I said you are all war criminals

The blue-haired young man grinned, revealing a row of neat teeth, like a wolf ready to hunt.

"pick me up?"

Aiyin pushed her glasses up on her nose, and the lenses reflected a cold light. "You... got the wrong person, didn't you? I don't know you."

"Chihaya Aine, 15 years old, just returned from England. Her parents are ordinary office workers. She is currently out of school. Her dream is to become a... uh, I haven't decided on that yet."

Hakuno spoke out Aine's personal information in one breath, his tone as casual as if he were introducing today's lunch menu. "How could I be wrong?"

Aine’s eyes widened. “Who’s saying I dropped out of school?! I just transferred back to Japan!”

"So you're Chihaya Aine, right?"

After hearing this, Aine finally reacted. She took a step back, her eyes behind the lenses filled with vigilance.

"You...investigate me?"

She gripped the handle of her suitcase tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white from the strain. A chill ran up her feet, and she shuddered. Who was this guy? Why did he know so much about her? Was he a stalker?

Hakuno looked at Aine's reaction and didn't care at all, instead he smiled even more happily.

"Investigation? That's a harsh word. I just... happen to know."

He shrugged, and that nonchalant look made Aine even more uneasy.

"Just happened to know? You know my name, age, family situation, and even that I came back from England... Is that just a coincidence?"

Aiyin's voice trembled slightly. She felt like a prey targeted by a poisonous snake, not daring to move.

"Don't be so nervous, little girl."

Hakuno held out his hands in a gesture of surrender, "I hold no ill will towards you. Truly."

As she spoke, she turned her head towards the airport cafe and said, "Want to have a cup of coffee? It's my treat."

Aiyin hesitated. She just wanted to get away from this man who made her feel uneasy as soon as possible, but deep down she was curious about what this man was up to.

"Ok."

Aine finally agreed. Instead of guessing here, it would be better to listen to what he really wanted to say.

The two came to the cafe and sat down by the window.

Hakuno let Aine order her own food and get her own coffee, which made Aine feel a little more at ease.

Aine placed two cups of coffee on the table, handing one to Hakuno and keeping one for himself. Hakuno took the coffee and, without rushing to speak, took a leisurely sip. The dark brown liquid swished in the cup, reflecting his cynical eyes. He looked Aine up and down, his gaze like a scanner, from her slightly messy bangs to her tightly clenched hands around the cups, finally resting on her uneasily averted gaze.

"What are you nervous about?"

Hakuno put down his coffee cup with a crisp clinking sound, which was particularly abrupt in the quiet cafe and made Aine's nerves even more tense.

"I will not eat you."

Bai Ye smiled, showing a row of neat teeth.

Aine said nothing, silently stirring the coffee in front of her. The aroma of coffee filled the air, but it did nothing to alleviate her inner anxiety. She felt like a fly that had strayed into a spider's web, and the blue-haired young man before her was the spider lurking in the shadows.

"Okay, since you're so nervous, I'll just tell you straight out."

Hakuno asked, "Do you believe in fate?"

Aine was stunned by Hakuno's sudden question. She subconsciously pushed her glasses up, a look of confusion flashing through her eyes behind the lenses. Fate? She never believed in such a vague and illusory thing.

"Do not believe."

Aine shook her head, her tone firm. Everything she had achieved since she was little was earned through her own hard work, not some so-called destiny.

Bai Ye smiled mysteriously, with an elusive meaning in that smile.

"Really? Then next, you'll meet someone you'll be entangled with for the rest of your life."

"what?"

Aine was baffled. What on earth was this guy talking about? She grabbed her coffee cup and prepared to leave. This guy was acting strangely. It was best to get away from him as soon as possible.

Hakuno remained unmoved, simply watching Aine scurry out of the café.

Then, just as Aine ran out of the cafe, a soft hand grabbed her wrist. Aine turned around and saw a girl in a school uniform with gray hair.

"Please form a lifelong band with me!"

The girl's voice was a little weak, but it was filled with unquestionable firmness.

Aine was completely confused.

band?

What band?

She doesn't know how to play any musical instrument... No, she only learned a little bit of guitar, does that count?

No, no, no, before that, where did this girl come from?

She subconsciously turned around to look at Bai Ye, only to find that he was leisurely drinking coffee, looking like he was enjoying the show.

Aine suddenly understood...

This is a honey trap!

She was set up by a honey trap!

Aine shook her hands vigorously, as if shaking off a sticky slug.

"Let go! Miss, did you recognize the wrong person?"

She squeezed so hard that her knuckles turned white, but the girl's hand was like an iron clamp, and it didn't move at all.

The girl's gray hair swayed gently with her movements, but her eyes were extremely firm, as if she was holding some rare treasure.

"We'll be together for life, we're bandmates!"

Bandmates? Aine almost laughed out loud. She had only played guitar a few times in middle school, and now she had no intention of forming a band!

"Miss, calm down. I don't even know how to play any instrument!"

She tried to reason with the gray-haired girl, but it was clearly no use.

"Yes, you will! You definitely will!"

The girl held on tighter, as if she was afraid Aine would suddenly disappear, "Please form a band with me for life!"

Aine took a deep breath and tried a few more times to pry the other person's fingers apart, but each time she failed. The girl looked frail, yet her strength was astonishing. People around them began to notice them, pointing and whispering. Aine felt her face growing hotter, and she felt so embarrassed that she wanted to find a hole to crawl into.

"I say, what exactly do you want me to do to let you go?"

Aine asked, almost through gritted teeth.

"I won't let go!"

Aine felt like she was going crazy. This girl was incredibly strong, and she kept repeating these meaningless phrases like "Lifelong Band." The gazes from everyone around her pierced her skin like needles, making her wish she could disappear. She took a deep breath, her mind racing, searching for a way out. Reasoning wouldn't work, and brute force wouldn't cut it. Was she really going to be haunted by this strange girl for the rest of her life?

no! Absolutely not!

A crazy idea flashed through Aine's mind. Since I couldn't get rid of it, then...

Aine suddenly raised her head and slammed it hard into the girl's forehead!

"Boom!"

1

Chapter 1 Starry.

Shimokitazawa.

Starry.

Ijichi Hongxia was mixing drinks behind the bar.

Her slender fingers danced nimbly, weaving between glasses of various shapes and bottles of various colors. She precisely controlled the amount of each drink, and the crisp clink of ice cubes was remarkably clear in the somewhat noisy bar. The air was filled with the aroma of mixed alcohol, heralding the birth of a meticulously crafted cocktail.

Hong Xia's sister Xing Ge looked at her smooth and flowing movements with a somewhat subtle expression, "Hong Xia, where did you learn how to mix drinks?"

“I learned it a long time ago.”

Hong Xia poured the wine from the cocktail shaker into the glass and said, "I just didn't tell you."

Before her first rebirth, Hong Xia's few pleasures in that world controlled by giant corporations were "bartending." After all, in the end, those legendary figures became just names on a wine list.

Cocktail making, in a sense, is about remembrance.

Use wine of different flavors to write an epitaph for your own memory.

Yidizhi Hongxia mixed the first drink. The liquid shimmered a seductive red under the light, like congealed blood. She pushed the brightly colored cocktail toward Xingge, tiny droplets of water clinging to the sides. "Would you like to try it?"

Xingge looked at the wine, a hint of hesitation in her eyes. She picked up the glass and swirled it gently. The wine swirled in the glass, exuding a strange fruity aroma mixed with a hint of alcohol. She took a sip, her expression somewhat complicated. "It tastes... not bad. Better than I expected."

As she said this, she licked her lips unconsciously, as if savoring the taste just now.

"Of course,"

Ichichi Hongxia smiled confidently, "This is..."

Hongxia's voice hitched.

The name of this drink is Hikigaya Hachiman.

This is the name of a legendary hacker.

In 2045, he hacked into a well-known German company and published the side effects of its drugs. After that, there was no news of him. He was probably killed by the company.

...However, in this era, Hikigaya Hachiman should still be alive and well.

So, using this name now is a bit subtle.

"...This is my homemade wine. I haven't given it a name yet."

Xingge put down his glass and stared at Hongxia sharply, "You hesitated just now. Is there something wrong with the name of this wine?"

Hong Xia curled her lips, knowing that she couldn't hide it from her sister's sharp eyes.

"Nothing, just the name of someone I knew a long time ago. I don't want to mention it now."

After saying that, Hong Xia picked up the cocktail shaker and began to prepare the next drink, trying to hide her discomfort with her actions.

Xingge didn't give up. She crossed her arms, leaned forward slightly, and looked at me with a hint of inquiry. "Hongxia, you've been so happy since you came back from Qianye three days ago. What's going on? Tell me the truth, are you hiding something good from me?"

Hong Xia paused for a moment, then resumed her smooth movements. "There's no such thing as a good thing. You're overthinking it."

She poured the prepared drink into the glass. The crisp sound of ice cubes hitting the glass seemed to mask her slightly accelerated heartbeat. After all, what happened to her didn't happen three days ago, but in the distant future.

Xingge raised an eyebrow, obviously not believing this perfunctory answer.

"Is that really all? I'm your sister, and I know all your little tricks since we were little."

She reached out and picked up the newly mixed drink, took a sip, and said, "Hmm, this one tastes pretty good too."

"This cup,"

Hong Xia picked up a new cocktail glass and deliberately avoided Xingge's gaze. "The base liquor is gin. I'd choose London Dry Gin. It tastes better..."

She paused, as if weighing her words. "It's quite spicy and has personality, just like Liang. He always looks cool and unpredictable."

As Hong Xia spoke, she poured the gin into the cocktail glass with neat and efficient movements.

Xingge raised an eyebrow and asked with interest, "Oh? What about the other ingredients? Are they also related to the band members?"

Hong Xia secretly breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed her sister's attention had been successfully diverted. She continued, "Of course, adding a little lemon juice would make it just like Kita Ikuyo's personality—sweet and sour, lively, and uplifting."

She squeezed a few drops of lemon juice into the wine, and tiny bubbles appeared in it.

"What about sweetness?"

Xingge asked.

"A small amount of syrup,"

Hong Xia picked up the syrup bottle and shook it gently. "It's like Yili, giving people a very reassuring feeling."

Hongxia quickened her pace, her technique still deft, as if she were putting on a spectacular performance. The ice cubes clattered against each other in the cocktail shaker, creating a crisp, melody that served as an accompaniment to the performance. As she demonstrated, she explained the techniques, detailing everything from the base liquor to the proportions of the ingredients, to the proper shaking pressure and duration. Xingge, gradually drawn to her explanations, began to study diligently, frequently raising questions.

“When shaking, pay attention to the strength. Not too hard, not too light. The ice cubes and the liquor should be fully integrated to create the best taste.”

Hongxia explained as she demonstrated.

"So, where's your part?"