Does gravity make me stronger?

Page 279

"but..."

Goto Ichiri lowered his head even further.

Hachiman sighed, "And even if you were to pay it back, the prices here are incredibly high."

Before leaving, he checked the hotel's prices briefly. It was fine during the off-season, but now it was peak season, and even the most basic three-day, two-night package cost nearly one million yen.

That's right, one hundred thousand, not one hundred thousand, and certainly not ten thousand...

Putting aside whether Goto Ichiri is in a good enough condition to complete the roadshow, it's not like she can earn back that much money just by performing a few shows.

The child's phone is probably dead; they haven't checked the hotel price yet.

and.

If they don't have enough money, will this kid plan to find other ways to raise it?

But it would be too difficult to get Goto Ichiri to give up. After thinking for a moment, Hachiman said helplessly, "I'll go with you."

"Hey?"

"Consider it as keeping an eye on you, and in return, we'll reduce your accommodation fees a bit."

"Ok!"

Goto Ichiri's eyes sparkled as he slung his guitar over his shoulder and ran out the door.

"Wait a minute, let me contact Su Shi."

Hachiman originally intended to ask Suyo to go out for a walk with him, but Suyo replied that she had something to do and couldn't leave for the time being.

Could it be that he/she is sick?

He was perfectly fine this morning.

Su Shi replied, telling Hachiman not to enter her room before nightfall. Although it seemed a bit strange, she was certain that the guy was fine.

And so.

Hachiman followed Goto Ichiri out of the hotel.

The hotel is adjacent to this commercial street, which naturally doesn't offer venues for performances, so they could only find a cool corner.

Honestly, doing a roadshow in this kind of weather is pure torture.

But what's even more alarming is that there are also a lot of tourists strolling around on the street, including not only Japanese people but also foreigners.

Faced with such a diverse audience, Goto Ichiri suddenly lost her courage.

"Maybe we should just forget about it."

"Hey, hey."

Hachiman muttered a complaint, "Now that we're out here, we can't let Goto Ichiri give up so easily: at least play a song."

"But look, Hachiman, we don't have a lead singer, and it's so hot, so no one wants to come."

Before he could finish speaking...

Several tourists then approached the two.

"Oh, there's even a roadshow here, want to check it out?"

Is it a silent performance or...?

The tourists in front of him were chatting casually, and the pressure they exuded made Goto Ichiri hold his breath.

"Cheer up."

Hachiman slapped Goto Ichiri on the back.

"pain!"

"If it doesn't hurt, how can I get you to concentrate? Okay, let's start playing."

"what..."

Goto Ichiri hesitantly took out his guitar, ready to play.

So, what should we play?

Goto Ichiri gently stroked the strings, and a few seconds later, the first note slowly floated out.

...

The roadshow went surprisingly smoothly. A little while later, Hachiman remembered that Goto Ichiri seemed to have experience with roadshows before, and he remembered that the last time he did it with that drunken woman.

Once Goto Ichiri started to get into the swing of things, Hachiman came to her side and looked at her with a smile.

"Isn't this great?"

For a moment, he actually felt a slight sense of happiness, as if he wanted to keep watching Goto Ichiri perform to his heart's content.

"It must be an illusion."

He shook his head, expelling these strange thoughts from his body.

After several songs, Goto Ichiri bowed deeply: "Thank...thank you everyone!"

Applause rose and fell from the crowd, but no one threw money.

It's not so much that no one is willing to vote, but rather that there's nowhere to vote.

At this moment, Hachiman walked out from the side, took a hat and placed it in front of Goto Ichiri. After that, people kept putting banknotes into it.

After the crowd had mostly dispersed, Goto Ichiri began to tally up all the spoils.

"One thousand, two thousand...ten thousand?"

When Goto Ichiri saw the 10,000 yen bill inside the hat, he was completely stunned.

Last time, she played with Hiroi-senpai for a long time with all her heart and only received a few thousand yen in tips. Today, she received more than 10,000 yen after only playing three or four songs.

"Hehehe."

Goto Ichiri grinned without any regard for his image, revealing a greedy smile: "If we could make money like this, that would be fantastic."

It is a pity.

This way of making money is not sustainable.

Just minutes later, a group of people arrived and ordered Goto Ichiri to perform elsewhere, shattering her dream of making a fortune through street performances. She even almost had her guitar confiscated.

After sending Goto Ichiri, who had turned into a salted fish, back to his room, Hachiman headed to the bookstore. When he returned to the hotel in the evening, the guy was nowhere to be found.

"Su Shi, are you in your room?"

Hachiman knocked on the door next door. Although Suze had warned him not to come over in the afternoon, it was almost evening now, so it should be okay, right?

"I'm here."

A muffled voice came from inside the door, followed by the beeping sound of the door lock opening.

Seeing the girl, who looked no different from that morning, emerge from behind the door, Hachiman blinked quickly, hiding his questions, and continued to ask.

"Do you know where Goto went? She hasn't replied to my messages."

"I don't know."

Su Shi shook her head slightly: "I've been in my room all afternoon."

"That guy probably went off to do a roadshow again, didn't he?" Hachiman scratched his hair in frustration.

"Roadshow?"

"Ah, it was in the afternoon. I accompanied Goto to a roadshow, but it didn't last long and we were quickly chased away by the surrounding management staff."

Hachiman briefly explained the events of the afternoon to Sose, who covered her mouth in surprise upon hearing it.

"How could such a thing happen..."

"Yes, that's why I'm worried that the kid has gone off to do promotional tours again."

"Should we call the housekeeper to confirm?"

"Ah."

Soon after confirming through the butler that Goto Ichiri had not left the hotel but had been staying somewhere, Hachiman was finally relieved.

Ten minutes later, with the help of the hotel staff, Hachiman finally found Goto Ichiri, who was lost in thought, in a corner.

"Goto-kun, if you're going out alone, at least take your phone with you."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Upon seeing Hachiman rushing over, Goto Ichiri first apologized.

"So, what are you doing here?"

Hachiman observed his surroundings. It was a lush bamboo forest, with nothing but bamboo and artificial hills.

Goto Ichiri probably doesn't have the temperament to appreciate gardens, so it's hard to imagine why she would stay here for an entire afternoon.

"that."

Goto Ichiri placed his hand on his stomach and murmured weakly, "Hungry..."

"Huh?" Hachiman frowned.

"My stomach is growling."

"..." Hachiman's lips twitched slightly: "If you're hungry, you can go to a restaurant... Sorry, I forgot you didn't bring your wallet."

Goto Ichiri raised her face, her moist eyes meeting Hachiman's sympathetic gaze: "Um, I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize. We're hungry too, let's go have dinner together."

"Ah."

After dinner, Goto Ichiri went back to his room first, leaving only Hachiman and Sose in the dining room.

"Cough cough."

As if to deliberately attract Hachiman's attention, Sose cleared her throat.

Hachiman put down his chopsticks: "What's wrong?"

"Hmm, Hachiman, have you heard? The hot springs here seem to be quite nice."

Hachiman pursed his lips and deliberately turned his head away: "Oh, but is there any superstition about soaking in hot springs in the summer? It sounds like it must be really hot..."

"It's good for your health."

The girl's voice trembled noticeably, which suggested that she must be very shy at that moment.

So if you're embarrassed, don't do that.

He was screaming this in his heart, but he had to admit that he also had a tiny bit of anticipation for mixed-gender bathing... oh no, for hot springs in the summer.

"Well, let's give it a try first. If it works well, we can have Xiangzi come along tomorrow."

Hachiman rambled on for a few minutes, trying to break the awkward silence between them.

Su Shi nodded slightly, following the atmosphere, and then asked meaningfully, "Well, let's try it tonight. How should we make the soup?"

After a long silence, Hachiman mustered all his strength and blew the horn of courage to charge.

"Want to...want to come together?"

"Hey?"

Was I really in too much of a hurry?

The courage I had finally mustered instantly dissipated.

Noticing the surprised look in Suze's eyes, Hachiman hurriedly explained, "Since it's a family-style hot spring, separating people 'together' would defeat the purpose, and as long as you're wearing a towel, it's not too much to cover your private parts..."

"Pfft."

Listening to the other party's incoherent reasons, Su Shi couldn't help but chuckle, her chestnut-yellow hair swaying gently behind her back as her shoulders trembled.

Hachiman's deadpan eyes narrowed to the side: "Um, did I say something wrong?"

"No, no, I'm just a little surprised."

Wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes, Su Shi tucked her hair behind her ears, her clear eyes shining brightly: "Oh dear, Hachiman, you said it yourself, so don't go back on your word later."

Hachiman grunted, "Tch, I won't go back on my word. No matter how you look at it, I'm the one who benefits."