I, who advocate giving up, feel like a disqualified person

"I haven't heard of this kind of information..."

I knew it wasn't there. I was just trying to be cool. Besides, I don't want to get involved in that guy's business...

Well...it should be fine.

"But... although Teacher Alia always seems to be very enthusiastic towards everyone, she is still a high school girl after all... so it's possible that she might be a little bit disappointed..."

"Hmm...that's true..."

Given her personality, I would be surprised if nothing happened.

"Well... please keep an eye on it, if you can..."

Even if I pay attention, she won't appear right in front of me... Who knows what she will do.

"Well, I'll keep an eye out."

Anyway, agree to it first.

........... . . . .

"You did it after all."

When I came back, I found another plate of raw meat... Didn't this guy think about my lack of money? He didn't even consider my wallet.

"Well, because my desires can't be satisfied~" She said with a matter-of-fact expression.

"Sure, learning and applying right away, that's pretty good."

"Thank you! I learned this from you, bro."

Why is this kid so naughty...

“Well… forget it.” Actually, I also feel that it is not enough.

"By the way, whose phone call was that just now...was it from my girlfriend?"

"Um... no, it's an acquaintance calling. He has something to ask of me."

"...What's going on? Why would I ask you for help?... Are you considered reliable by others?"

"You can doubt my relationships, but you can never doubt my image."

"...So, what's the matter?" She ignored me and continued asking questions that interested her.

"...a classmate from her school suddenly lost contact and didn't know where she went...so she asked me to keep an eye out for her on the streets, maybe shopping or something."

"...If you encounter something like this, you should call the police first."

"She's not missing... her family said she went out to play and didn't bring her phone with her, so they can't contact her..."

Although Xiaoye didn't tell me these details...but it should be like this.

"So, where do you think she will go?" Ye Jin's eyes suddenly became serious... This often means that she has some plan, and it is a plan that is not in my favor.

"...Why do you say..."

"How about a bet? Based on your information, let's guess where she'll go."

If you touch the truth a little

Is it... a bit too sensitive?

Am I being too wary of this guy? This matter has absolutely nothing to do with her, so there's no way she'd be interested.

So...why on earth did she propose a bet to me?

In my memory, she is definitely a person who pursues efficiency. As long as she decides to do something, she will complete it in the shortest time possible... and she will never fail in areas where she doesn't want to fail.

And who is the person she least wants to lose to? Me...?

No...because I've never beaten her in a bet.

"Brother, how about a bet?"

Looking at Ye Jin in front of me, I suddenly remembered...the way she looked when I made a bet with her for the first time. Her expression was completely different from the calm one she had now.

Her eyes were focused and intense, clearly conveying to me, "I will definitely win." The corners of her mouth were raised unabashedly, as if she was already confident of victory... and she always took the initiative.

"What kind of bet are you making?"

That's right, because I have never had any opinions of my own, when I heard she wanted to make a bet, I asked back out of habit.

Then, she would make the rules.

"Why don't you just come..."

No matter what the rules are, she is almost always the winner.

And I am also happy to lose to... No, I should say that it would be difficult for me to win if she challenged me. I have nothing to say about her victory.

However, she was different today... Her eyes did not reveal any desire to win, and with her expression... I thought that sentence was more like a joke.

So... just ignore it, it's not a bet at all.

"I'm not going to guess... I don't have a very good relationship with that guy, and there are some things I can't reveal."

I rejected her proposal.

"Oh~ You know that person..." She showed an expression of sudden enlightenment.

"Didn't I say that just now?" I felt very strange.

"You only said she was a classmate of a friend you knew... but from that alone, I know you know that person. But from what you just said, I already know that you and her have talked at least a few times and have a certain emotional foundation."

"...So?" I'm not really interested in this game of finding information from other people's words.

"Since it's related to you, I think it's better to go find that person... Is your friendship with that person not as good as this?"

What she put in front of me was a piece of uncooked meat, which was actually a bit expensive.

"This kind of thing...it's hard to say."

I couldn't help but smile bitterly.

"So, what do you think is the reason behind someone suddenly behaving differently than usual? For example, they might suddenly post travel photos on their social media, or suddenly start writing articles or poems they're not good at... or they might suddenly start paying attention to their appearance."

"To...get someone's attention?" I guessed.

Because this kind of thing can easily happen around you.

"That's right. So, the tactic of suddenly disappearing is also a way of revealing information. I hope it can be conveyed to someone."

"I know this..." Because there was a guy around me who once played missing, but I found him in the end.

"Huh? How do you know that, brother?"

Ye Jin gave me a suspicious look.

Oh, shit... I accidentally revealed something...

"This kind of plot is common in almost all TV dramas, anime, light novels, and manga... For example, the heroine deliberately hides in a closet so that the hero can't find her..."

"...I don't think Taiga gave Ryuji any information..."

Yeah, I was recognized...

"That's the principle anyway. I'll understand once you explain it to me." Anyway, just get over it.

"Um...Okay. But first, I want to ask, besides you, does the missing person have any other friends?"

"...I'm not familiar with her, so I don't know."

However, from previous conversations, it can be seen that she seems to have a bad relationship with her classmates at school... and recently she has only been in contact with Jiumuting.

Ah...I think that's it...

"I know who she's going to pass the message to." The answer is obvious, because I only have one option.

"Huh?" She looked at me puzzledly.

"She's her artist, right? Oh, he's a novelist in private." I casually mentioned it. "Although we're both students, we're not from the same school, so it's normal that we can't keep in touch..."

"Are you stupid?" She hit me hard on the head with chopsticks, attracting the attention of passers-by.

"Hey..."

"Ahem...it's all because of you." Although he was very shameless in front of me, he was out and about after all...it would definitely be embarrassing if he encountered such a situation.

"So, why are you getting angry?"

I can't just eat honestly...

"Because brother, your brain is like the useless male protagonist in the light novel. Your emotional intelligence and IQ are below sea level."

...I unexpectedly don't want to refute it...Why...

"Do you need me to remind you?"

When she saw that I remained silent, she seemed even angrier.

"Hmm? What happened..."

I don't understand why she's angry... Is she disordered? Can she eat barbecue like this?

"Huh... Never mind... Even though I know this is a waste of my time, I'm a responsible, serious and cute girl after all." She held her forehead and sighed.

"Who are you talking about? Does what was just said have anything to do with you?"

"Don't interrupt!" I was hit on the head again.

Wait, how did you do that in such a short time? From standing up to picking up chopsticks!

"What are you looking at? Are you not convinced?" She asked me with a frown.

"without..."

I'm really miserable. I get beaten even though I'm treating people to a meal...

"Huh...really." She complained, sat down in her seat, and began to talk about her theory.

"From what I understand, the reason people dislike someone isn't actually because of appearance... but rather personality, particularly similar personalities. Even slightly similar personalities can create a negative impression when two people first interact... In other words, that missing person and you have similar personalities, don't you think?"

she guessed.

"No...how is it possible..." He shook his head and denied it.

My writing style is different from that guy's, so how could we possibly have similar personalities? Wait...it seems like there are still some...

"Whatever you think... Now comes the important part. Since that person has an artist and they're in private contact, how could they not have contact information? Using this method to pass information to someone who has contact information... Is that crazy?"

"Maybe my brain is not normal..."

Before he could finish his words, he was knocked again.

"You're the only one with a distorted mind!"

“...Okay, okay...” I shouldn’t have interrupted.

"Well, one last question." She was now pointing the end of her chopsticks at me, a look of helplessness in her eyes, as if to say, "Why don't you understand?" "Did you and her exchange numbers?"

"........"

No.

Ever since we met, our meetings were purely a matter of chance, living in the same city. Even when she invited me to a party, she waited for me at the intersection near my house...

Yeah, I just realized now that I don't even know her contact information...

"You mean...she's looking for me?"

But why? Is there a reason? I don't remember ever saying I'd help her... So, isn't it strange?

"As for this...you'll have to ask her in person."

Seeing that I understood, she sat down with a sense of accomplishment and began to grill the meat seriously...but I always felt that something was wrong.

"Um...how did you know I didn't have that person's contact information?"

"!" After hearing this, the barbecue she had just picked up suddenly fell back onto the grill... It seemed that something was wrong.

However, she pretended not to hear and had no intention of answering... She must have done something that I couldn't know.