Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

Page 32

"This is...where we first came in? Why are we here?"

"Simply put, we've rolled back," Xiangzi said.

"A rollback? Xiangzi, do you trade stocks?"

"It's not a stock market correction, it's a game correction, you could call it a save/load."

A question mark appeared above the golden retriever's head.

"Chuhua, do you usually play games?" Xiangzi asked.

Chu Hua shook her head.

"Too busy."

"..."

Xiangzi doesn't actually play games, but when she was working as a customer service representative, the most frequent calls she received were complaints about poor internet connection and how she was playing games. In order to answer customer complaints correctly, she privately took a course on gaming terminology so that she wouldn't be unable to understand what customers were complaining about.

"When playing games, there is often a save file to record the player's game progress. If the player's character dies during the game, or quits without saving, the next time they start, they will be at the previous save file position. This design is called 'rollback'."

"Oh... So Xiangzi, you mean we..." Chu Hua glanced around anxiously again.

The empty yet crowded square made Chu Hua feel physically uncomfortable, and her subconscious told her that it was dangerous and she should leave immediately.

But Xiangzi didn't leave, so she couldn't leave.

Chu Hua suppressed her strange discomfort and said:

"...Have we returned to where we started?"

"Ah."

"Does Xiangzi know what happened...?"

"The rollback has always happened, because every time we leave the barrier and come back in, it rolls back, but... we were just inside the barrier."

Xiangzi stared blankly at the clock.

“We killed Dolores, and then do you remember?”

"I remember, but after that... I don't remember anything." Chu Hua shook her head.

"I don't remember either." Xiangzi squatted down on the spot, covering his head. "I think I saw a white light at the end."

"I saw it too."

"It seems it wasn't my imagination." Xiangzi stood up and looked around.

"Where is Cupid? Have you seen him?"

"nor."

"It's probably hiding somewhere again. Let's ignore it."

"Speaking of which, why did Xiangzi bring Qiu Bi along?" Chu Hua asked疑惑地, "Your relationship doesn't seem to be on good terms at all."

“I need it, but not now,” Xiangzi said.

"Need Kewpie?"

"Ah."

Xiangzi responded and turned to walk towards the station.

"Where is Xiangzi going?" Chu Hua followed about two steps behind her.

"I need to go back and take a look," Xiangzi said. "I need to know what happened."

She looked back at the "cocoon" one last time.

The enormous white shadow was reflected in Xiangzi's golden eyes.

However, it is no longer a "cocoon".

The building reflected in Xiangzi's eyes was at least twice the height of a "soldier," and the top floor was not spherical, but rather shaped like a crown.

But it stands in the place where the "soldier" should have been.

The buildings, originally shaped like chess pieces, were replaced with other chess pieces. The surrounding streets were transformed into a plaza, where countless white pawns were neatly arranged in several square formations, each led by its own bishop, knight, and rook.

A white figure stood on a high platform placed at the main entrance of the building.

[From this moment forward, the entire city is on high alert. Find the assassin who is plotting to kill the king.]

The figure on the high platform issued commands to all the Stormtroopers in witch script.

She looked exactly like Chu Hua, except that her hair and skin were plaster white, her eyes were bright gold, she wore gorgeous women's armor, held a long sword and a round shield, wore a crimson cotton cloak, and wore a white crown.

In chess, once a pawn reaches the opponent's back rank, it can be promoted to a higher-ranking piece. This rule is called promotion.

It can transform into a horse, a bishop, a rook, and of course, it can also become the highest-ranking piece besides the king.

"The White Queen" - Dolores.

=========

Before the Stormtroopers set off on patrol, they boarded the tram that led back to the exit.

Xiangzi and Chuhua both became very silent.

Xiangzi kept playing with his fingers, tapping them on the empty spaces of the bench like he was playing the piano.

Things are developing in a completely unpredictable direction. The two-week deadline hangs like the Sword of Damocles over our heads, and now we're facing situations we've never encountered before.

She started to become anxious.

Whether it was the so-called bipolar disorder that made her anxious or some other reason, Xiangzi temporarily blamed everything on the bipolar disorder, took out a small medicine bottle from her pocket, and took another pill.

Chu Hua watched her open the medicine bottle and noticed that Xiangzi had been taking medicine much more often lately.

"Xiangzi, what have you done today—"

"Chuhua, your neck," Xiangzi interrupted Chuhua.

"what?"

"You have a pattern on your neck."

Chu Hua touched the back of her neck and immediately felt a slight stinging pain, the source of which was where Xiangzi was pointing.

She had felt that stinging pain before, when she became a magical girl. The day she became a magical girl wasn't a pleasant memory; she inexplicably fell into a witch's barrier, was attacked by a witch, and marked.

After Chu Hua pulled aside her collar, Xiangzi could also see the pattern on the back of Chu Hua's neck. It was a black, tattoo-like pattern, but it had a strange, unreal feel to it, as if it wasn't on the same layer as her skin.

"The Witch's Kiss?"

When did it appear?

"Shoko..."

Chu Hua looked at Xiangzi, as if asking, "What should I do?"

Xiangzi silently stood up, turned around and kicked the tram door hard.

The tram doors remained completely still.

But her feet hurt a lot.

Xiangzi squatted silently on the ground, his heart pounding wildly beyond normal limits, and cold sweat beading on his forehead.

Good things are rarely seen, but bad things always seem to pile up and come one after another.

Really...

Awful.

The Tale of Nirvana: Keeping the True Self: Chapter 41 Jiuling k Siliuqi's Dad Ba Qun Makes Another Wish

It's already 11 PM in the real world.

Xiangzi and Chuhua sat at opposite ends of a park bench, separated by a deserted area.

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect it to turn out like this," Xiangzi said softly, his head bowed.

"..." Chu Hua raised her hand and touched the witch's kiss on the back of her neck. "It's not Xiangzi's fault. No one can do anything about this kind of thing."

"It's my fault. I brought you here too hastily."

Xiangzi covered his face, his eyes peeking out from between his fingers like a dried-up pond.

She never expected things to turn out this way. "Soldier" was promoted to "Empress", and Chu Hua was also infected with the witch's kiss. To make matters worse, they discovered that as long as one familiar died, the barrier's time would be reset within a few minutes, rendering all their previous efforts useless, and they would have to start all over again.

We don't yet know what the effect of the Witch's Kiss will be on Hatsuka, but it doesn't seem like it could be a good thing.

I will take full responsibility for this operation.

"Are you still planning to continue?" Chu Hua asked in a low voice, her voice a little hoarse.

"I'll find a way to remove the witch's kiss from you," Xiangzi replied vaguely.

"Okay, let's go back and rest for today." Chu Hua took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "We'll come together another day."

“No, from now on there will only be me,” Xiangzi said again.

"Xiao Xiang?"

"I'm sorry about what happened today. I'll take responsibility for the risks afterward." Xiangzi looked down at the hunting rifle lying flat on his lap. "You have the Witch's Kiss on you, and we don't know what kind of effects it will have, but it's best not to go near the barrier again."

"Wait, Xiao Xiang, do you mean you're planning to go alone? All by yourself?"

"Ah."

"How is that possible? You're just an ordinary person right now. What makes you think you can face a witch whose strength is completely unknown?"

"There will be a way," Xiangzi said calmly.

"We can work together to find a solution."

“You’ve already helped me so much, Chuhua.” Xiangzi shook his head. “So much that I’m almost unable to pay you back.”

"Did you think our relationship was based on favors?!" Chu Hua suddenly turned around, glaring at Xiangzi. "Do you think I helped you so you could repay me someday?!"

brush--

A gust of wind blew through the pine trees, creating a rustling sound among the leaves.

Even though winter is long gone, the night wind is still bone-chillingly cold.

Xiangzi sneezed.

"I owe you too much... I can't trouble you any more."

She simply repeated what she had just said.

“I don’t care whether you owe me or not, Xiao Xiang,” Chu Hua said. “What I care about is you.”

"..." Xiangzi didn't speak, keeping his head down the whole time.

"What kind of person do you take me for, Xiao Xiang?"

“A friend I haven’t seen in a long time,” Xiangzi said, his head down, pausing between words. “I… am very scared… that someone is being so kind to me.”

"why?"

"Because I don't deserve anyone being good to me."

My mood is becoming increasingly depressed.

Like a glass of overflowing water, negative emotions keep pouring out.

Xiangzi pulled his legs up and hugged them with both hands.

"It's been many years since we last met. You've become even more beautiful, and your singing has improved. You've achieved your childhood dream, and a bright and promising future awaits you."

"Even as a magical girl, you are among the strongest and most carefree. You only need to replenish your Sorrow Seeds regularly to live on for a very long time. You don't need to worry about lifespan or the passing of youth."

"Chuhua, you still have a very long way to go. I am just a passerby, a passerby who happened to ride a train with you during your childhood. I am not worth your so much effort."

...曰=易叁私灵棋貳亻尔私吧思....

After Xiangzi finished venting his pent-up frustrations, another emotion surged up.

No, why should I talk to you like a loser?

Who is the loser in this game?