Nanahara Takeshi's conjecture and target selection were both correct. After showing Kameda Atsushi's sketch portrait, these few shops had a slight impression of him. One of the store clerks even had a deeper impression of him and had spoken to him before, jokingly asking for improvement suggestions. They had invited him to participate in taste tests several times, but he still hadn't patronized their business.

That was indeed a joke. Supermarkets, cake shops, and bakeries in Japan often organize taste testing events to increase sales and attract customers. They set up stalls at the entrance and offer a small sample for customers to try. It's best if it entices customers to enter the store and make a purchase, but even feedback without a purchase is acceptable. This allows the stores to make targeted improvements to their products, enhancing their competitiveness and survival rate in the market.

The samples given during taste tests are often not even enough to feed a cat. The stores don't really care because there are many perishable items that don't sell on the same day or are close to their expiration date after a few days. Sometimes, they even give them away for free rather than keeping them and damaging their reputation.

That's why the store clerk had joked with Kameda Atsushi. But Kameda Atsushi never came back, making the store clerk feel a little embarrassed. One time, when the clerk saw him passing by, they greeted him and wanted to invite him to continue taste testing. However, he immediately turned his head and walked away quickly. After that, even if the clerk saw him again, they didn't dare to greet him anymore. They had a relatively deep impression of him.

The store clerk was really enthusiastic. Now that Nanahara Takeshi came to ask, they even cared if something had happened to Kameda Atsushi. They provided an important clue - based on what they had seen several times, Kameda Atsushi always came from the same direction and went in the same direction when leaving. The clerk deduced that Kameda Atsushi lived not far from the commercial street in a town called Kurome.

After expressing his sincere gratitude, Nanahara Takeshi immediately took Kiyomi Ruri and headed to Kurome. Although Kurome had an unfortunate name, it used to be the place where Hirano handled the diversion of household waste. Now, even though the city had expanded and waste was diverted elsewhere, it had become a "slum" for Hirano. A large number of low-income or no-income people lived here, and the buildings were disorderly. There were many "hundred-family courtyards" and various narrow alleys, with a large number of illegal temporary structures mixed in.

This town covered a large area. After wandering around for a while, Nanahara Takeshi felt that it was inefficient for the two of them to ask together. He took out a small notebook, tore off a piece of paper, and quickly sketched a portrait of Kameda Atsushi. He handed it to Kiyomi Ruri and said, "Let's split up and ask. If you meet someone, ask them. He probably has a temporary residence around here, so someone should have an impression of him. After asking, come back here. We'll meet here later."

"Understood." Kiyomi Ruri went off with full determination. Although it was an unfamiliar town and had a slightly rotten and eerie smell, she wasn't afraid during broad daylight. Moreover, ordinary people couldn't defeat her, and there shouldn't be any safety issues here - after all, this wasn't America. Even if it was a "slum," it wouldn't suddenly have two gangs rushing out and fighting, sending people flying with a single blow. As long as she remained vigilant, nothing major would happen.

She planned to take this opportunity to ask for clues first. Otherwise, her contribution this time might not even reach 1.07%. In the blink of an eye, she disappeared while running along the road. She planned to ask one person after another, even though she hadn't figured out why Kameda Atsushi, who had a home, still rented a place outside. She suspected that he was having an affair, but since he even wanted to mooch off free samples, he didn't seem like someone who could afford a mistress. It was strange.

Compared to "premonitory dreams," she was now even more curious about Kameda Atsushi himself. She really wanted to know what he was doing. If she wasn't so far away, she would probably have set up a telescope and secretly observed the Kameda household.

Nanahara Takeshi didn't idle either. He walked in the opposite direction of Kiyomi Ruri for a while, turned a few corners, and made sure that she wouldn't be able to see him when she returned to the meeting point. He found a clean stone to sit on near a small bridge and waited to stop people and ask them. He felt quite emotional - after all, he wasn't born into a bloody capitalist family. He hadn't completely delegated all the work to his employees and still did some himself. He was really inadequate and needed further improvement.

As he pondered, he intermittently stopped a few people to inquire, but none of them had any impression of Kameda Atsushi. He continued to wait patiently while flipping through the crossed-out entries in the "Kameda Secret Notebook." These entries seemed unrelated to mooching off free food and drinks, but it was still difficult to figure out what Kameda Atsushi had written.

This was the first time he had encountered such a strange situation. It had nothing to do with "premonitory dreams" now, but he felt it was necessary to uncover the truth for future reference and to exploit similar fat lambs.

After more than half an hour, a delinquent teenager with a quiff hairstyle and wearing a school uniform similar to a black Zhongshan suit rode a small women's bicycle across the bridge. He glanced at Nanahara Takeshi and noticed his refined private high school uniform with a student tie and a shiny school emblem on his chest. He couldn't help but stop his bike and, with a cigarette in his mouth, asked vaguely, "Which school are you from? What are you doing here?"

"Yukon High School, a private school." Nanahara Takeshi looked up and casually answered. He glanced up and down at the teenager, then looked at his bicycle, showing an interested expression. He then showed the sketch portrait of Kameda Atsushi and asked with a smile, "Have you seen this person?""I haven't seen it." The delinquent with a quiff looked around and found that the area was relatively secluded. There were no pedestrians at the moment, so he immediately got off the car and approached Takeshi Nanahara, trying to put his arm around his shoulder. When he failed to do so, he didn't mind and just flicked his cigarette ash, saying, "You must be a rich person if you go to a private school. What are you doing here? Do you have money on you? Let me borrow some."

Takeshi Nanahara asked curiously, "I do have money, but why should I lend it to you?"

"If I ask you to lend it, then lend it. Stop talking nonsense." The delinquent with a quiff didn't bother pretending anymore. He went straight to reach into Takeshi's pocket and threatened in a low voice, "Take out all the money, or I'll kill you if I find even a little bit."

Find the original at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

Takeshi took a step back and casually took out a bulging brown sheepskin wallet, sighing, "Why would a young person like you choose to extort and rob instead of doing something better? There's no skill involved at all."

When the delinquent with a quiff saw the wallet bulging with yen bills, the large stack of ten thousand yen bills almost bursting out of the wallet, his breathing became heavy. He didn't expect to unexpectedly encounter such a fat sheep on his way to the marble hall. He reached out to snatch it and said casually, "Why rob when I can just take it? Consider it borrowed. I'll return it to you next time we meet."

Takeshi raised his hand and threw the wallet off the bridge, saying firmly, "Don't even think about it. Even if I threw it, I wouldn't give it to you."

The delinquent with a quiff laughed and raised his leg to kick him, saying, "Are you stupid from studying too much? There's no water in the river."

Takeshi took another step back, avoiding the kick. The delinquent with a quiff didn't feel like beating him up anymore. Money was the most important thing. He immediately climbed over the railing of the small bridge and went to retrieve the wallet. He wasn't interested in whether Takeshi lived or died. Getting the money was the priority. With money, he could go to the marble hall and have a good time all day. Maybe he would win more and become rich.

Today was really lucky. He actually encountered such a stupid fat sheep. He must play with him!

He was quite agile, and the bridge wasn't high. He quickly climbed down and landed on the dry riverbed. At a glance, he saw the black wallet that Takeshi had thrown far away. He became even more excited. Meanwhile, Takeshi leaned on the bridge railing and smiled as he watched him. He clicked his tongue in amazement. With this level of intelligence, he dared to come out and rob? He should go back to school and study!

The delinquent with a quiff turned and took a few steps, wanting to throw the trash can on the bridge to cheer himself up and teach him the importance of studying and being a good person. But the trash can was too dirty, and he couldn't bring himself to do it. Kiyomi Ruri wasn't here either, so he had to give up.

He turned directly to the women's bicycle, took a look, and thought the style was decent. It was about 90% new, although it was most likely a stolen bike. But it didn't matter to him. He took out a disinfectant tissue and wiped the seat and handlebars, then rode away.

Not bad, buying a bicycle for 50 yen wasn't a bad deal. He just needed to find another wallet to perform his magic tricks with... Well, it was actually a divination coin. But he should change it. Now that his economic conditions were better, it wasn't like the first few days when he first crossed over. This time, he could get a small leather one with a good feel.

The delinquent with a quiff finally found the wallet, but Takeshi had thrown it too far. He had to run more than twenty meters to get it. However, when he held it in his hand, he felt that something was off. The wallet was too deflated and had turned into black synthetic leather material. It was also worn out and heavily damaged. Even if he gave it away for free at a flea market, no one would want it.

He quickly opened it and instantly became furious. The wallet was empty, and there were no ten thousand yen bills at all.

He cursed loudly, turned around, and climbed back up the bridge. He chased after Takeshi for a while, wanting to tear him apart, but Takeshi had already ridden the bike and turned left and right, so he didn't know where he had gone. He couldn't tear him apart.

The delinquent with a quiff was no longer just furious. He became powerless and furious. In his anger, he kicked a trash can on the side of the road, but there was nothing in it. It hit a tree and bounced back, giving him a painful blow to the head. He almost passed out, and blood instantly flowed from his nose, causing him to curse loudly again.

Damn it, the heart of a private school student is truly dirty. He actually stole someone else's bicycle!

Next time he encounters him, he must kill him!

.........

Takeshi rode his bicycle, following the smell, to find Kiyomi Ruri. Meanwhile, Kiyomi Ruri was excitedly running towards the meeting point, and they met halfway.

As soon as she saw him, Kiyomi Ruri exclaimed, "I found out! I found out! An old lady has seen him. He really rented a small apartment here!" After her excitement subsided, she looked at the bicycle and asked curiously, "Hey, where did you get this bicycle?"

Takeshi got off the bike this time, crouched down to tie his shoelaces, and casually handed the bike to her. After tying the laces, he stood up and sighed, "It's strange. Someone insisted on exchanging this bike for my wallet. I had no choice but to agree."

"Exchanging a bicycle for a wallet on the road?" Kiyomi Ruri couldn't understand and asked in confusion, "Are there really people like this?"

Takeshi pondered and said, "Now that I think about it, that person seemed a bit emotionally unstable. Maybe there's something wrong with their mental state. But it doesn't matter. Let them take advantage. There's no need to argue with a sick person."Kiyomi Ruri didn't think about stealing bicycles. Based on her long-term observation and research, Nanahara Takeshi shouldn't be a part-time thief yet. Although he is more of a jerk than a thief in essence, he wouldn't steal things. At least since she has known him, he has always shown principles in certain aspects, only taking money and things willingly given to him by others.

She asked with concern, "Did you lose a lot? This bicycle... If it's second-hand, it's only worth about 10,000 yen. Do you have a lot of money in your wallet?"

Nanahara Takeshi shook his head and sighed. He didn't say much, but losing the opportunity to pick up something for free was indeed heartbreaking. However, he was strong and didn't dwell on it. He directly changed the topic and said, "Let's not talk about it anymore. Let's focus on the main issue. I didn't expect Kameda Atsushi to actually rent a house here. No wonder there's a brand new house key on his keychain that doesn't match any of the doors in his house."

Kiyomi Ruri was also puzzled by this. "But why would he rent a house here? It's so far from his home. Even if it's for work, he shouldn't choose this place. It's the same to take the tram from anywhere, right?"

"You'll understand once we go and see. I have a feeling that all his secrets are there. Just one look and everything will be clear. Then we can complete the mission." Nanahara Takeshi pulled her arm and said, "Get on the tram. Let's go now!"

"Okay!" Kiyomi Ruri also wanted to quickly unravel all the mysteries. She sat on the bike handlebars as he pulled her along. As soon as she felt the weight behind her, she started pedaling hard, quickly increasing the speed, heading straight for the Baijia Courtyard where Kameda Atsushi rented a house.

But after riding for two or three minutes and turning into a narrow alley, she suddenly felt that something was not right.

Wait, why am I the one riding the bike? How did I end up taking him along? He's much heavier than me. Why should I be the one carrying him?

What's going on?

This is so strange!

She abruptly hit the brakes and stopped the bike. She turned back and asked Nanahara Takeshi in confusion, "Why am I carrying you? Shouldn't it be the other way around?"

Nanahara Takeshi was also puzzled. "Didn't you want to ride the bike? You sit in the front, and I can only sit in the back!"

Kiyomi Ruri was bewildered. It seemed like that was indeed the case, but how did I naturally end up on the bike before? It's different from what I've seen in comics. Shouldn't the boy be riding the bike while the girl sits behind, holding onto the boy's clothes with a slightly blushing face?

"Here, have some candy." Nanahara Takeshi peeled a piece of fruit candy and handed it to her. He said softly, "Don't think too much. You thought my health wasn't good and were afraid I would get tired, so you instinctively rode the bike with me. Besides, I'm the boss and you're the assistant. It's reasonable for you to be the driver. The truth is the most important thing. Let's hurry up and find Kameda's house."

After Nanahara Takeshi finished speaking, he pushed her waist and ordered with a suppressed smile, "Alright, Tibetan Fox, let's go!"

So that's how it is. I was just being kind and took the initiative to carry him, right? And the candy is a bit sweet, mango-flavored, with a strong fruity scent...

Although Kiyomi Ruri still found it strange and didn't understand what a Tibetan Fox was, she bent down and exerted force on the pedals instinctively while eating the candy. She started riding the bike again.

Nanahara Takeshi sat on the back seat, feeling the gentle breeze with a faint fragrance brushing past him. He was extremely pleased and felt that he would also become a car owner in the future. Moreover, it was a Tibetan Fox pulling the cart, which was a unique and high-class style. He couldn't help but hum a nursery rhyme, "I have a little Tibetan Fox, I never use it. One day, I had the idea to let it pull the cart to the market. I held a small whip in my hand, feeling really proud. But accidentally..."

"What are you singing? It's strange." Kiyomi Ruri found the cheerful nursery rhyme pleasant to listen to, but she didn't understand the lyrics. She could only speak a few sentences in Chinese, thanks to her father being a literature professor and writer.

Nanahara Takeshi laughed and swayed his legs from behind. "It's nothing. I just feel... Kiyomi, it's great to have you around." A Tibetan Fox pulling a cart, this style is really high-class. He was very satisfied.

Kiyomi Ruri blushed slightly and couldn't help but hum a little, her lips curling up.

This guy, he's good for a while and then bad for a while. As soon as he saves some energy, he starts praising people. Does he think I'm such a shallow girl who would be happy just because someone casually compliments me?

Hmph, he thinks I'm so considerate that I would willingly carry him because I'm worried about his health. And he even knows how to thank me. Otherwise, let's see if I'll still bring him along in the future...

She thought to herself, her face growing even redder. She forcefully rode the bike, feeling like she was riding a small motorcycle, weaving through the streets and alleys, heading straight for the truth!

(End of this chapter)