Magical Journey: The Other Shore Blooms on the Other Shore

An ordinary person walking on an ordinary street in an ordinary kingdom—this is what travel is mostly about.

There were no particular surprises; people went about their own business, and the travelers did not belong to this place, nor would they ever leave it.

But occasionally, even travelers will be struck up a conversation with others.

To be precise, should it be called striking up a conversation?

"Beautiful lady, would you mind joining me for dinner tonight?" A man with a clean-cut face held out a hand to Elena, holding a bunch of roses that looked rather stale.

In the past, I would have been approached by people like this even more often, since I always attract so much attention.

After traveling with Qin unexpectedly, the frequency of being approached by her decreased, since some people who are more sensitive would subconsciously avoid her when they see her.

But there will always be people who try to strike up a conversation, just to see what happens.

On the one hand, Qin looks lifeless and doesn't seem to match Elena at all, so people sometimes subconsciously think that he just happened to be walking with Elena; on the other hand, there's no harm in striking up a conversation, and what if it works?

"Hmm... Does your cat do backflips?" Elena asked.

"Huh?" The man didn't quite understand what Elena was saying. He understood each word individually, but why couldn't he understand it when they were put together?

"No? That's a shame. I only date men who have cats at home that can do somersaults," Elena said seriously.

If the other party were to give her gold coins directly, Elena might shamelessly accept them.

Similar to saying "I'm cute, please give me money," Elena could easily consider this money as sponsorship and tips from others, or, to put it another way, "friendship fees."

But I'd rather not treat her to a meal—she wouldn't go that far for money.

"That's a real shame." The man took back the bouquet. "Could you lower your expectations a little?"

“What about a dog that can do backflips?” Elena asked. “Let me tell you, girls all think it’s very attractive to have an animal at home that can do backflips.”

Unfortunately, the man didn't keep any animals at home, so he left dejectedly, seemingly having lost a fortune.

"You're quite popular," Qin commented noncommittally.

After all, this was the second time she had been approached by someone in this unremarkable kingdom.

“Of course—” Elena said. Apart from Qin, who is a strange person with no sense of aesthetics and no interest in Elena’s appearance, she sometimes complains that Elena is quite narcissistic.

"Are there really cats in the world that can do backflips?" Qin asked.

"Who knows?"

"Were you just talking nonsense?"

“That’s not entirely true—I genuinely think cats that can do backflips are really cool,” Elena laughed.

……

"Beautiful lady, may I invite you to have dinner with me?" The man, with a bunch of roses that looked like they were about to wither in his mouth, extended his hand to a black-haired girl with an Eastern appearance who was passing by.

"By the way, I have a cat that can do backflips," the man added, explaining that after his previous attempt to pick up a girl failed, he decided to buy a cat that could do backflips.

"Perfect timing. Have you ever seen a lovely gray-haired girl? Her eyes are like stars in the sky, and her face is like..." The black-haired girl held the other's hands and asked solemnly.

"I said..." The man still didn't understand what was going on.

"Hissing and hissing—her every smile and frown was like the best gift bestowed upon humankind by heaven, as if a single glance from her could dispel all the gloom on earth; she was a goddess banished from heaven—"

Is this person mentally unstable?

Should I try talking to someone else?

"I did see a cute girl with gray hair." The man ignored the girl's subsequent nonsensical remarks.

"Great, where is she?" asked Saya, a black-haired Japanese girl wearing the same style of magic hat as Elena—no, it looked exactly the same.

"I was walking on this street three days ago. But I don't know where I am now," the man honestly replied.

"Huh? Am I late?" Saya froze.

While doing a mission for the Magic Integration Association in a small nearby country, she accidentally saw a portrait that looked exactly like Elena.

So she bought it immediately, and also learned that Elena had recently worked as a model in this kingdom for a while and that she had already left the country.

Then she hurriedly left that small country and drove her broom to this place. If she's lucky, Elena might run into her if she stays here a little longer.

But she wasn't so lucky; the little place was too unremarkable, and it seemed that Elena wouldn't stay long before continuing her travels.

Life is always full of so many regrets and missed opportunities.

“Thank you for the information—did she say anything to you?” Saya said.

"what?"

Was I the one who struck up a conversation with her, or was she the one who struck up a conversation with me?

It feels like the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches are starting to reverse.

"She said she only dates people whose cats can do backflips, and my attempt to pick her up failed," the honest-looking man said.

"So Elena likes backflips," Saya suddenly realized.

"No—" Before the man could finish explaining, Saya excitedly ran off.

No, it's not you. Why do you only listen to half of what I say?

But the person had already run far away, and the man didn't want to chase after them to explain further.

Am I not charming enough to have a cat that can do backflips?

Or perhaps I need to know how to do a backflip myself.

……

"Beautiful lady, would you mind having dinner with me tonight?" The man asked, holding a bouquet of petalsless roses in his mouth, as he extended his hand to a girl.

"By the way, I have a cat at home that can do backflips," the man said with a smile.

Before the girl could even speak, the man interrupted her spellcasting.

"Shh—watch my performance." The man then performed a backflip.

Walk—ignore—bang! He did it all in one smooth motion, and everyone around him applauded.

"Wow—" The girl was clearly captivated by the man's performance and agreed to his dinner invitation. The rose, which was already incredibly old, had finally reached the end of its life—a cause for celebration!

then……

"So cute—" During dinner, the girl was completely absorbed in petting the cat.

And the cat would occasionally perform a few backflips to get some dried fish.

During this time, the honest and unassuming man couldn't get a word in edgewise, felt neglected, and even felt that he was worse off than a cat.

I can do a backflip too, though.

In the end, did that man end up with the girl he loved? Nobody knows, but when people talk about him, they often only remember him.

"His cat is doing a backflip!"

Perhaps a cat that can do backflips is more attractive than a person who has a cat that can do backflips.