Gensokyo Detective, but surrounded by Shura Field

"Huh?"

Kaguya was slightly stunned, looking at Chu Bai, who had extended his hand beside her.

Chu Bai smiled and said:

"I noticed a smudge on your brow; you must have gotten dirty while rushing here."

"This is my friend's handkerchief; use it to wipe it off."

Kaguya quickly touched her brow, where dust had settled during her fight with Mokou.

Because she was eager to meet up with Xiao Bai, Kaguya didn't bother to clean herself up before taking off, only to be discovered by the attentive Chu Bai.

Seeing Kaguya's slightly dazed expression, Chu Bai assumed she was embarrassed.

So, he leaned closer and proactively began to wipe her brow:

"Hold still; it'll be quick."

"!"

The man's presence suddenly drew near, and the slightly cool handkerchief gently brushed against her skin.

Kaguya was startled, instinctively taking a half step back.

However, Chu Bai was quick, and with a light wipe using the water-infused handkerchief, he removed the faint dust.

"Alright, that looks much better now."

Chu Bai put away the handkerchief, giving Kaguya a smile.

Actually, he was a bit of a perfectionist, so he was particularly attentive to wiping away the anomaly on Kaguya's brow.

But Kaguya didn't know this.

She only thought that Chu Bai had a considerate and gentle personality, and was also very proactive. He was completely different from those men who were respectful to her but didn't dare to look her in the eye.

Could this be the infamous 'yasashii' (gentle) personality?

Does this trait really have such strong appeal?

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

Seeing Kaguya's somewhat blank expression, Chu Bai couldn't help but wave his hand in front of her eyes:

"Hey, hey, Miss Kaguya, snap out of it?"

"...Are you trying to coax a child?"

Kaguya snapped back to reality, pushing aside those unrealistic thoughts.

At the same time, she secretly despised herself.

What's wrong with me today? I've lost my composure so many times just meeting an online friend?

If this were a novel, readers would definitely complain that my character is OOC (out of character)!

Taking a deep breath, she suppressed her inexplicably fluctuating mood.

Kaguya followed Chu Bai's steps, trying to change the subject:

"Anyway, let's talk about something else..."

"I heard that the Human Village is currently holding a 'House Fighting Competition'; are you interested in that?"

"House Fighting Competition? You've come to the right person!"

Speaking of the House Fighting Competition, Chu Bai immediately perked up:

"I'm a contestant in the House Fighting Competition myself, and I just finished the first preliminary round!"

"Wow, that's amazing."

Kaguya feigned ignorance and echoed:

"Can you tell me what happened specifically?"

"And why is your body so weak? Is it because of the preliminary round?"

"Well..."

Chu Bai shook his head:

"The story is long, so listen carefully as I explain it in detail!"

"Okay, okay."

Seeing Kaguya listening attentively.

Chu Bai took out a gavel from somewhere and slammed it on the nearby tree trunk:

"It is said that since Pangu separated the heavens and the earth, the clear Yang became the sky, and the murky Yin became the earth..."

"...Wait, are you starting from there?"

Kaguya immediately couldn't hold back: "That's a little too detailed!!"

Chapter 36: A Date with Kaguya? Let's Go Shopping Together!

And so, Chu Bai roughly recounted his experience participating in the preliminary round.

Thanks to his experience as a language arts teacher, Chu Bai told the story vividly, with intonation and cadence.

"...And then there was the contestant next door, with a green face and sharp fangs, his eyes gleaming fiercely. Seeing that I was alone and weak, he had malicious intentions, wanting to forcibly seize my test paper!"

"But I am one of the most principled people in Gensokyo, so I naturally would not allow such a villain to be arrogant!"

"So, I cast a spell, summoned a blood corpse, and fought that villain for 30,000 rounds! We fought until the heavenly palace collapsed, the underworld shattered, and even the Great Dao was almost obliterated!"

"In the end, I was the more skilled one, and with a swift move, blood splattered across the sky, and I finally drove the villain away..."

Chu Bai waved his hands, moving them up and down like playing an accordion.

Kaguya next to him was dumbfounded, unable to recover for a long time.

Is this really a House Fighting Competition preliminary round?

The Moon War back then wasn't even described as intense as you're making it sound!

"S-So, that's how it was..."

Kaguya twitched her lips slightly, suppressing the urge to retort.

Fortunately, her understanding was quite amazing. After removing the deliberately exaggerated parts, she understood the general process.

In other words, the reason why Xiao Bai became so weak was entirely because she was absent from the competition.

If she had arrived in time, Xiao Bai wouldn't have taken such a desperate measure.

"Then your teammate... is really quite terrible."

Kaguya herself felt that her performance this time was quite excessive:

"She actually stood you up on such an occasion, and didn't take timely remedial measures."

"Xiao Bai, if you contact your teammate later, you can complain as much as you want; I don't think she will refute you."

Looking at Kaguya speaking up for him, Chu Bai smiled and shook his head:

"Never mind, I think the other party must have had their own difficulties."

"And when I sent a message to inquire, they immediately responded, and it was clearly a reply made in the middle of a battle."

"You know that battles in Gensokyo are quite dangerous, and there is a risk of injury if you are not careful. It's already very commendable that they responded to me like that, so I won't blame them too much."

Seeing Chu Bai forgiving her so easily, Kaguya was immediately shaken.

Especially those words just now, they simply struck her heart.

Because she really tried hard! Whether it was getting ready in the morning, or the subsequent fight with Fujiwara no Mokou, she tried her best to quickly resolve the battle.

A victory that usually took at least three days and three nights to achieve, this time ended directly in just over two hours. Although she still couldn't make it in time even so, Kaguya, who had been traveling all the way, really kept her promise and didn't give up halfway.

At this time, receiving Chu Bai's affirmation, she immediately felt that all this effort was worth it. Her teammate didn't place the blame irrationally, but really stood in her perspective to think.

Xiao Bai understands me!

This is the gratifying feeling of being recognized by a comrade!

Thinking of this, Kaguya looked at Chu Bai with much more affection:

"Thank you, Xiao Bai, you are really a very gentle person."

After a pause, she quickly added:

"I mean, if your teammate knew, then she would definitely think so too..."

"Oh my, you're making me blush with all the praise."

Chu Bai scratched his head; he was rarely praised so directly.

But at the same time, he also noticed some things that were not quite right.

However, with their footsteps, they had already left the forest and arrived at the Human Village.

So, Chu Bai temporarily put aside the doubts in his mind and led Kaguya into the village with big strides.

...

...

The preliminary round of the House Fighting Competition is still continuing.

As the first large-scale event since the beginning of spring, its popularity is certainly very high.

Usually, youkai, beasts, and various non-human races are not allowed to enter the village, but now they have the opportunity to stroll around.

Merchants naturally noticed the business opportunity and took out various goods to set up stalls.

"This is the Human Village."

Chu Bai introduced to Kaguya: "What are you specifically planning to buy?"

Kaguya shook her head slightly:

"I don't know what to buy specifically."

"I mainly heard that it's very lively here, so I wanted to come and stroll around, and maybe buy some small specialties or collectibles."

"Specialties and collectibles, huh..."

Chu Bai thought for a moment and immediately had an idea.

He led Kaguya left and right, and finally arrived at a certain commercial street.

The entire street was filled with various handicrafts, and the dazzling array of goods immediately attracted Kaguya's interest.

She hadn't been shopping in a long time. Even though she came here to participate in the competition last year, she only went home after the competition and had no one to shop with.

So, she directly started picking things at the stalls, and finally picked up a string of very delicate-looking bracelets:

"Shopkeeper, how much is this necklace?"

The shop owner raised his eyes and was immediately shocked by Kaguya's beauty.

It wasn't until Kaguya asked again that he came back to his senses, and quickly reminded himself that beauty is emptiness, and making money is the most important thing.

"This young lady has a good eye, this is our store's treasure!"

The shop owner decisively held out several fingers:

"One price, three million, no bargaining."

Kaguya didn't respond, but Chu Bai's eyes lit up next to her:

"Oh, brother, so we're in the same business."

"Huh?" The shop owner was slightly stunned: "You also sell bracelets?"

Chu Bai chuckled: "No, I'm a robber."

Shop owner: "..."

"Pfft..."

Kaguya immediately covered her mouth and giggled, and the slight smile emanating from her watery eyes directly stunned the shop owner again.