Chiaki's Second Gamble

Hmm~ This crowd capacity, loud yet pleasant ambiance, and most importantly... THERE ARE MANY COSPLAYERS! Banzai! This is what I call the Summer Comiket! Yahoo!

Sorry, your newly acquired Manager has been excited for a long time. I did tell Itsuki that I went to the restaurant this early morning but, well, I actually dropped by to see how the design was being executed and it is starting to turn out extremely well. Since it's just two days before we reopen, I have to enjoy a little sip of the remaining peaceful times of my life.

A-Amazing, I'm glad I got a ticket for this live show! I mean, my favorite idol group is performing in front of me and in front of these abundant fans! Their voice actresses are so identical to the dance steps of their respective anime characters. Though to be blunt, this crowd is full of men probably within teens to middle age dudes...

By the way, I'm a big simp of Osaka Shizuko. I've been targeting her Super Super Rare card in the gacha game plus her voice is as pretty as her appearance!

"Shizuko-chan, you are so gorgeous!" I cheered.

"Ayumu-chan, you are the best!" shouted by dude beside me.

Huh? Who's this guy? Did he say Ayumu-chan is the best? Well, she's gorgeous and so but Shizuko-chan is the only S+ tier if I have to do a hierarchy!

"Shizuko-chan, you're the greatest!" I cheered.

"Ayumu-chan, you're a goddess!" cheered the same dude beside me.

"No, no. Shizuko-chan is the real deal!" I answered.

"Insolent fool, it is obvious that Ayumu-chan is the main center!" the dude answered.

Tsk, he doesn't know how to give up, huh?!

"Look at how graceful Shizuko-chan is! Behold! Look directly with your own eyes!" I said.

"I agree, but Ayumu-chan can do it better than you think," he replied.

Hmm, he seems sort of a diehard fan. He even wears a complete attire as I do. Lightstick, customized T-Shirt, headband, etc. Tsk! Looks like I got some competition! But take note, I might not be as weird as this dude.

I have to move to a better spot. I better avoid this guy.

<The live concert lasted for another hour. When it was over, it's time to look for something everyone will seek after a grueling concert watch. Food.>

Gah, I'm hungry! The lines on most stalls are excessively full. The food must be intensely nice! Well, I'm not a judgmental manager so I'll look for a stall that doesn't have many queues. After all, there might be a dish with a hidden potential!

Lalalalala... Oh, is that an empty food stall? Much more, they must be serving okonomiyaki! It is one of my favorite foods!

"Excuse me, can I have one please?" I asked. "Huh?!"

"Oh, you're that Shizuko diehard fan, ain't it?" asked the same dude from the concert.

W-What is he doing here?! Is he the cook?!

"O-Oh, that Ayumu biased creep," I said. "I recognized you well!"

"Hmph, your words mean nothing to me since I know myself that I'm not a creep," he said.

Dude, your grinning negates what you just said.

"I shouldn't call you a Shizuko fan, anyway," he added.

"W-What?! Didn't you see my passionate cheer earlier?" I asked. "It was more energetic than your cockroach decibel leveled yell."

"What's the color of the lightstick you used?" he asked.

"Ocean blue!" I said.

"Pathetic," he answered. "Are you even a real fan of hers?"

"W-W-What makes you so superior!?" I asked.

"Shizuko-chan's image color is pale blue!" he said.

W-What?! H-Have I missed something or what?! No, that's not it. It's this lightstick that I bought online. It was 50% sale that time! No wonder the color wasn't accurate as with the original lightstick. Damn you, sale items! I'm being embarrassed by a super otaku in front of me!

I'm losing this word war! I need to divert the conversation.

"M-More importantly, give me my order already. I'm hungry," I said.

For some reason, I feel that someone's pulling my ears... no.... ripping it!

"So here you are, Mr. Otaku!" said Itsuki. "I've been looking for you the entire time in the restaurant and good thing I discovered a clue when I went to the kitchen!"

"S-Stop it, Itsuki-san," I said. "You're ripping both my ear skin and eardrum."

I-I better find a place to sit on!

"Here, sir," he said. "Please enjoy!"

Grrr, he's grinning at me like he felt that he won against me! This is infuriating as a legit Shizuko fan!

This okonomiyaki better be tasty AF!

I am currently chewing a spoonful of it and...

"Man, this is gross," I commented. "This isn't how an okonomiyaki taste..."

"You're right," said Itsuki while chewing. "It tastes horrible, eek."

"Uhmm, you just used my spoon," I said. "Do you know what it means?"

"Ah, an indirect kiss?" asked Itsuki. "Not that it bothers me, but you must be the one being conscious, eh~?"

"I-I-I'm not! Do as you please!" I replied.

Something is odd with this okonomiyaki, though. It tastes bad but... something is really off. Usually, if food is shittily made, there should be a dominant unusual flavor in it. But this one, I don't know how could I explain this but it is horrible yet somehow balanced. Hmm...

"By the way, what was the clue you were talking about?" I asked.

"Ah, you dropped a picture of Shizuko and a pamphlet of the Summer Comiket," said Itsuki. "If you don't want to be busted, then at least be responsible with your stuff."

"I-I'm very sorry, Ma'am," I replied.

<As Itsuki and I were talking, a teenage girl about the same age as Kanata approached the super otaku cook.>

"So, how's the sales?" asked the girl. "There's no one in here besides that couple."

Did she just call us a couple? Well, it's acceptable if this was three years ago.

"I-I'll get through today..." said the dude. "Just watch."

"Look at how monotonous you are!" said the girl. "How can you attract customers like that? Plus, your stall design is cringy as hell!"

Wow, she's mincing his heart with those hurtful but true words.

"You, the dude who looks like a broke college student!" called the girl. "How's the food here?"

Was she referring to me? Do I really look like a broke man?!

"To be blunt, it was a bad as hell," I said.

"He must be your first customer and the initial comment was your food is bad," said the girl. "Dad and I even supported you by giving a few from our menu book but you still haven't executed it properly. What a shame!"

She's not stopping, eh?

"That's what you get for criticizing dad's cooking!" said the girl. "You had the work in our restaurant but then you ruined your standing."

Whoa, firing someone because of a mere criticism? Your dad is sensitive, lass. I'm starting to hate this conversation.

"You have the courage of standing up against us and we accepted your resignation," said the girl. "Well, it seems your bravery is to be called as foolishness."

This man... he just stared at her with a blank sight. He must be close to breaking down. Sigh, I better help this poor guy even if he dissed my dear Shizuko-chan.

"Excuse me, you also have a stall here, right?" I asked.

"Yes, we have," said the girl. "By the way, my name is Kanzaki Mona. I can show you pictures of how long the lines are in our stall! Look, look!"

She really showed her smartphone to me, huh?

"Whoa, you're right," I said. "Your stall might be unbeatable in sales at this point..."

"Well, I will accept that praise," said Mona.

"...if no one challenged it, if that's the case," I continued.

Mona slightly glares at me when I said that.

"What did you just say?" asked Mona.

"Hey, super otaku guy," I called. "Do you want to say bland forever or do you want to surpass the queue from this arrogant girl's stall?"

The guy looks at me and I looked at him, showing that there's a light of hope. Then, he smiles a bit.

"My name is Takahara Kazuya, not super otaku guy, bastard!" said Kazuya.

That's the spirit, man.

"I-Is that a declaration of war?" asked Mona. "You're a stranger to him, why are you helping him?! You could have just eaten our stuff, it's better!"

"I'm not really a fan of people belittling the courage of someone that stood up against harsh companies, you see," I said. "So, are you up for a bit of challenge, Mona-san?"

She looks real agitated.

"Fine, then," said Mona. "You guys will see how powerful our food is! We will destroy your will completely, Kazuya-kun."

Wow, what confidence. For some reason, I am seeing a bit of myself from her. She must have been a product of pride and success.

"The Summer Comiket will be on its second day tomorrow," I said. "We'll do a two-day competition in order to be fair. Agree?"

"Agree. What's the main objective?" asked Mona.

"The stall with most sales shall be declared the winner," I said. "Will you comply?"

"Ha! As we speak right now, you guys have already lost!" said Mona. "I was sure I let you see the pictures of queues from our stall! In order for this challenge to be fun, why don't we set a wager?"

Hmm, another gamble huh? This is interesting.

"Fine, then," I said. "What will you bet on this?"

"I will share every secret menu of our restaurant to Kazuya-kun," said Mona. "Even the secret ingredients, of course, plus some funds. And yours?"

Guess I'll do this, then.

"Itsuki, call Kanata right now," I requested. "Tell her that we'll move the opening day for three more days."

"W-What?! Then we would be so delayed...!" said Itsuki.

"Just tell her, please," I said. "We'll make it through, I'm certain."

"You sound that you are a restaurant manager, huh?" said Mona.

"Unfortunately, I am," I said. "The manager and the proxy owner, ugh."

I said it with no lies. Hehe.

"Ho, what's your bet, Manager-san?" asked Mona.

"Mona-san, how many restaurant branches do your family possess right now?" I asked.

"J-Just one, the main branch," said Mona. "Why do you ask?"

"Want to expand that into two branches?" I asked.

"W-What are you talking about?!" asked Mona. "Of course, we do!"

"Hey Chiaki, what are you planning to do?" asked Itsuki.

"If we did lose, then you can take our restaurant as your property," I said.

A pretty gamble, isn't it? Hahaha!

"Chiaki! Do you know what you're saying?!" asked Itsuki. "You're betting our whole living on this!"

"Hahaha! A-Are you insane?!" asked Mona. "Y-You'll lose your restaurant if you are to be crushed by us!"

"Don't worry," I said. "If my current theory about Kazuya is correct, then we have a great chance to win. I'm placing my bet on him."

"T-That's absurd, man!" said Kazuya. "Mona and her Dad are one of the best in the district!"

"Even the best can be brought down with witty plans, dude," I said.

I have to keep his spirit rising.

"I don't know what theory stuff you are blubbering but I guess we'll see each other when it's computation time," said Mona.

"Yes, I'm terribly excited for this," I said.

I am not joking at the part that I said I have a theory about Kazuya's terrible dish. It should be worth trying and finding out.

And so, an impromptu challenge has been set. Our duel will start tomorrow, the second day of this lively Summer Comiket. Our group will destabilize Mona's bragging, she'll see!