Toyokawa Shoko doesn't want to become a witch

"If stray cats come, there won't be a problem."

"You mean I can't be counted on?"

"I......"

"Do you think you'll be of any use?"

"Ha, it's not like I didn't weave the net for you!"

"Anyone can do that kind of thing."

"I...don't want to..."

"you--!"

"Alright! Stop!"

Su Shi pushed Aine and Li Xi away.

Although Aine and Riki were so angry they were almost at each other's throats, the moment they heard the name "Light," they immediately calmed down as if doused with cold water.

“If there’s something you want to say, why don’t you calm down and listen to it first?” Su Shi said.

The lamp weakly tugged at its sleeve, its head bowed.

"...I don't want to answer."

"Did you hear that? The lamp disagrees too."

Ai Yin acted like a eunuch who had received an imperial decree, immediately turning on Li Xi with a servile attitude.

"I've always said it's too early for us."

"Light, why?" Lixi looked at her, puzzled.

"I told you everything..."

"Because...it will end."

It will all end, just like before.

Whether it's Xiao Xiang, Li Xi, Su Shi, or Mu...

It will end.

“We’re strong enough and have experience with hardcore games. As long as we can get the stray cats involved, there won’t be any problems.” Lixi crossed her arms.

"No...it's not because of the witch...I can't really explain it..."

Rather, it's because of... reasons that they themselves don't understand.

The lamp had this premonition.

So she was very scared.

My hands were suddenly grasped.

"Thank you for being willing to speak up."

Su Shi stood in front of her, a gentle smile on her face.

"Accidents are unavoidable for everyone, but this time we'll communicate properly, so... let's give it a try, okay, Light?"

"I'll hold you back..."

"But we're all gathered here because of the lights, aren't we? Just wait for us in a safe place~"

"I......"

After hesitating for a long time, Deng finally withdrew his hand, turned around, and silently walked downstairs.

Ai Yin immediately followed.

Lixi and Sushi had no choice but to follow behind.

The group walked out of the office building in silence, which Xiangzi saw clearly.

The sight of the lamp made Xiangzi's pupils shrink violently, and a feeling of dizziness and weakness in his limbs surged up instantly.

Fortunately, Nagasaki Motoyo's flaxen hair made her body almost reflexively seek cover to hide; otherwise, if she had just stood there on the street, she probably would have been spotted by the lights immediately.

Among the group, Miaomeng was the tallest. She hid in Miaomeng's shadow. Chuhua took a step towards Miaomeng, which blocked Xiangzi's path.

"What are you doing?" Miao Meng looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"Shh, there's something troublesome. Let me stay out of it."

"Oh~" Miaomeng pursed her lips meaningfully, "Is it that newbie I was talking about earlier?"

"If only it were her."

Xiangzi smacked his lips, and unusually, he showed a look of disgust to anyone other than Miaomeng.

Why add the qualifier "except for Meow Dream"? It's really hurtful.

Miao Meng looked downcast and turned to look at the group of people walking in the opposite direction from them. The gray-haired girl at the front even glanced at them.

That's quite a keen sense.

Miao Meng squinted her eyes.

“They’ve gone far away.” Miao Meng reached out and poked Xiangzi’s forehead with her finger.

"..."

Xiangzi's shoulders slumped noticeably, as if he had just sent away some plague god.

"Okay, let's continue then. We've already wasted quite a bit of time."

"Who are they to you? Is it really necessary to do this?" Miao Meng asked, arms crossed, puzzled.

"Former teammate".

"Oh huh?"

“A whole bunch of messy things piled up together, and it ended up like this.” Xiangzi turned around and continued walking forward without looking back. “You already know what happened to my family, why are you asking about these trivial details?”

Chu Hua followed behind Xiang Zi, and as she brushed past Miao Meng, she made an X with her finger and then zipped up her mouth.

As Hailing walked by, she shrugged at Miaomeng.

"Fine, fine, I won't ask. Can't you even satisfy my curiosity about gossip?"

Miao Meng put one hand on her hip, sighed, and followed the three people in front of her.

At opposite ends of the long street, two groups of people were heading in different directions, and soon they could no longer see each other at all.

=========

We finally arrived at our destination, a narrow alley connecting two streets, where you could see directly from one end to the other.

"It should be right here."

Xiangzi stood at the entrance of the alley. Sunlight streamed into the alley from behind her, but it couldn't illuminate anything. Apart from the sunlight at the far end of the alley, all the remaining details of the shadows were completely covered by the sunlight, and it was impossible to see what was inside the alley.

"The aura of magic is very strong, this is definitely the place." Meow Dream sniffed, "But it doesn't have that feeling that a familiar should have... it doesn't have that flamboyant aura."

“The trained witches and familiars are very obedient, it’s hard to say whether they are under the orders of their master.” Hailing leaned against the wall. “Xiangzi’s witch’s kiss has already made them restless, but they are still hiding in the alley and have not come out. They are very well-trained familiars.”

"I'm going in, keep an eye on me."

"Mm." Hailing nodded.

“I’ll be watching,” Chu Hua said.

Miao Meng didn't say anything, but gave Xiangzi a thumbs up.

Xiangzi glanced at the Witch's Kiss in his palm and took a deep breath.

I stepped forward and into the alley.

After stepping into complete darkness and briefly adjusting, the outline of the alley became clear. Several trash cans were placed on one side, and a tent was pitched against the wall on the other side, surrounded by a row of cardboard signs.

There are wanderers living here; no wonder the familiar is here.

Just as Xiangzi was thinking this...

A piercing shriek rang in my ears.

The alleyway transformed into the simple line drawing maze that Xiangzi had seen yesterday in the blink of an eye.

The familiar she had failed to catch a glimpse of yesterday finally appeared before her eyes.

The tent in front of her did not disappear just because she was dragged into the familiar space. A dirty hand grabbed the edge of the tent, pulled open the curtain, and a man with empty eyes crawled out.

Two or three large ants, each nearly a meter long, crawled on the man's back, their compound eyes focused on him.

The Tale of Nirvana: Staying True to One's True Self: Chapter 84 A Battle with No Way Out

Xiangzi was in the center of the maze, and the high walls surrounding her completely isolated her from the outside world.

The familiars clung to the man, controlling his movements.

Xiangzi reached under his skirt, pulled out his M1911 from its holster, and flicked the safety with his thumb.

No wonder it took Chu Hua and the others so much time to deal with just a few familiars last night.

One by one, several more ant-like familiars crawled out of the tent and cautiously surrounded it.

Although the barrier is the same type as the one used when we were attacked yesterday, the way these familiars are treating their prey is noticeably different now.

Judging from their current cautiousness, if Chu Hua and the others hadn't been outside but had followed him in, this trip would have been in vain.

"Alright, you've finally come out."

Xiangzi licked his lips.

"Next..."

The ant colony spread slowly outwards from the homeless man, their caution more like that of a pack of wolves hunting than ants.

Xiangzi faced the ant swarm and retreated little by little.

The heel landed softly, making a faint click. Beneath the crisp sound was a dense rustling noise as the compound eyes of the ant-shaped familiar stared at Xiangzi.

The air seemed to have turned into a solid.

Both sides seemed to be waiting for a signal, ready to erupt at any moment.

Suddenly, Xiangzi moved first.

She turned and ran into the maze without looking back.

What we need to do now is to prolong the time as much as possible until Chu Hua and the others find us.

The familiars were clearly taken aback for a moment, then chased after Xiangzi into the maze they had created.

......

There was no wind, no air movement, only the sounds of rapid breathing and footsteps approaching from afar.

Xiangzi turned around, took aim, and pulled the trigger.

boom!

The compound eye of an ant familiar flying in mid-air was smashed, and the gelatinous contents inside flowed out from the broken compound eye.

Xiangzi didn't have time to care whether the insect's compound eyes contained a gelatinous structure. She was too busy catching her breath to breathe. The air was like a knife, rushing into her lungs with each breath, mercilessly scouring her body before being expelled. Her congested mouth was filled with the taste of blood.

"(Moshi moshi, Xiangzi Xiangzi, can you hear me?)"

"(Stop talking nonsense.)" Xiangzi muttered to himself.

"(Do you know where you are?)"

"(I left markers along the way; you can find me by following the corpses of the ants.)"

"(Okay, I'm coming right away, hang in there!)"

Xiangzi exhaled a breath and suddenly stopped.

Gan.

It's a dead end.

She immediately turned around, only to be met by another familiar crawling towards her.