Shoichi Matsunaga stared at the girl in front of him.
The figure projected in his field of vision slowly overlapped with the young child with purple hair and purple eyes from many years ago, almost making his eyes filled with moist mist.
Even though five years had passed since that day, he still clearly remembered the faces and smiles of his classmates and friends - the young people in front of him had grown up much more than in his memory, but their features and eyes still looked very much like her parents. With the same name and the same face, how could there be such a coincidence in the world?
"I know you may have a grudge in your heart!"
Matsunaga noticed that the girl still seemed to want to refute, and spoke hurriedly.
"No matter how others praise their bravery, as 'parents' and not police officers, they abandoned their children early. I understand that you will certainly feel aggrieved and even resentful for this."
"But at least...don't choose to forget them. Okay, Xiaoye?"
The speaker was moved to tears, while the young trainer opposite felt as if he had been struck by lightning, and his expression went numb for a moment.
Mr. Detective, this is a bit outrageous...
Seeing that her companions were all shocked by the lines in a family ethics drama, Xiaoye could only shake her head silently.
"Mr. Matsunaga."
She raised her voice and interrupted the continuous persuasion of the person opposite.
"I understand that the people in the photo are important friends of yours, that's why you care so much about the safety of their daughter."
The retired detective sitting in a wheelchair was slightly startled.
The unique sunset view of the cafe dyed the entire room orange, but the young trainer bathed in the warm light had a serious face, and the words he spoke were cold and determined, not at all like the timid girl of the past.
"——Can this important emotion really be placed on a complete stranger?"
The golden retriever brother and sister, who were hesitant after seeing the photo, looked at each other, both showing signs of thoughtfulness. The person involved lowered his eyes and finished his point of view calmly, "As a traveler who met you by chance, of course I am not qualified to accept your kindness. This is too unfair to that 'Xiao Ye', isn't it."
After she finished speaking, she sighed and gave her friends a slightly apologetic and helpless look.
"Now that the misunderstanding has been resolved, let's take our leave first." Xiaoye bowed to Matsunaga. The middle-aged man in the wheelchair has been in a daze, and he doesn't know if he heard her clearly, "Thank you for your hospitality..."
"Hey, wait a minute." Before they could finish saying goodbye, Xiaojie and Xiaoling started to rush, "Are we leaving now?"
Xiaoye was stunned, looked at the empty glasses on the table and asked tentatively, "Is there anything else you want to drink?"
"Uh, that's not what I meant..."
"It's going to be too late if we don't leave." The purple-haired girl took out her phone with ease and showed the text on the guide website, "The water show will start in ten minutes."
The blond brother and sister were stunned for a while, and then they remembered that they had indeed said on the bus that they wanted to see the water show at Hazaland.
They never expected that such a violent storm was coming down on them, and their friends only thought about spending their birthdays with them, and they didn't know whether they were angry or funny. But before Xiaoling could shake Xiaoye's shoulders to wake her up, the appearance of Twilight Cafe suddenly changed.
The sun sets, the stars rise, and night covers the earth without warning, causing people in the cafe to exclaim. The children sitting at the far end of the corner looked around in surprise, and then all turned their attention to the initiator of the chanting of the passwords righteously.
The middle-aged man dressed as a wounded soldier was still sitting in a wheelchair, but there was a luminous prismatic gemstone in his hand, which was as bright and dazzling as a fallen star under the night sky.
After the chant ended, he excitedly held the stars in his hands and spoke with a trembling voice.
"I feel the guidance of the stars - there is no doubt that you are the warriors favored by the goddess. This declining kingdom is finally saved!"
"...?"
The children were still thinking about the past told by Matsunaga, but when they suddenly heard this, they all shut down, revealing four pairs of identical dull round eyes.
"Warrior, as you know, in order to cope with the coming disaster, our king went deep into the dense forest alone to find the legendary sword - but on the way he was killed by an evil wizard and fell into a seal and could not escape. . In order to rescue the king, the star stones scattered around the ancient city of Hasa must be collected, so as to break the wizard's seal."
"Young warriors, are you willing to embark on a journey with me to find the Star Stone?"
Matsunaga's impassioned speech made the "young warrior" confused and confused as to where he was. Xiaojie and Xiaoling only felt that these lines were a little familiar but not too familiar, and they didn't realize it until their friends reminded them.
"A gift from the king." The silver-haired boy said softly.
There is a well-received entertainment project "Challenge Quest" in Hazzaland. Employees who play story roles randomly select lucky tourists and invite them to complete their own tasks. "The King's Gift" is one of them. Xiaojie still remembered that the guide mentioned the outline of the story. A loyal soldier asked tourists to rescue the sealed king - but the timing of Matsunaga's opening was too abrupt. His first reaction was that the poor retired policeman was heartbroken. To the point of insanity.
——Oh, Xiaoye, who didn’t read the guide carefully, might be thinking the same thing now.
The purple-haired trainer stood frozen in front of the table, looking at Matsunaga with confusion in his eyes. The concentration of question marks was as high as that of Yan when he saw the fire-breathing dragon belly dancing. Before she could ask a question, the golden retrievers flew forward and suddenly held the injured soldier's hand from left to right.
"Of course, in order to save the great king, we are willing to do anything." Xiaoling said exaggeratedly like a stage actor, "Let us help you, even if the star stones are scattered in the mountains of swords and seas of fire, it doesn't matter!"
The soldier was moved to tears and gently stroked the Kati dog's back, "Thank you, mighty warriors! This child has a keen sense of smell and will guide us in the vast ancient city of Hasa. As long as we follow its footsteps, we will You can find every star stone hidden in the city."
Xiaojie responded with the same passion and tears in his eyes, and did not forget to free up a hand to hold the furry paw of the Kati dog, "Then let's set off now, we will never let the king wait too long!"
"..."
Xiaoye stood aside speechlessly, watching the Golden Retriever brother and sister and Matsunaga quickly reach a consensus on the same place. Even Xiaotian looked calm and unsurprised, and even began to wonder if his mind was too rigid.
Matsunaga raised his head, looked at Xiaoye's expression with a head full of yarn balls, and couldn't help but smile.
"I'm sorry, it's me who has caused you trouble." Before following the golden retriever brothers and sisters out of the room, the middle-aged man said softly to the girl, "Consider this my apology."
"If you are still willing to chat with me, just wait until your two-day trip is over and then come and have a cup of tea with me?"
After leaving the cafe, Cady Dog walked at the front of the team in a serious manner.
It sniffed the scent of the starlight stone in its owner's hand seriously, quickly found the right direction, and led the mighty team straight to the northwest. Judging from the way it holds its head high and walks steadily, it really looks like a little partner carefully cultivated by ancient guards.
"The King's Gift" is a long-term mission. You need to break through the levels of eight attractions according to the guidance of the staff, and collect all eight star stones to be successful. According to the experience summarized by netizens, the first level is usually the Prism Palace located in the northwest of the park.
In order to cope with the endless puzzle games, Xiaoye and Xiaotian have opened their own instruction manuals and exchanged usages with each other while memorizing them. As for the unreliable golden retriever brother and sister - they are pestering Shoichi Matsunaga with endless questions.
Matsunaga, who had just said to Xiaoye, "Let's talk in two days," looked extremely helpless. He couldn't resist Xiaojie and Xiaoling who were full of curiosity, so he had to tell them about a visit to the park with his friend's family five years ago.
But halfway through, the smiles of the golden retrievers gradually stiffened, and confusion slowly crept up their heads. Even Xiaotian, who was walking in front, couldn't help showing a complicated expression, and looked at each other in confusion with Xiaoye, who was also full of ellipses.
"Uh, you mean..." Xiaojie stammered, "Xiaoye was very timid when she was a child and didn't dare to talk to strangers?"
"Besides, your body is very weak and you can't run or jump?" Xiaoling answered hesitantly.
Matsunaga nodded and sighed with emotion, "Yes. So now I see that she has the courage to travel and make friends. I'm really happy."
The golden-haired brother and sister were speechless and choked. They stared at their friend's stiff back for a while, then turned to Matsunaga with a twisted expression.
"Uncle, have you ever thought..." Xiaoling said solemnly, "Have you really admitted the wrong person?"
Compared to her friend's timid temperament in childhood, Xiaoling feels that "Xingyuye is a high-tech artificial intelligence robot randomly selected and distributed to lucky families, and each machine has a different personality setting" is even more realistic.
"It's not impossible for your personality to change when you grow up." Xiaojie struggled and said. Just as he was about to cite his cold and cool temperament as a child, he caught a glimpse of the heavy staff in the hand of the prayer master—— There are still a few scorch marks on the tip, as if it was scratched by the flames when it knocked the giant ax warrior away.
Xiaojie: "..."
Forget it, stop struggling. Is it a bad joke that Brother Beidou is timid and weak?
Matsunaga raised his head and looked at the tangled expressions of the golden-haired brother and sister, whose eyebrows almost turned into telephone lines.
Of course he understood why young people reacted the way they did. While watching the battle in the ring, he realized that his friend's daughter seemed to have a different impression from him.
Seeing the girl in the crowd being pushed to the stage, Matsunaga thought she was being bullied by her peers, and eagerly wanted to step forward to save her - until she saw the young trainer walking onto the stage with a calm smile, wielding a heavy magic weapon. The staff knocked the sturdy warrior away with one blow. He was so shocked that he felt as if he had been hit by a hundred thousand volts. At that time, even the Kati dog noticed the strange look on his master's face and barked nervously.
Matsunaga vaguely realized that the timid child in the past seemed to have become a completely different person.
Just when the thought came to mind, the face of his classmate and friend Narukami Hongna flashed through his mind at the right time. The scene of the old school bully's fight was vivid in his mind, and the slight doubts immediately disappeared.
He casually attributed the girl's change to "resembling her mother", then put aside the messy thoughts, turned the wheelchair and continued to move forward.
Not long after, the shining prism palace was in sight. The group of people couldn't wait to push open the door and step into the shade of green.
"Welcome to the first level, warriors from afar."
The owner of the palace did not show up, only his voice lingered faintly in the air, making it impossible to capture the true location.
"There is a powerful guard in each room of the Prism Palace. Only by seeing through their true identity can we move forward. I wonder if you have the insight to see everything?"
"We are all familiar with this! It's the 'Who am I' part of Dr. Omu's lecture, right?" Xiaoling looked around confidently.
The spacious room is filled with green plants and flowers, and the tropical-style trees grow tall and lush, almost touching the dome. Before anyone could take a closer look, the blond girl had already waved her dagger impatiently.
"Rania, God of Cold Wind, please listen to my prayer - Wind Bullet!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the gems inlaid on the dagger glowed brightly, and the strong wind swept up the grass blades and dust, causing the people to retreat. Only the dedicated Kati dog stayed by his owner's side and refused to move. He was forced to eat a mouthful of sand and almost learned how to use a mud bomb with a sneeze on the spot.
Xiaoye used her hands to protect the messy little Pichu in the wind. For a moment, she didn't know whether to admire Xiaoling's psychological quality for daring to shout embarrassing spells loudly or her strange brain circuitry that started to get windy after a disagreement. Xiaojie, who was closest, bore the brunt and was almost blown into a sand hedgehog, shouting angrily.
"Hey Xiaoling, blowing the wind can't bring out the Pokémon, so stop now!"
"Oh, don't you want to try out the feeling of having super powers quickly..."
"You would have!"
The steady duo looked at each other helplessly and took a few steps back, leaving the stage to the protagonist who was celebrating his birthday.
The two lively golden retrievers jumped up and down in the garden full of green plants. After reciting the commands they were interested in, they started to work seriously. Fortunately, the difficulty of the initial level was not high, and the two quickly dug out a sleeping coconut egg tree in the grass - its brown body was submerged among the green leaves, and even Xiaojie, who had the best eyesight, stared at it. It took me a long time to realize it.
Led by the wild golden retriever brother and sister, a group of people rampage into new levels. They stirred every boulder in the pond to find the figure of Slowpoke; they also sent Eevee to run around in the dark cave, alerting the Pokémon hidden in the dark, and relied on the flashing three-color light spots to identify them. The true form of Dayu Monster. It wasn't until they entered a house full of mirrors and glass partitions that the two finally started to have trouble.
"I, I'm starting to get dazzled. This is simply light pollution." Xiaojie was spinning in circles.
Under the reflection of the prism and glass, the sky full of light spots flooded the field of vision. At a glance, there were dazzling light spots everywhere, and it was impossible to tell where the real light source was.
Xiaoling bumped into the mirror in a daze, and her whole body slowly slid to the ground like a paper figure that had been hit by dimensionality reduction. "Do you feel that you can't lift your strength? Is there paralysis powder in the air..."
The conscientious Mr. Matsunaga shouted lines such as "Warrior, please cheer up" with such a loud voice that the glass in the room shook slightly. Xiaoye blinked and was about to share her speculations with Xiaotian when hazy white mist suddenly overflowed from all directions, blurring her vision.
The light laughter came from the sky again.
"Warriors who have come from afar, I appreciate your perseverance - but if you stay in a level for too long, you must accept the punishment."
Before he finished speaking, a strong wind swept through without warning. Invisible spiritual power bound the limbs, blowing the travelers in completely different directions.
Xiaoye knew that this was the inherent process of the game, and let the tornado blow her away without any struggle. After a while, when her feet landed again, the scenery in front of her was completely different.
The little Pichu was knocked dizzy and fell into the hood of the mage's robe with a thud. The trainer turned around and saw that only the injured soldier and his katy dog were left behind.
"Warrior, what on earth is going on?" Matsunaga shouted in a dramatic voice.
Xiaoye, who had just finished a snowstorm battle, really didn't want to make up any more lines, so she quickly looked left and right to take stock of her surroundings.
This is a circular open space with high platforms standing at both ends. Xiaoye was standing in one of them, looking across from a distance, and could vaguely see a snow-white shadow - it was covered tightly from head to toe with light-colored cloth, like a Halloween ghost, and it was impossible to tell whether it was a human or a Pokémon. Two points of blood-red light seeped out from behind the fabric, as frightening as the eyes of an evil spirit.
"Want to leave the Colosseum? Then you must defeat my attendants."
The ghost rose up in response and issued a sharp command. The bird flapped its wings and fell from the sky, its green feathers falling silently, and then swirled away with the air current.
"Warrior, this is the Colosseum. We must defeat each other's monsters before we can move forward!" The injured soldier looked tense. "If you are not good at fighting monsters, I can handle it here -"
Xiaoye smiled at the conscientious retired detective and said, "It doesn't matter, leave it to me."
With that said, she took a step forward and stepped to the center of the high platform.
The red and white elf ball at his fingertips flew up, and the bright light was like thunder, illuminating the soldier's dark brown eyes.
====================
small theater:
Matsunaga: Yes, she is able to beat fighters in the ring because she is like her mother. She definitely did not lose her mind and go crazy in just five years... (trance)
