A newbie's anime life diary

"Hehe, that's not it. But Hiratsuka-kun, quite a few people already know that you've become a disciple of the Ryougi family. It's easy for others to find out some basic information." Tojo Nozomi called over another shrine maiden not far away, handed her her broom, and then ushered the two of them inside.

Shrugging, Yukiteru wasn't too surprised by what Tojo Nozomi said, because Ryougi Shiki had already mentioned these things before, so Yukiteru was mentally prepared.

Unlike the shrines near Senso-ji Temple, which have become tourist attractions, the shrines here are rarely visited, making the walk very quiet. Considering the layout of this place, it makes sense; those who do come here are probably not ordinary people.

Upon arriving at the shrine's backyard, where the shrine maidens usually rested, Tojo Nozomi led the two to the living room and asked them to wait a moment before preparing tea.

Having been staying in a Japanese-style house for the past few days, Yukiteru wasn't particularly interested in places like shrines. He looked at Ryougi Mina, who was sitting relaxed on a cushion with her legs stretched out, and asked, "Mina, what brings you here today? Just to introduce Tojo Nozomi to me?"

“Of course not! Didn’t I tell you? Nozomi is really good at divination! I remember when Nozomi first came to work at the shrine, she immediately divined something about our family. Two days later, a big yokai appeared and came to Tokyo, but it was subdued by my mother who was prepared! When I found out, I really wanted to learn, but Nozomi said I didn’t have the talent for divination, and I was disappointed for a long time. Later, I changed my mind. If I don’t learn it myself, why not just know someone who can do divination?” Ryougi Mina explained.

"So you've come here for a fortune telling?"

"Mmm! Xuehui-ge, if you also want your fortune told, I don't think hope-jie will refuse! Xi-jie and I are very close~"

"Fortune telling, huh?" Xuehui muttered to himself, thinking back to the original Love Live! anime, where Nozomi's fortune telling was indeed quite powerful. He wondered if it was the same as in the original story or if it had been enhanced.

A short while later, Nozomi Tojo returned to the room carrying a tray and sat down in front of the two of them.

"Today's dessert is yokan~" Along with the tea, there was also a plate of yokan, which cost two yuan a serving, which was a standard arrangement.

"Thank you, Sister Xi~" As soon as Ryougi Mina saw the food, she immediately picked up her little fork and started eating happily.

"Thank you." Xuehui also picked up his teacup and slowly took a sip. Recently, he had unknowingly developed a habit of drinking tea.

After setting the plate down, Nozomi Tojo looked at Mina Ryougi and said, "Mina-chan, do you want to have your fortune told again today?"

"Yes! I want my marriage fortune told!"

"Pfft...cough cough..." Although he was prepared, Yukiteru was still caught off guard when Ryougi Mina said it.

This daring and open-minded little girl is terrifying.

Compared to Yukiteru, Tojo Nozomi wasn't very surprised. She looked at Yukiteru with a thoughtful expression and said, "Didn't you already have my fortune told? You even brought her here. Could it be that Mina-chan has changed her mind?"

"Um... I already have someone I like, and things are going well in the relationship. Besides, I'm not a lolicon." Xuehui felt he should clarify this situation.

"What's wrong with little girls! Don't discriminate against them!"

"Oh my, so you're still in unrequited love, Mina-chan~" Tojo Nozomi covered her mouth as she looked at the two of them, suddenly realizing.

"..." Xuehui looked at Tojo Nozomi speechlessly. He finally understood that this troublemaker had also gotten involved. Fortunately, Ryougi Mina wasn't too affected by her and her orientation was still normal, which was the only thing to be thankful for.

Otherwise, Yukiteru was certain that Ryougi Shiki would come charging over with a sword and her Mystic Eyes activated the next day.

Putting aside the extent to which Tojo Nozomi had led Ryougi Mina astray, even the precocious Ryougi Mina couldn't bear having this exposed by Tojo Nozomi in front of Yukiteru. With a hint of shyness, she called out to Tojo Nozomi, "Nozomi-neechan! Are you going to help me with the divination or not!"

"Hmm... Fortune telling? You've already done it once for the same thing. Doing it again in a short time won't be effective."

As the Demon King spoke, he looked at Yukiteru under Ryougi Mina's disappointed expression: "Of course, I can do a divination for you, Hiratsuka-kun. How about it? As a shrine maiden, my divination skills are top-notch, you know. No money for a divination!"

They even charge money for it?

Just as I was about to refuse, the other person pulled out... a tarot deck from somewhere.

“…Um…” Although he was prepared, Yukiteru couldn’t help but retort after glancing at the tarot cards and then at Tojo Nozomi’s smiling face, “Are you a shrine maiden? A Japanese shrine maiden? You’re using tarot cards to tell fortunes?”

"As a shrine maiden, being proficient in various divination techniques is a must, and don't young girls like tarot card divination these days? A shrine maiden who knows tarot cards is very attractive, isn't she?" Tojo Nozomi held the tarot deck in front of her chest and grinned.

"Is becoming an idol a required course?"

"Oh my, it seems you already knew, Hiratsuka-kun. It's just a personal interest, but I find it very interesting! Besides, a shrine maiden who doesn't know tarot cards isn't a qualified idol!" Tojo Nozomi said matter-of-factly, not caring that Yukiteru recognized her as a school idol. After all, it was a large-scale competition involving high schools all over Japan, and anyone who paid a little attention would know about it.

"Well, whatever makes you happy."

"Let's put that aside for now and give it a try. We're really curious about your fortune!"

As she spoke, Nozomi Tojo handed the tarot cards to Yukiteru, and Mina Ryougi, who was standing nearby, also curiously came over.

P.S.: Hmm, guess what cards it will be? The 22 Major Arcana cards. I guess most people who have played Persona will know a little about them. But I don't know much about these, so I just designed it based on my own ideas and the information I found. Please forgive me if I find anything wrong later.

PS2: I suddenly saw a video and it reminded me, the Prisma Illya movie is coming out soon. Emiya's epic rescue of his sister, taking Ea's face head-on – he's invincible!

Chapter 24 The Divination Results of King Hidden (2/3)

Tarot readings come in many different forms, and different spreads are used to answer different questions.

"Well, Hiratsuka-kun, what kind of divination do you want? Studies? Love? Career? Or something else?" As if she had entered a working state, Tojo Nozomi sat upright in front of Yukiteru, her previous playful expression gone.

After thinking for a moment, Xuehui decided, "Love, I don't want to know anything else."

Yuki had only heard of tarot card divination before, and this was his first time trying it out. He decided to give it a shot and see what level the shrine maiden opposite him was at.

Although the shrine maiden wearing shrine maiden attire and using tarot cards for divination felt out of place.

"Regarding love, are you referring to the progress of the relationship, or the person you're romantically involved with?"

"...the former, I guess."

Nodding, Tojo Nozomi placed the cards face down in her hand and began to shuffle them step by step. Then, she placed them in front of Yukiteru, asking him to pile the cards into groups and rearrange them into a deck.

After cutting the cards, Nozomi Tojo put down the tarot cards in front of her, spread them out, and turned them around.

"Calm down and draw four cards according to your feelings. And Mina-chan, turn around and don't look."

Talking nonsense.

This was Yukiteru's assessment of Tojo Nozomi at that moment. Nevertheless, he did as instructed, and after Ryougi Mina turned around, he took out four cards one by one from the deck in front of him and placed them in front of him from left to right.

Then, Nozomi Tojo collected the remaining cards and placed the first of the four cards in front of Yukiteru on top of the other three, forming a pyramid shape, which is the love card pattern in divination.

"Then, reveal them in the order you drew them."

For some reason, Yukiteru also became a little nervous under Tojo Nozomi's words.

He reached out and flipped the first page over, revealing it to Xuehui.

A man and a woman face the angel and extend their hands to each other.

Lovers.

As soon as the first card appeared, Nozomi Tojo's eyebrows twitched involuntarily. The Lovers, upright, is the best card in love divination.

The second image shows a woman holding a long sword sitting in a chair.

Reversed justice.

Suddenly, Nozomi Tojo sensed that something was very wrong.

The third image shows the Moon in its upright position.

Tojo Nozomi's lips unconsciously twitched as she looked at Ryougi Mina beside her.

The fourth image is a judgment in the upright position.

With 78 cards, including 22 Major Arcana cards, Yukihira actually drew four major cards directly, and the card spread was incredibly bizarre.

Looking at this strange and magical tarot spread, Nozomi Tojo was at a loss for what to do. When she had nothing else to do, she often did tarot readings for her Muse friends, covering topics like academics and love, and their lives were generally progressing normally.

But how did it become like this here?

Could it really be because of that fog I saw during my curious observation last time? But my divination wasn't hindered...

Looking up at Yukiteru, who was staring at her with a puzzled expression, Nozomi Tojo felt that she had gained a new understanding of him.

"Um, could you please stop looking at me like that? It feels weird."

Faced with Tojo Nozomi's gaze, Yukiteru didn't know how to interpret it. It seemed to contain curiosity, disappointment, and even more so, admiration.

What the hell is this?!

"Hey, Sister hope, how did you solve it?" Ryougi Mina finally couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, and was about to turn around.

“It won’t work if a third person peeks.” With that, Nozomi Tojo put away the tarot cards and pulled a talisman from her sleeve, placing it on the tatami mat.

In an instant, a transparent barrier enveloped Yukiteru and Nozomi Tojo, separating Ryougi Mina from them.

Upon seeing this, Ryougi Mina immediately pouted, leaned in and knocked on the barrier in front of her, muttering something under her breath, but unfortunately the two inside couldn't hear her.

"What, can't we tell anyone?" Xuehui looked at the young lady's actions with a puzzled expression. It's just a divination, it can't be that serious.

However, King Hidden does indeed possess some abilities.

“Fortune telling is a one-on-one service. To be honest, this is the first time I’ve ever seen a card spread like yours. I’m starting to regret hosting you all today, especially you, Hiratsuka-kun,” Tojo Nozomi said, looking at Yukiteru.

"Um... what do you mean by that?"

"Young man, let me give you some advice about this card spread: your future depends on yourself."

After a pause, Tojo Nozomi opened her mouth and said with a slight sway, "An inch of harem is bought with blood; the task is arduous and the road ahead is long."

"..."

After Tojo Nozomi finished speaking and confirmed that there was no more to come, Yukiteru unconsciously opened his mouth wide.

Is this over?

Okay, I can understand the harem thing, but I acknowledge your fortune-telling abilities, miss.

But what kind of ridiculous explanation is that for the second half of the sentence?!

Hey, Yukino Yukinoshita may be physically weak, but she's not a yandere; Shizuka Hiratsuka may be violent, but she doesn't use a knife! She'd be spitting blood... she would have vomited long ago.

The only possible candidate is Kasumigaoka Utaha, but Yukiteru doesn't have the ability to open three routes yet, and he's not sure what he really thinks of his senior, so he won't make any rash moves.

"So what's with this blood? I was just asking for a love reading, you're not trying to scam me, are you?" Yukiteru looked at Tojo Nozomi with a hint of doubt in his eyes.

"Oh? So you don't deny what I said before? My divination has been personally verified by many people in the association. I'm known as 'Golden-Mouthed Diviner Nozomi'! Besides, I'm a shrine maiden who seriously serves the gods. I wouldn't joke around in this kind of situation!" After taking a sip of tea, Tojo Nozomi showed displeasure at Yukiteru's questioning.

Why don't you call yourself Iron-Toothed Fat Lady Xi?

Just as he was internally complaining, a fair hand stretched out in front of him.

"what?"

"I said I'd take your money. Since you don't believe the second half of that statement, I'll just give you a 50% discount. It'll be 50000 yen."

"So expensive! You're not trying to rip me off, are you? If you keep doing this, we'll never be friends again!" Xuehui was utterly dumbfounded. This was half price? The original price was 10? Even escort services aren't this expensive!

"We're only offering this as a friendly price because of Mina-chan. If you don't believe me, go ask the association. We'd rather not do business than accept anything less than 100,000." Tojo Nozomi raised her chin and gestured with her pale hand.

"And when you did the fortune telling for Mina..." Xuehui asked, taking out his wallet.

"We're happy to do fortune telling for cute girls even if it's free!"

I must be out of my mind, what kind of crazy fortune-telling is this?