Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

It was this unease of "not knowing if I could do it" that kept bothering her, to the point that she was always distracted.

While lost in thought, she followed Xiangzi everywhere he went, so much so that she didn't even know how she got to the former site of the Shenbin Magic Alliance.

However, just as she finally realized she had been daydreaming and came to her senses.

She saw the pebbles on the ground moving.

Without any force propelling them, they simply began to move naturally, and then, they took flight. They flew towards where Xiangzi was.

Apart from her, it seems that no one else has noticed the strange phenomena around them.

! — Swoosh

Mu's pupils contracted, and her body moved before her thoughts could process them.

"Xiang, be careful!"

Before Yachiyo and Shoko could react, Mutsu rushed out and pushed Shoko aside.

With a thud, Xiangzi fell to the ground.

Mu was already enveloped by the stones that flew out of thin air and "stuffed" into the wall.

!--boom

"Mu!"

Xiangzi quickly got up from the ground and turned his gaze to the place where Mu had last disappeared. There used to be a dilapidated wall there, from which one could see directly into the room next door.

However, at that moment, the stones that were originally laid flat on the ground flew up and buried Mu directly into the wall. The originally dilapidated wall was filled with those rubble and became as intact as before.

At this moment, the remaining scattered pebbles also began to move.

When Xiangzi saw the stones flying up in bizarre trajectories, his brain momentarily went blank for a moment.

Counterintuitive, counterintuitive, and counter-physical.

Although the world of magical girls has nothing to do with physics, the scene before him was so abstract that Xiangzi's brain couldn't even immediately identify the flying pebbles as a "threat".

"careful!"

Yachiyo grabbed Shoko's collar and rolled in another direction.

!--boom

The same ear-piercing explosion sound swept across the spot where Shoko and Yachiyo had just stood, and another crater in the wall was filled in. Shoko seemed to see subtle distortions in the air, as if something was manipulating the stones.

The explosions were continuous.

Stones continued to fly up from the ground, heading towards where Xiangzi and the others were, before disappearing into the wall behind them, filling in the gaps in the broken wall.

Basically, as soon as they land, the next wave of explosions will hit, and Xiangzi and Yachiyo can only keep moving to avoid being affected by the explosions.

The sound and manner of the explosion were very counterintuitive, and Xiangzi felt extremely awkward. He could hardly move an inch among a pile of rubble that could fly up at any time. Even the weapons left on the ground, belonging to some magical girl, would fly towards him and disappear into the restored walls.

Faced with an attack method he had never seen before and could hardly understand, Xiangzi couldn't help but get goosebumps all over his body.

Even with witches like those in Country Road who curse their prey with their gaze, Xiangzi never showed this kind of reaction.

However, Yachiyo Yoshiko seemed to adapt well to this strange rhythm. She could always find a safe spot between explosions and take Xiangzi with her to hide.

Just as Yachiyo had said, the dilapidated corridor was restored and became whole amidst the constant explosions.

at this time.

brush--

All eyes were focused on the area near the restored wall.

Xiangzi noticed a few drops of blood there, which stretched in a certain direction and into the darkness.

Is anyone there?

Once again, Yachiyo dragged him over the flying pebbles. Shoko rolled over, transforming in the process into a single-soldier rocket launcher, and fired a shot at the shadow he had just seen.

boom--!

The newly restored wall was shattered again by a rocket, scattering debris everywhere and revealing an empty room behind it through the hole.

However, there was nothing at the back of the room; it was completely empty.

Xiangzi hurried to the vicinity of the hole that had been blasted open.

The bloodstains are gone.

The bloodstains she had just seen, stretching into the depths of darkness, had disappeared.

Did I misread it?

For a moment, Xiangzi began to doubt his own eyes.

No, there's absolutely no way I could have been mistaken; there really was a bloodstain there just now.

But where did it go?

However, this shot seemed to have some effect, as the continuous explosions stopped after Xiangzi fired the crucial shot.

What exactly was attacking them?

It all seemed so inexplicable from beginning to end, and Xiangzi's temper flared up.

"What the hell is this?"

"It's the other side. There are members of the Ode to Praise here." Yachiyo held her spear, her eyes darting around, searching. "Is it still not over...? Could this be a trap?"

No one had come here since the last great battle. Yachiyo thought it was already in ruins, so she brought Shoko here without worry.

What exactly is the other shore?

"Those are the things you see. The restored walls, the strange-sounding explosions—those are the traces left behind by the other side." Yachiyo gripped her spear, back to back with Shoko, wary of any potential enemies. "They attacked us on this side from the other side. You must be careful of the rubble on the ground, and things that may have always been there."

"I need to check on Mu's safety first!" Xiangzi dropped the rocket launcher and picked up a shotgun.

"It's best not to leave here. There are many places like this in this abandoned building, and I don't know which ones lead to the other side!"

"Then help me cover for him."

Xiangzi had had enough of Yachiyo's vague explanations.

Is there anything more important than ensuring Mu's safety right now?

Xiangzi gritted his teeth and kicked open the empty room where Mu had just been buried.

This Kamahama is definitely very problematic!

Click.

The gun was pointed inside the room.

null--

The door faced the window, which was wide open. The moment the door opened, a gust of wind rushed in, blowing away the smoke and dust inside and revealing the interior of the room.

"Mu!"

========

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The Tale of Reincarnation: The Forgotten Shore: Chapter 454 This Shore and the Other Shore

null--

The door faced the window, which was wide open. The moment the door opened, a gust of wind rushed in, blowing away the smoke and dust inside and revealing the interior of the room.

This building was originally a hotel. What kind of structure does a hotel have? Beds, windows, bathrooms, wardrobes... and so on.

Mu An lay quietly in the corner of the room.

Xiangzi pointed his gun at the direction where enemies might appear at any moment, and cautiously walked to the open window, sticking the gun out.

There was nothing outside; it seemed safe.

The room was covered in dust, but there were no signs of an explosion, and there were no obvious signs of wind and rain damage near the window, which made Xiangzi slightly concerned.

This means the window isn't always open; it might have only been opened recently.

Was it the person who ambushed me?

After confirming that the surroundings were safe, Xiangzi ran to Mu's side to check on her.

The explosion just now didn't seem as terrifying as it appeared visually. Mu wasn't seriously injured, except that his arm had been cut by a sharp object, and blood was slowly seeping out.

Xiangzi then brought out bandages and anti-inflammatory medicine, quickly helped stop the bleeding, and did a simple bandage.

It's true that magical girls have fast physical abilities and recovery speed, but Xiangzi still couldn't bear to see Mutsu get injured and not do anything about it.

After doing all this, Xiangzi patted Mu's cheek.

"Mu."

Xiangzi put his arm around Mu and used one hand to wipe the dust off Mu's face.

"Mu!"

She shook herself twice more.

Mu's eyelids twitched twice, and she slowly opened her eyes.

Xiangzi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"As long as it's okay, it'll be okay."

Mu blinked, seemingly finally waking up from her daze. Her eyes gradually focused, finally settling on Xiangzi's face. The moment she saw Xiangzi, she showed a very relieved look.

At the time, Xiangzi didn't understand the meaning of that look; he just thought that Mu was relieved to see that he was safe.

"Xiang." Mu raised his hand and touched Xiangzi's face. "...It's good that you're alright."

"Of course I'm fine, I'm afraid you'll be the one who gets hurt." Xiangzi grabbed Mu's hand. "Don't do such risky things next time."

"An adventure...?" Mu murmured.

"Of course! Don't you know how sudden you were?!" Xiangzi couldn't help but raise his voice, "It was very dangerous, okay?!"

“But Xiang is in danger…” Mu said weakly, “…I instinctively…”

"I can protect myself." Xiangzi put his arm around Mu's shoulder and sighed. "I'd rather you be safe than I am."

Mu looked away and stopped looking at Xiangzi.

Although her face showed no expression, Xiangzi knew she was upset.

"I know you're worried about me, but I'm worried about you too." Xiangzi gently tapped her forehead, patted the dust off her shoulders, and stood up again. "Don't do that again next time."

"I'll try," Mu said sullenly, standing up with Xiangzi.

Xiangzi pinched her cheek.

"Alright, stop arguing. I'll treat you to juice later." Xiangzi picked up his gun again. "The threat isn't completely gone yet. We need to find the person who attacked us."

Mu's expression changed slightly.

“Cover me up, Mu.”

"......Um."

She said slowly that she took out a set of weapons identical to Xiangzi's from the Soul Gem, as well as two puppets.

Xiangzi (2*)'s weapon arsenal is quite extensive, and Mu also has a similar set. These were all specially recreated by Xiangzi for her use. The narrow environment of the building corridor is not suitable for using her usual greatsword; these puppets that can form a pushing formation are more appropriate.

I ran into Yachiyo as soon as I stepped out.

"How is it?" Xiangzi asked.

“We’re safe now.” Yachiyo breathed a sigh of relief as she watched them emerge safely from the room. “There were no signs of an ambush. That person shouldn’t be here yet.”

While covering Xiangzi, Yachiyo also scanned the surrounding area to confirm its safety.

"Still not here?"

"Well, the attacker shouldn't have arrived yet."

"What do you mean?" Xiangzi frowned.

“Come with me, I’ll explain it to you slowly,” Baqian said. “You ran too fast, luckily there were no ambushes on the road.”