A Knight's Journey Begins in Faiz

"Um, who are you?"

"Excuse me, my name is Jiang Yang. I'm a tenant living nearby. The last time I passed by, this shop was closed, but I just noticed that it looks brand new. I'm sorry for the intrusion out of curiosity."

Upon hearing this, Keitaro smiled.

"No, no, how could that be? Hello, my name is Keitaro, Kikuchi Keitaro. This shop has been closed because no one has been here before, but it will be open soon. Please take good care of me then."

"Kikuchi Keitaro, are you Keitaro?"

Jiang Yang looked surprised.

This time, Keitaro won't do it.

"Yes, I am Keitaro. Um, do we know each other?"

Jiang Yang shook his head.

"Sorry, I got a little carried away. Your name is very similar to that of a friend's classmate. Maybe it's just a coincidence. My friend said that classmate of his is an optimist whose dream is to make everyone in the world happy. That's amazing, isn't it?"

Keitaro's face showed a strange expression. Wasn't that optimistic Keitaro who hoped the whole world would be happy just like himself?

"Well, actually, our dream is to make everyone in the world happy."

Jiang Yang was surprised when he heard this.

"Really? How so? You are... Keitaro?"

"If I'm not mistaken, the person you're talking about is me. Um, who is your friend?"

"Aizawa, Aizawa Kitagawa."

Keitaro racked his brains but couldn't recall ever knowing such a person.

"It's normal that you don't know him; you two don't seem to be in the same class."

Keitaro had a look of sudden realization on his face.

"I see."

Seeing the expression on Keitaro's face, which showed that he had already believed it, Jiang Yang couldn't help but feel a little guilty. Deceiving such an innocent child, Jiang Yang felt that he, who had just come of age, had already perfectly turned into a bad person.

"Keitaro, who is that?"

A female voice came out, and then Jiang Yang saw Zhenli. He had to admit, there were a lot of beautiful women in the Knights' Den, and Zhenli was really beautiful.

"They're neighbors, just passing by to ask what's going on."

"Um, excuse me, it seems you have something to attend to, Keitaro. In that case, I won't bother you any longer."

"No, no, not at all. If you don't mind, please come in and have a cup of tea."

"Let's skip this one. I need to find a place now, so let's have tea another time. I've been looking for this place for a long time, and I don't know when I'll find it."

Jiang Yang wore a helpless and troubled expression. Although a little embarrassed, he still needed to take advantage of Qi Taro's kindness. Kind-hearted Qi Taro wouldn't stand idly by while others were in trouble, even if they were complete strangers.

"Um, I don't know where you're looking for, maybe I can help you."

"Eh, really? Won't that be too much trouble?"

"No, my dream is to make everyone happy, so please tell me."

Guilt, overwhelming guilt.

"Well, you might not believe it, but actually, before I came to Tokyo, I encountered a strange thing."

Later, Mari looked helpless; she had finally witnessed Keitaro's kindness.

Jiang Yang made up a story, roughly about how he met someone before coming to Tokyo. That person was attacked by a monster and was about to die. Before dying, the person asked Jiang Yang to go to a coffee shop in Tokyo and apologize to a person named Qiao.

Then that person turned into a pile of sand.

Although I didn't agree to that person's offer, I happened to be coming to Tokyo anyway, so I decided to give it a try.

But Jiang Yang didn't know which coffee shop the person was talking about, so he had no idea where to start looking. He decided to search for the shops one by one, and then he passed by this place while looking for the shop.

"skillful?"

Upon hearing this, both of them wore strange expressions.

"Excuse me, could you please wait a moment?"

A few minutes later, Jiang Yang had entered the house and was drinking tea. Opposite him was Qiao Ye, who had a somber expression.

"What's that guy's name?"

"I don't know. To be honest, I don't even know what he looks like, let alone his name. When I found him, his face had already started to turn sandy. Even the idea that he was going to apologize to Takumi was just my guess. All I heard was 'coffee shop,' 'apology,' and 'Takumi.' I also heard that his destination was Tokyo. That's all I know."

"Ah, so."

After listening to her, Qiao said this and then left.

"Um, I'm sorry, he didn't mean any harm."

Zhenli sat down opposite Jiang Yang.

"That person you're looking for, is it really just a coincidence?"

Jiang Yang shook his head.

"I don't know either. As I said before, it was just a coincidence. But looking at him, maybe it was him. In any case, it's a relief for me."

"Mr. Jiang Yang is a very kind person."

Keitaro chimed in from the side.

"Kind? I'm not kind at all."

When it comes to kindness, who can compare to Keitaro?

"That's all for today, Keitaro. I wish you all the best in achieving your dreams."

"Thank you. Um, please be sure to patronize the laundromat when it opens."

"Yes, I will."

Jiang Yang got up to say goodbye, but suddenly turned around as if he had thought of something.

"By the way, Keitaro, if it's possible, I'd like to ask you for a favor."

"Tell me, I won't refuse if there's anything I can do to help you."

“I’ve recently heard rumors that there have been several missing persons cases in Tokyo, and that people have reportedly witnessed monsters and humans turning into sand. I suspect that such monsters have appeared in Tokyo as well.”

"Um, what do you want me to do?"

"To be honest, I'm investigating those monsters for some reason, and I hope you can help me keep an eye out for them. I can exchange information with you. Of course, this involves some danger, so it's okay if you refuse."

Upon hearing this, the three of them looked at Jiang Yang with strange expressions.

"Um, could you please explain your reasons for investigating them?"

"I'm sorry, this involves some classified information. Knowing this would be too dangerous for you. Just keeping an eye out for it won't cause too much trouble. But I can't guarantee you'd know more."

"Even just being aware of it is dangerous, so if you encounter a problem that is beyond human control, you can call me."

Although they found Jiang Yang suspicious, Keitaro and the others agreed to help him after discussing it. However, they needed Jiang Yang to pay them some compensation in advance, at least to let them know what they were really facing.

"That's good. Knowing what they are will make you more careful."

Jiang Yang did not go back inside, but stood at the door. He did not intend to say much.

"Orphnochs are monsters that resurrect naturally after a human dies without external assistance. This is some information I've gathered, though I'm not sure if it's accurate. Well then, I'll come again."

After saying that, Jiang Yang left. Before leaving, they exchanged contact information, which was enough for now.

Although he knows the plot and could solve most of the mysteries, that would not be a good thing. Showing off too much would not only arouse the suspicion of the three people, but also bring unnecessary trouble.

At present, Jiang Yang does not yet have the confidence to deal with the Lucky Four-Leaf Clover.

He wasn't even confident he could handle some of the slightly stronger Orphnochs.

Although he already has ixa, he has zero combat experience. Even with computer assistance, he cannot unleash ixa's full potential. In this state, if he were to encounter an elite-level Orphnoch or be ganged up on, he would undoubtedly die.

He needs to fight to grow, and he needs to become more familiar with ixa, so he needs time.

First, establish contact with the protagonist using information that won't affect the main storyline, then gradually reveal some information, and finally try to integrate.

After all, Jiang Yang's biggest trump card is not IXA, nor is it the system, at least not yet.

His biggest advantage is his foresight regarding the plot; he won't drastically change the storyline until he's absolutely certain of success.

If he were participating in the Gods' Game, Jiang Yang would not hesitate to drastically alter the plot. For example, he could reveal Qiao Ye's identity ahead of time, expose the ultimate goal of the AI ​​Group, and even expose Orphnoch's weaknesses.

These would all bring him a lot of rewards, but unfortunately, he is not a reincarnator.