Chapter 46 Barbecue (Bonus Chapter with Landmine) Sanada: Danger! ...
Backstage at the auditorium, Risa was adjusting her wig and props when footsteps sounded at the door.
"Matsuno-kun, are you free tonight?"
She looked up and saw Yukimura leaning against the door frame, a smile in his eyes.
"It should be nothing, what's wrong?" Risa blinked.
"I'd like to treat you to dinner to celebrate your victory." Yukimura's lips curled into a slight smile. "I know a good restaurant. All-you-can-eat desserts."
Risa's eyes lit up instantly, but she hesitated and glanced at her phone again: "But I promised Akaya tonight..."
My phone vibrated halfway through my sentence.
Risa answered the phone: "Hello? Akaya?"
"Risa-nee! Are you done cleaning up? What are we having for dinner tonight? No rush, I'll wait for you at the auditorium entrance."
The boy's energetic voice came through the microphone in rapid succession, and you could almost picture him eagerly waiting for his meal.
Risa couldn't help but chuckle, lightly tapping her chin with her finger: "Haven't you always wanted to eat 'Mitsubatei's' sushi? How about we..."
Before she could finish speaking, a hand with distinct knuckles suddenly brushed past her ear and gently snatched the phone away.
Yukimura said into the microphone, "Akaya, see you at 'Black Angus BBQ' in thirty minutes. Go ahead and grab a seat, it's on me."
"Huh?! Minister?! Wait a minute—"
Akaya let out a surprised cry from the other end of the phone, but Yukimura had already hung up the call decisively.
“That restaurant has amazing grilled meat, and they also have the desserts you’re looking for.” Yukimura handed the phone back to the dumbfounded girl, adding calmly, “They say it can completely wipe away fatigue.”
Risa took the phone in a daze, her brain still in a brief state of lapse.
“So,” Yukimura leaned down slightly and coaxed in her ear, “can you forgive me for taking matters into my own hands just now?”
His voice was clear and melodious, like a mountain stream, flowing past her ears and into her heart. Risa unconsciously held her breath, her long eyelashes trembling.
It took her a while to come to her senses.
When she looked up, Risa vaguely saw irises blooming on the Kanagawa coast, swaying gently in the intoxicating spring breeze.
"!"
This man is adept at seducing people.
Outside the auditorium.
Kirihara Akaya stared wide-eyed at the phone: "What's going on? Risa-nee actually agreed to come to the tennis club dinner?!"
Niou Masaharu slumped lazily, "Maybe Captain Yukimura used some kind of bewitching magic, pfft~"
Yagyu pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting light: "I'd guess there's a 99% chance that Yukimura didn't mention the 'tennis club dinner'."
Renji Yanagi, whose lines were stolen: "?"
"Huh?! Isn't this deceiving me?" Kirihara looked bewildered. "No, I have to tell Risa-nee."
Marui Bunta pressed down on his junior's phone: "Kai-kun, don't be so nervous. Matsuno-kun probably won't mind... probably."
Honest Jackal Kuwabara said, "When Matsuno-kun pushes open the door and finds it's full of tennis club members, won't he be surprised?"
Renji Liu calmly replied, "She might stay out of consideration for Akaya, the probability is 78%."
Niou rested his chin on his hand, a sly smile on his face: "That's going to be interesting~"
Sanada glanced at the message and coughed lightly: "Let's go, let's go first."
-
The Black Bull BBQ restaurant is located at the corner of the commercial street, and its warm orange signboard is very eye-catching in the night.
The wooden sliding door was half-closed, and the rich aroma of roasted meat wafted out, making one's mouth water from a distance.
At the store entrance, a group of tall, handsome young men were gathered together. Each of them had outstanding looks and a unique temperament, and standing together, they looked like an idol group shooting a pictorial.
Risa paused in her steps.
(That was hasty.)
This is just a routine dinner for the tennis club, right? What is she, an outsider, doing here?
Just as he was hesitating about what excuse to use to leave, Akaya spotted her with his sharp eyes. The boy jumped up excitedly and waved, "Risa-nee! Over here!"
When Niou Masaharu met her gaze, he whistled. He grinned and put his arm around Yagyu's shoulder: "Pfft, looks like you were tricked after all~"
Sanada crossed his arms and ultimately said nothing.
Liu Lian'er nodded calmly to her, which was considered a greeting.
Jackal and Marui were huddled together studying the menu. After glancing at her absentmindedly, they continued ordering.
Yukimura stood beside Risa, his tone relaxed: "This can be considered your first formal meeting with everyone, right?"
"Huh?" Risa opened her mouth.
(What...what does this mean?)
Before she could even ask, Akaya rushed over and grabbed her arm: "Risa-nee! Come on, sit next to me!"
Yukimura gently pressed Akaya's shoulder and smiled slightly: "Akaaya, the seniors are all waiting for you to place your order."
"Huh? Oh!" Akaya was confused, but his intuition told him that the captain's smile was a little scary. He let go of her hand, scratched his head, and said, "Well... Risa-nee, you stay with the captain. I'll go ahead first."
(Hey...no...Xiao Hai will take you...)
Risa stood there, stunned.
It seems I've been subtly arranged for myself.
Yukimura turned his head to look at her, his eyes smiling: "What's wrong?"
"……nothing."
Oh well, we're already here.
Barbecue is always innocent.
-
At the beginning of the dinner, perhaps because there were outsiders present, there was still a bit of restraint in the air.
Sanada sat upright, Niou unusually calmly flipped the grilled meat, and even the most mischievous Marui and Akaya used serving chopsticks properly.
until--
Wow!
Akaya frantically tried to catch the slipping tongs, but his elbow accidentally knocked over the condiment dish. The dark brown sauce spilled directly onto Sanada's snow-white shirt.
Time stood still for a second.
"Chi! Ye!"
Sanada's voice was terrifyingly low, and veins bulged on his forehead. Kirihara Akaya's face was deathly pale, and his hand holding the napkin trembled as if he had Parkinson's disease.
"Vice Minister, I was wrong! I'll do it now—"
"Too lax!!"
The atmosphere was tense, ready to explode at any moment.
At that tense moment—
"Hiss~~"
A faint hissing sound suddenly broke through, like a bucket of cold water poured on a volcano about to erupt.
Everyone involuntarily turned their heads, only to see Risa holding a small spray bottle, spraying it onto the hem of Sanada's shirt.
"This is a portable stain remover spray, for emergency use when you're out and about," she said, pressing the nozzle with her slender fingers.
A short hissing sound filled the air as a fine mist of water dispersed and settled on the sauce stain on Sanada's white shirt. The dark brown mark faded and disappeared at a visible speed, as if by magic.
An eerie silence fell over the entire private room.
“I know that Sanada-kun actually dotes on his juniors, so he definitely wouldn’t really blame Akaya.”
Risa broke the silence. She lightly tapped the spray bottle with her fingertips, subtly emphasizing the word "pamper".
This is one of her usual tricks: first, she gives the other person a way out that they have no choice but to accept, then she adds a perfect smile. As the saying goes, "You can't hit a smiling face," so no one can afford to make a scene.
"But this sauce is difficult to process after it dries, so I hope Sanada-kun won't blame me for meddling."
Click—
As Risa closed the spray bottle cap and looked up, she was unexpectedly met with a gaze as deep as a still pool.
Sanada's taut jawline seemed to loosen slightly. But his brows remained habitually furrowed, and his long, narrow, upturned phoenix eyes pierced her with a sharp gaze.
She was stunned, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
(Seriously? My perfect acting failed me again?)
Moreover, the atmosphere seemed to have become even more subtle.
Several pairs of eyes stared at her, some in surprise, some stunned, and others... watching a good show.
(I shouldn't have gotten involved in this mess.)
Risa sighed inwardly. Based on the principle of "rather than wasting my own life, I'd rather destroy others," she tilted her head in feigned confusion, her gaze falling on Sanada's temples.
"Oh..." Risa suddenly leaned forward a little.
“Sanada-kun’s hair at his temples…” she gestured an arc beside her ear, “is neatly trimmed.”
Sure enough, the silence froze instantly.
As the fearsome "Emperor" of Rikkai University, he commanded respect and distance from others. No one dared to approach him so naturally, and no one would notice such a private detail as his hairstyle.
Sanada stared intently at the girl in front of him. The light from the overhead lamp slanted down, casting a soft glow on her porcelain-white skin, making her eyes appear even darker and brighter, like black pearls moistened by morning dew.
"Although it's completely opposite to Sanada-kun's serious image, he's still very handsome."
She seemed completely oblivious to the stares around her, tilting her head back and staring straight at him with a bright smile on her face.
"This gentle hairstyle perfectly matches Sanada-kun's tough exterior and soft interior personality!"
These words hit him like a straight ball in the chest. Sanada felt a surge of heat spread rapidly from behind his ear—this was too lax!
"ah……"
Sanada heard himself respond with a single syllable, which was completely out of character for him.
(This woman has a really strong offensive... No wonder even Yukimura was completely captivated...)
Kirihara Akaya's jaw almost dropped to the ground, his eyes wide open.
(Wait! Wait! What did I just hear?!)
(Risa actually praised Vice-Captain Sanada for being handsome in public?!)
(This is a forbidden zone that even Niou-senpai wouldn't easily attempt!)
(Although I was very touched that Risa helped me out of that situation... she's the devilish vice-captain who can punish people with an iron fist and make them run 100 laps around the track...)
"puff--!"
Niou was the first to break down, clutching his stomach and laughing so hard he couldn't stand up straight.
“Niou!” Sanada turned his head with a dark face, but inexplicably lost some of his intimidating aura.
Niou Masaharu nimbly hid behind Yagyu, not forgetting to make a face, "Vice-Captain, you've finally met your match! Piyo~"
“Matsuno-kun actually dared to be so direct with Sanada…” Marui slumped onto the table, his shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
Liu paused on the notebook with her pen: "According to the data, the survival rate of this behavior is only 0.1%."
Jackal Sangyuan bit his lower lip hard, his bronze face turning bright red. Just as he was about to break down, he caught a glimpse of a half-smiling gaze from across the room.
He suddenly jolted awake and quickly nudged his partner with his elbow.
Marui Bunta, who was laughing so hard his shoulders were shaking, looked up in the direction the jackal was pointing when he was poked. The red-haired boy instantly stopped his exaggerated smile, which was replaced by amusement.
(This is going to be interesting...)
The two exchanged a knowing glance.
Yukimura sat upright to Risa's right, his fingertips elegantly supporting his chin. His slightly narrowed eyes and warm smile sent a chill down the spines of the onlookers.
(The minister's expression...)
(I'm doomed, I'm doomed, is it too late to run away now?)
(Data update: Sanada's survival rate has dropped to 0.01%...)
Sanada's gaze returned to his newly refurbished shirt, and his tone softened unconsciously: "What you were wearing just now was..."
"This?" Risa shook the spray in her hand. "It's a professional stain remover containing enzymes, and it's especially effective against these kinds of 'disasters' that Akaya makes."
Everyone: "..."
(Looks like Akaya has been causing his Risa a lot of trouble lately...)
(Being able to withstand the destructive power of Rikkai University's ace troublemaker is already an obsessive level of brother complex.)
Sanada suddenly gave a perfect 90-degree bow: "Thank you. And... I've learned a lot."
"...No, you're welcome."
Risa was startled by the sudden and generous gift and leaned back, her back bumping into Yukimura's arm perfectly. From an outsider's perspective, it looked as if he had naturally pulled her into his embrace.
A triumphant smile flashed across the boy's eyes, but he quickly reverted to his harmless and gentle expression as Risa turned her head.
Risa: "Sorry, I bumped into you."
Yukimura: "It's okay~^_^"
The four onlookers: Minister, were you... doing that on purpose?
Strategist Yanagi Renji: Operation Yukimura has a 99.9% success rate...
Seeing that the atmosphere was good, Akaya immediately seized the opportunity and slid to his knees to get in front of Sanada: "Vice-Captain Sanada, I'm sorry!"
Before Sanada could respond, he quickly turned to Risa, his eyes glistening with tears as he looked up at her: "Risa-nee, you saved me again, you're an angel!"
That pitiful, innocent puppy-dog look was absolutely irresistible to Risa.
(No matter how much trouble this guy has caused...)
(As long as it doesn't violate laws and regulations...)
(Even if it's like tearing a hole in the sky...)
(I'll definitely find a way to smooth things over for him!)
Risa clenched her fist secretly, a determined light flashing in her eyes.
Sitting directly above, Yanagi Renji silently recorded new data in his notebook:
[Brother Complex Index: SSS Level]
[Danger Level: Extremely High]
[Recommendation: Never let Akaya act cute in front of Matsuno Risa]
Yukimura took everything in without flinching. He picked up the teapot and smiled as he refilled Sanada's cup: "Come, let's serve tea to our handsome vice-captain."
Sanada felt a chill run down his spine.
(Yukimura, don't laugh so creepily...)
(I didn't do anything, so why do I feel like I'm being watched...)
-----------------------
Author's Note: [Laughing and crying while covering face] You guys are too crazy! I'm so scared!
There won't be an extra chapter tomorrow! There will be a long chapter of over 4000 words.
I'm chatting with friends at the restaurant while secretly typing this. Happy reading!
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