Not a detective

Page 170

To give a simple example, it's like Hannya shielding Hoshino in front of him as a "hostage," making it difficult for Asakawa Riku to make a move.

"...Being possessed by a demon is probably a result of my emotions, right? Why don't I let her kill me once to vent her anger? Maybe it will calm me down and I'll feel better?"

An untimely voice rang out at the end of the month.

Asakawa Riku could only give a helpless wry smile: "Don't make things worse... It's not as simple as you think."

The detective is indeed very smart and good at reasoning, but why is she so naive in this aspect?

Even if she could revive herself using her ability to come back to life, the pain of being killed would still be real. Not only would it not be effective, but it might even intensify Hannya's reaction.

In that moment of distraction, Xingyu slipped away from Asakawa Riku's grasp like a slippery eel.

"...Hahaha, okay, okay, let's leave it at that."

She laughed as she jumped backward, shaking her head like a broken doll: "Kill all the girls around Asakawa-kun, wouldn't that be better?"

"When did you develop yandere traits?"

Without hesitation, Asakawa Riku charged forward again.

He made up his mind that if he couldn't defeat his enemy without taking damage for the time being, then he would master it in battle, slowly adapt to the power and physique of the Prajna, and test what kind of force was best.

Learning and improving through combat is precisely his forte.

...

While Asakawa Riku was struggling with how to cleverly defeat his enemy, Shinonome Suetsuki was not idle either.

She wanted to think about how she could help her assistant, but after thinking about it carefully, it seemed that she really couldn't help.

Despite having read countless books on fighting and boxing, it was all just theoretical knowledge. Her physical condition was practically nonexistent, and she had absolutely no fighting ability.

Asakawa Lu Lao complained that she clearly had a perfect body that could recover from any injury, making her the most suitable person for cultivation, but she was wasting her talent and didn't know how to use it. Only now did he understand what she meant.

However, Suezuki admits that he is just lazy.

"...Should I ask for help? But who should I ask?"

She sat cross-legged on the ground and began to think seriously.

After thinking about it for a while, I realized that I seemed to have very few friends. Apart from the two guys fighting in front of me, I didn't seem to have any other friends.

Should I get to know more people...? But everyone else is so boring.

Mo Yue closed her eyes in deep thought. Her vast memory palace was operating at high speed, rapidly searching the knowledge in her mind, connecting each point of light, and searching for a solution.

Just then, something's voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts:

　"—Want to play with me?"

Turning around, they discovered something incredible floating in the air.

It was the body of a huge child, a girl dressed in a kimono, whose body was round and chubby, looking like a hard-boiled egg, full of good fortune.

The chubby girl's face was beaming with a happy and warm smile, the complete opposite of Prajna, giving off a friendly vibe.

But that's all there is to it. The existence of this guy is very strange. Although he is very young, his size is like that of a giant, and he is strangely suspended outside the railing of the rooftop.

The crimson kimono was as vivid as blood, and the single horn on its forehead indicated its "demon" lineage; clearly, it was an ominous creature.

"Are you a monster?"

Dongyun Moyue calmly turned her head and asked without any fluctuation in her expression.

There are probably very few people in the world who could remain so calm after witnessing such a thing appear out of nowhere, besides her.

"I am a Zashiki-warashi! I am a guardian deity, a god of fortune!"

The girl shouted in a high-pitched voice, her words filled with excitement and joy: "Guardian deity, God of Fortune!"

She repeated it in an unsettling manner, yet her eyes shone with a genuine, childlike light, making it impossible to discern which side was real.

Mo Yue remained calm and replied in a low voice, "In my experience, none of the gods in this world are trustworthy. What, are you going to possess me too?"

"No... I want to play games with you!"

The Zashiki-warashi suddenly moved closer.

Her pale complexion, like that of a Kabuki actor, was accompanied by the rosy blush unique to children, resembling a masked smile, now as close as a fisheye lens.

The distance between Sugetsuki and Shinonome's face was only a few centimeters, yet Sugetsuki didn't move an inch.

"game?"

"Yeah...you guys played a lot of games today, right? I loved it! I loved it! Games really got me going! I need more fun games!"

The Zashiki-warashi laughed happily, its silvery laughter echoing in the air: "Come on, let's play! We can place big bets, we can have fun together~"

"I reject."

Shinonome Suetsuki refused without even thinking. It didn't sound like a "game" at all, but a "gamble," and the gambles set up by demons and monsters in the story are usually traps.

Even the oldest fairy tales have warned her of this, and she won't be easily fooled.

But the other person's next words caused her to completely reverse her decision:

"Oh...what a pity. I was saying I could save that girl and make Prajna leave her body."

Zashiki Warashi's Autumn: Chapter 49 Zashiki Warashi

"So, you're saying..."

Asakawa Riku still wore an incredulous expression as he pointed to the deserted exterior of the rooftop in the distance.

"Is there another monster there?"

He's in a very awkward and strange situation. With Asakawa Riku's unique constitution of "zero inspiration," he can't observe the existence or phenomena of yokai. However, if a yokai possesses a person, he can observe it indirectly through that person, just like Hoshino is now possessed by Hannya. But he can't see the completely ethereal, spirit-like Zashiki-warashi.

So no matter how detailed the detective described it, Asakawa Riku still didn't know if it was true... because from his perspective, there was nothing there.

Hmm... even this guy wouldn't joke around or talk nonsense at such a crucial moment, so let's believe what she says.

"Zashiki-warashi. She claims to be a god of fortune, so be careful not to call yokai by your name and you might get cursed."

Higashino Suetsuki shrugged and said.

The line between a monster and a god is very thin... This is especially true for Riku Asakawa, who experienced the events of this summer.

The red stingray was originally a kind of monster, but it was able to be sublimated into a god due to people's fanaticism and the blockage of information. This is probably the origin of Shintoism's "eight million gods".

—Deities are merely a temporary "state".

"Ok."

However, Asakawa Riku, who still possessed some emotional intelligence, would not rashly utter these words. Without knowing the details of the situation, he could not recklessly offend that guy who "claimed to be a god of fortune."

The gods of this world possess the terrifying ability to "reverse time" and "reset reincarnation," so if that's the case—

Perhaps there is a sliver of hope in what she calls "saving Xingyu".

Asakawa Riku raised his head, his eyes sharp: "She said that everything can be solved with [games]?"

...

"Yes."

The plump girl, who looked like a child, answered Asakawa Riku's question with a smile.

But the next second, she realized that Asakawa Riku couldn't hear what she was saying, and even his gaze was in the wrong direction.

"Why does someone with such a terrifying physique have such a barren inspiration... What a pity."

The Zashiki-warashi pondered to himself, "Could this be the 'curse' that grants him such immense power? Is it a balance where the excess is compensated for the deficiency? No, no, no, his inspiration isn't a flaw, or perhaps... his soul form is different from everyone else here, possessing a unique 'spirit.' Only in this way can he achieve such exquisite martial arts specialization?"

"Hey. Haven't you made enough of a scene?! Why are you getting in my way?!"

Meanwhile, Hoshino, possessed by the Prajna, stood with her hands on her hips, glaring impatiently at the Zashiki-warashi in the air.

She opened her mouth, and as if influenced by a monster, sharp canine teeth grew out of it:

"If you hadn't gotten in my way... I would have taken care of it long ago! Why did you have to interfere!"

It seems that, controlled by jealousy, she even sees the Zashiki-warashi, who appears to be a "girl," as something that is bothersome and irritating.

Just a moment ago, Hannya and Asakawa Riku were still fighting when Zashiki-warashi suddenly intervened, disrupting their rhythm and separating them.

At this moment, Zashiki-warashi suddenly lost her smile and retorted to Hannya with a cold attitude:

“If I hadn’t intervened, you would have been subdued by him just now. He only used less than 30% of his strength, and he was only holding back because of this body. Can’t you see that? Then you deserve to be stuck in a human body. I’m here to help you. If you don’t need it, I’ll disappear now and go die.”

"……Well."

Seeing that the Zashiki-warashi was about to disappear, Hannya gritted her teeth in resentment and humiliation: "Wait! Don't go... what are you going to do!"

"It's very simple... haha."

The Zashiki-warashi suddenly broke into an unsettling fake smile, a smile that, though seemingly innocent, concealed something chilling.

It sounded clear and pleasant, but for some reason, it was more terrifying than Prajna's wide-open, strange laughter.

"Cooperate with me. His body is yours, his soul is mine. I want to study him carefully, to savor...just what kind of deliciousness he is..."

...

Asakawa Riku stood still, waiting silently.

He couldn't see the Zashiki-warashi, nor did he know the current situation; he could only wait for Shinonome Suetsuki to relay everything to him.

Hoshino's condition seems to have stabilized now; at least she hasn't launched any more frenzied attacks. Perhaps Zashiki-warashi can indeed suppress Hannya's presence.

His wounds were slowly healing. Although Prajna hadn't caused him any serious injury, it was mostly just bruises and swelling, and there wasn't even any bleeding.

However, it is now clear that Asakawa Riku's self-healing ability has been greatly improved.

At the same time, he was also wondering why two monsters would appear here at the same time.

According to Chizuko, yokai are not common, especially in modern times when "science" and "rationality" have prevailed, people's cognitive barriers have been removed, and mystery has been greatly reduced. Occasions where yokai appear are even rarer, except in places that are isolated from the world, such as deep mountains and forests or shrines, places that are rich in religious atmosphere.

Just like last year, the Spider Woman who kidnapped the students was thought to be a monster, but she was actually a superhuman.

Yukie is not a real snow woman; she is a superpowered individual.

Aoandon is indeed a yokai, but it is an ethereal rule, a spell, and has no real form.

Even the monster known as Shuten-dōji was a mad scientist who had been modified with drugs, not the real historical figure who had descended to earth.

Thinking back carefully, it seems that the only real monsters Riku Asakawa has "seen" are the old monk "Baku" and the "Nekomata" he saw this year.

Monsters are very rare, but I saw two today, which is not normal.

Asakawa Riku still didn't know the reason, but he thought it might be because Chizuko-senpai had left the school.

The Onmyoji who guarded this place is gone, so demons and monsters took advantage of the situation and started causing trouble. That's most likely the case.

"It really wasn't the best time to leave..."

He sighed helplessly. If Chizuko-senpai were still at school, he would have already figured out how to deal with the monsters by calling her to the rooftop.

She is, after all, an expert.

But now is not the time to reminisce about the past. The only thing Asakawa Riku can do now is to place all his trust in his companions.

The last moon of the eastern cloud.

She was watching that direction intently, not missing a single detail.

But she couldn't hear any sound, except for the crisp autumn wind.

...Those two monsters seemed to be communicating, but they didn't make a sound. Were they using a secret frequency? Were they deliberately hiding something?

Just then, the Zashiki-warashi seemed to finish the conversation, turned around with a smile, and finally spoke words that she could understand:

"I kept you waiting."