I adopted a child demon from the Gap, and I'm a special agent for the Bureau of Supernatural Ab

At the bottom of the steps leading to the shrine, Li Cheng stood on the dirt road, looking at the girl in front of him.

Golden, shoulder-length short hair, deep blue eyes, a white shawl, and a sky-blue dress tied with a red ribbon at the waist. It took Li Cheng some time to find the person who matched this description from his memory.

While he was pondering how to deal with the girl who had suddenly appeared in front of him so aggressively, she calmly sized him up a few times before turning her gaze to Marisa, who was watching the scene unfold.

"Marisa, what are you doing here?"

Although the fairy's account made it seem like Marisa was about to encounter something terrible, she was actually perfectly fine there, and the naked man the fairy was talking about was also dressed perfectly. Out of caution, she didn't choose to start a fight immediately, but instead tried to understand the situation first.

"I'm the guide."

da★ze～”

Marisa raised her hand and said in a serious tone.

"When I first arrived here, I happened to meet Marisa. Because I wanted to return to the outside world, she is now leading me towards the Hakurei Shrine."

Li Cheng echoed this.

Although he really wanted to say that Marisa hadn't acted like a guide at all along the way, failing to introduce Li Cheng to the local customs and culture of Gensokyo, and instead asking him all sorts of questions about the outside world, most of which were difficult for Li Cheng to answer. For one thing, how was he supposed to answer questions like whether airplanes are viviparous or oviparous?!

Meanwhile, seeing the natural expressions on both of their faces, Alice couldn't help but wonder if the fairies had lied to her, or if she had been misled by only partial information. But this alone wasn't enough to determine the details. Among the outsiders who had recently entered this area were some quite powerful individuals, and it was possible that Marisa's current state was influenced by them and that she wasn't entirely in a conscious state.

Thinking this, she coughed and asked Marisa, "Marisa, when I was in the forest, the fairies told me that you had a fight with an outsider. Is this the person they were referring to?"

"Yeah, yeah, that uncle is super brave! I fired a magic cannon at him, and he took it with his body without even blinking."

No, no, no, actually the brightness of that magic cannon was almost blinding, I actually blocked it with my eyes closed.

Standing to the side, Li Cheng silently complained in his heart.

"So, Marisa lost?"

Judging from the traces in the forest, the battle was not large-scale and was probably a playful fight. But even so, the fact that this man could withstand Marisa's attacks head-on suggests that he is likely a martial artist from the outside world, and probably a very strong one at that.

For magic-savvy individuals like her and Marisa, being approached by a martial artist would put them at a significant disadvantage. This suggests that the person likely used their physical strength to withstand the attack and then forced Marisa to surrender. However, the fairy also mentioned that Marisa was carried away by a naked man.

"Yeah, I lost, so Marisa is now the guide da★ze. By the way, the uncle is a really nice person. He didn't blame me at all even though my clothes were ruined."

Marisa ruined my clothes?

"It's just because I didn't put anything valuable in my clothes. If I had my phone or wallet inside and you smashed it, even I would be upset."

Li Cheng sighed and said from the side.

Speaking of which, this man's style of dress is indeed closer to the local customs. Does that mean that Marisa's magical cannon ripped his clothes and then took him to find someone to change them into new ones?

"Was it Marisa who ruined his clothes?"

Alice moved a little closer and asked Marisa.

"Haha, it was a small mistake, but the uncle's physique is really amazing. He has muscles like those in fitness magazines, and they feel really good to poke."

Marisa spoke as if there was nothing wrong with it, but Alice's expression became subtle upon hearing this.

What is this? Touching a man's chest, does that make Marisa excited? Are you kidding me? This is so weird.

"And regardless of his impressive physique, the uncle's... cough cough..."

While Alice was still struggling with Marisa's reaction, Marisa, who was talking to herself, seemed to have thought of something. Her voice suddenly stopped, and a blush appeared on her face.

"Marisa?"

Alice keenly sensed the unnaturalness in the other person's pause.

"Ah, haha, it's nothing, it's nothing," Marisa chuckled awkwardly, her eyes involuntarily glancing to the side. "Speaking of which, why did Alice suddenly come here? Is there something she wants to see me about?"

It feels very suspicious.

Alice noticed that when Marisa paused unnaturally, her eyes secretly glanced at Li Cheng, who was silent beside her. Something must have happened, something so serious that even the usually carefree Marisa wouldn't say a word. It might be something really bad.

Thinking this, her gaze toward Li Cheng turned hostile.

Why did this girl suddenly glare at me? I didn't do anything to offend her, did I?

Li Cheng was somewhat puzzled by the obviously hostile expression on the short blonde girl's face, but as the two girls' conversation became more natural and harmonious, he gradually became a little impatient.

You haven't gone back for so long. Has Zi had a proper breakfast?

With this concern in mind, Li Cheng coughed twice, drawing the two girls' attention to himself.

“We’ve already arrived here, and I can go up by myself without any problem. Marisa, why don’t we stop here? I’m leaving soon anyway, so I don’t need a guide.”

With that, Li Cheng turned and walked towards the top of the shrine, but then he heard a faint sound of wind, and Marisa had already followed him on her broomstick.

“Even if I’m not your guide, I’m still going to the shrine,” Marisa said, hovering in mid-air on her broomstick. “I usually come to visit Reimu every few days, and you still have so many questions to answer, so how can I just leave like this?”

So it wasn't that easy to slip away after all?

Li Cheng pretended not to hear her bizarre questions, but soon he noticed that Alice, who looked quiet and gentle, was also going upstairs on the other side.

"I just happened to be at the shrine on some business."

Facing Li Cheng's gaze, Alice subtly shifted a little distance and said calmly.

We can't be sure how dangerous this outsider is right now. Marisa seems so carefree and doesn't seem to have any sense of danger at all. I guess I'll have to stay by her side and keep an eye on her.

Alice, who has already mentally labeled Li Cheng as a potential criminal, is currently on high alert.

Li Cheng, who knew nothing about this, only felt that the girl's expression was quite strange and unnatural.

Forget it, I'll ignore her. I'm leaving this place soon anyway, and she's just a passerby I met by chance. There's no need to care.

With that in mind, Li Cheng simply started walking towards the sloping mountain path. Soon, he passed the shrine's torii gate and arrived in front of the shrine.

Then he saw a girl standing in the very center of the shrine, dressed in a red and white shrine maiden outfit, whose appearance was almost identical to that of the calamity.

Is she Reimu Hakurei?

Li Cheng calmly observed her and found that she looked to be only fifteen or sixteen years old, just like Marisa, still a child who hadn't grown up. However, unlike the lively Marisa, this girl seemed extremely indifferent, simply holding a slightly forked and cracked old broom, sweeping the fallen leaves in the shrine with a blank expression.

"Reimu, I've come to play with you!"

Marisa had already gotten off the broom and jumped in two or three steps to the black-haired girl.

Alice said "Excuse me" and entered the shrine. As she passed by Li Cheng, she made a subtle gesture as if she was about to be attacked, which puzzled Li Cheng.

Meanwhile, Marisa had already told Reimu Hakurei about Li Cheng, and the girl's gaze had turned to her.

"Hello, my name is Li Cheng."

Li Cheng greeted them calmly.

“Li…Cheng?” Reimu Hakurei repeated Li Cheng’s name with some unease, her expression still indifferent. She put down her broom and looked Li Cheng up and down again. “Is it you?”

"Huh? What about me?"

"This morning, the barrier malfunctioned, and I sensed demonic power within it."

Reimu Hakurei spoke in a cold voice as she slowly flew into the air.

"It's your demonic power."

Hey?

Li Cheng was stunned.

"Marisa says you're from the outside world, but you're actually a youkai, no, you should be called a half-youkai."

The shrine maiden's dark pupils reflected Li Cheng's stunned expression.

"It's normal that Marisa, that idiot, won't recognize me for a while, but that won't fool me. She's the one causing trouble in the Great Barrier."

As she spoke, Reimu Hakurei brandished her long gohei, and a tremendous amount of spiritual power emanated from her body.

"I was originally planning to wait until Yukari Yakumo came to urge me before I set off to find you, but since you dared to come directly to my door, then I won't stand on ceremony. Now, it's time to deal with you!"

The next moment, countless light projectiles flew towards Li Cheng. Even now, Li Cheng's expression remained one of utter bewilderment.

…………

Thank you to readers Zhuoyue de Wuli, Ye Luofengfei, Xue Ding'e de Ling, Zui Momo Wang EX, Feng Yong Sui You Fei, and Mou Lei 9 for their recommendation votes.

And thank you to Hidden Book Mansion for the razor blades. Without razor blades and monthly tickets today, I can only thank myself. I feel inexplicably sad...

Section 295, Chapter 5: How Can One Not Slack Off in Life?

Before today, before this girl named Reimu Hakurei revealed it, Li Cheng had never paid attention to his identity.

He knew perfectly well that after that near-death battle in the rainy night when he was trying to save Zi Shi, he was no longer a purely human being.

In order to save him from certain death, Zi shared her own flesh and blood with him, and from that moment on, he became a half-human, half-demon being.

However, even so, without using his demonic power, he was indistinguishable from a normal person. Even when he did use his demonic power, the only change was in the color of his pupils. He wouldn't grow animal ears or a tail, let alone any other strange changes. Therefore, Li Cheng didn't really have any sense that his race had changed.

After all, his life was not affected in any way, and it is obviously unrealistic to expect him to realize the changes in himself while living a completely unaffected life.

However, that happened before today.

The dazzling light and shadows obscured Li Cheng's vision, making it difficult for him to discern his surroundings. Then, a gust of wind approached from the side, and amidst a sudden burst of spiritual energy, Li Cheng felt his entire body become numb.

Immediately afterwards, several dense beams of light bloomed around Li Cheng. Accompanied by the black-haired girl's cold cry of "Eight Directions Ghost Binding Array," a massive force instantly bound Li Cheng tightly to the spot, preventing him from even moving a finger.

"Honestly, I was thinking that this time I might have to spend a lot of time looking for the culprit, but you actually dared to come to my door yourself," the girl in the red and white shrine maiden's dress flew to the side of Li Cheng, who was firmly immobilized, with an impatient expression on her face. "Alright, now that I've caught you, hurry up and end the anomaly. The Great Barrier is not something you can joke around with."

"...Even if you say that, I am not the mastermind behind the murder at all; I am the victim."

Confined within the formation, Li Cheng tried his best to move his mouth and defend himself. This damned formation even made it difficult for him to move his vocal cords. He was clearly a victim caught up in the incident, so why was he being hit by Marisa's magic cannon and suppressed by the shrine maiden's sealing formation?

"what?"

Clearly, the priestess's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

"You mean you didn't start this incident? Don't be ridiculous. Your demonic power was crystal clear above the great barrier, as clear as a burp from someone who just finished eating hotpot!"

"Um, after I eat hot pot, I always drink some magic potion to cleanse my stomach. Even if I burp, there won't be any smell!"

da★ze.

Marisa, who was watching from the sidelines, suddenly raised her hand and said something very seriously.

"Is there such a magic potion? I always chew a couple of pieces of gum whenever I eat hot pot. By the way, I prefer the mint flavor."

Li Cheng, who was trapped in the formation, replied softly.