Chapter 48 : Farewell
As Geto Suguru fell into silence, Jiang Lai beside him suddenly spoke: "So, you're the ones who captured them and then locked them up?"
His tone was calm, with no discernible emotion beneath, the slightly rising question carrying some subtle guidance.
The villagers, caught up in their excitement, naturally understood it as some kind of praise: "Of course! Though it was mainly the village chief's credit, he led us to capture these two filthy things."
The middle-aged woman beside them said: "This cage was for wild animals before, very sturdy. Our village is still discussing how to deal with these two filthy things."
The young twin sisters in the cage shrank back, feeling instinctive fear about possible future "treatment."
"..." Chaotic thoughts surged through Geto Suguru's mind like a torrent as he gripped his left arm tightly with his right hand, the pain helping him maintain restraint.
Just then, a voice calling his name came from beside him:
"Did you bring your phone, Suguru?"
Jiang Lai held an upright ancient book in his hand, turning halfway to look at him.
Hearing this, Geto Suguru was slightly stunned, pulling himself from his struggling thoughts. He instinctively replied: "I did."
Jiang Lai: "Oh, good. I've taken photos and recorded audio. Satoru told me your phone email address, I'll send you these materials later." He explained matter-of-factly.
After all, explaining the principle of his phone (book) wasn't convenient. Jiang Lai thought. Better to send them to Geto Suguru.
"...Sorry, what?" The topic jumped too suddenly, and the boy with the bun hairstyle was still in a daze, not immediately understanding what the person before him meant.
"After the Yuikawa incident, I made a point of studying human rules." Jiang Lai's eyes sparkled as he blinked lightly, "Logically speaking, illegal imprisonment, bodily harm, abuse of private punishment, now we should—"
"Call the police, right?"
He spoke the words in a calm voice, like a stone stirring up thousands of waves.
The sun's shadow slanted west, sunset glow illuminating this village. It had never been so lively here, with uniformed police officers collecting evidence, questioning, detaining criminals, then taking them to police cars on the main road.
Jiang Lai silently watched this scene, checking it off in his mind.
In modern civilized society, when evidence should be collected, collect it, when police should be called, call them, this was Jiang Lai's habit from both the present world and the Detective Conan world.
Although this world's jujutsu society had its own system belonging to sorcerers and curse users, ordinary society still followed basic social regulations.
Some feudal villages were difficult to collectively prosecute, but with solid evidence, they could arrest a few examples for deterrent effect, like the village chief mentioned by the two villagers earlier, who played a leading role in these crimes.
At this moment, watching the bustling scene before him, Geto Suguru still felt somewhat mentally dazed.
"The jujutsu world has its survival rules, and ordinary society has its behavioral norms." Jiang Lai lightly swayed his book, saying, "I recently studied the rules of both sides."
"..." Geto Suguru was silent for two seconds, then smiled: "Mm, for you, learning these things isn't really very useful, is it?"
After all, [Existence] transcended the mundane, drifting outside the human world. Free wind, clouds, water, and trees naturally wouldn't come into contact with these rules.
"It's still useful." Jiang Lai's eyes curved slightly, "Like this time, it was very appropriate."
So, Lai learned these new things for their human friends he'd formed connections with? This thought crossed Geto Suguru's mind as he withdrew his gaze and softly responded.
He didn't tell the person beside him about his earlier thought of "massacring the entire village." And... this thought still wavered within him now.
But he respected his friend's decision. Geto Suguru looked ahead. Then let this village be as Lai said, ordinary people's laws were also a form of punishment for them.
However, he no longer had a clear concept of [punishment] at this point.
Under the red sunset's reflection, the boy with the bun hairstyle's eyes mirrored the layered village and distant mountains ahead. His heart felt separated by a layer, distantly isolated from all surrounding things.
Geto Suguru knew that the decision made by the dark blue figure was correct. Ordinary people should be constrained by the laws and regulations of ordinary society, this was a kind of justice.
However, the [righteousness] he had now chosen was no longer a pursuit of "absolute justice."
Let useless people pave the way for useful people. He quietly chewed over these words in his heart.
Although he didn't ultimately massacre the entire village, something in his mind had quietly completed its final transformation during the earlier incident.
He would hold back for his friend [Existence]'s inability to form deep connections, but that was all, just holding back. Geto Suguru blinked lightly. After the final shoe had dropped, he no longer struggled with the path he'd chosen.
At this moment, after the scales had tipped heavily to one side, the boy with the bun hairstyle had a rare moment of relaxation, even though it was false relaxation.
Jiang Lai had been quietly observing Geto Suguru's micro-expressions, and from the details, he had already sensed some change in the person beside him.
Actually, he was also very clear that the first playthrough's Geto Suguru had been in too much contact with the Supervisory Committee and had thought too much about it, basically impossible to pull back.
This village incident was just a trigger. Without this village, there would be another village, another mission location, becoming the final straw that broke the camel's back in the boy's heart.
Jiang Lai actively chose to solve this problem through "calling the police," partly to avoid the reoccurrence of village massacre and slaughter, protecting possible innocents in the village and reducing Geto Suguru's mental collapse after turning to extremes.
On the other hand, it was also to silently demonstrate to Geto Suguru that besides the laws spoken by the jujutsu world's higher-ups, there was another set of applicable regulations in the world.
Bathed in evening glow, both their edges were tinged with warm light.
"Those two girls no longer have relatives in the village." Jiang Lai spoke from the side, "They'll probably be sent to an orphanage if no one adopts them."
Geto Suguru emerged from his whirlpool of thoughts.
"You're a minor, so going through proper legal adoption procedures isn't convenient." Jiang Lai said, "The documents I've created in the human world can handle the adoption process."
He thought for a few seconds, tilting his head slightly and continuing: "Or, have Satoru use his connections to handle it. Or explain to the assistant supervisors that these two are future sorcerer prospects, and have people in the jujutsu world who handle such matters coordinate."
Adoption?
For a moment, Geto Suguru didn't speak, just looked up at the little girls being protected by police.
The wounded twin girls huddled together trembling.
But when they glimpsed Jiang Lai and Geto Suguru in the distance, they still put away their fearful expressions and tried hard to smile in response.
The twin girls looked up and spoke quietly with the police beside them for a few words, then ran over to find Jiang Lai and Geto Suguru.
Noticing the two little ones approaching, Jiang Lai crouched down halfway, his expression gentle as he extended his hand in a guiding, supportive gesture, preventing the two little girls who had just left their cage from being unsteady on their feet and accidentally falling.
Facing Nanako and Mimiko, Geto Suguru also swept away his earlier blank expression, showing a smile and bending down to interact with the two little ones for a while.
The light-haired and dark-haired little girls came to express thanks, their voices small, expressions mixing timidity with trust, and barely perceptible hope.
Hope that the people who brought them out of the cage could also take them to farther places, teach them how to use their abilities, and find more similar friends.
After the two little ones returned to the police, Jiang Lai stood up and asked: "After the procedures are completed, do you want to adopt them?"
"..." Geto Suguru lowered his eyes, and after a long while, gently replied: "Let them go to Jujutsu High. They can keep Maki and Mai company."
"Mm, Jujutsu High would be good too." Jiang Lai responded.
However, Geto Suguru's words weren't finished, as he continued: "...Then, I won't be going back."
After simulating it thousands of times in his mind, he finally clearly spoke these words aloud. Geto Suguru still kept his eyes down, restraining himself from noticing the reaction of the person beside him.
"I plan to practice a new [righteousness]. Ordinary people should pave the way for sorcerers. Useless people living too long might as well extend the lives of useful people. If there were only sorcerers in the world, there would be no more cursed spirits and accidental deaths of sorcerers."
He expected there would be shock, questioning, persuasion... maybe even arguments.
But the reaction of the dark blue figure beside him was exceptionally calm.
The evening breeze brushed across his cheek, bringing the light words of [Existence]: "Have you already decided?"
"..." Geto Suguru's fingers curled slightly, his voice calm: "I've already thought it through."
"If you've already thought it through," Jiang Lai said, "then go try and make mistakes."
Hearing this, Geto Suguru paused for a second, habitually replying in a half-joking tone: "You already think my choice is wrong before I've even started?"
"Right or wrong isn't for me to judge." Jiang Lai's book floated lightly upward, "What kind of path is the right path can only be known after walking it."
"You should still wish that my choice is correct, after all, life is a one-way street with no way back." Geto Suguru chuckled softly, "I also can't walk through it and choose again."
Beside him, the dark blue figure in kimono replied gently: "Not necessarily."
"..." Geto Suguru turned his head, not understanding his friend's reply, but the other person seemed to have no intention of further explanation.
Neither of them spoke again. The air was quiet for a long while.
The orange sunset slowly sank into the mountains, the last rays of evening glow appearing particularly bright and dazzling against the backdrop of encroaching night, like the final breath before the night curtain pulled and shrouded everything.
In the last few minutes before the sunset fell, Geto Suguru turned around and extended his hand, offering two small bags of black sesame cookies: "...These two, please help me give them to Satoru and Shoko." His tone was gentle.
"Alright." Jiang Lai nodded, naturally reaching out to accept them: "Are you leaving now?"
"About that." Geto Suguru's slender eyes curved upward, "Being able to chat so calmly with you at the end is really somewhat unbelievable. Even though I'm suddenly making this choice."
"Ultimately, your future is your own. No matter how much I say, it won't help, right? So I won't make useless persuasion." Jiang Lai's eyes sparkled, "If you insist on walking a path, then go try it."
Geto Suguru chuckled softly, coughed once, and said gently: "In any case, let me apologize first. I'm causing you trouble. At Jujutsu High, especially with Satoru, you'll still need to go back to Jujutsu High and inform them... since I can't go back."