Chapter 4 “Who is he?”
“–I won’t let you!!”
Shaking off Yuiru’s hand, Houzuki glared at the silver-haired, red-eyed male student――Yuiru Enen.
“Towako is my best friend! I won’t let her become food to an evil spirit like you!”
“I see, I see.”
Yuiru curiously tilts his head and points behind Houzuki.
“Are you seriously going to claim that as your best friend? Then your eyes must be quite rotten.”
“Th, that’s right! After all, Towako is my――”
Houzuki, who was protecting her best friend from behind, couldn’t discern the true identity of the person Yuiru was pointing at.
There was a sound as if something was being dragged—an unpleasant, dragging noise.
Haa.
A warm breath touched Houzuki’s ear. Houzuki held her breath. Then, she harbored a question.
―― Is the person behind really her best friend, Aoyagi Towako?
“I’m so happy, Houzuki-chan”
Cold arms wrapped around Houzuki’s body.
It wasn’t just one or two; it was beyond that. Three, four, five, six, seven—no, an uncountable number of arms clung to Houzuki.
Each arm restraining Houzuki displayed a horrific scene, with torn-off nails and blackened skin.
As if determined not to let go, the arms grabbed onto her arms, stomach, and legs. In the end, countless fingertips touched Houzuki’s face.
They pulled her cheeks, inserted fingers into her mouth, extended fingers to cover her field of vision, and forcefully tilted her chin upward.
“A, ah……”
In front of him were countless eyeballs.
From a massive fleshy mass, numerous arms protruded. Stepping on cracked concrete were human legs attached as abundantly as the arms.
An unbearable and grotesque monster firmly restrained Houzuki with its arms, clearly intent on swallowing her whole.
Gyori.
The eyeballs embedded in the fleshy mass looked down on Houzuki, whose face had paled.
“I’m so happy, Houzuki-chan.”
“Now we’ll be together forever.”
“I love you”
“We’re best friends.”
“It won’t hurt.”
“Come on, come on.”
“――――Come in here.”
The swarm of arms gripping Houzuki pulled with all their might.
If it had been just one or two arms, Houzuki might have been able to resist.
However, when an uncountable number of arms seized her body, any resistance became futile.
Due to the fingers forcibly thrust into her mouth, all Houzuki could manage were muffled screams. She couldn’t even properly call for help.
“Hahp――――” (TN: Help)
She reaches out to the silver-haired, red-eyed male student.
She understood in her head that it was convenient.
Despite hurling insults and vehemently declaring, “I won’t let my best friend be eaten,” she found herself shamefully seeking help at the very end.
Even though she had resigned herself to the idea that she might be abandoned here.
“Very well.”
Pulling back Houzuki’s extended arm, Yuiru thrust a silver knife he had produced from somewhere into one of the arms attached to the monstrous entity.
The silver blade easily pierced the arm, and instead of fresh blood, a black mist scattered from the wound.
Overwhelmed by the intense pain, the arms simultaneously released Houzuki. The countless eyeballs embedded in that grotesque monster welled up with tears, and a piercing scream echoed in the purple-hued sky like the tearing of silk.
“Igyaaaaaaaah” (TN: a shriek)
“How mean, Houzuki-chan.”
“Who is that person?”
“What’s he to Houzuki-chan?”
“It hurts, it hurtsssssss”
Despite having just one arm pierced, the monster writhed and suffered in pain.
Yuiru licked the monster’s flesh that clung to the silver utensil, taking a taste test.
Chewing on pieces of flesh smaller than grains of rice, he swallowed them. Then, he widened his red eyes and exclaimed.
“Yummyy!!”
“That tastes good!?”
“Yeah, it’s the best. Amongst the ghosts and evil spirits I’ve eaten, it’s by far the most delicious.”
Yuiru speaks with an ecstatic expression,
“I see, I see. The souls of the various people who died at this intersection have mixed and melded together, resulting in this depth of flavor. You could say it’s been aged, but this is a wonderful dish.”
Yuiru, gripping the silver knife in a reverse grip, approached the monstrous entity. The spirit-eating spirit, eager to savor the matured flesh, closed in on the grotesque monster.
The terror of this spirit was beyond what Houzuki, being human, could comprehend. It seemed there was nothing more to do but be devoured quietly. Houzuki was powerless to do anything in this situation.
“Houzuki-chan”
Several of the horrifying monster’s eyes turned towards Houzuki.
“Help me.”
“Help me.”
“Help me, please.”
“Help me.”
“Aren’t we friends?”
“You’re my best friend, right?”
“Houzuki-chan”
“Please.”
Looking up at the pleading monster, Houzuki shook her head.
“My best friend is only Aoyagi Towako.”
That creature was not her best friend.
“It’s not you.”
Even if Aoyagi Towako was there, it would be meaningless if she got mixed up with them.
“I can’t save you.”
She only wanted to save Towako.
“…I’m sorry.”
As she softly uttered words of apology, another scream erupted from the monster.
Upon closer inspection, Yuiru was already in the process of consuming one of its arms.
He slurped the black mist leaking profusely from the cross-section, stuffing the thrashing arm into his mouth. With a broad smile, the silver-haired, red-eyed male student spoke.
“Aah, how yummy. I didn’t expect it to be this delicious.”
The frightened monster steps back, flapping its feet.
Peta, peta. 1
Petapetapetapeta.
Petapetapetapeta.
Peta, peta, peta.
Despite the monster’s attempts to distance itself from Yuiru, a spirit that feeds on other spirits would never let go of such a premium meal.
Closing the distance with the monster in large strides, Yuiru aligned both hands as if making a greeting.
It was the signal that his feast was about to begin.
“I-ta-da-ki-ma-su.”
TN:
1- to flop down on the floor dabbing;
-light footsteps (specifically the sound of the back end of slippers slapping against the heel/sole of the foot);
-the sound of something making firm contact with a flat surface.
