"A magic staff? Sister Tsukiyo is actually a Magical Girl!"
"Magical Girl is superfluous. I just accidentally gained this power, but I haven't used it. Really... I'm a swordsman, why make me a mage?"
Inaba Tsukiyo looked helplessly at the magic staff in her hand. This magic staff was very sturdy; even if used to hit someone, it wouldn't break.
If someone tried to ambush you while you were casting a spell, you could still use this magic staff to violently smash their head in.
Thinking this, Inaba Tsukiyo suddenly had a bold idea. In her memory, archers seemed to be able to engage in close combat with short swords. Did that mean she could also use a magic staff for close combat with enemies?
Wielding a magic staff to smash people's heads, it sounded incredibly satisfying.
"What does it matter? Sister Tsukiyo is so cute. She's perfect for being a Magical Girl! A Magical Girl of love and hope, ah~ truly so cute."
...Seele, I don't think the orphanage should have Magical Girl books for you to read. Why do you seem to know so much about Magical Girls?
Seele's behavior was like that of a Little Girl who yearned for Magical Girls. How did it feel like Seele's character setting was a bit off?
And you're Russian, you shouldn't be fond of such things.
Uh... of course, if you're going to like Haxxor Bunny, it's better to like Magical Girls; at least Magical Girls can make you look more like a girl.
After a brief moment of complaining to Seele, she refocused her gaze on Ji Xuanyuan.
The name of this magic staff was hecate's staff, a staff bestowed by the goddess Hecate.
"I hope this works. Right now, this is the only method I can try."
Taking a deep breath, recalling the incantation that appeared in her mind, Inaba Tsukiyo began to chant.
[Hope... for the existence of a world where no one harms others, nor is harmed by others.]
[Myriad Flaw Restoration (Pain Breaker)]
Raising hecate's staff in her hand, a soft light shone in this world filled with Honkai Energy. This light seemed to suppress Honkai Energy, as the surrounding Honkai Energy continuously receded under its gentle glow.
Besides the Honkai Energy receding, Ji Xuanyuan's body began to change, and the Honkai Energy that filled her continuously dissipated.
The soft light continuously entered Ji Xuanyuan's body. Ji Xuanyuan, who had been keeping her eyes closed, slowly opened them, and her golden pupils began to change, shifting from gold to red repeatedly.
Just as the light eliminated the Honkai Energy within Ji Xuanyuan, the surrounding Honkai Energy tried to rush in and erode Ji Xuanyuan and Inaba Tsukiyo, but blocked by the light, each time it entered the range of the light, it would turn into gas and disappear.
The light lasted for about a few minutes before disappearing. Ji Xuanyuan, who was originally lying on the ground, slowly stood up, clutching her head, and looked at Inaba Tsukiyo with complex eyes.
On Inaba Tsukiyo, the xuanyuan sword she had been carrying was still hanging, and Ji Xuanyuan also had a xuanyuan sword on her.
The xuanyuan sword, originally blackened by despair, now glowed with a sacred light once more.
"I didn't expect you could restore me. You truly are special. Could it be that the weapon in your hand is a divine artifact like the xuanyuan sword?"
Ji Xuanyuan had never heard of an ability that could restore her, who had been completely consumed by Honkai Energy. The only explanation was the special nature of the magic staff in the other party's hand.
Inaba Tsukiyo shook her head. It wasn't the magic staff that was special, but the noble phantasm she had just used, the Myriad Flaw Restoration.
This noble phantasm could be said to be the concretization of love. It didn't manipulate time, but rather calculated the restorer's original appearance and then performed automatic restoration, overcoming everything except death in an unreasonable manner.
"Since you are holding the xuanyuan sword, it means Chiyou has been unsealed, right? This is not good news."
As the Ji Xuanyuan who once fought Chiyou, she was very clear about his terror. Ordinary methods could not possibly eliminate Chiyou; even she had only sealed him.
Hert's staff returned to its original form, mikazuki munechika, and her clothes reverted to the miko outfit.
Inaba Tsukiyo came before Ji Xuanyuan, hesitated for a moment, and opened the specially made box she had been carrying, which contained the water chestnut cake she had packed from the restaurant earlier.
"Before we came to Jiuyou, we found a silk book. It recorded many cooking methods, and water chestnut cake was at the very beginning. If I'm not mistaken, the person who wrote that silk book was someone important to you."
Ji Xuanyuan stared blankly at the water chestnut cake Inaba Tsukiyo handed over. Although it was a bit deformed, Ji Xuanyuan still remembered it was water chestnut cake, the kind Jiang Zhu used to make for him.
Ji Xuanyuan's mind recalled the first time Jiang Zhu made her water chestnut cake, almost falling off a cliff and nearly being killed by a wild boar.
With trembling hands, she picked up the water chestnut cake from the box. Ji Xuanyuan couldn't help but take a bite, and the familiar taste spread through her mouth.
Recalling the past, Ji Xuanyuan's eyes had unknowingly filled with tears, which streamed down her face in large drops.
"It's been... I don't know how many years since I last ate this. Really... I didn't expect that besides writing the names of medicinal herbs in his room, he was actually writing about the dishes I liked. Doesn't that make me a gluttonous girl?"
Although she was crying, Ji Xuanyuan's face was smiling.
Inaba Tsukiyo stood aside, watching Ji Xuanyuan quickly finish the water chestnut cake she had brought.
This was several servings of water chestnut cake, and she finished it so quickly. It seems Jiang Zhu's silk book had so many ingredients written down, probably to satisfy Ji Xuanyuan's appetite.
"It seems he must have been a very gentle Boy, researching so many dishes for you. I didn't expect the legendary Ji Xuanyuan to be such a foodie."
At this point, Inaba Tsukiyo couldn't help but laugh. Ji Xuanyuan's foodie attribute made Inaba Tsukiyo feel much closer to her.
The other party was, after all, a legendary figure who sealed Chiyou for Shenzhou. Facing such a person, even Inaba Tsukiyo couldn't help but feel a bit reserved.
But with the foodie attribute, Ji Xuanyuan's approachable demeanor became even higher, which made Inaba Tsukiyo much more relaxed.
Looking at the laughing Inaba Tsukiyo, Ji Xuanyuan couldn't help but roll her eyes at her.
Although she didn't understand what the word 'foodie' meant, she could infer from Inaba Tsukiyo's previous words that she was definitely saying she ate a lot.
"That's not it at all! It's all because Jiang Zhu always made things for me to eat. He'd say that eating more each day would help me grow quickly. To not disappoint his kindness, I could only eat everything he made."
"Why do I feel like you're more concerned about the first reason? Your figure probably can't grow any more, can it?"
Ji Xuanyuan's figure was only slightly better than Inaba Tsukiyo's; the idea of still growing was nonexistent.
However, the reason Ji Xuanyuan cared so much about her figure was probably related to Jiang Zhu.
After the Xuanyuan clan's tribe was destroyed by the monsters of Jiuyou, and Ji Xuanyuan established a new tribe, the tribal members admired her but also distanced themselves, considering her an unapproachable deity.
It wasn't until Jiang Zhu's appearance, his fervent approach, that Ji Xuanyuan remembered her identity as a girl, which is why she started paying attention to her figure.
Ji Xuanyuan and Inaba Tsukiyo were silent for a few seconds, then both couldn't help but laugh.
They were figures separated by thousands of years, yet they chatted here so naturally, like friends.
However, after they finished laughing, Ji Xuanyuan's gaze suddenly became a little lonely. She glanced at the xuanyuan sword on Inaba Tsukiyo's back, then hesitated.
"I... I hope you can promise me one thing."
"I think this matter isn't about helping you eliminate Chiyou. Instead, it's about killing you here, isn't it?"
She couldn't help but shake her head. Even now that she was conscious, what Ji Xuanyuan wanted was still to end her life.
She knew very well that the people she once cared about were already dead. Even if she lived, what good would it do? Moreover, her body had already lost its original state under the erosion of Honkai Energy.
She... was tired. She wanted to rest well. She wanted to see Jiang Zhu, and everyone else.
"...I understand. However, are you really not going to stay? Don't you want to stay and see the world you protected? Don't you want to see what the world is like thousands of years later?"
Inaba Tsukiyo couldn't help but ask. Although Ji Xuanyuan's body had changed, this world was wonderful.
"No, the era of Ji Xuanyuan has passed. I should have died thousands of years ago. I have lived long enough."
"...I understand. But before that, could you... be my friend?"
"Huh?"
Ji Xuanyuan was stunned, looking at Inaba Tsukiyo, not expecting her to say such a thing. Even Seele didn't know what to say.
"Hehe~ You really are a very interesting person. It's my first time meeting someone like you. Are all modern humans like this?"
Ji Xuanyuan couldn't help but laugh. To make friends with someone so soon after meeting, and that person also asked her to kill her—this person was truly strange.
"There's nothing strange about it. Do you think I can't be friends with you just because we are separated by thousands of years? Also, you actually don't have to die. If my idea is correct, you can live on in another way."
If that person could agree to her request, then Ji Xuanyuan might not have to die, and she might even be able to borrow Ji Xuanyuan's power in the future.
"lord alaya... lord alaya, can you hear me? lord alaya."
"Yes, I hear you."
Within a few seconds, lord alaya's voice appeared in her ear, and even her phantom appeared in this space.
"I already know about your conversation just now. You want me to turn her into a heroic spirit? This is not something that cannot be done. Even that person named Jiang Zhu can do it."
"Really? lord alaya. It's just... Jiang Zhu, isn't he already..."
Jiang Zhu had already died, after all, ordinary people couldn't survive that long, and his achievements... "Died? Don't forget, heroic spirits are almost all dead people. And his achievements have already met the conditions to become a heroic spirit."
lord alaya slowly walked up to Ji Xuanyuan. Facing lord alaya's approach, Ji Xuanyuan nervously swallowed.
"You are Ji Xuanyuan? Although not as powerful as the Xuanyuan clan in other worlds, your appearance is quite to that idiot gaia's taste."
Saying confusing words, lord alaya kept circling around Ji Xuanyuan.
She found that Ji Xuanyuan had two forms, possibly because Inaba Tsukiyo used the Myriad Flaw Restoration. As long as Ji Xuanyuan's emotions reached a certain level, she would transform into her initial darkened state; otherwise, she would be in her normal mode.
"Can you really... really let me see Jiang Zhu again?"
Although she didn't know the identity of the young girl in front of her, Ji Xuanyuan's voice trembled as she heard that the other party could let her see Jiang Zhu again.
The reason she didn't want to live was because she wanted to see Jiang Zhu, her beloved.
Now that she could see Jiang Zhu again, even if the other party might be deceiving her, Ji Xuanyuan decided to try to believe her.
Facing Ji Xuanyuan's question, alaya glanced at her indifferently, then closed her eyes and remained silent for a moment.
When she opened her eyes again, a magic circle appeared on the ground, and accompanied by a dazzling red light, a large amount of smoke emerged from within the magic circle.
A blurry figure appeared in the smoke. Although its specific appearance couldn't be seen, the moment it appeared, the tears Ji Xuanyuan had been suppressing flowed out again.
"Jiang Zhu!"
-----------------------
To read the next 40 chapters in advance, you can follow and support me on Patreon.
I'll be posting early chapters there so you can always stay ahead and never miss any new content.
patreon.com/SolyuraMT
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"