CHAPTER 17.
(The Next day. 10:30 A.M)
Gojin sat at the top of the stairs overlooking a wide, empty expanse of land about the size of a plot at the academy, scrolling through his phone.
Meanwhile, Kenji was busy running a 500-meter lap around the entire area, panting heavily.
This area was generally just open land within the academy, primarily used for exercise.
The entire academy spanned about five acres and featured only two large buildings along with a training ground, which occupied another quarter of the space.
Each student had their own room, but the building was unnecessarily large—a literal waste of funds.
The same was true for the buildings scattered across the city, housing the upperclassmen.
The second-year building were about six in number, yet none of the students hailed from any of the clans. Also a reminder that Yuki, Ryu and most of the others had graduated and though became a exorcist - Junior Exorcists for now.
***
They were on their way to class to meet Denji, who was surely slacking off.
Before reaching the classroom building, they spotted Denji strolling outside.
"She's in Shibuya, but it seems she's lost. Can you both go get her?" Denji asked as he approached them.
"Can't she figure her way around the city? There's something called a map, you know," Gojin replied with an annoyed glance.
"Let's just go meet her," Kenji suggested with a grin.
Denji quickly sent a photo, name, and current location through SMS to Kenji's phone before vanishing into thin air. He was playing an online combat game on his PC and wanted to get back to it quickly.
After receiving it, Kenji prompted Gojin to follow him. He reluctantly obliged, wearing a weary expression.
"I'm only doing this for my own gain—getting to know this new girl and seeing if she's smart, unlike you."
They walked back outside and headed toward the academy's exit. A long walk - approximately fifteen minutes to get there.
***
The two strolled calmly down the busy street, attracting the attention of several girls who stared at them like they were idols. Gojin had swapped his blindfold for sunglasses.
A few minutes later, they arrived at a restaurant where she was currently located.
They entered the restaurant, scanning for her while glancing at the photo.
The place was relatively quiet, with only four tables occupied, but it was spacious, featuring high walls and plush couches.
Finally, they spotted her seated on one of the couches, two luggage bags beside her and a backpack at her feet.
She was enjoying a shortcake.
As they approached, they noted her live features: She had striking red-dyed hair that fell just below her shoulders, framing her face.
She had bright green eyes. Standing at 5'5", her figure was slender. Her casual outfit - a short black skirt and a black top.
"You're Sakura, right?" Kenji asked with a charming smile.
Sakura turned her head, dropping the fork and rising up from the couch. Her eyes began widening in awe as she stared at the two. She felt a tingling sensation inside of her - literally butterflies, but that didn't last long.
Instantly, she picked up her luggage bags and gave each of them one to carry, creating an awkward silence which she broke again by going up to the restaurant's counter.
"You see that guy over there with the green hair? He is paying for the cake while the other dark hair is paying for the coffee am about to collect now. I would like an Iced Americano with milk."
The barista expertly began preparing the coffee. He pulled two shots of expresso into a paper cup. Added cold water to dilute the expresso, creating a balanced flavour then he poured in steamed milk, holding back the foam with a spoon before stirring gently and handing it over to her.
Sakura confidently ordered from the counter and walked out to wait for them outside.
Gojin and Kenji exchanged stunned glances. Meanwhile, the cashier kept a fixed gaze on them. They slowly walked to the cashier with the luggage in hand.
"That would be ¥1,300 in total."
Gojin hastened Kenji to pay, he reluctantly brought out his phone and scanned the QR code displayed on the payment terminal. He then entered the amount to transfer before authentication of the payment using his pin.
The payment was received instantly and they were handed over a receipt.
A message came in on Kenji's phone: (Balance: ¥20,300,900)
He sighed and walked outside with Gojin, who was about to begin cursing at Sakura but was halted by Kenji, who also had what he wants to do in him. That wasn't nice, she made them resemble fools on their first encounter.
"Did you know that without a pen, you wouldn't be able to walk around Shibuya freely cause everyone had it and people who don't are given distance." Gojin lied, he wanted to confirm how smart she was.
"You're serious? Where do I get a pen? where!?"
"Woah, she is naive. That's so...am speechless." Kenji replied, walking behind Gojin and leaving her behind though they still carried her luggage.
She yelled, "Let's go for a little tour, I will pay for any expenses this time around."
The two of them swiftly turned around not wasting a second , they ran back to her.
"Since you're new in Shibuya, we'll show you around some places but that's after we get back to the academy and you tell us a little about your history. Agree?" Gojin asked with Kenji supporting the question.
"Okay, no problem."