never compliment me either..."
Hearing that, Hakuto didn't hesitate. He immediately responded,
"President, you look like a goddess descending to earth today! A reincarnation of Diao Chan! Even the gods would bow to your beauty!"
Hakuto thought, after a compliment like that, she had to respond, right? But the next second, he heard Nao say,
"You've got good taste."
"You—!"
Hakuto shook his head helplessly. He decided not to waste energy on this matter anymore. Whether he got a compliment or not didn't matter.
"Fine, fine. You look handsome today. Satisfied?"
"Yes, yes! I thought so too!"
Hearing her words, Hakuto's face instantly lit up with a smug smile.
After all, he had spent his whole morning getting ready for this moment.
"Alright, alright, I need to buy some ZHIEND merch. Go entertain yourself."
Hakuto nodded, but a second later, he realized the way she said that—it was like she was talking to a little kid.
"Huh? Am I some kind of child to you?"
But Nao had already walked away, not hearing his complaint.
Hakuto watched her leave. He thought about following but decided to just sit and wait instead.
It was unclear how much time had passed when Nao suddenly ran back to him, holding a phone case with a ZHIEND logo on it.
"Hakuto! Look! Look! I got it! The limited edition one!"
"Huh? What?"
"The ZHIEND limited-edition merch! I've wanted this for so long!"
Her face was beaming with joy—she must really love that piece of merch.
Maybe Hakuto was the only one she could share this excitement with at this moment, which was why she had rushed over to him.
Hakuto looked at her and smiled.
Sometimes, the president could be kind of cute.
"Oh, right... I got something for you too..." she said while rummaging through her small bag.
"Huh? I got something too?"
"Yeah, just grabbed it for you..." Nao was still searching through her bag. "Oh! Found it!"
She pulled out a pair of earrings and handed them to Hakuto.
"What's this?"
"A ZHIEND collab earring set. I got there just in time—the last one was still available. Since you were wearing earrings today, I thought I'd buy it for you."
To be honest, Hakuto was surprised that she had thought of him while buying merchandise. But there was one small problem—he didn't have pierced ears.
And the earrings in his hand clearly weren't clip-ons.
Still, since it was a thoughtful gift, he didn't want to dampen her mood. So he carefully put them away.
"Thanks, President."
"Alright, get up. Let's check out the other stalls."
"Pull me up."
"Huh?"
"I said, pull me up."
Nao looked at his outstretched hand with a puzzled expression. After hesitating for a moment, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him to his feet.
"What, did you wear yourself out from dating other girls?"
"No, I just wanted to see if you could pull me up."
"Huh? So pointless..."
Nao had no idea that Hakuto would end up passing out during the concert later. She just thought he was messing around.
"By the way, are you hungry, President?"
"Hm? Are you hungry?"
"A little... I didn't have breakfast."
"Wait, I remember there's a food street near the venue..."
Saying that, Nao grabbed Hakuto's arm and led him to the food stalls.
The moment they stepped onto the street, Hakuto was immediately drawn to the food on display.
Even though it was called a food street, Japan only had so many local snacks. After a while, they all started to feel repetitive.
But just as he was about to settle for something, a sign at one of the food stalls caught his eye.
It wasn't that the sign was particularly flashy—it was the words written on it.
"Chinese Specialty—Fried Turtle"
Seeing the words "Chinese Specialty," Hakuto suddenly got interested and instinctively walked over.
"Fried turtle? That's considered a specialty?"
"Not sure. China is huge. Maybe it's a local delicacy somewhere..."
"Oh, right, you're from China..."
Hakuto and Nao approached the stall, and the vendor enthusiastically greeted them.
"Hey, kid, want to try some fried turtle? It's a famous Chinese snack."
"Uh-huh..."
Hakuto gave a half-hearted response. In China, forget fried turtle—even fried rats might be considered a local delicacy in some remote areas.
It had been a while since he'd seen something from his homeland, so he got a little curious.
"Boss, which part of China is this from?"
Hakuto guessed the vendor was probably just using the label as a gimmick, but he still wanted to ask.
The vendor hesitated for a moment, swallowed nervously, and then stammered,
"I think... a place called Beiping."
"Pfft!!"
The moment Hakuto heard "Beiping," he nearly collapsed on the spot.
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