CHAPTER 50: 44. ANOTHER DAY HAS BECOME GREAT

"What opportunity?"

"Getting back together!"

"..."

"Meiji, I like you the most! Please be my girlfriend!"

"..."

"Meiji?"

"Freak!"

"Beep... beep..."

Dubian Che clicked his tongue, realizing he had been too impulsive, blinded by the points he had collected.

Such a simple confession, how could he possibly win over Jiutiao Mei? He might even be punished tomorrow.

The thought of stripping naked and doing calisthenics, like this chilling evening in the May rain, filled Dubian Che’s heart with cold.

"I was rejected," chuckled Kiyono Lin.

Not only Kiyono Lin but also the trio from the Wind Instrument Club were looking at Dubian Che with strange glances.

’You leisurely folks, how can you understand the desire for points that consumes me, burdened with a deep vendetta!’

Dubian Che looked at Kiyono Lin, about to retort, when he suddenly had a thought.

This girl is also a super beauty, and by winning her over, not only could he use the influence of the Kiyono family, but also earn a vast amount of points.

He sighed inwardly.

Better not.

Kiyono Lin insisted on not lying, he indeed thought it was foolish, but he also admired her inner purity.

Taking advantage of such a pure person was not something a "Tokyo Handsome Man" should do.

Yuzao Haomei is materialistic; she could be bribed with money;

Jiutiao Mei is an enemy, so deceiving her emotionally didn’t matter, and using points collected from her to seek revenge even intensified the pleasure of vengeance;

Kiyono Lin might not have a good character, but she was not a frivolous person. The only way to earn points from her was to make her genuinely like him.

He had no intention of doing that.

Kiyono Lin, noticing Dubian Che staring blankly at her, held her shirt collar.

"Mr. Dubian, rainy days indeed trigger the criminal urges in human hearts. If you really must take advantage of me, driven by your carnal desires, please choose a clean, deserted place," she said.

"..."

Dubian Che came back to his senses.

The surrounding stares made him wish he were dead!

Faintly, he could hear, "The news department said it’s true!", "The Human Observation Department is really degenerate!", "Turns out he’s a frivolous man!", "Should we call the police?" and other defamations!

He sighed helplessly; his reputation was tarnished.

"See you tomorrow, Kiyono. Please be careful on your way home." With that, he dashed off.

Unlike other students whose parents could pick them up, he had to fend for himself in Tokyo. Since the rain showed no signs of stopping soon, he decided to take it as part of his training and ran back.

Unconsciously, Kiyono Lin reached out her hand, wanting to call him back, but ultimately she did not act on it.

She considered asking the driver who came to pick her up to give him a ride home as well.

"Refreshing!"

On a rainy day, Dubian Che set off from Shibuya Station, running along the Marunouchi line.

Except for trains, cars, and motorcycles, no one could match him.

The tie on his chest was soaked by the downpour, sticking to his torso, and occasionally blown into his face by the wind.

As long as he didn’t care what others thought, sprinting in the rain was not a shameful act... Dubian Che realized this truth.

This exhilarating mood continued until his sneakers got soaked.

Every step squished with water, and his socks, damp like a snake wrapped around his foot, brought Dubian Che back to reality.

Then, shopkeepers, fruit vendors, passersby with umbrellas— their stares seemed to appear suddenly.

"Welcome."

"Thank you for your patronage."

He bought the cheapest transparent umbrella for 300 yen, even though he was already drenched.

Under the gaze of the public, Dubian Che felt far from as strong as Kiyono Lin.

What kind of willpower supports her to never lie? An aversion to lying?

In this world, living without being disliked is easy, just give up, compromise, and pretend.

Facing one’s heart, disregarding others’ views, never fabricating lies—how many people can maintain such a way of life even for a day?

Yet Kiyono Lin had persisted for over a decade.

Standing under the convenience store’s eaves, Dubian Che gritted his teeth and placed the umbrella he was holding in the area for shared umbrellas at the convenience store.

In the torrential rain, the usually empty umbrella section now stood out with that transparent umbrella, much like Kiyono Lin herself.

"Tokyo Handsome isn’t inferior to anyone and will definitely stand at the top!"

Dubian Che, under the cashier’s flabbergasted gaze, dashed into the heavy rain.

Halfway through his run, he regretted his action.

Why try to look cool? Even if he got drenched, he should at least have taken the umbrella he had just bought!

That was 300 yen!

Back in his countryside hometown, that was enough to let a junior do anything for a whole day!

"Damn it! To hell with these waterlogged sneakers!" Feeling utterly embarrassed and regretful, Dubian Che vented his frustration on his sneakers.

Indeed, the destined-to-be-great Dubian Che remained unpredictable in the future.

After running all the way home and taking a hot bath, Dubian Che made curry with the last potato sent from his hometown. As he ate, he sipped on barley tea and continued watching "Downton Abbey."

Before going to bed that night, he was still bothered by his foolish behavior during the day.

But now that he had done it once, perhaps he wouldn’t care as much about others’ stares next time?

At least not when it came to sprinting in the rain.

The next day it was still raining, and Dubian Che bumped into Kiyono Lin by the shoe cupboard.

To demonstrate how he had become even greater today than yesterday, he shared with her his mental journey during the previous day’s downpour.

As one spoke and the other listened, they walked towards the first-year floor.

"I see," said Kiyono Lin, who had been silent until now, nodding her understanding. "You mean to say that you no longer care about other people’s opinions."

"Only just begun," Dubian humbly replied.

After saying this, Dubian Che raised his right palm upward and gestured around in the rainy courtyard.

"Mr. Kiyono," he confidently said, "I can tell that in this Goda High School, the only ones who will truly stand out in the future are you and me."

"What about Jiutiao?" Kiyono Lin seriously asked.

"Her..." Dubian Che hesitantly replied.

"What about her?" Kiyono Lin pressed, staring at him.

"She’s...already stood out."

Kiyono Lin tilted her head slightly, puzzled. "Didn’t you say you no longer care about others’ opinions? Why not stick to not answering me?"

"This..."

"Mr. Dubian, you indeed are excellent, and I acknowledge you will become even more excellent in the future, but to put yourself on the same level as me now is still too premature."

Kiyono Lin smiled like a mischievous child, slightly proud as she shook her slightly damp long hair and gracefully entered classroom 1-A.

Dubian Che in the hallway suddenly felt disheartened.

Watching Kiyono Lin take her seat, Dubian Che headed to his own class. Before leaving, he exchanged a glare with the furious-eyed Yuzao Haomei.

[You have a new email]

[Yuzao Haomei sign-in suspended]

[You have a new email]

[Temporary Event: Game time May 27 at 8:03 AM, as "Tokyo Handsome," get dumped unilaterally by your girlfriend again.]

[Event One: Successfully reconcile with Yuzao Haomei]

[Event Duration: A week]

[Event Reward: /100 points]

[Event Two: Successfully reconcile with Jiutiao Meijie]

[Event Duration: A week]

[Event Reward: /5000 points]

[Event Three: Simultaneously reconcile with both ex-girlfriends]

[Special Reward: /Free]

[According to the appendix clause, based on the spirit of basic human rights, we specially remind the players: Event One and Event Three involve significant life risks, please participate with caution]

Dubian Che rolled his eyes. Why wasn’t he warned during Jiutiao Meijie’s event? Otherwise, how could he have ended up in this situation?

Wait!

Jiutiao Meijie’s event really wasn’t dangerous. The pepper spray, stun gun, and powerful flashlight he bought were useless, and instead, he got kissed by the beautiful girl.

The danger happened after the event!

’? What’s that? And it’s free?’

Dubian Che clicked on the words ’’.

[Transcendent Level·Healing: A self-healing ability that transcends human limits, healing all non-fatal injuries, including severed limbs.]

[Side effects: Consumes a large amount of physical energy; healing speed slows if physical energy is insufficient; cannot heal wounds caused by a machete.]

"I want it."

Dubian Che’s gaze shifted back and forth between ’significant life risks’ and ’/Free’.