"Woo, woo~~~"

Under the scorching sun, the sky is clear, and the sound of trumpets is endless, spreading to the distant horizon.

It's another rare good weather.

With the sound of the loud horn, ten carriages belonging to the town government drove out of the central square at the same time, and the carriages were covered with a thick black cloth, which was quite solemn and solemn. Nearly 100 men, women and children dressed in black slowly followed the carriage on foot, and the huge procession slowly walked along the main road of the town, and the trees on both sides of the street were already covered with white paper flowers, all the way to the direction outside the town.

There were many people standing on both sides of the street along the way, dressed in different costumes, but basically wearing dark clothes, these people had been waiting on the side of the road for a while, and when they saw the convoy approaching, they took off their hats with solemn expressions and bowed deeply in the direction of the convoy.

"Woo~~~"

The horn sounded again, and a large number of petals floated from the head of the convoy, and in the sun, the petals drifted away with the wind, and among the scattered falling flowers, there were one or two suppressed whimpering sounds, which soon stopped again.

The convoy drove all the way out of town, and finally stopped at a threshing yard on the outskirts of the town, where a huge pyre had already been erected, and the pungent smell of kerosene emanated from the pyroid.

The convoy stopped one by one, the carriages opened, and more than two dozen bodies covered in white cloth were lifted off the carriage and taken to the crematorium. According to the rules of the town of Saul, those who die by pollution must be burned by flames before they can be buried in the ground, and the funeral rites for the victims of the collective disaster are unfortunately given a chance to reappear after a decade of hiatus.

The bodies were brought to the crematorium one by one, and the uncontrollable cries finally rang out, and the relatives and friends of the victims used their cries to say their final goodbyes to the relatives and friends who unfortunately passed away in this fringe shock.

The funeral procession was saying goodbye, and in the distance, on the edge of the farmland on the outskirts of the town, there were two figures, one large and one small, hugging each other, sitting on the top of the tall barn, looking at the solemn funeral procession.

Barb and Anna.

Three days had passed since the disaster, and Anna had slept for three full days, only waking up this morning before the funeral ceremony began. At this time, Babu was sitting on the top of the barn with the little one in his arms, and while sending his last blessing to the deceased, he was writing and drawing in the little one's hand.

"Tell me, yours, the story."

Abba Aba, the little guy looks innocent, happily dancing in Babu's arms.

"Or, tell me, yours, the enemy."

Abba Aba, the little guy lay on Babu's chest, gnawing fiercely at a button on his new clothes, and a large patch of wet clothes was gnawed.

"You guy." Babu muttered with a smile and wrote, "What do you eat for lunch?" ”

"White bread, butter." This time it was written quickly and with exceptional power.

"Dead kid who deliberately made trouble." Habitually muttering this recently learned word, the Báb patted her punitively on the head, "Anyway, make it clear." ”

"I don't know, I don't understand."

Babu subconsciously muttered, "You mean you don't understand anything, and you don't know a lot of things yourself?" Ah, I forgot, it should have been written......"

Nod, nod.

The corners of Babu's mouth twitched, remembering that on the night of the decisive battle, when she secretly said that the little thing was stupid, she seemed to have just reacted, and immediately slapped her on the head angrily: "Aren't you able to hear it." ”

"Shocking, tired." Anna poked Babu in the chest and got on her stomach again.

Babu immediately understood, probably a method similar to bone conduction, no wonder she was sticking to her chest when she was fine, but looking at her expression, it seemed that it was very tiring to do so, so Babu had to continue to write: "Then, you know what, where did you come from. ”

"Opposite."

What the hell is on the other side? Confused, Babu was about to ask, when he suddenly came to his senses. When we say the opposite side in this world, I am afraid that we do not mean the real opposite, but the opposite side of the present world...... Phantom World.

"Over there, it's all like, you?" Babu felt a little bitter in his mouth.

"I don't know."

Babu sighed, no longer delved into the question, and changed the subject and asked, "For the first time, we, go in, your, little doppelganger, hit us." ”

"I, invisible, physical, instinctive, defensive, behavioral."

So it was, and the Báb wrote thoughtfully: "That, the body, can't be seen? Yours, eyes ......"

"Eyes, ears, mouths, snatched, snatched." The little guy's expression looked quite aggrieved, and he looked like he was about to cry, "No." ”

Babu was tempted to ask if you usually like to play such a game that subverts common sense, but in the end he shook his head and wrote: "Who, who snatched it, the other day, that, the enemy?" ”

"I don't know, probably, including, it."

"That, he, hunt down, you, why."

"Maybe, to, grab something else, in the future, will, keep chasing, don't let go."

"Don't be afraid, keep chasing, better. Let's find a chance to get it back. Babu always felt that his thoughts were becoming more and more curious, and quickly wrote, "Finally, one, the question, me, what's going on. ”

Little Anna's fingers trembled a little, and she wrote hesitantly: "Ten years ago, like my parents, you, died, and I, desperately, called you, you, came." ”

Babu's head was so big in understanding that he reluctantly asked, "A few days ago, what about that time?" ”

"I, scared, very, called you, screamed, you, woke up."

Although Anna said it was extremely confusing, Babu still barely understood what she meant, it seemed that this body had died ten years ago, it was the call of this little thing, and he didn't know where to stuff his soul into this body, but the soul never woke up, so the body lived in a mess for ten years. It wasn't until a few days ago that she met her old rival again, and she desperately asked herself for help, so her soul really woke up, officially took over the appendage of the body and burst the node, stopped the edge shock, saved Jessica in the bar, and also helped little Anna once.

No wonder he only has memories of ten years, because his soul has only slept in this body for ten years, and he was not himself at all ten years ago, so his memory is naturally impossible to talk about.

Although the understanding was very reluctant, but in the little guy's few answers, he had already sensed a strong attachment and dependence, and this unreserved trust made Babu's heart warm, and he gently pinched her face a few times, and even she didn't care about holding her hand and nibbling it.

As soon as the smell of smoke came, Babu looked up, and the crematorium in the distance had been engulfed in flames, billowing smoke, Babu stood up, took off his hat and bowed in the direction of the crematorium, and then slid down the barn with Anna in his arms, and walked leisurely towards the town.

In the bright sunshine, the town was peaceful, the main funeral ceremony was over, and although there was still a little sadness, most people had returned to their normal lives, the farmers who resisted the hoes, the shepherds who drove the cattle and sheep, the traders who pushed the wagons, the craftsmen with tools in their hands, everyone was in a hurry, ready to start the day's work and welcome a new life.

Holding Anna's hand, the two walked through the crowd, as usual, the streets became more and more lively, especially in the center of the town, the vendors had already pushed their carts back to their old places, and the passers-by slowly stopped and began to choose their favorite goods, and even those annoying children, like runaway wild horses, began to run wildly along the streets of the town, and it was no longer obvious that there had been a disaster not long ago.

Everything is the same as before, however, everything is different again.

For the Báb, it was no longer the same.

At least when I walked into the market before, I wouldn't let everyone's eyes be focused, and I wouldn't let the market become silent in an instant.

Babu sighed, took Anna by the hand, and slowly walked to the butcher stall on the street. It's obviously a lively market, but wherever he walks, the crowd will automatically give way to a space, allowing him to move unimpeded wherever he goes.

"These potatoes are newly harvested, great, they should be able to be stored for a long time, I want them."

In the market, no one came over to pat the head and pat the shoulder, no one was noisy and stuffed things into Babu's pocket, everyone was polite and politely opened the distance.

"I want a dime of cheese, the drier it is, the better, and preferably sour."

Hiding outside the cheese shop on the east side of the town was Jayne of the patrolling garrison, and when he saw Babu, his eyes dodged, and he had to smile and nod until Babu approached, but his eyes were always avoiding the girl next to Babu, and he never looked at her.

"Get me five slices of cured meat, and try to marinate some that can last longer."

There was a wheelchair outside the house outside the butcher's shop on the south side, and Jessica, who had a plaster cast on her legs, was sitting on it basking in the sun, and when she saw Babu walking by, the waitress of this bar had a complicated expression, and the same detached politeness, until Babu was about to leave, she pulled Babu and whispered: "I'm sorry, little Babu, we discussed it, and I really want to treat you like before, but ...... You're really scared, I'm sorry, give us a little more time, we'll be able to adjust our mood soon, and we won't embarrass you. ”

Babu owes Anna a little hand, and the two of them have traveled to every corner of the town, buying more and more things, until even little Anna has a bag around her neck, and the two set foot on their way home. Seeing that the familiar house was in front of them, the two were stopped.

Monica, who she hadn't seen for a few days, was dressed in a black suit, wearing cowhide boots for explanation, looking like she was going out to pick up waste, at this time she was leaning against the door with her hands behind her back, looking up at the translucent sky, I don't know what she was thinking, when she heard the movement, she retracted her gaze, smiled and waved at the two: "I'm back, it's been a long time." ”

Babu was not surprised at all, and opened the door casually, as if he had met an old friend coming to visit.

The neatness of the house is surprising, everything is neatly packed, most of them are packed and put in the corner, only the table in the middle of the living room, there are a large and a small two packages, the big one is half a person high, it makes people have back pain when they look at it, and the small one is only in comparison, in fact, it is quite large, but now it is still empty.

Babu dropped the bags and Anna in her hand, snatched the expensive cured meat from her, and began to expertly pack today's booty.

Monica didn't show any surprise at Babu's behavior, just sat calmly on the sidelines, watched Babu busy alone, watched for a while, and then said faintly: "You have decided?" ”

"You're not surprised?" Báb asked rhetorically.

"Heh, you said that night that you two were ready to do so, what else did I expect?" Monica smiled bitterly, "It's just that I've been looking forward to it a little bit in the past two days, but looking at your actions today, it still hasn't made you change your mind, and you've decided to leave with her?" ”

"Hmm." The movement of Babu's hand paused, and quickly continued, "It's been a few days, and the activities that should be attended are all over, and it's time to leave." ”

"Have you decided where to go?"

Babu smiled and shook his head: "There is no purpose, and there is no need to have a purpose, walking along the edge, you will always meet other towns, don't forget that I am gifted, I can see the entrance to the world better than you." The world is so big, it's time to go out and see it. ”

"You've figured it out." Monica said seriously, "Once you're far from town, it's almost impossible to get back. As soon as you leave, you will say goodbye, and there is no road to regret. ”

Babu tightened his backpack tightly, shrugged his shoulders casually, and replied silently.

"Can you tell me why?" Monica sighed and asked weakly, "Mayor Mare, they also estimated that you were planning to leave, so they specially instructed everyone, but ...... Can you tell me what they're not doing well enough? ”

"On the contrary, they did too well." Babu paused and said solemnly, "It's normal to be afraid of this little guy, and it's not normal for me to be afraid like this." And I was very touched that they were able to endure the fear of the alien and try to maintain a normal attitude towards us. But it was because they did so well that we were more determined to leave, and the sooner the better. ”

"Huh?"

"That cloud monster was just driven away that day, just like it was ten years ago. He's definitely coming back, and he's definitely coming back sooner than the last time, maybe a month from now, maybe a year from now. Babu poked the face of the little girl playing with the backpack on the side, "The target he locked on is not Thor, he is targeting this guy, if we don't leave, that cloud will come to the door again sooner or later, and I don't know how many more people will die by then." ”

"Actually, I originally had a lot of ideas, and I could also find various ways to get down and let the town help us block the knife in the future, but ...... The guys in town have gone so far that we're forced to leave now. ”

"Okay, I'm done with the reason, and the things are packed, it's time to say goodbye, and it's just time for you to come, which saves me the time to go to you again." Babu picked up the small bag on his back, picked up a bunch of keys from the table, and threw it to Monica, "I'll leave the rest to you, you can take care of it for me." Monica, we've only known each other for a few days, but ...... I am very grateful for the kindness you have given me, and I am also honored to be able to fight side by side with you, and it will be one of my most important memories. If I could, I would like to continue this memory, but unfortunately, I have to leave, and before I leave, I would like to ask one last question, Monica, would you like to ...... Oh, forget it, I should go too, and since there's no turning back, then I won't say goodbye, goodbye, Monica. ”

With a wave of his hand, Babu took Anna's little hand and turned away freely, leaving only a back in Monica's eyes, Monica held the key and sat quietly on a chair in the room, watching Babu gradually move away, until Babu's back disappeared completely, and she did not make any sound.

Babu didn't look back, although he slowed down several times, and had the urge to stop and turn around a few times, but in the end he didn't stop, but led Anna faster and faster, and walked towards the outside of the town without hesitation.

Many townspeople walked by head-on, whether they knew or not, and when they saw Babu's outfit, they couldn't see his intentions, and these people had a complicated look of anticipation and reluctance, and they bid farewell to this young man who grew up in the town and embarked on his own journey.

Walking through the golden waves of wheat in the suburbs, all the way to the outermost sentry post, the sentry of the security team seemed to have received the news, and when he saw Babu coming, he stood and saluted from a distance, until Babu walked outside the sentry and waved at him, and he returned to normal. And Babu didn't stop until he walked outside the sentry post, and for the first time he looked back at the town where he had grown up, and he didn't know which memory of which life was working, and his heart was mixed for a while.

Anyway, now that the decision had been made, there was no need to hesitate, and Babu stretched hard, holding Anna around her neck, and prepared to march towards the edge to the accompaniment of the little one's head slapping overhead, but at that moment, a bell suddenly rang in his ears.

Jingle bell, ding bell.

The crisp sound of the bell came with the wind, and looking in the direction from which the bell came, a huge rickshaw appeared in the field of vision from far and near. This rickshaw is quite familiar no matter how you look at it, it is definitely a relic of the fringe caravan that was wiped out a few days ago, but the carriage has been changed to the style of a caravan, and on the top of the caravan stands a particularly simple wooden sign that you just found casually, and a line of words is casually written on the wooden plate with paint.

Monica & Báb Chamber of Commerce.

With the clanging of the roof, the rickshaw drove all the way to a stop in front of Babu and Anna, poked his head out of the main driver's seat in front of him, shook his long hair with waves, and said in a familiar voice low and magnetic: "Hey, dead kid, do you want a ride?" ”

"You ......" Babu pressed his forehead, was silent for a long time, suddenly his shoulders trembled, and finally even laughed, and finally stopped laughing, before he raised his head and looked at the familiar faces in the car and said, "You guy, you still catch up, what's the matter, don't you want a stable life?" Don't want the town of Thor? ”

"Don't forget, I'm a marginal traveler, but I was saved by the town back then, and I want to repay this kindness. Now that the crisis is resolved and my debts have been paid, hehe, I'm free. As a dead kid just said, the world is so big, it's time to go ahead and see. Monica smiled brightly, as if she had thrown off all restraints, and said happily, "As for the town, now that the crisis has been resolved, it should be safe for a long time, with Victor and them guarding, I don't have to worry anymore." What's more, this world will not end without anyone, and even if we are not there, there will be a new person to take our place, right? ”

"Besides, some dead children don't even understand the common sense of leaving this world and going to the edge, so if they really let him fall into the edge by himself, he won't last a few days. The day when the mayor of the town has a concession to the old slippery head, and Gauss's dead brain is willing to change his tone, how can I watch that dead child really go to death, anyway, I have to go out to see, since I have met it, I have to let this dead child hitchhike. “

"Tsk, you're really capable of action." Ba Bule sighed, "But when it comes to hitchhiking, you have to go out and see if it's okay, why did you just steal someone's car together?" ”

"Haha, this is not stealing." Monica patted the front of the car and said proudly, "The mayor said that we have never had a fringe caravan in Sol Town for hundreds of years, and this time Little Babu walked out on behalf of the town, which is the glory of Sol Town." As a token of support for the Precursors, the relics of this caravan, including the rest of its goods, were given to us as an investment in the new caravan from all over town. ”

Babu turned his head to look in the direction of the town, and seemed to see a myriad of faces, familiar and unfamiliar, smiling at him.

"So, dead child." Monica threw a pebble, and this time she finally hit the target, and she beckoned to Babu who was covering her head, "Monica and Babu's fringe convoy, there are still two vacant seats, do you want to hitchhike?" ”

Babu bowed deeply in the direction of the town, and as soon as he got up, he let out a burst of laughter, and two huge packages were thrown into the back compartment, and Babu threw little Anna into the co-pilot first, and then squeezed himself in, muttering and muttering.

"Let's talk about it first, I don't have to pay for the ride. In addition, your brand of broken chamber of commerce is so ugly that asking me to join will affect my personal taste. If you want me to agree, you have to pay me the occupation fee, in addition to the occupation fee, every time I am asked to contribute, I have to pay overtime pay, labor expenses, travel expenses, mental damage expenses, and ......"

"Dead child, you don't talk nonsense, hurry up and kick me together, don't be lazy."

In the terrifying roar, the bells tinkled and the rickshaw staggered slowly towards the edge of the edge.

In the unknown direction, I don't know how far it crossed, under the dust in the sky, in the blood mist, a huge cloud-like shadow condensed and formed, and after being suspended for a moment, it was aimed at a direction and floated over.

(End of Volume 1)