Chapter 157

When Kazuma Hatake heard Gojo Satoru ask this question, he carefully repeated it again.

As Gojo Satoru held his phone, the tension he felt for his safety suddenly turned into a bit of a mixed bag.

It was as if the fairy godmother was holding her magic wand, flapping her wings and circling around his head—constantly shaking down those glittering powders.

Not only was the crisis gone, but princess music even began to play in my ears.

When it comes to important matters, why ask him if he likes these childish toys?

After a long silence, Gojo Satoru finally asked his lover suspiciously, "You're not going to prepare these for me..."

At this point, the incredibly clever Xiao Wu suddenly remembered that December 7th was just a few days away, and smoothly changed the subject, "How about a birthday celebration—?"

Compared to the first half of the sentence, which was meant to express "What are you planning to do, kid?", the tone of the last few words rose sharply, and the smile that came through when he spoke was uncontrollable.

Even Tsuji Tomoya probably didn't expect that Hato Kazuma would be so honest when facing Gojo Satoru.

“Yes,” Kazuma Hatake said frankly, “Tomoya-san and the others want to throw you a birthday party and asked if you like the preparations.”

Gojo Satoru dragged out a long, drawn-out "Oh—" in a soft, cheerful tone, yet he still tried to pretend to be serious.

This reaction was so cute that Kazuma Hatake couldn't help but laugh again.

"Then I'll tell them you like it."

He coughed lightly and began to speak.

Upon hearing this, Gojo Satoru raised an eyebrow and his voice grew louder: "Wait, I haven't said I like it yet, don't treat me like a child—this is my 18th birthday!"

But his tone was quite cheerful, and you couldn't hear a hint of displeasure in his voice.

If I had to describe it... perhaps it's a kind of tsundere (a person who is proud and aloof)?

Unable to stop laughing, Kazuma Hatori pondered for a moment before readily agreeing and confirming with the adorable Satoru again.

Don't you like it?

He tried hard to ask the question sincerely, but his amused tone made it sound more like an intimate teasing.

This kind of question, in particular, is a killer weapon of arrogance!

Gojo Satoru: “…”

Gojo Satoru: "I like it, I like it! Seriously, you've got me all wrapped around your little finger now."

He seemed to be complaining as he said "Really," but every syllable that came out of his tongue was exactly the same as Kazuma Hatori's, without a trace of blame.

Compared to the boring birthday parties he'd spent at Gojo's house in previous years, he would much rather be with the castle trampoline, the fairy godmother, and the balloon clown... He'd only ever seen them on TV before, they were sure to be super fun!

Moreover, this birthday party was specially prepared for him.

He also made many friends who had no connection with the world of sorcery.

Even though these people still treat him like a child...

Kazuma Hato: "Ah, Uncle Tomoya said they'll also prepare adult juice."

Gojo Satoru: "Okay!"

It was adult juice that he had never tasted before!

Gojo Satoru chuckled and hung up the phone. When he strolled back from the cold wind outside, Ieiri Shoko was still flipping through the autopsy report she had submitted earlier.

"What's wrong? Still can't find the reason?"

"Yes, I've simulated the wound on the pork many times with various blunt objects, but I still can't confirm what exactly caused it."

Looking at these magnified photos, I feel more and more confused.

Shoko Ieiri instinctively reached for a cigarette in her pocket, but then remembered she was in a classroom, so she suppressed her urge to smoke.

They will graduate next March and will soon be on New Year's holiday. Nowadays, most of the courses have been replaced by free time and assignments.

But the weather has been too cold these past two days, and Iori Shoko didn't want to go out. She was also too lazy to stay in the dormitory, so she simply came to the classroom to sunbathe while flipping through her previous anatomy reports.

She had previously submitted a summary as required by higher-ups, but kept the original file for herself.

She genuinely couldn't understand what kind of weapon could produce such an effect.

Just then, Gojo Satoru, who was originally supposed to go on a business trip, had his mission canceled and returned. She thought that the other party had rich combat experience and might have some clues.

As a result, he took the autopsy report, flipped through a few pages, and then went out to make phone calls for a long time.

"Do you have any ideas?" Ieiri Shoko asked him.

Having guessed a thing or two, Gojo Satoru tried to suppress his smile and pretend that he didn't know either.

"I don't know."

He put his hands behind his back, but he couldn't stop his joy—like an ice-cold strawberry ramune soda in the middle of summer, with tiny bubbles bubbling and rising in the sunlight.

His expression was so obvious that Rei Shoko squinted at him and asked, "...Were you on the phone with that person just now?"

She raised her little finger to Gojo Satoru, representing a lover.

Gojo Satoru blinked his blue eyes twice, looking innocently at Ieiri Shoko.

Unfortunately, the round-lensed, jet-black sunglasses blocked the view, so the other party couldn't see anything and thus tacitly agreed.

"—Sigh, and I'm still trying so hard to come up with clues."

Shoko Ieiri silently put away the report in her hand, folded it in half, and put it aside, pretending it didn't exist.

Gojo Satoru was almost bursting with amusement at her actions. "Aren't you going to keep looking for blunt weapons?"

"No, anyway, all they told me was to do my best."

Shoko Ieiri propped her head up and began to bask in the sun, her posture languid—even her tone revealed no enthusiasm, and she exuded a sense of weariness from taking a break from her busy schedule.

"Now that I've exhausted all my strength, it's time to enjoy my leisure time to the fullest."

She didn't have any essential goals in life, nor was she particularly interested in Gojo Satoru's ideal of reforming the world of magic.

But as a friend who spent three years of college with her, she doesn't mind giving a little preference to acquaintances when it comes to things she can do.

Gojo Satoru laughed. "Thanks, Shoko." — He said, "I'll treat you to drinks another day."

Upon hearing this, Ieiri Shoko's ears twitched slightly.

"You actually bought me drinks?" she exclaimed in surprise, turning her gaze to me. "You were behaving so well before, following the rules."

Shoko Ieiri had already drunk with Anka and the others last year—even though she wasn't old enough to drink at the time.

However, since I've already gotten into the habit of smoking, having a couple of drinks isn't a big deal.

However, Gojo Satoru prefers to eat various sweets during his rest time and has no interest in cigarettes or alcohol.

Now, the other party is actually offering to buy her drinks.

Ieiri Glass seemed a little incredulous. "About how much can you drink?"

She assumed that Gojo Satoru had already secretly tried drinking alcohol.

"Eh—I don't know!"

Gojo Satoru answered this question crisply and decisively, but before Iori Shoko could give him a helpless look, he turned around and added with a smile.

"Anyway, I'll be able to taste the wine on my birthday, so it's fine to arrange a treat in advance. It's settled then, bye—"

Watching Gojo Satoru leave the classroom in a super good mood, Ieiri Shoko remained silent for a moment.

My birthday is also 18 years old... but I'm not yet 20, which is the legal age for drinking alcohol.

Oh well, it's alright. She was already surprised enough that Gojo, as the strongest mage, would obediently follow so many rules.

As Iori Shoko shifted her position to bask in the sun, she drowsily thought to herself.

Judging from how quickly that guy devoured so many sweets, his alcohol tolerance must be pretty good too.

………

When midnight arrived on December 7th, Kazuma Hatake's email arrived as promised.

Happy birthday, Wu.

Under Gojo Satoru's relentless bombardment of emoticons, even Hatori Kazuma, who originally only knew how to write, was led astray, adding a super cute smiley face that Gojo Satoru often sent him at the end.

To be honest, even if Kazuma Hagoromo himself had his face, he might not be able to produce such a bright and cheerful smile.

Holding his phone, Gojo Satoru could laugh so hard he rolled around on the bed just imagining the scene.

[Received it——]

He replied with a wink emoji, secretly laughing to himself under the covers.

In fact, he was already looking forward to the email even before midnight.

—I look forward to it, but I am not anxious, because I know that it will definitely come.

The anticipation was like a sprinkle of sweet chocolate sprinkles on a cream cake, and the email was like sprinkling an even bigger handful on that cake.

In short, double the happiness!

Gojo Satoru rolled over again while hugging his Shiba Inu plushie, just as his phone vibrated once more.

[Around 8 o'clock, arrive at this address.]

[good--]

Before today, Gojo Satoru had never imagined that his birthday would be surrounded by colorful balloons, ribbons, and confetti.

The image of that young child, who always sat upright in the main seat, accepting congratulations with an indifferent expression, seemed to gradually become blurred and fade away like morning mist.

Instead, he was greeted with a series of cannon salutes as soon as he entered the door, and a lively and jubilant atmosphere filled with shouts of "Wu, happy birthday!"

They actually invited a beautiful fairy godmother and a chubby, smiling clown, and the castle trampoline they built was enormous.

Gojo Satoru slowly closed his azure eyes for a moment, then opened them again.

His heart was filled with a special emotion, as if he were holding a warm and bright flame in the palm of his hand.

It turns out that even after becoming the strongest in the world of sorcery, he didn't feel lonely.

I like everyone very much, so I'm not lonely at all.

"Wow, I didn't expect you all to be free. Uncle Tomoya, Junko-neechan, Miwa-neechan, Kana... wait, Anri-chan?"

Gojo Satoru smiled and looked at each person in turn, but was surprised when he looked at the girl who was half-hidden behind Tsutsuji Tomoya. The girl whose name was called seemed to be a little reserved and shy, but she was also holding a celebratory cannon that had been pulled back.

But when she heard Gojo Satoru pronounce her name, Sasaki Anri was a little happy and smiled shyly with her lips pursed.

“I heard everything from the host, whether it’s compensation for my sister or giving me access to fashion magazine resources.”

Anri Sasaki bowed deeply to Satoru Gojo, her head bowed low.

"Really, thank you so much for your help to me and my sister."

"Is this one of the surprises?" Tsutsuji Tomoya patted Sasaki Anri's shoulder lightly and smiled at the stunned Gojo Satoru.

"Her sister, Huayi, originally wanted to come and thank you too, but her facial plastic surgery is not yet finished, and she was worried that it would frighten you."

"How could that be?" Gojo Satoru muttered.

"Haha, see? I told you he wouldn't mind!"

Unexpectedly, Tomoya Tsukichi immediately shouted out a sentence—and after he finished speaking, a very slender young woman walked out from a room next to the hall.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Gojo."

She was wearing a mask that covered most of her face, and her voice was very pleasant.

If it weren't for Gojo Satoru's threat to the host that they would have to receive compensation and assistance afterward, the sisters might not have been able to survive.

“Hana and Anri had already contacted me before, but I thought you were too busy, so I didn’t bother you,” Tomoya Tsutsuji winked at him. “We’ll celebrate your birthday together on this special day.”

Gojo Satoru never expected that his simple act of kindness would be remembered by Anri Saki and her sister for so long.

Junko Arase and Kana Yano, who were rescued earlier, have also been expressing their gratitude in their own ways.

Those usually bright and spirited blue eyes seemed to be veiled in a light, soft mist as they looked intently at each of the smiling faces, until finally, they met the dark eyes of Kazuma Hatake.

The other person smiled at him, as if asking—

Do you like this arrangement, Wu?

Gojo Satoru couldn't hold back for even a moment before bursting into laughter.

Whether it's the concert audience who shouted his name last year, the fans who expressed their love for him in various ways on the forum, or the friends and lovers standing in front of him now.

"I love everyone so much."

He said.