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"...Am I beautiful?"
The cold, hoarse voice entered her ears, and Juju immediately panicked.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman!
A trench coat, a mask, and this well-known line—it had to be The Slit-Mouthed Woman.
As one of Japan's most famous urban Ghost Stories of the last century, from Hokkaido to the southern country, it could be said that no one was unaware of her.
Legend has it that The Slit-Mouthed Woman often lingered near schools. When she saw someone alone, she would approach and ask, 'Am I beautiful?' or 'Am I pretty?'
No matter whether the answer was yes or no, the outcome was always terrible.
Either killed or had their mouth cut open with large scissors.
What to do, what to do?
Juju turned around in a panic, casting a pleading look at Amamiya Natsuki.
"Calm down."
Amamiya Natsuki gave Juju a look, then turned to complain to the manager.
"Manager, someone is bullying your employee, aren't you going to do something?"
Juju: "..."
The old manager was in the middle of preparing a thick egg omelet. Hearing this, he slowly said,
"As an employee, one should provide service that satisfies the customers."
Understood.
It seems like another rule of the izakaya.
Becoming an employee doesn't mean one can rest easy; if they encounter a Ghost Story customer and don't entertain them well, they are still in danger.
The manager is unreliable, so he still has to rely on himself.
"Miss, please hear me out." Amamiya Natsuki stepped forward two paces, pulling Juju behind him, and looked at The Slit-Mouthed Woman, saying calmly, "This is my companion. She isn't actually human."
"Eh?"
Juju looked up with her small face.
How was she not human?
Surely no one would believe such a lie!
Amamiya Natsuki continued:
"She is actually an all-purpose household angel. Due to a program error, she can currently only say one phrase: 'Welcome.' She's basically a repeater."
Juju: "..."
It wasn't over yet.
Amamiya Natsuki then reached out and patted Juju's small head, "What's today's recommended dish?"
Just talk, don't pat my head!
Juju clenched her small pink fists, looked down at her toes, her small face flushed, but she obediently cooperated with her mouth:
"...Welcome."
A repeater it is, I'm determined to be one!
"What's the weather like in town tomorrow?"
"Welcome."
"Is Sakurako not both gentle and cute?"
"Welcome."
"..."
Sakurako held a fan, covering her mouth with a slight smile.
"This customer, look." Amamiya Natsuki looked at The Slit-Mouthed Woman, his tone sincere, "She really only knows this one phrase."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman: "..."
This mere human dared to toy with her. She could clearly smell the scent of fear on that little girl!
The Slit-Mouthed Woman's expression was grim, and she silently pulled out scissors from under her trench coat.
Amamiya Natsuki's expression was calm, as if he hadn't seen the scissors, and his gaze turned to the object in The Slit-Mouthed Woman's other hand.
A small beast.
It looked similar to a squirrel, but it was different from an ordinary squirrel, with red glowing eyes, quite ugly.
Of course, being ugly wasn't important.
What was important was that the small beast clearly had a 'Dark Cuisine' prompt on it.
"This must be the ingredient the customer brought for me to process, right?" Amamiya Natsuki smiled confidently, "The dish will take about twenty minutes to prepare. Please order a beer and wait a moment."
Upon hearing this, The Slit-Mouthed Woman hesitated immediately.
Ghost Stories are not humans; they are essentially similar to Mrs. Shimizu, both being spirit-type creatures, and thus share a commonality—
Emptiness.
It wasn't about physical needs, but spiritual emptiness.
Ordinary dishes tasted like chewing wax to them, offering no pleasure, and they could barely feel any other joys.
However, Dark Cuisine made from Dark Cuisine ingredients could just fill the emptiness within them.
Therefore... Amamiya Natsuki was confident and completely unfazed.
"Let's eat the dish first." Sakurako covered her mouth with her fan, smiling, "It's not too late to settle the score with the young man if you're not satisfied then."
"..."
With Sakurako providing a way out, The Slit-Mouthed Woman silently put away her scissors and handed over the Dark Cuisine in her hand.
Amamiya Natsuki reached out and took it, smiling:
"Customer, please wait a moment."
"Hmph."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman let out a soft snort as a response.
Juju led the two Ghost Stories to a corner, then nervously served two beers.
Fujiwara Chika wasn't scared; she continued to diligently draw her map, rewarding herself with a salted edamame bean after each map was finished.
Scared?
Completely unnecessary.
As long as Amamiya Natsuki was by her side, a woman with two faces was nothing; she could be apprehended in minutes.
On the other side.
Amamiya Natsuki carried the small beast into the kitchen and began preparing the Dark Cuisine.
At the first sight of the small beast, the steps for preparing the Dark Cuisine became clear in his mind, as if he had rehearsed it thousands of times, without the slightest hesitation.
His movements were as fluid as flowing clouds and water, with an indescribable grace.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman sat in the corner, not having taken a single sip of the beer in front of her, as she couldn't taste it anyway. She just turned her head occasionally, looking towards the kitchen.
As for the other customers in the izakaya, they seemed oblivious, drinking and chatting, enjoying themselves.
Time quietly slipped away, minute by minute, in the waiting.
Twenty minutes later.
Amamiya Natsuki emerged from the kitchen, carrying a silver tray, and walked to The Slit-Mouthed Woman.
"The ingredients are very fresh, and the completion of the dish is a bit higher than the previous sashimi." Amamiya Natsuki placed the plate in front of The Slit-Mouthed Woman.
Juju, Secretary Fujiwara, Sakurako, and even the manager behind the counter, all looked over.
"Then..." Amamiya Natsuki lifted the cover, smiling, "Customer, please enjoy."
The moment the cover was lifted, colorful light burst forth from nowhere, lasting for several seconds before gradually dimming and disappearing.
"Eh eh eh?!"
Juju and Fujiwara Chika were both stunned.
"The dish is glowing?"
"A glowing dish?"
"That's too exaggerated." Fujiwara Chika couldn't help but complain, "That's a culinary realm only found in manga!"
"Um, this isn't reality here..." Juju whispered, "So it's fine?"
"..."
After the light disappeared, the few of them finally saw clearly that the dish inside was a plate of ribs. The color looked quite ordinary, and there seemed to be some charring on the ribs from being overcooked. Each piece of rib was coated in an unknown thick sauce, and the sauce bubbled on the ribs like a dark red ocean.
It didn't look appealing, but after witnessing the glowing effect just now, no one dared to underestimate it.
"Miss." Amamiya Natsuki took out a pair of chopsticks and handed them to The Slit-Mouthed Woman, "Please follow my suggestion and enjoy the dish in order."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman instinctively took the chopsticks.
As a malevolent spirit born in the island nation, using chopsticks was like an instinct; there was no problem at all.
Amamiya Natsuki picked up a piece of rib, placed it on a small plate, then handed the plate to The Slit-Mouthed Woman, smiling:
"Please eat this piece first."
"..."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman hesitated slightly, then took off the mask on her face and looked up at Amamiya Natsuki.
As expected.
There were two deep wounds on this spirit's cheeks, as if scissors had brutally cut them open, looking horrifying.
"Why are you looking at me?" Amamiya Natsuki frowned, and said in a deep voice, "After the food comes out of the pot, every change in temperature will affect the taste. Eat quickly."
"...I'm sorry!"
The Slit-Mouthed Woman instinctively apologized, a hint of shame and anger immediately appearing on her face.
As a Ghost Story, to apologize to a mere human was truly undignified... Though she wanted to maintain her dignity, her right hand involuntarily picked up the chopsticks, grabbed a rib, and put it into her mouth.
The ferocious appearance of her mouth opening made Juju afraid and turn her face away, but her peripheral vision couldn't help but glance back, secretly anticipating the feedback on the dish's taste.
And then...
Nothing happened.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman's mouth was puffing in and out, but her expression was quite calm.
"Continue, don't stop." Amamiya Natsuki commanded, "Next, eat the second piece."
Time passed.
As the ribs were eaten one by one, a rich, incomparable aroma of meat slowly spread, like dark clouds before a summer storm, enveloping the entire Restaurant with an unstoppable momentum.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman, who had initially maintained a cold expression, could no longer keep her grim look. Her face was flushed, she was panting, and her eyes were filled with thick mist.
"H-how is this possible... I'm actually tearing up..."
"Hoo... hoo... So, so delicious..."
"There's actually such a wonderful dish in the world..."
"I can't... L-let me rest for a bit..."
"Don't stop, there's one last piece of the dish." Amamiya Natsuki commanded, "Open your mouth."
"Ah..."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman obediently complied, instinctively opening her mouth.
Amamiya Natsuki fed the rib into her mouth.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman instinctively closed her mouth and began to chew.
Boom!
The accumulated deliciousness was ignited by the last piece of the dish, as if a volcano had erupted in her mind. The Slit-Mouthed Woman couldn't even sit steadily and directly collapsed onto the dining table.
Her trench coat had been taken off at some point, revealing a dirty white shirt underneath.
At this moment, The Slit-Mouthed Woman's shirt was soaked, her collar unbuttoned, and her body was even trembling slightly, with only unconscious murmurs escaping her mouth.
Without a doubt, that was the manifestation of her body and mind being completely conquered.
"...This is unscientific!"
Juju's small face was flushed, and she couldn't help but tightly press her legs together. To be able to make a Ghost Story look like this, she felt as if something strange had been added to it.
"Too, too exaggerated."
Fujiwara Chika, who had been a koi fish swimming in the fish tank earlier, hadn't seen Sakurako's appearance after eating, so the shock she received now was even greater.
So, not long after, Amamiya Natsuki felt his arm being hugged, and when he turned to look, he met a pair of sparkling pink eyes.
"I want to eat!"
Fujiwara Chika lifted her pretty face, her eyes sparkling like a kitten begging for dried fish.
As a foodie who sought out delicious food whenever she had free time, how could she resist such a temptation?
She couldn't resist at all.
Amamiya Natsuki said speechlessly:
"This is Dark Cuisine, not food for ordinary people."
"Then make glowing cuisine that ordinary people can eat."
The Secretary was very adaptable.
Juju pricked up her ears, eavesdropping nearby.
If it could really be made… she wanted to eat it, even if she ended up as terrible as The Slit-Mouthed Woman, she still wanted to eat it!
"…"
While the three of them were whispering, The Slit-Mouthed Woman finally recovered and sat up straight again.
"How was it?" Miss Sakurako held a round fan, extended the tip of her tongue, licked her lips, and smiled, "Didn't I disappoint you?"
"…"
The Slit-Mouthed Woman didn't speak, she just silently put on her mask, then reached into her trench coat.
Seeing this, the two girls immediately tensed up, worried that this gloomy woman would pull out scissors.
Fortunately, what she pulled out wasn't scissors, but a stack of banknotes.
"Here."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman didn't hesitate, handing all the money to Amamiya Natsuki.
For the man who had conquered both her body and mind, The Slit-Mouthed Woman directly gave him all her possessions.
Facts proved that as long as you could satisfy a rich woman's body and mind, she would never be stingy with you.
Amamiya Natsuki looked down at the thickness and denomination of the banknotes in his hand.
He was wrong.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman in front of him wasn't a rich woman; her financial level was clearly that of an ordinary office worker.
After paying the bill, The Slit-Mouthed Woman reached out to steady herself on the table, stood up, then wrapped her body in her trench coat, her legs trembling slightly, and staggered out.
Miss Sakurako, on the other hand, stayed behind to split the spoils with Amamiya Natsuki and the izakaya owner.
All three were overjoyed, congratulations were in order.
"Little brother, you're very good, older sister likes you more and more." Miss Sakurako held a round fan, her eyes full of affection, her smile gentle, like a plump and juicy fruit that made one want to taste it; even girls would blush and their hearts would race when they saw her, she must have some kind of charming ability, "Do you want to come home with older sister? I promise not to hurt you."
Hearing this, Fujiwara Chika immediately stepped forward half a step and hugged Amamiya Natsuki's arm.
Don't even think about it!
How could she let them do strange things!
Juju hesitated slightly, but didn't move.
With Fujiwara around, it seemed she wasn't needed.
"Sorry." Amamiya Natsuki politely refused, "I have other things to do."
"Then when you're free, older sister will always be waiting." Miss Sakurako still smiled, her round fan covering her cheek, "I just heard a piece of news, someone saw your kind."
Amamiya Natsuki's heart stirred, and he asked:
"What are that person's characteristics?"
"Hmm, it seems to be a girl." Miss Sakurako gently swayed her round fan, her voice gentle, "She has beautiful black hair, she seems very pretty."
"Could it be Kaguya-chan?"
Fujiwara Chika's eyes lit up slightly.
In the previous narration, it was mentioned that there was a player at school who disliked not being able to play a pair of Aces, but based solely on the flat-chested attribute, her identity couldn't be determined.
After all, the number of flat-chested girls in reality far exceeded that of busty girls.
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"Please tell me the exact location, Miss Sakurako."
"Little brother, be careful, okay?"
Since Miss Sakurako had given the information, she didn't intend to hide it, she told him the address, waved gently, and turned to leave gracefully.
"The possibility of it being Kaguya is over fifty percent." Amamiya Natsuki said decisively, "Let's go there."
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