CH 83.3

...I can't just wait for her to recover, so I grab both of her shoulders and ask her in a questioning manner.

"Miss, do you remember what happened last time?"

"Uh, hmm?" Tamaki furrowed her brows, trying to recall. "Um...I remember Iruka appearing at the festival and I chased after her..." Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Oh, yeah! Iruka!? Where's Iruka!?" she exclaimed, her voice tinged with worry.

My question makes Tamaki recall her memory, and she remembered and recognized her friend on her lap, her face turning pale. ...But she didn't seem to recall the 'blackness' from earlier.

"Iruka!? Oh, no!!? Her stomach...!?" Tamaki's voice was shaky, her concern growing by the second.

"Please! Don't touch her carelessly!!"

Tamaki rushes to touch Iruka, but I stop her. It was obvious that something had spilled out. It's not something an amateur should be allowed to handle.

"I'll save her. Please don't worry about it."

I mean, if I don't help her, she'll fall into the darkness again, right? It was troublesome for me too.

First, I changed Iruka's posture, which Tamaki had given me. I put her on her back to reduce her burden and make it easier to see her injury. I then rolled up her clothes to expose her belly. This is...

"...!" Tamaki gasped.

At the same time, Botan said, 'It's pretty bad. The bleeding is severe. Even if she's a half-youkai, she won't last long, right?' Botan's words were somewhat detached, as if it was someone else's problem, but they were accurate. In fact, the wound I saw up close was even worse. Stitching it up wouldn't be enough, so...!

"Huh!? What are you doing!!?" Tamaki exclaimed with horror that I stabbed my arm with my dagger (tantō). Of course, it's natural. After all, it was a sudden act of self-injury. However, I'm not crazy either.

On the other hand, realizing my act, the hummingbird shikigami says coldly. 'Are you out of your mind?' Her words are as insane and questionable.

But she doesn't stop me. Because there was no other way to prolong Iruka's life among the means at my disposal. It's a gamble, but I have to do it. I mean, I'm not gonna be around much longer anyway. Can I count on her afterward?

"Calm down. A half-youkai has a half-youkai way of healing."

I boasted to Tamaki who looked at me anxiously. Half of it was true, but half of it was a lie. It is true that for youkai, living blood is a treat in itself, but in this case it was the 'factor' or 'genes' in my blood that was more important than the blood itself.

(Unlike me, if it wasn't directly, it should be...!)

I can't help feeling uneasy about what will happen later. However... though I am sorry to Iruka, for me, the top priority was to avoid the immediate fall of the main character in front of me, the fall into darkness.

At least I couldn't let Iruka die here and now. I would probably be beheaded later, but for the time being I must let her live.

"It's your young lady request, so don't complain, okay?"

Iruka looked at me blankly when I asked. There was no answer. She just breathes hard, maybe either she didn't have time to talk or didn't have much time.

At the same time, I forced Iruka's spilling guts into her belly and closed the wound in her belly. At the same time, I poured my own blood, which I had collected in my palm, into Iruka's mouth...!

(Even though she is a rotten mother goddess, she is the goddess of life! If it could recover my body, it should be the same as her body... Please let it work!)

I'm usually making people suffer, so at least I need to be useful in such a case.

I don't know if my prayers were answered. But I saw the wound on Iruka's belly. It was obvious that the bleeding from the cut that had been forcibly closed had slowed down. It works...!

"Then...!!"

I gouge the wound on my wrist with the dagger (tantō) to widen it further. If I did not, the wound would soon be closed. Each time the wound was about to close, I widened it. It was painful, but I couldn't turn back.

At any rate, I thought... that it was going to work, but I was careless. The next moment, a roar echoes.

(Huh...? It's not good, she's turning into youkai!!?)

Iruka writhed in agony. The wounded half-youkai's whole body rumbles with a horrifying sound. The hairs on her body grow longer. An obvious worsening of youkai-ization. D*mn, did I lose a bet?

I was wondering why it's happening, but Botan answers my confusion with a different response. 'No, it's different. Is this a... curse?' At the same time, she is surprised to see Iruka's condition and I'm surprised too. It was so unexpected. A curse, you say...!?

"Who!? Those youkai...!?"

'No, it's different from that.' The hummingbird explained. 'It's not an man-made... it's not a formula of the imperial court, nor of the exorcists to. Either way, it's dangerous!' She then spit out several seals. They were probably intended to seal me in case of emergency. The fact that she tried to use them without hesitation shows her impatience.

But the claws of the wolf tore it open before it could take effect.

"...!?"

"Iruka!?" Tamaki shouted but Iruka, who was now half beast, leaped at me. I try to catch it, but my reaction is too late.

"Gah!?"

She bites me on the neck and her sharp canine teeth pierce my neck. This guy...!?

"Iruka!? Why did you...! Stop it! Don't do that...!?" Tamaki said, tries to pull Iruka off me from behind. But she's just a sheltered girl, and her arm strength is no match for the strength of the half-Youkai. On the contrary, it had the opposite effect.

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...!!" Iruka growled at Tamaki and she tries to attack her.

"That's not good...!?"

I stop her by tightening my grip around her neck, bind her from behind. However just as I look at Iruka's side, there is blood. I haven't finished healing her yet...!

Now, I put my arm around Iruka. Naturally Iruka bites my arm. Fortunately, the teeth do not penetrate too deeply into my half-youkai-ized arm. Blood flowed, but if it had been a live person's arm, it would have been taken away as it was.

"Oh, no... why, Iruka......?" Tamaki said with a shocked expression, seeing Iruka. Fear and despair engulfing her. Hey, stop it! Something bad will come if she was in that state, okay...?

'If that's all, it would be easier to just kill her and deal with the curse, but it doesn't look like that's going to be the case.' Botan said with a same concern as I do. However, what can I do about this situation... Sh*t, I'm also in a tough situation with my whole body mutation and the curse!? Besides, where's that spider brat...? Where's that guy...?

As I was wondering such a question, Botan said, 'Ah...' as if she had noticed it. In response, I was also looking at her.

Somehow a white spider had moved from above my head. It moves with its swollen belly right in front of Iruka's writhing eyes. When it finishes moving, it lets out a sigh of relief. And the next moment... it's dancing.

"Yes?"

The white spider danced foolishly as if it were performing the Awa dance. Both Botan and I stop thinking for a while at the sight of it. Botan, who noticed the change first, muttered, 'Eh, is this a joke?'

I also realized it late. The curse, which was affected Iruka, slowed down as the White Spider dances foolishly.

'...! Isn't that it? Servant! Let that shrine maiden pray to the spider!!' Botan exclaimed, her voice laced with urgency.

"Huh...!? Ah, yes!!"

Following Botan's command, which had regained her senses before mine, I shouted at Tamaki, my voice booming with authority. "Miss, please pray... please offer your prayers to this spider!"

"Eh...!? T-the spider!?" Tamaki's voice trembled by the sudden request and she was even more agitated when she saw the white spider. Well, it's understandable to be scared when she sees a spider the size of a tarantula moonwalking!

Then, Tamaki asked in surprise, "Aah!? What is this...!?"

"It's a god, though it's a piece of junk...!!" I retorted, my voice tinged with frustration.

The white spider raised its hand in response to my explanation, '(≧∀≦)ノ' . Hey, don't use that weird emoticon!! I mean, do you understand what I'm saying, or not?

"Enough! Miss! Please pray to it as a shrine maiden!! Are you okay with whatever happens to Iruka...!?"

"Eek... I-I understand!!" Tamaki's voice quivered with fear.

At my urgent shouts, Tamaki began to pray as a frightened shrine maiden. Sitting before the spider, she reverently lays her hands on top of each other and makes her wish.

'The spider is still a god, even if it is rotten. Thanks to your blood, its belly is full. And with enough offerings, then, all we need is the shrine maiden's prayer...'

Botan explains, looking around at the power overflowing and surging. Finally I understood what she was trying to explain. In short, the preparations were perfect.

All that remained was to find the shrine maiden who would give direction to the power of the divinity... but at the same time, that was the problem.

"W-why! Why isn't there any... reaction!!?"

After a all, nothing happened. Tamaki cried and screamed almost as if in agony, while the white spider, on the other hand, looked at Tamaki with an expression of '(；￣Д￣)?'. I almost shouted, "You b*stard...!!?" at the d*mn spider, but then I quickly realized another possibility.

(No, wait. No, this might be...!?)

I looked at Tamaki and became certain of it.

"Miss! Please pray again! This time seriously, concentrate..."

"What!? I'm doing it properly...!!" Tamaki vehemently protested my words, her expression trembling with anger.

"Miss, please calm down."