54: The Receipt?

Back at his small apartment, Chisato's first action was to go to the window and let the Dark Wing in.

"Pecking at the window so hard, doesn't your beak hurt? Why didn't you come in through the door?" Chisato complained casually.

Once inside, the Dark Wing landed on the desk.

It pecked at the desk lamp switch repeatedly, but since it was only a day old and the lamp was old with a stiff switch, it couldn't turn it on.

After several attempts, it stopped and looked back at Chisato, who was taking pictures and laughing softly.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist taking a picture because it was so interesting. When you grow up, you'll probably find it amusing," Chisato explained, though it didn't seem to help much.

He caught a hint of resentment in the Dark Wing's dark eyes.

"Alright, if you don't like it, I won't take any more pictures. Let's get you cleaned up."

Chisato put away his phone and moved to pick up the Dark Wing, but it flapped its wings in strong resistance.

"What's wrong? You need to bathe."

"..." The Dark Wing pecked at the lamp again.

Chisato realized that the bird's actions were not just play but had a specific purpose: to turn on the lamp.

But why?

He wondered and turned on the lamp as the Dark Wing seemed to want.

After the lamp was on, the Dark Wing pecked at a practice book standing upright nearby.

Chisato's curiosity grew, but he followed through, placing the practice book under the lamp.

The Dark Wing hopped a few steps away, tilted its head, and opened and closed its beak slightly.

Chisato didn't quite understand the bird's behavior, but when it returned to the lamp and placed something on the white practice book, things became clearer.

It was a hair.

More specifically, a long hair, at least 70 to 80 centimeters long.

Chisato picked it up and examined it. He initially thought it was Kazusa's hair, but it wasn't quite right.

The hair wasn't pure black; it had a yellowish hue, indicating it was blonde.

After thinking for a while, he didn't reach any useful conclusions due to the lack of information.

But it was clear that the Dark Wing was trying to convey some signal.

Looking at the Dark Wing's expectant gaze, Chisato guessed, "Did you get fed by a blonde girl on the way?"

"…"

"Oh, was that not it?"

Chisato scratched his head, "So, a blonde girl at school likes me?"

"..."

"Likes you?"

"..."

The Dark Wing flapped its wings in frustration and flew to the end of the bed, ignoring him.

"It's not my fault; there's too little information."

Given the previous system's assurance that nothing from the simulated life would affect reality, Chisato hadn't considered the most crucial aspects.

He stared at the blonde hair for a while, found no useful conclusions, and decided to stop thinking about it. 

He took out a small pack of walnut pieces from his bag and placed them on the table.

"Dinner's here. If you're hungry, help yourself."

After saying this, he picked up his change of clothes and headed to the bathroom.

His rented apartment didn't have a bathtub like most Japanese homes, only a narrow shower space.

This was fine with Chisato; he didn't have a habit of taking baths and was satisfied with just getting clean.

While showering, he reviewed the situations of Gotou Hitori and Kazusa.

Both were troublesome, often referred to as problem girls.

Gotou Hitori had severe social anxiety and was as timid as a rabbit, easily frightened by any disturbance.

Kazusa deliberately acted coldly, isolating herself and refusing to engage with others.

Building a good relationship with her and gaining her approval wasn't going to be easy.

However, by the end of today, through a series of meticulous actions, Chisato had managed to make her lower her guard and stop resisting him.

Becoming friends with Gotou Hitori would allow him to help her from a supportive position, gradually finding her strengths and helping her gain others' affection and respect, while also slowly changing her initially timid and self-doubting nature.

The same went for Kazusa. 

Using the unavoidable reason of a teacher's order, he interacted with her and managed to make her a debtor, though it was only a little over a thousand yen. Still, it established a connection between them.

In the future, as they got to know each other better and he introduced her to other kind classmates, she would likely integrate into the class more smoothly. 

Spending high school alone would be quite sad.

After his shower, Chisato sat at his desk and read.

Half an hour later, a group of crows pecked loudly at his window, interrupting his study.

"Are these your friends?"

Chisato was startled.

The Dark Wing flew onto his shoulder, signaling him to open the window quickly.

After opening the window, the crows didn't enter the room. They were cautious and only stood outside the window, watching inside.

The Dark Wing flew to the top of the refrigerator.

Chisato understood and took several slices of toast from the fridge, slowly offering them to the crows.

"Caw!"

The Dark Wing called out.

"Caw! Caw!"

The crows eagerly started grabbing the bread from Chisato's hand.

After they finished, one of the crows dropped a white piece of paper on the table, then flapped its wings and flew into the night sky, leading the other crows away.

"…"

The word "transaction" popped into Chisato's mind.

He felt he could never again look down on crows.

"Caw!"

The Dark Wing landed on the table, indicating Chisato should check the paper.

Chisato closed the window and went over to examine it.

It wasn't just a piece of white paper but a receipt from a restaurant, stained with grease, smelling faintly sour, as if it had just been pulled from a trash pile.

Wait, a restaurant receipt?

Chisato immediately thought of the receipt from his meal with Kazusa.

Both receipts were from the same restaurant.

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