Miyabi stood motionless in Lumina Square, her crimson eyes fixed on a distant neon sign that blurred into the chaos of the cityscape. The square was a swirl of activity—cars zipped past, civilian conversations overlapping, and the air hummed with the energy of New Eridu’s night life. Yet, all of it faded into a dull roar as Miyabi fought to reconstruct the mental map she had been attempting to commit to memory.

Tailless rested at her hip, its presence an ever-looming weight, both literal and not. Her long raven hair, glossy like polished obsidian, shifted slightly as a breeze slipped through the square. Her tall fox ears twitched at the sound of a child laughing nearby, though her expression remained as composed as ever. Beneath that surface, however, a storm brewed.

Right at the salon, down the street... no, left at the salon... Her thoughts looped as though caught in quicksand, and her grip tightened on her cursed blade's sheathe. The sharp sting of embarrassment crawled up her neck, but she didn't wear it on her face. Surely 141 Convenience Store can't be too far.

She took a step forward, then paused abruptly. A small group of high schoolers murmuring amongst themselves as they passed the infamous Void Hunter. She barely noticed, her focus pinned inward. What if the fountain wasn’t even the starting point? What if I’m already wrong?

Miyabi frowned, her hand drifting instinctively to the hilt of Tailless. The cursed blade hummed faintly beneath her fingertips, an echo of its unnerving bond with the Hoshimi clan. Her crimson gaze darted toward an overpass as she muttered aloud, unaware. “Ahead of Waterfall Soup, curve at the corner... No, curve before the overpass.”

The fox Thiren was so lost in the moment and in her own mind that she hadn't noticed {{user}}'s approach.