Chapter 19

A week passed in the blink of an eye, and every night, Seiha continued his search for the remaining enemy of the White Demon.

But the results were disappointing; Seiha found nothing.

However, Seiha felt no disappointment or frustration. For him, strolling alone through the bustling city streets under the cover of night, watching the various people rush or stroll leisurely, some drunk or others seeking pleasure, was a truly fascinating experience.

At least in his previous life, Seiha had never seen such a prosperous city, nor had he seen so many people with different desires. In this life, he had seen them, but he had never paid attention.

One evening, Seiha wandered the streets of Tokyo as usual, watching a fashionably dressed woman reluctantly accept an invitation from a similarly dressed man to have a drink together.

He watched a middle-aged man, flattered by his subordinates, enter a restaurant with a retinue.

He watched a few small-time hooligans quietly steal a drunk man's wallet.

He watched a man caught in the act of adultery by his girlfriend, leading to a loud argument on the street.

Everything was so vivid. People floated in the desires of the mundane world, yet they found joy and peace in their lives.

Seiha faced all this with a calm demeanor, making no judgments about others' choices in life.

Everyone has the right to choose their own path in life. Even ordinary people have their own happiness. As long as they live the life they want, who has the right to criticize them from a high moral ground?

Seiha sought transcendence, to rise above the ordinary and become a sage, but he did not believe that sages were necessarily superior to the mundane.

Just as he would not despise a vulgar thug or favor a refined artist.

Zhuangzi said, "The Dao is in the excrement and urine."

Seiha pursued his own "Dao," observed others' "Dao," and understood others' "Dao," but he did not believe his "Dao" was superior to others' "Dao."

Even if it was just the "Dao" of an ordinary person, who could say it was not correct?

Ordinary people have children, eat, drink, and sleep, with desires for food, sex, and sleep. This is the most natural and fundamental "Dao" in the universe, and it is not lowly.

The so-called "Dao" has no absolute right or wrong.

So Seiha enjoyed fine wine, delicious food, beautiful women, and sleeping until he naturally woke up.

As the time passed from the initial glow of the streetlights to the depths of the night, Seiha, who had searched in vain again, walked home, passing through the streets and alleys, and once again arrived at the door of Kono-tei.

Pulling open the door, accompanied by the owner's greeting of "Welcome," Seiha entered the small shop again.

Seiha pulled the door and looked into the small Kono-tei. As usual, no one was sitting at the two tables, and a few people were gathered at the counter, drinking in small groups.

"Hey, young man, good evening!" The middle-aged uncle who had recommended pork cutlet and plum wine to him the first time he came here greeted him.

"Uncle, good evening," Seiha replied with a smile.

The middle-aged uncle, as usual, was eating his pork cutlet and tamagoyaki, drinking plum wine.

In the past week, after ending his nightly searches, Seiha would come to Kono-tei for a cup of plum wine, and thus became acquainted with some of the regulars.

So Seiha knew a bit about this uncle.

The uncle's name was Oi Saburo, the owner of a nearby bathhouse. He would always come to Kono-tei for a drink after closing the bathhouse late at night, making him a regular customer.

"Ah, Uesugi, I told you you'd come tonight! Takahashi, you lose, drink up, drink up," one of the two young men drinking together on the other side said to the other.

"Alright, alright, I'll drink, I'll drink," the man had no choice but to pick up a beer and drink it in one go.

Both of their hair was dyed red and styled strangely, and they worked as male hosts in a male host club on another street nearby, commonly known as "cowboys." One was named Takahashi Yasu, and the other was named Sato Itsuto.

However, both were not very popular, so they rarely had customers who specifically requested them, which allowed them to have free time to come out for a drink.

"Boss, I'll have plum wine, fried tofu, and shrimp tempura," Seiha said as he sat down at the counter, addressing the owner, Kono Tetsuo.

"Sure thing, plum wine, fried tofu, shrimp tempura," the owner called out and went to prepare them.

"Are you two not working properly? Is it okay to come out for a drink?" After ordering, Seiha said to Takahashi Yasu and Sato Itsuto.

"Work? I want to, but why won't those women request me? I was the prince admired by all the girls in high school!" Takahashi Yasu said, taking a sip of his drink, looking dejected.

"If being handsome was enough to make it in this business, there wouldn't be so many people quitting every year," Sato Itsuto sighed.

"From what I remember, isn't this business supposed to be perfect for handsome guys? It doesn't seem to be the case from what you're saying!" Seiha took a sip of the wine the boss brought over, puzzled.

"Only teenage girls like men who are just good-looking. Truly wealthy, beautiful, and mature women prefer men with depth and character!" Sato Itsuto explained.

"Right, so the only ones who would like us are young girls or very ugly old women," Takahashi Yasu said, his face contorted as if remembering a bad experience.

"You could make money from young girls! With your looks, attracting young girls should be easy, right?" Seiha said, taking a bite of the fried tofu the boss brought over.

"Hey, don't lump me in with those scumbags! Even if I quit this job, I wouldn't do something so low," Takahashi Yasu said, looking angry.

"Scumbags? Really? It's all about making money. Does it matter who you make money from? At most, young girls have less money, so it's harder to make money from them compared to wealthy women," Seiha said, puzzled.

"Uesugi, you don't know! In this business, there are those who use their good looks to seduce young girls and even make them prostitute themselves to support them. We would never do that," Sato Itsuto said with a bitter smile.

"Everything has its limits. As long as you don't go too far, isn't that fine?" Seiha shook his head.

"If we start doing it, we won't be able to stop! Even if we try to control ourselves, the shop will force us to do it," Sato Itsuto sighed.

"I didn't consider that. I didn't realize it was that serious," Seiha shook his head.