Gensokyo Population Revitalization Plan

She spoke very softly, but Reimu still heard her. Not wanting to spend too much time on Cirno, Reimu could only gesture for her to shut up.

With a portable air conditioner, the two were much more efficient at traveling than before, but they still only dared to travel on foot.

Because Cirno would gradually melt into a puddle of snow under the influence of the high temperature once she flew a certain distance, in order to ensure that her portable air conditioner could be used until the incident ended, the two of them could only walk to the sunflower field.

As the place that needs sunlight the most, Reimu suspects that Yuuka Kazami is very likely the source of this incident.

However, when the two women arrived at the sunflower field, they were surprised to find that many sunflowers in the once golden field were now facing away from the sun, an unusual sight that amazed them.

"Reimu, Marisa... and little one, what are you doing here?"

Yuuka Kazami walked out of the glass greenhouse, holding a floral umbrella. There wasn't a speck of sweat on her face, as if the sweltering heat in the air didn't exist.

Marisa politely inquired, "Yuuka, do you know why this summer is so hot?"

"One] V』II61? Two Er Jiu Er He~ You came all this way just to ask me this question..." Her scarlet eyes swept over them with interest, and the aura emanating from her body turned sinister: "You don't think I'm the source of the mutation, do you?"

Reimu wasn't afraid of her at all. With her hands on her hips, she confidently stated her guess: "It's because there are sunflowers all over here. It's hard not to be suspicious, okay? Besides, the sunflowers over there are facing the wrong direction."

"Although sunflowers love sunlight, just like watering, too much water can kill the entire plant. Those children were just uncomfortable from the sun, so they deliberately turned their backs to it."

"What should we do, Reimu? I feel like what she said makes some sense," Marisa whispered in Reimu's ear.

"Are you my teammate or her teammate? Instead of helping to think about the problem at a time like this, you're praising the other person."

Kazami Yuuka didn't want to waste time with them. Her mind was now focused on the alien flowers in the greenhouse, so she stated directly, "I can tell you both very clearly that this incident has nothing to do with me. If there's nothing else, please leave."

"Reimu, what do you think?"

“Let’s go. Yuuka isn’t like Yakumo Yukari. She wouldn’t stoop to lying like that. If she says it’s not true, then it has absolutely nothing to do with her.”

Hearing Reimu's assessment, Kazami Yuuka raised her eyebrows smugly, and considering how sensible Reimu was, she added, "The heat seems to be coming from underground."

"Underground?"

The two first eChu San'er Yueyi was taken aback. The image of a pair of sisters who had just won the Dream Cup flashed through her mind. They looked at each other and said in unison, "Earth Spirit Palace!"

They immediately rushed to the underground, where they encountered Lingwu Lukong and Flame Cat Rin blocking their way.

"Our master ordered us to stop that wretched witch and that foolish thief, so you'd better just lie here obediently!"

"That's right, meow~"

However, Reimu, who was extremely anxious, had no time for their antics. Grabbing the gohei, she immediately unleashed her signature move: "Dream..."

"Haha, it really is a dream seal! We had already prepared a countermeasure!!"

"Born that way!!"

"what?"

"Something's not right, meow!!"

After a violent earthquake, Reimu brushed the dust off her hands and strode quickly toward the unguarded gates of the Earth Spirit Palace with a dark expression.

Reiuji Sora and Flame Cat Rin, their heads covered in swollen bumps, were bound together with talismans, their eyes turned into mosquito coils, and they were saying things like, "I'm sorry... I couldn't satisfy Reimu."

"Da da da—"

Black ankle boots clattered loudly and rapidly on the hard marble floor.

Reimu quickly circled the Earth Spirit Palace, but did not see the Komeiji sisters, which made her ominous premonition grow stronger.

"Could this be a diversionary tactic, deliberately using the anomaly to lure me away while actually targeting Mu Huai?"

“Reimu, I just checked and found that the central temperature control center is not storing the heat from Hell, but instead transmitting it to the ground, which is why this summer is so hot.”

"You actually understood the things in that strange room?"

In that instant, Marisa became the bait in Reimu's scheme to lure the tiger away from the mountain, and she was the tiger that was lured out.

"No, Komeiji Satoru wrote the reasons in this letter, which is right next to the control panel. Didn't you see it?"

"I didn't see it. What did the letter say?"

"They said that to use the console, you have to get the key from her."

Reimu closed her eyes and pondered for a moment, then said to Marisa with a determined look in her eyes, "Let's go back to the Hakurei Shrine right now!"

"Huh?" She pointed to the door of the central temperature control center, puzzled. "Aren't they going to ignore the source of the mutation?"

“I suspect… no, the Komeiji sisters must have gone to the shrine to find Muhuai. If we’re fast enough, we might be able to stop them and get the key along the way.”

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

At this moment, Reimu didn't care that the high temperature would melt Cirno, and directly pulled Marisa out of the ground to rush back to the Hakurei Shrine as fast as possible.

Unfortunately, she was too late. Mu Huai was no longer in the shrine; only a letter lay quietly on her bedding.

Marisa stepped forward, opened the envelope, and slowly read the contents aloud: "A challenge, to the shrine maiden of the Hakurei Shrine..."

Volume 4, "Anything Can Happen in Gensokyo": Chapter 34 Reimu, You Were Still Too Late

"You were still a step too late, Reimu Kujo. I've been waiting for this moment of your departure from the shrine for a long time."

"Your greatest weakness lies in resolving the Gensokyo incident, which is why I was able to easily take away your most important fiancé."

As she read this, Marisa noticed that Reimu's face was unusually pale, her dark eyes flashing with a terrifying light, and the door frame was almost crushed by her right hand, making a series of cracking sounds.

"Marisa, keep reading."

"Ah...are you sure you won't take it out on me after hearing this?"

"No, read it quickly!" The words were almost squeezed out from between her clenched teeth.

"Ahem... I'll continue reading then."

“I know you’re very resentful right now. If you want Mu Huai back in your life, then come find me. Go to the place where everything originated and look for clues to get to him.”

"If you can't even find the most basic clues, then it just means you're not worthy of being by his side. Compared to a heartless witch like you who treats him like an ATM, I, who see him as someone I can entrust my life to, am more suitable for the position of fiancée."

(Wow... Komeiji Satoru's face is basically zoomed in on like this...)

Marisa finished her internal monologue, and a crisp sound immediately reached her ears.

"Oh!"

The not-so-sturdy door frame, under Reimu's relentless force, finally couldn't withstand the onslaught and shattered in a horrific manner, splintering wood everywhere.

"Gudu!"

Marisa, seeing Reimu's demonic expression, swallowed nervously. "Um... it's getting late. I'll go back and collect my magic broom. See you tomorrow."

"It's still daytime, and didn't you say you were going to resolve the anomaly in the first place? Why are you trying to run away now?"

"Take your hand off my shoulder, your expression is terrifying! Hey! Don't come near me!!!"

"Help me solve the riddle in the letter, and I'll let you go."

"A riddle?"

Marisa was initially confused about the riddle Reimu was talking about, until Reimu pointed to the words "the origin of everything" and she finally understood.

"Oh, this... Let me think... Maybe it's the place where Brother Mu Huai stayed when he first arrived in Gensokyo?"

"When he first arrived?" Reimu frowned, her brows furrowing into a deep frown. "How could I possibly know such a thing?"

If Yakumo Yukari hadn't suddenly held a banquet and asked Mu Huai to greet other youkai there, given her personality of not bothering with them unless she caused trouble, it would have been almost impossible for her to have met him under any other circumstances.

It was only after realizing he was a goldmine that Reimu began to pay attention to Mu Huai's every move. Her motives didn't sound very good, but she did fulfill her duty.

And without Mu Huai's knowledge, he gave a stern warning to the monsters who wanted to cause trouble in Pelican Town, otherwise Pelican Town would never have been so peaceful in the beginning.

Just when she was at her wit's end, Marisa, who had subscribed to every issue of [Wenwen News Express] without fail, raised her hand and said, "Wait, I think I know some reliable information!"

"tell me the story."

"Brother Mu Huai's arrival in Gensokyo is related to Yakumo Yukari and Kaguya. Considering that no one knows where Yakumo Mansion is, it is obviously not appropriate to use it as the answer. So it can only be the Bamboo Forest of the Lost or the Eientei inside!"

"Hmm... your analysis does make some sense." Reimu released her right hand from Marisa's shoulder and waved it at her disdainfully: "Let's go, let's go, I don't need you to come with me."

"goodbye!"

Marisa grimaced and rubbed her shoulder as she left. Although she didn't roll up her short sleeves to check, she was certain that the spot where Reimu's hand had grabbed her was now a bluish-purple!

(The fact that Mu Huai and I are having an affair must not be revealed to Reimu, at least not now!)

After watching her leave, Reimu withdrew her suspicious gaze and untied the rope around her waist. Cirno had already vaporized and disappeared on her way back to the shrine, so she no longer needed to wear the rope.

Before the mystery was solved, she suspected that Marisa had deliberately colluded with the Palace of the Underworld to lure her away as bait.

But upon closer reflection, it becomes clear that agreeing to be a mole would bring her no benefit whatsoever, and she didn't engage in any suggestive actions or words during their operation.

That's why Reimu believes that Marisa wasn't the mole, but simply a mind-reading pink-haired old loli from the Earth Spirit Palace who outsmarted her.

"Tsk, no wonder it's a mind-reading monster. Its ability to manipulate people is truly terrifying."

With a disgruntled pout, Reimu didn't linger at the Q*UNtum (1) Seven Yin IIdl Pao Si Ba Shrine and rushed to Eientei to find Kaguya.

Unexpectedly, Reimu didn't encounter any "roadblock bosses" like in the Underworld. She arrived at Kaguya's door without any hindrance, knocked twice, and immediately grabbed the doorknob and pulled it open without waiting for a response.

"Hey, do you have any clues about Mu Huai?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

At this moment, Kaguya had panda-like dark circles under her eyes, and her face was so pale that she looked like she would suddenly die on the spot at any moment.

Sunlight streaming into the dimly lit room from outside made her look like a vampire. She sat in a chair, screaming and spinning around, clutching her eyes: "Close the door! My eyes are going to be blinded!!"

"Have the Komeiji sisters ever been here?"

"I don't remember. When are you referring to? I've been playing Gensokyo Rumble for about a week."

(Kaguya doesn't seem to be lying, could it be that Marisa guessed wrong?)

"Oh... but there's a letter in my room that appeared out of nowhere. Maybe it was left for you on purpose?"

"If it can even affect you, it must be Komeiji Koishi's ability!"

Reimu took the letter from Kaguya and skimmed through it. After omitting Komeiji Satoru's flowery and rambling words, she extracted a simple hint.

"A lake shrouded in mist... Isn't this the Lake of Mist? Why are we going there again?"

Reimu casually complained, not giving it much thought, and grabbed a chilled drink from the refrigerator in her room as a supplement before hurrying towards the Misty Lake.

She thought there would be something like an envelope near the Lake of Mist, but she never expected that Cirno would run up to her and act as a mouthpiece.

"Congratulations on solving two riddles. There are four left for you to reach my location. Continue dancing, shrine maiden of Hakurei Shrine."

"The next place is a Western-style cottage full of magic and mushrooms."

Upon hearing the riddle, Reimu instantly recalled the name of a certain mage: "Marisa! I didn't expect you to actually have a problem!!"

"Haha, you idiot Reimu, you actually got tricked by that idiot Marisa! You really are an idiot too! Idiot, idiot!!"

"Oh." She suddenly put on a stern face and slowly tied Cirno up with rope, turning her into the portable cooling accessory she had been using before. She snorted coldly, "If I can't teach the Komeiji sisters a lesson, I can certainly teach you one!"

Volume 4, "Anything Can Happen in Gensokyo": Chapter 35 - Flags Planted Before the Battle

"Open the door! Urban management officers are checking the water meter!"

Marisa's door was banged on loudly, and soon Reimu heard hurried footsteps coming from inside. Then the door opened a crack, and she poked half her head out with her wet blonde hair.

"Reimu!? What are you doing at my house?"

What are you feeling guilty about?

"I...I'm not guilty!"

Reimu picked up Cirno, who was at the end of the rope, and waved her in front of Marisa: "She said the address of the next puzzle is at your house."

"What?! Wait a minute, I'll put on some clothes and then I'll let you in!"

"Okay, hurry up."

As the door closed again, a snow-white letter slowly floated from above into Reimu's palm. Without a second thought, she immediately opened it to check its contents.

"A monster who loves to drink...it must be a watermelon, right? These addresses have absolutely no connection. What is its purpose in making me run around like this?"

Only then did Reimu begin to ponder Komeiji Satoru's intention in playing hide-and-seek with her.

"Delaying time?"

"That's unlikely. Mu Huai has already been taken away by her, so there's no need for her to do anything extra."

"Tsk... There's too little information; there's no way to analyze it."

Cirno, who was being used as a cooling tool, saw Reimu encountering difficulties and laughed gleefully: "Idiot Reimu, you're thinking too much and your brain isn't working properly."