Chapter 36: Looking for a present
(Ryoto''s pov)
A week has passed since my unfortunate reunion. Thankfully Akiho didn''t do anything crazy and didn''te to my school, but now I have another problem. Rito''s birthday ising up soon, 16th October to be exact, and I don''t know what present should I give him.
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*PING*
*NEW QUEST*
Mission: "Finding a gift"
Objective 1: Find a present for Rito''s birthday that he''ll like
Reward: 30 SP, one random item (item will be kept in an inventory-like ce until the user wants to use it. It can''t be put back, so be cautious.)
Failure: ''Spring of Drowned Girl'' curse.
Duration of punishment: one month
__________
''What is this curse?''
Karen: "You''ll turn into a girl every time you''re sshed with cold water. The effects can be reversed by being sshed by hot water."
Having found a new determination, I started my journey to find the best possible gift.
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Four hours and zero progresster, o still didn''t find anything. I could buy him a nt and call it a day, but it would be too easy, and I''m not risking failing this mission.
I was walking through the town deep in my thoughts. I wasn''t panicking as I still had a few days, but time was running out slowly, and every moment without the gift was a moment closer to being cursed.
As I was walking around, I was stopped by a familiar voice.
Kyouko: "Em... Excuse me."
Ryoto: "Yes?"
I turned towards the voice source and saw someone I didn''t expect to meet so soon again. It was Kyouko Kirisaki, a famous actress. She is best known for her role as Magical Kyouko.
Kyouko: "I noticed that you were walking around for a while, and I wondered what you were up to."
I then proceeded to exin my situation to Kyouko.
Kyouko: "I see, so you are searching for a gift for your younger brother."
Ryoto: "That''s pretty much it, but I have no idea what to give him."
Kyouko pondered about for a while and said with a smile.
Kyouko: "Then I''ll help you. I may not know what the boys will like, but it''s always easier to buy a gift with someone else''s opinion. You can think of it as me repaying you for the help thest time."
I wanted to refuse at first. I know that she''s busy with her job, and she probably doesn''t have a lot of free time without her fans flooding her, but if she wants to do it, who am I to stop her.
Ryoto: "Sure, thank you for the help, Kirisaki-San."
Kyouko: "You''re welc-. What did you just call me?"
She was shocked by what I called her, but I don''t recall saying anything weird.
Ryoto: "I said ''thank you for the help, Kirisaki-San''. Did I say something wrong?"
Kyouko: "How do you know my name?"
I was confused by her question.
Ryoto: "You introduced yourself thest time we met, did you not?"
Kyouko: "No, I said that my name is Kyouko Kerisaki."
The realization hit me. So that''s what she meant.
Ryoto: "Oh right, you did. Sorry, I forgot, but you need a better fake name to fool anyone. You barely changed it."
Kyouko looked embarrassed by it.
Kyouko: "Well, excuse me, I panicked! But if you knew, why didn''t you say anything."
Ryoto: "What should I say? OMG, it''s Kyouko Kirisaki! Do you have a boyfriend!? Where do you live!? Can I have an autograph!? "
I faked my excitement through the whole sentence. It shocked Kyouko a little, not because of my sudden change but because of my acting. As a professional actress, she can tell if someone''s acting is good or not, and mine was great if I can say so myself. Thanks to wearing a metaphorical mask for a long time, I am pretty talented at faking my emotions.
Kyouko: "Are you an actor Yuuki-kun?"
Ryoto: "I don''t think so."
Kyouko: "Do you want to?"
Ryoto: "No."
Kyouko: "Why? With your talent, you could be a great actor, I guarantee it!"
She gave me a thumbs up.
Ryoto: "Thank you for thepliment, but I must still refuse it. You see, I don''t like being in the spotlight very much."
Kyouko: "I see... I''ll respect your decision then, but if you change your mind, call me but don''t spread it. It''s my private number."
She gave me her phone number with a wink. I''m starting to understand why she is so popr.
Kyouko: "Well, now that this is out of the way, I should probably help you with your original problem."
Ryoto: "Right, the present."
Kyouko: "How about you tell me what he likes and your ideas for a gift as we start looking around."
Ryoto: "My first thought was a nt. Rito always took care of flowers at school, and he even is a member of the gardening club at our school, but we already have a rare nt in our garden, and I won''t find a better one easily. In middle school, he enjoyed football a lot, but he stopped ying it in Highschool so I wouldn''t go in that direction. Otherwise, he doesn''t have any major interest, and that''s why I''m lost."
Kyouko: "I see, it''s certainly difficult to choose a present for someone like him. Why not just give him a nt you like. It''s the thought that counts after all."
Ryoto: "No! This present must be the best he ever got!"
Kyouko got startled a bit by my outburst, but I couldn''t guess in a million years what she thought about it.
Kyouko: ''He must really care about his brother to get so emotional over a present. I''ll help him to the best of my abilities!''
Kyouko seemed pumped about something while I smiled wryly.
We walked for a bit, took a break at a local cafe, and talked about trivial stuff.
Kyouko ordered an iced coffee at the cafe while I chose ck coffee. I wouldn''t say that I love this drink, but something about drinking something bitter and then tasting slowly disappearing makes me want to drink it.
At some point, I took a sip out of Kyouko''s straw that she used to drink, but after I did that, she became red and started mumbling something about an indirect kiss.
We had a great time overall, but we still didn''t find anything that would make a great gift for Rito.
Kyouko: "Are you sure your brother doesn''t have anything he likes besides the things you mentioned?"
Ryoto: "Well, it''s not a thing, but he likes..."
The realization hit me the second time today. I finally had an idea for a great present for Rito.
I thanked Kyouko for her help and a great date by shaking her hand a tad too vigorously. Hearing the word date, she became red once more, but before she could say anything, I quickly ran towards my new destination to prepare the gift.
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END
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