“…… Sure enough......"

As he expected, a small pond actually appeared in front of him.

Zhou Lang stopped.

Don't...... This is the legend -

It's—it's an amazing discovery......

After a while, Lin Xiaoya caught up from behind.

"Whew, whew...... Zhou Lang ......"

She opened her mouth to speak, but she was out of breath and couldn't speak.

I had to take a deep breath and adjust my breath desperately.

The sunlight reflected on the water surface was gently blown by the wind and projected into Zhou Lang's eyes.

Scene after scene of images came to mind.

The gaze of these images was kept low, and Zhou Lang guessed that this should be his grandfather's childhood memory.

At this moment, Zhou Lang is intersecting with his grandfather.

He still remembers the warmth of his grandfather's palms that day.

"Lin Xiaoya, this way!"

Zhou Lang held Lin Xiaoya's hand and began to run again.

"Ah, wait, wait—"

Lin Xiaoya, whose physical strength had not yet recovered, squeezed out the only remaining strength to follow him.

Follow him unto the end.

I have already made up my mind.

Lin Xiaoya also has a heart.

Same heart as Zhou Lang.

Equally wholeheartedly.

Led by the images that kept pouring out of his mind, Zhou Lang came to a place.

A field full of chrysanthemums blooms.

Red and purple flowers.

Flowers that bloom at the end of summer.

The boy and girl stood right in front of them.

The young man stared at Zhou Lang directly, and then stretched out his finger to compare.

If you look in the direction of your finger, it's a very rare tree.

"Lin Xiaoya, that's over there!"

As Zhou Lang's gaze looked at the big tree, Lin Xiaoya also noticed it.

"Could it be that the ...... is drawn on the map?"

On the map, there is a tree with a red "X" on it.

The two stared at each other and nodded vigorously.

Then they took hands and started running forward.

Zhou Lang quickly looked back and said to the young man-

「…… Thanks, Grandpa."

Express gratitude.

The big-eyed boy, as well as the red-haired girl, watched Zhou Lang's back go away.

Then, the two looked at each other and smiled.

- Suzu.

Running on mountain roads.

Two people.

The trail to the big tree.

Guided by an incredible miracle.

It's as if the past has also come.

A path that winds up.

Take her by the hand and run forward.

This feeling, this warmth.

It seems to have been felt, déjà vu.

When and where?

Ahh

It was that day, grandpa's warm big hands-

A wide field of view unfolds before your eyes.

The whole world looks like a movie playing in slow motion.

The wind caressed his cheeks.

Look up at the sky.

The tall, big, sun-facing tree was just ahead.

- Here it is.

The image that comes to mind is completely overlapping with reality at the moment.

"Whew, Whew......"

The two of them gasped and approached the tree step by step.

It is as if you feel the fragrance of the trees, conveying gentle thoughts.

"Kanta, look at this!"

Lin Xiaoya seemed to have discovered something.

Zhou Lang followed her line of sight.

It's grandpa's name......

At the base of the tree, two names are engraved.

It is a trace left decades ago, blurred to the point of being difficult to recognize.

The other name is unrecognizable.

However, it must be the name of the long-lost lover.

They agreed to meet again and make a wish.

Engraved here.

A sign that connects the past with the future.

- Memories of me and her are buried here.

「…… Grandpa......

It was at this moment that he did hear his grandfather's voice.

"Okay—"

Zhou Lang began to dig down from the roots of the tree.

Lin Xiaoya felt his thoughts and started to help without saying a word.

Replace the shovel with branches and rocks and dig down gradually.

Dig deeper and deeper.

Constantly digging for the time of sedimentation.

Find out the buried past.

Intersection with the present.

Pick up the connection of time.

Suddenly, through the gap between the roots of the tree, something appeared.

The two looked at each other and immediately struggled to dig something out of the dirt.

It was a metal box.

"—Found it! Treasure has been discovered! Have you finally broken the barrier?"

Zhou Lang couldn't help but shout.

Boxes, which could have belonged to valuables in wartime, have corroded quite badly.

Zhou Lang opened the lid.

The contents are wrapped in layers of cloth and paper.

"By all means...... It's right here......

Lin Xiaoya stared with bated breath, and Zhou Lang carefully unwrapped the outer package layer by layer.

Result –

Boom.

Suddenly, something fell out of the gap in the package and rolled to the ground.

Take a closer look.

"It's ...... What......?"

"Marbles ......?"

Lin Xiaoya said, picking up a round glass ball from the ground.

That's what Zhou Lang has been playing since he was a child - glass marbles.

Immediately, the packages in his hands were like springs, and a large number of glass marbles fell out one after another.

"—this—this?"

No way?

Countless glass marbles.

He didn't know what it symbolized and what it meant to his grandfather and lovers.

But he knew that it must be a very important memory between the two.

Zhou Lang picked up the tumbling marbles one by one.

Memories belonging to lovers, one, two. Three......

Memories keep increasing.

Happy, sad, lonely, warm.

That rainbow sky after the rain.

In the evening when the sky was full of red clouds, puddles of water were accumulating on the ground.

Reach for a marble.

Under the light of the setting sun.

Refracted with colorful light.

Take a deep breath.

What was found?

What was found?

On the days that keep repeating, inhale the air.

Exhale, then inhale again.

In a hurry, in a hurry, just repeating it over and over again.

Lose, gain, and lose again.

A hoarse throat that raised questions.

What exactly was found?

What exactly was found?

I've found it, you see-

Lin Xiaoya walked up to Zhou Lang, put her cheek close to his shoulder, and looked at the marbles in his hand.

"It's so dazzling, it's almost impossible to see."

She smiled. Say that and then smile beautifully.

When you close your eyes in the brilliant light, in a trance, you feel like you're praying.

Perhaps at that time, the lovers also faced the other side of the sun and prayed sincerely.

- I hope we can see each other again.

It's a pity that no matter how much they miss each other, fate still separates the two after all.

And yet, even if all are false, even if all are phantoms,

Even if it's just a matter of course,

Even on days when bubbles disappear at the touch of a button,

Even if you let go of your hand, there is still warmth......

Even so, Grandpa must have said it with a smile at the time.

It must be, said with a happy smile.

"-It's good to meet you."

It's game over.

The message left by his grandfather, he has indeed received.

"Hey, what is this? It didn't seem to be in the box just now...... Isn't that right?"

Lin Xiaoya found a white envelope at the bottom of the metal box containing marbles.

It looks very new, as if it has just been put down.

The envelope is exactly the same as the message "Let's play a game with grandpa" written by grandpa.

Could it be—Zhou Lang thought, took the letter and immediately tore open the seal.

There was a piece of paper in it.

"W-what, grandpa!"

It reads-

- Thank you for your patronage.

A few large words jumped out of the paper.

It's grandfather's handwriting.

Then, there is one more sentence -

"Now it's time to find your treasure."

It's written right next to it.

Really...... Grandpa is too fun-loving, right?

Didn't change until the last minute......

Zhou Lang's gaze took off the letter.

Then, looking at Lin Xiaoya.

She smiled very shyly.

- I've found it.

Far away, above the sky.

There are two figures.

It's a big-eyed teenager.

and a red-haired girl in a straw hat.

「…… How long will I be able to maintain this appearance?" The boy asked.

A shallow smile appeared on the girl's face, and she replied—

"Ahh Oh, already—Daniel."

Immediately, from the boy's back near the buttocks, a black tail with a little white at the end suddenly grew.

Then, as if by magic, the whole person turned into a black cat.

"Whew, I'm so tired, it's so hard." The black cat spread its bat-like wings and waved them around. "White, do you want to stay like that forever?"

"Ah, I almost forgot, so please help me change it back, right?"

"Really, you can do this kind of trivial thing yourself~~ You will only rely on me......

The black cat grumbled and tapped the girl with the white part of the end of her tail.

The sound of a bell ringing in her ears, and the girl's appearance changed.

Long shiny white hair, white dress, and bright red shoes.

"Then again, why do I have to become human?" The black cat asked with a wry head.

The white girl sat on the huge scythe in her hand and said to him—

"Because Daniel would scare people if he spoke suddenly."

"Well, that's right—but, I didn't even say a word, did I?"

"Huh? Is that so?"

"It was! It's rare that the Grim Reaper and the Acolyte have specially transformed, and you even sent me to steal a new letter, in vain, are you playing tricks on me from beginning to end?"

"Huh? However, that's what it's called a game. Am I right, sama—sama?"

In the depths of the blue sky, white maidens and black cats dance gently.

No one knows.

- Only now, I don't think about it.

I'm dull enough.

In fact, Zhou Lang went to his grandfather's hometown once a long time ago.

That was when he was very young, so it's no wonder he can't remember.

In the course of the scavenger hunt, there will be that sense of familiarity, precisely because of the impression left at that time.

Grandfather used to hold his hand and walk the road.

The tall, big tree.

Warm sunshine.

In other words, he is not a superpower at all.

However, it is also a matter of course.

Did Grandpa always believe that I would remember?

It must be.

The chrysanthemums that bloom all over the field are the flower language of "trust".

…… That sea of flowers?

Well?

Yes? Wait a minute......

So—

Who is the pair of teenagers and girls......?

Hey?

Huh?

Yes?

The treasure hunt game ended, and Zhou Lang Yulin Xiaoya returned to the original place and said goodbye at the East Station.

"-Don't forget to look for it, I won't forget you, absolutely not." Before leaving, Lin Xiaoya said.

Zhou Lang replied with a smile -

"I won't forget. And I'm going to look for you, no matter how far away it is, I'm going to see you, fly there at the speed of light, uh, I won't take a normal tram anyway."

She let out a "hmm" and smiled happily, tears welling up in her eyes.

Zhou Lang was a little at a loss.

"There's still time, and even if you're gone, you can call us. You can send a letter even if you don't have time to call. The most important thing now is to study hard and prepare for the exam, let's work together, we have already lost the cram camp."

As a result, her eyes were full of tears, and she smiled happily.

"My grades are pretty good, and at least I'm the class president. Zhou Lang, you should be more miserable, right?"

Well......

It's nerve-wracking.

What she said—

Absolutely.

......

- As long as you live, there will be happy things happening.

"—that was a long, long time ago...... At that time, the outside world was very different from now, and even the smell of the wind was different......

The old woman said this, her eyes moving to the scenery outside the window.

The white room, the walls and ceiling are painted pure white.

Even the bedspreads and sheets on which the old woman was lying were all the same color.

On the chair next to the bed, a white girl sits, exuding a strange sense of transparency, as if floating in a pure white space.

The girl had a cat with a big bell around her neck on her lap.

Only this cat adds the only black color to the pure white space.

"I don't know how many years have passed since then...... But I can still remember his eyes, his voice, the shape of his lips, and the smell of his body...... None of this is an illusion...... It's the real world."

The girl gently stroked the head of the black cat on her lap as she listened to the old woman.

"He's probably gone...... Those memories...... In that season of thunderstorms in the afternoon, did they all become phantoms......

Between the past and the present.

And the future is only a stone's throw away, the present.

Closer than yesterday, farther than tomorrow.

Memories and fantasies go back and forth.

The old woman's eyes were staring at a certain point of "once".

At this time, the girl spoke.

"He must still be there, in your heart. You see, the sunlight that spilled down from the cracks in the trees is also full of memories, and Hui Yi is omnipresent, because memories sleep in memories...... It must be—"

"yes, yes...... I think so too."

The old woman smiled slightly.

Quiet and peaceful days, warm and warm sunshine.

While looking at the direction of the sun, he told the story.

Because I know that I may not die soon.

「…… That was when I was a kid...... At that time, I was very fond of a boy, but I separated from him and lost contact with him. I'm really sad......

This is a story that is interconnected -

At the moment, I remembered by chance.

No, in fact, I have always been thinking about it from then to now.

At that time, the boy who lived nearby, Zhao Wu, was a very different child.

That being said, it's not that there's anything strange about it, it's just that I'm just at the age of elementary school, but I have a very sharp intuition and can judge things accurately.

But as long as he smiled, dimples appeared on his face, and he was small, and he felt as cute as a small animal.

In this way, in her mind, adding vinegar to memories one after another is not the same as the truth.

She, Qian Yi, completely stopped developing before she entered high school, on the contrary, the boy who fell in love for the first time kept growing upwards in her memories, contrasting with her own mini-height.

At that time, Zhao Wu, the first love object, had shoulder-length hair as smooth and flowing as a girl, and the hair color was slightly orange. Although it is not unusual for elementary school students to dye their hair brown or blonde in today's society, at that time, his unusual hair color was the most beautiful color and her favorite color of any person she had ever seen.