Chapter 149 Chapter 149 Oh... so now it's...

Oh... so what's the situation now?

Although the scene before her changed drastically, Higashigo Mimi didn't feel much tension. Of course, it would be impossible for her to remain completely calm and relaxed even in this situation, but rather than tense... "vigilant" would be a more accurate description of her current state.

Miya Higashigo surveyed her surroundings.

Dark purple, terrifying beast claws had appeared behind Higashigo Miya at some point, or more specifically, they floated on either side of her arms. Besides, something dark purple also floated faintly above her head—

It looked like a purplish-black, phantom goat's head.

This was a self-defense tactic Higashigomi had already used after the doll claiming to be Aurora suddenly turned off all the lights in the room. An offensive attack… she didn't do that then. Higashigomi had several reasons for getting involved. One was to confirm whether her own calamity could devour the strange power, but now she realized that was unlikely, just like when she had tried to acquire the abilities of those other ability users in Yokohama.

However, Higashigo Mimi herself still had some hesitation about this matter. The reason she was once considered a "failure" by the ranch was her limited capacity. She now possessed seven very useful calamities, and there was no extra space in her stomach. Although sacrificing one to make room wasn't out of the question…

However, due to the nature of her own calamity, she basically only devours "girls." Although, if we were to force it a little further, "boys" wouldn't be out of the question, but... after officially meeting Aurora today, Miya Higashigo realized that this guy was just using this doll's appearance as a shell. In essence, rather than being distinguished by gender, he was more like pure chaos and malice.

Eating this will definitely give you an upset stomach.

The second purpose was to repay a favor. Tsukino and her friend, who were temporarily unable to attend to the matter, had risked their lives to obtain the spiritual artifact, and now she was returning that favor. This was also so that, if possible in the future, they might continue to cooperate on certain matters… well, that's right, but even so, they probably couldn't be considered friends yet.

As for dealing with that level of bizarre methods, Tsuno Rumiko, as Higashigo Miya's friend, had already handed the arrows over to Tsukino and Chiya. She would let him find the right opportunity to act; she wouldn't get involved, but would do her best to save the three of them.

She didn't want to fight that bizarre being with abilities so strange they were even connected to time and space; she preferred self-preservation and protecting others to taking the initiative. But for now, she couldn't protect others either.

Because the three of them are now clearly separated. She doesn't know what the other two are doing... To be honest, Higashigo Mimi isn't too worried about them. She knows Tsukino and Chiya's abilities very well. As for Ohma Kokichi... they haven't gotten to know him well enough for Higashigo Mimi to care about him much, and based on their interactions over the past few days, she can tell that as a "Ultimate High School Level" user, he's not the kind of person who's easy to kill.

"Ah... that's what that brat said, right?" Suddenly, a deep, adult male voice appeared, "What was that... fake world again?"

In fact, the owner of this voice has always been there, but Tsukino, Chiya, and Ohma Kokichi could not hear it speak.

It was once a human who appeared as a sheep doll, so we can refer to it as "Sheep." The sheep and Higashigo Mimi both came from the Salvation Ranch. They met before the ranch was destroyed, and then various things happened... Anyway, although unwillingly, Higashigo Mimi unexpectedly formed a contract with it.

In short, the owner of the voice is a "demon" who has made a contract with Tougo Miya.

Rumor has it that the "demon" is an existence invisible to others due to the excessive purification of its demonic nature and the depth of its contract. Because of its overwhelming negativity towards "existence," it transformed from a non-human being into a non-existent being. (*)

...It sounds a bit complicated. Anyway, there's a voice in Higashigo Mimi's head that she can communicate with, which keeps her from getting too bored.

“So,” Higashigomi Miya said, “it wasn’t a dream.”

“Obviously,” the sheep said.

The sheep's misfortune is related to dreams. Once, when Higashigo Mimi was chasing after a calamity messenger to enroll in a certain high school, the sheep wanted Higashigo Mimi to "eat" it for various reasons, but Higashigo Mimi refused.

However, because of the contract between them, even though the calamity that devoured the sheep did not occur, Miya Higashigo can still use a portion of the sheep's dream-related power.

“This place looks familiar,” the sheep continued. “Isn’t this the shrine we just saw? We were just moved from inside to outside.”

Indeed, judging from the surrounding situation, Higashigo Miya is still inside the shrine... The huge torii gate not far away is enough to prove this.

The thick fog had long since dissipated, and the outside was no longer pitch black. The sky was azure, and sunlight streamed in, making the entire shrine appear peaceful and serene.

The peeling red paint on the torii gate, the weeds covering the ground, the stone lanterns shattered on the ground... all of these have disappeared.

Compared to what I had seen before, the shrine now looked completely new.

"Looks like the shrine wasn't abandoned after all," the sheep said. "What's going on? Didn't we just see the strange scene of them seducing innocent girls? Are they going to do it again? By the way, you're in pretty dangerous shape right now... I think you're in more danger than those two."

To be honest, in this uncertain environment, any rash action or word could be under Aurora's surveillance. However, there's less to worry about when talking to the demon in one's mind... Even powerful puppet monsters aren't within the range of hearing demons.

So the sheep spoke without any pretense or hesitation: "Judging from what that doll said, it's clearly more interested in the players it personally selected, and it's the type that likes to save the best for last, so you..."

Miya Higashigo understood what the sheep wanted to say. She snorted softly, "I know. But... after seeing it with my own eyes, I'm certain. That guy is indeed strong, but not invincible. That kind of power related to space and time looks intimidating, but it also has many limitations, otherwise our situation wouldn't be so simple now... Anyway, as long as I survive, that's enough. Let Tsukino worry about the rest."

With the other two not around, she has done all she could. Now, her main concern is to save her own life and wait for Tsukino to make good use of that arrow.

She didn't think Tsukino and Chiya would fail, as for what would happen if that strange doll came looking for them...

Anyway, Higashigo Miya has always been good at escaping and surviving.

*******

They broke up again.

Since officially becoming involved in a series of supernatural events related to the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, this isn't the first time I've been separated from Ohma... well, from my companions.

So, is it the same again this time?

Tsukino and Chiya looked around at their surroundings.

It looks like... a classroom.

Wang Ma said not long ago that playing the same trick too often gets boring. But... even so, it's actually not the same person playing the same trick... uh, weird?

The week I spent living in the fake world, and the scene I saw at the shrine after exiting the elevator, were actually the work of that red-haired, unknown doll.

The red-haired doll was devoured by Aurora, but it left a power in its bow hairpin. Aurora left that hairpin in a secret passage in the old school building, and that power was triggered when Tsukino, Chiya, and the other two entered.

An unknown red-haired doll showed them a part of the past in this way, attempting to provide clues, but it was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Aurora.

The current situation was created by Aurora.

Tsukino and Chiya reached for their backpacks.

This time... nothing was missing from the bag. However, even with arrows, killing Aurora wouldn't be so simple... He needed to do what Yashiki Kazuo did in the past, finding a spot where he could "kill her with a single blow."

And now...

Tsukino and Chiya's thoughts were interrupted.

He looked at the cabinet that had been abruptly placed in the classroom; just moments before, there had been a sound coming from there.

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Author's Note: (*) This refers to the description of demons in DMLC. The sheep character originates from DMLC and the mystery of the werewolf village. Her true identity is a character related to Fushimi Yomei in the werewolf village mystery, and she is currently suffering from amnesia in DMLC for various reasons. Don't worry if you don't recognize her... *cough* There's not much plot in this story x