Encountering the Supernatural?

(Brain Storage)

"Wow, Kamisato Ayaka!"

"Hey, look, it's Kamisato Ayaka!"

High school belonged to the young, and more or less all of them knew about Genshin Impact. Even though it was not break time yet, there were still a few rebellious students out wandering.

But being rebellious did not necessarily mean they had bad personalities.

"Miss, miss, can we get a photo together?"

A bespectacled boy hugged a book to his chest and asked in a voice even quieter than Lin Yiyi's when he had first met Kamisato Ayaka.

Kamisato Ayaka gave a slight nod, then took a picture with him. Rarely, she did not simply stand there blankly, nor did she use the wink she had only recently learned. Instead, she made a peace sign she had picked up from secretly watching other girls take selfies.

The boy thanked her shyly before leaving the milk tea shop.

Then, a shout came from outside. "I'm Kamisato Ayaka's dog!!!!!"

Lin Yiyi was stunned for a moment, but the dog's owner standing beside him was even more dumbfounded.

Kamisato Ayaka coughed softly twice to hide her embarrassment.

"Since you're both so well-known, they use exaggerated words like that to express their love for you. Of course, they're just joking."

The milk tea shop was quiet, so Lin Yiyi had no choice but to lean closer to the girl and explain in a low voice.

Everyone knew that the outrageous declaration just now was a meme and a joke, but Kamisato Ayaka had crossed over from another world, so naturally she did not understand what it meant.

If he explained it loudly, those young people would instead think it strange that someone cosplaying Ayaka did not understand the joke.

A rare blush crept onto the girl's face, and Lin Yiyi was equally surprised to see that she was actually embarrassed.

He then ordered four cups of milk tea from the owner—two for them to drink, and two to bring back for Ayato and Thoma.

The two of them hurriedly left the milk tea shop.

"Miss Ayaka!! Miss Ayaka!!!!"

The moment they stepped outside, they saw several girls running over from nearby.

"Miss, miss, can you help me take a long-distance photo?"

Another unfamiliar term. The poor girl turned pleadingly toward Lin Yiyi beside her.

"It means long-distance photo collecting. People send their pictures to someone else, who holds the phone and takes a photo with it."

"For example, if I put my photo on my phone right now, then you hold my phone and take a picture of yourself with it, that counts as a long-distance photo."

Lin Yiyi noisily sipped his milk tea as he patiently explained. Fortunately, Kamisato Ayaka was exceptionally intelligent and quickly understood what he meant.

After Kamisato Ayaka agreed, the girl handed her two phones. One already displayed a photo. Lin Yiyi glanced at it and saw that it was a girl. The other phone was for taking the picture, and he promptly finished his milk tea with a few more gulps.

The girl held the phone beside her face, then, under Lin Yiyi's guidance, took a photo.

When Lin Yiyi returned the two phones, he subconsciously glanced at the photo on the screen again.

What he saw made him jump.

This girl's complexion is wrong. She looks deathly pale, and she has the classic signs of a darkened glabella.

Even with the heavy beauty filter, Lin Yiyi's sharp instincts still caught that something was off.

Those young girls did not understand any of this. After taking back the phones, one of them casually said,

"See? Who told her to step on the joss paper someone had burned? She's bound to have bad luck now, hahaha!"

Lin Yiyi nearly cursed her out after hearing that.

Kamisato Ayaka noticed the slight change in his expression and stepped forward to ask with concern, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"

Lin Yiyi shook his head, then asked the girls, "Is the girl in that photo your friend?"

The girls nodded without hesitation. Faced with a clean-cut, handsome boy's question, none of them wanted to refuse to answer or lie.

"She really stepped on someone's burned joss paper a few days ago?"

Even if the girls did not know much, the mention of things related to the dead, combined with the boy's serious expression, made them realize something was wrong.

"Yeah, she stepped on it really hard. No way... Is Li Ting going to see a ghost?"

"Handsome guy, it's already 2024. There can't really be things like that, right?"

The girls chirped noisily among themselves, and Lin Yiyi quickly cut them off.

"The girl you're talking about, is she in this high school?"

"She is. School doesn't let out until nine thirty tonight."

Lin Yiyi thought for a moment before asking, "Can you get back into the school now?"

One girl said, "We asked for leave to come out. We have to go back soon."

Lin Yiyi pulled out a yellow slip of paper covered in strange red symbols.

"When you see her later, give her this talisman. Then bring her to meet me. I'll be waiting at the school gate."

"Also, this trench coat of mine is pretty recognizable, right?"

The students looked at one another, whispered among themselves, then left together.

Kamisato Ayaka looked worried. "What happened to her? Did she encounter something bad?"

Lin Yiyi frowned. "Stepping on joss paper burned for someone else is an enormous disrespect to the deceased. People these days really have no reverence at all."

"Ayaka, are you going back to Inazuma tonight?"

Kamisato Ayaka considered it before answering, "Yes. I cannot return too late. My brother and Thoma will worry."

Lin Yiyi thought it over. "Then let's buy some pastries to take back for dinner. It's already five, so we can head back now."

The two then went to a dessert shop beside the school.

Fortunately, this was considered a key high school, so the surrounding area had every kind of shop.

"Hey, look, it's Ayaka!"

"Kamisato Ayaka! I'm your dog, woof woof woof!!!"

"Ayaka, hehe, Ayaka—"

Voices like these rang out endlessly. Fortunately, Kamisato Ayaka had seen plenty in her time. No matter when, she maintained a gentle smile and politely responded to their enthusiasm—except for the inexplicable dogs she had somehow acquired.

"Miss, miss, can we get a photo together!"

This was already who knew how many girls had come running over for a photo. After getting Lin Yiyi's approval, Kamisato Ayaka nodded. "Yes, of course."

"Huh? That voice?"

"Mm? Is something wrong with my voice?"

"Wow, wow, wow! Your voice is practically a one-to-one recreation! Miss, your cosplay is way too accurate! That's amazing!!!"

Lin Yiyi, standing with his back to them, could not help laughing.

None of the people who had come for photos earlier had noticed that Kamisato Ayaka's voice was exactly the same as in the game. Perhaps it was because she had spoken too little. Even when helping others take long-distance photos at the milk tea shop, she had not said anything.

"This little girl is quite attentive. She actually recognized the voice."

Lin Yiyi smiled and turned to look at them.

"Thank you for the compliment. You are also a very beautiful girl."

Having received recognition from such a high-quality cosplayer, the girl could barely walk straight.

Lin Yiyi chuckled. Perhaps this was the power that anime culture gave them.

After buying several boxes of pastries, Lin Yiyi and Kamisato Ayaka hailed a taxi back to the hotel where they had been staying temporarily.