Chapter 59: Human Bugs

Chapter 59 "Human Bugs"

When a person goes crazy, how can he realize that he is crazy?

Mikazuki's memory is complete, more complete than any other blade.

He was the last blade to break.

Time favors Mikazuki, as he has an astonishing amount of spiritual energy reserves. He witnessed the decisions and rise of the government of the time, and the struggle of the sword men as they gradually transformed from objects into human forms. As an old man in the entire Honmaru, he knew the character and temperament of every sword very well.

The government of time used technology to implant some basic knowledge into the sword tsukumogami. The split spirits would possess the Shinsengumi the moment they were awakened. They only needed to follow their training and regard themselves as swords and the Shinsengumi as masters. The first batch of swords were used as 'test swords' and went through a lot of running-in with the Shinsengumi. Once the memories of the first batch of swords were transferred to the main body, the main body would improve the clones to make them more adaptable. After several decades, the clones have been improved to a certain extent, possessing human nature, joy, anger, sorrow and happiness, and seem to be no different from humans.

However, the original body knows everything. They are the first group of people who will truly learn. They will be confused, will feel pain for the death of the Shinsengumi in battle, will be tortured by the extremism of their masters, will be manipulated and stung by unfounded desires. Human nature is very complicated. A good person may be a demon, and a demon may be a good person. They have so much to learn.

How can a sword understand people? They died in battles, were damaged by fires, sold and exiled, and even trampled and worshipped as animals and forced to be buried alive. This was their life. Asking them to get along with others is simply a fantasy.

Sometimes there are psychologists appointed by the government in Daojian, but more often they prefer to seek help from their own kind. So the old blade in Honmaru became a psychological counselor. Even though there were close and distant relationships between swords, they would still go to the old blade to talk when they encountered troubles.

Lao Dao has a more stubborn character, is rarely confused, is mostly calm, and has his own independent opinions and style. Mikazuki is not the oldest, but he is the most human among them. He is also the most approachable. Many times, even if you talk to him, he will act as if he doesn't understand. Even if he listens, he won't react. He won't show sympathy or rush to help. He is really a very suitable person for those who want to talk.

For decades, Mikazuki Munechika sat on the edge of the porch. Not far away was the smoke from the kitchen. In the distance he could hear the sound of cleanliness-loving people washing clothes. Further away he could hear the sound of the inner-class people fighting with their short swords and tachi. Around him were old friends of the same age, and at the table was a cup of warm tea. If someone wanted to ask for help, the old friend would leave quietly. Ren, who wanted to ask for help, would kneel a few steps away and chat with him. He would be speechless due to his heartlessness, but when he heard his overly cheerful "hahaha", he would laugh along with him unconsciously.

The knife that was concerned about the blade who came for help "accidentally" passed by, so the blade said goodbye and left. The friend who just left took new snacks from the kitchen. In silence, it was another afternoon that had been uncounted for many days.

Mikazuki Munechika witnessed it quietly, as if he was witnessing his own thousand years of life, listening to the sounds in the Honmaru from desolate to bustling and then back to desolate, listening to most of the swords falling asleep silently, until Xiao Guimaru, who had always been with him, brought a comb one day and asked him to help comb his hair. Then he suddenly realized that the only old friend who was the first to enter the sword account was left in the Honmaru. After combing Kogumaru's thick white hair, Kogumaru prepared some new snacks and said, "I'm going to bed. Bye."

Mikazuki sat in front of the cherry blossoms, put down his cold tea, and suddenly became dazed and laughed blankly:

"That's fine, haha."

Another gust of wind blew by, and the eaves were empty. Time stood still in the Honmaru, the cherry blossoms stopped withering, and the sword in the pond made a slight "crack" sound. The broken swords swayed and mixed together. The once handsome and sharp sword, the Tsukumogami, eventually turned into layer upon layer of useless iron pieces, waiting for its expected demise.

Even though their efforts were futile, they tried. Slogans like "protecting history and protecting humanity" have been recited for decades and people have taken them seriously. Whether it was placing all the bodies in the hand-immersion pool to slow down the speed of fragmentation, or ensuring plenty of sleep and three meals a day to replenish spiritual power, they tried their best to maintain stability, but the time-traveling army had almost disappeared, and they looked around but had no idea where the problem lay.

This lack of enemy death is a pity for most swords. As a weapon, a sword is destined to be broken into pieces from the moment it is forged. Being shattered on the battlefield does not cause them pain, but pleasure.

But how can they accept a future in which they are defeated but have no enemies, a future in which they have not achieved their expectations of protecting history? When things are broken, no matter how calm and composed you appear to be, the pain and confusion inside can never be relieved.

They didn't give up, they just had no choice.

Mikazuki knew clearly that the sword men had not given up, they just lacked an opportunity.

The master before them was their only, rare, unique opportunity. Perhaps, perhaps they could find a reason and the right end for the sword.

The white-haired young man stared at Mikazuki for a while. Mikazuki saw the pair of golden eyes, which were purer than the golden swords in Honmaru, flashing for a moment. The young man turned around and pointed in the direction of Honmaru:

"There, can you see it?"

Mikazuki turned around and looked in that direction.

The coordinates of Honmaru are the shrine, which is located in a relatively central location in Yokohama. However, Yokohama itself is not very big. The majesty of the five buildings intimidates a corner of Yokohama. If you are in a higher area, you can see the five dark buildings at a glance.

"...Hmm? Isn't it made of spiritual power...?"

Honmaru is an independent space, and the scene can be controlled by the spiritual power of the Shinsengumi. Mikazuki knew that many Shinsengumi were accustomed to replacing the outside scene with the scene in their memory, and he had never thought that this scene was not a construction.

"No, this is the world we live in." said Qianjianmu.

Sanriku stared at the five buildings in a daze for a long time, then turned around and looked at Qianjianmu.

"This is the 'Honmaru', but it's also where I live, and it's a shrine. This is not your world, this is Yokohama, Japan. But speaking of it, it's probably not that different from your world two hundred years ago."

Qian Jianmu looked at the five dark buildings and said:

"The 'world' wants to save you, so you are here, and that's why I am here. Your enemies are enemies that the 'world' cannot solve. The problem is not you, but this world. There is no need to doubt it. If you are your own enemy, then being shattered is also a kind of death in battle. 'Failure' is not your fault."

"..." Sanriku didn't say anything. Chikanemaku heard footsteps not far away and a faint smell of food coming.

"Then, for the first mission, Mikazuki Munechika and Kogumumaru will be the first team. The mission goal is to get out of this Honmaru, see the outside world, and buy some daily necessities."

A silver light flashed, and a "one" sign appeared on Mikazuki Munechika's body. He looked up and saw Sengenmaku taking out a wallet from his pocket, opening it and taking a look. After thinking for a while, he threw the entire wallet into his arms.

The wallet was smaller than that for adults, with the banknotes inside slightly showing at the corners. Mikazuki had never seen this kind of banknotes before, and there were about dozens of them. Judging from the numbers on them, they did not seem to be small-denomination bills. He looked up blankly, and the young man was looking at him and smiling quietly.

"As a weapon, if you are uneasy, just work hard to complete the mission. Change your mindset. You now have the swords of the Shinsengumi. It is not the time for you to go through fire and water. Even if the master fails, it is not your fault. Besides, dying with the master is also what you want, isn't it?"

There is no need to feel uneasy, since he exists, the endless despair has come to an end. Whether the ending is good or bad, it points to a better future.

With a black-gloved hand clasping a black wallet, Mikazuki stared at Sengenmu with a dazed look.

"Master! This is sweet potato porridge, and this is the sugar mixed in. Does it need to be delivered to the castle tower?" I heard Hasebe's voice from behind. I turned around and realized that we had been chatting for a long time and the sun was about to set.

Yakiri Hasebe looked a bit embarrassed, with some charcoal stains on his clothes. He reported:

"The kitchen is in such a bad condition that it needs to be completely renovated, so I built a small stove in front of the kitchen. It's OK for simple meals, but for more, you have to wait a few more days... But if it's really urgent, tomorrow is fine!"

If they had to eat it tomorrow, Hasebe would probably have to repair the kitchen all night.

Two bowls of white porridge mixed with golden sweet potatoes were placed on the tray, emitting snow-white steam. Kogunemaru seemed to walk much slower, it was magical, Yakiri Hasebe could even run faster than Kogunemaru while carrying something.

This is very unscientific.

"Ah, this suddenly appeared, I was really shocked." Kogumumaru pointed to the '一' brand on his collar, "When Hasebe saw it, he picked up the plate and ran away without even putting out the fire, and when he turned around, he couldn't see it anymore."

"Do you want to go out into the battle too?" Chigenmaku asked Hasebe with some curiosity.

Hasebe was about to say something but stopped himself. Mikazuki came to his senses and smiled maliciously.

"Let Hasebe take charge of the repairs inside the main castle first. Hasebe would rather stay with his master."

The sun had already sunk halfway below the horizon. Qian Jianmu calculated that it was about time. He thought for a moment and took the tray with the porridge.

"You guys go back and continue your activities, I'll take it back."

Since the master has made the decision, there is no need for any additional questioning. Sanren said nothing more and bowed slightly to say goodbye.

"Good night, Master. I have accepted the mission and will handle it as soon as possible. I hope that no matter what happens, Master, please try to be vigilant about us in terms of safety." Mikazuki whispered.

Looking around at the three blades, the blades are all in good condition. Without saying anything more, Qian Jianmu turned around and left with the tray. This direction just happened to be facing away from the setting sun. He lowered his eyes to look at the long shadows stretched out in the sunlight.

Dusk is not always red. For example, at today's sunset, the sunlight was very bright, even a little hot, but there was no gloomy feeling at all. After talking so much with Mikazuki today, Sengenmaku has roughly understood that Mikazuki Munechika himself has no intention of harming his master, so he doesn't have to be attacked from both sides, which makes him feel a little relieved.

But before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, he suddenly felt footsteps behind him. He paused, turned sideways and looked back.

There is no one behind.

The three blades were still standing in the distance, discussing something with him. When they saw him turning around, they bowed to him again.

He turned around and continued walking forward. The footsteps behind him were still following him. He gradually slowed down his pace, closed his eyes, and used his intuition to feel the presence behind him.

Three 'people'.

There were three guys following behind him, looking at him silently and coldly, and following in his footsteps step by step.

When I turned around again, there was still no one behind me, and I couldn't feel anything when I stretched out my hand.

Qian Jianmu never doubted his intuition. It was a precious thing that he had gained through countless life and death experiences. His eyes became colder and he no longer cared about the creepy footsteps following him. The moment he entered the castle tower, the footsteps did not follow him in.

Holding the tray in one hand and pushing the door with the other, Qian Jianmu leaned against the door and waited for about three minutes before he heard footsteps again.

Tap, tap, tap, slow, normal footsteps.

Knock, knock, knock. There’s the sound of knocking on the door.

"Master, I have something to report. Can you let me in?" It was the voice of Yasaki Hasebe.

"What is it?" he replied.

"It's about the maintenance of the main castle. I didn't explain it clearly just now. There are also some document issues." Yakiri Hasebe replied.

Qian Jianmu turned around, his face expressionless, and he replied:

"I refuse."

At the same time, open the wooden door——

There was still no one outside the door.

There was only a certain existence standing right in front of him, staring at him quietly and intently.

"Ah, as expected." The leader appeared on the stairs on the second floor at some point. He sat on the stairs and saw the scene downstairs and sighed.

"It's a very difficult situation. Mu-kun's expression is quite serious."

Qian Jianmu looked at him, sighed, then sat down on the stairs and handed him a bowl of sweet potato porridge.

The crops here are growing very well and seem to be carefully cared for. The sweet potatoes were soft, glutinous and slightly sweet, and you could smell the sweetness just by smelling them, but the leader still had no expression. He took the porridge and stirred it with a spoon out of boredom.

"Has the fever gone?"

"…I've already retired."

Due to years of sub-health, Leader Zai often has a low-grade fever, but the fever usually does not show on his face and cannot be seen by ordinary people. But the leader Zai lived with Qian Jianmu and their quilts were all from their neighbors. He was caught red-handed when he felt cold at night. In the morning, his fever had not subsided, so he was forced into bed and given a few books to read.

What a useful ability.

So the chief just lay there lazily, and in the afternoon, thinking that people would be back, he went to the stairs and spread out his clothes.

"Let's try it first. The temperature should be ok. Do you want to add sugar?" Qian Jianmu asked.

"...I've been drinking glucose for so many days, please spare me." The leader looked bitter. He picked up the bowl, and although he tried hard, he only ate half a bowl.

The porridge was thick, but he swallowed it without chewing it at all.

"Sure enough." After feeling it, he said without any worry.

“Ah…Is that so?”

The two riddlers understood each other's meaning and sighed, "As expected."

"What should this be considered? It shouldn't be considered neutralization."

"This property is better described as insulation."

Qianjianmu gathered a ball of spiritual power. When the spiritual power touched the leader Zai's fingers, it did not penetrate into him, but dispersed like water. When the spiritual power flowed through, nothing happened.

"I can't integrate, I can't absorb, I absolutely reject you. You are a bug even in another world. I might as well call you a bug in the human world."

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha" Leader Zai laughed inexplicably and laughed so hard that his stomach even hurt a little.

When Qian Jianmu activated his spiritual power, the spiritual power ripples penetrated the bodies of everyone present except Dazai Osamu. He discovered at that moment that he was like a stone and the water ripples did not enter him but instead bypassed him in an orderly manner.

Whether it's cherry blossoms or grass leaves, although the plants and trees in this world have material components, they are also composed of a large amount of spiritual energy. Part of the spiritual power comes from the spiritual power fragments dissipated by the Shinsengumi, and the other part comes from the spiritual power inherent in this land. But no matter what it is, as long as it is a plant with spiritual power involved, as long as Dazai Osamu holds it and then lets go, those plants will wither in an instant, as if they were pieces of paper with their vitality extracted.

In this world, his special ability was suppressed and invalidated, but another kind of "invalidity" was achieved.

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