CH 104.4

"What's the problem? If there's anything I can do, I'll assist within my capabilities..."

Botan didn't respond to my suggestion. She stared at me with a complex expression that mingled exasperation, scorn, and anger... Before she could say anything, she sensed a presence. I also noticed the presence a moment later.

"Oh, there you are, Tomobe-kun! I'm glad I found you! I wanted to talk to you for a bit..."

Emerging from the foliage, a black-haired girl with a boyish appearance appeared. It seemed she had something to discuss. Hotoya Tamaki, upon spotting me, approached with an unconstrained smile... but froze when she saw the girl in the Onikuma's arms.

"Huh, a youkai? But..."

"Yun-shoku from Onitsuki. Excuse me for now."

Botan scoffed, glancing briefly at Tamaki's perplexed expression. She then gave an order to the onikuma and turned on her heel. Through her actions and words, she seemed to behave as one of the exorcists participating in this extermination mission. It appeared she wanted me to cover for her.

"...Yes! Please take care."

I followed Botan's scheme, bowing and lowering my head respectfully. Then I immediately headed toward Tamaki.

"Miss Tamaki, my apologies. Do you have something you need to discuss?"

"Ah, um... well, I guess I'm intruding?"

Tamaki, confused by my apology, asked with an awkward expression.

"No, not at all. But before that, what is your request or matter that you wanted to discuss?"

I desperately tried to maintain a calm facade and divert the conversation to conceal the situation. But then, at that moment, I finally noticed the anomaly. It all made sense now. The heavy and suffocating atmosphere that had been lingering in the air was not just a mere feeling. There was indeed a thin aura of youkai miasma permeating the area, seeping up from the ground... right beneath our feet.

"Miss Tamaki...!?"

I witnessed numerous vines rising up from the ground, like serpents, attacking Tamaki from behind.

"Huh...?"

Tamaki turned around in response to my shout, but it was too late. Acting on instinct, I swiftly threw my Teguruma, using it as a whip to sweep the thick, tentacle-like vines away. The sharp silver threads of Tsuchigumo extending from the Teguruma sliced through the bundled tentacles, as if cutting through tofu.

...However, countless more vines continued to advance from behind.

"What... is this!? Oh no...!!"

Tamaki hastily unsheathed her sword and began cutting down the approaching vines one by one. But as soon as she severed the third vine, the fourth one coiled around her sword, and the fifth one entangled her wrist, pulling her towards it.

"You think I'll let you...!!"

I swung the spear I had with me. It cleaved through the vine that had wrapped around Tamaki's wrist, and then I swiftly spun around, mowing down the following vines.

'Roarrrr!!'

At the roar, I turned around. I saw countless vines closing in on Botan and the others. Onikuma defended Botan, swiping at the onslaught of vines with its sharp claws. Botan herself fought back by casting curses.

I couldn't provide assistance. So, the second and third waves were already closing in.

'Σ(*ﾟДﾟ*) It's coming, Papa!!'

"What... what the hell is this!?"

I shouted while relentlessly slashing through the onslaught of vines attacking me. It was inconceivable. The youkai surrounding the encampment should have been meticulously exterminated. Surely they would notice if youkai were being released from within the "Mayoiga"!?

"No, this can't be...!?"

It suddenly dawned on me. The fact that the enemy was using vines led me to a conclusion. The "Mayoiga" was a youkai of the plant variety, and the roots of plants often spread far wider than one could imagine from the surface... Oh no, this can't be good...!!

"Aaaah!?"

"Miss!?"

I turned to the scream from behind and saw Tamaki, who had been caught by vines crawling towards her, her legs entangled. I was about to rush to her aid when the ground began to rumble.

'!! (゜ロ゜ノ)ノUwaaah!?'

"Hey, this can't be real!"

The ground erupted as if it had been shattered into pieces. Cracks formed, and then, it burst forth. Countless enormous roots thrashed around like earthworms.

"Servant! You can't afford to be distracted!"

Botan's warning, it was all simultaneous. Just as I was taken by the new threat, vines extended from all sides, capturing my limbs. No, they captured me.

"What the...!?"

I struggled frantically, trying to break free, but it was already too late. As soon as I managed to separate one vine wrapped around my hand, a massive root ensnared my torso.

"Sto... op...!?"

'( ﾟдﾟ)ﾌﾞNoo!!'

Before I could finish my plea, a vine gagged my mouth. Then, a sense of weightlessness engulfed my entire body. My vision abruptly shifted.

In the corner of my eye, I saw it. I witnessed the onslaught of countless vines and roots attacking the camp in the distance. The exorcists and servants fought desperately, but they were overwhelmed. Even the combat personnel, including the exorcists, were restrained by the vines.

"Ugh!?"

A blinding light momentarily filled my vision. A thunderous roar echoed from one corner of the camp. Countless roots disintegrated into ashes before the onslaught of the flames of destruction. In another corner, I glimpsed the figure of the princess, elegantly sweeping away the encroaching vines with a wave of her fan.

"Tomobe...!?"

The princess, with her cherry blossom-colored attire, recognized me from afar, her eyes wide with shock. Using the vines as stepping stones, she bounded towards me, leaping over the approaching onslaught of vines.

"Wai... t...!?"

"...!? Get back!!"

My plea for help barely lasted. The tightening grip of the vines, in addition to the gag, silenced my voice. My lungs were compressed, making it impossible to utter a sound. And the princess's rescue attempt proved futile as well. Countless vines and roots closed in on her, obstructing her path. She swiped at them with her fan, trying to disperse them like dust, but it was futile. There were simply too many to handle. The same applied to the torrent of flames that crashed down with an explosive roar.

"Ugh...!?"

In an instant, my suspended body was violently yanked down to the ground. The roots that had ensnared me, like the tongue of a snake, dragged me back into the gaping crevice that had opened in the ground. Along with the pitiful prey they had captured.

"...!!?"

As the crack in the earth threatened to swallow me, the pitch-black darkness ahead, an impenetrable void, felt like the maw of a monster. And then, and then, and then...

...

...

...

"Ugh...?"

After an unknown amount of time had passed, I became aware of my consciousness resurfacing, accompanied by a pounding headache and a profound sense of fatigue. In a state of disarray, with my thoughts in turmoil and my vision blurred, I instinctively raised my upper body, supporting myself up with the spear. Despite feeling dizzy, I managed to stand up and cautiously surveyed my surroundings.

"What... is this?"

What appeared in my field of vision was an endlessly long corridor divided by sliding doors. The space was strangely bright despite the absence of light. The corridor extended forward and branched off to the left and right, forming a T-shape, with no end in sight.

"The Onitsuki house? No, that's not it. What in the world is this...!?"

I desperately tried to reason through my clouded consciousness, attempting to unravel the enigmatic nature of this space. Then, almost instinctively, I turned to look at the wall behind me and discovered the presence of two rows of text inscribed upon it.

[Welcome, my honored guest, to my splendid home!!]

"...Huh?"

Written on the wall was a messy, blood-like text, as if scribbled by a child. Reading the first sentence, I was momentarily stunned, unable to comprehend. But then, it all came back to me. My knowledge of the original work from my previous life, my recent memories.

And I understood. I realized that I was trapped in the worst possible scenario of a shitty game, an outrageously unfair game of no escape.

[Take your time and enjoy yourself to the fullest! Until your life comes to an end! (゜∀.)]

Almost unconsciously, I read the second sentence. Suddenly, loud music began playing throughout the room. Joyful, delightfully twisted music resounded, filling the air.

"Ugh...!?"

...At that moment, I instinctively turned around and swiftly severed the neck of the Rokurokubi that had been slowly approaching from behind with my spear. Its grinning head bounced off the corridor, rolling away.

That was the signal. The command. The curtain had risen, and the performance had begun.

The sliding doors on both sides of the corridor swung open one after another, and they poured out. Kappa, Jinmenken (human-faced dog), Nakime, Teketeke, Kasa-obake, Kejoro, Ittan-momen—creatures of the bizarre and supernatural, all looking at me.

And they laughed. They sneered. They mocked the pitiful prey, the sacrifice.

I was familiar with this sight. Specifically from the manga adaptation and video sharing sites.

"Wha...!? This isn't a joke about some Kaigai Niki (Overseas brother)!!"

Momentarily overwhelmed, I quickly made a decision. I exerted all my strength and sprinted towards the corridor ahead, where the monsters were absent. Countless footsteps chased after me from behind. I had no time to look back. Even in the fan films of overseas brother, the people who stopped were usually caught up and killed.

"Damn it, this can't be a joke...!!?"

The game of unimaginable cruelty, the spiral labyrinth of eternal damnation, began—a game of life or death.