Time photography studio.
The afternoon sunlight at three o'clock slanted through the venetian blinds, casting alternating stripes of light and shadow on the wooden floor. The air carried the scent of old paper, developer solution, and a faint hint of mildew.
Cheng Xiaoshir leaned on the counter yawning, her eyelids heavy as if weighed down by lead blocks.
“Lu Guang—are there no customers yet—”
“No.” A calm voice came from the inner room, “Even if there are, it might not be a good thing.”
“Cut.” Cheng Xiaoshir buried her face in her arm, “If we don't open soon, we won't be able to pay next month's rent...”
Ding dong.
The doorbell rang.
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Cheng Xiaoshi jumped up like a spring, his professional fake smile instantly on display: "Welcome to the—dog?"
A white Shiba Inu was squatting by the door, a brown backpack slung over its back, its ears perked up, its eyes fixed on a photograph hanging on the wall—a black and white photo of an old house from the Republican era.
"I'm just passing by."
#Kurumi Walked in, his paws making no sound as they stepped on the floor. "I heard you guys can 'send photos' here?"
Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang, who had just come out, both stopped at the same time.
"You..." Cheng Xiaoshi blinked, "How did you know?"
"I could smell it."
Kurumi jumped onto the counter, bringing her nose close to Cheng Xiaoshi's hand. "Your hand smells of time ripples. You just used your ability, didn't you? Less than three hours ago."
Lu Guang's eyes narrowed: "What are you?"
"Dog Immortal, and also a temporary worker at the Time and Space Administration Bureau."
Kurumi flipped his paw, revealing a plastic badge—with the words "Time-Space Coordinator" crookedly printed on it. "Recently, several timelines have experienced abnormal fluctuations, and I've come to investigate. Your area is the hardest hit."
Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang looked at each other.
"We only help our guests fulfill their wishes."
Lu Guang's voice turned cold. "We will not interfere with history."
"But you have already interfered."
Kurumi pulled a tablet out of his bag, swiped it a couple of times, and brought up a few photos—
The photos are all before and after the completion of the commission by Time Photo Studio. "This one is from the Battle of Shanghai in 1937. In the original timeline, this soldier was supposed to die in the trench, but you saved him. And what happened? He lived forty years longer, had five children, one of whom became a traitor—the butterfly effect caused the collapse of three branch timelines."
Scroll to the next image: "This one is from an internet cafe in 1999. In the original timeline, this boy should have dropped out of school because of his gaming addiction, but you let him go to university. As a result, he became a programmer, worked 996 hours a day, and died suddenly, leaving his parents devastated—it took the timeline correction system three years to fix it."
Cheng Xiaoshi's face turned pale.
Lu Guang clenched his fist: "We don't know..."
"So Benku came."
Kurumi put away his tablet. "I'll give you two choices: First, suspend operations for rectification, undergo training from the Time and Space Administration, and obtain a license to work. Second, this library will forcibly cancel your business licenses—a physical cancellation."
It pressed its paw on the counter.
The solid wood countertop cracked open with a "crack".
Cheng Xiaoshi swallowed hard: "Let's talk this out..."
"Then choose one."
Kurumi grinned. "Training begins now. Lesson One: Basic Rules of Spacetime Interference. Rule One: No saving those who are destined to die. Rule Two: No altering major historical junctures. Rule Three: A seventy-two-page risk assessment report must be submitted after each completed mission..."
"etc!"
Cheng Xiaoshi interrupted, "Why should we believe you?"
"Based on this."
Kurumi swiped through the air with its claws.
A photograph on the wall—a news photo of the 2008 earthquake ruins—suddenly came to life!
In the photo, the broken floorboards began to wriggle, dust flowed backward, and broken bricks and tiles were rebuilt... Three seconds later, the photo turned into the school building that was intact before the earthquake.
"Time Reversal, Partial Version"
Kurumi retracted its claws. "I can do it, and I can undo all the 'good deeds' you've done. Want to try?"
Lu Guang pressed down on Cheng Xiaoshi's shoulder.
"We...will cooperate."
"clever."
Kurumi jumped off the counter. "Then the first practical training exercise: cleaning up the mess you guys left behind. Let's start with the most recent one—Emma's request, right?"
Cheng Xiaoshi: "How do you even know this?!"
"This library has reviewed your work logs."
Kurumi pulled a pink diary out of her bag—the very one Cheng Xiaoshi had hidden under her bed. "The handwriting is really ugly."
"Give it back to me!"
"I'll return it to you after training."
Kurumi opened the diary: "Emma, female, 23 years old, request: Go back three days and stop her ex-boyfriend Jack from deleting her work files. You completed it, but the resulting ripples in time affected the stock trading of the company next door—causing a small business to go bankrupt and thirty people to lose their jobs."
It closed its diary.
"Now, go and make the corrections."
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Late at night, in an office building.
Emma sat in front of the computer, the screen's glow reflecting off her pale face. On the table sat a cold cup of coffee and a utility knife.
"Tonight."
Looking at the surveillance footage on his phone, Lu Guang said, "In the original timeline, she would cut her wrists at two in the morning."
Cheng Xiaoshi clenched her fists: "We have to save her..."
"No.
Kurumi squatted on the fire hydrant. “You have to make sure history goes exactly as it is—she cut her wrists, was found by a cleaner, was taken to the hospital, survived, and then had a change of heart and started a new life. That’s the most logical timeline.”
But she's about to die!
"That's why I've come."
Kurumi jumped down. "Listen, the timeline is like a tattered fishing net. If you try to patch it up here and there, it will only get worse. The right way to fix it is not to add lines, but to straighten it out along the existing lines."
It walked towards the office building entrance.
"Wait here. This library will demonstrate what 'professional spacetime maintenance' means."
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Emma's fingers trembled as she picked up the utility knife.
The blade popped out, its cold gleam reflecting the tears in the corners of her eyes.
She closed her eyes and raised her wrist—
Excuse me.
Emma suddenly opened her eyes.
A white Shiba Inu was squatting opposite the desk, pawing at the succulent plants on it.
"This plant is short of water."
Kurumi commented, "Improper care can easily lead to death—similar to your current situation."
"The dog...the dog talked?"
Emma was dazed.
"Not only can he talk, but he can also tell fortunes."
Kurumi leaped onto the table, pinning her hand holding the knife down with his claws. "I knew you weren't meant to die here. Put down the knife, let's talk."
"What did you talk about..." Emma's tears fell, "I lost my job, my boyfriend left me, I..."
"So you're going to die?"
Kurumi tilted her head. "If you died, would the company stop work for a day for you? Would your boyfriend change his mind? Would succulents water themselves?"
"I……"
"None of them."
Kurumi hooked a utility knife in its hand with its paw. "Death is the laziest solution. Living is hard—but it's precisely because it's hard that it's interesting."
It took a tablet out of its backpack and swiped around a few times.
"Look, this is your original timeline: Tonight you attempted to cut your wrists but failed, were hospitalized for a week, quit your job after being discharged, went to Yunnan to learn coffee latte art for three months, came back and opened a small shop, and three years later your chain stores were all over the city. You got married at thirty, and your partner was a veterinarian—by the way, he likes dogs."
A clear life trajectory is displayed on the tablet.
Emma's eyes widened:
"This...this is real?"
"Produced by the Time Management Bureau, honest and reliable."
Kurumi put away his tablet. "Now you have two choices: one, follow the original timeline, which will be painful but will lead to growth. two, I'll help you cheat and skip the painful phase—but the price is that you will lose the resilience you gained during your growth, and you may not be able to overcome some hurdle in the future."
It stared at her: "Which one do you choose?"
Emma looked at the tablet, then at her wrist, for a long time.
"I...choose one."
"very good."
Kurumi nodded. "Now, please cut your wrists as instructed—be gentle, don't actually die. I've already called an ambulance, it'll be here in three minutes."
Emma: "...Huh?"
"History must come to an end."
Kurumi said seriously, "But this library can help you optimize the experience—for example, make the wound shallower, the pain less, and the blood look more but actually less. This is called the 'principle of least necessary intervention'."
It took a first-aid kit out of its backpack.
"Come on, disinfect it, find the vein, and cut at a 15-degree angle. Yes, like that..."
Under Kurumi's professional guidance, Emma completed a "standard and safe" suicide attempt.
Two minutes and fifty seconds later, the sound of an ambulance siren grew louder as it approached.
“Done.” Kurumi jumped off the table. “Remember, the pain is temporary, but the latte art is eternal. See you in three years.”
It vanished in a flash.
Emma lay in a pool of blood (mostly fake blood bags provided by Kurumi), and suddenly felt...
It doesn't seem so sad anymore.
I even felt like laughing.
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On the rooftop, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang watched as the ambulance took Emma away.
"That's... all?" Cheng Xiaoshi asked blankly.
"Otherwise what?"
Kurumi appeared behind them, saying, "The essence of time preservation is 'subtle and gradual.' Your approach of dramatically changing history is like barbaric construction."
It took out a small notebook and crossed out an item.
"The first mess is cleaned up. Now for the second one—the incident three days ago when Jack deleted the file. In the original timeline, the file should have been deleted, Emma should have been fired because of it, and then she should have awakened and started her own business. You prevented the deletion, causing her to miss the awakening point."
With a swipe of its claws.
A cinematic scene appeared in the air:
Emma was fired because of lost documents. She cried all night in her rented room, and the next day she started researching coffee. Three years later, she succeeded.
"Now we need to turn history back."
Kurumi looked at Cheng Xiaoshi and said, "You, go into the photos and delete the files."
“But we already promised Emma we would help her…” Cheng Xiaoshi struggled.
“You promised to ‘help her,’ not to ‘spoil her.’”
Kurumi patted his shoulder with her paw. “True help is letting her walk the path she should walk, even if it hurts at the time. This is the first lesson for time-space managers: put away cheap sympathy and respect the weight of history.”
Cheng Xiaoshi remained silent for a long time.
"I see."
He walked toward the photograph.
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The revision work is progressing smoothly.
Cheng Xiaoshi entered the photo and gave Jack a push the moment he was about to delete the file (a physical push, as Jack tripped and accidentally pressed the delete button beforehand).
Lu Guang monitors the time flow from outside to ensure minimal ripples.
Kurumi, on the other hand, was using a device similar to a Geiger counter to monitor the stability of the timeline.
"The deviation is 0.03%, which is acceptable."
It packed away its equipment, saying, "Looks like you guys have some talent."
Cheng Xiaoshi emerged from the photo with a complicated expression: "She was crying very sadly at the time..."
"But three years from now, I'll be smiling and grateful for this loss."
Kurumi stuffed the equipment back into his bag. "Alright, basic training is over. Now, issuing certificates—"
It took out two plastic cards and tossed them to the two men.
Temporary Time and Space Assistant License for Time Photography Studio (Three-month probation period)
Cheng Xiaoshi: "...Is this certificate legal?"
"This was posted by Benku, what do you think?"
Kurumi jumped onto the windowsill. "Remember the rules: For every job you take on, you must conduct a 72-hour simulation beforehand, write a report, and submit it for record-keeping. You are prohibited from participating in any major historical events. Violators—"
It gripped with its claws.
A sound like shattering glass came from the air.
"License revoked, permanently."
Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang nodded at the same time.
"Good boy." Kurumi jumped off the windowsill with satisfaction. "Then Benku's work is done. Time to go."
"Wait a minute," Lu Guang suddenly spoke up, "Why are you helping us?"
Kurumi turned around, and its dog ears twitched.
"Because the timeline is like a river, it needs someone to dredge and guide it. You were throwing stones around before—but your intentions were good. Benku doesn't like to destroy good intentions; it only likes to straighten them out."
It took two $kurumi Dao crystals out of its bag and threw them over.
"This is a time-space anchor. Holding it tightly can temporarily solidify the surrounding time flow—for example, in a photo where you encounter danger, it can buy you three seconds to escape."
Cheng Xiaoshi accepted it, the crystal smooth and warm: "Thank you..."
"You're welcome, but there's a charge."
Kurumi grinned. "Deduct it from your next month's revenue."
"ah?!"
"Just kidding."
It waved its paw, "Let's go. There are other timelines to patrol. Remember to submit your reports—"
Its form began to fade.
The last sentence drifted over:
"Oh, by the way, remember to water that succulent once a week."
"Plants are like time—"
"If we ignore it, we will all die."
"Woof."
The white figure disappeared.
Inside the photo studio, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang held Dao Jing's hand, looking at the two plastic licenses on the table.
Outside the window, the sound of the ambulance siren had long since faded into the distance.
The night was deep.
But it was almost dawn.
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A gap in time.
Kurumi flipped through the newly updated "Time Photo Studio Regulatory Files," its tail wagging lazily.
"Two promising talents, but they're too inexperienced."
With a wave of its paw, more than a dozen books of light appeared in front of it.
(A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality) (Swallowed Star) (Honkai Impact: Star Railway)...
The claw stopped on (Honkai: Star Railway).
“Interstellar train, destiny, star god…” Its eyes lit up, “This worldview, this timeline must be a complete mess, right?”
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Amid the hum of time, Kurumi caught an extremely subtle "click" from a recently corrected point in time, like the gears of an old clock finally meshing back into their correct positions.
It didn't turn around, but its tail lazily curled upwards, the tip drawing a small question mark in the air.
"There are always people who think that time is like a dog leash, and if you hold on tight, you can pull your destiny forward."
The paw casually patted the outer pocket of the backpack, producing a soft metallic clinking sound from inside—
It was that plastic badge that read "Time and Space Assistant" that was swaying.
"But actually..."
It finally turned its head, and with those eyes that had seen too many "ifs" and "could haves" in the flow of time, looked toward the now empty Time Photo Studio.
"Time, like a dog, only ever follows those who truly remember to feed it."
"You might throw it a piece of meat occasionally, and it'll oblige and walk a few steps with you. But you forget, it'll turn around and go back to its own den."
Kurumi grinned, his canine teeth gleaming faintly in the fleeting fragments of time. "And those who go around brandishing chains and shouting 'I can tame time'—"
It suddenly raised its front paw and snapped its fingers crisply at a time bubble that was forming in the void and distorted by the forced alteration of history.
The time bubble burst instantly and vanished without a trace.
"You can't even find a single dog hair."
Just before the white figure completely merged into the pages of the book, the last half of a sentence, mixed with a laugh that had been blurred by the flow of time, drifted out intermittently:
"So..."
"Either prepare the meal properly, or—"
"At least don't block the dog's way of sunbathing."
"After all, it feels like being kicked..."
"It's much worse than being hungry."
"Woof."