Dough and Dreams Within Reach

"Old man, you can't be such a perv."

With the attitude that if he couldn't have it, nobody else could either, Denji tried to dissuade the driver.

The driver looked utterly baffled.

He couldn't understand why petting a cat made him a pervert.

"Then I won't pet it," he said at once.

"No! I hereby grant you permission to squeeze them right now." Power gave Denji a provocative grin, seemingly having discovered a way to annoy him.

"Huh? Right now? But we haven't rescued the cat yet."

"Who said anything about a cat? I meant these." Power pointed, and the driver nearly coughed up blood.

"Uh, well..."

Perhaps happiness had come too suddenly.

A second later, he clapped a hand over his nose.

"What's wrong? Not interested?"

"Isn't that a little inappropriate? We've only just met." The driver stared straight ahead, his face reddening. His mouth said no, but his imagination had already supplied the scene.

"Think about your wife and kids, old man. You can't do something like this."

Denji went straight for a guilt trip.

He hoped that would make the driver give up the idea.

But the driver replied with a smile, "I've always been single. I've never even dated anyone."

Seeing that guilt wouldn't work, Denji switched to intimidation. "Old man, she's a fiend! Don't fall for it!"

"She may be a fiend, but she's come all this way to save a cat. I think she's a very kindhearted fiend."

"Anyway, you're not allowed!"

The driver's repeated rebuttals left Denji unable to think of another reason to stop him, so he could only kick up a fuss in the back seat.

"All right, I can tell you like her. I won't do anything like that."

"You're too nice, old man!"

"Sorry, but I don't like him. Besides, we've only known each other for a day, so you needn't feel guilty." Power immediately objected, deliberately leaning closer to the driver after she spoke.

With his dream so close at hand, the driver sucked in a deep breath.

He actually shared the same dream as Denji.

He hoped to fulfill it before he died.

Now his dream was right before his eyes, practically forcing him to make it come true.

If he backed down again, it really would remain forever out of reach.

"In that case, forgive me for this."

His words were reserved, but inside he was already bursting with excitement.

Even his hand began to tremble.

He slowly raised it, drawing closer and closer to his dream.

Just then, an announcement suddenly came over the car radio. "We interrupt this broadcast with an emergency notice. The Charm Devil has recently been responsible for a series of attacks. She can take the form of any woman and frequently lures men to the outskirts before brutally murdering them. Most victims so far have been taxi drivers. Drivers are urged to exercise caution when accepting passengers. If you encounter danger, please call 10-086xxxxx immediately."

The moment the announcement aired, the driver recoiled in fright, instantly pulling his hand back.

"What's wrong?"

"On second thought, forget it. But I've noticed someone following the car. Do you know them?"

All three turned around at once, peering through the rear window.

There was only a narrow country road stretching out of sight, with grass and trees on either side. They saw no one.

"There's nobody there. Were you seeing things?" Power asked as she turned back.

But by the time the three turned back, the driver's door was already wide open.

The driver was gone from his seat, too.

"Where did he go?!" Power cried in shock.

"He jumped out." Meng Fan glanced behind them. The driver had landed in the grass beside the road.

"Ha ha! He actually jumped out of the car just to get away from you!" Denji's attitude completely reversed as he mocked her again.

Just then, the steering went out of control, and they swayed from side to side with the car.

"Power, the steering wheel!" Meng Fan hurriedly shouted, not wanting the runaway car to crash.

For one thing, he felt bad for the car. For another, without it, they would have to continue on foot.

"The steering wheel? Which one is that? I don't know!" Power yelled helplessly, her eyes darting around.

"The round thing." Meng Fan pointed at the steering wheel in front of the driver's seat.

"Oh, so this is the steering wheel." Power lunged forward and grabbed it, instantly steadying the car.

But a second later, she yanked the steering wheel clean off and turned to hand it to Meng Fan. "Here's your steering wheel."

"Fuck, I don't want it! I just wanted you to hold it steady!" Meng Fan shouted in exasperation at the steering wheel right in front of him.

"Why didn't you say so sooner? I heard you yell 'steering wheel' and thought you wanted it."

"Aaaah!"

The car went out of control again and slammed straight into a roadside tree.

All three were thrown forward by the impact.

"My head's spinning." Denji held his head, his face scrunched up. "Power, this is all your fault."

"Don't blame me! Meng Fan didn't explain properly," Power retorted, waving the steering wheel in her hand. She had always been an expert at passing the buck.

"Come on, get out. Let's see where we are."

Meng Fan pushed open the door and looked out. They were still a long way from the little wooden cabin where the Bat Devil was.

"Master, are we there yet?"

"Looks like we'll have to walk for at least an hour."

"An hour on foot?!"

"Then we'll walk. I used to go everywhere on my own two feet."

"I don't wanna walk that far. It's not like you're going to give me what I want anyway."

"In light of the crash, I'll allow you one squeeze."

"Master, let's go. We shouldn't keep the kitty waiting." Denji took his first big stride forward.

"Denji, you really are a dreamer." Meng Fan shook his head helplessly. If Denji swapped his dream of squeezing breasts for studying, he could definitely get into an Ivy League school.

The three then continued on foot.

Compared with the city's oppressive steel jungle,

the country lane felt especially pleasant.

The distant mountains seemed to wash away their stress.

The air was fresh, and both sides of the road were filled with greenery.

Every so often, birds swooped past them.

They couldn't help slowing their pace.

Honk, honk, honk!

Just then, a car horn suddenly blared frantically behind them.

All three quickly turned around.

They saw a red car speeding toward them.

"Hey! Stop and give me a lift!" Power stood where she was and waved.

But the red car showed no sign of slowing down.

Realizing something was wrong, Meng Fan immediately lunged at Power, knocking her off the road.

Whoosh!

The red car narrowly swept past them.

If Power had stayed by the roadside, she would definitely have been sent flying.

Denji hurried over to check on them.

The sight before him left him dumbfounded.

Meng Fan's face was buried right between the objects of his dreams.

"Master, what are you two doing?! You're starting in broad daylight?!"

"Thank you for saving me."

Power was considerably more sensible.

She understood why Meng Fan had tackled her.

The two then stood and brushed the dirt off themselves.

"What was wrong with that car? Were they trying to run me over because I'm a fiend?"

"I don't think so. I smelled a devil in that car. There was a man and a woman inside. The woman was very seductive, while the man driving had vacant eyes, like a puppet."