Jingle Bell -

The door to the café was pushed open.

"Welcome to the 'Chocolate & Vanilla' Coffee House where the great Eight Dance Sisters come to be waitress!!"

"Welcome. Two guests. ”

Standing at the door, the Eight Dance Sisters, dressed in maid costumes, bowed to the two who pushed the door in.

"Hehehe...... Looks like the elves are doing well here! ”

An old man's voice rang out.

"Oh? Does this know the elves? ”

"Doubts. Who are you talking about? ”

"Really—"

This time, it was the red-haired double-ponytailed girl Gokawa Kotori who was pushing a wheelchair - by the way, the old man just now was in a wheelchair.

"--First that Kurumi Tokizaki, and now it's two elves? What the hell are you going to do to like maids so much, Yakumo? ”

Turning his head, it was Jean and Woodman at the door.

"Yo, isn't this the Commander of the Five Rivers? Why do you have time to come to me? ”

Yakumo immediately laughed when he saw the piano pushing Woodman in.

When he was in Okinawa, he was surprised when he heard Shido say that the girl was going to attend a round table meeting.

"Who wants to come here?"

Gokawa Kotori, who would be laughed at by Yakumo every time he came here, snorted very dissatisfied, and then pushed Woodman to Yakumo to come to Yakumo.

"It's Woodman who wants to see you."

Woodman...... High officer? ”

He looked down at the kind old man in a wheelchair.

"Hehehe...... Just call me Woodman, this one, huh...... Your Excellency Yakumo, can you call it that? ”

"Feel free."

He shook Woodman's hand, and Yakumo secretly looked at it.

It's just a very ordinary old man.

It's not an elf, and there's nothing strange about it.

After leading Kotori to push Woodman to the window, Yakumo sat across from him.

Yakuya and Yuxian immediately served two cups of black tea with great gracicity. made the crazy three on the side laugh at it.

"Mr. Woodman, why did you come to me?"

Ya Yunmo was the first to ask.

Because it was the old man brought by the koto, Yakumo's attitude was quite gentle.

"Hehehe, the old man is also a human being, so naturally he will be very curious about other worlds, monsters, or something, right?"

"Oh? Isn't that ......?"

Elegantly sipping the black tea, Yakumo smiled slightly.

“…… I don't have three heads and six arms. It won't eat people, and it won't scare children so that they can't sleep at night, what's there to see? ”

"But you let the elves live together so peacefully—well, good tea."

Putting down the black tea in his hand, Woodman nodded approvingly.

"Haven't introduced myself yet, I'm Elliott? Woodman, Speaker of the Roundtable, is also the founder of Ratatoskr. ”

Yakumo raised an eyebrow.

No wonder. Jean has such respect for this old man.

"After hearing that there is such a storage zài as Mr. Yakumo, I'm very curious, so let's take a look, and please forgive me for taking the liberty of disturbing me."

"You're joking."

"Hehe......"

Stroking his beard, Woodman laughed.

"I'm also glad to see the elves living so well. Thank you also for allowing us to find a second way out of the problem. ”

The gratitude in Woodman's tone was so obvious that Yakumo's heart moved slightly.

Does this old man care too much about elves? What is his relationship with the elves?

Glancing at Woodman quizzically. But I didn't see anything.

"Forgive me for taking the liberty of asking a question."

Since he couldn't see it, Yakumo simply asked directly.

"Why? You...... It's supposed to be a pure human being. Why do you care so much about elves? ”

In the café, it suddenly became extremely quiet.

The Crazy Three and Eight Dance sisters stopped what they were doing and turned their heads to look here.

Obviously, as elves, they are also concerned about this issue.

"Why?"

Woodman's voice was soft, but everyone could hear it clearly.

"I'm sorry. I can't say until 'that one' decides to tell the truth, after all, I promised her thirty years ago. Mr. Yakumo, please believe that we Ratatoskr have absolutely no ill intentions towards the elves. More than anyone else, I want to see elves do well......"

"I believe that."

Yakumo nodded.

"I can't know what's going on in your mind, but I can still tell if you're telling the truth."

"Huh...... Is this what youkai are capable of? ”

"Well, sort of."

Ambiguous answer.

"If you can, can Mr. Yakumo tell me how you plan to arrange the elves?"

Silent.

Subsequently -

"If they want, they can go to Gensokyo, since you're here, you've definitely investigated and found out what it is. There, they don't get any discrimination because they are elves - it's not normal to say there, if you don't have anything out of the ordinary. ”

Kurumi's body paused slightly.

With his head down, his eyes twinkled, not knowing what he was thinking.

The Eight Dance Sisters have come over this time, and they have long understood what Gensokyo is, and they have always been full of curiosity about it.

"An ideal place where humans, monsters, and gods live in harmony...... The old man saw the truth with his own eyes! ”

Woodman sighed.

"Well, I'm relieved to be able to get Mr. Yakumo's promise. And so he took his leave. ”

"Please walk slowly."

Standing up, he sent Koto and Woodman out of the café, looking at the back of the two leaving, Yakumo squinted his eyes slightly.

[This Woodman...... Surely you know a very important elf, it could be that Phantom?

◇

Time is slowly passing.

Ever since Woodman's visit, Kurumi has been in an abnormal state.

Although he seems to like to laugh at Yakumo as always, sometimes when he is alone, he always falls into an eerie silence.

It's not just Yakumo Mo, but even Asukina can see it. Kurumi seems to be struggling with something.

After all, after knowing each other for so long, Yakumo felt that if Kurumi encountered any difficulties, he should help him out.

On this day, the sun sets.

Garden Street in the 10th Block.

Sitting side by side on a leisure bench next to the street, Yakumo Mo looked at Kurumi who was licking ice cream in small gulps.

"Crazy three. We've known each other for a few months, right? ”

"Huh? Yes, Boss. ”

"Then, if you have any difficulties, you can sue me, not only me, but they will also be happy to help you tomorrow."

Kurumi lowered his head and was silent.

Then, he raised his head and looked at Yakumo with a somewhat reluctant smile on his face.

"Boss, it's very bad......"

"Huh?"

"We were supposed to. The goal is very firm, and the sorrow in my heart has never wavered-"

Sadness?

Yakumo Mo, who noticed this statement, immediately wrinkled his brows.

"It's just that I didn't expect that the time spent with my boss would make us think, 'Ah, it's not bad to go on like this.'" It's so undeserved! It shouldn't be! ”

"Sad wish...... Mad three, can sue me. What exactly do you want to do? ”

He pursed his lips and looked at Yakumo fixedly. Kurumi spoke slowly.

"Let's ...... I want to go back 30 years and kill the original elves! ”

"If there had not been the first elves, wouldn't the tragedies that followed have happened? Those who died because of the space quake...... The elves who are constantly being hunted down by humans ......"

I see.

Yakumo instantly understood, Kurumi's thoughts.

Change the past.

It's just that the past is really that easy to change?

Things that involve time are often related to the foundation of a world.

If time and history can be tampered with at will. So those who control time, aren't they always invincible?

Apparently not.

"Kurumi, do you want to ...... Changing the past? ”

"Yes...... Even if that would make our own existence disappear, it doesn't matter, as long as it doesn't happen to the tragedy that follows......"

"And then? You want to kill the original elf idea. It is based on the fact that the space earthquake was caused by the elves, and the elves that caused the space earthquake caused huge losses to the human race, so they were hunted down by the humans, right? ”

Kurumi nodded.

Yakumo laughed softly.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Didn't I say that? The presence of elves caused a spatial earthquake, not because they were elves, but because 'elves did not belong to this world'. ”

Suddenly, Kurumi's eyes widened.

I have heard Yakumo mention this statement more than once.

It's just that Kurumi has been stubbornly not believing it.

"Asuna and I are not elves, but when we appeared in this world, we still caused a space earthquake."

Toto, looking at Kurumi, reached out and stroked her head.

The girl had a cute look like a cat.

"So the space earthquake can't be established."

"But - the elves are hunted ......"

"You can ask Toka, you can ask Miku, Yakuya and Yuzumi can ...... too"

Yakumo said.

"Even if you want, I can take you to Gensokyo and ask the very good elf who lives in Gensokyo now."

"You go and ask them, are they willing to let you change history? If history had changed, their lives would have been completely different. ”

This time, Kurumi didn't speak.

Long.

"Boss, can I ...... Away for a while? ”

"Why not? I never really wanted to force you to stay around. ”

This time, Kurumi finally laughed.

Like a blooming rose.

"Thank you, boss...... He's a good guy! (To be continued......)