Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

Of course, what made Chu Hua's pupils shrink to their smallest size was not the first white fur ball that appeared, but the person right behind the white fur ball.

That was... another version of myself.

Another version of myself?

"So we've returned to this time." Another Chu Hua emerged from the phone booth and looked around.

“This timeframe is acceptable.” Del, carrying a long, rectangular object, took out the super-causal device from the phone booth. “The energy for the return journey has already been injected into the MKII-slim. I’ll take this for now. I’m not going back with you.”

Are you going to do your own thing?

"Mm." Del nodded, turned and walked away into the distance. "Goodbye, Chuhua."

“Reappear.” Chu Hua waved to Del’s receding figure.

Only after Del had completely left did she turn her gaze to the past Chu Hua, "...Hello, past me."

"You're also...Doloris?"

"No, who I am is not important." Chu Hua shook her head as she walked out of the phone booth. "I came here just to talk to you."

"...What did you say? Why? What...what exactly is going on?" Chu Hua's mind went blank, and she gave up trying to think.

"You like Xiangzi."

"Huh?! Why are you bringing this up?!"

Although everyone knows about this, why is this person who came from who-knows-where bringing it up? It's not only inexplicable, but coming from her mouth, it feels... quite embarrassing.

What on earth was she trying to say?

“If you really, really like her,” another Chu Hua slowly stepped forward, knelt down in front of her, and glanced at Dolores, who was about to disappear completely, out of the corner of her eye, “then, if there really comes a day when she is hurt, helpless, and needs you to comfort her…”

"...Just be tolerant of her."

"No, you have to wake her up." Another Chu Hua stretched out her fist and gently touched Chu Hua's forehead, as if that counted as punching her. "She needs you, but not your boundless tolerance, but your encouragement."

"When she was hurt and crying there helplessly, what she really wanted to hear was not 'You've done so well,' 'You've tried so hard,' or 'You don't have to try so hard.'"

"She is a very, very, very proud person, and also very awkward. Even if she wants to give up, she won't say it. Similarly, when she doesn't want to give up, she will keep it to herself."

“What she wants to hear most is for someone to walk up to her, pat her on the shoulder, and tell her, ‘I believe in you,’ ‘I believe you can do it,’ ‘I believe you are omnipotent.’ That would give her the motivation.” Chu Hua took a deep breath and looked at her past self. “As long as we are still supporting her to keep going, she is the omnipotent Toyokawa Shoko, the god-like Toyokawa Shoko.”

"So, whatever means are necessary, let's help her get back on her feet." She smiled gently. "If a miracle really happens, it will be a miracle we create together. The future is in your hands."

Chu Hua stretched and turned to walk into the phone booth.

If she didn't leave soon, Xiangzi would realize something was wrong, and she would be discovered. So, in reality, she could only say these things to her past self.

Goodbye, my past self. When that day truly comes, remember what I said.

Beyond the Tale: Stars and Us: Ending D - Beautiful World

After his search failed, Xiangzi stood alone in the middle of the street, looking at the sky above the barrier, and let out a long sigh.

The sky above the barrier slowly began to merge with the real world, eventually revealing the starry night sky.

The dark clouds in the sky had been completely blown away by the earth-shattering blast that Norlin and her past self had created. The sky was exceptionally clear, and every star was clearly visible.

"call."

She closed her eyes and completely relaxed her body.

"Next, it's time to turn back."

================================================== ====

And so, another thirty years passed, and time continued to move forward, until two days after Xiangzi and Del were sent to the other side.

After all the supplies Xiangzi needed were transferred to the other side, Del also transferred there. From then on, the mission on the three underground floors was theoretically completed.

The third basement level is now very deserted, and you can hardly see anyone there.

Today, Miaomeng and Hailing came downstairs just to check if there were any devices placed downstairs to keep the shelter running.

After the routine check-up was completed, the two of them gathered once again in Del's large laboratory, staring blankly at what they saw.

"Hai Zi, now that Del is gone, doesn't that mean we have no one left to tinker with these things?" Miao Meng put her hands on her hips and looked up at the various pieces of equipment piled up in the laboratory. "Should we just leave them here?"

"We can't afford to lose it," Hailing said.

"I wonder if they succeeded or not." Miao Meng shifted her posture, holding the back of her head with both hands. "If they succeeded, the timeline we're in should also disappear."

"I can't say for sure."

"Sigh." Miaomeng sighed, "Even if they didn't disappear, if Xiangzi really saved Chuhua, then wouldn't that mean they've been living in hiding somewhere for thirty years without ever seeing us?"

"Maybe."

"Or maybe it's just a failure." Miao Meng smirked. "It's not impossible."

"..." Hai Ling lowered her head, unusually remaining silent.

"Hai Zi, you seem distracted all day." Miao Meng looked over curiously. "Mu Zi too. You've all become like this since Xiang Zi left."

"I'm a little melancholy," Hailing said. "Xiangzi has only been back for a short time."

“That makes sense…” Miao Meng sighed. “Thirty years have passed since we last met. She’s only been back for a short time, and then she just left again.”

"right."

"Yes."

“It should be a success,” Hailing suddenly said.

"Why are you suddenly answering the question from before?"

“I believe she can succeed.” Hailing looked up at the third machine, which was covered by a thick cloth. “So she will definitely succeed.”

"What kind of cause and effect is this?" Miao Meng smirked. "But it's pretty good to be as optimistic as you."

She stretched and said again, "I feel guilty."

"Actually, I've always had a feeling that she has never left us."

"I heard that you bring this up when you're drunk, causing trouble for a lot of people."

“It’s true! Whether it was at the end of that great battle or before the shelter was built, I seemed to see her shadow several times during critical moments of life and death.” Miao Meng lowered her eyes as she spoke, “But no one ever believed her. Everyone thought I was drunk.”

“After all, you were really drunk.” Hailing turned her head. “Actually, I saw her too, which is why I believe she actually succeeded.”

Ding-dong-

Just then, the elevator on the third basement level suddenly rang. Miaomeng and Hailing's eyes immediately focused on the elevator door frame, waiting for the elevator to come down.

Who could it be? No one has gone up to the third basement level today, and no one with access to this elevator is staying on the ground. So who could be the person who suddenly starts the elevator and comes down from the ground?

The two glanced at each other and swallowed.

They were both thinking of the same person, someone they had just been discussing.

Ding.

"The elevator has arrived."

A notification tone came from the speaker, and the elevator doors slowly opened. A blue figure slowly stepped out of the elevator.

Xiangzi swept her hair back, put one hand on her hip, and looked at her two companions who were staring intently at her.

"What, are you surprised to see me?" She tilted her head. "It's only been a few days."

===============================================

A few days later, the third basement level became busy again.

The reason is simple: Xiangzi has returned.

The Shoko who appears in the shelter now has traveled back from the other side to thirty years ago, and then, following the chronological order, has returned to the present Shoko Toyokawa.

After returning from a long journey, she didn't give herself any time to rest. Instead, she immediately restarted the unfinished equipment left by Del, declaring that there was still a final task to be completed.

For the people in the shelter, this return trip meant they hadn't seen her for only a few days, but for her, it felt like sixty years had passed.

She finally got through the time she had missed from a normal perspective.

Basically, she hasn't missed a single one, she's just moved from the spotlight to behind the scenes.

Miao Meng's drunken ramblings were not wrong. When I first heard them, I didn't realize what she was talking about. However, in the thirty years that have passed since then, she did give everyone a push when they were about to give up, saving this land and allowing the shelter to be built smoothly.

Without transcending causality, she wasn't much stronger than her sacrificed predecessors; being able to defeat that powerful proxy in the end was already incredibly lucky.

On several other occasions, she almost didn't make it through and died on the way back.

The journey was fraught with hardship, and the stories she experienced could probably fill another Homeric epic. They were all so close, yet she dared not acknowledge them, choosing instead to watch them silently from behind the scenes, quietly trying to find ways to support them.

Fortunately, she persevered and completed her arduous journey back to the present. Like Odysseus returning home, she found herself back where she was.

Next, all you need to do is complete what Del handed over to you, and put the last piece of the puzzle together.

If miracles that can change the world truly exist, they must be the result of everyone's collective efforts.

The fact that the machine that Del hadn't finished before could appear before everyone in a brand new form is the result of everyone's joint efforts.

It took me more than a month to finally finish it.

What now lay before Xiangzi and the others was a door of considerable size. "MKIV: The Door Across the World," Del's unfinished work before leaving, a portal to Fairy Tale Town—this was the final step in completing the plan to change the world.

“Using the connection between the Ancient World and the Fairy Tale Town world, and using supercausality as an energy source, we will drive the portal.” Xiangzi swallowed hard, his finger hovering over the large red button in front of him. “The information left by Del says that, right? Will there really be no problems?”

"I can vaguely sense the existence of the Fairy Tale Town world. The portal has been activated, so it should be clearer now."

Su Shi stood next to the instrument beside the door frame, wearing a headgear that looked like headphones. This instrument, which helped her locate the world of Fairy Tale Town, was integrated with the main body of the portal.

"Xiao Xiang, we will succeed." She gave Xiangzi a thumbs up.

"I hope so," Xiangzi said, still feeling a little guilty.

“Every step so far has gone smoothly, there shouldn’t be any problems.” Miao Meng stood beside her, looking at the portal with a tense expression. “We’ve come this far, we can’t afford any more accidents.”

"If anything goes wrong, I'll just blame it all on Del. After all, she's the one who designed this thing." Xiangzi took a deep breath and pressed the big red button.

A deep, mechanical roar came from the direction of the door, and a brilliant golden light instantly filled the entire third basement level.

The light faded after a moment, leaving a familiar-looking golden film shimmering with light in the middle of the door frame.

"Success!"

"It really worked!"

"WOW————!"

The laboratory erupted in cheers, as if a rocket had been successfully launched into orbit. Everyone was in a frenzy, and those who had participated in the work hugged each other in celebration. Some even pulled out fireworks they had secretly prepared and lit the fuses.

The laboratory on the third basement floor had never been so lively.

Amidst the cheering crowd, Xiangzi remained remarkably calm. She took out a pre-recorded cassette tape from her pocket and gently traced the handwriting she had left on the tape label with her fingers.

She put the cassette tape into her Walkman, pressed play, and played it again in her ears. Amidst the noise, the monologue left on the tape played to its end, leaving behind a long string of white noise.

Xiangzi pressed the stop button, picked up his Walkman, and walked up to a figure with long black hair.

Flame was probably the only fully armed person present.

According to the plan, she will be the first person to pass through the portal and return to the world of Fairy Tale Town—the "first person to land on the moon."

Xiangzi walked up to her and handed the Walkman to Yan.

"Leave a message for your past self: be sure to hand this Walkman back to me at the right time," Xiangzi said. "This moment has finally arrived, the moment you remember. How long have we waited?"

"It's thirty years for me, but for you, it should be sixty years." Yan smiled and took the cassette tape. "Give it to me."

"And this, it should be returned to its rightful owner now." Xiangzi took out the small round shield that Yan had given her from the Soul Gem. "Thanks to you, I was able to save Chuhua."

"So what happened back then?" Flame asked curiously.

“I activated the time-stop mechanism just before the black hole was created. After taking Chu Hua away, Chu Hua and Del used that super-causality to go back to World Line A,” Xiangzi said. “If everything goes smoothly, we just need to finish what we need to do... and then wait for a miracle to happen.”

"If we succeed, will we disappear? Will the B world line cease to exist?"

“Our efforts won’t be in vain.” Xiangzi patted her shoulder. “Del told me that if the future is truly changed in this way, then there are two possibilities—”

"In the first scenario, the B world line we live in no longer exists, and the world arrives at a completely new C world line."

"The second possibility is that, starting from that crucial point of divergence, time will branch out and give birth to another world that is similar to us but different. At that time, our current B timeline, C timeline, and the world of the fairytale town created by the lamp will become three completely independent worlds that do not interfere with each other."

"Senior, which ending do you hope for for us?"