Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

Xiangzi could even find one or two movies from the Blu-ray discs in his house that were almost identical to the stories told by Tobacco.

Both Tron and its sequel, Tron: Legacy, tell a fantastical adventure story of someone accidentally entering the electronic world.

Having stumbled into the electronic world, if we're being honest, the witch in "Once Upon a Time" does indeed exist by clinging to the internet, and the world they're in now can also be called an "electronic world." Moreover, through "Tron: Survival of the Fittest" and the witch's name, Xiangzi also thought of another work that tells the same story of "stumbling into another world."

That's right, the well-known "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" is also the prototype for the Red Queen in the game "Once Upon a Time".

They now know that the Red Queen is a puppet, and the real boss behind the empire is someone else, namely the frequently appearing "Regent".

Could all of this be a coincidence?

Or perhaps, this regent, who is essentially the big boss, has some connection to the witch herself.

Xiangzi pursed his lips and fell into deep thought.

Invading reality... Invading reality...

If we shift our perspective and step away from fairy tales and movies, looking at it from the perspective of the witch in the fairy tale town, what does the invasion of reality represent?

Xiangzi thought of Nirvana, and also of the waterfall.

Both flower witches that had completed their incubation eventually left the barrier and appeared in the real world. And Fairy Tale Town, also a flower witch, has a high probability—even a certainty—that, like the previous two, it will pose a threat to the real world when it reaches full maturity.

Given that the act of "collecting the Holy Grail fragments" inherently carries connotations of repair and restoration, if the Holy Grail becomes complete and the Empire's plan is successfully implemented... wouldn't that also "pose a threat to the real world"?

My thoughts suddenly became clear.

If the development of this world is linked to the incubation of the Flower Witch, then the Regent's plan to invade the real world will very likely determine the progress of the witch's incubation.

When his plan truly succeeds, the Flower Witch's "Fairy Tale Town" will be considered fully hatched. In other words, the "Empire's Plan" is essentially a... countdown.

When that moment arrives, Xiangzi will have to make the same decision as Yuxina: to use the most ruthless means to tear apart the barrier and kill Fairy Tale Town.

Of course, she didn't want to do that.

Therefore, stopping the Empire from collecting the Holy Grail fragments and invading reality is their current task, and it is a task they must do as quickly as possible.

"Um... is there anything else you'd like to ask?"

Perhaps seeing that Xiangzi had been thinking for a long time, Tobacco, unable to sit still any longer, whispered a suggestion.

"Perhaps... I know something else that might be useful to you."

"Oh?" Xiangzi looked up. "How did you know what I wanted to do?"

“Collect the Holy Grail fragments, open the Rainbow Bridge, right?” Tobacco said. “That’s how we get home.”

"...This also means that our goals are the same as the Empire's," Xiangzi continued. "What we do may end up benefiting the Empire."

“But that’s the only way home, isn’t it?” Tobacco looked at Xiangzi. “You came from the Rainbow Bridge Gate, and you brought the Red Queen with you, which means you have the ability to collect the Holy Grail fragments. You might already be doing it.”

She suddenly grabbed Xiangzi's hand, her eyes behind her glasses filled with longing.

Tobacco considered herself a person without much ambition, and achieving such success in the empire was something she never dared to imagine in her life.

But this position is too dangerous.

During this time, being in the research institute was no different from Bohr being imprisoned by Heisenberg. She didn't want to be forced to work by these people, nor did she have the awareness to risk her life for this position.

She was just an ordinary person; she wanted to go home.

Ever since she found a way to open the Rainbow Bridge, Tobacco hasn't missed a single day of wanting to go home. She misses her soft bed, her TV, her cell phone, and everything else that's missing here.

But she had no chance to escape, so she had to suppress these thoughts and spend her days in the research institute, pretending to be working hard, but in reality... she was just reading to pass the time.

Xiangzi casually tied her up and unexpectedly became her savior.

Perhaps, Xiangzi's appearance was her only chance.

"Please, I don't want to stay here anymore, take me home."

Tobacco grasped Xiangzi's hand, his sincere eyes, shining through his glasses, reflected the moonlight streaming through the window.

“When I contacted the Imperial high command before, I saw their map. I can tell you where the remaining Holy Grail fragments are.”

The Lost Tale: The Lost Child - Chapter 368 The Location of the Fragments

“When I contacted the Imperial high command before, I saw their map. I can tell you where the remaining Holy Grail fragments are.”

"Really?" Xiangzi raised an eyebrow.

Tobacco gripped Xiangzi's hand tightly, and seeing Xiangzi's suspicious look, he immediately explained.

"Really, I'm not lying. Just give me the map, and I can draw it for you right away."

Fearing that Xiangzi wouldn't believe him, Tobacco added a few more words.

“The Empire has been pondering the whereabouts of these Grail fragments for a long time, and recently they’ve become quite restless. With me… oh wait, you guys also kidnapped the Red Queen, so I’m nothing.” She shook her head and continued, “Anyway, with such a big incident, they will definitely accelerate the implementation of their plan, and will probably send people to other worlds to search for the Grail fragments. We don’t have much time, so you have to hurry.”

"...Let me go first." Xiangzi couldn't take it anymore.

This change in attitude was too fast; she hadn't even done anything yet, and the other party was already throwing themselves at her.

"Promise me first." Tobacco looked pitifully into Xiangzi's eyes.

"I have no reason to refuse. If I wanted to refuse, why would I have come in?" Xiangzi sighed helplessly. "How am I supposed to get the map if you don't let go of me?"

“…Okay, okay.” Tobacco quickly let go of her hand and sat obediently on the stool that Xiangzi had brought for her. “I’ll wait for you to bring the map…”

goo—

Her stomach made a loud noise.

"...I'll also get you some food." Xiangzi sighed, rubbing his forehead.

"Thank you!"

========

A few minutes later, Xiangzi, carrying a scroll and a plate of roasted lamb leg he had bought from the market, along with some kind of "wheat beverage" in a large wooden cup, placed it in front of Tobacco.

"We don't have any other drinks here, but the beer isn't very strong, so it should be fine..."

"Quack quack -!"

The sounds of her hearty eating interrupted Xiangzi, and she could only stand helplessly to the side, watching Yancao's unrestrained eating.

Since Xiangzi knocked her unconscious and put her in a bag, most of the day has passed. Plus, when they came back and met her, it was right when everyone else was resting. This girl probably didn't eat lunch and had been hungry for almost a whole day.

She could smell the aroma of roasted meat even through the door. Just smelling it was enough to make her almost unable to resist. After Xiangzi brought the food to her, she didn't care about her image at all. She grabbed the meat with one hand and the wooden cup with the other, tearing off two pieces of bread every now and then and stuffing them into her mouth, her cheeks puffed out like a hamster.

Xiangzi sat on the ground to the side, resting his chin on his hand, watching the way Yanhua ate with a bored expression.

Are all the people from Yue Village Cang-type foodies? That's too unrestrained.

No, why would she think of Qi F San Lin Qi?

How did this surname end up being associated with foodies? Where did this strange knowledge come from? Get it out of your head!

Xiangzi shook his head, trying to shake off those strange thoughts.

Thanks to Tobacco's hearty eating style, she quickly finished off the midnight snack that Xiangzi had brought her. Leaning against the wall, she patted her round belly and let out a loud burp.

belch--!

"Are you full?" Xiangzi asked, knowing the answer already.

"Ah~ I'm full, I'm alive again." Tobacco licked the mutton scraps off his fingers. "I thought I was going to starve to death."

"It's good that you're not dead."

"That's an exaggeration. It's not like we'll starve to death after just one day of absence." Tobacco waved his hand, then asked, "Did you bring a map?"

Xiangzi nodded and handed the scroll to her.

Before that, there was a handkerchief.

Tobacco took the handkerchief, wiped his hands clean, and then licked his lips with lingering satisfaction before unfolding the map scroll that Xiangzi had handed him.

"There are not many human forces left in this world. The Empire can be said to be the only dominant one. Besides the Empire, there are also the kingdoms of the World of Lust, and many city-states of the World of Greed and the World of Pride. In all the other worlds, there are basically few signs of human activity."

Tobacco took the pen and left a few small dots on the map made of sheepskin.

Time flew by, and Tobacco told Xiangzi almost everything he knew.

Although she achieved such success through her skills, Tobacco really made good use of this "cheat code." The things she told Xiangzi, the history related to this world, were so rich that Xiangzi actually had a bit of a headache listening to them.

After a long while, Tobacco finally stopped eating with satisfaction, smacked her lips, picked up the barley wine that Xiangzi had brought her to quench her thirst along the way, and gulped it down her throat.

Although they hadn't spent much time together, Xiangzi was already certain that Tobacco was a true foodie.

Even if I were starving, I probably couldn't eat two whole roasted lamb legs, a whole loaf of bread, and three large glasses of ale.

Xiangzi sighed softly and looked up at the window.

The moon rose to the middle of the sky, and half the night had already passed.

Xiangzi breathed a sigh of relief and said:

"What about the remaining few?"

"The world of desire is in the Red Queen's hands, and you've already obtained it. As for the world of sloth..."

"It's a world where only the dead exist, I know."

"I know absolutely nothing about that place. The Empire has completely blocked information about the Sloth World, and my permissions are insufficient to access it."

"Let's leave it for now." Xiangzi stretched. "The last one is in the Divine Kingdom, right? Nobody knows."

"Uh...yes."

"That's settled then. Thank you so much for your help."

"Of course, after all, we all want to go home, so we can be said to be a community with a shared future."

"A community with a shared future..."

Xiangzi smiled helplessly, put the map away, and stood up.

"Let's leave it at that for now. It's getting late. I'll get you a room so you can take a hot shower and get some sleep. We'll set off together tomorrow."

"Thank you."

=====

Afterwards, Xiangzi asked the landlady to book a new room for him. After settling his new companion in, he planned to return to his own room.

As soon as she pushed open the door a crack, she saw Xiao Su Shi fast asleep on Mu's lap, the room a picture of serene tranquility that wouldn't allow her to intrude.

She happened to have a lot of information on her mind, so she took the opportunity to go out for some fresh air and find a quiet place to process it.

Not long after Xiangzi sat down, he heard footsteps behind him.

"Chuhua?"

Without even turning his head, Xiangzi knew who it was.

"Why aren't you asleep so late?"

“You haven’t been sleeping either.” Chu Hua brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and sat down next to Xiangzi. “I’ll keep you company.”

The Tale of the Lost: The Lost Child - Chapter 369 Let Me Rest for a While

Tobacco said too much at once, and even if Xiangzi was quick-witted, he couldn't process it all immediately.

She sat on a bench outside the hotel, looking up at the moon.

Somewhat tired.

The lights of the market in the distance were much dimmer than they had been a while ago; it was almost time to pack up and everyone should be going to sleep.

It became unusually quiet outside.

The evening breeze rustled through the trees beside him, and a few fallen leaves, glistening with moonlight, landed on Xiangzi's hand.

She picked up a fallen leaf, played with it in her palm, closed her eyes, relaxed her back and leaned back, picked up another leaf, held it to her lips, and exhaled.

The melodious rustling of leaves harmonized with the sound of the wind, the tune casual and gentle, shattered into fragments by the wind and carried into the ears like whispers from another world.

Da da da.

Amidst the faint sound of the wind, footsteps grew closer and closer, finally stopping nearby, quietly waiting for the song to end.

A moment later, Xiangzi put down the leaf.