Persona: Devil Summoner

(And, not to mention the question of reality...)

Shinjima's ruby-like eyes drifted towards Jiang Tianwei, who was now sandwiched between Bai Zhongzhidou and Fang Zexia. She had felt before that Fang Zexia seemed to be too close to him. Especially during the trip to Rome, the relationship between the two was a little too close for a partner.

It's almost like these two are a couple!

(Although I know Jiang Tianwei is the kind of person who jokes around and never takes things seriously, I still have to remind him to keep a distance from other girls in the future... I don't know if this is because he is a foreigner and has different ideas from traditional Japanese people...)

What is a brainstorm? This is a brainstorm. When someone with a very good brain like her goes crazy, it can be more deadly than a stupid person.

"What's wrong, President? Are you okay?"

Jiang Tianwei was playing both sides of the two women. Suddenly, he saw from the corner of his eye that Niijima Makoto's face was getting redder and redder. He thought: (Could it be that she has a fever? She looks so weak and her face is constantly flushed. I seem to have heard that people are prone to fever when they are weak!)

His caring tone would be fine if it were just a normal expression, but today, Shinjima was in a very confused mood. When she heard that he was coming to care about her, she felt her heart skip a beat or two.

Looking at the frightened look of Shinjima Makoto, Jiang Tianwei became more certain of his guess: it seemed that the president was in really bad condition.

"President, how about you go out and take a rest first? I'll go look for other people..."

"It's okay. I, well, just need to rest for a while. My companions' matters are more important."

Shinjima Makoto coughed dryly and tried to pull her thoughts back on track. She cursed herself in her heart: (Shiijima Makoto, Shinjima Makoto, when did you degenerate into a woman with your mind full of love? Now that the lives of your companions are in danger, how can you tolerate yourself letting your imagination run wild?).

Perhaps, the reason why the fairy tale ended when the princess was awakened by the kiss? The abrupt window on the wall that depicted the brilliant scenery outside suddenly expanded, stretched, and fell to the ground, turning into a door. Behind the door was the blue sky and... the vast yellow sand that I had seen before.

From the door that suddenly appeared, the heat and dryness that should be expected in the desert blew out. Surprisingly, the sand on the opposite side was obviously higher than the door frame, but it did not enter the castle, as if there was an invisible transparent wall blocking them. The slightly darker sand could be clearly seen in the cross-section.

Looking from a distance, about one or two hundred meters away, you can see a small border town in the desert area.

As if to save her reputation, Niijima Makoto said anxiously, "Then let's go! Isn't that where our next companion is?"

"Um...you, are you really okay?"

"It's no problem!".

Niijima was so anxious that he even brought out such a cute habit. Jiang Tianwei could only scratch his head and said, "Well, you can go, but President, don't be so stubborn. Leave the battle to me."

Shinjima responded and got off the bed. Oddly enough, as soon as her feet touched the ground, her originally light and fluttering princess-style dress turned back into that fin-de-siècle-style phantom thief costume.

Jiang Tianwei took the lead and walked into the hot sand behind the gate... There was no danger.

I thought this would be like the story of Sleeping Beauty, with clear distinctions between good and evil, and some powerful monster-like shadows would appear to attack me, but in the end, there was nothing at all!

In this desert, the biggest enemies are the scorching air, the rapidly disappearing water, the accelerated consumption of physical strength due to extreme weather, and the feeling of confusion of not knowing when you will get out.

Fortunately, no one has to worry about these problems. As mentioned before, there is a small desert town about one or two hundred meters away.

Normally, there are no cities in the desert unless there is an oasis next to it.

But this small town is built so abruptly in the center of the desert, with no water support and no fruits or trees as one would expect. If viewed from a modern perspective, it is absolutely impossible for there to be any signs of human survival here.

But, after all, it is a fairy tale, how can a child discuss such realistic topics with his parents? This kind of thinking is extremely terrifying, and it can be regarded as the essence of fairy tales and fables.

The residents of the town look like a combination of Arabs and Persians, wearing wide robes and turbans that are only seen in hot sand zones, as well as embroidery and tapestries that are common in ancient Central Asia. This mixed style can often be seen in the illustrations of fairy tale books in the early years.

Judging from the example of Shinjima just now, this place should also be a scene from a fairy tale. I'm afraid that there is also a companion trapped here.

But... as mentioned before, this kind of mix-and-match style is really too common. From Aladdin to Alibaba, these people with the last name Aladdin always have this kind of wonderful mix-and-match pictures. It’s just that this level of detail is impossible to talk about!

"It seems that this place is relatively peaceful. So, why don't we split up and look for clues about our companions?"

Fang Zexia suggested this. When she thought that this might be where her sister was trapped, she felt very anxious and couldn't calm down. "

Naturally, everyone had no objection, and this was the only way to go. Finding companions was the most important thing.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 383 It’s broken, I’m a substitute

The yellow bricks with smoothed corners are put together to form walls that are not flat. Square adobe houses are common here, usually with two floors. A window is cut out of the wall, and sticks for hanging clothes are extended from it. At the corners of the wall, there are usually vendors.

These vendors set up a small shop along the main road, spreading a piece of cloth and displaying their wares, ranging from bottles and jars with interesting shapes to fresh-looking fruits and vegetables, and even iron tools such as swords, axes, and halberds.

The merchants were all wearing robes, their faces could not be seen, and they looked as characterless as the NPCs in the game. They didn't shout or talk, they just sat there.

Jiang Tianwei went forward and tried to ask for the price, and the other party did respond, but it was like he was talking to an AI with a preset dialogue template. You asked and it answered, and it didn't feel like he was communicating with a human being at all.

Maybe it’s because these NPCs are not important in this story, so I just made them casually.

After walking around and not finding anything special, Jiang Tianwei picked up a baked naan from a small stall and went to find the agreed place. The owner didn't even respond to his action which could clearly be defined as robbery. He just sat there calmly and couldn't even feel their gazes under the brim of his hat.

The place where everyone agreed to meet was the tallest building in the entire city. Usually, this place was either the residence of the village chief or the town chief, or some important building.

This kind of place that can be identified at a glance is the most suitable as a gathering landmark. When Jiang Tianwei went over, everyone had already arrived. Fang Zexia changed into a set of clothes that were very Arabian desert style, that is, the traditional ethnic costume that was covered from head to toe with white cloth. It is said that this kind of clothes will produce a phenomenon called "wind hole effect". It is said that the wind will flow up from the opening under the feet, which is actually very cool.

When she saw Jiang Tianwei coming, she picked up the white robe like a girl in a wedding dress and turned around: "How about it? Fang Zexia - Arabian limited skin!".

"You know that in Arabia, exposing your skin is a crime."

"What, are you trying to say that my beauty is a sin?"

"..."

Jiang Tianwei pondered for a second, then gave up thinking decisively. Even the Ultimate Creatures gave up thinking in the end, let alone himself, a life form that is still evolving? So he decisively gave up the argument with Fang Zexia and gave her a thumbs up: "Yes, that's it."

Shin Niijima sat on the steps, enjoying the coolness in the shade. Her black leather coat looked extremely hot no matter how you looked at it. Although it was very popular in Japanese movies that only two or three people could perform, in reality, if you really wore it outside, especially in the desert, it would really heat you to death.

Shin Niijima, who was already in low spirits, was beaten up by this combination of leather jacket and desert punch. Now he has completely lost his fighting ability and his brain has completely shut down.

But to be honest, Jiang Tianwei had not particularly expected that Shinjima Makoto and Yoshizawa Kasumi could bring him any useful information. One of them had just recovered from a serious illness or was not even fully recovered yet, and the other was a serious JK with no special analytical ability. They were of no use in such a situation where decryption was needed.

So he directly focused on Bai Zhongzhidou.

This is the famous Internet meme! ——"The four of us are so strong!"

"Why, you can't analyze it anymore?"

Bai Zhongzhidou looked indifferent. Seeing her so calm, Jiang Tianwei felt relieved, which showed that this great detective had already had an idea in mind. Bai Zhongzhidou stared at the baked naan in Jiang Tianwei's hand. She did not directly answer Jiang Tianwei's question, but asked: "Where did the baked naan come from?"

"You want to eat? If I want to eat, I'll give it to you..."

Jiang Tianwei was just about to hand over the half-eaten naan in his hand when he saw Fang Zexia suddenly come out from the side, and like a puppy snatching food, she took big bites of it, biting off the part that Jiang Tianwei had just bitten.

(I won't give you the chance to kiss indirectly!).

Fang Zexia stuffed her mouth with baked naan, chewing and thinking. Bai Zhongzhidou saw her protecting the food and couldn't help laughing: "I didn't say I wanted to eat it. I asked you, where did it come from? You don't have the currency of this country, right?"

"That's true, but they didn't ask me for money. I wonder if the owner doesn't want it anymore?"

Jiang Tianwei fully demonstrated the fitness spirit of "no mention means zero card" and put it into practice in the payment business field.

Bai Zhongzhidou smiled and said, "Do you know that your behavior will be defined as robbery in the judicial community?"

"No way, sir! It's just a baked naan, is it necessary to make such a big deal out of it?"

Jiang Tianwei didn't know why she suddenly said that, but based on his understanding of Bai Zhongzhidou during this period of time, her roundabout way of speaking was actually to exercise her thinking ability.

This is like the ancient apprenticeship system. In the earliest times, the master would not teach the apprentice, but let the apprentice follow him and help. The apprentice followed the teacher, saying that they were learning, but in fact they just kept learning about the trade and the teacher's skills while working, and finally asked if they didn't understand something.

The same goes for Baek Jong-jik-doo. The detective industry hates rigidity the most, so she can't just write something like "100 tips for being a detective" or "You will be a famous detective after reading this" to Jiang Tianwei. She can only teach him her way of thinking as a detective, little by little.

"Haha, you still can't figure it out after all these hints? I'm going to fail you in this "detective class"."

Bai Zhongzhidou said this and shook his head with an expression that said "this kid is incorrigible".

"Speaking of fairy tales, with this Central Asian-style background and the existence of banditry... can't you imagine it?"

"what!".

Jiang Tianwei suddenly felt enlightened after hearing what he said, and blurted out the name of a fairy tale: "Alibaba and the Forty Thieves?!"

This story comes from the famous "One Thousand and One Nights". Whether it can be considered a fairy tale is a matter of opinion, but it is definitely a story. So it is not surprising to classify it as a "fairy tale".

Just like the fairy tales that most people in China can read, these stories often contain some "reflective" points. For example, the story of Alibaba tells us that brothers should live in harmony and not be too greedy.

Some people may think that fairy tales are such a large subject area, and there are countless stories set in Central Asia. How did Baek Jong Nao-doo come up with this story?

This is based on Bai Zhongzhidou's personal speculation: I'm afraid that all the palaces are not groundless.

For example, Kamoshida's castle, Kamoshida must have known the concept of castle, so he thought he was the lord of the castle. Similarly, Madarame must have known about art galleries, and Kinjo must have known about banks. Humans are surprisingly poor in imagination.

If you think about it carefully, it is difficult for people to create fantasy without any real prototype. It is basically based on fantasy. Based on this, it can be assumed that although the theme of this palace is a fairy tale world, it must be based on the fairy tale that Togo Mitsuyo knew.

Considering her age, and reversing the trends of that year, and considering the loss of memory due to the passage of time, I'm afraid that mothers of this age will only have a few particularly famous fairy tales in their minds.

This basically limits the scope of the story.

Then, just apply it using the exhaustive method.

The exhaustive method is a very useful method, provided that you do not have too many alternative answers.

So Baek Jong Naoto easily picked out Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves from the world-famous fairy tale.

After listening to Naoto's analysis, Jiang Tianwei thought to himself that it was a good thing that the great detective was here, otherwise he would have no idea when to go! Speaking of the context of fairy tales, everyone is definitely paying attention to the protagonist, just like in Snow White, you are definitely paying attention to Snow White, in The Wizard of Oz, you are definitely paying attention to Dorothy, in The Little Mermaid, you are definitely paying attention to the Little Mermaid, and in the story of Alibaba, of course you are paying attention to Jack Ma... Ah, pay attention to Alibaba...

Who would have thought that the key to breaking the situation was actually the "Forty Thieves"! ? And, these Forty Thieves were actually me? !

But if you think about it carefully, they are all thieves, and it is not unacceptable to play the role of a thief in a fairy tale. But who would think of such a thing!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 384: The Road the Brothers Grimm Never Envisioned

To summarize the story of Alibaba and the Forty Thieves, there are two brothers. The elder brother marries the daughter of a rich man. You see, why do people always say that fairy tales are for children? Adults don’t even dare to dream such big dreams…

Then his younger brother married an ordinary man and lived a hard life. One day, Alibaba saw a group of robbers in the back mountain. He shouted "Open Sesame", and this spell opened a mysterious cave full of gold, silver and jewelry.

Then he didn't have a container, so Alibaba went to borrow a basin from his sister-in-law. It turned out that his sister-in-law was also smart and finally saw through his brother using the basin to hold money. Then the elder brother had to ask his younger brother for the secret.

Finally, the greedy elder brother was so happy collecting money in the cave that he didn't notice the thieves coming back. It's easy to understand what happened to him. These people were called the Forty Thieves, and it's definitely not because they were kind and modest.

There are actually two core characters in this story.

The protagonist Alibaba is definitely one of them. Everyone who reads this story will understand that without Alibaba, the story would not be true.

But many people have not noticed another core character... that is the forty thieves in the title. If there were no forty thieves hiding money in the cave, the story would not be true.

Referring to the previous story of Sleeping Beauty, as long as there is a beauty, a castle and an evil enemy, it will be established. But this time it is different. In the story of Ali Baba, the thief is as important as the protagonist.

"That is to say, we have to raise a huge sum of money ourselves, find a place to hide it, and make sure Alibaba sees it?"

Jiang Tianwei tried to summarize the current situation. Bai Zhongzhidou nodded: "That's right."

"So, how are we going to make money? We don't have to work part-time, do we? That's not in line with the style of a thief, is it?"

Fang Zexia had a bitter face, and Jiang Tianwei could see her anxiety. It wasn't that she hated working or that her style was not compatible with it, she simply felt that working to accumulate funds was too slow and delayed her ability to save her sister.

"Since you are a big thief, can you steal money as well? Although the law prohibits robbing a living person's assets, robbing Shadow's assets shouldn't be a problem, right?"

As Jiang Tianwei was thinking about this, Xindao rolled his eyes at him and said, "Are you really planning to be a thief?"

"Hey, hey, I, I just said it casually."

As if sensing the resentment of Xindao Zhen, Jiang Tianwei immediately reacted. This is the daughter of a policeman! And she is the kind of person who is very picky! How can he talk about crime in front of her?

"So, there is no such job that can make money quickly and is not illegal? Jiang Jiang! There is no demon like the God of Wealth or the Money Tree in your mobile phone that drops gold coins for us!"

Fang Zexia frowned and pouted while complaining. Jiang Tianwei looked disgusted and said, "If I had that kind of demon, I would have used it to make a fortune a long time ago. Why would I wait until now?!"

"Yes."

Suddenly, Bai Zhongzhidou said this.

Jiang Tianwei was stunned and said, "No, don't I know what's in my phone?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is: there are jobs that make money quickly and are not illegal."

If you ask modern people what is the most profitable thing, many people will definitely give the answer "business". However, commodities also have value. The efficiency of making money is definitely different if you resell wheat and corn, or if you deal in coal and oil, or if you sell antiques and calligraphy and paintings.

Among them, the fastest money-making thing should be antiques, calligraphy and paintings. Once people have money, they like to collect things that show their status.

"But we don't have any antiques or paintings to sell?"

Jiang Tianwei looked at everyone and no matter who they were, none of them looked like they could produce antiques, calligraphy or paintings.

Bai Zhongzhidou smiled and said, "We really don't have it, but someone does--"

She pointed in a direction, which was the starting point where everyone crossed the hot sand and arrived at this border town.

"Ah! I understand!".

Jiang Tianwei slapped his forehead and thought to himself that he was still too slow in thinking: Artwork, isn't it there! It's in the fairy tale before!

Isn’t there a lot of exquisite handicrafts that can be sold in that beautiful castle? The murals can be knocked down, the paintings can be taken down, the armor can be moved, the statues can be transported. This is not a castle, it’s a treasure house!