All Options Exhausted / The Hunt Begins

The next day, Yusho Sakura came to pick up her daughter.

Shuya also left a while later.

As he left, Haruno smiled and waved goodbye as if nothing had happened.

Yukino observed the two of them but couldn't discern anything, so she gave up.

October arrived, Sakura's show aired on time.

Inoue Hikoo has once again managed to get BTS's prime-time slot.

Sakura received good reviews when it first aired, but the plot hadn't unfolded yet, so it was difficult for outsiders to say anything.

As the story unfolds over the past few weeks, viewers have come to understand what kind of story it is.

Sakura, this innocent and adorable character, has gradually gained popularity.

Her charm is irresistible to both adults and children.

Sakura doesn't suffer from the old problems of Inoue Hikoo's previous flops; it has no negative energy, nothing...

A chaotic mess of conflicting interests.

All that remains is sunshine, hope, and love.

Sakura always changes into a new, exquisite outfit, which perfectly showcases her adorable charm.

Aside from Sakura, the other characters are also very likable.

The animation itself is of high quality, and the voice actors are top-notch, so it unsurprisingly generated a lot of buzz.

Then, when Daoist Li appeared in the eighth episode, everyone was even more eager to see what would happen next.

Let's turn our attention back to the main character.

In Shuya also finally took on some acting jobs.

He did it to increase his fame, just in case.

By November, all his friends in Great Hua had responded.

No one could find a solution, and some even advised him to give up and not to do anything impulsive.

The search for Li Shuhong has also come to an end.

The police couldn't find him; he sent a letter himself, telling Shuya not to look for him anymore. He didn't know how to resolve the matter with Rena.

Shuya realized his guess was right; Li Shuhong had understood what had happened all along.

But even he couldn't solve it, Shuya lost his greatest support.

He was at his wit's end and could only try his luck by visiting various Shrine in Tokyo.

He asked Tsuruko Aoyama to introduce him to several priests, but as soon as they heard Shuya mention his business, they all politely asked him to leave.

We've asked everyone we can, and we've truly exhausted all possible solutions.

There's nothing we can do.

The Shuya yielded no results, and so the new year began.

That's when things changed.

On New Year's Day 2004, Rena suddenly fainted.

The Quintuplets cried uncontrollably, Shuya heard the noise and rushed over, quickly taking them to the hospital.

Shuya then realized that after researching for so long, he hadn't even thought of taking Rena to the hospital for a checkup.

Although the doctor is unlikely to find anything wrong, basic examinations can still be performed.

... What if we find the cause?

A small sense of anticipation ignited in Shuya's heart.

---But things didn't take a turn for the better.

As Shuya had expected, the hospital found nothing.

Ultimately, Rena's problem was simply attributed to symptoms caused by excessive fatigue.

Shuya felt a chill in his heart, but still asked the doctor to give her a thorough examination.

After a round of checks, there were no problems with Rena inside or out.

The doctor didn't say anything, only telling Shuya and the Quintuplets not to overthink things, and that she would wake up soon.

Just as the doctor had predicted, Rena woke up the next day.

Moreover, she appeared to be in good health after waking up and was discharged from the hospital soon after.

Rena and the Quintuplets returned to normal, but only Shuya, who knew the truth, felt a chill in his heart.

The Curse has begun to take effect...

It happened in less than half a year; that Fox God was indeed unreliable.

But Shuya was truly at his wit's end, and he couldn't bring himself to go out and plunder Demon Power.

He could only ask Great Hua's friends for help inquiring about reclusive Daoist sects.

For the first time, Shuya experienced the taste of impotent rage.

However, he was quite well-mannered and able to suppress his emotions and not take them out on others.

Aside from those who know him well and can see through his act, everyone else is fooled by his acting skills.

The only thing that made him somewhat happy during this period was that his friends were all caring for him in their own ways.

When Shuya was filming with Mai- chan, Mai- chan would get up early every day to make him a bento box in order to encourage him.

The Little Senior Sister often invited Shuya to practice the piano together, but actually she was just playing for him.

The Aoyama Sisters would occasionally check on him and, together with Shizuka Hiratsuka, help him fight and vent his frustrations.

Yukino knew his condition, so she didn't launch many sarcastic attacks and even occasionally used her ice Strange Arts to help him clear his mind.

Hyakka -chan also noticed that Shuya was acting strangely, and often chatted with him to relieve his stress.

As for Haruno... well, that's hard to describe.

Thanks to their meticulous care, Shuya was able to withstand the pressure and continue working.

Rena and the Quintuplets didn't notice anything, Shuya one who hid himself the most from them.

While Shuya was trying to find a solution, Cardcaptor Sakura had already become a huge hit.

Everyone was captivated by the charm of the original "cute queen".

The famous quote, "Absolutely no problem," is widely known.

This animated series, suitable for all ages, has gained widespread recognition.

Not just Japan Administrative District.

In the Great Hua Administrative District, thanks to the precedent of the Alien Baby Hikari-chan, people are quite accepting of Inoue Hikoo's animations. Moreover, with Daoist Li around, the Great Hua feel that the animation is quite relatable.

Besides, they're familiar with Shuya does the voice acting.

As a result, coupled with the fact that Cardcaptor Sakura was indeed of high quality, it became a hit in Great Hua.

After Sakura became popular in Japan and Great Hua, it spread to Asia, and television stations in various administrative regions successively introduced it.

However, there is a potential problem with the Sakura anime: its romantic subplot.

Sakura's work... I have to say, the entertainment industry is just too damn messy.

Sakura and Yukito, Syaoran and Yukito, Tomoyo and Sakura, Toya and Yukito.

Especially the pairing of Toya and Yukito, which is completely incomprehensible to young children.

Then there's the teacher-student romance between Sakura's parents.

Sakura's mother and Tomoyo's mother.

Teacher Rika.

Etc...

Good heavens, there are so many romantic subplots that it's speechless.

Few who came after Sakura have been able to surpass her.

What's amazing is that despite the incredibly messy relationships in this work, it's also incredibly innocent and pure, which is truly astonishing.

Even now, the biggest audience for Sakura is still young girls; you could say there are very few girls who haven't watched it.

Even Mai- chan loves watching it.

Even the aloof Yukino has collected some merchandise, so it seems she really likes it.

Cardcaptor Sakura's magic is truly unstoppable!

The Quintuplets are also Sakura's loyal fans, Shuya gave them a lot of merchandise.

Sometimes when Shuya went to their house, he could see them fighting each other with Magic.

He did not recommend using the Magic in this way.

Cardcaptor Sakura is becoming increasingly popular, and the character of Syaoran will likely become one of Shuya roles as well.

Shuya thriving in every other aspect of his life.

Perhaps this is what they mean by being unlucky in love but successful in career?

February arrived just like that.

It has been half a year since the Fox God Age of Gods.

As soon as February arrived, Shuya felt a sense of unease, Power of Will was foreshadowing something for him.

By mid-February, Rena had collapsed again.

Shuya hurriedly took her to the hospital.

She has been unconscious for two days and hasn't woken up yet; the Quintuplets are in tears every day.

In the hospital room, Shuya held Rena's hand in silence for a long time.

... Perhaps it's time to make a decision.

Important note: The rest of Volume 2 consists mostly of battle scenes. If you only want to see slice-of-life moments, you can watch a few recap episodes and then continue to Volume 3.

The compilation is free, and it only contains about five or six thousand words. If you don't want to read that, you can directly read Volume 3. If there's anything you don't understand, you can refer to the compilation. If you liked Volume 1, you should also like the content after Volume 3.

Section 210, page 194: The Hunt Begins

Rena's condition is very serious.

Shuya sensed that the power left behind by the Fox God was being rapidly depleted.

This is not the same as the previous consumption rate.

This Curse doesn't seem to be static.

The Fox God believed his energy could increase Rena's lifespan by a year, but in reality, it only increased it by a few months.

He was indeed unreliable.

But we can't blame Him, after all, it's hard to deduce the nature of this Curse using common sense.