Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 361 - 329: Countryside Stroll

Chapter 361: Chapter 329: Countryside Stroll

The older members of the Kamibayashi Family were uploaded to servers on the space station, leaving Kamibayashi’s Old House even more remote and secluded. Even as guests gradually moved in, it never felt crowded.

At the very center of the estate stood several grand mansions styled in an antique fashion, all refurbished, now housing Kamibayashi Kurou, Oohara Risa, and their closest friends and family.

In addition, there were several wing rooms, ordinarily prepared for junior branches of the family. These had now become quiet corners for Farosa and her entourage. Spaced generously apart, they featured beautifully quaint courtyards with stone paths flanked by grass and flowers.

"It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a place this clean and quiet," Farosa walked up to a wooden lattice window.

Gazing out, she could see a meandering creek, its murmuring waters clear and distinctly cold in the late autumn season, beckoning irresistibly to venture into its midst.

"After all, we are social animals," Xu Yang said, standing beside her, "But if we focus only on our sociability, we’ll forget our animal nature, which needs to return to the natural environment from time to time."

"You’re right, let’s go to the bamboo forest," Farosa pointed to the dense bamboo groves behind the creek, giving Xu Yang a playful glance.

Xu Yang picked her up around the waist and set off from the house, crossing the stream to reach the secluded depths of the bamboo. Farosa lay in his arms, hooking her arm around his neck, gazing at the tranquil scenery that surrounded them.

"How about this bamboo?" Xu Yang spotted several 17-meter-tall bamboo trees, their complex leaves slicing the sky’s light into fine shadows.

"I’m afraid we might break them, they’ve taken so long to grow."

"You kill without blinking an eye, yet you care so much about the fate of bamboo."

"Bamboo won’t turn their spears against us."

"Then we only have the grass."

"What about stones? Aren’t there those natural round stones?"

"Oh, there’s one over there."

A large, moss-covered rock became their place of the moment, sweat flowing freely, staining the stone.

"How does it feel?" Xu Yang asked.

"Is this a product consumption review? Do I have to give it five stars to come here again?"

"Maybe."

"Then it’s five stars."

In the afternoon, Farosa and Xu Yang took a walk in the bamboo forest.

They cherished the rare feeling of having no burdens. City life, mystical symbols, and network base stations were all too far away, fading into insubstantiality, unworthy of concern, with only the pure, quiet natural environment nearby.

"Let’s just pretend we’re two wandering souls," Farosa said, holding Xu Yang’s hand, "with nothing to worry about, nothing to care for and manage. All we want is to look."

"Sure."

They strolled freely, wholly enjoying the fresh air and the rustic charm. They discovered Kamibayashi’s Old House was quite expansive. Besides the main family’s mansion and the junior families’ wing rooms, by walking seven or eight miles, they came across a large barn on the lawn, next to a thatched shed with mottled, peeling walls, presumably centuries old.

Twelve young people in Xisheng Group uniforms were working nearby, collecting and sorting food and firewood. They were fair-skinned, courteous, seemingly well-educated—much like their city counterparts—ready to serve their employers, albeit in a different regime.

Past the fields, where the sun didn’t reach, no bamboo grew but instead there was a lovely pasture where groomsmen, who were to attend the wedding, rode horses. Nearby, metallic pens housed chubby pink pigs, carefully bred species that were clean and didn’t smell. The children brought by the guests were fascinated by all they saw, pointing at each animal they encountered; they had only seen the finished meat products delivered to their homes, never how they looked before their end.

At the foothills’ edge, Xu Yang and Farosa came upon a village farm reliant on the Kamibayashi Family. The village boasted over sixty households, more than three hundred acres of rice fields, and it wasn’t just farmers there but also armed hunters, responsible for providing organic food and fresh game.

A white shuttle stood at the center of the village with groups of villagers loading baskets of ripe persimmons onto it. Each persimmon was as large as two fists, full and ripe. The baskets bore no labels and were not for sale to the public.

"I just wish to live in a place like this," Farosa said, sitting on a grassy slope, staring at the rolling green hills, "exceptionally quiet. Does the whole mountain belong to the Kamibayashi Family?"

"Yes, and just a little further north towards Fragrant Root Mountain, there lies Kamibayashi’s Heavenly Guardian Pavilion. They have been wealthy rural landlords even before they got entangled with Honma Noriko," Xu Yang rose to his feet. "All of this will shuffle again on the day of the winter solstice."

"If Xisheng collapses," said Farosa, "the entire mountain range will be ours."

"Not just that," Xu Yang looked into the distance. "If the Xisheng Group falls apart, the whole of the Northern Archipelago—all seven islands—are open for us to go to."

Farosa squinted her eyes.

"I could deign to be the Empress of these seven islands," she said.

"Are you tempted?" asked Xu Yang. "But if you want to replace Xisheng, you’ll need to find legitimacy for yourself."

"...Legitimate rule."

"Right," Xu Yang nodded.

Power should be enough, Farosa was about to say. But then it dawned on her. Yes, power could shape legitimacy, but only if she were the most powerful in the world. Otherwise, a rule based on violence would eventually be overthrown by greater violence.

"It’s difficult," Farosa said.

"Yeah, the ancient Mystics all tend to deny you," Xu Yang said, looking at Farosa, "simply because you have no legitimacy at all. They definitely don’t want a commoner-born Witch to rise up, so the stronger our forces become, the higher the hostility from the Mystics. And most people, they would also think carefully and wouldn’t easily acknowledge you."

"Only the company has legitimacy," Farosa said.

"That’s why we are still operating in the form of a company, as it’s the most easily accepted existence by people."

Farosa leaned back, lying on the hillside.

"Starting from scratch is really hard," she said. "Why were my parents just mediocre villagers?"

"We’ve already been through the toughest phase," Xu Yang said as he walked towards the village.

"Where are you going?"

"To find a place with a signal to see what everyone is up to."

"Come back," Farosa made Xu Yang lie down beside her.

"What for?"

"We’ll go back at sunset," Farosa closed her eyes and took Xu Yang’s hand, "Until then, we’ll dream together."

Meanwhile, Kamibayashi Kurou confirmed the wedding time, which was in two days.

The entire estate bustled with activity. Professional butlers bustled about, unboxing newly arrived household robots and letting the skilled Mr. Handy with his many arms handle the ingredients for the wedding, while there was a major cleanup underway of the whole house, and delicious food had to be provided for all guests.

A Food Delivery Robot floated in the air, delivering a huge food box to the wing area, placing it neatly at the entrance, stacking up eight aluminum alloy meal boxes.

After it left, 102 quickly peeked out, looked around, and in one breath, picked up all eight meal boxes and turned into the house.

"Mealtime!" she placed the meal boxes in the inner room.

"Ah!"

"Finally!"

The Witches were happy; it was finally time to eat.

Gradually, they began to dislike it here. Once the novelty faded, they found fault with the old house’s hard beds, the myriad insects, the damaged ceilings, the damp-proof-less walls, and they became less and less interested.

Only mealtimes could bring smiles back to their faces, thanks to the work of a large number of top chefs, the food provided on-site was very rich, and it was offered six times a day, including a brunch, afternoon tea, and late-night snacks.

"I’m not eating, I’m going out," Du Qianqian changed her look, ready to run away.

"Where are you going?" 102 asked curiously.

"Riding horses," Du Qianqian wanted to experience something new, "There’s a horse farm nearby."

"You’ll definitely get kicked to death by a horse," 102 thought of Du Qianqian’s bad luck.

"Ah—" Du Qianqian pondered and was convinced it was just an unsettling superstition, "It won’t be bad luck every time."

With that said, she left the wing, ready to ride horses.

"Do you eat, robot?" 102 looked at A100, "A40 doesn’t eat much."

"I am capable of playing and operating a related eating program, but my primary energy source comes from batteries, not food, so under normal circumstances, I don’t eat much," A100 said.

Before 102 could ask more, she received a message from Lila.

"Go put on the Witch Armor and get ready for battle."

"But I’m eating."

"That’s an order."

"Alright then..." 102 had to leave the dinner table reluctantly and went looking for her armor and mask hidden in a box.

After she left, A100 lost another conversation partner and stood by the wall, holding the knife.

Then, 101 also received a message from Lila.

"Take A100 with you and kill A40. Then bring 102 to join the battle. Lastly, bring Lord Xu Yang and Farosa to the scene," Lila instructed.

"Kill A40?"

"It sneaked up the mountain with Hosoda Yoshiyuki and Kirino Reisei. I don’t want any of the three to be seen by the guests," Lila conveyed.