This is not the date I wanted.

As she spoke, Kuang San couldn't help but stick out her pink little tongue and gently lick her red lips.

"It's just right~ I was busy looking for a place to stay today and haven't eaten all day. Why don't you two... die for me..."

Hidden in that charming and crazy face was a murderous intent that far exceeded what the two of them knew.

"Come out! Za--oooo!"

Just as Kuang San was about to summon the angel, an unbearable feeling of nausea suddenly came to her mouth.

And this feeling of disgust also woke Kuang San up from her madness.

(What was I planning to do just now?)

In the midst of the turmoil, the strength in his hands involuntarily relaxed, and the two gangsters were finally freed and fell to the ground unconscious.

Ignoring the two people on the ground, Kuang San fled the scene in a panic.

……

“Ouch—ah—ooh—”

In the public toilet, Kuang San kept vomiting. But in fact, she didn't eat today, and she was just retching repeatedly because of psychological effects.

(Just now... I really wanted to kill those two people.)

Kurumi's hands trembled uncontrollably.

It's not like Tokisaki Kurumi hasn't killed anyone before. So far, among the 20,000 people who died at her hands, there were villains who were more despicable than those two men, and there were also some innocent people who had no guilt. Although there were some resistance and guilt, they were not as strong as today.

In the past, when she killed people, she could say it was for revenge, to fulfill a sad wish, or to change the world. She used these words to numb herself and give her actions legitimate reasons and protection.

However, now that everything is over, Tokisaki Kurumi's action just now was not self-defense, but a simple eating.

If she had used up the "time" she had just used to eat up those two people, Kurumi would have been an absolute monster.

(So ​​scary…)

For the first time, Kuang San felt fear for her own power and herself.

"Shidou... Mengyue... What should I do next..."

After crying weakly for a long time, Kuang San's emotions gradually calmed down.

After walking out of the public toilet, just as Kuang San continued to think about how to solve the accommodation problem in the next few days, an advertising banner caught her attention.

Bus travel.

PS: In the past two weeks, I have been busy with my probationary work and looking for accommodation, so I haven’t updated much.

PS2: I’m free now, because I was fired by the company just after I moved to a new apartment.

PS3: Two months of job hunting, only half a month of work... Haha, what a waste.　

PS4: Based on readers’ suggestions, I slightly modified some of the previous details.　

30 The town where the elves live

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

Does destiny really exist?

Sitting in the corner of the bus, looking at the scenery rolling by outside the road, Kuang San couldn't help but think.

She doesn't believe in something as illusory as fate. Rather, even if fate really exists, Kuang San is the type who chooses to resist. Otherwise, she wouldn't have spent half of her life doing something as crazy as "changing history".

But these few days, she did feel the existence of something like "destiny".

The evidence is the strange things that happened around her one after another.

From the collapse of a dangerous building to giving way to an old man... To other people, these are not a big deal, but in Kuang San's eyes, these things have been subtly affecting her actions.

At first, she thought she was being secretly manipulated by someone, but after careful observation for a while, she found that there was no obvious connection or pattern to these things. They were either pure coincidences or indirectly affected by some insignificant things.

It feels like I'm being controlled by an invisible hand. Maybe this feeling is fate.

At first she felt depressed. Why was she always obstructed by strange things when she just wanted to find a place to stay? If someone did it on purpose, it would be too roundabout.

However, when she was attracted by the advertisement of bus tours and got on the bus, she spent the night very peacefully.

Only then did she vaguely realize that those bizarre coincidences were not preventing her from falling asleep, but urging her to set off.

Today was the third day since she left the underground. During this time, she had taken buses, subways, trains, and planes. Before she knew it, she had already traveled almost half the distance of Japan.

During this time, she passed through many similar cities. Whenever she wanted to stay, those strange phenomena would happen again, constantly reminding her that this was not the end of her journey.

At first she tried to resist, but after a few attempts, she noticed that what she thought was resistance was actually anticipated by the other party.

There was a chill behind her. The only thing she was thankful for was that Kuang San did not feel any "malice" directed at her or anyone in particular.

Is it fate? Or is there someone secretly controlling this? What is the purpose? Where is this going to take me?

Just as Kuang San was confused, the bus suddenly slowed down, and the sudden inertia interrupted her thoughts.

(What's wrong?)

Kuang San raised her head in confusion.

The car stalled midway, apparently due to engine failure, and the driver left his seat to get off and check the situation, while the tour guide sitting in the front row was trying to calm the confused passengers.

(Have you arrived yet?)

Kuang San thought as she looked at the small town not far away.

Over the past few days, she has also figured out some of the patterns of this bizarre phenomenon. For example, now, if Kuang San continues to stay in the car, the car may not be able to start, and the driver will eventually choose to ask someone to move the car to the repair shop in the town for repairs, and the passengers will have to go to the town to rest.

On the contrary, if she chooses to get off here, the bus should return to normal soon.

After a brief thought, Kurumi chose the latter.

(After all, it’s your own business, there’s no need to cause trouble for outsiders.)

Leaving the bus and walking along the road out of the town, Kuang San took a deep breath slowly.

"Okay...is this the end, or the starting point for the next train?"

Her heartbeat quickened slightly, and after exhaling all the air in her lungs, Kuang San adjusted herself and walked into the town at ease.

This is a very ordinary small town.

Looking around, the tallest building in the entire town is no more than six stories high. Although the streets are a bit narrow, they seem quite spacious because there are not many passing vehicles.

Going further forward and walking deeper into the town, you can still see some twisted statues of unknown meaning placed in the center of a conspicuous park. It is obvious that they are a failed effort to increase the town's fame.

Ordinary. This is Kuang San's impression of this town.

Although it was small, it had everything it needed. It was neither as crowded and noisy as a big city, nor as remote and deserted as a country. This small town, whether good or bad, stayed at a just right level, which made Kuang San feel somewhat comfortable.

Kurumi was strolling along the street as if she was sightseeing. When she came to an intersection, a burst of exaggerated laughter suddenly came from the corner.

“Kukuhahahahaha—let’s fight it out, half of my body! Let us, the sons of the hurricane, fight it out on this straight road.”

"Fight. The winner of the 452nd match will be Xi Xian!"

As soon as he finished speaking, two figures flashed past Kuang San's eyes. Because it was too sudden, Kuang San reflexively leaned back, and as a result, she accidentally stepped on the gap between the paving tiles with her shoe sole and fell to the ground.

"That was just now..."

Hearing the familiar tone, a hint of surprise appeared in Kuang San's eyes, but the other party ran too fast. When Kuang San looked up, the two had disappeared.

"Wait! Yui, Yakuya!"

Afterwards, a woman seemed to be chasing the two people, but arrived a step slower, with helplessness written all over her face.

"Really? You're already so grown up, but you're still so irritable at work. Huh?"

After noticing Kurumi, the woman stopped.

"Little sister. Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

The woman held out her hand to Kurumi with some concern.

"..."

Kuang San stared at the other person's face, and after a moment, she asked with some confusion.

"Yatogami...Tohka?"

When Tohka heard Kurumi calling out her name, she was stunned and tilted her head in confusion.

"Huh? Why do you know my name? Do we know each other?"

"……Do not."

After calming down from her turmoil, Kurumi shook her head, held Tohka's hand and stood up.

"It's just that you look a bit like someone I know, and I accidentally made a mistake."

"Oh, I see. Is the person you know also called Tohka? That's a coincidence."

Without doubting the lie that Kurumi made up, Tohka nodded in understanding.

Seeing the other party's reaction, Kuang San was sure that the person in front of her was Yatogami Tohka herself.

Unlike the Tohka in his memory, the woman in front of him was a little taller and had a slimmer figure than before. She had lost some of the purity and innocence of a girl, but had become more mature and dignified.

But if you think about it carefully, this is not surprising. After all, it has been seven years since she and Tohka last met.

"I'm sorry, Yui and Yakuya scared you. How are you? Are you feeling unwell? Do you want me to take you to the hospital?"

"No, I'm fine. Thanks for your concern."

"Hmm! I'm glad you're okay. By the way, this is the bakery I own, if you're interested you can come and take a look."

As she spoke, Tohka took out a flyer from her bag and handed it to Kurumi.

"Tohka... bakery?"

Seeing the overly simple and crude store name on the flyer, Kuang San couldn't help but feel ashamed.

Tohka introduced enthusiastically.

"By the way, our specialty is our special soybean flour bread, which is very popular among the neighbors. As an apology, if you come to my store, I can give you a free meal."

"Um...thank you..."

"Report, this is Tobiichi Origami. We have discovered someone is attempting to abduct underage girls. Please come to our aid as soon as possible."

At this moment, a voice suddenly interrupted their conversation, and a female police officer with long white hair was walking towards them with a walkie-talkie.

Tohka's face was suddenly filled with displeasure.

"What are you talking about? Tobiichi Origami. Who wants to traffic minors?"

"I witnessed the crime scene right before my eyes."

Origami shot back calmly.

"That's totally wrong. I just saw her fall and helped her up out of kindness. Do you think you're a police officer?"

Without paying attention to Tohka's explanation, Origami turned her gaze to Kurumi.

"I've never seen a face like this before... You're not from this town, are you?"

"Yes...I'm here for sightseeing."

"Sightseeing? Are you a student?"

"No, I'm an adult."

"Adult...Excuse me, can I see your ID or driver's license?"

"Ah."

Kurumi nodded and handed Origami the ID card that Naya had forged in advance.

"Tokisaki Kurumi...twenty years old."

Origami's expression eased slightly as he read the information on the ID card.

"Well, sorry. Thank you for your cooperation, Ms. Tokisaki. Although this town doesn't have any famous attractions, I still hope you can have a good time. By the way, did the woman next to me do anything suspicious to you?"

Kuang San shook his head.

"No, she just asked if I was hurt."

"I see. It seems you are innocent. Yatogami Tohka."