Chapter 131 The Fall.
As consciousness gradually detached from the dream, Tsukino and Chiya opened their eyes, but their gazes held little of the confusion or lingering drowsiness that might accompany waking up; instead, they were filled with a calm, almost icy, clarity.
Wang Ma Xiaoji was leaning against both the wall and Qianye's side. He had stopped writing and drawing in his notebook at some point, and his breathing was steady, as if he had fallen asleep just like Tsukino and Qianye before him.
Tsukino and Chiya did not move; he perfectly maintained his sleeping posture, as still as a statue that was never meant to move.
But sculptures don't think, and Tsukino and Chiya were still replaying their dream in their minds.
Dreams are easily forgotten if you don't try to recall or write them down immediately after waking up. Even some memorable dreams are the same; even if you're initially convinced you won't forget them, you can't actually remember them after a while.
However, after waking up, Tsukino and Chiya kept recalling and reconstructing the scenes from the dream they had just escaped.
Therefore, Tsukino and Chiya still remember the contents of their dream from not long ago very clearly.
The content of the dream was also very simple.
The sleeping people are motionless in reality, sleeping peacefully and quietly. But in their previous dream, Tsukino and Chiya remembered that they were always walking.
While dreaming, because his mind wasn't fully awake, he wasn't aware of where he was. But after waking up, he remembered.
In his dream, he returned to the interior of the abandoned shrine he had visited a week earlier.
Why would he suddenly dream of that place? He had visited that shrine himself, and there was nothing wrong with it; no one had ever had an accident after leaving there. Could it be because he had heard about the shrine from Ohma Kokichi before going to sleep, and thus subconsciously dreamed about it? ...However, at the time, Tsukino and Chiya, who couldn't remember where the place was in their dream, couldn't think of that much.
He was just walking around the shrine... as if he were walking with a very purpose, as if he already had a very specific goal.
Then, he went to a house inside the shrine.
The room was dark, without any lights. Tsukino and Chiya couldn't see anything inside; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were moving in complete darkness. Yet, he walked steadily and firmly, without stumbling or bumping into anything despite the darkness.
And so, he navigated the house, which was difficult to see in its entirety, with practiced ease, until he finally arrived at one of the rooms.
The room was empty, as if there was nothing there. There might be something inside, but it was too dark for Tsukino and Chiya to see.
Upon entering the room, Tsukino and Chiya did not stop. He walked straight toward the window, each step meticulously planned, as if deliberately orchestrated.
But before he could reach the window, halfway there, Tsukino and Chiya suddenly lost their footing.
With one step, their feet didn't land on solid ground, and Tsukino and Chiya fell straight down. And then—
He woke up from the sensation of falling.
That is, right now.
He thought he might have to go to that shrine again sometime.
Just because you remember what happened in your dream now doesn't mean you'll remember it later. Tsukino and Chiya weren't confident enough to completely trust their own minds, so he turned his head and looked to his right again.
Wang Ma Xiaoji remained in the same position. Although his pen and notebook were placed aside, reaching for them might disturb him.
At this point, we should be grateful for the convenience of modern technology.
Tsukino and Chiya promptly abandoned their idea of borrowing Ouma Kokichi's notebook. He knew that the notebook certainly didn't have the kind of effects Ouma Kokichi had previously boasted about; it was just an ordinary notebook from a roadside stationery store... and it was a free gift that he and Ouma Kokichi had received after purchasing a certain amount of items at the store.
Tsukino and Chiya had actually read quite a bit of what Ouma Shokichi had written in his notebook. Of course, they read it openly in front of Ouma Shokichi. It contained many criminal plans, many of which were so absurd that they were even quite funny, but upon closer inspection, they seemed to be things that Ouma Shokichi was actually capable of doing.
Tsukino and Chiya also asked Ohma Kokichi if it was really okay for him to see their criminal plans, which they hadn't even officially started yet.
At the time, Wang Ma Xiaoji nonchalantly stated that what he wrote down was just for fun; he wasn't the kind of fool who would eventually be discovered by the police or detectives because the criminal plan wasn't destroyed in time. Of course, if one wanted to know his truly hidden, more detailed plans, it wasn't impossible, as long as…
The memory ended there, and Tsukino and Chiya reached into their pockets with their left hands for their phones. He intended to jot down the contents of his dream, but that didn't stop him from checking the time. Lunch break was long over; it was already time for afternoon classes. The dream seemed brief, but had he actually slept for quite a while? He hadn't even noticed the ringtone?
Having inadvertently achieved their goal of skipping class, Tsukino and Chiya continued looking at their phones.
He saw the message from Hinata Hajime. As someone who sat next to him in class and with whom he had a good relationship, it was perfectly normal for Hinata Hajime to realize immediately after class that he hadn't come to class for no reason and to send a message to inquire about it.
It was time for the first class of the afternoon. Tsukino and Chiya thought for a moment and figured that Hinata Hajime wouldn't make the mistake of not adjusting his phone volume properly and causing the notification sound to be too loud, which would attract the teacher's attention. So they replied to him with peace of mind, telling him that they had just accidentally overslept on the rooftop.
Nothing else happened after that. Tsukino and Chiya recorded the route from their dream on their phones. In the dream, everything around him was pitch black, but he remembered the route he took. In addition, he had visited the old shrine a week ago, so he could roughly confirm where he ended up by matching the dream with reality.
So, the place he finally arrived at in his dream and then fell must be...
Tsukino and Chiya suddenly heard a sigh.
He could sense the movement coming from his side without even looking, but he still turned his head to take a look.
When Tsukino and Chiya turned their heads, they saw the purple-haired boy stretching, looking like he had slept well and was very satisfied after waking up.
Wang Ma Xiaoji also looked at Yueye and Qianye. Perhaps because he had just woken up, his voice sounded a little light compared to usual.
The purple-haired boy smiled and said, "Kazuki, I just had a dream that was more interesting than my current life."
*******
When the footsteps sounded, Tsukino and Chiya were combing Ohma Kokichi's hair.
Wangma Xiaoji didn't rush to reveal what the dream was, so Yueye and Qianye didn't press him further. They knew that Wangma Xiaoji was actually very tactful; since he hadn't said anything yet, it meant the dream didn't need to be discussed now.
After waking up, Wang Ma Xiaoji continued to bury himself in his notebook and write diligently. If someone else were to pass by and see this, they might mistakenly think that this purple-haired boy was genuinely serious and eager to learn.
Tsukino and Chiya no longer stared blankly at the sky as they had before going to sleep. He looked at Ohma Kokichi, the purple-haired boy who had woken up and was still writing and drawing again, his back to him. Because of his posture, he no longer needed to lean on Chiya for support.
Tsukino and Chiya simply changed their positions.
Because of the previous leaning against him, Wang Ma Xiaoji's hair, which originally had a few strands sticking up unruly yet orderly, now looks somewhat messy.
Tsukino and Chiya thought for a moment, then took out a comb from their bags and, with Ouma Kokichi's tacit permission, began to tidy his hair.
Wang Ma Xiaoji's hair usually looks unruly, but when you comb it, you can actually feel that the hair strands are still soft.
Tsukino and Chiya gently pulled a small strand of hair and straightened it, but as soon as they let go, they saw the purple hair playfully stick up again, which they found quite amusing.
However, playing with his hair for a while was only temporary, and soon he focused intently on combing it.
For a moment, Tsukino and Chiya could only hear soft breathing, the scratching of pens on paper, and the sound of combs running through their hair.
However, this was only noticeable because they were so close; the rooftop was generally very quiet. This silence had persisted since they fell asleep, and even Wang Ma Xiaoji's soft voice upon waking couldn't completely break it.
Tsukino and Chiya lowered their eyes, gazing at the purple strands of hair in their palms. Their other hand, holding a comb, moved steadily, as if they were worried about accidentally using too much force and disturbing the person who was writing and drawing.
For a fleeting moment, Tsukino and Chiya felt that perhaps prolonging this moment a little longer wouldn't be so bad.
The silence was broken by footsteps.
Tsukino and Chiya moved the comb aside and turned to look. His hearing was excellent; he had already heard someone coming up the stairs. But the rooftop wasn't meant for anyone in particular, so it was normal for others to come, and he didn't pay much attention.
However, considering that it was still during class time... Anyway, he waited until the person walked into the rooftop through the main gate before taking a look.
It was a strange girl wearing a school uniform.
Unfamiliar faces. — That was Tsukino and Chiya's first reaction.
She probably didn't come for the two of them. — This was Tsukino and Chiya's second reaction.
Because the strange girl in the school uniform didn't even glance at Tsukino, Chiya, and Ohma Kokichi, who were sitting not far from the door, and just walked straight ahead without looking to the side.
Wait a minute, could it be that she wants to...?
Tsukino and Chiya stepped forward decisively. He moved quickly, while the unfamiliar girl ignored the approaching footsteps behind her, walking forward at a steady pace, just as determined and clear-headed as Chiya had been in her dream.
Soon, Tsukino and Chiya caught up with him and reached out to the girl's arm, trying to stop her from doing something that was tantamount to courting death.
but--
He missed his target.
Tsukino and Chiya's hands passed right through the girl's body, but they didn't grab anything; they just touched the air.
He stood there, looking at his hands, but didn't seem particularly surprised.
Wang Ma Xiaoji, who was a step behind, tried it once, but got the same result.
A few seconds later, the girl fell off the rooftop.
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