I, Zhongli, Wander the World

Zhongyuan Zhongya, twelve years old, is currently a junior high school student in Yokohama.

After experiencing the deep shadow of the bombing of the elementary school, even if he sits in the classroom safely, he no longer has the peace of mind that he used to study seriously. During class, my attention would fly out of the window from time to time, always worried that another bomb from nowhere would blow up my school.

It can be said that it was quite hard work.

The teacher wouldn't blame him for this. After all, everyone is from Yokohama, so it's justifiable to be vigilant at all times. What's more, Nakahara Chuya's academic performance is the first in the whole grade even if he is a god.

"Brother Zhongyuan, do you want to participate in any club activities after class?"

As the school bell rang, little brother A leaned over to Zhongyuan Zhongye and asked in a low voice.

The schools in Yokohama are basically locals who cannot move because of force majeure. In addition, the school year system in junior high schools is three years. Now the group of "seniors" with the highest grades are just the same as those who were taken by Zhongyuan Zhongya back then. The same group was beaten.

After repairing their brains for the group of people with poor memory, Zhongyuan Zhong is still the handsome Zhong Yuan brother, and a group of younger brothers voluntarily follow him wherever he goes.

"No, I won't participate in any club activities recently, you don't have to wait for me." Zhongyuan Zhong also shook his head and refused, unexpectedly thinking of the girl who was "stolen" by him and Luanbu back to the detective agency.

He had heard a little about the cooperation between the president Fukuzawa Yukichi and Mori Ogai, but he never participated in it at the insistence of the president. Occasionally encountering Mori Ogai on the road, he just greeted him with the attitude of an acquaintance, and played with the humanoid superhuman who had been downgraded from "Sister Alice" to "Alice", and will definitely be downgraded to "Sister Alice" in the future. Fan.

Zhongyuan Zhong also knew that Mori Owai had ulterior motives for being kind to himself, but in view of the sincere attitude of the other party, he had always had a good impression of the underground doctor, and he did not mind helping the other party when he needed it.

He always thought that even if Mori Owai had his own calculations, he at least had the bottom line to be classified as a "good person".

Until he met the girl named "Yoseno Akiko".

A girl with supernatural powers that was completely healed was taken to the battlefield by Moriou a few years ago to treat the army called the "undead army".

However, the infinite regeneration of the body could not match the wear and tear of the spirit caused by the never-ending war, so the soldiers fell into hell, and Akiko Yosano also completely collapsed under the use of Mori Owai.

Even though she was about the same age as Edogawa Ranpo, she showed a haggard look that didn't match her age prematurely. Even the battle between the two adults couldn't arouse the slightest reaction from her, but her expression was numb. Shrinking in the wheelchair, the slender body became more and more fragile under the contrast of the wheelchair.

This is all caused by that Mr. Sen.

This contrast made Zhongyuan Zhongya's mood a little complicated. Taking advantage of the chaos at the scene, he followed Edogawa and pushed the girl's wheelchair out of the rooftop secretly. With the use of intelligence, he successfully persuaded Yosano Akiko to join the armed detective agency.

The wounds in the girl's heart cannot be healed in a short time. With an inexplicable mood, Zhongyuan Zhong also did not participate in the school's club activities for a while, but rushed back to the detective agency after class, trying to do as much as possible.

Today's school was dismissed early, and when Nakahara Nakaya arrived at the Armed Detective Agency, he met Edogawa Ranpo and shared his snacks with Yosano Akiko.

The girl slowly raised her hand, took Daifuku, who was handed over by Edogawa hurriedly, lowered her head and whispered "Thank you".

"You're welcome!" Edogawa squatted beside the wheelchair without any image, chewing on his big blessing like a hamster, and said casually: "Speaking of which, it's not good to be bored in the detective agency all day, do you want Akiko? Go out to relax?"

"Relax?" Yosano Akiko's bowed head moved slightly.

"Well, relax." Edogawa Ranbu said affirmatively, "Going out for a walk and seeing different things will make your mood different. That's what Mr. said."

"gentlemen……?"

The unfamiliar name made the autistic girl show some doubts, but she quickly put these doubts behind her, "No, I still..." Forget it.

"It's settled!" Edogawa jumped up from the ground, clapped his hands happily, turned to greet Zhongyuan Zhongya, who had just come in and hadn't even put down his schoolbag: "It's just right for Juzi-kun to come back, let's go with Jingzi. 'There'."

"It just so happens that Mr. is also 'there' today, taking Dazai with him."

At first, I thought it would not be good to take Yosano Akiko to a crowded place right now, and Nakahara Nakaya immediately floated the wheelchair steadily with gravity.

He even urged Edogawa in turn to rush: "Wait for a while before the sun will set, so if you go, let's go."

Edogawa Ranbu, who was the first to block what Nakahara Nakaya refused, hummed and followed.

And as Edogawa Ranpo said, Zhongli is indeed 'there' now.

A remote orphanage.

The director of the orphanage was once saved by Zhong Li, and the orphanage was also opened for good news after that. If Zhong Li had two or three spare cash on hand, he would occasionally remit it here to help him, so he was familiar with the adopted children in the hospital.

"Mr. Zhongli, I want to hear you tell the story of returning to Liyuan again."

The little girl dressed in old but clean looked up, her big eyes full of anticipation.

The little boy on the side was not very happy. "That kind of story is not handsome at all! Mr. Zhongli, I want to hear you continue to talk about Yaksha slaying evil spirits!"

"What! Ah Yang is too violent!"

"It's obviously because Ryoko is too soft!"

The two children were arguing about what story they were listening to. Zhongli was still drinking tea calmly, but Osamu Dazai, who was on the side, whispered, "So it's really troublesome, children or something..."

"But Dazai-kun, you are also a child, right?" Oda Sakunosuke, who was passing by with three children hanging on his body, keenly heard Dazai Osamu's self-talk, and answered it smoothly.

Since he stopped working as a killer and seriously inquired about Zhongli, Oda Sakunosuke followed his heart and found a job in a shop specializing in curry, and occasionally volunteered at this orphanage in a remote location. Life can be said to be quite abundant.

On the other hand, Osamu Dazai relied on the building near the water where he worked in the funeral home. He liked to walk around with Zhongli when he was free, and he naturally became familiar with Oda Sakanosuke, who he occasionally met.

"...I hate Oda Saku." The black-haired boy sighed hesitantly, "I'm not the same as that stinky kid with a snot..."

Oda Sakunosuke, who had given up on correcting Dazai Osamu's name for him, thought for a while, then nodded and said, "Well, that's right, Dazai-kun is very smart, and it's really not easy to compare them together."

"...Oda Tsukuru, has anyone ever said that you speak too straight?"

"Well, no."

Dazai Osamu pursed his cheeks and wanted to say something else when a black shadow suddenly flew across from not far away, hitting his forehead evenly.

"...Ah." Oda Sakunosuke blinked.

Dancing and arguing with Ryoko, but accidentally throwing the doll in his hand and flying out, causing harm to the innocent, A Yang panicked, and hurriedly leaned over, "I didn't mean to! Dazai-san, are you alright!"

Ryoko, who was arguing, also followed, "You're so rude to Ayang, you have to apologize at this time!"

"Ugh... I'm sorry!"

The excitement shifted to Osamu Dazai, Zhong Li calmly watched the scene of the child training the child, but felt that his sleeve was slightly pulled.

He looked down and was meeting a pair of black eyes.

"...Mr. Zhongli." The boy with slightly white hair hesitated for a while, but he still spoke with the dark-haired girl's secret encouragement: "Xia... I want to hear your story about the Demon God of Rock defeating other Demon Gods, okay? ?"

"Well... although it's not impossible," Zhong Li looked at the almost fanatical respect in the child's eyes, "but in terms of general rationality, although the Demon God of the Rock is respected as a monarch by the people, his battles are quite lackluster, not interesting enough. story."

"No! How could it be!" The boy raised his voice a little excitedly, "As long as it is a story told by Mr. Zhongli, everyone will listen carefully, and will also reminisce about it in private!"

The boy's emotions are really easy to get excited, and the girl next to him quickly remedied: "It's not just my brother who wants to hear it. Compared with other stories, Mr. Zhongli really doesn't tell the story of the emperor, and I want to hear it too." Madly poking the boy's lower back.

The boy who was insinuated by his sister reluctantly restrained his enthusiasm a little, blinked his eyes as he had rehearsed beforehand, and said cautiously, "Just like what Xiaoyin said, Mr. Zhongli."

"Okay, if Ryunosuke insists." Zhong Li just reminded casually, seeing that the boy really wanted to listen, he put down the teacup in his hand and thought for a while, "It is said that the devil of the whirlpool is entrenched in the sea..."

After Zhong Li began to tell the story, the yard that was still noisy gradually quieted down. Whether it was A Yang and Liang Zi who were bickering on the side, or other children who were playing farther away, they all gathered around, listening to Zhong Li put that in his "fantasy". The story comes slowly.

——Is it really just a fantasy?

With such a thought flashing through his mind, Osamu Dazai didn't say much, he just gave way to the side so that Oda Sakanosuke could also sit on the bench and listen to the story.

Several people from the Central Plains arrived at this time.

Zhongli, who was still telling the story, didn't greet them, and they wouldn't disturb Zhongli at such a time. Nakahara Nakaya glanced at a group of children and Dazai Osamu in the distance, then pushed him and found a corner with Yosano Akiko and Edogawa Ranpo to stand.

The low voice that echoed in the yard seemed to have some kind of strange soothing magic power. When the breeze slowly broke into his ears, the lake in the heart of Yosano Akiko, who had been numb and frozen, wrinkled a few rare ripples.

The girl looked up slowly.

The west-sloping sunset enveloped the man telling the story a golden red as beautiful as a mist. When the golden pupils hidden in the shadow of the eyelashes glanced over, there was a faint hint of divine kindness.

Is this the "Mr." in Luanbu and Zhongyao's mouth?

Yosano Akiko's nerves that had been tense because of the crowd unwittingly relaxed a little.

After listening to the story, Edogawa Ranbu pushed and Yosano Akiko to the front and introduced them to Zhongli, and after letting go of the wheelchair, he became friends with the children in a short time, and successfully lured away the people who still wanted to listen to the story here. Lots of kids.

Nakahara Nakamoto dragged Osamu Dazai, who had been stubborn, away, and volunteer Oda Sakunosuke was quite observant and walked away the remaining children.

Only Zhongli and Yosano Akiko were left in this corner for a while.

The autistic Akiko and Yosano won't take the initiative to speak, and Zhongli won't say anything, just pushes a cup of tea thoughtfully.

"thanks."

The girl whispered, and took a small sip of the tea.

After swallowing the slightly astringent tea in the mouth, it brought a dense and lasting sweetness, and Akiko and Yosano smacking their lips involuntarily, and a stack of snacks with tea was pushed over in front of them.

Compared with the mellow tea, this dish of dim sum is not so delicate. The large and small biscuits have obvious hand-made marks, some are baked too lightly, and some are a little overdone.

Akiko Yosano picked up a passable piece and took a bite. The sweet taste immediately exploded on the taste buds. The girl choked for a while, and hurriedly took another sip of tea and sent the biscuits down.

"This is a hand-made thank you gift from the children here. Although the taste is not satisfactory, it is their kindness." Zhong Li said.

Akiko Yosano was silent for a while, and said, "They...are all because of the war...?"

"If you follow it, that's true."

Seriously speaking, the problems in Yokohama were indeed brought about by the war. In addition to those children whose parents were actually killed by the war, it would not be wrong to say that it was all because of the war.

Yosano Akiko bowed her head again, her mood was obviously down.

The situation of the girl is different from that of Edogawa Ranpo or Dazai Osamu. The scars caused by the war are too painful and too deep and heavy. The effect of simple enlightenment is minimal, and the only thing that can heal her is the passage of time.

However, it is not impossible to do anything.

"Your headdress is very beautiful." Zhongli put down the teacup and said to Akiko Yosano who was looking over involuntarily, "This is the first time you and I have met, so how about giving you a gift?"

"Meeting ceremony...?" Yosano Akiko murmured suspiciously.

At this time, the sky was already a little dark, and the sun at dusk only left a ray of light, replaced by a not very bright moon, and the scenery in the whole yard was a little gray.

In this case, the bright light in Zhong Li's open palm is particularly conspicuous.

"Hey……"

Under the girl's astonished gaze, after the light escaped from the elder's palm, it turned into countless spots of light like shattered glass, and then spread out strangely and stretched.

In the end, each light spot was like a cicada pupa that had broken its cocoon and turned into a bright yellow butterfly flying in the sky.

Yosano Akiko stared wide-eyed at this dreamy scene, her hand stretched forward involuntarily, and immediately a butterfly voluntarily fell, parked on the girl's fingertips and moved her beautiful wings slightly.

The rock crystal butterfly* born in the dream of the Saga Mountains is also illusory and beautiful like a dream.

The children who also found the butterfly in the distance shouted cheerfully, and with Akiko Yosano's fingertips, the butterfly immediately fluttered its wings and flew to the sky, and the shimmering rock elements scattered behind the tail like broken gold. Almost lit up the girl's dark eyes.

It was a fleeting miracle of life.