I'm doing abstract animation

Despite the man's wariness, Yui Yuigahama didn't care at all and instead greeted the girl behind him.

The man paused for a moment, then looked down at his daughter hiding behind him: "Xiao Xiang, is this your friend?"

"No, no, I don't know them, Dad."

Clearly, the little girl was a bit shy. When Yui Yuigahama greeted her, she hid even more tightly, almost completely hiding behind her father.

That makes sense, though. She clearly didn't know Yui Yuigahama, but Yui Yuigahama immediately recognized her name. This would definitely raise suspicion if it happened to a sensitive little girl.

Upon hearing his daughter say she didn't recognize him, the man's expression changed: "Who are you? How do you know my daughter's name?!"

"Speak quickly, or I'll call the police!"

After saying that, he took out his phone and looked at the two of them nervously. Although the two of them looked young, this was Japan, where all sorts of strange things could happen.

"Don't misunderstand, don't misunderstand. We are students from Soubu High School, and we really don't have any bad intentions."

Yui Yuigahama quickly raised her hands to indicate that she had no bad intentions.

The man's expression remained unchanged; these days, high school students do all sorts of outrageous things, and the fact that they are high school students alone cannot convince him to lower his guard.

"Sigh, no, I just want to say one thing to Xiaoxiang, just one thing!"

Although the man still refused to let the two get close to the girl, the little girl was perhaps touched by the sincerity in Yui Hihama's words. She reached out her little hand and gently tugged at the man's clothes: "Daddy, let this big sister say it."

"Alright..." Although the man agreed to his daughter's request, he was still unwilling to move aside: "Just say what you have to say, but be careful not to say anything strange, or I won't let you off the hook."

Sure enough, the prevalence of perversion in Japan is a bit shocking even to its own people.

Looking into the girl's bright, piercing eyes, Yui Yuigahama smiled.

"Xiao Xiang... um, Mr. Spider said he's very happy to see you doing well!"

The little girl was clearly stunned, and it wasn't until Yui and her father left and called her that she came back to her senses.

"Are you alright, Xiao Xiang?"

Looking at her father's concerned expression, the little girl smiled and said, "I'm fine, Dad."

"But Dad, I think I remember now. I had a dream before, and I dreamed about a talking spider..."

The two people standing not far away watched quietly as the father and daughter left hand in hand.

"I can't believe you actually found this little girl... I never would have guessed..."

Looking at Yui Yuigahama, who seemed lost in thought, Osamu Yuuki clicked his tongue in amazement: "Why have I never seen you use your brain before?"

"Maybe it's because there are too many smart people around, so it's not useful!"

Yui Yuigahama watched the father and daughter walk away with a smile on her face.

"Li, do you think they'll be happy in the future? I've heard that Xiao Xiang's parents are divorced, and now they live together. I think if it's that kind of mother, then divorce should be a good thing for Xiao Xiang!"

Although there is a saying that "husbands and wives are like birds in the same forest; when disaster strikes, they fly away separately."

But there's also a saying: even a tiger won't eat its cubs.

"Heh..." Yuki Risa sneered, "Of course, if you don't get a divorce, with a mother like that, you probably won't be happy, right?"

He had heard Yui Yuigahama talk about her dream. Although he had seen the wickedness of human nature over the years, he had never seen anyone so irresponsible towards their own daughter, even beating her and deceiving her until her death.

It's just that he didn't encounter her; otherwise, he would have given her a couple of personality-correcting punches to properly correct her personality.

"...Riri, you're so gentle!"

Yui Yuigahama sighed: "Even though you always say it's troublesome, if someone is in danger, even if it's a stranger, you would definitely save them without hesitation, right?"

Yuuki Osamu: "..."

Something is wrong, nine out of ten times something is wrong.

Yui Yuigahama seems a little too sober today.

"What are you trying to say?" Yuuki squinted at her. "Or perhaps you've found out something else?"

Yui Yuigahama gave him a long, thoughtful look: "You know what? I recently reconnected with Eriri."

Eriri... I see.

Presumably due to the recovery of their memories, their elementary school best friends, whom they hadn't contacted for many years, reconnected. This isn't surprising, considering that one of them attended Sobu High School and the other Toyonosaki High School, which are just across the street from each other. They might have even run into each other frequently before their memories returned.

"So, what else did you hear from her?"

Seeing Yuki Risa's calm expression, Yui Yuigahama opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing.

Some things cannot be said. Once they are said, the one who is pretending to be stupid can no longer pretend, and the one who is faking can no longer fake it. At that time, no one can predict whether the relationship will be good or bad, so she dares not gamble.

"She said she's looking for a blue-haired guy and asked me to keep an eye out for him."

Yui Yuigahama suddenly chuckled mischievously: "I heard there are two other girls searching for her with her. You saw one of them at the mall last time, and she's supposedly a super beauty. How about it, are you tempted?"

Yuuki Osamu: "..."

The topic shift was so abrupt. But Eriri and the other two had actually started looking for him without his knowledge. Just thinking about how they found him sent chills down his spine.

"Don't worry, I've kept it a secret for you." Seeing Yuuki's uneasy expression, Yui stopped joking and said with a smile, "Of the three, Kasumigaoka Utaha is a bit troublesome. After all, she knows we're together, but for some reason, she hasn't exposed my lie. It seems like she has other plans..."

"Ugh, don't even mention it. Just thinking about it gives me a headache. I guess I'll have to take some time off for now."

"Don't give up on yourself!"

"It's none of your business!"

"...Waaah, you're making me really sad, I'm really going to cry!"

…………

Something seemed to have changed, yet nothing seemed to have changed. In any case, the two of them tactfully avoided discussing the topics they had been hiding from each other. At least on the surface, they seemed no different from before.

P.S.: There will be another chapter later, and thank you all for your support!!

A City of Ghosts and Monsters: Chapter Thirty-Seven - Trials and Family

Task progress: 10%.

Looking at the text on the taskbar, Yuuki Ryo frowned.

It's not surprising that the mission progress is increasing. The cards used by Miura Yumiko contain the power she has gained from resonating with another dimension, so whenever the fusion level of Miura Yumiko's cards increases, the mission progress will also increase.

But what he didn't expect was that just yesterday, after he and Yui Yuigahama went to see the little girl, Yui Yuigahama's card fusion instantly soared to 100%, achieving complete fusion.

After the complete integration, the task progress jumped from 4% to 10%.

In other words, the card has been completely integrated into the original inhabitant Yui Yuigahama, becoming her own power and recognized by the world.

Of course, the reason why Yuuki frowned was not simply because the mission progress had increased; that was a good thing, and he was overjoyed.

The reason he frowned was because of the small print at the bottom of the taskbar.

"The mission has reached the required progress level, and the first trial is about to begin."

The evolution of the world requires trials. At each stage, the world will send down trials to test whether the creatures of the world can survive. If they can survive, the evolution will continue. If they cannot survive, the world will stop evolving and it will be considered that the creatures of the world cannot adapt to the evolved world, so a reset will be taken.

"It's a bit troublesome..."

Yuuki couldn't figure out what the trial was, but he didn't know how capable Yui and the others were.

While they might be able to reign supreme among ordinary people, they would likely be utterly defeated if they encountered a truly extraordinary being.

Of these people, only Yui Yuigahama has ever truly faced a supernatural being. Although she seems to have the upper hand, it's just that the other party is playing a trick to take over her or Yuuki Rie's body. Miura Yumiko, on the other hand, faces a half-crippled monster that escaped from another dimension. None of these people have ever truly faced terror head-on.

Most importantly, Yuuki Osamu cannot get involved this time.

This is the evolutionary path of this world. He does not belong to this world and will leave one day. If he interferes, this trial will definitely pass peacefully, but what will happen afterward?

What will they do after he leaves?

Ten percent is a watershed moment. This progress suddenly surged after Yui Yuigahama fully fused the cards, without any growth process. In other words, the world recognizes the highest combat power system, which makes things even more complicated.

Having fully fused with the cards, Yui Yuigahama no longer needs to awaken them to unleash their power in her normal state... no, it should be said that she is now the undisputed number one among this group in terms of her own strength.

Since this world adopts the highest strength system, he is not worried about anyone except Yui Yuigahama. After all, the difference in combat power in the early stages is not too great. As long as you are smart, you can still survive. The real difference will only appear when you reach the blue rank. At that time, it will seem like a step is actually an insurmountable chasm.

The most pressing question now is, what about ordinary people?

You have to understand, this trial is aimed at the entire world... The world's population is enormous. If the trial were some kind of large-scale disaster, the resulting casualties would make even him shudder...

"Yuki, you answer this question!"

Just as Yuki was frowning in thought, a piece of chalk flew towards his forehead with a whooshing sound, accompanied by Hiratsuka Shizuka's suppressed anger.

"One gain..."

With a slight tilt of her head, she perfectly dodged the chalk, allowing it to hit the student behind her. Then, Yuuki Risa pouted at Hiratsuka Shizuka and said, "Teacher, you didn't throw it fast enough or accurately enough."

puff...

Someone let out a laugh, and then the whole classroom erupted in various hushed laughter.

Hiratsuka Shizuka: "...What are you laughing at? Shut up, all of you!"

The entire classroom fell silent instantly. The iron-fisted female teacher had a reputation for being formidable; at least when she was in a fit of rage, no one dared to provoke her.

"You...come to my office with me later."

So, after the bell rang, Yuuki walked into Hiratsuka Shizuka's office under the gloating gazes of Yui Yuigahama and Yumiko Miura.

Bang!

As soon as she entered the office, Hiratsuka Shizuka slammed the door shut, startling the nearby students who scattered like birds.

She angrily sat down in her seat, staring intently at Yuuki Ri, but when she saw Yuuki Ri's indifferent expression, she immediately deflated.

pat!

The sound of a lighter rang out, and Hiratsuka Shizuka lit a cigarette with a hint of melancholy: "You brat, I know you've had it tough, but at least give me some face, okay? At least pretend to be polite in my class..."

The smoke swirled in the air and gradually dissipated. Yuuki Risa didn't say anything, but simply reached into his pocket, took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled one out, and handed it to Hiratsuka Shizuka: "Smoke this one, it's strong!"

Hiratsuka Shizuka: "Ahem..."

She nearly choked to death, and when she saw Yuki Ryo casually pull out a cigarette and put it in his mouth, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together to ignite it, she panicked.

He rushed forward and frantically stubbed it out, whispering anxiously, "Are you crazy? Smoking in the teachers' office? Do you want me expelled?!"

Just kidding, it's fine for her to smoke occasionally, but if someone saw her puffing away in the classroom with Yuuki, her teaching career would be over...

Yuki Risa sneered: "It's alright, that old man, the principal, is one of my men. If he dares to expel you, then his... hehe."

Hey, hey, hey, does it have to be this scary? You need to explain what he meant!

Also, is it really okay to say such things blatantly in front of your homeroom teacher?

Hiratsuka Shizuka felt a surge of anger welling up inside her, unsure whether to vomit it or not.

"Sigh..." In the end, she could only sigh, "Even though you have connections, it's still better to keep a low profile..."

There was one more sentence left unsaid.

"You'll easily get beaten up if you keep doing this..." Considering that the person in front of her wasn't a normal person, she managed to swallow her words.

"Okay, Hiratsuka-sensei, I'll be careful."

He is happy to accept any kind offer.

However, what Hiratsuka Shizuka said next really messed up his mood.

"By the way, Yuuki, don't you have an uncle? He's been looking for you lately, it seems like he has something very important to tell you!"

Uncle?

Yuuki's lips twitched, then he fell into deep thought. He quickly realized that he seemed to actually have an uncle...

I think I had a minor conflict with their family back then...

That's right, Yuuki Risa didn't start out as a classic orphan. His father had a younger brother, and the two brothers seemed to have a pretty good relationship. When he transmigrated, the original owner's parents had already passed away. It was this uncle who took care of the original owner's parents' funeral and afterwards gave him all the money from his parents' inheritance and compensation.

He even went to great lengths to gain custody of Yuuki, although no one contested it with him...

It was only later, because Yuuki was afraid of her predetermined fate, that she embarked on a path of wandering and training, for which she even had an argument with her uncle...

This memory is from so long ago, it's been ten years. If Hiratsuka Shizuka hadn't brought it up, he would have almost forgotten about this person...

Seeing that Yuki was silent, Hiratsuka Shizuka thought he was being difficult, so she tried to comfort him.

"Let me tell you, although it's not pleasant to live under someone else's roof, blood ties are ultimately the closest bond. There's nothing that can't be explained between family members; just explain it properly."

Explanation?