"Oh my, young people these days are truly something."
After Geno left, the elderly man calling himself Old Tai leaned on his cane, preparing to depart. However, as he stood up, he sensed something and reached into his coat pocket, pulling out a New Eridu bank card no more than three inches long.
There was no need to guess; he knew exactly how much of a deposit lay inside.
"...Young people these days are truly something."
Just as he was lamenting this with emotion, the door to the Chit-Chat Pavilion was pushed open again. An old man dressed in a neat, meticulously groomed uniform walked in. He entered the room and bowed slightly to Old Tai.
"Master, it is time to go back."
"Alright, I know. By the way, keep an eye on that young man for me."
"Yes, Master."
*
Leaving the Tea Immortal, Lucia led Geno with somewhat hurried steps, running toward Chenghuiping. Soon, the two arrived in front of a shop that looked somewhat quaint. Through the glass, they could see that the goods displayed inside were all exquisite small ornaments; it appeared to be a gift shop.
Looking up at the shop sign—Studio of the Bizarre. What a strange name.
"This is the place."
Lucia spoke as she stepped forward and knocked on the door. Soon, a young girl's voice came from inside.
"Coming, coming! Is it a customer? Ah, it's the 'Envoy of the Night Demon'. Why are you so late?"
"Sorry, sorry, we got delayed on the way."
Lucia pressed her palms together, apologizing to the girl. Presumably, this was her online friend.
Geno sized up the girl with waist-length red hair. She was wearing a loose pink sweater with a sailor collar underneath, a short skirt, and knee socks on her lower half. The overall look was cute and radiated youthful vitality, clearly the appearance of a student.
"Oh my, is this the friend you said would come with you? He looks quite handsome~"
Geno's gaze was completely unconcealed, so it naturally didn't escape her eyes. Seeing her attention turn to him, Geno took the initiative to say hello.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Geno, Lucia's friend."
"Pleasure, pleasure. I'm Fubo Youye. You can also call me 'Yuzu Pepper'."
Yuzu Pepper? That's a handle, right? Should I mention my handle too?
Geno thought for a moment and decided to cater to the young people of today.
"Hmm, you can also call me by my handle: 'Ethereal Knight'."
"Pfft~"
"Uh, what's wrong?"
As soon as Geno finished speaking, he saw Youye suddenly cover her mouth and start laughing. He was instantly confused—was his handle that funny? He thought it was pretty good. It even matched Twiggy's 'Hollow Witch'.
It took a good while for Youye to recover. Only after wiping a tear from the corner of her eye did she explain.
"It's nothing, I just think you and 'Aratamamaru' would definitely get along."
In Youye's view, both 'Ethereal Knight' and 'Aratamamaru' possessed a kind of comedic sensibility found in old-era movies.
"No need to be so dismissive. I think it sounds quite nice."
A male voice came from inside the room. Hearing this, Youye turned her body sideways to reveal the owner of the voice.
"Let me introduce you. This is the 'Aratamamaru' I mentioned—Komano Man-to. He's also a member of our House of the Grotesque, and my classmate."
Following Youye's introduction, Man-to walked out from the back. However, looking at this large man with beast ears and a tail, a towering physique, a scar on his face, and muscles knotting all over his body, Geno felt a bit disoriented for a moment.
You're telling me this is a high school student?
What made it even harder for Geno to accept was... why was he wearing an apron?!
It turned out that Man-to was not wearing casual clothes at the moment, but rather a short shirt, shorts, and flip-flops that fit the Weifeidi style perfectly, with an apron thrown over the top. A large heart was painted in the center of the apron; it seemed to be some kind of graffiti.
Man-to noticed Geno's gaze and immediately explained.
"Uh, I was just cooking. Want to join us?"
It turned out that because they had waited so long, and it was right at noon, Man-to had decided to help out by making some food, leading to the current scene.
"No, no, we actually ate before coming here. That's also why we're so late."
Lucia scratched her face in embarrassment. She had eaten too much earlier and truly couldn't fit another bite.
"Is that so? No worries. Drinking some tea to aid digestion is good too. Come on in, it's sunny outside."
After chatting for a while, Lucia and Geno finally entered the Studio of the Bizarre.
Upon entering, they discovered that it wasn't just Youye and Man-to inside; there was also an older man present.
"Oh my, your friends finally arrived? Then I won't disturb you kids; I'll go get busy."
"Uncle Baorong, eat before you go."
"No, no. Little Tiger is waiting anxiously. I'll go settle it at his place."
This Uncle Baorong, named Li Baorong, was Youye's adoptive father. After speaking to Man-to, he hurriedly grabbed a bag of things and left. This made Man-to, who was holding a noodle bowl, feel somewhat helpless. Now he had made a bit too much food.
"This... since Uncle Li left, this food..."
"It's fine. If my old man doesn't eat, he's the one missing out on a treat. How about we let this new friend enjoy it?"
Youye had a treacherous smile on her face. She naturally knew the two had come after eating; saying this was just a joke. However, she never expected that Geno's appetite would exceed her imagination.
"Since that's the case, I respectfully accept."
"Is it really okay? You don't have to force yourself."
With a personality completely different from his appearance, Man-to looked at Geno with some concern. Ruining one's health for a bit of food wasn't worth it.
"It's no problem. There's still room for a light meal."
Geno smiled. It wasn't that easy to make him stuff himself.
Subsequently, the four of them sat at the table and began to chat while dining. The main topics were strange tales about Hollows and Ethereals circulating on the Inter-Knot. After all, supernatural entities truly existed in this world.
"So, that rumor about the sea monster in the Hollow is very likely true!"
Lucia drank clear tea and chatted happily with the other two, while Geno carefully savored the delicacy Man-to had made. It was a bowl of handmade Jook-sing bamboo noodles, started from kneading the dough, topped with ham, fried eggs, and green vegetables—both delicious and healthy.
"You really can't judge a book by its cover. I didn't expect your craftsmanship to be this good, Man-to."
Geno didn't skimp on his praise. Despite Man-to's rugged appearance, his skills were the real deal, much better than what some small restaurants produced.
"Hehe, it's not as good as you say... I just make it often for my younger brothers and sisters, so I learned it naturally."
Man-to rubbed his nose, speaking modest words, but his swaying tail exposed his true state of mind.
Looks like a fierce character, but in reality, he's just a big boy who cherishes his friends and family.
Geno thought this to himself, while Youye and Lucia, the two mischievous ones nearby, covered their mouths and snickered.
The first gathering of the four seemed extremely harmonious.
____
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