Ex-Machina in Dimensional Travel

The other party is not just a customer, but a temporary employee who will stay to help during the lunch period. In contrast, Granny Kobayashi, who was originally in charge of the front desk in the morning, will return to the kitchen to prepare meals.

According to the two, their "cooperation" has been going on for several years.

In response to the old lady's joke, Xiuer just nodded calmly and continued with the work at hand.

Not a single word was uttered throughout the entire process, but Hanako was not annoyed by such a dull reaction.

Both Xiaolin and she have enough patience for young people. Besides, Xiuer is really working, and his work efficiency is not low.

Ling Hanako felt that it was a bit of a waste of talent to have such a person working as a receptionist in a restaurant.

The only drawback is that he is a little too cold.

"Ha, I really don't understand why with your abilities, you would choose to stay here with Yuko. But thank you for being willing to stay with her."

She smiled helplessly, then left the counter and continued to work.

After casually glancing at the other person's back, Xiuer turned his gaze to the menu beside him.

That was before mealtime, when the store manager, Yuko Kobayashi, replaced the menu in advance, which was also the reason why there were so many customers in the store at the moment.

He had not expected that a small shop that originally only sold drinks and provided some breakfast supplies would actually have a plan to serve full meals.

But as mentioned before, those who come to the restaurant to eat at this time are basically the store manager's acquaintances. They come to take care of the business and also to spend more time with the old man.

Of course, because they were all acquaintances, when these people came to the store for lunch as usual, they were curious about the new employee at the counter.

After all, putting aside his identity, his delicate face like a doll and his icy temperament were enough to attract the attention of these people.

Everyone was from the neighborhood, just like Hanako who had just met Shule this morning. Because they had never seen him before, they were all curious about this kid who looked like a middle school student.

When people are curious, they naturally want to ask someone, but most people do not choose to ask Shuul, but instead go to Hanako and Kobayashi for answers.

The latter was working in the kitchen, so the responsibility of answering questions fell on Hanako. While she was serving the dishes, she would be pulled aside by these people to ask about the new employees in the store.

Because no matter what, why would a child who looks like he is still in school be working in the store at this time?

No sound in the store escaped Xiuer's perception, but he didn't care about other people's eyes and words.

And from an angle where no one could see, those golden eyes were constantly glowing.

Although he chose not to withdraw because of "work", the original decision to attend the appointment did not require him to be present in person, and he was not planning to be there in person anyway.

Without anyone knowing, Xiuer's gaze had already reached the rooftop of a school while he was looking at the scene inside the store.

……

----

……

Da da da--

A burst of hurried but not hurried footsteps echoed in the corridor.

After saying goodbye to Madoka Kaname, Homura Akemi did not actually go to the infirmary.

After all, her body was fine to begin with, and she had only pretended to be so weak before in order not to worry others.

At this moment, she was walking hurriedly towards the passage leading to the rooftop.

Although the agreed time was during lunch break, she knew that the other party would arrive at the scene early, and this negotiation was extremely important in the girl's heart.

Because in her opinion, the outcome of this negotiation will directly affect the success of her future plans.

The sounds of lectures in the classroom, students answering questions, and all kinds of other sounds have gradually faded behind the young lady, and the quiet atmosphere has slowly returned.

Those memories, or "fantasies" that had originally faded away, are gradually emerging.

As the agreed time draws closer, Homura Akemi's thoughts are gradually oppressed by hallucinations.

But this time, she was not immersed in the memories of the past, and a firm look appeared in her purple gemstone-like eyes.

The originally hurried pace also became more steady at this moment.

There were still more than ten minutes before the bell rang, and the girl had successfully reached the intersection leading to the rooftop.

"call……"

Looking at the light pouring down from above, the girl took a deep breath and took a slow step forward.

Throwing away the illusion that was haunting him, he walked out of the dark corridor and onto the rooftop bathed in sunlight.

clatter……

As the girl's feet stepped onto the rooftop, soft sunlight shone on it, a cool breeze blew across the rooftop, and her long, silky black hair swayed in the wind.

Homura Akemi looked around. There was no one else here except herself, and the hateful white creature had not appeared yet.

I guess the other person is still with someone at this moment.

Thinking of this, the girl gritted her teeth and tucked her hair, which was blown by the breeze, behind her ears.

These things are not important at the moment, at least not compared to what is to be done next.

After taking a few breaths of fresh air, Homura Akemi took a step towards the depths of the rooftop.

There are many people on campus and many eyes are watching. Although most people will not notice your actions, it is difficult to avoid the possibility of some people eavesdropping.

The rooftop is wide and flat, and there is no area large enough to hide. The girl chose this as her destination to avoid possible eavesdropping.

Because this way you can detect the arrival of others at the first time.

She didn't want to drag the negotiation into the evening, so she had no choice but to make this choice.

The rooftop of this school is an unusually wide rectangular area.

Homura Akemi came to the center of the rooftop, stood there, and waited quietly for someone to come.

Until a faint cold breeze blew over her head.

……

"You are indeed here."

Homura Akemi spoke softly.

She did not move her body, but suddenly spoke to the air beside her as if talking to herself.

But apart from the breeze that often blew her long, smooth, beautiful black hair, there was no other response.

If others saw the girl's behavior in such an empty place, they would probably think she was performing some performance art.

Fortunately, there is no one else here at the moment.

"I know you can hear..."

Faced with this eerily quiet atmosphere, Homura Akemi did not retreat. She turned around and looked in a certain direction.

"I understand that my sudden invitation confirmation is difficult to understand, and I understand your concerns, but please rest assured that I do not want to be your enemy and will not be your enemy."

The girl's tone was so sincere, and her facial expression remained unchanged.

She expressed her thoughts as if she were stating a fact.

The girl's voice gradually stopped, but the sound of the wind all around her continued to respond.

It seemed as if there was no one else here, and it was just an illusion created by a nervous girl.

But even so, the expression on Homura Akemi's face was still so calm.

Because she knew that the person she was waiting for was watching her "performance" quietly from the side.

This is not "intuition" but her "experience".

"I understand that it's hard to gain your trust without just words."

The girl gritted her teeth and put her hand into her skirt pocket.

"So please take a look at this."

After saying that, she raised the arm holding the object and slowly spread out her five fingers.

A small object lay in the palm of her hand.

It was a small oval container with exquisite workmanship, and a purple gem emitting brilliant colors lay quietly inside.

This looks like a valuable luxury item.

But the purpose of Homura Akemi taking it out was not to "show off", and this purple gem was not a "luxury item".

"This is the source of our magical girl's power and the proof of her magical girlhood."

Looking at the gem in her hand, the girl's expression gradually became lonely. It seemed that she did not like the identity of a magical girl.

"This thing's name is [Soul Gem]."

"As the name suggests, this object is the container that carries our magical girl."

Homura Akemi slightly clenched her five fingers, but she did not retract them, but continued to present them in front of her.

"When the Soul Gem shatters, the magical girl dies."

Having said that, the girl once again looked firmly towards the open space ahead.

“This is my sincerity.”

Her words were full of sincerity, and her decision to reveal her lifeline and present it surprised someone.

The breeze blew again, and the purple gem lay quietly in the palm of his hand.

Finally, with Homura Akemi's unremitting efforts, her attitude and her actions made it so that this time, the response to her was no longer the wind that filled the surroundings.

"How can you prove that everything you said is true?"

At this moment, a harsh mechanical synthesized sound came from the direction the girl was facing.

This featureless mechanical voice raised questions that she found difficult to prove, but in response to these challenging words, the girl did reveal a barely perceptible smile.

Since the other party has chosen to speak, it means that he or she has roughly believed what you say.

Of course, even if she got a response, she didn't take back the gem that symbolized her "lifeline."

She even held it out forward.

"What I say is the truth. If you find it hard to believe, just try and break this gem."

"..."

The girl's response silenced the other party.

Ning Jing returned here again, but she understood that the other party was thinking about the current situation at this moment.

Although it was such a dangerous behavior, the expression on Homura Akemi's face was so calm, as if she was sure that the other party would not do it.

And it turned out that her choice was right.

Following a strange picture of distorted light, a machine only the size of the girl's fist appeared in front of her. This was the drone that Xuul had sent out earlier.

Of course, Xuul would not come here in person, and this drone was the only response he could give.

And based on the other party's purpose and attitude, choose the next way of contact.

At present, the behavior of this magical girl named Homura Akemi is so crazy that even Shuul can hardly understand.

He could "see" that the other party was indeed not lying, but precisely because these were facts, it proved that the girl seemed to have some problems with her brain.

After all, who in their right mind would expose their "fatal weakness" to a stranger?

Are all magical girls in this world like this?!

Xiuer didn't understand and couldn't understand, he only respected.

But if you put aside the issue of her brain, it just goes to show how much trust this girl has in herself.

He found it difficult to understand where this trust came from, and how the other party was so sure that he would not take action.

Xiuer came to the appointment to clear his doubts, but now he has more questions.

The answers to these questions all lie with Homura Akemi.

Therefore, even if he had to take action, he had to get all the information from the other party first.

So now that things have come to this, let’s negotiate first.

"What is your purpose in inviting me here?"

Mechanical audio devoid of any emotion floated out from the drone's body, and after being processed by the machine, it reached Homura Akemi's ears with a peaceful tone.