After a few rounds of drinks, Su Bai was not sure if Ayato had intentionally pranked Itto. It was supposed to be strong liquor, but the alcohol content did not seem that high. It was nowhere near as intoxicating as Su Bai had imagined, but Itto was drinking happily regardless.
"By the way, Itto, I originally wanted to give you a nice gift, but since you do not have a Vision on you right now, you probably cannot use it."
"Huh? A nice gift? What kind of nice gift? As for the Vision, I will get it back as soon as I defeat that Kujou tengu."
Hearing that Su Bai had a gift for her boss, Kuki Shinobu put down the intelligence reports in her hands. Anything Su Bai would call a "nice gift" must be quite valuable. If necessary, she would need to remind her boss not to lose it.
Su Bai did not keep them in suspense. He took out two phones and handed them to Itto and Shinobu. Itto looked at the metal box in his hand, feeling a bit puzzled. There did not seem to be any seams on this thing. How was he supposed to open it?
Meanwhile, following Su Bai's demonstration, Shinobu infused a bit of elemental energy into her phone. Seeing that Shinobu successfully activated it, Su Bai explained the phone's capabilities and how to use it to both Itto and Shinobu.
"Aaaaaah, why is this happening!"
"Boss, do not suddenly shriek like a ghost. You will scare people to death!"
"If I do not shriek like a ghost, then am I even a ghost? I am an Oni, Su Bai. Is there any way you can let me use this phone too?"
Looking at Itto's desperate, pleading eyes, Su Bai shrugged, completely helpless. If Albedo were here, he might be able to satisfy Itto's request. But as for him? He could not even begin to understand alchemy.
Seeing that Su Bai had no solution, Itto let out a painful wail and slumped weakly into his chair. If asked to name the most painful thing in the world right now, Itto would definitely say it was having a phone but not being able to use it, while the people around him were having a blast with theirs.
"Shinobu, you can say hello to the people in the group chat first. Itto, you can come over and take a look to get to know them too. That way, if you run into anyone from the group in Inazuma, you will already be acquainted."
Shinobu felt quite moved by the idea. The moment Su Bai presented the phone to her, she had already realized its convenience. If used properly, it was not impossible for the Arataki Gang to take things to the next level. Genta and the others were getting older now, and it was necessary to save up some Mora for them to eventually get married.
The more she thought about it, the more Shinobu felt that this phone was incredibly useful. She glanced at Itto, who was still wailing in his chair, and pulled up a chair to sit next to him so he could also see the messages on the screen. She had long given up hoping Itto would come up with any ideas to earn Mora.
Although these were things Itto was supposed to worry about, she found herself thinking about them constantly. Sigh, in the end, it was taking a toll on her hair. Her poor hair... she had lost a huge handful of it while washing it yesterday. Perhaps when she had some free time, she could look into hair care methods. Her standards for her hair were not high; it just needed to be thicker than her older sister's.
[Hu Tao: Oh my, Zhongli, help! There are so many floating dog-like creatures chasing and attacking me. I just picked up a few moving feathers, is it really necessary to chase me for this long? Besides, there were not this many dogs on Tsurumi Island yesterday.]
[Zhongli: Director Hu, generally speaking, based on rationality, in such dense fog, it will take me some time to find you.]
[Zhongli: However, the fog seems to be thinning out a bit. At the very least, I can see the messages you are sending on the phone now.]
[Hu Tao: Better to rely on myself than on others. It seems I have lost that pack of dogs. There are only two or three little ones wandering around now. Watch this Director send them to the afterlife.]
"Hu Tao is the Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor in Liyue. Since you studied abroad in Liyue, Shinobu, you should know what the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor does, right?"
"Yes, the leading enterprise in Liyue's funeral business. Is this Director Hu visiting Inazuma with the intention of opening a branch here?"
"That is exactly right. That is why Hu Tao came this time. Whether you can seize this opportunity is entirely up to you, Shinobu."
Since hiring anyone would cost Mora anyway, Su Bai did not mind letting the Arataki Gang cooperate with the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. With Shinobu and Hu Tao's combined intelligence, putting together a win-win situation should be quite easy.
"Why does that guy named Zhongli annoy me so much? Using such a precious phone to spout nonsense is truly infuriating. When will I be able to use a phone? Aaaaaah!"
Itto slumped over the table, whining to express his dissatisfaction. Shinobu glanced at Itto and swiftly delivered a "friendly" smack to the back of his head, causing a large bump to rapidly form.
"Boss, since that Mr. Zhongli can explore Tsurumi Island, his strength must not be weak. If you do not want to get beaten up, I think it is best if you do not provoke him."
"Tch~ I do not believe it. When I run into that Zhongli, I will definitely challenge him to a spar and let him know the true power of the great Arataki Itto, hahahaha."
Seeing Itto so confident, even fantasizing about how he would introduce himself after defeating Zhongli, Su Bai gave a wicked smile and spoke softly.
"Itto, I will definitely burn plenty of spirit money for you at your funeral. After all, there are not many fools left who dare to provoke an adeptus. I think it is necessary for me to have Hu Tao record your deeds and promote them."
"Hahaha... cough cough, that old man who looks like he loves spouting nonsense is actually an adeptus? Su Bai, you must be joking with me, right?"
"Boss, behave yourself!"
Feeling Shinobu's loving iron fist once again, Itto muttered under his breath that he would behave. Who was he afraid of? Even if he behaved, he was still the number one Itto in the world.
Seeing Shinobu's fist clench again, Itto wisely shut his mouth. Shinobu gave Su Bai an apologetic smile. After all, Itto had told her that Su Bai was also an adeptus. Su Bai waved his hand dismissively. In fact, he was quite looking forward to Itto provoking Zhongli. He wondered what kind of expression that old man would make.
[Kuki Shinobu: Hello everyone, my name is Kuki Shinobu. It is nice to meet you all.]
[Yae Miko, Embodiment of Wisdom and Beauty: Oh my, if it is not little Shinobu. Tell me just how happy you are.]
[Kuki Shinobu: ...]
[Hanachirusato: Miko, stop teasing the children. This little one has quite a bit of personality. I quite like her.]
[Zhongtuo: Can someone tell me if there are any new species on Tsurumi Island? Just now, while I was taking a walk in the fog, I actually saw a creature with a dog's head and a snake's body. That weird appearance gave me quite a scare.]
Watching Zhongtuo refer to himself as "the great me" even more arrogantly than he did, Itto instantly felt a surge of competitiveness. No, he had to find an opportunity to arm-wrestle this guy named Zhongtuo and show him who truly deserved to call himself "the great me."
Hmph, since that guy named Zhongli is an adeptus and I cannot beat him, this guy named Zhongtuo cannot possibly be an adeptus too, right?
Betting the title of the most arrogant Arataki Itto under heaven, he would definitely defeat that Zhongtuo in an arm-wrestling match.
Yeah, as long as Shinobu does not find out.