COTE : Backed By Black Technology System

Although people on the street pointed and whispered, Kanda Shuichi remained calm and followed Kushida and her friends to the recommended store.

As soon as he walked into the store, Kanda Shuichi felt that it was designed for girls, especially high school girls.

The store was decorated entirely in pink, full of cute and girly items. If a boy came to this store alone without the specific purpose of buying a gift for a girl, there was a high chance he would be seen as a weirdo.

Anyway, Kanda Shuichi himself would probably never enter such a store alone. Even if he had to buy a gift for a girl, he would make it quick, buy it, and leave...

Wait, if you think about it, this store not only encourages girls to spend points but also targets boys' wallets!

The store clerk was also a very pretty woman, but not as pretty as some of the girls he knew.

"Welcome!"

With the clerk's greeting, Kanda Shuichi followed Kushida and her friends into the store. Once inside, everyone split up to choose gifts.

Soon, Kushida and Kanda Shuichi were left alone.

"By the way, did you find out what Inogashira likes?"

"Of course! If we spend points on a gift she doesn't like, it would be a waste, right?"

Kushida said matter-of-factly, then looked at Kanda Shuichi with confusion. Has this guy never given a gift before?

What a great opportunity!

"Shuichi, let's go inside. There are lots of good things like phone cases, keychains, and plush toys."

Seeing Kushida so excited, Kanda Shuichi had a feeling.

These things are probably what you want, not what Inogashira wants, right?

But since they were already inside, they might as well look around.

Just as they took a few steps, they heard a familiar voice from around the corner.

"Listen, that's Shinohara, right? If I had to date a girl like her, who's bossy and not cute, I'd be too ashamed to even leave my house! That would be a total compromise! I absolutely won't do it."

Shinohara, is he talking about that Shinohara?

Kanda Shuichi looked at Kushida and whispered, "This voice sounds familiar. Who is it?"

"It's Ike, Ike Kanji. But I remember he seemed to care about Shinohara on the deserted island." Kushida whispered back, as the current atmosphere wasn't suitable for loud talking.

Imagine if A was talking bad about B behind their back and B happened to hear it. That would be quite a scene. If A and B were of the opposite sex and B had feelings for A, it would be even more dramatic.

To not miss such a scene, Kanda Shuichi quietly pulled Kushida closer.

Then he noticed that not only Ike, but also Yamauchi and Ayanokouji from his class were there. The two were constantly giving Ike signals, but he didn't notice and continued to badmouth Shinohara behind her back.

"I-I get it! Stop talking! Kanji! Because, um, behind you—"

"Huh? Behind me?"

Finally, after Yamauchi's desperate hint, Ike Kanji slowly turned around and saw Shinohara, whose eyes were almost spitting fire.

Just as Kanda Shuichi was waiting to see the drama unfold, Shinohara, full of anger, simply said, "Ike, you should just go die!" and stormed off.

Sigh, it's not satisfying enough.

If it were Horikita being badmouthed behind her back, she would have definitely elbowed the person by now.

After Shinohara left, Karuizawa also gave Ike a fierce glare before running after Shinohara, followed by Matsushita Chiaki.

Seeing them all leave, Kushida hesitated whether to follow.

Because if she went after them, what would Kanda Shuichi do?

She knew that Kanda Shuichi definitely couldn't keep up with them.

"You go check on them, I'll browse around here." In an instant, he saw her hesitation and gave her the best option.

Kushida nodded and left the store.

As Kanda Shuichi said, he started browsing the store. He wasn't interested in Ike and the others.

It was strange to see Ayanokouji hanging out with them, which puzzled Kanda Shuichi.

After looking at the small items around, Kanda Shuichi shook his head, not satisfied. Kushida had helped him a lot, and giving these things would be too stingy.

Just as Kanda Shuichi was about to walk further into the store, he saw a familiar figure... or rather, a familiar head.

Katsuragi Kohei, who was said to have lost his hair due to some illness.

But he was wearing the school uniform, which was odd during summer vacation unless he had to go to school.

Out of curiosity, Kanda Shuichi decided to strike up a conversation.

"Katsuragi, long time no see."

Katsuragi, who was picking out a gift, turned around immediately upon hearing Kanda Shuichi's voice, looking at him with some caution.

"What do you want?"

Seeing his reaction, Kanda Shuichi found it amusing.

"No need to be so wary of me. It's summer vacation, we have no conflicts of interest. I just happened to see you here and wanted to say hi."

Hearing Kanda Shuichi's words, Katsuragi seemed to find some sense in them and nodded, turning his attention back to the shelf.

Kanda Shuichi also picked up a small item in front of him. It was a box of chocolates, but it seemed too cheap. Shouldn't such things be given on Valentine's Day?

"Is it a gift for your girlfriend?"

Just as Kanda Shuichi was thinking of how to start the conversation, Katsuragi spoke first.

"No, we're just good friends for now. She's helped me a lot recently, so I wanted to give her a gift to thank her."

Katsuragi nodded and didn't ask further, turning his attention back to the shelf.

"What about you? Is it for your girlfriend?"

"No, I don't plan to have a girlfriend in high school." Katsuragi shook his head, looking serious and not like he was lying.

"I see."

Since the other person didn't want to talk about it, Kanda Shuichi didn't press further. It would be pointless and annoying.

So he moved deeper into the store to find a gift for Kushida.

Then he saw something that even boys might like.

A giant panda plush!

So cute!

This is it!

As a panda lover, he had no resistance to pandas. In his previous life, he loved watching panda videos, and now he found a panda plush here!

And it seems Japanese people also love pandas. Who wouldn't like a cute panda?

The size of this plush seemed perfect, about 1.2 meters tall. He even wanted one for himself.

Looking at the adorable panda, Kanda Shuichi seriously picked it up.

So fluffy!

It felt great, very soft! Just by touch, he could tell it was well-made.

Even Kushida would like this, right? And if she didn't, he wouldn't mind keeping it!

Yes, this is it!

After making up his mind, Kanda Shuichi took the 1.2-meter panda plush to the checkout.

The store clerk saw him with the only panda plush in the store and quickly asked, "Would you like me to pack it for you?"

"Yes, please."

Then the clerk took out a large plastic bag and prepared to put the panda in it.

Seeing this, Kanda Shuichi's eyes widened, and he quickly stopped her.

"Wait! Are you going to put this big panda in that plastic bag?"

"Yes, is there a problem? This is a vacuum compression bag. Once the air is removed, it will be easy for you to carry."

The clerk looked puzzled at Kanda Shuichi's shocked expression.

"You want to put the panda in a vacuum bag and remove the air? Won't that flatten it?"

How could they do such a cruel thing to a panda?

No way!

The panda would cry!

"No! You can't do that! Don't you have a box that can fit it?"

Kanda Shuichi wouldn't budge on this.

"We do have a box, but it would be hard for you to carry it alone."

The clerk looked troubled. Honestly, this plush had been in the store for a long time because of its price, and she was happy someone finally wanted to buy it.

But isn't this customer's request too strange?

Not putting the plush toy in a vacuum bag...

But since it was the customer's request, she had no choice. She took out a big box, padded it with empty plastic bags, put the giant panda inside, and sealed it with tape.

However, Kanda Shuichi's attention was no longer on her. He looked at Ayanokouji, who was watching the scene next to Yamauchi and Ike.

"Ayanokouji, help me carry this to the dorm."

"That's too much to ask. That box is over 1.3 meters long. How could I do it alone?"

Seeing Kanda Shuichi trying to recruit help, Ayanokouji refused without hesitation.

"10,000 private points."

"I'll do it!"

As soon as Kanda Shuichi mentioned the price, Yamauchi and Ike eagerly raised their hands and rushed over.

"For two people, it's 5,000 each."

"No problem, leave it to us!"

Ike gave a reassuring thumbs-up, and Yamauchi, tempted by the points, had already lifted the box.

"Alright, let's check out."

"That will be 30,000 points."

30,000?

Whoa! That's expensive? Even if I had the money, I wouldn't want to be ripped off like this.

Seeing Kanda Shuichi's doubtful look, the clerk quickly explained.

"This plush toy is made to the real panda's scale. The company spent a lot of money to get the rights to its image. Also, the craftsmanship..."

Is that so?

Kanda Shuichi suddenly thought that raising two pandas after retirement might be very profitable.

After paying, Kanda Shuichi found that Ike and Yamauchi were already waiting outside.

"Just put it at my room door. I'll transfer the points to you now." Kanda Shuichi took out his phone and realized he didn't have their contact information.

"Ike, what's your contact info?"

"Mine? Hold on."

Ike took out his phone, exchanged contact info with Kanda Shuichi, and Kanda Shuichi transferred 10,000 points to Ike.

"Alright, I've given you 10,000 points. You two can split it."

"Leave it to me, Kanda." Ike, looking reliable after receiving the points, said, "Let's go, Haruki!"

"I got it."

Then the two of them carried the 1.3-meter-long, 30-40 cm wide box to the dorm.

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You can read 10 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu