Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

However, the lamp hadn't yet decided on its wish.

Going to school, coming home, writing songs, practicing singing, shopping, chatting, afternoon tea, karaoke, hunting witches, and... live performances.

Their first live performance was a great success.

At the same time, this live performance also meant that a Hard-level witch had been reserved by them, and the witch hunt was also very successful. Their evaluation level changed from the lower-level Nobody to the upper-level Somebody.

The magical girl rating system is different from the witch danger level system. There are only three levels: Nobody (lower level), Somebody (higher level), and Protagonist (higher level), which is only possessed by the legendary magical girls known as the "Seven Bands of Reed Plains".

Yes, they had transformed from ordinary people into respectable figures, and Xiangzi felt as if he were living a wonderful dream.

......

If it weren't for the "Toyokawa family tragedy" that made the news.

Xiangzi's wish was probably for "my mother" to come back, so what came back was "Xiangzi's mother," not "that man's wife."

In Xiangzi's eyes, his mother was gentle, virtuous, and perfect.

But Xiangzi was just a child, and a mother would only show her most perfect side to her child. So the mother who came back was as perfect as a doll, or rather, she was a doll created by Xiangzi's wishes.

She was not the wife in Xiangzi's father's eyes, nor even the woman in other people's eyes; "she" was simply Xiangzi's mother.

Xiangzi was the first to discover that his "mother" would unconditionally obey any of his requests and would satisfy whatever he said.

That wasn't her real mother; Kyubey twisted her wish.

The father also discovered this. When he learned that his wife had not been miraculously saved, and that the person standing in front of him was a soulless puppet, and that it was his beloved daughter who had caused all of this, he broke down.

He believed that Xiangzi was no longer Xiangzi, but had been possessed by a witch.

He managed to spend all his money, became addicted to alcohol, and embarked on a path leading to the abyss.

He shot his mother, who was a puppet, and then committed suicide, leaving Xiangzi all alone.

Having witnessed everything, Xiangzi picked up her gun and ended her own life in the same way.

Two days after shooting herself in the head, she emerged from a stench of flies and corpses, her Soul Gem nearly fully corrupted.

It was only then that Xiangzi realized what had happened.

Magical girls are immortal; as long as the Soul Gem remains, they will not die.

as well as......

The end for a magical girl is to become a witch.

She really was a witch, just as her father believed.

She mustered her courage and fired a shot at her own Soul Gem.

The gemstone cracked, but she still didn't die.

She was scared.

Xiangzi no longer had the courage to try a third time. She used up all her sorrow to purify the filth that caused the gems to surge, thus saving her life and escaping from the Toyokawa family.

Xiangzi awoke from his reverie to find himself standing at the entrance to the witch's barrier.

A Remington M11 semi-automatic shotgun, which she had once seen in her father's armory, was now in her hands. It was one of the contraband collectibles that her father had bought from a friend in "high society." After Xiangzi became a magical girl, all the contraband items in the house became her source of firepower.

One by one, the re-emerged bullets were inserted into the loading port below, and finally the charging handle was pulled back to put the bullets into the barrel.

With a click, the bolt closed.

Xiangzi hooked the safety latch with her left hand, and she found that even her memories had become calm. Now, when she thought about what happened half a year ago, she felt nothing.

After all, she had already done everything she could to stay alive.

The bodies of Xiangzi's parents were discovered three days after he left. The cerebrospinal fluid left behind when Xiangzi committed suicide was also tested. The final result was that "the Fengchuan family was wiped out," and Xiangzi became a dead man in the social sense.

She wandered the streets, working part-time as an illegal laborer, trying to enroll in a new school, and hunting witches to survive.

There were times when I even spent the nights at bus stops.

Everything was gone: her mother was gone, her father was gone, her home was gone, her money was gone, and the surrounding space was filled with distortions that only witches and magical girls could see.

this is the truth.

Xiangzi held a pistol, his clothes transformed into a magical girl's outfit, and the rainwater on his body disappeared completely.

She took a deep breath, preparing to step into the witch's barrier.

Just then, she heard footsteps behind her, just like the day she failed to commit suicide twice and quit Crychic.

......

"I'm quitting Crychic," Xiangzi said coldly, slapping Su Shi's hand away.

If they stay, the Soul Gem will definitely be exposed. The cracked Soul Gem requires more Grief Seeds than the four of them combined. And the fact that magical girls can turn into witches... they'll be devastated if they find out. None of them are prepared.

Quitting is the best option. Even if I become a witch in some forgotten corner, it's better than becoming a witch around them.

As expected, this statement led to a dispute.

Su Shi spoke words of concern, trying to persuade her to stay; Li Xi rushed up and grabbed her by the collar, starting to berate her; Deng rambled on, saying many heartfelt things; Mu was still holding his guitar, looking out the window.

Xiangzi is gone.

As she stood at the entrance of the livehouse, about to step into the rain once again, something unexpected happened.

Xiangzi believes that's why he's managed to persevere until now without having a mental breakdown.

......

"Xiao Xiang!"

Just like that day, Takamatsu Akira stood behind him and grabbed his hand.

"I want to be with you! We can face any difficulties together! Don't shoulder everything alone!"

That day, Takamatsu Tamako chased after the silent RiNG, lighting a candle in the heart of the hysterical Shoko.

She became the only light in Xiangzi's suddenly dark world.

She became Xiangzi's deity.

The Tale of Nirvana: Where Did You Sleep Last Night? Chapter 3: The Heart-Shaped Box

"lamp?!"

At the entrance to the witch's barrier in the old school building, Xiangzi turned around and stared in astonishment.

When did you catch up?

"I followed behind Xiao Xiang the whole time."

Dressed in casual clothes, Takamatsu Akari tugged at her fingers, fidgeting and speaking softly.

"I want to help Xiao Xiang."

“You’re not a magical girl, how can you help?” Xiangzi said, frowning.

Gao Songdeng followed her like a piece of chewing gum, impossible to shake off. She had no choice but to tell Deng the whole truth in an attempt to scare her away.

She recounted everything, from her own experiences to the truth about magical girls, without missing a single word.

Lantern just shook her head and said, "It's okay, Xiao Xiang. I won't easily wish to become a magical girl. I promise I won't cause any trouble. I want to help as much as I can, any kind of help is fine."

Things like that.

Even when Xiangzi said that he could turn into the witch who wanted to kill you at any time and kill you, Deng did not show the slightest fear.

The Gao Songdeng I know is like a timid little animal. Is she really that brave?

......

That's the kind of person Deng is. Maybe I was drawn to her inner strength, which is why I pulled her into forming a band.

Having someone like that by your side is the greatest help you can receive.

"Not causing trouble is the biggest help you can give." Xiangzi rubbed his temples.

“I can help.” Deng handed her the notebook she had been holding. “I found something that Xiao Xiang didn’t notice.”

"What is this?" Xiangzi took the notebook.

"A collection of stories?" Lamp said uncertainly. "I'm guessing it's something left behind when she was a witch or a magical girl."

Xiangzi opened the notebook and flipped through a few pages at random. The notebook was tattered and covered with various paint stains, as if it had been roughly handled.

It's nowhere near as good as those laptops that are meticulously maintained by the lamp.

"Why are you so sure?" Xiangzi asked.

“I have a feeling,” the lamp said confidently. “It fell near the entrance to the barrier.”

Xiangzi nodded.

“I just read it. It’s a collection of stories told from the first-person perspective, using someone’s emotions as the narrator,” Lamp continued. “I really like it.”

“Using someone’s emotions as the first person…” Xiangzi turned to one of the pages. “I am Asagiri’s happy heart. Today, Asagiri ate her favorite matcha cake, so I am the color of the matcha cake.”

"I am the broken heart of Asagiri. Today, Asagiri's kitten was lost by her brother, so I am the black and white of the kitten."

"I am the angry heart of Asagiri. Today, Asagiri was beaten by her classmates and bled, so I am the red of that blood..."

"I am the despairing heart of Asagiri. Today, the umbrella that my mother gave Asagiri was slashed open, so I am the blackish-purple of the umbrella."

Xiangzi felt a lump in his throat. He closed the notebook, glanced at the name on the cover, then turned his gaze to the umbrella-shaped entrance to the witch's barrier and said softly.

"It seems the witch's surname used to be Asagiri... School bullying... How pathetic."

"So pitiful." Deng's expression was almost tearful. "Why did it have to turn out like this...?"

"Who knows?" Xiangzi sighed, stuffing the tattered notebook into Deng's arms. "Never mind, you keep watch at the entrance of the barrier and don't let anyone get close. If a magical girl comes, tell her this place has already been reserved."

“Okay.” Deng nodded vigorously, her hair swaying like a little animal. “I really like her writing style, ‘I am someone’s happiness, I am someone’s sadness…’ Xiao Xiang.”

"Ok?"

"I want to be Xiao Xiang's heart-shaped box, filled with Xiao Xiang's happiness, joy, and ease... Please don't have to wear the same face every day." Gao Songdeng held a notebook in his arms. "I am Xiao Xiang's optimistic heart."

"Ah."

Xiangzi couldn't help but twitch her lips, but she quickly noticed it, so she forced herself to keep a straight face, picked up her gun, and walked into the barrier.

=========

The art style of the witch's barrier is strange. It's strange to use the word "art style" to describe the world in sight, as if it were painted by someone with a paintbrush.

They really do look like they were painted on with a paintbrush.

Takamatsu walked into the school building corridor, which was completely different from the style of the real world.

Candy means candy, and a Safe-level witch implies that she is weak, perhaps even weaker than the familiars of some powerful witches.

There are two ways a witch can be born. One is that a Soul Gem hatches a Sorrow Seed, which then hatches into a witch. The other is that a powerful witch's familiar hatches a Sorrow Seed, which then hatches into a witch.

The candy must have been transformed from a magical girl, and this magical girl was so weak that she didn't even have a familiar, nor could she move the witch's barrier. In fact, the things inside the barrier were almost identical to those in reality, only the art style was a little strange.

It's kind of like German Expressionist films, or Picasso's Cubist abstract paintings? Anyway, it's all kind of weird stuff.

Xiangzi's footsteps echoed in the space. She remembered that the notebook that Deng had found had a class and name written on it. If it really was a notebook left by the witch, the witch's true form should be in the corresponding location.

Class 3E, Junior High School.

Xiangzi looked up at the class list on the wall: Class 2A of Junior High School. That shouldn't be on this floor.

So we had to keep going up, and after going up two more floors, we finally found Class 3E of the junior high school. It looked like a bottom-ranked class, with the door much more dilapidated than other places, probably because the students had vandalized it quite a bit.

It's not surprising that school violence could arise in such a place.

This Asagiri was probably bullied a lot in her daily life. Even after becoming a magical girl, she didn't have the courage to take revenge on those who bullied her. She was weak and didn't dare to team up with others. In the end, she couldn't even defeat a Safe-class witch and couldn't get the Lament Seed. So, she became... in such a frustrating way.

Witch.

Xiangzi swallowed hard and gripped the doorknob.

A witch's name is something she is born with; anyone who sees her can recognize it, and the name is more or less related to the witch's abilities.

What does "candy" mean?

The notebook didn't mention anything like candy, and Asagiri liked matcha cake, not candy... So what exactly did candy mean?

Xiangzi noticed the abnormality hidden in the witch's name, and, being more cautious, slowly opened the classroom door of Class 3-E.