Chapter 5: Kannazuki san and Hakase san (Part 1)
Kizuki-Okuni Holdings.
A massive corporate group centered around the high-end department store [Kizuki], with real estate operations [Okuni], and involvement in various financial businesses.
The President and CEO of this conglomerate is none other than Seiichiro Kannazuki, Sayuki’s father. In other words, to put it crudely, she was “a rich man’s daughter.”
However, her father wasn’t from a prestigious family lineage. He had built his fortune through his own talents in a single generation. As a result, Sayuki’s demeanor differed from that of a typical well-bred young lady. She refused to be chauffeured around and often took detours after school.
After school, Sayuki stopped by the café Nil alone.
Today, she was a bit tired from repeatedly turning down a persistent boy in her class who kept asking her to “hang out together.” She wanted to eat something sweet to change her mood.
“Ah, welcome, Sayuki-chan!”
“Hello, Eiko-senpai.”
Eiko Kutani, a senior from the same school, works part-time as a waitress at this café.
Many male students apparently frequent the café just to see this beautiful senior. Not only that, but the master’s cakes are exquisite, making the shop bustling with customers every day.
“Sorry, Sayuki-chan. Right now, you’ll have to share a table. Is that okay?”
“Share a table?”
To be honest, she felt a bit intimidated.
Sayuki, who couldn’t make friends when she was little, still struggled with social interactions even as a high school student. She would have preferred to avoid sitting at the same table with a stranger if possible.
“Oh, it’s you.”
While she was considering, her eyes met with those of a man.
Silver hair with heterochromatic red and gold eyes. A young man with exceptional good looks, even among all the men Sayuki had met before, was waving at her slightly.
His name was Haruhiko Hakase. If she remembered correctly, he said he worked for an electronics company.
Her impression of him from their previous encounter at this café was that he seemed cold at first glance but was actually easy to approach.
At first, he had approached her best friend Akane, calling her a “beautiful young lady.”
While it seemed like a tasteless pickup attempt, it turned out he was actually a close friend of Eiko and the master, and had just come to greet Sayuki and her friends.
The fact that he failed in his attempt to act like a “mature man who smartly compliments women” as an “ice-breaker” made it clear that he wasn’t a bad person.
Moreover, Eiko, who rarely praised any man other than the master, had evaluated him as “a bit odd, but sincere, loyal, and kind,” so he was probably trustworthy.
“Hello, Kannazuki san. If there’s no seat available, how about, um, sharing a table? I mean, if you don’t want to sit with me, I can leave quickly.”
“No, please don’t worry. In that case, may I join you?”
She couldn’t help but chuckle.
Far from trying to pick her up, it was easy to see that he was struggling with how to even speak to her. He seemed to be very considerate towards Sayuki, who was considerably younger than him.
“If you’re okay with it, then. Ah, Eiko. I’d like to add this strawberry éclair to my order.”
“Alright! But Haru-san, if you eat too much, you’ll gain weight.”
“For better or worse, I’m so busy that I’m actually losing weight.”
Eiko was trying to hold back her laughter as Hakase sighed.
“You know, Haru-san used to be an executive at the company where the master worked before. He’s talented and diligent, but because of that, the president relies on him too much, and he’s always swamped with work.”
“Is that so? To be an executive at such a young age, that’s impressive.”
She offered a genuine compliment, but he humbly replied, “Well, being an executive is more like being a jack-of-all-trades.” His way of downplaying his title and achievements made her think that he was indeed quite mature.
“Eiko. Don’t worry about that, please put in the order. Kannazuki san?”
“Ah, I’ll have the baked cheesecake. And Assam tea, please.”
Eiko cheerfully responded with a “Coming right up!”
Until the cakes arrived, it was just the two of them. While Sayuki was thinking she might feel a bit nervous, Hakase started the conversation.
“Kannazuki san, I apologize for last time. I tried to liven up the atmosphere since it was our first meeting, but I’m afraid I overdid it.”
“No, it’s fine…”
Indeed, Hakase wasn’t very good at jokes, like his “second-degree head-patting fortune-telling.”
However, it was obvious that he had been nervous, so she didn’t have a particularly bad impression of him. She just thought he might not be used to dealing with women.
“Ah… But at that time, Asahina san saved me.”
“Hehe. You did seem to hit it off with Moe.”
“She’s a kind girl. We shouldn’t underestimate children.”
Hakase happily bit into the strawberry éclair that had been brought to him.
“Do you like sweets?”
“Yes. But I enjoy all good food without discrimination. Especially Big Bro’s… I mean, the master’s cakes are exquisite. They naturally bring a smile to your face.”
“You usually call him ‘Big Bro’? Are you brothers?”
“No, I used to work closely with the master at my previous job. It’s just that, in casual drinking settings, you could say we’re… on familiar terms.”
Hakase scratched his cheek in embarrassment, suddenly looking somewhat childish.
Finding it amusing, Sayuki laughed, and he returned an awkward smile.
“A-anyway, let’s enjoy our cakes, Kannazuki san. …Delicious!”
“Hehe. Yes, let’s, Mr. Hakase.”
Despite being a grown man, he had many openings and his reactions were cute.
She couldn’t help but think, rather rudely, that he was like the “teased character” she had seen in Akane’s manga.
Even though she was talking with a man, she was able to spend a relaxed time. The cake tasted even more delicious than usual.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
527: Hakase
What should I do, guys? I accidentally had tea with Fiona-tan again!
I even ordered a strawberry éclair. Do you think she thought, “What a pathetic guy!”?
528: Anonymous Combatant
Oh, that’s lucky! Though you seem so flustered you got a burn. lol
529: Anonymous Combatant
Were you able to talk properly this time?
530: Hakase
I was so nervous I can’t remember what I said…
531: Anonymous Combatant
You really are a hakase, aren’t you!
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