Crossover anime/manga, can you be my immortal companion for life?

The route to the festival venue is shown above.

That place is surrounded by mountains on three sides, the sea on one side, and a river on the other, with only one entrance.

Kerry was stunned because he had just been looking at the map carefully and discovered this.

"Ah this..."

Xiangzi felt that he would probably have to say goodbye to vacation again this time.

On the other side, Kazuma also curiously came over.

"Let me see, huh? This kind of terrain?"

Kazuma feels like he's about to get a rural Ptsd (a type of Japanese idiom for someone who is obsessed with rural life). Well, the previous Shiki village was surrounded by mountains on two sides, Hinamizawa was in the mountains, and this one is even more heavyweight, surrounded by mountains on three sides.

It would be a shame if this kind of terrain didn't incorporate some local customs, as it's such a unique and suitable place for mountain spirits and monsters to thrive.

243

Chapter 243 Rumors in the Countryside.

"Uh...aren't we going to die from overeating?"

Upon hearing Kazuna's description of the area being surrounded by mountains on three sides, Kirito, who hadn't fully processed it even after so long, looked hesitant.

"Well, we're not unlucky people who get into trouble wherever we go."

Let's treat this like a normal vacation, shall we? Speaking of the festival, shouldn't we buy some yukatas?

After Xiangzi said this, she found that three pairs of eyes were looking at her strangely.

"What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?"

Xiangzi tilted his head in confusion.

"nothing."

Kerry looked away.

Previously, things were alright. It was quite troublesome for everyone to even have a meal. We would use our intelligence network to gather information from all directions, locate the abnormal location, approach it little by little, and then resolve the issue.

However, ever since Xiangzi arrived, trouble seems to keep popping up on its own, as if some kind of protagonist's constitution has been triggered.

It's hard to say, maybe some unlucky guy snuck in.

That being said, any abnormalities must be addressed.

However, since there are still some days until the festival begins, we might as well treat it as fun before then.

"Let's go, get in the car."

It seems that the local authorities also attach great importance to this publicity campaign.

Before the group even arrived at their destination, after passing Tsukimino Forest Park and reaching the commercial area near Aomori University of Legislative Affairs, they were greeted by a deluge of advertisements.

Small colorful flags were planted all over the area around the mall, each bearing the traditions of this year's Fishman Festival. There were even posters explaining the history of this Fishman Festival.

"The True Fish Cult is one of the few ancient religions that has survived throughout its long history. It has had little contact with the outside world before. It is said that missionaries once discovered mermaid mummies in the village."

Xiangzi walked to the front of the poster and several people read the text aloud.

The people's ominous premonition grew even stronger.

"Hey, everything's ready. Should we head straight for the cult's headquarters next?"

Kazuma felt a little numb.

Kerry walked over to Xiangzi and looked at the contents below, but he became less wary.

Because this feels like a tourism promotion, with all the ancient religious orders and mermaid mummies, it all feels more like a gimmick.

Just like some cities create Uma to generate tourism revenue, the most successful and well-known hype cases are the Loch Ness Monster and the Reptilian Man of New Jersey.

There's even a large, chibi-style image of a mermaid mummy on this promotional poster.

There even seems to be some other advertising here.

For example, the county magistrate, Mr. Mimura, learned about these things by reading a book on the study of Yuzuru Herashi Village, which was published at his own expense by a folklorist and had very few copies sold on the market. After learning about it, he contacted the village chief and learned about the news that he was preparing to hold a big event.

It really feels like a place with no pillar industries other than apples and docks, which suddenly discovered something to promote, and then the tourism department, which doesn't really understand tourism, immediately started hyping it up.

But thinking about it, it makes sense; they've even started advertising in Tokyo.

Sure enough, Kerry even Googled it and found more detailed information released by the local tourism department.

In addition to these, Kerry also discovered that the webpage stated that, supposedly, in ancient times, a visible meteor streaked across the sky every 300 years in this village.

This year marks the 300th anniversary, which is why they are promoting it in this way.

However, there are no reliable records of this after the Meiji Restoration, so it was just used as a gimmick and placed at the end of the introduction.

They probably didn't want to promote it too much, attracting star enthusiasts from all over, only to find out nothing happened in the end, which would be hilarious.

After a few people stood by the poster for a while, other people carrying bags arrived.

They were chattering away, seemingly discussing the matter as well.

"Did you know? I saw in the propaganda that this True Fish Cult used to have a tradition of human sacrifice."

"Oh! That's scary, hehehe, then we'd better bring a camera."

Hearing the words in his ear, Xiangzi shook his head.

Yes, whatever it was like in ancient times, all that madness and mystery has become something for people to amuse themselves in this age of entertainment to the death.

The more dangerous the act, the more people living in the sunlight will crave it.

These are things that people like us, who are already deeply mired in darkness, can hardly understand.

"Let's go, after we buy the yukata, we'll go take a look."

The group went inside.

Sure enough, they found the yukata specialty area. Kazuma was certain that this was definitely brought over by his mother for this festival. Normally, such a remote place would never sell this kind of thing.

Once inside, Xiangzi went to the women's clothing section, while Keli and the others went to the men's clothing section.

Although modern technology makes yukatas relatively inexpensive, it doesn't stop them from being expensive.

And to be honest, it's impossible for anyone to wear this thing around in everyday life.

However, seeing that Kazuma and Kirito seemed quite interested in this, Kerry didn't mind playing along with his fighting brothers.

"Hehe, what do you think, Dazai Osamu's gray kimono."

After Kazuma had chosen his own, he changed into a different fitting room and even ran over to the two of them and circled around.

Kerry didn't see any melancholy in his gray yukata or in him; he just looked like a daemon wearing a rat's skin.

Kerry also picked up a piece of clothing, since most of the clothes were light and thin, meant for hot springs or summer, and were really not suitable for fighting.

"I think it would be better if we always carried a set of combat clothing with us."

Kerry gave a word of advice.

"You're so serious, Kerry. Have you decided what color you want to buy?"

Kazuma moved his nimble fingers over, looking like he was about to molest the young man.

"This is the one I want. Could you please help me choose the right size?"

Kirito picked up a black shirt with white cloud patterns and called out to the waiter.

To be honest, for Kerry, this outfit is worse than a tank top and jeans with a cape draped over his back.

While Kerry was choosing, Kazuma changed into another outfit and brought it out.

Kerry glanced at it, his face showing reluctance.

That kimono looked just like the super gorgeous one you get from that damn capitalist quest in Pokémon Saga after completing the Kitakami Village DLC. It had a gold base with blue-green patterns, and many parts even used a more reflective material.

"Gilgamesh who wishes to remain anonymous in Fate/Samurai Remen."

Kazuma spun around again.

After much deliberation, Kerry chose a bright red dress with embroidered red-crowned cranes and koi fish on the back.

It wasn't that Kerry was particularly fond of it; it was simply that Kerry didn't want to choose anymore.

As a result, the three of them wandered around the mall for a long time before Xiangzi finally picked out his item and came out.

"Sorry for the wait."

Xiangzi could tell from the empty Buffet cup next to the table that the three of them had been waiting for her for quite a while, so she apologized.

However, she doesn't seem to plan to reveal her chosen style before the holiday.

244

Chapter 244: The most friendly episode with the villagers.

Everyone loaded their things into the car, ready to head to the festival site.

It's the 9th now, and there are 5 days left until the festival.

Kerry went to the car and turned on the air conditioner to dispel the residual heat from the car being exposed to the sun.

Several people boarded the bus one after another.

"Buzz! Buzz!"

The vast forests here fill the air with the sounds of cicadas.

Especially the familiar chirping of cicadas, it sounded like background music from a horror movie.

There's no need for navigation along the way anymore. As if to prevent tourists from getting lost, the mountain roads along the way are filled with crash barriers in the colors of Kozue Motoi, and each barrier has a small road sign on it.

Moreover, the distance wasn't far this time, because the festival wasn't held inside the village. It seems that the main venue for the festival was outside for the convenience of tourists.

Although its scale cannot compare to those music festivals unique to this world.

The scale was quite large, with two whole rows of stalls already set up in advance, and you could see management personnel walking around checking the condition of each stall. It seems that the organizers didn't intend to just operate for one night.

The group arrived at their destination, got out of the car, and looked around.