Chapter 6: Inside the Swamp House
Haa.
In the middle of a filthy swamp that’s a strange mix of green and brown, a woman with messy hair beckons her from a flimsy wooden hut built on a small patch of land.
Even though she beckons her, Houzuki can’t go to the swamp house.
The swamp house is in the center of the swamp, and is surrounded by swamp on all sides. To get to the swamp house, she’ll need to cross the swamp somehow. She can’t accommodate her request.
Houzuki shook her head and said,
“No.”
Peeking out of the window of the swamp house, the woman beckoned towards Houzuki.
“I can’t come to you.”
No matter how hard she tried, it was impossible.
The Swamp House was surrounded by swamps, so there was no way to get there without land. Even a small boat would be fine, but the swamp may not be large enough for a boat to float on.
But even so, the woman from the Swamp House did not stop beckoning to Houzuki.
Haa.
Her husky voice sounded like a crow’s cry. It was a harsh voice.
“What are you planning to do, Houzuki? If you keep acting suggestively, you’ll only incur her wrath.”
A high school boy with silver hair and red eyes – Yuiru Enen – floats gently in the air, peering into Houzuki’s face.
Houzuki understands this too. If she continues to stand there refusing to accept the woman’s invitation, she will eventually incur her wrath.
If she incurs her anger, there is no telling what will happen. She might be drowned in the swamp. Or she might not be able to leave the swamp mansion.
The woman, staring intently at her from the window,
Ahh.
She stopped her seductive gestures and retreated inside the swamp mansion.
Had she given up, or was she planning to bring some kind of tool?
Houzuki continued to stare intently at the swamp mansion, but the woman did not pop her head out of the window. Houzuki did not come even though she invited he to come into the swamp mansion, so she must have given up.
Houzuki, who let out a soft sigh of relief,
“Hey, Houzuki-chan.”
“What is it, Towako?”
Towako tugged on the hem of her dress and pointed to a spot away from the Swamp House.
“The back side of the Swamp House is a little closer to it.”
“So it’s not located right in the middle, is it?”
“And there are some rocks there too. They look like they could serve as footholds.”
Ah, so if she uses those rocks as footholds to cross, she can reach the Swamp House.
Houzuki said “I get it” to Towako and left the place.
Houzuki won’t know what’s inside the Swamp House until she sees it for herself. If Houzuki, who has a tendency to attract ghosts, goes to the Swamp House, she should be able to easily lure the woman there. Then she’ll have to get Yuiru to eat her and that will be the end of it.
She moves around the swamp filled with green and brown sewage,
“I wonder what’s in the Swamp House…”
What awaits in that shack that could easily fly away – Houzuki heads for the Swamp House to find out the truth.
☆
Just as Towako had said, the back of the Swamp House was a little closer to land. It seemed like the Swamp House wasn’t in the middle.
And on the way to the Swamp House, there were a series of convenient rocks that looked like footholds. If she was careful not to fall, it looked like she’d be able to reach the Swamp House.
However, if she fell from the swamp, she’d end up stepping right into the sludge.
“Ugh… something smells a little…”
“Maybe something from the Swamp House has contaminated it.”
Yuiru, floating lightly and carefree in the air,
“Look out, Houzuki. You might fall.”
“Shut up. Don’t talk to me.”
Houzuki climbs over the ropes that surround the swamp, stretches her legs over the edge of the swamp and places them on a rock floating in the swamp. Once she manages to get onto the rock, she realizes that it is smaller than she thought.
She has a feeling that if he’s not careful, she might slip off the rock. If possible, she wants someone to support her.
Houzuki looks at the trusty ghost,
“Towako. Please. Will you hold my hand?”
“Sure, Houzuki. I guess there’s no other way.”
“Houzuki, why didn’t you ask me?”
“You simply can’t be trusted.”
If she left it to Yuiru, he was likely to be pushed away by some accident and not help Houzuki if she fell into the swamp. She absolutely did not want to fall into the swamp.
When Yuiru found out that Houzuki did not trust him, he pouted in a sulky mood and muttered things like “That’s disappointing.” There was absolutely no way she could trust him.
With Towako supporting her, Houzuki stretched her legs out onto the line of rocks and crossed the swamp. At times like these, she was glad that she had the constitution to come into contact with ghosts.
“Houzuki-chan, almost there.”
“Thank you, Towako.”
“I’m so sad that you don’t trust me, it’s just so sad~.”
“You should look back to your previous actions, seriously.”
“I’m usually the epitome of honesty!!”
“So is there anything you would like to say to me right now?”
“I think it will be funny if I push you off.”
“That’s why I can’t trust you. After you’ve eaten the swamp hous ghost, there will be no food for you for a while.”
“WHAT!?”
Leaving Yuiru who was slightly shocked from being forsaken, Houzuki finally reached the grounds of the Swamp Mansion. Thank goodness there was a rocky area.
Seeing the Swamp Mansion up close, it was in such dilapidation that it looked like it might collapse at any moment.
The poorly constructed door had gaps, and the wind blew in, meaning it had no insulation from the cold. It couldn’t even keep out the wind and rain, so was it functional as a home?
Houzuki put her hand on the door to the Swamp Mansion. With a light push, it slid open easily.
Gyiiii~.
Opening the door, the first thing she saw was damaged tatami mats. She peered into the room through the gap in the door, but the woman was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, she saw a doll in a glass box placed in the center of the room.
She was wearing a tattered and faded kimono and had messy black bob hair. Her skin was so pale it gave off an insane feeling, and her cheeks were stained.
“An ichimatsu doll…”
The Ichimatsu doll, treasured by the girl who lived in this house, looked with empty eyes at the visitor, Houzuki.
