Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

Xiangzi had noticed that she was off balance and quickly reached out to steady her.

"Oh, thank you so much!" Mary jogged up from behind. "I'm so sorry."

"It's nothing," Xiangzi said with a light laugh, shaking his head.

Mary followed behind the girl, pushing a cart and bringing up the remaining plates. Then she squatted down, flicked her fingers, and gave the little girl a light tap on the head.

"Everyone says there's a food cart here, but Xiao Hui is being naughty."

The Tale of Nirvana: Staying True to Myself: Chapter 80 I Have an Idea!

"Everyone says there's a food cart here, but Xiao Hui is being naughty."

Mary flicked the girl on the forehead.

"Woooo..."

"Okay, I'm not mad at you. Just remember to be careful next time." Mary patted the hair of the girl she called Xiao Hui, her voice gentle. "Go play now that you've eaten."

"Ok!"

Xiao Hui nodded vigorously, then turned and skipped away towards the cafeteria exit.

Mary put all the plates on the table.

"The church doesn't have much money. We have to take care of the children and the homeless in the neighborhood, so we can only afford these simple meals. I'm sorry."

"No, no," Xiangzi waved his hand. "The food is already quite good. Although it looks vegetarian, it's very nutritious. You can tell the person who prepared the meals put a lot of thought into it."

"Thank you." Mary bowed to them. "I'll be going now. Please enjoy your meal."

"Aren't we going together?" Hailing asked.

"I have some things to take care of, so I won't bother you any longer."

Mary shook her head, her smile as gentle as spring sunshine.

“You also have things to discuss, right? I’m an outsider here and I’ll only get in your way.”

......

"How considerate you are."

After Mary left, Miaomeng cupped her face and picked up some bamboo shoots.

“Look around at the people. Apart from the children, they are all homeless. She is really doing charity.”

"Have they all been checked?" Xiangzi turned to ask Chuhua.

"Yes, we've checked them all. There are no traces of magic on the wanderers here. However, there is an area in the church that is shielded from magic detection."

“That’s Mary’s bedroom. She’s quite cautious and has set up some defenses in her room. I’ve been inside, and apart from a few traps that would trigger the alarm, there’s nothing there.” Hailing rested her chin on her hand, her eyes half-closed. “Can you rest assured now? Mary is my friend.”

"I'm not familiar with her."

Xiangzi picked up a piece of tofu, mixed it with the white porridge, and stuffed it into his mouth.

"And now?" Hailing asked.

Xiangzi nodded.

It's very clean here. Since Chu Hua said there's nothing unusual, then there shouldn't be any problem. Besides, Hai Ling frequents the church, so she should be the first to know if there were any issues.

"Let's get down to business," Xiangzi said. "Hailin, you said yesterday that you had a way to find the witch. What are the details of how to carry it out?"

"Actually, I only thought of it last night." Hailing pointed to Xiangzi's hand with her chopsticks.

Xiangzi lowered his head, opened his palm, and looked at the witch's kiss that seemed to float on his skin. His eyes became clear.

"I understand. I was used as bait to lure out the familiars, and then they were deliberately released to track down the witch's lair. Is that right?"

Xiangzi clenched his fist loosely.

"But how do we know where its familiars are?"

"Hey, are you just going to skip over the fact that you're acting as bait? It's so dangerous!" Miao Meng exclaimed in surprise. "You're a perfectly normal person now."

"I will protect Xiao Xiang," Chu Hua said.

“I don’t think there’s a better option,” Xiangzi glanced at her. “Or can you think of something better?”

Miaomeng shook her head, saying she didn't.

"I'm afraid if you touch the hickeys on my body, there will be no one to help me get rid of them." Miao Meng pulled open her collar, revealing the different styles of witch's kisses in her and Xiangzi's hands. "We're in this together now."

Hailing's gaze drifted over Miaomeng's collarbone, then down to Xiangzi's face.

"It seems what you said last night was true."

“Hmm, if you help me, you'll become like her,” Xiangzi said. “Even so, are you still going to insist on making a deal with me?”

“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth—that’s my principle.” Hailing held the egg and carefully peeled off the shell. “The fact that you were willing to be the bait is enough for me to help you to the end.”

"Thank you, Hachiman."

"Just call me Hailin, like Hatsuka does." Hailin looked up. "Hachiman sounds too formal."

"Hai Ling."

"Xiangzi, is it okay for you to call me that?"

Xiangzi nodded gently with a smile.

"Getting back to the point, even if I'm to be used as bait, I need to know the general area where the familiars are found. We still don't have enough information in this regard."

“I know that the two robberies that made the news this year were related to it, but the last robber died yesterday, and the trail went cold.”

"The last one?" Chu Hua blinked. "I remember the first case this year wasn't closed yet?"

“They’re already dead. Their money was stolen long ago and laundered on the black market.” Miao Meng rested her chin on her hand and smugly hummed twice. “I’ve already investigated such trivial matters.”

Xiangzi cast a look at Miaomeng that seemed to say, "You can actually be of some use."

Meow Dream immediately collapsed. You ordered 2. Japan 1 Sanling Bazhuo's face.

"What kind of look is that? Didn't you hire me to do this kind of work?" Miao Meng scoffed. "You can doubt my character, but don't doubt my professional skills."

She took out her phone and sent a file to the group chat.

Xiangzi opened the file sent by Miaomeng.

“These are the clues I sorted out last night. I scanned all the comments on TikTok and X. It took me a long time to cover up my dark circles.” Miao Meng flipped through her masterpiece and yawned. “Here are some high-crime areas in Reed Plain. Besides the one from yesterday, the closest one to us is east of Kabukicho, a few stops away by tram.”

"Thanks for your hard work."

"Of course it's tough, but I'm used to it. When we're taking on commercial orders, we often end up working together for a day or two, so it doesn't have a big impact." Miao Meng sighed and poked her cheek. "Luckily, I'm a magical girl, so my skin won't age."

Xiangzi lowered his head, clicked on the tram stop name given by Miaomeng, and his pupils trembled twice.

You're saying this area is a hotspot for robberies?

“Yeah, it’s near the school,” Miao Meng said matter-of-factly. “Students are easy to bully, so it’s only natural that they like to cause trouble in the neighborhood.”

"But this is Yuqiu."

"Yuqiu, what's wrong with Yuqiu?" Miaomeng raised an eyebrow.

"I'm from Haneoka. Don't you know that this school has produced many magical girls?"

"That was in the past; those actors graduated many years ago."

“That’s not right either…” Xiangzi lowered his head. “It makes sense. Right now, Yuqiu should only have a novice left studying. She might not be able to sense the traces of the familiar… In addition, the school has indeed reminded us to walk home in groups recently.”

"Rookie?"

“A newbie who transferred here a month before me likes to show off and is currently looking for teammates. Coincidentally, she approached one of my former teammates. I don’t really want to have anything to do with her.”

"Oh~ it seems you pay quite a bit of attention to her." Miao Meng curled the corners of her mouth meaningfully.

“She came to me herself.”

Xiangzi put down his chopsticks and tapped his fingers on the table like he was playing the piano.

"Let's not talk about her anymore. It's Saturday today, so we probably won't run into her. I'll go down and see if I can find anything."

The Tale of Nirvana: Keeping to Your True Self (by Liu Qi, Chapter 82): Chapter 81 - Work Begins

After lunch, Xiangzi and his group said goodbye to Mary.

Sitting on the tram heading to Haneoka, Shoko received a message from someone after a long time.

[Mu]: Xiang.

[Xiangzi]: What's the matter?

【睦】：Su Shi reassembled the team.

[Xiangzi]: Yes, I know.

【睦】：They also invited me.

Xiangzi gripped his phone a little tighter.

Not only because Mu mentioned Su Shi, but more importantly, Su Shi invited Mu.

She still needs Mu; if Mu really accepts Su Shi's invitation, then basically...

Xiangzi was slightly distracted.

She remembered a long time ago.

Mutsuwa is her childhood friend who grew up with her. The Wakaba family and the Toyokawa family have a lot of business dealings, and the children from both families often play together.

Xiangzi doesn't remember when she met Mu. According to her bastard father, they were already like sisters when they were still babies.

So, on a joking note from her father, Xiangzi began to consider herself the older sister from a young age, and she played with Mu. Mu was also like an obedient younger sister; whatever Xiangzi did, she would do as she was told. Mu would do whatever Xiangzi said, and even though she had been practicing the piano since childhood, she picked up a seven-stringed electric guitar because of a word from Xiangzi.

After the incident at home, the first person Xiangzi told was Mu.

Mu kept everything a secret, just as she had hoped.

Mu is an obedient younger sister.

Like sisters...

Looking back now, Liu Qiyi thinks that Mu was more like a large toy that he used to play house with back then, a doll rather than a person, rather than a sister.

After realizing this, Xiangzi began to distance himself from Mu.

That was when she was still wandering. She began to avoid Mu's questions and wouldn't tell her what she was doing.

She didn't want to be a puppeteer, nor did she want Mu to remain a puppet forever.

That's why she said something like, "Are you still planning to continue being Nagasaki Motoyo's messenger pigeon?" when they met peacefully that day.

Xiangzi typed a line of text on his phone.

Did you agree?

She ultimately didn't send that message; she long-pressed the backspace key and deleted it all.

【睦】：(typing)

What Mu makes a decision is her own business, and it's not something Xiangzi can control.

【睦】：I did not agree.

Xiangzi looked at the line of text that appeared on the screen.

Even though he had just been thinking of letting Mu make the decision himself, Xiangzi still breathed a slight sigh of relief when this reply popped up.

【睦】：祥 still needs me.

Mu seemed to be able to read minds and conveyed Xiangzi's thoughts.

Xiangzi gritted his teeth and swallowed the thought that had just popped into his head.

She needs harmony.

[Xiangzi]: Yes, I'll let you know when I need you.

[Xiangzi]: It will be here soon.

【Mu】：Okay.