Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

"and many more--!"

Chu Hua reached out her hand, trying to pass through the whirlwind made of rubble and stones.

However, by the time her hand passed through, Lin's figure had completely disappeared.

"She... disappeared." Xiangzi floated behind Chuhua, staring blankly in the direction Lin had vanished. "Wait, what she said about the festival—"

Xiangzi suddenly raised his head.

The enormous moon was almost directly overhead.

The Lost Tale: The Spirit of Youth: Chapter 236 Azure Coast (Part 2)

A dark cloud drifted by, briefly obscuring the moon.

When the dark clouds drifted away.

It was nearly midnight, and the moon was almost directly in the center of the sky.

The bright moon hangs high, surrounded by a hazy white mist. The moonlight shines on the sea, creating layers of silvery shimmer.

Under the bright moonlight, everything became clearly visible.

Those "things" that emerged from the sea, resembling bubbles crowded together, naturally did not escape the eyes of the observers on the String.

"Captain, multiple ships spotted on the port side!"

The observer connected to the captain's channel and shouted.

"It's a ghost ship, and there are many small boats too—"

He soon had to change his mind; those densely packed things were not small boats at all.

Countless sea slugs pressed against each other, trampling on one another, and slowly emerged from beneath the sea, like a clump of wriggling maggots surrounding the dilapidated ghost ship, appearing at the horizon where the sea met the sky.

"—That's not a small boat, it's a swarm of familiars!"

Inside the control room, the cruise ship's radar beeped incessantly, and the area swept by the radar lines was filled with so many bright spots that it was impossible to distinguish their number.

"Should we leave, Captain?"

"That's what the helmsman asked."

"No, hold still." The captain shook his head, picked up the walkie-talkie, and said, "Artillery crews, prepare for the first wave of fire! Prepare to engage the enemy!"

On the bow deck, the two howitzers that had been deployed earlier were loaded.

This is the most lethal weapon on the list the captain gave to Xiangzi; the shrapnel's kill radius can reach the size of a standard football field.

When they were mercenaries, they fought for some small countries and could barely muster enough men to use two howitzers.

"Ready, Captain!"

"The enemy is approaching very quickly, and we have a limited number of cannon shots, so don't waste any shells." The captain walked to the port window, squinted, and watched the approaching horde of familiars.

"Ready—fire!"

boom----!

The howitzer roared loudly, propelling the shell, which was made of Xiangzi's magic, out of its muzzle. The shell shot into the sky, pierced through the clouds, and whirred as it rubbed against the air. After reaching its highest point, it fell back down, landing squarely in the midst of the familiars.

Boom——!

The shell exploded in mid-air, and the scattered shockwaves and fragments blasted the sea slugs within a 20-meter radius into indistinct pieces of flesh.

Although several sea slugs were instantly blown to pieces, the impact of the shells was not as great as expected.

The dark blue blood stained the sea surface, and the pained faces were mixed with the bits of flesh. Then, the sea slugs used their tentacles to wrap them up and stuff them into their bodies. Soon, several smaller sea slugs crawled out from under these slugs and rejoined the advancing ranks.

"Hahahahahaha——!"

Aden stood at the bow of the ghost ship, his face covered in tentacles that danced wildly.

"Useless, useless, useless, useless, useless!!! Everything you do is a futile struggle! Our strength is still growing, and our brothers will no longer be defeated by these weak weapons!"

"Who is the boss telling all this to...?"

"I'm already too immersed in the role, there's nothing I can do about it."

The complaints from his subordinates drifted into Aden's ears.

"Never mind that! This is the kind of thing I've always dreamed of experiencing!"

A furious, Aden hoisted them both up with two ropes and shouted loudly.

“Ugh—!”

"I'm going to die! Ah, I'm already dead."

The two talkative fellows were hung on the mast. Aden drew his military knife from his waist, his crab claws wrapped around the rope that was suspending his men, and the hand holding the knife pointed the tip forward.

Countless sea slugs swarmed around the ghost ship, forming new waves on the sea surface, and quickly passed through the firing range of the howitzers, advancing triumphantly all the way.

"Charge! Brothers! Let us pass through the smoke of gunfire, let us draw back the curtain of the birth sacrifice—!"

......

"Has it started yet?"

Mio poked her head out from the rubble and looked up at the sky.

The full moon was reflected in her eyes, almost filling her entire field of vision.

The pupils, covered by the moon's reflection, trembled a few times, spreading into a wave-like shape for a moment before returning to normal in the next instant.

"I didn't expect things to almost get out of control, but it doesn't matter anymore... All preparations are complete, now all we have to do is get her to..."

......

——Boom.

A muffled thunderous sound came from afar.

Chu Hua finally snapped out of her daze at Lin's disappearance, raised her head, and looked up at the sky from which the sound came.

"Xiao Xiang, is that... thunder over there?"

"No, it wasn't thunder." Xiangzi shook his head.

There were no large dark clouds in the sky, and the moonlight was shining freely on the ground; it was impossible for there to be thunder in such weather.

If it's not thunder, then it must be the sound of cannons.

"It's probably already begun."

Xiangzi turned his gaze in the direction from which the sound came. (异'笼翅捌师Pn7}屋溜)

It is a string reel number.

Has the battle already begun over there?

In other words, the octopus monster that looks like Davy Jones and the "birth sacrifice" that Lin mentioned have already begun?

Xiangzi rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.

Damn it, if they hadn't fought with Lin, they might already be in the sinkhole.

But regardless of the circumstances, if killing the sea witch could end everything, they would carry out their plan regardless of whether the festival began or not.

"Chuhua, it's time to go..."

Xiangzi patted Chuhua on the shoulder, but found that she seemed to be completely absorbed in her own little world of complicated emotions and did not react at all.

Xiangzi stared helplessly at the girl in front of him.

She was hanging behind Chu Hua, so Xiangzi couldn't see her expression, but her slightly trembling body told him what had happened.

The beast's claws sank deep into the ground, and a few drops of water fell into the soil.

"Chuhua."

Xiangzi patted Chuhua on the shoulder again, but what he got in return was a question full of confusion.

"Did Mom do all of this...?"

"what?"

"The faces inside those sea slugs are all living people, people who watched me grow up... and countless others who depend on the sea for their livelihood... How could Mother... how could she... turn them into this..."

A deep voice came from Chu Hua's throat, like the howl of a wild beast. She hung her head listlessly, her black claws crushing the stone bricks on the ground into pieces.

"That's not Mom, Mom would never do something so cruel..." I told myself that... and I almost succeeded...

"But why did she just now...?"

His broken claws gripped his hair, leaving a gash on his head, and two lines of blood, like tears, slid down from the corners of his eyes.

If she had truly fallen into witchhood, if she had completely lost her humanity, how could her mother...?

Why would you look like that?

She had clearly smelled her mother's scent just now, a scent completely different from the fishy smell that filled her nostrils, a fragrance of plants. Chu Hua was certain that in that brief moment, she had seen her mother from her memories.

She still remembers that the last thing her mother did before leaving was to hug her, and then, with the same expression, cup her cheeks and gently kiss her forehead.

That gentle face seems so close, yet I don't know if it's because of the tears, or because the memory has long since blurred, becoming indistinct. Only the sensation on my forehead feels so real...

No, that wasn't a memory, it felt more like...

Someone actually kissed his forehead.

Chu Hua blinked, squeezing out the blood and tears that had flowed into her eyes.

The scenery in front of me became clear.

"Mom...Xiao Xiang?"

Chu Hua murmured.

A semi-transparent Xiangzi floated in front of her, cupping her face in his hands. Xiangzi's large face occupied most of Chu Hua's vision.

Xiangzi frowned, a look of reluctance on his face.

"Chuhua...we really don't have time."

Chu Hua needs comfort now, but time and circumstances don't allow Xiangzi to slowly become Chu Hua's confidante. Even if she feels bad about it, she can only help Chu Hua put her mind at ease for now.

"Ah..." Chu Hua suddenly realized, "Could it be that I just...?"

Have I been controlled by my emotions again?

“Yes,” Xiangzi said. “That’s why I told you that the half-witch state is dangerous, and you can be controlled by the emotions that surge at any time.”

Chu Hua may not realize how unstable her state is, but Xiangzi is different; she is constantly being tainted by the Soul Gem and the emotions and fragments of memories contained within it.

In other words, she was experiencing the same emotions as Chu Hua every moment.

Chu Hua's magic, filth, and memories gradually merged with Xiangzi's during this process.

This is something only Xiangzi himself knows.

"Then... Xiao Xiang, what should I do?" Chu Hua looked at her in confusion.

Chu Hua seemed to have suddenly lost her way.

She suddenly regretted insisting that Xiangzi take her along, and didn't know what she should do. Or rather, she didn't know what she was capable of doing. After all, in her current state, it seemed like she couldn't handle anything and was just a burden to Xiangzi, who was constantly dependent on her.

Don't think like that.

Xiangzi seemed to be able to read minds—oh, she read Chuhua's mind—and whispered in her ear.

"You are now an indispensable force."

"Really."

"of course it's true."

Xiangzi nodded, floated back behind Chuhua, wrapped his arms around her neck, and hung on her back like an ornament.

Her long blue hair seemed to have transformed into Chu Hua's hair, cascading down like a waterfall with a slight curl at the ends.

"That fight was very stylish and cool."