Chapter 4
After Kamo Chokichi's desperate persuasion, Hagoromo Kazuma reluctantly agreed to let him first ask the Gojo family for permission to spend the New Year together.
According to the other party's explanation, Gojo Satoru is now a special-grade sorcerer, and even during the New Year, he might not stay at the Gojo family home—especially since the major incident of the "Night Parade of One Hundred Demons" in Shinjuku and Kyoto broke out recently, and he still has some cleanup matters to deal with.
If Gojo Satoru isn't at the Gojo family's house, then going there would be a waste of his time. It would be better for him to wait until the Gojo family calls him back before he goes.
Since both companies are in Kyoto, it's not far to get there by private car.
[The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons] The Great Incident... After listening to this long and earnest persuasion, Hatori Kazuma pondered for a moment.
This event sounds very important. Should he find the relevant NPC to learn more about it? Perhaps it could even trigger a story quest?
Forget it, we can put all that aside for now. Let's talk about it when we meet that pretty little Wu and try to trigger a character development path as soon as possible.
Otherwise, wouldn't it be a waste that he painstakingly came up with this name?
Kazuma Hatori tentatively agreed to Nagayoshi Kamo's suggestion and decided to patiently wait for him to communicate with the Gojo family first—but not in the slow and traditional way of sending a visiting card.
"It's 2018 already, can't we just make a phone call? Why send a letter? It's not like we're sending a love letter."
Kazuma Hatake said in a calm tone, "Even if I really have to send love letters, I should do it myself."
Kamo Nagakichi: "…………"
What a ridiculous analogy! How can sending a visiting card be compared to sending a love letter!
But he dared not speak out in anger and could only grit his teeth and retreat.
Since Kamo Chokichi needed to call the Gojo family, Hagoromo Kazuma decided to first take a look around the property he had acquired with 2,340 gold coins.
This is a typical Japanese-style residence, built with traditional rare cypress wood. The courtyard is decorated with dry landscape paintings to create an artistic atmosphere. The main hall is located on the inner side facing south. There are long corridors at the four corners that extend to the north, east, and west opposite halls. On the left and right, there are also a spring hall and a fishing hall that extend forward to the pond, which are specially used for cooling off in summer and fishing and enjoying the scenery.
Hagoromo Kazuma briefly strolled around the long corridor beside the hall, finally stopping only at the Fishing Hall.
Since this mansion has a fishing spot, it would be a shame not to take advantage of the free time to fish for something.
With Kamo Chokichi not around, Hato Kazuma looked around and spotted an NPC who appeared to be strolling around admiring the scenery not far away.
"That one, yes, it's you."
Kazuma Hatori waved to the boy whose eyes were either closed or half-closed.
"Get me a fishing rod, and some bait too."
While waiting for Pretty Little Wu to return to Gojo's house, he came to fish and earn some gold coins.
Faced with Kazuki Hagoromo's self-evident instruction, Noriyuki Kamo looked around and then blankly pointed to himself.
"Hey, are you calling me?"
Kazuma Hagoromo: "Hmm."
Because he inherited the Kamo family's ancestral technique [Crimson Blood Manipulation], Kamo Kenki, who was raised as the eldest son of the Kamo main family, said: "…………"
How could this strange guy, who came from who-knows-where, be so self-righteous in ordering me to do my work?
When he came from the east gate, many of the elders who were originally high and mighty were now groaning and complaining while digging the courtyard with hoes... Could that scene, which was enough to shake his heart for ten thousand years, also be related to the young man in front of him?
"Oh, it was my arrangement."
He heard the black-haired, black-eyed youth calmly answer his question, as if it wasn't a question at all.
"Now that I am the new head of the Kamo family, I certainly have the right to let them grow vegetables to make money."
"…………!?"
For a moment, Noriyuki Kamo didn't know whether to be shocked by the first half of the statement or the second half.
He struggled for a long time, but couldn't utter a single word.
He was working hard towards becoming the head of the Kamo family, so how did a new head of the family suddenly appear out of nowhere?!
"Now that you mention it,"
While still in shock and doubt, Kamo Noriyuki suddenly heard the other party speak as if to himself, "It seems that there are still many members of the Kamo family who have not become my subordinates. Is it because my control over them is not yet sufficient?"
Domination... what kind of domination is that?
Kamo Kenki took a deep breath.
But Kazuma Hatori immediately extended an invitation to him.
"Do you want to eat? Eating alone is a bit time-consuming. You can invite more people over so you can eat together."
Besides the list provided by the quest, only the NPCs he has interacted with will have their names displayed in the [Social] section—as long as their names are displayed, he can treat them to a meal.
For example, the NPC in front of him is shown as [Kamori Kenki], but when you click into his profile, it's almost completely blank, probably waiting for him to explore further.
Kamo Kenki: "…………"
There's a feeling that each word is ordinary and understandable, but when put together, it creates a subtle sense of foreboding.
Kamo Kenki shook his head rapidly, almost turning the two slightly longer strands of hair at his temples into rattles.
No matter what the other party is offering, he doesn't want to eat it!
We should hurry up and get him the fishing rod, then go find the elder and ask what's going on.
Having finally obtained his fishing rod and bait, Kazuma Hatori sat in the fishing hall, waiting for Kamo Chokichi's good catch, and began fishing.
[Fishing: Congratulations! As a keen angler, you've unlocked fishing skills commensurate with your activities. Now, you can upgrade your fishing skills by fishing in various locations and exchange them for personal rewards in the shop.]
Please note that unlocked skills can be carried over to the next playthrough.
Fishing (Level 4): A fun and entertaining activity, but if judged solely by successful catches, you're clearly a beginner. Perhaps the title "baiting master" would be more fitting?
Unexpectedly, fishing, like the skills in the attack list, requires continuous fishing to level up.
While waiting, Kazuma Hatori stayed in the fishing hall fishing until Chokichi Kamo came looking for him.
"What was the result of the notification?"
“Well, it went quite smoothly,” Kamo Chokichi said. “The Gojo family said that Gojo Satoru will indeed be back for the dinner tonight. If you’re going, we’ll prepare a gift for you… After all, it’s New Year’s.”
"Yes, that's very thoughtful."
Kazuma Hatori readily agreed, reluctantly putting away his fishing rod, and followed him into the head of the family's private car.
As expected of an artificial pond specially dug in the mansion, the fish caught here are plentiful and valuable.
Speaking of which, having NPCs raise fish in this fish pond and sell them for money is a pretty good way to make money.
As Kazuma Hatori sat in the car, he pondered the matter, and the more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.
Kamo Chokichi sat in the passenger seat, listening to the devilish new head of the family occasionally chuckling softly, and felt waves of goosebumps running down his spine.
Is he planning to use that trick of repeatedly forcing people to eat swill, and then take over the Gojo family as well?
Kamo Chokichi, who had always disliked Gojo Satoru, was now praying that Gojo Satoru was truly the strongest and could exorcise this cursed creature from who-knows-when...
Accompanied by Kamo Chokichi's devout prayers, the car came to a steady stop in front of the Gojo residence.
As one of the three main families, the Gojo residence is comparable in size to the Kamo family's residence. One needs to walk through a long corridor from the main gate to reach the main hall where banquets are held.
Right now, lanterns swaying with warm light form a continuous line in the courtyard, extending all the way to the open shoji doors of the surrounding corridors, illuminating the banquet in a radiant glow.
Following the directions of the Gojo family servants, Hagoromo Kazuma walked into the hall, where countless eyes were scrutinizing him, some openly, some secretly.
But after scanning back and forth several times, he still couldn't find anyone who matched the white-haired boy printed on the packaging. Finally, he looked at Kamo Chokichi again.
Where is Gojo Satoru?
"You asked where..."
Kamo Chokichi was also puzzled by Hagoromo Kazuma's question.
As the head of the Gojo family, Gojo Satoru naturally sat in the seat of honor—he was sitting there right now, constantly glancing over at them.
“He’s sitting in the main seat, over there, the one with white hair and sunglasses.”
Following the direction he gestured with his raised hand, Kazuma Hatori looked towards the seat he considered the least likely to be in.
The tatami mats there were raised, and a white-haired young man who looked to be over 1.9 meters tall was sitting there, looking at him from the other side, his posture of sitting cross-legged with his chin resting on his hand casually and relaxed.
If I had to describe him, he wasn't like the stereotypical, rigid head of the family. Instead, he possessed a unique and captivating aura, like a flame burning brightly in the darkness.
"I am Gojo Satoru. I heard you were in a hurry to find me."
Seeing that Kazuma had finally locked his gaze on him, the other person spoke up, his voice curious, light and airy, with a soft, cotton candy-like quality.
When he lowered his head slightly and looked over with a probing gaze, a very beautiful light misty blue peeked out from behind his dark round sunglasses.
"Is there something you need, the new head of the Kamo family?"
Kazuma Hatori remained somewhat silent, not particularly disappointed.
He thought he would meet a beautiful little Satoru and unlock the nurturing route; but when he actually entered the game, he met such a huge Gojo Satoru.
It is indeed very beautiful...
Yes, she is beautiful no matter how you look at her. She is indeed very beautiful. No wonder she is called Pretty Little Wu. She is still so beautiful even as she grows up.
—Think about it, it's perfectly fine. There are advantages to being a beautiful and clever person.
After a moment of contemplation, Hatori Kazuma stepped forward, his gaze steady and resolute as he met Hatori's eyes.
"I'm here to arrange a marriage between you and your family."
Gojo Satoru: "...Huh? With whom from the Kamo family?"
Kazuma Hatori: "Me."
Gojo Satoru: "..."
Gojo Satoru: "...?!"
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