I want to just drift through life in Type-Moon.

Page 11

That's quite possible, after all, he's a director of that hospital, so it's not surprising that he knows my address.

Did he already know about this place?

If that's the answer, then everything becomes quite intriguing.

"How did you know I lived here?" Yue Zhengling gave up guessing and asked directly.

“I guessed.” Araya Sōren sat down opposite him, still speaking in a muffled voice that was almost suffocating his heart.

This wasn't the answer he wanted, but since that's what they said, he'd rule out the second option. However, before he could ask again, Araya Sōren spoke first.

"Not running away this time?"

This sounded like sarcasm, but Araya Sōren's eyes, expression, and tone remained unchanged, making it impossible for Yue Zhengling to tell whether it was sarcasm or a normal question.

"Putting aside the fact that this is my home, why should I run away?" Yue Zhengling endured the heavy pressure from the person opposite him. "Not to mention that you've come to my door. I don't think I can escape."

"A wise choice. No wonder you're the grandson of Mr. Yue Zhengtu." Araya Sōren's voice was deep, but his words were full of admiration.

Upon hearing this, Yue Zhengling knew that he had guessed correctly. Huangye Zonglian did indeed know his grandfather, and he was the old friend his grandfather had mentioned.

Although Araya Sōren looks only forty-five years old, and you would never guess from his appearance that he is friends with his grandfather who is over seventy, Le Zhengling knows that the person in front of him is a monk who has lived for two hundred years, so there is nothing wrong with him knowing his grandfather.

But just to be on the safe side, Yue Zhengling still asked, "Do you know my grandfather?"

"Of course, when I traveled in the past, I met your grandfather, Le Zhengweng, in that country, and I was also treated to a period of time by your Le Zheng family."

Yue Zhengling excitedly shouted "Yay!" in his heart, thinking: This time I'm saved!

He ran into the kitchen, turned on the tap, poured out two bottles of tap water, took out unopened rice crackers from the cupboard, poured them into a dish, and took it out.

"I'm sorry, the gas is out, so I can't make you tea." Looking at the two cups of tap water on the tray, Yue Zhengling felt a little embarrassed.

Japanese tap water, also known as tap water, is potable, but using it to entertain guests would be quite impolite.

"It's alright, I don't mind." As if to prove his words, Araya Souren picked up his cup and drank half of it.

Seeing his action, Yue Zhengling breathed a slight sigh of relief; the other party really didn't seem to have any hostility.

After Araya Souren put down his teacup, the two fell silent.

Le Zhengling didn't know how to ask him for that thing, while Huangye Zonglian just stared at him without saying a word.

"That day at the hospital, you said my name, didn't you?" He stared at her for a long time, making Yue Zhengling shift her chair uncomfortably.

Le Zhengling nodded truthfully, recalling Guan Buzi's mother's reminder, but did not reveal anything further.

"Since you recognize me, why did you run away back then?" Araya Sōren continued to ask.

"I'm sorry, but I only know you by name, and I'm not really sure if it's you. Besides, you look scary, so I didn't dare to greet you. And the nurse just took me away without you calling me, so I left." Le Zhengling gave him a wry smile; these were all the truth.

"..." The other party seemed unaware of the problem.

“Ah, I didn’t mean you look scary. Think about it, society is so chaotic these days. A little kid going out alone, of course he has to be wary of his surroundings. Then I realized someone was chasing me, so I ran away,” Yue Zhengling added, while carefully observing the other person’s expression.

Araya Sōren did not show any anger. After a long while, he said, "Indeed, I was impetuous at the time. You were not wrong."

"Yes, the situation was a bit unusual at the time, so it's normal for us to have misunderstandings." Le Zhengling nodded. "Let's just let this matter go. Oh, speaking of which, how did you and Grandpa actually meet?"

“As I mentioned before, I traveled to that country and stayed at a temple in Yanjing. Your grandfather also frequented that temple. After we met, we talked for a long time. Le Zhengweng was a very interesting person.”

"Later he settled in Japan, and I only knew his address. I didn't have the chance to visit him because of other things, but I didn't expect that he brought you with him. I didn't hear your name until the day before yesterday."

“The surname Lezheng is quite rare, which is why I was wondering if you were the grandson of someone I know,” Araya Sōren replied calmly.

Chapter Twenty-Six: Grandpa's Best Friend

"Is that so..." Yue Zhengling couldn't help but feel frustrated. It was hard to find the key point in him by talking like that. It seemed that he needed to think of a way to delve deeper into the topic and get him to bring out his own information.

"Speaking of which, where is Yue Zheng? Aren't you going to call him out to see his old friends?"

"Grandpa is already dead..." Yue Zhengling answered without thinking, while pondering other questions.

A crisp "crack!" brought Yue Zhengling back to his senses. He looked at the cup in Huangye Zonglian's hand with a puzzled expression; the cup had been crushed by the other party.

"Dead?" Araya Sōren looked incredulous.

“Yes, Grandpa died half a year ago, didn’t you know?” Le Zhengling said helplessly. “Speaking of which, did Grandpa entrust anything to you for safekeeping? If so, please return it to me, it is very important to me.”

Araya Sōren did not answer, but stared intently at him, a gaze that frightened Yūjō Līng.

In my memory, Araya Sōren only had a sorrowful expression, but now his eyes were filled with joy, as if he had seen something he had been searching for.

This is inappropriate! This is inappropriate! There's a problem! There's a problem! There's a problem!

Seeing him like this, Yue Zhengling's sixth sense kept sounding alarms, and he was more clear-headed than ever before!

Is Araya Sōren truly the person whom his grandfather called his closest friend and entrusted with the most important things?

Once suspicion arises, problems that he had previously ignored will emerge one by one.

Would close friends call their grandfather "Le Zheng Weng"?

How could a close friend not even know about his grandfather's death?

Did the close friends not know that they were a grandfather and grandson who came to Japan together?

These questions flashed through Yue Zhengling's mind, and he was filled with fear.

Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! It's not this person!

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about. Yue Zheng Weng didn't give me anything."

After learning that his grandfather had passed away, the feeling that Araya Sōren gave to Yue Zhengling changed. The air around him seemed to thicken, and Yue Zhengling felt a slight dizziness creeping over him.

“As expected, you have no magic power at all.” Suddenly, Araya Sōren slowly stood up.

Seeing that he seemed to be planning something, Yue Zhengling immediately stood up. "By the way, it would be really impolite to serve you only tap water and rice crackers. I cooked some porridge in the backyard for dinner. Mr. Araya, you haven't had dinner yet, have you? How about we have some together?"

After saying that, without waiting for a response, he left the table as quickly as a rabbit.

“Running away is useless.” Araya Sōren said with a somber face.

"Why run away? I just want to have dinner. Doesn't Mr. Araya trust my cooking skills?" Yue Zhengling said innocently, and he wasn't lying, but that didn't mean he didn't want to buy time.

Araya Sōren gave him a deep look, then silently sat back down.

Don't lie to the men in black! Sticking to this advice worked! Thank you, Mother of the Cloth!

He slowly walked towards the backyard, his mind racing.

It has been confirmed that Araya Sōren is not the person entrusted by his grandfather, and he now has other intentions towards him. He wonders if he will kill him.

Unable to fight, unable to escape, unable to lie, a deep sense of powerlessness once again enveloped Yue Zhengling.

"I just wanted to be an ordinary person, living a simple life. I've been doing just that for over a decade now, haven't I? Why can't I continue living like this...?"

Looking at the torrential rain outside the corridor, his mood was as gloomy as the sky.

“…I may die, but the things that need to be done still need to be done.” He didn’t go to the kitchen, but instead went to find an envelope and wrote “To Aozaki Touko” on the new cover.

The reason he didn't give it to Aoko was because he knew Aoko was a destroyer, and he didn't want these incredibly precious things to be destroyed. Besides, he didn't think Aoko understood Chinese.

Orange is much more reliable. Although Le Zhengling doesn't know if she can understand Chinese, he is sure she will be curious. As long as she is curious, she will investigate. This way, he can change the life trajectory of this person who has some connection with him. With the relationship between the two sisters, at least it won't cause as many problems and dangers as before.

He took the envelope, went to the phone, and dialed his guardian's number.

The phone was answered after ringing three times, but no one spoke on the other end. Le Zhengling didn't mind, because that was how it always was.

"Although I have never met you, I am very grateful for your care all this time. I may be dying, so I would like to make some arrangements for my affairs after I die."

"Huh?" A cryptic laugh came from the other end.

Without considering the meaning of the laughter, Yue Zhengling said to himself, "After I die, please cremate me and bury me next to Grandpa's. Also, I wrote something, please send it to someone named Aozaki Touko. She should live in Akiko Castle on the edge of Misaki Town, but I don't know her exact address."

"The Aozaki family, how did you get involved with them?" The person on the other end of the phone finally became curious.

"It was just a chance encounter."

"The odds are almost zero, but we still met? Is this a chance encounter of fate?" the other person asked in a joking tone, sounding quite unserious.

Le Zhengling instinctively sensed something was wrong again; the other person seemed to know a lot, but preoccupied with his own thoughts, he didn't dwell on it: "I don't have time to joke with you!"

"Oh ho, are you shy?" the voice continued to tease.

"I've said everything I wanted to say. Thank you again for taking care of me all this time. Goodbye!" Le Zhengling was in no mood to continue and was about to hang up the phone, but a sentence from the other end made him stop hanging up abruptly.

"Who said you were going to die? Nonsense!" This time, the voice was unusually serious.

"You have no idea what I've been through!" Le Zhengling roared into the phone, unable to contain his anger.

"Isn't it just Araya Sōren?" The voice on the other end was calm, even cold, as if it were referring to an insignificant insect.

A sudden realization dawned on Yue Zhengling, and he finally understood everything. As the saying goes, it's darkest under the lamp, and he couldn't help but feel ashamed of his previous waste of time.

Isn't this the man who was Grandpa's best friend?

They entrusted their most important things to him while they were alive, and they would entrust their most important grandchildren to him after they died.

"Since you know everything, why don't you show up?" Yue Zhengling asked excitedly, her lips trembling.

"That's because your grandfather and I made an agreement. If I appear in front of you, it means that things are starting to get out of control, and it also means that his wish for you to grow up as an ordinary person has been dashed."

"You mean, Grandpa... foresaw all of this?" Yue Zhengling was very sad and found it hard to accept this answer.

"My old friend just anticipated this. He did his best to prepare everything, but it seems the result is still not good." The person on the other end of the phone sighed, sounding quite regretful.

"Who exactly are you?" After calming down, Yue Zhengling finally asked the crucial question.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Telephone

"I can't answer that question," the person on the other end of the phone said without hesitation.

After hearing this answer, Yue Zhengling did not ask any further questions, but the other party gave an explanation.

“Names have magic. If I answer your question, the protective power left by your old friend will be further weakened. You are not in mortal danger right now, but it concerns your future fate.”

“I could die at any moment, and if I don’t get the things Grandpa entrusted to you for safekeeping within three days, I’ll definitely die of a heart attack on the fourth day! What’s the point of worrying about my future?” Le Zhengling became agitated again.

"So, who exactly said you were going to die? If it's about your heart problem, that's not a problem at all; a lawyer will handle that later." The voice on the other end of the phone explained with great distress. "Let me see who's talking nonsense."

Le Zhengling first heard the sound of turning pages, and then he knew the reason from that sound.

"Hmm?" the person said, sounding puzzled. "I see, Nero Chaos?"

“Don’t worry, you won’t die,” the man said again with certainty.

"No, if you don't give me back what Grandpa entrusted to you for safekeeping by tomorrow, I will definitely die the day after tomorrow. This is the absolute future that person was talking about! I don't know what you saw, but you'd better give me that thing quickly!" Le Zhengling said hurriedly, seeing a glimmer of hope.

"Hahaha! Absolutely the future? What a boastful tone! Even I wouldn't dare say that! The future has countless possibilities. Nero Chaos is far too arrogant!" The person opposite scoffed.

“This prophecy wasn’t made by Nero Chaos.” Yue Zhengling frowned, thinking that this person was so unreliable.

"Hmm? Did you encounter other people besides Nero Chaos, the Aozaki family, and Araya Sōren? No, I don't have any records here."

Le Zhengling felt a chill run down her spine. How could it sound like the other party knew everything that had happened to her before?

"There's nothing else unusual. Who told you that if you don't get that thing by tomorrow, you'll definitely die?" The person on the other end was puzzled. After all, even he couldn't find any records, so this was completely out of control.

Who exactly did Yue Zhengling meet, and what did he tell him? This is a question that involves many things.

“A person with futuristic vision.” Le Zhengling did not use the title “Mother of Guanbuzi” because he was unsure whether the person in front of him could be trusted. He was afraid that something unexpected might happen if he rashly brought up the title of “Mother of Guanbuzi.”

However, the person on the other side had already guessed it.

"Future vision? You went to Guanbuzi City the day before yesterday, did you meet that person with absolute future vision? How could you possibly meet her?!" The person on the other end of the phone exclaimed in surprise, "How could such an absurd thing happen?! This is completely outside the range of measurement!"

"So, it's true that I'm going to die?" Hearing the other person's reaction, Yue Zhengling knew that the other person had specific knowledge about Guan Buzi's mother, so he quickly asked the other person.

Rain clouds covering the night sky continued to pour down, the sound of rain mingling with the darkness. The boy stood alone by the telephone in the corridor, awaiting his sentence.

"...I admit, this is beyond my expectations. If it is a prophecy from someone with absolute future vision, then it means it is true. But that doesn't mean I have an obligation to give it to you." The voice suppressed all its emotional fluctuations.

"So that means you're going to stand by and watch someone die, is that it?"

"The cause and effect involved here are too great for me to explain clearly. In short, your life or death is not the key for me to intervene in this world. I can't even appear in front of you, let alone give you that thing. So, I can only apologize."

After this explanation, which was meaningless to Yue Zhengling, the voice continued, "All I could do before was to silently watch over my old friend's descendants after his death, provide you with the guarantee to live a normal life, and ensure that your lineage continues unbroken."

"If I die, wouldn't that mean the end of the Lezheng family line? What's the point of you even looking at this?!" Lezheng Ling clenched his fist.

"Don't take yourself too seriously, kid." The voice became full of mockery. "Although your birth was special, and your death does mean that your lineage has completely disappeared in this world, it doesn't mean that it will be the same in other worlds."

“That thing is too important. I can’t just hand it over to anyone else. Back then, Le Zhengtu knew this fact, which is why he gave it to me and waited for its true owner. Since he gave it to me, it proves that you are not qualified.”