— — — — — —
While Yagokoro Eirin was busy calming down Houraisan Kaguya, Veyron had already stepped through the hole and arrived in a completely unfamiliar world.
The moment he touched down, he activated a spell he had prepared in advance—a tracking spell that would send his location back to Eirin.
Only after that did he start checking out his surroundings.
And the moment he did, he froze.
Of all places, Yakumo Yukari had thrown him straight into a field of sunflowers.
Thousands upon thousands of sunflowers, densely packed together, basking under the blazing sun. And through his Observation Haki, he could hear them—singing a cheerful "la la la~" in perfect harmony…
All except one.
The one he had unfortunately stepped on when he landed.
Carefully moving his foot away, Veyron gently tried to lift the bent flower and awkwardly apologized, "Yeah… sorry about that. You saw it too, right? I got tossed in here just like that. How about this—if I ever get strong enough, I'll pin down the person who threw me here and make her apologize to you in person. Deal?"
The crushed sunflower responded with a pitiful, "Whimper whimper~"
Veyron: "...Right."
If this were any other world, he might've just admired the sunflower field, maybe even grabbed a few seeds to snack on later.
But this wasn't any normal world.
This was the Touhou Project world—nine years before the full version of Gensokyo would even exist.
And stumbling into this sunflower field? Not a great idea.
See, a thousand years in the future, there'd be a beautiful sunflower field in Gensokyo known as the Garden of the Sun. If you were just passing by, you might catch a glimpse of a woman strolling through it with a parasol. Gorgeous sight.
But step into the field? Or worse, break one of the flowers?
Yeah, you'd better start worrying about your safety.
And as for actually hurting a sunflower? A ticket to the grave.
'Yukari… I'm not letting this one go. Just pray I never catch you slipping.'
Muttering to himself, Veyron pulled up the chat group's mission interface, ready to teleport.
Luckily, he'd figured out Yukari's scheme when she threw him into this field—he knew just how terrifying that green-haired woman was, and how she cared about her sunflowers more than anything.
Sure, it was still a few centuries before Gensokyo officially took shape—but knowing the Yokai of Boundaries, there's no way she actually sent him to just a normal sunflower field, right?
Hmm?
Still crouched next to the flower he'd crushed, Veyron was wondering whether to call Miss Merlin or maybe check the group's item shop to see if he could heal it before it stopped whining…
And then he noticed something weird.
The snapped stem—it was healing, visibly repairing itself, as if rewinding time.
And then came the sound of soft footsteps behind him.
He let go of the flower and stood up, turning around.
There she was.
A woman dressed in a white blouse, wearing a red-and-dark plaid vest and a matching knee-length Scottish-style skirt. In one hand, she held a parasol that looked like it was made from a blooming flower.
Her green hair was cut short and curled gently. Her figure was tall and elegant. But it was her eyes—sparkling like rubies against her flawless face—that truly stood out.
No doubt about it. Just as he'd feared when he saw the sunflowers.
(A/N: Image.)
The master of this field—the Flower Master of the Four Seasons—Kazami Yuuka.
She raised one hand, light gathering at her fingertips.
Half a second later—
A blinding beam of violent energy tore through the sky and obliterated a rift that had opened above them.
Having wiped out Yukari's "surveillance," Yuuka finally turned her gaze toward Veyron.
"I think you already know what's going on," she said calmly. "That woman was trying to use you as bait. To pit me against you… and whatever forces you've got behind you."
She paused.
"But considering how gentle you were with that little one just now… I'll let this slide. Just make sure you tell the people behind you—it was Yakumo Yukari who tried to set you up."
With that, the sunflowers around them all shifted to the sides, parting to reveal a clear path out of the field.
Huh…
Honestly, from what he knew before transmigrating, Yuuka was supposed to be the type who didn't talk much and solved everything with overwhelming force. Rumors even painted her as a sadist.
But in person?
She was unexpectedly calm. Rational?
Veyron gave her a nod and turned to leave—only to feel a tug on his sleeve.
He looked back.
It was the same sunflower from earlier.
Confused, Veyron looked at Yuuka.
"This kid seems to like you," she said with a small smile. "It wants to give you a gift."
As she spoke, the sunflower shook its head a little. A dozen or so sunflower seeds fell from its disk, caught by its own leaves, and held out to Veyron.
Veyron: "..."
What kind of weird event is this?
Still, he accepted the seeds and thanked the sunflower.
It was already swaying in time with the others, joyfully singing "la la la~" like nothing had ever happened.
Veyron hesitated, then looked to Yuuka. "These seeds…?"
"If that child gave them to you, then they're yours," she replied. "You can eat them, or take them home and plant them. Your choice."
Veyron: "...Guess I'll eat one?"
He picked up a seed and, seeing that Yuuka's expression didn't change at all, decided to just go for it.
Crunch.
And then—
His eyes widened.
The seed itself was fine.
His Observation Haki wasn't picking up any hostility from Yuuka, or from any of the sunflowers. They were peaceful—completely different from the blood-red eyes he'd sensed in the space cracks earlier.
Same for the seeds. Totally clean.
No, the issue was with his own cheat ability.
[You have acquired a new Trait — "Photosynthesis (White)"]
[Photosynthesis (White): Allows you to perform photosynthesis.]
The moment the trait activated, the sun above him suddenly felt… comforting.
Under its rays, all the stamina and energy he'd burned through earlier—first from training alone, then from constantly being on guard against Yukari—began to slowly, but definitely, recover.
Veyron turned to Yuuka in surprise.
She, too, seemed slightly impressed. Her calm, ruby-like eyes flickered with amusement.
"How interesting…"
She raised her hand again.
And all around them—every single sunflower in the vast field spat out one seed each, piling into a literal mountain in front of Veyron.
.
.
.