Chapter 111.2

Chapter 111.2

[Part 2/5] * * *

"Huh? Hmmm... Is this a dream?"

The young Matsushige girl rapidly regained consciousness and began to recall the dream she had just had. And she grimaced. It was a dream that showed her foolish and ignorant self from a time long gone.

But at the same time, she felt a sense of powerlessness. Yes, she wasn't a fool. She knew she had limited time left. There probably wouldn't be any opportunity to seek revenge against that man within that time. No matter how much she seethed with anger, she wasn't someone who didn't understand such a thing. And that's why she felt this overwhelming sense of powerlessness...

"Really, such a foolish story... Wait, huh?"

As she sighed and mocked herself, a sudden realization hit her. She became aware of her current situation.

She was being held. Wrapped in soft fur. That was fine. It was probably a dumb bear she had borrowed from her grandfather. But wait... they were running?

"Huh? Huh? Huh?"

It was only now that she noticed the commotion around her. The screams, the noise, the smell of dampness in the air, the dimly lit surroundings.

"Huh?"

Botan raised her head and looked around. What she saw immediately was a mummy, a dead body wrapped in bandages. The underground passage was dim and narrow, and mummies were rushing through it one after another, running and charging forward.

'Grrroooaaarrrr!!'

Right after that, the mummies were crushed by the sharp claws and fists of the Onikuma. They were pulverized like clumps of earth, sending dust flying as they were easily dispatched. But they didn't stop. The mummies kept coming, one after another, without interruption.

"Uwaaaah!!? Bear-san!! Hurry!! Hurry and advance!!? They're coming from behind too!!?"

"Don't cry and start intercepting them already!!? Ugh, these weaklings are annoying!! How many are there!!?"

Cries that were close to screams echoed from behind the ritual circle. One of them sounded almost on the verge of tears. Similarly, from behind her, the sounds of mummies growling and being sliced or crushed were audible, but... the situation didn't seem to be going well.

"Sigh... Come out, Shunka (Swift Blaze)."

Understanding the dire situation at hand, she pulled out two talismans from her pocket. She drew one of them out, which was the proper way to invoke the curse. It depicted a small, two-tailed cat, the bakeneko, a shape-shifting cat spirit (nekomata). She summoned it.

The whole situation was in chaos. The numerous mummies, in a state of panic, were frightened and scrambling in the presence of the cat, which symbolized both divine punishment and protection in the Dark Continent. Considering the legends of the bakeneko, it was only natural for the half-dead mummies to be terrified and flustered. However, Botan was well aware that this was only a temporary measure to buy some time.

And so, she acted.

"...'Dankai Gekito (Severing Strike).'"

Seizing the opportunity that arose, Botan chanted a curse using another talisman. Immediately, a single strike of high-pressure scalding hot water was unleashed. It swept through the mummies that filled the passage before her, mowing them down and pulverizing them.

"Huff, huff, huff. That's enough. I'm exhausted as well. We'll put off dealing with this matter for now... but don't think it's forgotten, okay?"

Botan realized that further questioning would be pointless and decided to spare her limited energy. She scolded the bear for misunderstanding her intentions but couldn't help feeling relieved by its reaction.

Putting aside the carefree and useless youkai bear, Botan shifted her gaze to Tamaki and the others.

"I won't call you a busybody this time. After all, you saved me. I appreciate it."

"N-no, I should be the one thanking you. I almost fell for the trap. Thank you for saving us."

After coughing, Tamaki replied with gratitude. Matsushige's granddaughter furrowed her brows in annoyance at Tamaki's behavior.

"Hey... I might be intruding, but who are you? You seem acquainted with this naive one, but you act distant. Can you tell us who you are?"

Shishimai was clearly suspicious and confronted Tamaki. Botan turned her gaze from Tamaki to the interrogator.

"...I'm from the same profession. There's no need to provide any further information. If you work in this field, you should know that asking probing questions won't necessarily lead to the answers you want."

Shishimai frowned, seemingly expecting such an answer, and still appeared disgruntled as she clicked her tongue. Meanwhile, Tamaki was sandwiched between the two and feeling flustered.

"Uh, um... can't we all get along?"

"There's no need for that. If she's going to act like that, I'll respond accordingly."

"There's no point wasting time on this farce. Let's move on. Time is limited, especially now when it's as precious as gold. We can't afford to waste it."

Tamaki's attempt to mediate was immediately rejected by both parties. The atmosphere was one of complete refusal. Tamaki's expression twisted uncomfortably.

"Go, Genbu."

'Grrrl...'

Ignoring Tamaki, Botan ordered the bear to move forward. With a pat-pat, the onikuma started to walk. Seeing this, Shishimai pushed Tamaki from behind, urging her to follow. Tamaki had no choice but to comply. And so, amidst the heavy atmosphere, the group advanced through the narrow and dark passage.

"...We've gone quite deep."

After walking through the narrow passage for what seemed like quite some time, Tamaki couldn't bear the silence any longer and murmured. After doing so, she looked around at her companions, feeling uneasy.

But there were no scoldings or insults. The companions behind her shrugged their shoulders, indicating that they didn't care. The companions ahead of her glanced at Tamaki impassively, but that was all. Botan quickly turned her gaze back to the dark depths.

"..."

The stone passage seemed to continue underground. The floor of the passage seemed to gently slope downward. Paintings and patterns began to be engraved on the walls along the way. Hieroglyphs resembling cats, crocodiles, and even characters made of peacock stone and jade were embedded in them.