Tokyo: To reiterate, this is not a dating system.

68. Dating

"Now that the nuisance is gone, it's time for our date. If Genji-kun can't be in a good mood, I won't be happy either."

Haruka Minatsuki pulled her hand away and just looked at Genji Aoyama with a smile.

"That's true."

The warm touch lingered on the back of his hand, and Genji Aoyama smiled.

He wouldn't be at a disadvantage at all dating a beautiful girl who favors him.

So you should be in a good mood.

"Let's see what to drink first, hmm... it's so hard to choose."

"Genji-kun, just order whatever you like."

Each type of coffee or tea is labeled with its country of origin, region of origin, and name, and of course, the price is not cheap.

In the end, Genji Aoyama ordered the red-label Geisha – a trilingual (Chinese, Japanese, and English) dish, which sounded really nice.

From a Chinese perspective, interpreting it as a rosy summer is perfectly fine.

The waiter in a tuxedo brought over the entire set of hand-brewed utensils and brewed the beverage right there at the table.

"Please enjoy your meal," the waiter said with elegance and politeness before clearing the table.

Genji Aoyama suddenly understood the service industry and sense of ritual in island nations.

The freshly brewed coffee is steaming hot and exudes a unique aroma.

I blew on it slightly, took a sip—it was only slightly bitter, with a hint of indescribable floral and fruity fragrance, and even had a sweet aftertaste like drinking tea.

Perhaps it's a psychological factor?

By the way, this cup of coffee costs 8,000 yen.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Haruka Minatsuki will pay the bill.

Genji Aoyama took another sip of his Geisha tea and looked out the floor-to-ceiling window—the Tokyo cityscape unfolded like a painting from above.

"A date, Ms. Haruka, where would you like to go for a bit?" he asked.

As he savored his coffee, the pretty young woman who was willing to pay was watching him, her head propped up on her hand, unconsciously stirring the black tea in her cup with her spoon.

"Um……"

Haruka Minatsuki seemed to fall into a brief moment of contemplation, then began to mutter to herself, "Meiji Shrine... isn't that too formal? Perhaps we should try some more ordinary date activities—going to the movies? The arcade? Shopping?"

Genji Aoyama glanced at the time; it wasn't even nine o'clock yet.

"It's still early, we have a whole day."

He smiled and continued, "We can go to the arcade first, have a meal while shopping, take a short walk, then watch a movie, and go to Meiji Shrine around four or five o'clock."

"I feel like Genji-kun is very good at managing his time." Haruka Minatsuki smiled and readily accepted.

"..."

Haruka Minatsuki probably didn't mean anything by it, but Genji Aoyama felt a strange sensation when he heard it.

"Have you unknowingly made time management skills an instinct?"

Genji Aoyama unlocked his phone while thinking.

Once you take out your phone, you can't help but want to play with it.

"If you have the chance, you should buy a watch."

He then opened T site.

"When he's on a date with a girl, Genji-kun has to look at his phone. Can't Haruka satisfy him?"

Haruka Minatsuki stared at him, her tone sounding like she was being coquettish.

"This is also part of time management," Genji Aoyama said with a smile, moving his phone between the two of them, "and also to share the joy of our achievements with Ms. Haruka."

The song's PV, released before the weekend, saw its views increase rapidly and its popularity soar. If it weren't for a well-known male celebrity getting married, it would probably have already topped the trending searches.

Haruka Minatsuki seemed very interested. She brought her face close, almost touching Genji Aoyama's, and began to look at it naturally.

Since she had posted the full video before, she let it play and then casually checked the comments section for a while.

"Hmm... I didn't expect so many companies to be seeking cooperation?"

Haruka Minatsuki glanced up at Genji Aoyama, then exited the playback interface, opened her private messages, and began scrolling through them one by one: "Genji-kun didn't reply to them?"

"I haven't had time to reply yet," Genji Aoyama said with a smile. "I'll organize it and send it to Haruka-san after I finish reading it."

Mitsuki Haruka seemed lost in thought and did not respond.

She just kept scrolling through the endless private messages, probably because she saw a message from some indecent female fan. Her slender white fingers stopped on the screen.

Then, angrily, he picked up his phone and quickly sent a series of messages saying "[Please have some self-respect!]" until the inappropriate content was pushed to the top.

Genji Aoyama smiled and rubbed his forehead.

"Ms. Haruka must rarely use this kind of social media, right?" he said.

"Um?"

Haruka Minatsuki tilted her head, looking at Genji Aoyama with a mixture of anger and slight confusion.

"If you ignore her, she can only send a maximum of three messages. But once you reply, she can keep sending them."

As if to provide further explanation for him, the private chat that was not yet closed began to keep popping up with messages.

[Aaaaaaaah!]

[Handsome guy from Omotesando! I like you so much!]

Please go out with me!

I'm willing to do anything!

[picture]

[picture]

[picture]

Haruka Minatsuki's cherry blossom-colored lips parted, her expression shifting from anger to shyness. After seeing the contents of the picture, a blush visibly settled on her elegant and beautiful face.

Then she quickly typed with her fingers, repeatedly sending "[Please have some self-respect!]"

"Actually, just block them," Aoyama Genji whispered a reminder from the side.

"Why didn't you say so sooner?" Haruka Minatsuki glared at him, her voice annoyed. "You promised to tell me beforehand!"

"..."

"We were clearly talking about work."

Genji Aoyama thought about it and decided against it.

Work hours are over, now it's time to go on a date with a beautiful girl—except that the girl herself is currently very interested in his private messages.

They would even scroll down one by one, blocking any female fans they found who seemed strange.

It's just like a girlfriend checking your phone and deleting female contacts.

After doing all this, Haruka Minatsuki placed her phone on the table and looked gently at Genji Aoyama: "Genji-kun, will you be upset if I block you without permission?"

"...As long as Miss Haruka is happy."

"As expected, we can't let Genji run this kind of account!" She looked a little unhappy.

"Yeah, sometimes there's just not enough time to look at business collaborations and stuff."

"Not those things, there will be philandering cats sending Genji-kun... weird content!"

Surprisingly innocent?

Genji Aoyama glanced at Haruka Minatsuki, whose cheeks were flushed pink.

He wanted to explain that the platform's private messaging function had many limitations, and the content that could be sent was at most borderline and far from what she called "H," but he swallowed his words back.

Haruka Minatsuki, however, did not think so.

"And Genji even clicked on some of the messages to read!" She even pointed to the read marks and looked at Aoyama Genji with dissatisfaction.

"..." Genji Aoyama was speechless.

"In short, it's not allowed~"

Haruka Minatsuki took Genji Aoyama's phone again and quickly edited the profile, adding an email address with the note that it was only for business cooperation.

Then they turned off the private messaging function for strangers.

"You've been a huge help."

Aoyama Genji said with a smile.

If it weren't for the possibility of receiving private messages for business collaborations, he would have turned this feature off long ago.

After leaving the coffee shop, the two went to the nearest arcade.

This was a first for me in my experience with Genji Aoyama.

They tried everything that couples could do, from claw machines and taiko drums to photo booths.

After leaving the arcade, it was almost lunchtime, so the two strolled along Omotesando for a while and then stopped at a French restaurant that had a high rating on a review app.

The leisurely lunchtime passed by amidst the clinking of cutlery and hushed conversation. Leaving the restaurant, the two strolled along a tree-lined path to digest their meal, and then stopped to catch a movie.

Haruka Minatsuki chose a romantic comedy—the movie was terrible, Genji Aoyama had no interest in it, but Haruka Minatsuki enjoyed it very much.

After the movie ended, the two did not call a taxi, but simply strolled slowly toward Yoyogi Park.

Around 4:30 in the afternoon, the two arrived at Meiji Shrine.

"I wanted to come with Genji last time," Haruka Minatsuki said, looking very happy. "Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time."

"I originally thought it would be a very solemn place, but it turned out to be surprisingly suitable for a walk."

Genji Aoyama walked on the gravel road, making a 'rustling' sound under his feet.

Although it was the weekend, it was nearing evening, and there weren't many people walking along the tree-lined avenue.

With towering trees on both sides, walking among them after a long day of dating is a real treat.

"Coming here at the end was definitely a good idea," Minatsuki Haruka thought to herself.

"A meeting of minds?" Genji Aoyama said.

"Though we lack the wings of a phoenix to fly together, our hearts are connected by a single thread of understanding?"

Haruka Minatsuki recited a poem in broken Chinese.

"Miss Haruka's Chinese seems to be quite good," Genji Aoyama said with a smile.

People from the University of Tokyo tend to think that if someone can speak Chinese, they'll assume that person's Chinese is good.

"Because I practice calligraphy, I will inevitably come into contact with it."

The two strolled leisurely along the tree-lined path, chatting casually, and the girl's silvery laughter could be heard from time to time.

Perhaps because she hadn't slept well the night before, and after a day of sightseeing, she stopped halfway down the approach to the pilgrimage site, covered her mouth, and let out a small yawn.

"I'm a little tired..."

After yawning, Haruka Minatsuki still didn't move. She just looked at Genji Aoyama, her face not showing her usual gentle smile, but with a coquettish tone like a girlfriend: "I feel like I can't walk anymore."

Genji Aoyama walked up to her, smiling, and said, "Would you like me to carry Haruka-san?"

"Is that okay?" Haruka Minatsuki covered her mouth and laughed.

Although it was a question, the tone sounded quite satisfied.

"Of course," Genji Aoyama said with a smile, half-squatting down in front of Haruka Minatsuki. "Right now, I feel like I'm missing a beautiful girl on my back."

"Genji-kun, you can't be so frivolous~"

Despite saying that, Haruka Minatsuki still climbed onto Genji Aoyama's back.

"Flippant is the biggest misconception about me," he said.

Her soft arms encircled Aoyama Genji's neck, feeling slightly restrained, but more like being gently enveloped.

Warm, uneven breaths brushed against his ear, and the faint scent of magnolia blossoms wafted past his nose. Aoyama Genji supported Minatsuki Haruka's soft thighs as he stood up.

"What should we do in the main hall later...?"

Haruka Minatsuki's voice was soft, with a hint of languor and weariness.

"Besides weddings and prayers, the only thing I can think of is writing ema (votive plaques)," said Genji Aoyama.

On the quiet approach to the temple, the breathing sounds around me became even, probably because they had fallen asleep.

A gentle breeze flows through the shady path leading to the temple.

Genji Aoyama felt the soft touch coming from behind him without reservation. It not only carried the warmth of a beautiful girl's body, but also had a heavy, yet sweet, weight.

"If I'm going to write an ema (votive plaque) later, what should I write?"

He was somewhat hesitant.

But they didn't stop; they continued along the path towards the main hall.

After passing the Great Torii Gate, the view gradually opens up, and there are only a few scattered tourists in the pebbled plaza in front of the temple, seemingly queuing up to buy ema (votive plaques) in front of the shrine.

Genji Aoyama walked over.

Seemingly noticing that the girl on Aoyama Genji's back had fallen asleep, they would even unconsciously lower their voices.

"Hello, please give me two."

In front of the wooden counter, Genji Aoyama spoke quietly to the staff.

"Okay, Seunghye, one thousand yen."

Even so, the whispered conversation still woke up Haruka Minatsuki—Genji Aoyama felt the girl behind him slightly twist her body and her breathing become somewhat disordered.

"Miss Haruka?" Genji Aoyama turned his head, and Haruka Minatsuki's eyes were still closed.

"Pretending to be asleep, huh?"

He reached out and lightly scratched her thigh.

"what……"

After a soft cry, Haruka Minatsuki reached out and pinched Genji Aoyama's arm.

"Genji-kun is really mean-spirited." She said with dissatisfaction, but with a smile.

"Hmm—at least let me pay first."

Haruka Minatsuki didn't come down either. Instead, she freed one hand, moved her exquisite bag in front of the two of them, quickly took out a 1000 yen banknote with Natsume Soseki's image on it, and handed it to the staff member.

With the bag slightly open, Genji Aoyama could immediately see the photo booth pictures taken earlier—one of him with a puppy ear effect on, and the other of the two of them together, both photos costing a total of 1,000 yen.

Aoyama Genji took the ema and left the counter.

"I suspect that Miss Haruka has been pretending to be asleep the whole way." He smiled as he walked to the long table with the writing desk.

"..."

Haruka Minatsuki climbed off his back, first straightening her skirt, then sat down in front of Genji Aoyama. She gave a soft snort, indicating that she didn't want to talk to him.

Genji Aoyama began to write down his wishes.

"Hoping to live to 30?"

Before yesterday, Genji Aoyama believed he could live to be 150 years old.

But after today, even though he will remain healthy, he occasionally has a subtle, even dangerous thought in his mind—he is getting closer and closer to being a scumbag, and he might be killed by a machete before he turns 30 or even 20.

After thinking about it, I decided to give up; it felt like a flag.

"What? What?"

Haruka Minatsuki tilted her head up and leaned closer, wanting to see what Genji Aoyama had written.

"I won't show it to you." Aoyama Genji smiled and put away the ema (votive plaque).

"mean!"

Haruka Minatsuki lightly stepped on his foot, then left the writing desk, with Genji Aoyama following behind.

Haruka Minatsuki, who arrived first, was standing on tiptoe, hanging the ema (votive plaque) higher up.

Genji Aoyama immediately noticed the message: "[Hope Genji-kun will behave.]"

"Is Genji-kun some kind of puppy?"

He recalled that when they were taking photos, Haruka Minatsuki insisted on adding a dog ear effect—although the result wasn't bad.

"Um."

Haruka Minatsuki actually nodded, a sly smile appearing on her gentle and elegant face.

"etc,"

Genji Aoyama handed the bag containing the dolls to Haruka Minatsuki, saying, "I want to buy another one, an ema."

"What are you planning to write?" Haruka Minatsuki asked with a smile.

"I hope Haruka-san becomes even gentler and cuter!"

As clever as Mitsuki Haruka was, she immediately sensed that something was amiss.

"I'm unhappy. Genji-kun actually thinks I'm not gentle enough or cute enough." She turned around, her back to Aoyama Genji, and started pinching the face of the puppy doll in the bag.

"Of course, I was just joking."

Genji Aoyama hung the ema (votive plaque) next to the "Dog Training Declaration".

On the wooden frame covered with ema (votive plaques), the afternoon sun shines through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled light and shadow. A gentle breeze stirs the wooden plaques, causing them to clink softly.

"Go back," he said.

Haruka Minatsuki glanced at the contents of the wooden sign and then showed a dissatisfied expression.

"It feels like something a philanderer would write."

Genji Aoyama was surprised—his writing was entirely positive, healthy, and full of positive energy; he never expected it to cause such a misunderstanding.

"That's pure prejudice."

"It's not referring to the content, but to Genji himself."

"Without a doubt, this is also prejudice."

Genji Aoyama strongly opposes this!

The pebbles in front of the palace made a "rustling" sound as they were stepped on, and the two prepared to turn back towards the Great Torii Gate.

Haruka Minatsuki looked very happy, her elegant and gentle face full of a satisfied smile, while Genji Aoyama seemed to be deep in thought.

"I hope tomorrow will be like today, at least without any accidents—please bless me!"

As he thought about it, he glanced back at the wooden sign he had just hung on the wooden frame.

Let me enjoy this rosy summer!