My second life is a bit strange?

"Thank you." Feng was very happy. For musicians, nothing brings them more joy than the piano.

Seeing how much the other person liked it, Kaguya smiled. She looked down at the hairband in her hand, thought for a moment, then tied her hair up, leaving only a small section sticking out for a playful and cute look.

"Does it look good?"

"so cute."

"Let's go, it's time to go back." Kaguya was a little shy from the praise. She stood up, took a few steps, and then turned back to him, saying, "You asked me when the snow will melt. I think... it has already melted."

Looking at Kaguya, who had resolved her inner conflict, Kaede smiled happily.

The two returned to Fujiwara's house, where the three were playing cards. Fujiwara Chika's face was covered with notes, and she looked resentful, which made her look somewhat comical.

Kaguya's braided hairstyle amazed everyone, and Chika clung to her, rubbing against her: "Is this a gift from Ayaka?"

Mengye noticed that Feng was staring at a photo on the counter, while Qianhua was holding a silver trophy, looking very dissatisfied with her long face.

"Brother Feng, let me tell you, my sister has won a lot of trophies." Mengye said, leading him to the next room, where various trophies and certificates were displayed.

There is also a piano in the center, and the walls are made of sound-absorbing material, which looks like the place where Fujiwara Chika practices piano.

Feng's fingers traced across the piano. This piano was no ordinary instrument; its tone was exceptionally clear and crisp.

"Ah Feng, what are you doing here?" Fujiwara Chika walked over with Eriri and the others. "Ah! Seeing those photos reminds me of those dark days."

"I can see that; your face was all scrunched up in that photo." Feng recalled the past, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

"Hmph!" Qianhua walked up to him angrily and punched him with her little fist.

Before, she would just follow the sheet music and fingering and always be outdone by that boy. Now she seems to understand just how big the gap between the two really is.

"Ah Feng, play a piece. It's been so long since I've heard you play the piano."

All eyes turned to him. Feng casually hung his coat on the corner of the piano, loosened his cuffs, looked up at everyone, and said softly, "Merry Christmas."

Kaguya wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt that Kaede was talking to her.

This silver-haired boy's slender fingers brushed across the piano, fluttering up and down like butterflies, his fingertips and the piano bursting forth with notes every second.

A piece of music they had never heard before, quietly captivated them from the very beginning.

The song tells a story, a person calmly recounting injustice. Kaguya's eyes welled up with tears again, swirling around in her head. The stubborn girl tried to open her eyes wide, unwilling to let the tears fall.

Suddenly, the sound became high-pitched, and Feng's movements became powerful. The people in the story depicted by the piano sounded the war drums, launched a rebellion against the injustices of life, and refused to bow to fate.

Am I a character in this story?

Kaguya couldn't help but ask herself the same question.

Chapter Twenty-Three: Please continue to guide me in the future.

"Bye~"

Fujiwara Chika and her sister saw everyone to the door.

"Be careful on your way back." Kaguya's eyes lit up, her ruby-like eyes filled with his image.

"Ah."

Kaede and Eriri managed to catch the last train. The train was nearly empty, and Eriri fell asleep leaning on his shoulder.

She was still dazed even after we got off the bus, so we had no choice but to carry her on our backs.

In the dead of night, drunkards occasionally clung to telephone poles and muttered something on the streets, while the occasional barking of dogs could be heard from the alleyways.

Kaede's shoes crunched on the snow, and Eriri buried her head in his shoulder, unwilling to wake up.

The nose can always detect the other person's scent.

This tastes like... ramen. Wait, why is it ramen?

Gululu~

The sound was particularly loud at night.

"You're awake? Want to go get a bowl of ramen?"

"Should I... or not? I'll get fat." Eriri buried her face even deeper in embarrassment, her conflicted expression making one want to tease her.

"If you're not going to eat, wait for me a bit. I want to eat a bowl."

"You! Then I want some too."

Feng carried her to a ramen shop by the roadside: "Boss, I want a bowl of tonkotsu ramen, with a mild flavor."

"I want a bowl too!"

"Didn't you say you weren't going to eat?"

Eriri glared at him with dissatisfaction: "I just can't bear to see you get fat alone. If we're going to get fat, we'll get fat together."

"Eat what you want; you're at the age where you're growing."

The owner cheerfully brought over two bowls of steaming ramen, the aroma wafting towards her, and Eriri couldn't wait to take a bite.

"Delicious! Boss, your cooking is really good."

"Haha, young lady, you're really good with words. Are you a couple?" The boss laughed heartily.

Eriri blushed and glanced at Kaede, saying, "Not yet."

"Oh, I see. You two seem to be a couple."

Feng smiled and asked, "Why are you working so late today, boss?"

"I was just thinking of earning a little more money to buy my child a Christmas present."

After finishing her bowl of ramen, the owner packed up and left. Eriri suddenly said after taking a few steps.

"Ah Feng, how many years do you think we've known each other?"

"Seven years."

"I..." Eriri mustered her courage, but she couldn't bring herself to say "I like you." In the end, she put on a shy smile and said, "Please take care of me from now on."

"Well, please give me some advice."

【Why. 】

The girl sighed silently in her heart.

I still couldn't bring myself to say it.

...

Feng, still half asleep, felt a tightness in her chest and couldn't breathe. The feeling grew stronger and stronger. When she opened her eyes, she saw Xiao Gui sitting on her lap, playing with two dolls and her other toys scattered around her.

"Xiao Gui, what are you doing?"

"Brother's awake!" Xiao Gui dropped the toys in her hand, snuggled into the blankets, and hugged him: "Brother, I want to go out and play."

Feng reached out and lifted the curtain, discovering that it was snowing heavily outside, and the ground was already covered with a thick layer of snow: "Where's Yuxing-ge?"

"He was kidnapped by the pink-haired guy."

"Pink hair..." Maple thought for a moment.

[Which girl is it named Momoi Satsuki?]

[Tsk tsk tsk, Yu Xing is not simple~]

"Okay, okay, I'll take you out to play."

"Yay! Brother is the best." Xiao Gui hugged Feng's neck and gave him a big kiss on the cheek, leaving some drool. Feng pretended to be disgusted and tried to wipe it off, but Xiao Gui was unhappy and gave him two more big kisses.

"Alright, I'll get up and change." Feng shooed Xiao Gui out, then shivered as he looked at the heavy snow falling outside. "You'd better wear something thicker."

After getting everything ready, Feng led Xiao Gui out the door, hand in hand, leaving two lines of footprints on the pristine white road.

"How about I take you to the park to wish you a Happy New Year?"

"Let's go to the park~ Let's go to the park~" Xiao Gui hummed an unknown tune, her happiness written all over her face.

"It's a fortune stick! Want to try your luck?" Feng became interested when he saw the stall set up in the park.

"I want to smoke."

"Let's have a luck contest then, I want two."

Feng opened his own little fortune.

"Xiao Gui won."

The note in Gui's hand said "Great Fortune," she never expected her luck to be so good.

Xiao Gui looked at what she was holding and then at her brother: "I'll switch with my brother so he can have good luck too."

Hearing this, Feng's heart melted, and he pinched her smooth cheek: "Thank you, Xiao Gui."

Feng took Xiao Gui to the well to fetch some water to wash their hands. On the way, they saw acrobatic performances, but Xiao Gui didn't like them. The monkeys looked a bit scary.

The two of them built a small snowman in the place where the sandpit used to be, their hands turning red from the cold.

"one two Three!"

"Eggplant~"

The two took a photo together in front of the snowman, their smiles filled with happiness.

It was getting late. Feng put gloves on Xiao Gui and said, "Shall we make a wish and then go home?"

"Good~"

"This is money for incense."

Xiao Gui walked to the money box, stood on tiptoe, dropped in 500 yen, and shook the bell with difficulty.

Put your hands together, close your eyes, and make a wish.

On the way home, Xiao Gui looked up and asked, "What wish did you make, brother?"

"You can't say it, or it won't work anymore."

"But Xiao Gui won't say either."

"It's a kite!"