Chapter 387: Forked Memories |
"Are you not angry?"
Shirayanagi Ayaha was surprised to see Ye Xingyuan possessing such a calm temperament at such a young age. She considered herself to be a very even-tempered person, yet even she had nearly cried from anger when witnessing the cruel deeds of those little brats!
And it went without saying for the Hoshino Gen that Shirayanagi Ayaha was familiar with—his temper was notoriously terrible. Anyone who dared to provoke him would not just face tenfold or a hundredfold retaliation; if they crossed the line even slightly, they would truly be killed on the spot!
But look at what the current Ye Xingyuan had said. Go back and check the bed? Others would not do anything to him to his face?
Shirayanagi Ayaha did not feel relieved that the boy's true personality during his childhood period was not so extreme; she only felt a deep, aching sorrow.
Ye Xingyuan looked at her and smiled with a hint of helplessness. "Didn't I tell you? I am already used to it."
"......"
If she had not known that they physically could not touch each other at all, Shirayanagi Ayaha truly would have wanted to hug this boy who only smiled with helplessness when bullied, and silently endured when ostracized.
Amidst the silence, a voice suddenly called out from the dilapidated doorway of the classroom. "Xingyuan, come here for a moment!"
Ye Xingyuan quickly left his seat and trotted over.
The director chuckled as he looked Ye Xingyuan up and down. Nodding as if highly satisfied, he patted the boy on the shoulder and said, "Not bad. Someone has come to our orphanage looking to adopt a boy. Make sure you perform well later."
Ye Xingyuan froze for a moment, then followed the director to his office in a slight daze.
By the time Ye Xingyuan arrived, there were already six or seven other boys standing there. Aside from them, there was only a short, unassuming old man with a head full of white hair.
The old man wore a genial smile on his face, and his eyes visibly brightened the moment he saw Ye Xingyuan walk in.
The director walked over, chuckling as well. "These are all the boys in our orphanage, Elder Ge. Take a look, has anyone caught your eye?"
The old man ignored the director. His cloudy eyes were fixed entirely on Ye Xingyuan, the last one to enter. He waved his hand, signaling the boy to come closer.
Ye Xingyuan's heart skipped a beat. For someone born without parents, family, or friends, a certain degree of premature maturity was only natural. Therefore, at this moment, he acutely realized that he might have been chosen for adoption...
However, Ye Xingyuan was not the only one whose heart skipped a beat. There was also Shirayanagi Ayaha, who stood unconstrained right behind him, relying on the fact that no one else could see her.
In truth, the moment she walked in and saw the old man, Shirayanagi Ayaha's heart had not stopped pounding. This was not just because she instantly recognized the old man as Ye Xingyuan's future Master, but also because, in this world where even Ye Xingyuan himself was black and white, this old man actually had color, just like her...
Shirayanagi Ayaha had been staring intently at the old man ever since she entered, trying to see if he could perceive her presence.
Yet, up until now, the old man had not cast a single glance in her direction. It seemed he could not.
She felt a bit of disappointment, but also a sense of relief.
The disappointment stemmed from the fact that Shirayanagi Ayaha knew of this old man's vast magical prowess; if he could see her, perhaps he could help resolve her current predicament.
The relief, on the other hand, was because if the old man truly could help her return to her own world, she would be forced to leave Ye Xingyuan behind...
Naturally, no one knew of her complex and conflicting thoughts.
The subsequent progress of events unfolded exactly as Shirayanagi Ayaha knew they would: the old man chose Ye Xingyuan and decided to adopt him.
After all the necessary procedures were completed, the old man left the orphanage that very afternoon, bringing along Ye Xingyuan, who had packed a small package of luggage.
Shirayanagi Ayaha followed behind them, her emotions indescribable.
However, a sudden change occurred.
At the exact moment Ye Xingyuan stepped out of the orphanage main gate, Shirayanagi Ayaha felt as if time stood still for a second. In that fleeting instant, the boundless sky was dyed a deep azure, the earth beneath her feet turned an earthy yellow, and the world suddenly came vividly to life.
And the old man, who had stepped out of the orphanage main gate one step ahead, turned his head and looked directly at Shirayanagi Ayaha.
His gaze carried a half-smile.
"!!!"
Her heart violently thumped twice. Shirayanagi Ayaha abruptly widened her eyes. He actually could see her!
"Little girl, you are not someone from this current life, are you?"
The old man's words struck directly at Shirayanagi Ayaha's soul, leaving her stuttering and unable to speak for a moment.
In the very next moment, she saw the entire vault of heaven suddenly undergo day and night changing, sun and moon alternating, with the stars revolving ceaselessly.
The sheer shock of the scene rendered Shirayanagi Ayaha's mind completely blank.
The old man, standing not too far away with only Ye Xingyuan between them, seemed to contain the entire vault of heaven within his eyes. The breathtaking image of the rotating constellations mirrored perfectly within his pupils.
"How interesting," the old man said, looking at the young girl. "I actually cannot see your future destiny clearly, little girl."
"Yet your fate is entangled with my disciple here, bearing some red thread of fate karma..."
The old man shook his head. "Never mind. Go back. Those of the current life and the next life should not meet. By touching upon the cause of this lifetime, I fear it will likely not yield any good outcome in the next life."
As his words fell, Shirayanagi Ayaha began to feel that familiar wave of dizziness surging up.
Was she breaking away from this world?
"Little girl, my disciple has a bitter life and a stubborn temper. In his next life, I hope you can take care of him."
The old man's final words drifted into Shirayanagi Ayaha's ears. From beginning to end, she had not been able to open her mouth to say a single word to him before everything before her eyes abruptly vanished, leaving behind only a vast expanse of white.
When the blinding whiteness gradually faded, the familiar cityscape of Tokyo slowly presented itself to Shirayanagi Ayaha's eyes.
She was standing on the building's rooftop, in the exact same spot as before she had entered that strange black-and-white world.
However, she remembered that the sky had been dark then, and it had been raining. Both Carole and A-Gen had been flying in mid-air.
But now, the sky was a clear, azure blue, and she was the only person standing here on this high-rise rooftop...
......
Hoshino Gen opened his eyes, finding himself leaning against a wall in an alley.
His head felt a bit groggy. His memories were still stuck on the moment after he finished playing the piano in the courtyard of the abandoned school.
Except, he seemed to have had a rather long dream. In the dream, he seemed to have reverted back to being Ye Xingyuan, wandering around this city.
Moreover, he also discovered that his past memories had been altered. A person who should not have been there had appeared in his childhood period. He knew exactly what his original childhood was like, but his memories clearly depicted something else.
It was as if his memory, which should have been a straight line, had split into forked memories at a certain node, before merging back into a single thread and continuing to stretch forward...