Chapter 698
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Chapter 698: The Mysterious Mark
Meanwhile, Amamiya Haruhi and Lin Qiye were walking down the street.
“Why did you come along?” Amamiya Haruhi looked at Lin Qiye in confusion. “I just went out to find a way to buy diving gear. It doesn’t seem like two people are needed for that, right?”
Lin Qiye raised an eyebrow. “I can’t stay in that house anymore. What I shouldn’t see, I won’t see; what I shouldn’t hear, I won’t hear.”
“…”
Although Amamiya Haruhi didn’t understand what Lin Qiye was saying, she didn’t ask further. She simply nodded and continued walking ahead.
“By the way, why is the relationship between the [War Princess] and the sword master so good?” Lin Qiye asked, puzzled. “What about your [Rain Collapse] sword spirit? Why doesn’t it come out to interact with you more often?”
“…Interact?”
Amamiya Haruhi paused for a moment. “The personalities of sword spirits can vary. [Rain Collapse] is more introverted, and as I mentioned before, the [War Princess] is quite different from other Kijin swords…”
“In what other ways is it different?”
“The [War Princess] chooses her sword master from the very beginning. Once she recognizes someone as her master, she will accompany them until their death, after which she will disappear and fall silent in the world. It takes ten years before she re-emerges to choose a new sword master…”
“Silent for ten years? Where does she go during that time?”
“I don’t know, but some say she is waiting,” Amamiya Haruhi said. “It is rumored that before becoming a sword spirit, the War Princess had a husband who died of illness during a chaotic time. After she became a sword spirit, she could glimpse a part of fate, and every sword master she chooses is actually a reincarnation of her husband.
The reason she stays by her sword master’s side until their death is to use the [War Princess]’s scabbard to contain the master’s soul, nurturing it with her own power for several years before sending it to reincarnation. After that, she watches over their rebirth in the world and quietly accompanies them until they come of age, at which point she will choose them as her master.”
“Sounds like a nice story.”
“I think so too.”
As they talked, the two arrived at a secluded alley, where Amamiya Haruhi finally stopped in front of a shabby appliance repair shop. A worn-out sign hung above it, reading “Hokkaido Nozaki Appliance Repair.”
“It looks like it’s been around for a while,” Lin Qiye said.
“This is a century-old family business, so of course, it’s been around,” Amamiya Haruhi replied. “However, the main business here is no longer appliance repair…”
With that, he stepped inside.
Not only was the storefront messy, but the interior of the shop was also in disarray. As soon as they walked in, a faint musty smell hit Lin Qiye, causing him to frown.
In the corner of the shop, an elderly man with white hair slightly raised his head, glanced at Amamiya Haruhi, and then let his eyelids droop again, seemingly uninterested in serving customers.
“I’m here to pick up some contraband,” Amamiya Haruhi said calmly as he approached the counter.
Upon hearing this, the old man’s eyes narrowed, and he scrutinized the two young people in front of him again.
“Contraband? That’s a bit tight,” he said slowly.
“I have money.”
The old man raised an eyebrow, and after a moment, he slowly stood up from his seat, lifted the curtain, and walked toward the backyard. “Come on.”
Amamiya Haruhi nodded at Lin Qiye, and the two followed the old man into the backyard, where they turned several corners and arrived at a locked warehouse door.
After unlocking and entering the warehouse, they found the interior covered in dust, with several diving suits hanging on the walls and stacked oxygen tanks nearby.
“Seven hundred thousand yen for a set, no bargaining,” the old man said slowly.
Diving equipment is absolutely contraband in this country; it is impossible for factories to manufacture it. Everything currently on the market has been scavenged from various facilities over a hundred years ago. Buying one set means one less set available, so bargaining is simply not an option.
Fortunately, not many people need this equipment, so the prices aren’t too outrageous.
Amamiya Haruhi understood this and had no intention of bargaining. He paid and took the two sets of equipment, placing them into two boxes as they headed outside.
As soon as they lifted the curtain to exit, they saw a man in black clothing and a black cap standing in the shop, seemingly browsing the appliances. When he noticed Lin Qiye and Amamiya Haruhi coming out from the backyard, a flicker of confusion crossed his eyes, but he quickly pretended not to notice and continued his selection.
This subtle change in expression was not obvious under the cap, but Lin Qiye’s mental acuity clearly captured the moment.
Lin Qiye merely glanced at him and moved past, seemingly unaware of his presence.
“Let’s go,” Amamiya Haruhi said.
The two exited the shop with their boxes. After a while, the man slowly approached the old man and spoke in a lowered voice:
“Is there more contraband?”
……
“That person is also here to buy diving gear.”
Outside the shop, Lin Qiye suddenly spoke up.
Amamiya Haruhi was taken aback for a moment before realizing who Lin Qiye was referring to. “Is there someone else who wants this stuff? Where does he want to dive?”
“I don’t know, but he doesn’t seem like an ordinary person,” Lin Qiye said firmly. “His hands are calloused, his steps are light; he must have trained. He has likely held a gun for a long time, and his gaze is very sharp. It seems he sensed something was off with us, showing a strong sense of vigilance and counter-surveillance ability…
Moreover, there is a spear mark on his palm.”
“A spear mark?” Amamiya Haruhi thought for a moment. “Japan shouldn’t have such large organizations. If it’s a small civilian group, I’m not sure.”
“His skills and vigilance don’t seem like something a small organization could train.”
“True…”
Lin Qiye pondered for a moment. “Is it possible that his destination is the same as ours?”
“The ruins?” Amamiya Haruhi frowned slightly. “In Hokkaido, buying diving gear does indeed suggest that possibility… But very few people know about this place. How did he find out…”
……
Mist.
A ship slowly approached the shore through the rolling waves.
Although it was still daytime, everything remained hazy under the shroud of mist, and even the sky appeared dim.
Jialan, Wu Xiangnan, and the knight stepped off the ship, their feet touching the beach as they looked up at the city ruins enveloped in fog, their eyes narrowing slightly.
The broken buildings, fractured roads, and all the surrounding plants had withered and decayed. Nearby, a cluster of low houses huddled together, exuding a chilling aura in the dim mist, devoid of any signs of life.
“Is this really Japan?” Jialan asked, holding a black box and glancing around. “It looks pretty rundown.”
“Since the mist descended, this place has become a forbidden zone for life. Everything still looks like it did a hundred years ago, so of course, it’s very dilapidated,” Wu Xiangnan explained. “Moreover, from the direction we landed, this was never the central area of Japan; it’s just a large island on the outskirts.”
“A large island…”
Jialan walked to the roadside, looked up at a dilapidated shop sign, and turned to ask:
“Do you recognize the characters on it? What does it say?”
Wu Xiangnan looked up at the sign, paused, and said, “It says, ‘Hokkaido Nozaki Appliance Repair.'”
