You are Toyokawa Shoko, then who am I?

"Oh... my lovely Dilu, I'm not lying to you, okay? My feelings for you are genuine. The thought of you returning to Tugumi-senpai's arms tomorrow breaks my heart, and I'm filled with melancholy. Why don't we treat tonight as our last romantic night together? Let's drink to your eyes."

"...But it's black, right? Isn't Diluma white?"

Toyokawa Shoko discovered the blind spot. "If you really want to call it that, shouldn't you call it Jueying or something like that?"

Toyokawa Shoraku thought about it and agreed.

Compared to the meaningless Di Lu, Jueying, the good horse who died in Wancheng while trying to protect his grooving master, is more likable.

"Very good, then let's call it Jueying."

Toyokawa Sho nodded in satisfaction, then gave Toyokawa Shoko a look of admiration, "You're indeed another me. Even though you say you don't understand, you can actually follow my thinking deep down."

"I just happened to remember it when I was reading world classics as a child!"

Shoko Toyokawa refuses to be labeled as a middle school student or a middle school student with a middle school soul. She graduated from that a few years ago!

"Really? Didn't you do some research online because you were interested?"

Toyokawa Sho teased.

Shoko Toyokawa snorted and turned her head away. At this moment, only silence could preserve her dignity.

"I won't tease you anymore, come sit up."

Toyokawa Sho rode on the loyal horse, which had been renamed Jueying from Delu, and motioned Toyokawa Shoko to sit on it.

“…It’s illegal to carry people on a bicycle.”

At this moment, Shoko Toyokawa remembered the knowledge she had read before and muttered while crossing her arms.

"Scared?"

Toyokawa Sho joked.

"Who is afraid!"

Toyokawa Shoko clicked her tongue. Although the method of provoking someone was crude, it was indeed effective for her.

But when she pulled down her skirt and sat on it, her good-girl character, who had always lived within the rules and never overstepped the boundaries, made her tone a little uneasy. She gently tugged at the corner of Toyokawa Sho's clothes, with worry clearly visible in her eyes.

"...We won't be caught by the traffic police, will we?"

"Who knows, we might even be invited to the police booth for tea."

Toyokawa Sho glanced at Toyokawa Shoko from the corner of his eye. Seeing that she was really scared by him, he thought about how green he was ten years ago, immature in every aspect, like a child who didn't understand the world...

But if you think about it carefully, isn’t fifteen just the age of an ordinary child?

Will be confused.

Will be afraid.

Worry about things you don't know.

You will instinctively want to find someone and rely on someone.

Strength and maturity are like the fruits of sin, and should not appear before the eyes of children who are still happily playing in the Garden of Eden.

Picking them and tasting them will only sow the seeds of evil called restraint and tolerance in your heart.

It means that they will have to curb their childish nature, watch the backs of adults walking in front of them, clumsily imitate their footsteps, and do and worry about things that they should not have to face.

Toyokawa Sho kicked the kickstand back, put both feet on the pedals, and started riding the bicycle steadily.

He had thought countless times how great it would be if the scumbag could stand up like a man to face the sins he had committed and shoulder the responsibilities of a father.

Despite being burdened with billions of dollars in debt and living a life where they don't even know where their next meal will come from.

But as long as the family can face it together, these desperate things seem to be nothing.

But the scumbag still disappointed him, and until the end, this man never stood up like a man again.

The dual lack of fatherly and motherly love was like a fatal curse branded in his heart, from which he could not escape, forget, or feel relieved.

That's what he was thinking at that time.

If no one can save himself.

Then save yourself and wear this lonely crown.

If he could go back to the past one day, he would personally hug the confused and helpless self from ten years ago.

Being his father and safe haven, he stayed by his side wholeheartedly, carving out his problems bit by bit as if they were fine porcelain, and working hand in hand with him to overcome those seemingly impossible difficulties.

How could such a thing as just going back to the past possibly happen?

Therefore, this thought only appeared weakly for a moment before being thrown into the past that Toyokawa Sho did not want to retrieve.

And now, looking at Toyokawa Shoko's young and immature face, Toyokawa Shoko couldn't help but recall his thoughts at that time.

return to the past……

It really happened.

Myself ten years ago.

It is indeed right in front of us.

The corners of his mouth raised in an arc with some complicated meanings. He didn't know whether he should be happy or helpless. The handmade bracelet wrapped around his wrist was caressed by the evening breeze, and his figure swayed gently in the wind.

He got off his bike and rode slowly on the deserted streets, carrying a past full of infinite possibilities.

"I know a great place to watch the moon. It happens to be a full moon today. Do you want to go?"

"Wait a minute, why don't we just walk over there? What if we get caught by the traffic police..."

"What are you afraid of? I'm still here."

Toyokawa Sho turned his head, the cool wind ruffled his bangs, and he smiled confidently at Toyokawa Shoko.

"I will protect you."

"..."

Toyokawa Shoko blinked.

He let out a somewhat delayed "eh".

Then, realizing that she was being treated like a child, she said with a little anger.

"I do not need!"

But having said that.

Deep down, she actually quite appreciated these words that made her feel a little bit safe.

Ok.

A little bit.

32

Chapter 32 S1 Season Ending, Toyokawa Shoko Loses

Because I was sitting sideways in the back seat, my center of gravity was not as stable as in a normal posture.

But that kind of posture that requires spreading legs is really indecent for a grown lady.

So when faced with the choice between elegance and safety, Toyokawa Shoko, who wanted to save face, chose the former, which also caused her to be nervous all the way.

She grabbed the hem of Toyokawa Sho's clothes with her fingers, her expression vaguely uneasy, her big amber eyes sometimes curious, sometimes vigilant, worried that she would be thrown out by Toyokawa Sho.

The breeze blows my hair away, and I can smell the fresh air when I sniff my nose. The scenery of the streets and alleys seems to turn into light and is slowly left behind. This feeling... seems to be pretty good as long as I don't worry too much about being left behind.

Now that I think about it, maybe the theory of machine soul that Toyokawa Sho tinkered with before he left really worked.

Carrying the name of Jueying, the Arabian horse that almost killed a drum team member on the slope an hour or two ago has been safe and sound all the time without any accidents.

Just when Shoko Toyokawa breathed a sigh of relief and was about to relax and enjoy the night view.

The bloodthirsty BMW below seemed to have a powerful ability to see through people's hearts. It seized the opportunity accurately, and the chain got stuck, causing the whole car body to shake.

"!!"

Didn’t they say that the Machine Spirit was very happy?!

Why do accidents still happen!

Afraid of falling, Toyokawa Shoko subconsciously hugged Toyokawa Sho who was riding in front of her. All she could think of was the horrific scene of Shiina Riki falling down the slope.

She was like a frightened elk, with her slightly plump and tender face pressed against the back in front of her in fear.

Two small hands passed through the sides, like a person jumping into the sea looking for a floating plank, and tightly grasped the abdomen where some muscle outlines could be vaguely felt through the thin cloth.

It would be better if they didn't catch him.

I was startled when I caught it.

Toyokawa Sho is a person with a relatively sensitive body.

He had been hanging out with women for many years and had a certain degree of fright reaction to physical touching, so when he was suddenly hugged by Toyokawa Shoko, he was so scared that he almost jumped up.

The center of gravity of the car under the seat swayed just right, and Toyokawa Shoko immediately hugged it tighter. The frightened Toyokawa Sho quickly put his legs on the ground to brake, and stopped the car steadily.

The two frightened people looked at each other, exchanged glances in the air, and then looked at the silent black bicycle at the same time, as if everything just happened was just an accident.

"It seems you haven't pleased it well, Machine Spirit."

In order to cover up her embarrassing appearance, Toyokawa Shoko chose a risky move. She quickly withdrew her hands without changing her expression, gave up her defense, and took the initiative to launch a series of taunting attacks in an attempt to divert Toyokawa Sho's attention.

Logically speaking, such a childish and clumsy trick would not work.

But the words that accompany this move are the most stimulating to men: "You can't do it."

Legend has it that this method is unrivaled in the world, and just telling it can arouse a man's anger.

As expected, Toyokawa Shoma was irritated by the words "You can't do it", but he couldn't reason with them. It was he who had just claimed that as long as they pleased the machine spirit, nothing would happen, and now he was the one who was slapped in the face.

He glanced at Jueying coldly, his tone devoid of any warmth.

"Tomorrow I will advise Senior Thrush to sell this evil creature and send it to a second-hand market or a scrap yard, so that it can be damned forever, with no chance of recovery."

Jueying was shocked. She never thought that the man could be such a heartless person.

Just imagine, who was it that lost control and braked on the slope, causing that beautiful black-haired girl with a beautiful logo to hug you? And who just shifted the center of gravity, allowing this pretentious blue-haired girl to come into close contact with you?

Cuckoo, father!

I am so loyal, why kill me! ?

Jueying shed tears and tried to kneel down to beg the man to look back.

However, it was not a human being after all. Although it had gained intelligence with the help of the Blue Lord, it had no mouth and could not convey its surging feelings to the man.

The man exclaimed in surprise, and vaguely seemed to hear the bicycle talking.

But how could such a magical thing happen in reality?

Then he glanced curiously at Jueying who was sitting under the seat, but couldn't make out what was going on. He shook his head in boredom and put down his leg brace.

"Come down, we're almost there anyway."

"So fast? We've only been riding for less than ten minutes."

Shoko Toyokawa was a little surprised. She thought Sho Toyokawa would take her to a farther place. Because she had a sprained foot, she got off the car very carefully.

At this time, she saw Toyokawa Sho coming over to lend a hand. She hesitated for a moment, but finally took his hand and used the force to carefully put the sprained foot on the ground.

"It's not far to begin with. When I was with you, I was always upset every day, so after work in the evening, I would always ride my bike and wander around aimlessly."

Toyokawa Sho said this, took his hand back and pointed to the shrine next to him.

“Then, we found this place.”

"Is this... a shrine?"

Shoko Toyokawa looked in the direction that Sho Toyokawa pointed. It was a strange place that looked mysterious and ethereal under the moonlight.

The first thing that catches your eye is a very high and long staircase with so many layers that you don’t know how many of them there are. Then there is the torii gate on top of the staircase, which is probably very dull in color because no one has repaired it for many years.

"Well, this shrine seems to be very famous in the surrounding neighborhood. It is said that it has been built for decades and has existed here since the Showa era."

"I heard from the elders that this shrine was very prosperous when they were young, and there was even a special snack street here. But as time went by, no one came here anymore, and it became an abandoned shrine. The city government had no plans for it, so it just sat there unattended."

"...An abandoned shrine."