62 Is Eiji a Bartender?

Realizing Shizuka didn't leave, Eiji pondered for a moment, then took another seat.

"Sit down. Let's talk after I finish eating."

"Thank you."

Happy to hear this, Shizuka sat down, patiently waiting for him to finish his meal.

Eiji is indifferent to many things. He doesn't mind a girl watching him eat. Instead, he observes the villagers' activities.

Women cook breakfast for working men. Due to many houses being damaged by fires, the villagers decided to collaborate in rebuilding them.

Unlike the apathetic interpersonal relationships in urban neighborhoods, the village residents have a very harmonious community.

Eiji acknowledges this after witnessing the interactions of the villagers.

"There are only old men and old women here..." Eiji murmured softly.

"That's normal. Most of the younger generation in the village prefer to migrate to the city for a living. If not for the villagers accepting survivors from the outside, the village would be filled only with the elderly." Explained Shizuka.

Some survivors are lucky young people who managed to survive the zombie outbreak and chose to settle in the village due to its safe environment and abundant resources.

Vegetables and fruits are grown locally, fish are caught in the river, and pigs or deer are found in the forest – all essential sources of food. So, survivors don't need to risk their lives searching for food outside.

"I see." Eiji nodded in understanding.

He evaluates the survivors' decision to stay in the village as a wise choice.

If there's a safe place, why leave?

"Thank you for your hospitality."

Putting the dirty dishes on the ground, Eiji leaned back in his chair, gazing at the clear sky.

It's been a while since he had eaten rice. Usually, his meals consist of instant noodles or bread. While not causing any side effects considering his physical fitness, eating the same thing continuously gets boring.

"Let me wash it."

"Sure."

Eiji didn't reject her offer. Shizuka then began washing the dirty dishes by the river.

"The Culling Game, huh... It's still a long way off; the plot hasn't started yet. Maybe Mahito and other Special Grade Cursed Spirits haven't been born yet. Even if they are born, finding them is a problem. Besides, even if I manage to kill Mahito before he gets absorbed by Kenjaku, I don't trust that cunning man won't have another plan. In the end, the Culling Game will still be executed, just with a method different from Lin Fan's memories."

"Plot changes might not be good for me. So, it's better not to interfere too much, or it will cause drastic changes in the plot. If that happens, Lin Fan's memories won't be very useful."

The reason Eiji doesn't contact key characters like Yuji, Yuta, Hikari, Higuruma, and other important figures is that he doesn't want to cause the butterfly effect.

Though he's aware that his presence in the Jujutsu Kaisen world has brought about changes, it's better if he doesn't accidentally contact them too early.

He's afraid that if he gets close to them, Kenjaku or those monitoring his every move will take action against them.

Take Higuruma as example; he's currently just an ordinary lawyer, not a Jujutsu Sorcerer genius considered to have potential surpassing Gojo Satoru.

His life will start shining when the Culling Game begins, and he acquires his own Cursed Technique.

Eiji doesn't want anything bad to happen to Higuruma because he's in contact with him.

"To ensure the Culling Game goes smoothly, my and Satoru Nii-san's existence is the biggest obstacle for Kenjaku. Therefore, he has to get rid of both of us. If not, the Culling Game is meaningless. Moreover, our powers are too overpowerd."

Eiji fears that Kenjaku has a Cursed Object like the Prison Realm.

Unlike his cousin, who believes that his students will help him get out of the Prison Realm seal, Eiji doesn't believe he'll be that lucky.

What if he's sealed for life?

He doesn't want to rely on others for hope.

"Sigh... I have to be more careful in my actions. Kenjaku is a Jujutsu Sorcerer who has lived for over 1000 years. I don't know how many Cursed Objects and Cursed Weapons he owns. Although he probably doesn't have many Special Grade Cursed Objects, it doesn't mean he only has one."

Eiji sighed heavily at the impending future.

"Thinking about this gives me a headache. My advantage is Lin Fan's memory, which gives me knowledge about the future. Then again, I haven't fully reached my full potential. My Six Eyes haven't awakened yet."

"How strong will I be when my Six Eyes fully awaken? Could I surpass Satoru Nii-san? No, at least my strength will be on par with his."

Touching his eyelids, he looks forward to the awakening of his Six Eyes.

He has experienced a near-death encounter due to an ambush by Chi Lang's subordinates in the past, using the Inverted Spear of Heaven. It almost killed him. Nevertheless, the Six Eyes still haven't awakened.

"..."

Seeing that Shizuka has finished washing the dishes and is walking towards him, Eiji takes out coffee beans, a coffee grinder, a scale, a kettle, filter paper, and coffee-making equipment from the Storage Ring.

"This..."

Shizuka is surprised to see the items in front of her and asks, "Kamiki-kun can make coffee?"

"Um. Drinking coffee is one of my few hobbies. So, I took a course from a professional barista. What kind of coffee do you want?" Eiji offers.

"In that case... Coffee latte."

After hesitating for a moment, Shizuka bravely accepts his offer.

Even though she doesn't know Eiji well, she feels the other party is quite friendly if someone doesn't provoke him.

"Wait a moment."

Then, Eiji starts grinding coffee beans, filtering, and making coffee with the prepared equipment.

His actions are skillful and expert; Shizuka even feels like she's watching a bartender at a coffee shop making coffee.

"This is for you."

After finishing, Eiji pushes a cup of coffee latte towards Shizuka. As for himself, he prefers espresso.

"Thank you."

Taking the cup, Shizuka blows on the coffee, then starts sipping it.

"This is delicious. Your coffee is on par with the best café bartenders."

It's not just a compliment but genuine praise for the taste of the coffee.

"Um." Eiji nods, not looking pleased with being praised.

He studied diligently for three months under a renowned bartender. Furthermore, he considered water temperature, coffee bean quality, weighed the right amount, used the best equipment, and other details. No wonder his brewed coffee tastes delicious.

"You can ask. However, I may not answer."

Shizuka is momentarily stunned, her eyes shining as she has been waiting for this moment!

"As Kamiki-kun allows, I hope you can satisfy my curiosity. The first question, who are you really? An Esper, a Mage, or an Alien?"

Hearing the last option, Eiji's eyebrows raised, silently looking at her. However, from the perspective of the inhabitants of this world, he is a person from another world. It's not wrong to consider him an extraterrestrial being, and alien is indeed an appropriate choice to describe him.

Of course, he doesn't like being called an alien. So, Eiji prefers to refer to himself as—

"Otherworlder... You can consider me that way. Mikazuki Shizuka."