Chapter 5: Repeating the Same Mistakes
“Zi’ai! Is she still alive!”
“That depends on your definition of ‘alive.’ In spoken terms, it might mean Zi’ai is alive, but…”
Shirley wouldn’t joke about something like this, yet she spoke in a way that was meant to build suspense. This was different from what I expected.
I calmed myself down.
Having a general idea, I suppressed my excited and agitated feelings and then silently guided the bicycle.
Shirley seemed to sense my thoughts and assumed I was mentally prepared. The speed of the bicycle gradually slowed down.
The light in front of me intensified and spread outwards. The surrounding lines transformed back into scenery, bringing me to a park.
This was not any park in the country, as far as I could remember. It wasn’t even the Beishan Park near my home. I might have even been transported to a southern city! I had never seen this park before, and the way people around me were dressed suggested it was from a different time period.
“Wow, amazing. I thought it was just a bicycle with a special effect.”
In reality, the truly amazing one was Miss Shirley, who possessed this ability.
So, she intentionally brought me here. She wanted me to see…
When I got off the bicycle, I found that Shirley had already dismounted.
What was more, she had changed into a pure white dress. Did she change in the bike? When exactly did she change her clothes? There wasn’t even a single sound!
No, don’t overthink it. In the end, that was Shirley. The process of changing must have been like a magical girl transformation, with a one-click outfit change.
“Heh, hehe, what? Do you like my outfit?”
Seeing me staring at her, Shirley turned her back, hands clasped behind her. I remember having made a promise like this with Shirley before.
Even her tone of voice had changed. If I hadn’t known who she was, I would never have guessed. The all-knowing Head Maid who knew the past and the future, she even knew about things from another world?
“I only changed because wearing a maid outfit here would be too inconvenient.”
“No, of course, I don’t know about other worlds. I’m just surprised you can read my mind. I understand,” I said, nodding.
“Is that so? I see.” “Could it be that I am also one of young master’s harem members?”
“I don’t think so.”
“She is outside the scope of humans, and even more so, she is beyond the standard. She is just teasing me.”
I decided not to dwell on this question.
“Hehehehe~”
After that, Shirley and I walked into the park together.
We left the bicycle in a designated area and walked through the park. After crossing a small area, we found a kindergarten.
“Walking into the park and passing through a small area, there’s a kindergarten here. This must be our destination.”
So, Zi’ai is indeed… I walked past, like a passerby on a casual stroll, and looked into the kindergarten.
Inside, children were being picked up by their parents, but only one little girl was sitting alone in the corridor, looking lonely.
Could that be…?
It is indeed as I suspected. She might look different, but I know it’s her. I recognize her soul.
“Because there are two…”
When I saw the little girl, I stopped and stared at her. I then turned to Shirley and asked,”
“Given the two souls that were originally together, one was taken away, and there’s still one more.”
“After the remaining soul was reincarnated, they began a new life.”
“So, she has two chances, in a way.”
‘Can she… still remember?’
“If you wish.”
“If I wish, then she can remember, right?”
“Yes.”
“That’s great!”
“Do you want her to remember?”
“Let’s not bring her back to the present. Besides, this is the best outcome for her.”
“She finally has a complete life.”
Does this mean she will return to my side with her new life and experiences?
That would be too much…
Thinking about it, if no one came to pick up Zi’ai, I would…
It was almost 4 PM when a young-looking couple came to pick her up. They looked very apologetic and comforting. It seemed they doted on their daughter tremendously.
Everything Shirley has done for me so far, and then…
If Shirley stays near the kindergarten any longer, people might misunderstand.
“So, you plan to awaken her?”
“But then, won’t we lose the chance to meet again in the future? We will meet again if it’s fate.”
“Well, it’s fine. Miracles like changing the past won’t happen a second time. I still don’t regret my choice.”
“Since she has found her new life, I should also understand my own life now that it has changed.”
“Shirley, can you tell me what happened during this time?”
“It’s my duty. Let’s go to a nearby cafe first. We have plenty of time for a long chat.”
“That would be perfect.”
When we entered the small cafe, Shirley had changed back into her maid outfit. It was expected that the cafe owner would allow it. After all, Shirley is a professional maid. Just by wearing a maid outfit in the shop, she could attract customers.
It was different from the typical long, classical maid outfits she usually wore. This was a more revealing outfit, modified by otaku culture.
Even on Shirley, it still exuded an elegant and dignified aura, while also possessing a different kind of allure than usual.
Especially the exposed legs, that was a killer!
Maids are indeed amazing. Yeah, truly amazing.
After pouring me a cup of coffee, Shirley began to tell me about what had happened from five years ago until now.
Reflecting on it, my life trajectory hadn’t changed much. It was about the same until I met Lian Bing. After meeting Lian Bing, things became different. The biggest difference, as I had already understood, was that I rejected Lian Bing’s confession.
She wasn’t what I thought she was. Everything that happened afterward didn’t happen. However, all the events that should have happened still happened.
Whether it was saving Lian Bing at the base, the serial killer incident, or recently teaching Xun, everything happened. Of course, they were all resolved.
Only the process was slightly different, and the results were also slightly different.
Whether the outcomes were good or bad wasn’t particularly important. After listening, I just thought, “Oh, so that’s how it could be done.” It was like knowing about other choices, which was quite interesting.
It’s like how there can be different solutions to the same problem. There will always be a way to solve it.
The biggest difference was that in the end.
I’m still single.
Although I was also targeted by Lian Bing, we didn’t develop a romantic relationship. The serial killer incident also…
Xue Qing’s fingers were never injured, so the bond between her and me didn’t become as strong. Similarly, the results of other events were also…
It felt like all the events had been triggered, but I hadn’t entered any of their subsequent routes.
Was I raising flags and then pulling them down?
Therefore, my relationships with them only went so far. If expressed in title colors, it would probably be a friendly green.
Furthermore, among the shrine maidens, none of them awakened except for Li Nai.
Because I didn’t die, they weren’t stimulated, and there was no reason for them to awaken. That’s probably how it is.
“Doesn’t this mean there are no problems? It feels like everything has been resolved.”
“It feels like the story could end here, and adding an ‘END’ wouldn’t feel out of place.”
“Up to this point, there are no problems.”
“But you yourself are a problem now.”
However, Shirley denied my thought.
She told me that things weren’t completely resolved, and that I has been at the center of everything from the beginning.
“Huh?”
“You have memories from before the world changed, and familiarity with the previous world, which has blessed you with infinite Destiny Power.”
“If this continues, the world will try to reject you, and terrible things might happen, like an asteroid collision or other disasters.”
“Eh? Eh? Eh?”
“Is it that scary?”
“Are they going to risk the entire Earth just to get rid of me?”
“Because I am an anomaly in the law of causality, the world will use all its might to correct it.”
“Yes, Zi Hua also said that the greater the change, the greater the backlash.”
“So, to prevent this from happening, your existence must become reasonable.”
“I already possess…”
“My existence? Reasonable? No, but Fate hasn’t come after me. Shirley, you might not know, but…”
“Someone has already proven your existence with their paradoxical ability, haven’t they?”
“And they even think that’s not enough.”
Shirley interrupted me. This means Shirley already knew what paradox was attached to me.
“Let me explain first. Your current existence is very unstable.”
“My existence is unstable?”
“Yes, you are relying on one of my paradoxical abilities.”
“Such means cannot fool Fate for long.”
“Then what should I do?”
Shirley held up two fingers and said to me.
“There are two things to do, but they can be summarized in one sentence.”
“‘Retrieve your past memories’ are essential!”
“Past memories? What are you talking about? I haven’t lost my memory.”
Shirley shook her head and denied it.
“No, you don’t remember things from this world.”
“Isn’t that obvious? I haven’t experienced it before. Wait a minute…”
“Yes, this is how your ‘past’ can be proven.”
“But where can I find these memories? You mentioned losing my memory, so how can I get them back?”
“It’s not that you’ve forgotten, it’s that you never experienced it in the first place. You have these memories. Do you remember the Butterfly Dream?”
“Butterfly Dream…”
I haven’t heard that name before, but about butterflies… I remember that jewel-like butterfly. What I remember most clearly is Zi Hua reversing dreams and reality. That spiritual world…
“It contains Li Nai’s memories from her past life. Zi Hua discovered it through those memories.”
“That thing can preserve memories!”
“So it was used to preserve my memories!”
“Brilliant! As expected of Shirley. You must have already planned this.”
“But you have to find it yourself. Only then can it be considered ‘proof’.”
“However, that item is not in my possession, and I cannot help you.”
“Understood. It’s good to have a clear direction.”
“I just need to execute it. So, what’s the second problem?”
“So, the first problem has a solution. I just need to execute it.”
“What’s the other problem? Is it also about retrieving past memories?”
“Could it be Zi’ai?”
If I wanted her to regain her memories, Shirley should have opposed me.
No, if it were Zi’ai, I would have already… “Regain your connection with the other shrine maidens.”
“Although it’s also about retrieving past memories…”
“You mean, Lian Bing and the others?”
“But Lian Bing and the others haven’t awakened…”
“Even if they haven’t awoken then, as long as you re-establish your connections, it will be fine.”
“There’s no need for them to awaken.”
“Re-establish connections…”
“They will recall the process of awakening, in other words, like you, they will recover their past memories.”
“Recovering the memories from the previous world means they won’t be targeted by the world anymore. Is that right?”
“I completely understand now.”
Shirley nodded.
“Then causality cannot interfere with you. This way, not only will your existence become stable, but the world will also stop targeting you.”
“But what about my connection with them? Could it be that we have to repeat those misfortunes…”
“It’s killing two birds with one stone. But there’s a risk involved. I suffered a lot then…”
I couldn’t help but shudder.
“Of course, there’s no need for that. You just need to…”
“Ah, you just need to go up.”
After that, I couldn’t look at the word “go up” directly anymore.
