Anime Crossover: My Part-Time Job as a Giant of Light While Studying Abroad in Chiba

"...They've arrived."

Sakuta also dropped his lazy demeanor and turned slightly to the side.

Before Duan Zilian could react, she saw a petite figure emerge from around the corner.

Her long black hair was tied back with a red ribbon, swaying gently in the breeze.

She was wearing Shuchiin University's signature black jumpsuit, with the student council badge pinned to her chest. Her innate noble aura made the originally spacious corridor seem somewhat cramped.

Kaguya Shinomiya

The person at the top of this academy.

Behind her followed her blonde personal maid, Hayasaka Ai, the two of them walking one in front of the other, like a queen and a knight inspecting their territory.

Duan Zilian subconsciously tried to hide the half-eaten red bean bread behind her back.

Kaguya stopped in front of the three. Her ruby-like eyes first swept over the tense Ishigami, then over the calm Sakuta, and finally…

It stopped on Duan Zilian.

Duan Zilian felt as if she had been scanned by a sophisticated instrument.

From his disheveled hair to his crooked tie, and then to the bread hidden behind his back, the gaze seemed to penetrate his clothes and finally linger on his back covered with plasters.

"...The smell of medicine is so strong."

Kaguya spoke.

His voice was cold and clear, like a block of ice.

"This is the quiet zone near the student council room." Kaguya slightly raised her chin, her eyes filled with undisguised disdain. "Although there's no explicit rule against eating here, could you two please stop emitting this... weird smell that's a mixture of cheap saccharin and ointment?"

A sharp tongue? Yet another one with a sharp tongue.

The words they said were truly hurtful.

"I'm sorry, Vice President Shinomiya."

Before Duan Zilian could speak, Sakuta spoke first, "My friend suffered a serious back injury and urgently needs to replenish sugar, which is why he wandered into this place by mistake. We'll leave after we buy some water."

"water?"

Kaguya glanced at the malfunctioning vending machine. "That machine is beyond repair. If you want water, please go to the East Campus, which is one kilometer away."

“One kilometer…” Duan Zilian felt her throat protesting, “Is that the Long March? By the time I get there, I’ll probably be dried into a mummy.”

Kaguya seemed taken aback by this sarcastic remark.

She looked at Duan Zilian's pale face, which was still full of witty remarks, and her brows furrowed slightly.

This boy...

“Hayasaka,” Kaguya suddenly spoke.

"Yes, Miss."

Hayasaka Ai immediately stepped forward and opened the insulated bag in her hand.

Give him a bottle of tea.

Kaguya turned away, no longer looking at Duan Zilian, her tone still indifferent, "If this mummy faints at the student council entrance, disposing of the body will add unnecessary workload to Ishigami, the accountant."

"Huh?" Ishigami pointed to himself, looking completely bewildered.

Hayasaka Ai deftly took out a bottle of high-end-looking oolong tea from the insulated bag and handed it to Duan Zilian.

"Please use it; this is a gift from the young lady."

Hayasaka whispered something in a voice only Danji Rei could hear, with a hint of amusement: "As a commoner, remember to be grateful."

Duan Zilian took the bottle of tea in a daze.

The bottle was still cold, with water droplets condensing on it.

"Um... thank you?"

Duan Zilian looked at Kaguya's back and called out subconsciously.

Kaguya stopped and turned her head.

At that moment, sunlight streamed through the corridor window and shone on her delicate profile.

"No need to thank me. This is just charity."

Kaguya coldly uttered those words and walked into the student council room without looking back.

The gates closed, isolating that noble world.

Duan Zilian stood there, holding the bottle of iced oolong tea in his hand, his face full of thought. Finally, he came to a surprising conclusion.

Kaguya Shinomiya is actually a tsundere, isn't she?

Sakuta leaned closer, his face full of gossip. "Why are you staring over there? Are you a hidden masochist who enjoys being pampered by young ladies?"

"roll."

Duan Zilian unscrewed the bottle cap and took a big gulp.

The rich aroma of the tea spread throughout my mouth, relieving the dryness.

Chapter 8 Harmonica and the Vagabond

"So, this is what they call troop/regimental activities?"

Duan Zilian sat on a chair in the activity room, holding a cup of freshly brewed black tea.

He didn't even brew it himself; Yukinoshita just poured it for him on a whim, because she "couldn't stand seeing you sitting there like a statue."

The setting sun outside the window bathed the classroom in an orange-red hue, while the fan whirred overhead.

Yukino Yukinoshita was still reading that literature book, while Hachiman Hikigaya was lying on the table, staring at the dust particles in the air with dead fish eyes, seemingly engaged in some kind of philosophical thought.

"This is not a club, it's clearly the second nursing home in Chiba City."

Duan Zilian took a sip of tea and exclaimed, "Except for the lack of elderly men playing chess, this place perfectly matches my imagination of retirement life."

"If you want to express your dissatisfaction with this tranquility, you can choose to go to the playground and run laps."

Yukino turned a page of her book without looking up. "Or go help Hiratsuka-sensei organize that mountain of lesson plans. I'm sure she'd be happy to take you in as free labor."

"Then forget it."

Duan Zilian quickly refused, "This kind of tranquility is quite nice. At least it's better than going outside and facing that crazy world."

dong dong dong.

Just then, there was a knock on the door of the activity room.

The knocking was rapid, indicating that the person knocking was somewhat anxious.

"Please come in." Yukinoshita closed her book and instantly switched to the demeanor of a minister.

The door was opened, and standing in the doorway was a girl who looked like she was about to cry.

She was wearing a first-grade uniform, had her hair in pigtails, and was clutching a handkerchief tightly in her hand.

"Um...excuse me, is this the Service Club?"

The girl asked timidly, her voice trembling, "Ms. Hiratsuka said... if you have any problems, you can come here for help..."

"Yes."

Yukino stood up and gestured to the chair opposite her. "Please sit down. What exactly happened?"

The girl sat down, sobbed, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"I...I'm from the brass band...I lost...I lost the harmonica my senior lent me..."

"Harmonica?"

Hachiman Hikigaya finally looked up from the table. "Can't we just buy a new one if we lose that kind of thing?"

"No way!"

The girl was on the verge of tears. "That was a harmonica that my senior cherished... It was... It was an important keepsake that carried my memories! I clearly put it in my bag, but it disappeared when I went to practice just now..." The girl's voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, and she even blushed in the end.

"Ah, did I lose the token of love given to me by someone precious?" Duan Zilian thought to herself.

"What's the range?" Yukinoshita took out her notebook and began to write down, "The last time and place I was certain it was still there."

"It was still there around noon. I had lunch at the park near the school, and then I went back to school..."

"In other words, it was very likely lost in that park."

Yukinoshita closed her notebook, stood up, and said, "Since it's an important item that carries memories, its value can't be measured simply by money. Hikigaya-kun, Dan-kun, let's get ready to go."

"Huh? We're going to go to a park that big to find a tiny harmonica?"

Hachiman looked disgusted. "Why don't we just leave this to the police or the lost and found?"

"The police will not handle such small lost items."

Yukinoshita had already reached the door. She turned back to look at the two of them with a mocking smile. "Or are you two grown men so incapable of even keeping me company?"

"...Okay, okay, I'll go, alright?"

Hachiman sighed and stood up with heavy steps.

Duan Zilian put down her teacup and smiled helplessly.

"Searching for a lost harmonica... is better than just sitting here doing nothing."

……

This is an open park not far from Zongwu High School.

Although it's called a park, it's more like a plaza with a fountain and benches. It was rush hour, with people coming and going, making it quite lively.

"Let's split up and search."

Yukinoshita gave the order decisively: "I'll go to the fountain area, Hachiman-kun to the lawn area, and Dan-kun to the bench area over there. Whether you find it or not, meet here in half an hour."

"learn."

Duan Zilian put her hands in her pockets and walked towards the bench area.

He kept his head down, his gaze scanning back and forth between the grass and the gaps in the bench.

"Harmonica... harmonica..."

Is it really possible to find such a needle in a haystack?

That girl is really careless; she could lose something so important.

As Duan Zilian searched, she casually glanced at the crowd around her.

There were housewives taking walks with their children, couples kissing, and more...

Ok?

Duan Zilian suddenly stopped walking.

A person was sitting on the bench in front.

He was a man wearing a Lawson convenience store uniform and an old cowboy hat.

He looks like he's taking a break, holding a... popsicle?

Yes, the man was sitting there, enjoying a cheap-looking soda popsicle with a blissful expression, a lazy "this is the pinnacle of life" look on his face.

Duan Zilian was stunned for a moment.

This outfit...

Although I've changed into a convenience store uniform, that hat still has that unique charm...

Isn't that the leather-clad guy who kicked the monster away in the alley yesterday?!

Duan Zilian instinctively wanted to turn around and run away.

Stay as far away from such a dangerous person as possible! Who knows if he's some kind of gangster assassin or superhuman agent?

However, in the instant he turned around...

"Yo." A lazy voice came from behind, "Isn't this the boy who almost became our midnight snack last night?"