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Togawa Sakiko planned to challenge herself to not eat for the entire day tomorrow.
What gave her this confidence was naturally a voucher for an internet cafe given to her by a senior at work, as a thank you for covering her shift.
At first, Togawa Sakiko intended to sell this thing directly. After all, the young girl's family had fallen on hard times, and she had accumulated a lot of debt. Even the famous Togawa family no longer had much to do with her. Everything depended on her own efforts. Even if it was just 100 yen, she didn't care as long as it could be converted into money.
However, the voucher's expiration date was today, and it was clearly unrealistic to sell it and use it for shopping in such a short time. So, in order not to waste the voucher, the girl had no choice but to use it herself after work.
In the past, when her family was wealthy, the young girl had never been to an internet cafe. At first, she was a little worried about whether it would be particularly dirty, messy, and full of strange people. However, after actually experiencing it, it was unexpectedly comfortable, allowing the girl to rarely forget the embarrassment of reality and settle down to study properly.
Most importantly, drinks here were unlimited, and while there weren't many snacks and they were all cheap junk food, they were also unlimited. This suddenly gave Miss Togawa Sakiko the confidence to save tomorrow's meal expenses.
"The coffee's gone..."
The girl, halfway through her preview, was about to take a sip of coffee to refresh herself when she found her cup already empty.
So she had no choice but to put down her textbook and run to the coffee machine at the counter to refill her cup—although the girl actually preferred black tea to coffee, even a high-end internet cafe couldn't provide authentic Darjeeling, and even the coffee was just ordinary cheap instant coffee powder.
When she arrived at the coffee machine, the girl found that someone was already there.
The person was a boy about her age, who was muttering something while holding his phone.
Although she couldn't hear clearly, she did catch the keyword "Togawa Zaibatsu."
The girl, completely surprised to hear the surname Togawa in such a place, frowned. If the boy in front of her hadn't been facing the coffee machine the entire time, never turning around to notice her behind him, she probably would have thought he was deliberately saying it for her to hear.
It's better not to bother him, just wait for him to finish making his coffee and leave.
But then, what the other person said next made the girl feel conflicted.
"Looking at it this way, should I really buy shares in this metaverse company under the Togawa Zaibatsu?"
In the past, Sakiko didn't care much about her family's situation, but even so, she knew that among the industries her father was responsible for before being cast aside by the family like an old shoe, there was a metaverse component—as a pure negative asset.
If he were to consider it a positive point and buy that stock, the boy in front of her would definitely lose a lot of money, wouldn't he?
If he likes to gamble, he should be allowed to lose everything and learn a lesson. Sakiko thought.
Even though she thought that in her heart, and even though she no longer had any connection to the Togawa Family, the thought that the boy in front of her would suffer misfortune because of this still made the girl feel a sense of guilt.
"If I were you, I wouldn't buy that kind of thing."
So, before she knew it, that somewhat indifferent remark had already slipped out.
She had originally thought the boy, who had been startled, would refute her, but his ears seemed unexpectedly soft; he didn't doubt her cold words at all, and instead even asked Asagumo Chihaya for her opinion on other stocks.
However, giving the hint that the Togawa Family's situation was bad was already the limit of what the girl was willing to communicate with him. She had no obligation or interest in continuing to discuss the stock market with him—not to mention that Asagumo Chihaya herself had almost no concept of stocks. Her only knowledge came from some casual remarks her father had made before he became the decadent person he was now.
Just as the girl was getting a bit impatient and wanted to remind him to quickly finish his coffee and move aside, the other party unexpectedly revealed his tragic identity, leaving the unprepared Asagumo Chihaya stunned.
Although his tone didn't sound as desperate and helpless as he made himself out to be, Asagumo Chihaya still felt that most people wouldn't joke about such things.
The girl thought it was an incredibly foolish act for him to gamble his tuition hopes on the stock market, but she now understood that even if she tried to dissuade him, it would probably be useless.
Forget it, it's just this once anyway, and I'm just repeating what my old man said before; I can't guarantee success.
Then the girl spoke as if to herself.
"The Suzuki Family seems to be involved in some case… If you really want to invest, the Nakiri Family's food-related industries and the Shichijou Family's entertainment-related industries are relatively high-quality assets. If you're really not confident, the Sanzenin Family's industries certainly won't have surprising gains, but they are stable… I'm not familiar with the Shinomiya Family, so I won't make a rash judgment."
—Asakura's Perspective—
Asakura clenched his fist, making a face like a god of a new world.
That's the good thing about transmigrating into a slice-of-life anime world: the proportion of good people is surprisingly high, and those who can be called beautiful girls are often not bad people, and what they say is quite credible.
"You want coffee, right? This coffee machine is a bit slow, you go first."
Asakura gentlemanly gave up his spot to her. In order not to give her a reason to refuse, he even deliberately took out his phone and operated it with movements as swift as a flash masseuse.
Leaving enough funds to ensure a period of normal living and for a desperate comeback, he then followed her guidance, selling everything unnecessary and buying all the stocks she mentioned.
Asakura looked up and saw the girl press the coffee machine once, then show a puzzled expression when no coffee came out of the spout. She then seemed startled by the machine's sound, and only when the coffee gurgled out did she show a look of 'I see' realization.
Did she not use a coffee machine because the first drink at the internet cafe was delivered directly by the waiter?
How should I put it, it's a very common item, but the girl's reaction was quite novel. Coupled with her obvious noblewoman aura, her startled and surprised expressions inexplicably had a kind of strong yet cute feeling.
The girl seemed to notice Asakura's gaze, glared at him fiercely, then quickly left, clutching her cup.
"Ah, I forgot to ask her name…"
Only then did Asakura realize he didn't even know her name.
But it didn't matter. Although she was wearing a jacket, Asakura still keenly noticed that the lining beneath her jacket was a shirt from the Soubu High School uniform.
Since they were classmates from the same school, there was no need to rush; there would always be opportunities to get to know each other.
Of course, this all depended on the accuracy of her inside information.
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