Let’s not talk about how the Demon Lord managed to get away with it in the end. The two of them agreed with Otomo Sawaki to set off at four o’clock in the afternoon and continue to go up the mountain road.
The winding mountain road connects from the mountainside of Mount Osawa to the next mountain ridge, merges into other one-way passages, crosses the continuous mountains, and reaches the other side of Yuzawa.
Aoi Keisuke and the others planned to walk half of the road first, and then climb to the top of the mountain along the walking trail.
Hoshino left alone to have lunch first, and when Aoi Keisuke saw her again, the eldest lady had already changed into a plain sportswear, exposing her slender arms and calves.
Strictly speaking, this is not a qualified mountaineering outfit, but I heard that the tourist trails are well built, so there is probably no problem.
She and Keisuke Aoi were sitting under the shade of the trees in the courtyard behind, where there were several nice wooden deck chairs.
Aoi Keisuke was reading a local magazine from Yuzawa, while she took out a very small book of poetry and started flipping through it.
When it was almost four o'clock, the two of them got up and headed to the lobby.
Zeshu Otomo had already been waiting outside early. He seemed to be in good spirits, but his eyes were a little dodgey and erratic.
When Qing Keisuke and the others came out, he was talking to the female captain Ozawa Sonoko. The conversation continued from last night, but it stopped when the two came out.
"Oh, good afternoon, you two." The female general greeted him proactively.
"Hello, General Ozawa."
"Are you going to go shopping in Daze Mountain today?"
"Yes, I originally planned to go to the mountains to play."
"Then I wish you a happy time."
Ozawa Sonoko bowed, folded her hands in front of her lower abdomen, twisted her waist and left.
Hoshino stared at her back quietly and suddenly said: "This trip doesn't seem to be going well."
"oh?"
"Feel."
Hoshino glanced at Sawaki Otomo again, causing him to immediately retract his seat with a smile.
"Get in the car first."
Qing Keisuke noticed that Ozawa Sonoko was standing quietly in front of the floor-to-ceiling window on the side of the lobby, with one hand gently pressing on the glass. Due to the refraction of light and shadow, it was difficult to see her current expression clearly.
"Oh~"
Taozi, who was wearing regular clothes, suddenly ran out of the lobby, shouting: "Mr. Qinggui, I'm not on duty today, can you take me with you~"
"Peach!" Ozawa Sonoko rushed out immediately with a very ugly face: "Don't cause trouble to the guests!"
"Ah! It's the boss!" Taozi was startled and subconsciously wanted to squat down with her head in her hands.
"It doesn't matter, Captain Ozawa, just let Momoko go with us." Aoi Keisuke pressed down the car window, stuck his head out and said with a smile.
"Mr. Qinggui, you don't have to take care of this rude guy."
The female general's voice was still very stern. Taozi quietly stuck out her tongue and got into the trunk quickly. She paused for a moment after meeting Hoshino's cold gaze, and then turned to Ozawa Sonoko and said: "I am going to be a free guide.
La, boss, I will clean the lobby myself when I get back!"
"Don't think I will let you go so easily!"
"Wow, it's so scary!" She secretly patted the driver's seat, hinting to Sawaki Otomo to leave quickly.
"Ahem, Miss Sonoko, let's set off first."
The last look the two looked at each other was clearly a little strange.
If they hadn't known that Otomo Sawaki had already started a family, others might have thought that the two were old lovers.
The car started slowly and continued to drive upward towards Daze Mountain. Hetang was soon left behind and was obscured by the mountains and forests.
The smile on Qing Keisuke's face was sharp, which was in sharp contrast to Hoshino in the back seat.
She never likes to be in contact with other people, especially an idiot who doesn't know what to say.
But at this time, Taozi seemed to be hiding some secret, which made her curious.
"Ah, thank you, Mr. Qinggui, Miss Hoshino, hehehe~ The weather is great today, just perfect for going out and playing!"
"Didn't you say you would be a free tour guide?" Qing Keisuke said with a smile.
Hoshino remained silent, looking at the scenery receding outside the car window.
"Hahaha, okay~"
It has to be said that Taozi's arrival added a lot of vitality to the car, and even Zeshu Otomo relaxed visibly.
The car didn't drive very fast, allowing people to easily appreciate the scenery in the mountains. Taozi introduced it enthusiastically, and Otomo Sawaki was activated by her talkative attribute. He put his mind down for a while and started talking about interesting things.
Aoi Keisuke received an email from Fujiko Hoshino in the back seat.
"Tsk."
"What's the matter, Mr. Qinggui?"
"Nothing, I seem to have seen a blue mountain bird with long tail feathers."
"Ah~ I don't know what kind of bird Taozi is. Does Uncle Zeshu know?"
"Maybe it's a long-tailed blue magpie?"
Otomo Sawaki saw this name in his child's animal picture book.
"Ah——" Taozi responded in a pretense of cuteness.
"What a surprise, Uncle Zeshu actually knows."
"You, after all, I am a native of Yuzawa, a mountain person!" Otomo Sawaki scolded in a joking tone.
"Did Mr. Sawaki and Miss Ozawa grow up together?" Aoi Keisuke asked.
"Yes, yes!" Taozi replied: "We used to think that Uncle Zeshu had a crush on our boss!"
"Yes, I later found out that my boss had been married before and had children..." Taozi paused and said in a sad tone: "It's hard to imagine, isn't it?"
"Momo, don't tell these things to the two of you." Otomo Sawaki suddenly stopped her nervously.
The reason why I say neurotic is because his voice has some changes in tone.
"Why can't you say it!"
Taozi shrank her neck: "I always feel that my boss is worried. He prayed at the shrine all night last night. Mr. Zeshu, please find time to persuade her!"
"You are young and don't understand."
Qing Keisuke asked in a worried and sympathetic tone: "General Ozawa, is this...?"
When Taozi took one look at him, she immediately poured out the beans and said honestly. She seemed to have fallen into an atmosphere of sympathy for the boss, and her voice became deeper: "The boss's husband and children were in an accident a few years ago, and they all passed away."
"died?"
Aoi Keisuke saw Otomo Sawaki suddenly tightening his grip on the steering wheel.
"I don't know exactly what the accident was, but I always feel like the boss has been trapped inside, which is very worrying!"
In order to prevent the atmosphere from becoming completely serious, she added: "I really hope a man can take her out!"
"Look what I'm doing!" Otomo Zeshu became anxious again.
"I just took a look at you. Uncle Zeshu, your reaction is too suspicious!"
"I don't!"
“There’s no shame in liking the boss!”
Zeshu Otomo stopped chatting with her and solemnly stated that he had a wife and children and a happy family.
Qing Keisuke glanced at Hoshino. The girl no longer looked out the window, but stared at the back of Momo's head, as if she could see something from it.
"Mr. Qinggui, what do you think of our boss?"
"Hmm... there is a kind of beauty that has accumulated over time?"