Tokyo, but I'm a deceitful scumbag.

"Chizuru, look, this is a video I just filmed!"

Kudo Nanase handed her phone to her companion, whom she called Chizuru, and said, "How about it? I'm planning to edit this in a couple of days and post it as a vlog~"

"Mmm, it looks great!"

The other person said softly, "But is that enough? In your style, shouldn't you tell some supernatural horror stories? Like being cursed by a vengeful spirit in the sea while sleeping, dreaming that you were reborn but it was the day before the college entrance exam, and then you didn't know anything or anything like that."

"Isn't your understanding of the supernatural and horror a bit strange, even though it does sound a little scary..."

Kudo Nanase scratched her head and said, "Of course, to be honest, I did want to add some supernatural elements... but didn't I tell you last time? I recently got a warning from the platform and need to lay low for a while, you know that..."

She wanted to say something more, but then she suddenly remembered the look in the eyes of those who claimed to be from the Countermeasures Office. In the end, she forced herself to shut up and sighed, "Anyway, that's how our line of work is. It's very unstable. We might disappear from the entire internet one day, unlike you researchers."

“Researchers’ jobs aren’t that stable either.”

The other party shook their head and smiled bitterly:

"Several projects in the lab have run into problems recently. For example, the rejection reaction in the mice is completely beyond our expectations, and stem cells that should have died are differentiating abnormally. The professors are so worried that they're going to lose their hair, and the investors are threatening to withdraw their funding..."

"Stop, stop, stop! I don't have a PhD in biology, so I don't understand what you're saying!"

"But these are all terms that you learned in high school..."

"Alright, you're making fun of my bad grades again, aren't you! Take this!"

"oops!"

As Kudo Nanase spoke, she scooped up water and splashed it at Chizuru, and the two of them started laughing and joking.

At this moment...

"Haha, ladies, you seem to be having a good time!"

A handsome young man in his early twenties with a small braid at the back of his head walked to the edge of the hot spring, squatted down, and said to the two, "But just playing in the water is a bit boring... There's a bar across the street. If you two are interested, I'll buy you a drink?"

Chapter 111 You want to play cards with the fox again, huh?

"Thanks for your kindness, but my friend isn't interested in alcoholic beverages, so let's skip it."

Kudo Nanase waved her hand dismissively, politely declining the man with the braid's invitation.

The woman named Chizuru nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes... any alcohol will put an unnecessary burden on the body, so it's best to drink less..."

"Okay, health is definitely more important."

The man with the braid spoke, but instead of standing up, he suddenly reached out and took off Chizuru's glasses, saying:

"How about I perform a magic trick for you two? I guarantee it'll be amazing, and you can use it as a substitute for alcohol to liven things up?"

Chizuru immediately frowned.

Kudo Nanase stood up abruptly, put her hands on her hips, and said with a hostile look, "Hey kid, give me back my glasses right now, or I'll call the police!"

"Oh, sorry, sorry, it seems you're not interested in magic~"

The man with the braid shrugged, put his glasses back on the edge of the hot spring pool, and took two steps back.

Kudo Nanase then sat back down in the water.

Chizuru breathed a slight sigh of relief and lowered her head to put her glasses back on.

"what?"

But just then, she discovered that her glasses by the pool were gone!

That's not right! The man clearly put it here just now, how could it disappear in the blink of an eye!

Did you drop it in the water? No, I didn't...

After searching around, she looked up and angrily questioned the man with the braid, "Where did you put my glasses!"

"Madam, you're wronging me!"

The man with the braid spread his hands and said, "Look, I don't have anything on me! Besides, I even took a few steps back after I put my glasses away, so it has nothing to do with me that they're gone!"

Kudo Nanase stepped out of the pool, circled the man with the braid, and frowned, saying, "What exactly did you do? Is this your magic trick?"

"I've already said I'm innocent, but if you really need them, I can help you find these glasses... but how will you two compensate me for the time wasted in the process?"

The man with the braid suddenly laughed and said, "How about we play a game of cards?"

"Playing cards?"

Kudo Nanase and Chizuru exchanged a glance, unsure of the man with the braid's intentions.

The latter then took out a deck of cards from his pocket and drew three cards: a 3 of hearts, a 9 of diamonds, and a King of clubs.

He moved a nearby round wooden table, placed the three cards face down on it, and laughed:

"I'll shuffle these three cards in a bit. If you can guess which one is the King, I'll help you find your glasses for free. I'm really good at finding things, I can definitely help you find them!"

"If you can't guess, that's okay. I'm willing to help you find the glasses, but afterwards you have to come over there with me for a drink. How about that? Not too difficult, right?"

hateful……

Kudo Nanase was 120% certain that her friend's glasses had been stolen by this frivolous man, but she had no proof!

If we don't get entangled with this guy, we might never get our glasses back.

But if you really play cards with this guy, who knows what might happen next...

This is so troublesome. Maybe I should just let Chizuru leave first and deal with him alone...

Just as Kudo Nanase hesitated, Chizuru leaned close to her ear and said, "Nanase, let's go. I don't want the glasses anymore."

His voice was soft and gentle, but his tone was resolute.

Kudo Nanase paused for a moment: "But if you don't have your glasses, won't you be able to see anything during the rest of the trip...?"

"It doesn't matter……"

Just at this moment.

Hoshino Hideyuki smiled and poked his head out, saying, "My friend, it's not very nice to take advantage of someone in distress. How about I play this game with you?"

After all, she's our go-to anchorwoman, so it's good to lend a hand a little.

If there's a chance in the future, I'll make her sell herself for over a hundred years to pay off her debts.

"and who are you?"

The man with the braid was a little annoyed: "Dude, I wasn't talking to you just now."

"I am a friend of these two."

Hoshino Hideyuki winked at Kudo Nanase, then turned back to stare at the man with the braid and said, "Besides, when it comes to playing cards, it's always better to have someone willing to join in than no one at all. Why be so rigid about it?"

The man with the braid sneered:

"Got it, you just want to meddle, right? That's fine, but the stakes need to be changed."

"The rules are still the same: guess the King card. If you guess correctly, I'll help you for free. If you guess incorrectly... you'll have to lie on the ground and I'll kick your butt. How about that?"

Upon hearing this, Nanase Kudo immediately retorted, "Hey, don't go too far!"

Chizuru also said to Hoshino Hideyuki, "Sir, thank you for your help, but this is our business, so..."

clap clap.

Hoshino Hideyuki clapped his hands to stop the two from talking and walked directly to the round table.

"Okay, if I lose, I'll let you kick my butt, but if I win, you have to flick me on the head!"

"Ha, a flick on the forehead, a child's trick."

The man with the braid nodded, then placed his hand on the card.

In the next second, he quickly changed the positions of the three cards, his hands almost leaving afterimages, making it impossible for anyone to tell which card was which!

Just before he was about to stop, he flicked his finger and secretly hid the King of Clubs under his palm, and placed the same 3 of Hearts on the table.

Finally, he spread his hands, indicating that Hoshino Hideyuki could guess.

Haha, there's no right answer at all, I'm definitely kicking your ass!

Hoshino Hideyuki pursed his lips, hesitated for a long time, and finally reached out and took the leftmost card, saying:

"This..."

Upon seeing this option, the man with the braid couldn't contain his excitement; his eyebrows shot up high, as if a McDonald's logo had grown on his face!

"……no!"

However, Hoshino Hideyuki then changed the subject and said the following.

He turned the card over, and sure enough, it was the 9 of diamonds.

Then he gripped the rightmost card and said in a deep voice:

"This one... isn't it either!"

When I opened it, it was indeed the 3 of Hearts.

Now, only one card remained face down on the table. Hoshino Hideyuki stopped flipping it and gestured with his chin towards the man with the braid: "How about it~"

Kudo Nanase and Chizuru, who were standing nearby, stared wide-eyed.

Amazing!

The man with the braid had sweat on his forehead.

I can't believe they play like that!

Damn it, what a disgrace, I...

"Come on, show me your forehead! Wow, it's so shiny!"

Hideyuki Hoshino smiled and waved.

The man with the braid swallowed hard.

It doesn't matter...

Anyway, it was just a minor head injury...

collapse! ! !