One-way traffic

"Well, if I could, I'd really like to go check out a record store."

"A record store?"

Hatsune Miku was stunned for a moment, and it was Sayaka Miki who said those words.

She seemed somewhat surprised.

"So, Sayaka, you really like music too?"

"Huh? I wouldn't say I particularly like it, it's just..."

The blue-haired girl scratched her head, seemingly hesitant.

It seems there are some little secrets that can't be told.

Hatsune Miku didn't intend to pry, simply smiled and turned her head away.

"I really like music too, so let's go to a record store together."

"Great, great! That suits me just fine!"

After being stopped from being asked further questions, Sayaka Miki's expression immediately relaxed.

She grabbed Madoka Kaname's arm, and the two of them, laughing and joking, followed Hatsune Miku towards the record store.

The distance to the record store was short; they arrived in about a minute.

The store does indeed have a wide variety of records, from retro to rock, basically every kind of record you can imagine is here.

Hatsune Miku originally thought this place should be in the distant future.

She was surprised that CDs were so highly regarded here... She had thought that downloading songs from the internet and playing them on a mobile phone was the mainstream practice.

Sayaka Miki stood directly in front of the display case, put on the headphones for listening, and began to listen to the contents of the record.

It seems to be a section dedicated to violin music.

Sayaka is actually a girl who plays the violin? I thought someone with her somewhat tomboyish personality wouldn't be interested in something like that.

Hatsune Miku also walked to the side and listened to the contents of the record.

A sound filled with harmony and tranquility instantly reached her ears through the headphones.

I feel like even my mind and body have become calmer.

She closed her eyes and quietly began to experience the music on the record.

Looking back on everything that has happened so far, it feels like a dream.

Accompanied by the soothing music of the record, Hatsune Miku gradually and deeply immersed herself in the depths of her heart.

Then--

"Um, Hatsune Miku-san...!"

The sudden sound interrupted her thoughts.

Hatsune Miku quickly opened her eyes, not knowing how long she had been standing there listening, probably only about four minutes.

But someone was already calling him from the side. Turning around, he could see a blue-haired girl staring at him anxiously.

It's Sayaka Miki.

"What's wrong, Sayaka?"

"Well, it's like this."

As she spoke, the anxiety on her face seemed to become even more pronounced.

"Do you...do you know where Xiaoyuan went?"

——————————————————————————————————————————

I don't know how long they searched, but in short, they went to every place they could reach.

Hatsune Miku and Sayaka Miki searched together in the deserted, dark corridor.

"Little round!"

No matter how much he shouted, no one paid any attention to him.

The two reached the end of the road, where a sign prohibiting entry was displayed.

Further ahead, it would be considered a restricted area of ​​the mall, probably separated by construction or something.

However, they couldn't see any trace of Madoka Kaname along the way.

"What, what should we do, Hatsune Miku?"

Sayaka Miki's face had changed from initial anxiety to an extremely anxious expression.

Kaname Madoka, who had been with them, had completely disappeared, just like a ghost story from the Japanese countryside where someone had vanished into thin air.

As her close friend, Sayaka Miki was so anxious that she could barely speak.

Hatsune Miku looked around. This was the end of the mall. If she wasn't here, then there was no way she would be found in the other places they had already explored.

then.

A sound like an explosion came directly from ahead.

"Wha, what?"

Sayaka Miki stared in astonishment.

Deep within this road marked with "No Entry," a colliding sound emanated from within.

At that moment, Hatsune Miku was just as astonished.

At the end of this road, some strange energy fluctuations were erupting one by one.

"Sayaka, stay here and don't move!"

"Eh? Hatsune Miku?!"

Without a response, Hatsune Miku ran swiftly into the corridor marked "No Entry," leaving Sayaka stunned.

The girl stood there in a daze, but as the footsteps grew farther and farther away, she suddenly snapped out of her daze.

Madoka Kaname, her good friend is very likely among them.

How could we possibly stand idly by?

She gritted her teeth, ignored Hatsune Miku's request for her to stay there, and ran inside.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Can't go wrong.

As Hatsune Miku walked along the way, she came to believe that everything was going on.

The energy fluctuations that just erupted from the depths of the corridor felt very familiar.

It has the same aura as Mami Tomoe that I met yesterday!

The exact situation and the probability of it being true are already quite clear.

She ran as fast as she could to the deepest part and finally saw the situation clearly.

There are three people in total.

A black-haired girl standing to one side.

A blonde girl standing on the other side.

And another girl with pink twin tails, sitting astride the ground, holding a cat-like creature in her arms.

It's Madoka Kaname.

And standing on the right is another girl I met yesterday.

"Mami Tomoe...?"

Hatsune Miku unconsciously whispered something.

Mami Tomoe on the other side was also stunned, while Madoka Kaname held the white creature tightly in her arms. It seemed to have many burn-like marks on its body.

Hatsune Miku immediately turned her gaze to another person—a black-haired girl.

She stared intently at Madoka Kaname in front of her, her eyes slightly narrowed, and in her right hand... she held a military pistol.

The current situation is quite clear.

"You...did you do this?"

She glanced at the black-haired girl, then at the white creature in Madoka Kaname's arms.

Could it be that she's the one who beat that white creature into this state?

"Why…?"

She tried to observe the girl in front of her more closely.

With long black hair and a gun in hand, she's probably a magical girl like Mami Tomoe—wait, what?

Wait a mininute.

She blinked involuntarily, and in that instant, she recalled a similar description of her appearance.

Could it be the person that Yi Fang mentioned to him yesterday—

They all look the same, right?

"You are not—"

"I hope there won't be a next time."

Mami Tomoe smiled, but it was a very indifferent smile.

"That Hatsune Miku over there is a magical girl just like me. Now that we're both here, it's not your place to hurt Kyubey."

"A magical girl... Are you really that sure about that?"

"Are you going to say we'll condone you continuing to do this kind of thing?"

She took a cold step forward.

"I'm sorry, transfer student Homura Akemi. Kyubey is an important partner of mine, and I will not allow anyone to hurt it without reason."

"So, if you still want to continue this entanglement, don't blame me for being impolite."

Homura Akemi.

Hatsune Miku heard the name that belonged to the other person.

In that instant, a sudden feeling arose directly from the depths of her heart.

It's a system notification point; all of this is related to this girl with long, straight black hair.

The hint is related to Homura Akemi.

The girl with long, straight black hair glanced at everyone in front of her, said nothing more, and slowly turned and left.

really.

Hatsune Miku became even more certain of her guess.

There's no mistake, this kid... is indeed the one who followed Yifang yesterday.

The system notification also appeared on her!

Chapter Ninety-Nine: Now you're not running anywhere.

She ran here all by herself.

Boom-!

She accidentally bumped into a metal bucket, which was then kicked over, but she didn't seem to care.

Directly in front of the iron bucket, a pure white shadow continued to rush forward.

"...What do you think?"

She raised her hand coldly.

The 9mm caliber gun muzzle instantly aimed forward.

"Can they escape?"