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Chapter 79: Tricking the Big Love Hashira's Stomach
"My doctor told me that my stomach isn't in good shape," Suyan continued smoothly, spinning absolute nonsense with a straight face. "She advised me to make sure I eat properly, and especially when my appetite is actually good, I should force myself to eat a bit more. It's the only way my stomach will heal quickly."
"Really?" Mitsuri gasped, looking deeply concerned.
The young girl didn't know much about medicine, but she understood the basic concept of a stomach. People always talked about having a 'good' or 'bad' appetite when eating. Thus, she didn't suspect his blatant lie for a second.
Instead, she tried to persuade him. "If that's the case, Suyan-san, you really should eat more for the sake of your health."
"But—" Mitsuri patted her flat stomach, her lips forming a slight pout as she lied through her teeth, "I'm already full, so I can't keep you company while you eat."
"Is that so?" Suyan manufactured a look of deep disappointment. "Because of my stomach condition, I normally don't have much of an appetite at all. But for some reason, watching you eat, Miss Mitsuri, suddenly made me feel ravenous. Since you're already full, Miss Mitsuri, let's just forget it. I'll have the waiter cancel the order."
"How could that be?" Mitsuri looked up, utterly dismayed at the thought of ruining his appetite.
She looked down at her own stomach, then back up at Suyan. After a moment of internal struggle, she held up her thumb and index finger, making a 'fingertip universe' gesture, claiming it was just a tiny amount. "Actually… I can eat just a tiny bit more," she said weakly. "Really, just a little bit!"
Right as she spoke, the waiter arrived with their second serving.
"That's wonderful!" Suyan beamed, pushing a fresh plate toward her. "Then I'll have to trouble you, Miss Mitsuri."
"Mhm." Mitsuri nodded. Her face adopted a determined 'leave it to me' expression.
This time, she didn't look at the food as if it were some terrifying beast. Instead, a genuine sense of joy bubbled up within her. She felt incredibly lucky. Not only had she met such a wonderful man on her first blind date, but she actually got to keep eating.
Still, determined to preserve her image, she refrained from unhinging her jaw and inhaling the food as she normally would.
Soon enough, the second round of food vanished.
"Miss Mitsuri, could you manage one more serving?" Suyan asked pleadingly.
"This—" Mitsuri looked at his pleading eyes and "reluctantly" agreed. "W-Well, alright. But this is absolutely the last one!"
"Great, one more order!" Suyan waved the waiter down.
Then came the fourth round. Suyan repeated his trick, and Mitsuri agreed.
Then the fifth, the sixth, the seventh…
All the way until they finished the eighteenth serving.
Burp~ Mitsuri let out a small, satisfied burp and quickly slapped both hands over her mouth. She stared wide-eyed at the towering stack of empty bowls beside her.
She couldn't fathom how she had mindlessly eaten so much in front of her blind date.
"Suyan-san, you—" she started hesitantly.
"Are you truly full this time?" Suyan quietly conjured a handkerchief, dabbing the oil from the corners of his mouth. He looked at her with a warm smile.
If his massive appetite was the result of his physical stats skyrocketing after learning Nen, Mitsuri's appetite was entirely innate. According to the lore, her muscle density was eight times that of a normal human. Sustaining that kind of monstrous strength naturally required a massive caloric intake.
"Suyan-san… you knew all along?"
Even as dense as she was, Mitsuri finally realized something was off. A weak stomach? Watching her eat gave him an appetite? Looking at the sheer volume of food he had easily put away, it was obvious he was lying.
"I did," Suyan admitted openly. "After all, letting your date go hungry on a blind date is a massive sin."
"Thank you, Suyan-san." Mitsuri stood up and offered him a deep, emotional bow. "Going on this date with you was the best decision of my life. I don't think I will ever forget today."
With a complex expression, she turned to leave.
He must be disgusted by a freakish woman like me. She had wanted to walk away first to preserve the perfect memory of their date. But even so, she was deeply grateful. Grateful that he had chosen to gently deceive her, giving her one perfect, beautiful memory of a blind date.
"Miss Mitsuri." Seeing her suddenly stand up and prepare to leave, Suyan called out, genuinely perplexed. "What are you doing? Did I fail to meet your standards?"
"Eh?" Mitsuri whipped around, staring at him in sheer disbelief. She waved her hands frantically. "No! No, no, I didn't! I just—I just—"
Listening to his tone, did that mean he wasn't disgusted by her?
Suyan smiled, not dwelling on her panic. He stood up and offered, "Since we're finally full, how about you accompany me for a walk? I just arrived in town, so I'm not very familiar with the area."
"I'd love to!" Mitsuri's eyes lit up, and she patted her chest enthusiastically.
After paying the bill, the two left the ramen shop. Suyan naturally didn't stoop so low as to conjure fake money; he paid using the solid gold he had looted from the Highschool of the Dead world. In a post-apocalyptic setting, gold sitting in banks and jewelry stores was practically worthless garbage. If he had transmigrated to an era a bit further back, he could have paid his tab with glass marbles from his childhood.
As for the premium he was paying? A thousand gold pieces couldn't buy his happiness. And today, he was in an excellent mood.
Time drifted by lazily, and soon evening arrived.
The sun dipped low, and the golden hues of twilight cascaded over Mitsuri, washing her dark hair in a warm glow. She had never felt time pass so quickly in her entire life. A part of her desperately wished she could slow it down, just so she could stay by his side a little longer.
When he finally escorted her back to her front door, Mitsuri couldn't hold back anymore. Mustering every ounce of her courage, she asked, "Suyan-san… what do you think of me?"
"I'd like to wait until tomorrow to give you my answer, if that's alright?" Suyan replied, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"Tomorrow?" the girl echoed, confused.
"Yes," Suyan affirmed. "Tomorrow, let's go on another date."
With that, he turned and walked away, giving her absolutely no chance to process or respond.
A tidal wave of pure euphoria slammed into Mitsuri's heart. Watching his retreating figure, she clutched her chest, feeling her heart pounding uncontrollably against her ribs. Her previous wish to slow down time completely reversed itself.
If only time would speed up. I want tomorrow to come faster!
Once the last rays of the sun completely vanished beyond the horizon, Suyan prepared to portal back to Greed Island to eat dinner with the girls and discuss their plans for this new world.
But then, he noticed something was wrong.
It was too quiet.
Is it a man-eating demon from this world?
Interesting. I was planning on hunting you down myself, but to think you'd deliver yourself right to my doorstep.
The corners of Suyan's mouth unconsciously curled upward into a cold sneer. "Come on out!"
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