Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

Page 187

knock --

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Moshi moshi, we're here." Mana poked her head in and said with a smile, "Sorry we're late."

"If you don't come soon, I'll have forgotten about you all." Xiangzi curled the corners of his mouth and continued the previous topic, "Since we were just talking about you, come in."

Mana took a step forward, revealing Mio behind her.

"The task of finding and defeating the Sea Witch will be handled by me and Mio, who will be our guide," Xiangzi said. "Does anyone have any objections?"

"Have!"

Chu Hua stood up, looking at Xiangzi and Mio with a dark expression.

"I disagree."

The Lost Tale: The Spirit of Youth: Chapter 225 The Location of the Sea Witch

Let's go back to when Xiangzi and his group had just returned to the String Scroll, and Chu Hua was still unconscious.

"Most of the men will stay on the ship to protect it, and then an elite squad will carry out a decapitation strike to find the sea witch's true form and kill her." Xiangzi roughly explained his plan. "This is the simplest and only feasible method at the moment."

Is it really the best?

Miao Meng tapped her fingers on the dining table, resting her chin on her other hand.

"Wouldn't it be better to just leave this place? Why insist on staying here and wasting time with the Sea Demon?"

"This is the ocean, Meow Dream," Hailin said calmly from the side. "Clean your brain before you speak."

"What's wrong with the ocean?" Miao Meng raised her eyebrows in dissatisfaction. "And what's this about 'removing rust from the brain'?"

"It will break if it's not used for too long," Hailing said.

"what?!"

“At sea, we’ll be attacked,” Mu said softly. “We’ve already tried once.”

“Just like Mu said.” Xiangzi stretched out his finger and poked Miaomeng’s empty head. “We were attacked by familiars before we even landed on the island, which means that the sea witch’s influence extends far beyond this island. Combined with the sea monster rumors in the Ryukyu region, I’m afraid we won’t be able to escape the sea witch’s grasp as long as we’re in this area. So, do you understand how stupid your suggestion is?”

"Waaaaah, I know, I know." Miao Meng covered her forehead, looking like a distressed kitten. "Stop torturing me."

“Besides, the sea witch is also…” Xiangzi shrugged, “If we just leave like this, we’ll be letting Chuhua down.”

"I understand everything you're saying." Miaomeng pointed to a virtual location on the table with her finger. "But have you considered what the biggest problem with your plan is?"

Xiangzi raised his eyes, signaling Miaomeng to continue.

"Do you know the exact location of the Sea Witch? If not, the entire decapitation operation is just empty talk." Miao Meng crossed her arms and snorted. "We might as well concentrate our forces and escape from this sea area."

"..."

Xiangzi remained silent for a while, which was unusual, and did not directly answer Miaomeng's question.

Her gaze drifted to the side.

"What, you really haven't thought about this question?" Miao Meng raised an eyebrow.

"No, actually..."

how to say.

Xiangzi could actually sense the location of the sea witch.

The attraction between flowers is relative. As the sea witch spreads her hunting signals around, Xiangzi can also sense the direction from which the signals originate.

That direction leads to the seabed.

Since the word "sea" comes from the name of the sea witch, it's understandable that she's underwater. Xiangzi had already decided to dive down to find the sea witch.

but......

On the way back, someone struck up a conversation with Xiangzi, which changed her mind.

Yes, the people who are now sitting at their table.

"Where were we?"

Mio, carrying the plate, naturally found a seat next to Xiangzi and sat down.

She had just arrived at the restaurant and grabbed some food before coming to find Xiangzi.

This is usually where Chu Hua sits, but since Chu Hua is still lying in the infirmary, this seat is currently empty.

“I’m talking about you—/I want to be your wife and child,” Xiangzi said.

"Oh~ Does this bring us up about what we were talking about earlier?" Mio blinked.

"Yeah." Xiangzi nodded.

Everyone except Xiangzi looked confused.

"What did you talk about? Aren't you going to explain?" Hai Ling asked calmly.

“This is what I’m going to tell you,” Xiangzi said, turning around. “The Sea Witch’s location is actually right under our feet.”

Xiangzi pointed in the direction he was standing.

"seabed?"

"Yes and no."

"What do you mean?"

“Actually, right beneath this island, there is a huge underwater cave,” Xiangzi said. “The sea witch’s true form is inside.”

"what?"

"This cave was discovered last year. It was first discovered on a cliff on the other side of the island. One day, it suddenly collapsed, creating a huge sinkhole," Mio said. "Later, Aunt Lin contacted a scientific expedition team to explore and confirmed that it was a huge cave with the sinkhole leading directly to the seabed. There was even a large area of ​​hollowing out below the island."

"The hollowed-out area is deeper than the seabed," Mio emphasized again.

"Huh?" Miaomeng raised an eyebrow. "There are places like this?"

"Nature is full of wonders," Xiangzi shrugged.

"Then how can you be so sure that the sea witch is hiding in an underwater cave, and not on the seabed?" Miaomeng asked.

It wasn't that she didn't trust Xiangzi, but rather that Xiangzi now gave her a very strong feeling of taking things one step at a time.

Moreover, she had a bad feeling.

I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong with it, but it's just not good.

Ever since boarding the ship, Miaomeng has felt that something is not right, and she has a suffocating feeling in her heart that she can't express.

She interpreted that stifling feeling as the insecurity of being stranded at sea, constantly on the verge of becoming isolated and helpless. Perhaps it did contain some of that feeling, but it seemed to be more than that.

What exactly does it feel like...?

Miao Meng squinted at the spot next to Xiangzi, where Chu Hua should have been sitting.

Is it because of her?

Meow Dream.

Is this mysterious girl who suddenly appeared really an ordinary person?

Just then, Mio met her gaze, mistaking Nyanmu's look for a question, and explained:

"When Aunt Lin told us the story of the sea witch, she mentioned that the sea witch's hut was a cave located at the deepest part of the sea. She would bring people to her cave and hang them on the wall."

She paused, as if recalling some unpleasant memories.

"The water seeping down from the top of the cave will flow over these people who have been hung up by the sea witch. Over time, these people will be turned into stalactites hanging from the top of the cave by the flowing water."

“All the content related to the story of the sea witch has been reproduced,” Xiangzi said confidently. “It’s definitely inside waiting to hatch.”

“That makes sense…” Meow Dream rested her chin on her hand, imagining the scene Mio described. “But what kind of fairy tale is this? Hanging people up and turning them into stalactites, that’s too dark.”

"When I was little, I also found it terrifying. I would even imagine myself being hung from the ceiling and turning into a stalactite." Mio nodded in agreement. "Looking back now, I realize that these scary stories are made up to prevent children from playing in dangerous places."

She sighed again after she finished speaking.

“Now the stories that scare children have become real, and it’s the same person who told you the story who has turned it into reality.” She poked at the tamagoyaki on her plate with her chopsticks. “It’s really hard to accept.”

“But you seem much calmer than Chu Hua,” Miao Meng said.

She had even already taken a 1 (7) Yi Er 8”〆俬(4?』”) 8 and said.

Mio's demeanor was more than just calm; she seemed to have no connection to what was happening on the island.

"If you lived in a place like this, where there wasn't a single living person, where you could hear seafood wriggling at night, for months on end," Mio raised her eyes and looked indifferently at Meow Dream, "you would still be so calm."

“Because if we don’t do it, we won’t survive.” The person who answered was Hailing. “I understand.”

"Ugh... why am I getting the short end of the stick again?"

Hearing that Hailing was standing up for them, Miaomeng instantly wilted like a cucumber.

"So, Xiangzi, who do you plan to send to cause trouble for the Sea Witch? Hai Zi? Or...?"

"Of course it's myself, and Mio as my guide," Shoko said calmly. "If there are no objections, then it's settled."

"what?!"

Miao Meng finally realized where her damn ominous premonition came from.

"Are you kidding me?!"

There was a simmering anger inside me, which, like a ignited sewer pipe, suddenly exploded with a bang.

"You, plus another useless ordinary person, going to cause trouble for the Sea Witch? Did your brain shatter along with the Soul Stone? Who gave you such arrogance? Or did you think you could keep creating miracles after you've performed one or two miracles? I trust you, not so you can repay me in this way. Can't you think of a slightly more reliable method, even if it's just bringing more people?"

A Tale of a Lost Soul: Chapter 226 - Meeting Ends

"I trust you, but that doesn't mean you have to repay me in this way. Can't you think of a slightly more reliable way? Even bringing more people would be better!"

Miao Meng slammed her hand on the table and stood up, practically ready to point her finger at Xiangzi and yell at him.

"You'd better explain yourself clearly, or I won't agree to let you go to your death." As she said this, Miaomeng glanced at Mio next to Xiangzi, "and take an ordinary person with you to your death."

"I offered to be the guide myself." Mio raised her hand and calmly retorted, "I went down to explore the sinkhole on my own long before the expedition team even investigated it. I dare say that among all the people still alive in this world, no one knows this underwater cave better than me."

Miao Meng frowned, wanting to refute but unable to find anything to say in her defense.

At this moment, Xiangzi pressed down on Miaomeng's shoulder and reassured her in a tone that said, "I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush."

“I know this sounds exaggerated, but there are reasons why I made this decision.”

"Oh, then you tell me." Miao Meng crossed her arms and gave a cold snort.

"There's no need to rush." ​​Xiangzi sat back down, picked up his teacup, and took a small sip. "I'll explain to everyone when we gather later."

Although he said he would explain, Xiangzi's tone carried a strong, unquestionable expectation that Miaomeng had heard several times before.

When Xiangzi speaks in this tone, it means that no one can stop her from banging her head against the wall.

Miaomeng even suspected that she had never intended to explain anything in the first place.

"So mysterious." Miao Meng snorted and plopped back down in her seat. "Then you'd better come up with a better excuse. You won't be the one explaining yourself to me later."

Xiangzi was silent for a moment, looking at the teacup slowly steaming, and said:

"...I will."

=============

So, we returned to the temporary meeting room.

"I disagree!"

Chu Hua suddenly stood up.

"you--"

She looked at Xiangzi, and then her gaze casually fell on Mio beside Xiangzi.

That's Mio.

"Mio—why are you here?" Hatsuka's tone was icy cold, unlike her usual self. "This is not a place you should be."

Although they hadn't seen each other for several years and both had changed a lot, Chu Hua still recognized Mio immediately.