In the end, was the result simply spending money to avert disaster?
The magus, his wallet now slightly thinner, watched the white-haired dango across from him eating and drinking with gusto.
"Mei, you have to try this."
As if nothing had happened, Miss Kiana picked up the tempura she had ordered and presented it to Miss Mei, who was standing to the side, as if offering a treasure.
"The taste is top-notch!"
"No, that's alright."
Miss Mei, still not having figured out what exactly had happened, waved her hand, her gaze beginning to drift toward Li Zihan.
What is going on with you two?
Even without her speaking, Li Zihan could guess what Miss Mei wanted to ask.
What the hell do I know?
Li Zihan, who had already prepared himself for a beating before he even started eating her tofu, rolled his eyes internally.
Still, managing to escape a beating wasn't a bad thing.
With that thought, Li Zihan's gaze shifted to the white-haired dango who was happily eating.
"Ah Li, don't look. I won't share even if you want some."
The white-haired dango, who had actually just ordered a Japanese-style bento box, noticed him looking over and immediately became vigilant, like a husky guarding its food.
She's already back in Paramecium mode?
The young man, who was clearly not going to get a share of the Japanese meal Miss Paramecium had bought with her "compensation money," narrowed his eyes, thinking.
It seemed Kiana was quite happy with the current situation.
He had a rough idea of why Kiana was acting this way.
However, after pulling a stunt like this, his plan to confess to Mei would have to be pushed back.
He wasn't so twisted as to confess to another girl right after kissing one.
I suppose it's time for me to make my exit now.
The magus thought, sensing Miss Mei's gaze on him shift from initial shock, to confusion, and now to a sharp edge.
I'll just use dealing with the Herrscher of Erosion as an excuse to hide for a couple of days.
"Do you guys need my help with anything recently?"
With this in mind, the young man spoke to the white-haired dango and Miss Mei, his tone as normal as ever.
"I might have to go deal with the Herrscher of Erosion next. If any problems come up in the near future, it might be difficult for me to help you."
"Nope, Ah Li."
Miss Kiana, chewing on her sushi, wore her signature Theresa-style grin.
"I came out here to find my dad mainly because I was worried something might happen to him. Now that I've confirmed he's fine, there's not much else to do."
"I don't have anything either."
Perhaps because her attention had been diverted, Miss Mei was no longer staring at him with that impossibly sharp gaze.
"In that case, I'll be leaving first."
The magus, clearly preparing to slip away and hide for a while, spoke up.
"See you in a week."
Like a cloud blown by the wind, his figure began to turn illusory. He would soon disappear from the apartment.
Then, the girl's slightly stern voice reached the ears of the departing young man.
"Mm. Zihan, I'll be waiting for you to explain today's events in a week."
"Mm, I'll explain."
The smile on the semi-illusory young man's face was a little strained.
======== Break Line ========
On the edge of Yae Village, a place materialized from Yae Sakura's memories.
Perhaps due to a special custom, the people of Yae Village built the graves of their dead together.
A dozen or so scattered graves dotted the cemetery, some new, some old. In front of each burial mound was a wooden plaque inscribed with the names of those who slept there.
As a cemetery, it was naturally extremely quiet. People who held reverence for the dead would not easily set foot here.
Thus, the environment was very tranquil.
Lush grass and trees could be seen all around, and there were even scattered bamboo stalks growing in the flat or steep soil.
The sakura-haired miko sat before a small, inconspicuous grave, calmly pulling the weeds around it, her expression serene.
Beside her, a bundle of a fox was slumped over a cross that was all too familiar to the miko.
Higokumaru's mood was terrible, or rather, it had hit rock bottom.
Not long ago, she, who coexisted with Yae Sakura, had been awakened, and then her day of suffering began.
She was inexplicably targeted by a boy with a treacherously sinister smile, and then beaten up by one of her own kind.
Getting beaten up was one thing, but that guy, who looked just like a smirking tiger, actually brought up Kallen, making Yae Sakura, who had somewhat lost the will to live, want to hang on.
She had wanted to slaughter that damn smirking tiger, but the companion by his side was too strong, so she could only play dead.
Then, what happened next was the truly fatal part.
That damn smirking tiger, using the excuse that she would gradually erode Yae Sakura, ordered her to hand over the stigmata that carried both their consciousnesses.
She rose up in anger, and was instantly defeated.
And now, she was in this sorry state.
She had wanted to try and erode that smirking tiger, to see if she could transform him into a Pseudo-Herrscher and seize his body.
But the moment she unfurled her dream world, an Oath of Judah descended from the heavens, knocking her silly and tying her up.
Higokumaru, who was completely clueless when it came to mysticism, was truly in despair.
Why would a physical weapon like Judah appear fully formed in a dream world?!
Is there no respect for science anymore?!
"Sakura, are you really going to bet everything on that smirking tiger?"
Higokumaru slumped on the Oath of Judah, her voice hoarse.
This series of blows forced her to consider a possibility that was very likely true: she had been set up from the start.
If she couldn't counterattack in a short amount of time, she was going to have to type out 'GG' amidst cheers and laughter.
"What if I am, and what if I am not?"
Yae Sakura gently caressed the name on the tombstone, her voice devoid of sorrow or joy.
"You've been pushed into a corner. Are you deciding to ask me for help?"
"You have to know, he has no reason to help you!"
Higokumaru, realizing that if she couldn't get free soon, she was truly doomed, sounded frantic.
"The world bustles with activity, all for the sake of profit."
"That guy is willing to waste time with you entirely because of my value. Once I die, you're finished."
"So, Higokumaru, you're begging me to help you?"
The miko, arguably the number one siscon in the Honkai world, stroked the earth that buried her younger sister, Rin, speaking without even lifting her head.
"This is to help yourself! For Kallen, for Rin!!"
Higokumaru, bound by Judah and completely unable to use her power, shrieked.
As time passed, the feeling of foreboding in her heart grew stronger and stronger.
"Higokumaru, why would you think that I could help you?"
Yae Sakura, who could feel the faint aura of the weapon Kallen used in life in every corner of this mental space, shook her head.
Higokumaru couldn't sense it, but she, who had spent so much time with Kallen, recognized the scent.
"Damn smirking tiger!!"
Higokumaru, having guessed the truth, cursed loudly.
That smirking tiger's body was a prison itself. With the implantation of the stigmata, both she and Yae Sakura had been locked up.
The only difference between her and Yae Sakura was that she was in shackles, and Sakura was not.
"Is it really okay to slander my reputation right in front of me?"
Before she could spit out a second curse, the young man's voice rang out.
A look of despair colored Higokumaru's foxy face.
The smirking tiger, who had long been prepared to deal with her, had arrived.