My love is abyss mode

Chapter 152 The Senior Student is a Little Anxious (5.8K)

Kurogane Kiba quietly closed the sound room door behind him, walked up to Shinkai Shiona, and saw her raise her neck, her innocent face showing guilt, but her sparkling blue eyes did not look like she was reflecting on her actions.

"Are you really reflecting on your actions, or are you just putting on an act for Momo?" Kuronuma Kiba asked softly with a helpless smile.

"Well, of course it's just for show."

Shinonome Shionai stood up straight, pouted, and said in a defiant tone, "You understand, right? There are some things you just can't do, like math. To play a drum beat at 190 BPM, a beginner like me can't possibly do it. Momo is being too mean."

As she spoke, she raised her arm and used her other hand to pinch the soft flesh of her arm to show Kuronuma:
"Generally speaking, drummers who play this kind of beat are either 40-year-old men with muscular arms, or even older and more experienced band members. Although I'm slightly overweight, that's because of my chest; I don't want to become a muscular superwoman!"

Seeing Shinkai Shionai constantly muttering and making excuses, Kuronuma Kiba raised his hand and placed it on her head, her slender chestnut hair smooth to the touch: "Alright, Momo isn't blaming you, she should know you can't do it."

Feeling the touch on her head, Shinkai Shiona paused, stopped muttering to herself, and stared blankly at him with her blue eyes.

Her innocent face was filled with disbelief, as if such a touch should never have happened to her, and was a complete surprise.

"Just how lowly she is," Kuronuma thought to himself, gazing into the clear, watery light in her azure eyes. His voice inevitably carried a complex sigh: "I'm going to a cocktail party tonight. Will you come with me?"

"I--"

Shinkai Shiona's eyes widened, and she was about to agree, but then she remembered that Matsuzaka Kanon had come with her today, so she changed her mind and said, "I really want to go, but doesn't Kiba have a female companion?"

Although she was slow-witted, she noticed that Matsuzaka Kanon had changed into a very pretty outfit today and even wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses.

"Won't I bother you?" Shinkai Shionai asked timidly.

If Kuronuma didn't know she was an idiot, he would definitely think that the person who said that was a gold digger.

"No, the party should have a buffet, you can find a place to eat by yourself."

Upon hearing that there was free self-service, and possibly very high-end, Shinkai Shionai showed a tempted expression, her eyes quite wavering.

After thinking for a moment, she shook her head, leaned back against the wall of the corridor, and whispered, "Never mind, I don't know how to face Hana-nee."

This is just a euphemism; in reality, it means that Shinkai Shiona doesn't want to meet Matsuzaka Kanon, let alone attend a party together.

Realizing this, Kuronuma frowned slightly, but ultimately did not order or force her: "Wait for me a while, I'll come find you later."

After saying that, he pushed open the door and left the backstage area, entering the lobby of the LiveHouse.

Matsuzaka Kanon remained seated, smiling and talking quietly with Inada Miyabi. When Kuronuma Kiba approached, she cast a gentle glance at him with her beautiful gray eyes: "Did Shiona-chan agree?"

She seemed a little reluctant, but I didn't force her.

Kuronuma picked up the half-finished cola, tilted his head back and drank the remaining half cup, then threw the plastic cup far away into the trash can: "I'll ask Momo to come along, she might agree."

"No. Even if she doesn't stay with me, she won't be willing."

Matsuzaka Kanon gently shook her head and said with great certainty, "Shiona-chan is very fragile and sensitive. She is very afraid that I will hurt her."

“If I were a bit more assertive, she would probably agree. It would be better if you were here tonight,” Kuronuma said frankly.

Hearing this, Matsuzaka Kanon pondered for a moment, then looked at him with the eyes of someone entrusting something important, and earnestly instructed him, "I won't go tonight, and it just so happens that Toyama and I don't get along. Hmm, maybe I can go talk to Shirakawa about some miscellaneous things. Tonight, you go alone with Shiona-chan. I'll tell you about the party and the current plans. If anything unexpected happens, just be prepared."

"Alright," Kuronuma Kiba reluctantly agreed.

Going to a cocktail party alone with Shinkai Shionai would most likely be very boring.

The cocktail party was a very common social occasion. This time, it was organized by the Toyama family to celebrate the successful conclusion of the National Kendo Tournament. Many people related to the Kendo Association would be attending, including Shinkai Shiona's biological father, who is one of the board members of the Kendo Association.

Simply put, these parasites that hinder the development of Kendo gather together to exchange benefits, celebrate this year's gains, and incidentally plan how to profit from Kendo next year.

Kuronuma didn't want to give them a friendly look, but fortunately, he represented the Hatsushino family, so no one would dare to say anything no matter how much he went too far.

However, the goal was not to cause trouble or disrupt the event, but to reveal the existence of Shinkai Shionai and gain everyone's recognition.

This wasn't a difficult task, but Matsuzaka Kanon still presented her two complete plans. Kuronuma Kiba carefully wrote them down and then went back to the long-term rented rehearsal room to find Shinkai Shiona.

Hatsushiro Ryo and Toyama Chitose were also in the rehearsal room. The former was sitting on a chair with his bass guitar in his arms, looking down as if he was thinking about something. The latter was sitting on a sofa close to the wall, her two long, straight legs taking up the entire sofa, her back against the wall as she read a comic book.

Shinai Shiona sat on a drum stool behind the drum set, holding her phone in both hands and tapping the screen with her thumbs, seemingly chatting with someone.

Hearing the door open, the three of them looked up at the same time, casting concerned glances.

Kuronuma raised his hand to his mouth, coughed lightly, and met Shinkai Shiona's blue eyes: "Kanon and Momo have other plans tonight, come with me."

Thud—the phone fell to the ground.

Shionai slowly tilted her head, taking a full few seconds to react before raising her hands high and beaming with joy: "Yay! It's Shionai-chan's victory again today!"

ben, beeng——

The sound of bass strumming came from the ceiling. Kuroguma Kiba turned to look at Hatsushino Ryo, then raised his right hand and solemnly promised, "I will be home before midnight tonight, not a minute later."

"..." Hatsushino Ryo nodded calmly, her wine-red eyes looking at the jubilant Shinkai Shiona, as if to say, "You're getting ahead of yourself."

After calming his girlfriend down, Kuroguma glanced at Toyama Chitose, who was engrossed in an 18+ manga. His lips moved slightly, but he ultimately said nothing. He turned and walked out of the rehearsal room: "Shionai, we're leaving now. Let's go buy you some clothes first."

"Okay—I'm here." Shinkai Shionai said sweetly, picking up her phone and catching up with him from behind.

Her bouncy footsteps made cheerful sounds on the corridor floor, her irregular skirt swaying at her sides as she walked out of the [Bad Puppet] door with Kuronuma.

The last rain of autumn has continued since last night; the gray sky is gloomy and dark, with cold raindrops falling incessantly.

Shinkai Shiona picked up a light green folding umbrella from the umbrella stand by the door, opened it, and held it over their heads. Because the cement steps were quite narrow, she was almost glued to Kuronuma Kiba.

The sweet scent of oranges wafted over, exceptionally clear through the fine rain.

"Hey, Ya, where are we going?"

"A hotel in Roppongi, there's an event in the banquet hall tonight." Kuronuma didn't reveal much information to her. According to Shirakawa Momo and Matsuzaka Kanon's idea, they had to catch Umishiona off guard to make the effect good enough.

Once on the ground, he turned around and looked Shinkai Shionai up and down, his gaze finally settling on her white ankle socks.

Ever since Kuronuma Kiba revealed his sexual fantasies, black stockings have become an essential part of the uniform at the private Seiran Academy. It seems that only Shinkai Shiona is different and wears them according to her own preferences.

"Let's go to Ginza first and buy you an outfit suitable for the occasion."

“I went to Tao to get the money and asked her to keep an eye on my spending.”

Shinonome Shionai raised her hand and gently tapped her head. She turned to go down the stairs, but Kuronuma Kiba grabbed her wrist and said with a helpless wry smile, "I'll pay."

He had never had a clear understanding of how stupid Shinkai Shiona was before, but now he finally realized that she was extremely worrying.

Knowing full well that she was about to be drawn into the vortex, she still handed the money to Shirakawa Momo, fearing that the cat wouldn't be able to control her.

Forget it, that’s fine too.

With these thoughts in mind, Kuronuma walked towards the black sedan parked by the roadside, opened the door, and got in first.

After folding up her umbrella, Shinkai Shiona climbed into the back seat and snuggled up to him, asking in a sweet, coquettish tone, "What are you going to do tonight, Kiba? Is there something important to discuss? Actually, it would be better if Kanon-nee went with you, wouldn't it?"

While happy that Kuronuma had chosen to go to the party with her instead of Matsusaka Kanon, she also felt pressured, worried about embarrassing herself.
"It's okay, it's just a formality. I should have plenty of time to eat with you."

Kuronuma Kiba rested his arm on the car door handle, one hand on his forehead, looking at the raindrops dappling the car window, and said to Kobayakawa Reiko in the driver's seat, "Go to Ginza, find a place where I can buy her clothes."

He didn't know where to buy pretty clothes for Shinkai Shiona, and Matsuzaka Kanon didn't mention it either, but Kobayakawa Reiko should know.

The vehicle started and slowly turned onto the main road, heading towards the central district.

Shinkai Shionai pursed her lower lip, wanting to share something interesting with Kuronuma Kiba, but seeing his serious expression, she was afraid of disturbing him.

A complex mix of emotions gradually overshadowed the clear light in her azure eyes. After hesitating for a long time, she mustered her courage and cautiously began to speak: "Ya, do you know anyone selling your photos on the college forum?"

"Huh? How did you know?" Kuronuma asked knowingly.

"Hehe, because I bought some photos of Ya before she transferred schools."

Facing his gaze, Shinkai Shiona scratched the back of her head sheepishly, then raised her hands and waved them in front of her, saying nervously, "I didn't do anything strange with your photo like Chitose-senpai did."

Hearing this, Kuronuma Kiba's forehead creased with annoyance. "As expected of you, senpai."

In that instant, a thought seemed to flash through his mind, and he suddenly realized that Chitose Toyama was calling him out of the blue to use him as a side dish.

Thinking of this, Kuronuma Kiba's expression darkened. He had unknowingly been taken advantage of by Toyama Chitose.

"So what did you do with my photo?"

"It's just something that's normally stuck on the wall." Shionai lied without batting an eye, as if that were really all there was to it.

If Shirakawa Momo hadn't secretly gone to her bedroom, Kuronuma Kiba might have actually believed her lies.

"Didn't you give the money to Tao?" he suddenly asked.

"Not all of it, just a large sum of money that I entrusted to her for safekeeping."

Shinonome Shionai smiled sheepishly, then quickly revealed a smug expression: "I'm not that stupid, but I did save a lot of money this month, which I think is great."

"How much?" Kuronuma asked curiously, perhaps able to gauge Shinkai Hideaki's attitude from the amount of money.

"Adding what I have on hand, I'll probably have about [amount] left this month, hmm."

Shiona Shinkai held up her fingers and struggled to calculate in front of her: "It seems like there are still 207,000 yen left, maybe a little more."

If you include living expenses, this amount is indeed not low, after all, the starting salary for office workers in Tokyo is around 100,000 yen per month.

Kuronuma Kiba roughly understood Shinkai Hideaki's attitude and asked, "Approximately how much money do you receive from Mr. Shinkai each month?"

"50 yen, and I also bought a new drum set this month."

Shinkai Shiona gave her answer without hesitation. Picking up the drum set, her sweet voice became even more cheerful: "I have three drum sets now. I can keep the ones that Ya gave me carefully."

"Was the house you're living in now also provided by Mr. Xinhai?"

"No, the house is registered under Hanon's name, so I don't really know either."

Seeing her raise her hands and make an "X" shape in front of her chest, Kuronuma nodded thoughtfully and continued to look at the rain outside the car window.

On the way to Ginza, Kuronuma learned about every aspect of Shionai's life in detail from her.

Reiko Kobayakawa eventually parked her car in front of the GINZASIX department store in Ginza. The fifth floor of this department store belongs to Dior, which is the world's largest flagship store and naturally also sells ready-to-wear clothing.

However, the brand's dresses were a bit odd for Kuroguma Kiba, so he ended up choosing a more classic retro embroidered dress for Shinkai Shiona, paired with a printed blazer.

This style of dressing might be a bit mature for her, but Shinkai Shiona herself doesn't mind.

“Your suit goes very well with your teeth. I’ll try my best not to embarrass you,” she said as she stood in front of the full-length mirror.

Since she had no objections, Kuronuma didn't insist that Shinkai Shiona change into clothes that highlighted her youthful energy. He also bought her a tote bag, and the two of them took a car to a hotel in Roppongi.

The area around Roppongi is full of glittering tower apartments, and in the damp air, neon lights blur with colorful hues.

The Radiant Hotel is located in the heart of Roppongi, and features a rooftop open-air hot spring and views of Tokyo Tower at night.

Shortly after the black sedan drove past Roppongi Hills, Kuronuma Ki saw through the car window a beautiful purple figure standing in front of the hotel building, holding an umbrella that matched the color of her hair and waiting.

Once the car had come to a stop, Chitose Toyama, like a hotel waiter, opened the car door for him and then greeted him in a perfunctory manner: "Good evening, sir, welcome to the Radiant Hotel."

"Senior, Tao told me not to get involved with you."

Kuronuma looked at her sly smile with a hint of helplessness, feeling a slight headache: "I'm not here as a guest today."

"I know, that's why I didn't prepare an invitation for you."

Toyama Chitose gestured for him to get out of the car, her charming face still smiling, her crystal-clear purple eyes sparkling with cunning: "But I've changed my mind. It doesn't matter if the Toyama family is involved. Anyway, they're just remnants of the old era, so it's good to destroy them."

"Did you change your mind, or did you lie to Tao?"

Kuronuma Kiba is certain the correct answer is the latter, but that's not important. What's important is that Toyama Chitose definitely has her own plan, and Matsuzaka Kanon and Shirakawa Momo's plan is going to be scrapped.

He climbed out of the car, straightened his suit collar, and a metallic glint appeared in his dark eyes.

In any case, we must achieve our goal tonight.

"What's with that expression? Although I don't like kendo, this party is also about my reputation."

Chitose Toyama casually placed her hand on Kiba Kuronuma's neck, seemingly unconcerned about her image. Tonight, she had specially worn a gorgeous purple gown, the silky fabric shimmering with light, exuding an elegant aura.

However, pairing it with an arm around the shoulder is not ladylike at all.

Chitose Toyama smiled and met Kiba Kuronuma's gaze. Her specially styled long purple hair was curled into waves at her forehead, casting shadows that covered half of her lightly made-up face: "Shiona-chan's matter is not as troublesome as you think."

"I think I guessed it. The problem actually lies in her own inner conflict."

Kuronuma nodded noncommittally, glanced back at Shinkai Shiona who was still sitting in the car observing the two, relaxed his expression, and lowered his voice to say:

"Shina was just unwilling to let her affect his career. He never mistreated her. I guess Shina was also the one who bought that house, since the Matsusaka family is very ordinary."

As Matsuzaka Kanon said, Shinkai Shiona is too sensitive and fragile. She can still remember the incident of taking a step when she was in elementary school. The so-called "secretly going to see her biological father, but something terrible happened" is probably just her own idea.

"It's good that you understand. So, I'll help you solve Shionai-chan's problem. You'll be my date tonight, how about it?" Toyama Chitose leaned closer, her bright red lips almost kissing his cheek.

Feeling the warm breath she was blowing, Kuronuma Fang pondered for a moment, then closed the car door: "Tell me your plan."

"I don't want to tell you, I can only say that instead of solving the problem, it's better to teach Shionai to be strong."

Chitose Toyama peeked out from the sleeve of her skirt and held it up to his eyes, a sentence written on her fair skin.

[Room 703, waiting for you tonight]
She'd had enough of the current situation. Rather than waiting in vain, she'd rather get her hands on it first, otherwise she'd fall too far behind—even the most idiotic Shinkai Shiona would succeed.

Upon seeing the unexpected content, Kuronuma Kiba was briefly surprised, but then realized that Shinkai Shiona couldn't keep a secret within the band, and then understood Toyama Chitose's thoughts.

She wanted to secretly develop a clandestine relationship, which was indeed a good way to get ahead, but...
Kuronuma removed Chitose Toyama's hand from his shoulder, straightened his suit, and said righteously, "Senpai, I promised I wouldn't betray Ryo on my own initiative. Please think of another way."

"Okay, I underestimated you."

Chitose Toyama was not discouraged. She walked behind Kiba Kuronuma, opened the car door he had just closed, and stepped inside. "The waiter will take you to the banquet hall. He's in a small bar where it's convenient to talk. You should have seen his photo. I'll chat with Shionai-chan. Remember to be my date."

"If you can really solve the problem, I hope Shionai-chan won't complain to me later."

"I won't bully her."

After hearing her say that, Kuronuma Kiba gave Kobayakawa Reiko a meaningful look before stepping into the hotel.

After watching his figure disappear through the hotel gate, Chitose Toyama closed the car door and said to Reiko Kobayakawa, "Turn on the recording. My junior is more protective of his own than I thought."

After saying that, she raised her hand and brushed aside the long purple hair that fell beside her face, looking at Shionai Shiona with an extremely dissatisfied gaze that could hurt anyone: "Shiona-chan, do you know why Kiba brought you here today?"

Facing those intensely beautiful eyes, Shinonome Shionai moved away, puffing out her chest to encourage herself: "Ya said he wants me to accompany him to the party."

She thought that Chitose Toyama had come to take her place.

"I didn't want to call you stupid, but you really are."

Toyama Chitose sighed silently, then after making a sarcastic remark, her tone abruptly changed, becoming violent:
"Hey, don't you think you're causing your junior a lot of trouble? Let me guess, you're just playing the victim, talking about heavy topics, and leaving all the troublesome, complicated, and boring things to your junior. Is that really okay?"

The fox may not be as venomous as the cat, but its language is sharp as a knife, precisely dissecting Shinai Shiona's selfish thoughts.

There was no other way; if we didn't stop it, the situation would really turn into something that Chitose Toyama couldn't accept.

Thinking that even the dumbest dog was ahead of her, her voice became even fiercer: "You're not a child anymore. It's okay to be a little selfish, but wearing these adult clothes, shouldn't you learn to be strong? Matsuzaka has spoiled you rotten."

Faced with the revelation, Shinkai Shiona remained silent, only reaching for the car door, intending to chase after Kuronuma Kiba.

She had just opened the car door and hadn't even taken a step when she heard Toyama Chitose's next words. Her body tensed up abruptly, her whole body stiffened, and her hand that was pushing the door stopped in mid-air.

"Ya is meeting with your biological father right now. Be good and don't disturb them. I need his help with something." Chitose Toyama twirled a strand of purple hair between her fingers, a sly smile flickering in her purple eyes as she watched Shionai Shinai's retreating figure.

(End of this chapter)