Steward Of Paradise At Work

by Tall-Gothic-Guy

I didn't come here to meet shrine maidens or monsters. I didn't come here to erect a cross. No one even told me about magic being a thing here. Actually, I didn't expect myself to be here at all. I was simply chasing a woman who created eye portals. But it beats being a runaway thief. I just wish I knew sooner, that this place will never give me a break, not even God...Bring it on.

33. Open Barrel of Gunpowder

Blink….blink….blink…..Bing!

There we go! Looks like Reimu's awake, judging by the no-longer blinking Holy Orb floating close to my head, shining like a lamp that's not blinding me like always. Just in time for breakfast to be ready too.

I brushed my hand on the wispy surface of the Holy Orb, feeling a bit of dispersible cotton (if that's even a thing), [Thank You.]

Walking over to the table and placing down the fried meat and scrambled eggs+fried eggs dish to the table I had ready, I then go back to my cooler. Reimu doesn't mind cold water in the morning, does she?

Let's see here….ah, good. I didn't forget to refill the bottles. Let's take this one out and bring it to the table as well….

"Good morning, Eman." Came a groggy greeting from the nearest guest room.

{Maayong buntag, Reimu.} I greeted back, not looking up as I fill up a mug of water for her. Then I push it a bit closer to her as she neared the table. "It's cold water, just so you know."

"Mm." She picked up the mug and brought it up to her lips immediately, audibly gulping and drinking the entire thing instantly while some of the contents dripped out down her chin and towards the cloth on her chest. She held out the mug towards me, "More."

Here you go.

And while you down the swig, I'll pull out the wooden comb in my pocket to you once you finish. "Fix your hair. That Lunarian shampoo have done wonders in keeping it silky and smooth despite your sleep but at the moment, it's a mess."

And it still looks great despite being a mess. She looks great too, especially when she doesn't have her trademark red bow and sleeves on. I don't know why but seeing skin that aren't usually seen for most of the day, even if they're just her arms, just turns me on a little. She nearly matches Kaguya's beauty. Not that she ever came close, of course. That Princess is out of this world. But if Reimu fixes up her appearance, then yeah, she's gonna look good enough for me to fall in love and take her out on a date during prom.

"I was so thirsty when I woke up…" She grumbled, her silky hair now becoming a little distracting when she's combing it, especially with all the bouncy and shiny strands going all about. "….what'd we do last night?"

"Well…." That made a blush come to my cheeks. I hope she doesn't see it from the dim of this building. I still haven't opened the windows yet. "….can you still remember our time under the Misty Lake?"

"Mmhmm."

Well, that makes things easy, "When night arrived, you suggested we conclude with drinks." I took a seat, she did too. "We came across a Youkai named Mystia Lorelei that's managing a lamprey stand and took it there. She makes impressive grilled lamprey, by the way."

Super tasty, I have to admit. I, legit, ordered like 10 sticks. It's like the red barbecue I buy and eat back in the Philippines. Lotsa people stand outside the house to sell 'em (even if there's another one not too far away), the smoke of the grill filling the air and attracting passing-by folks.

"Ah yeah, they are." Reimu here thinks so too. She kinda swiped much of my share though, "Did I end up drinking too much? Is that why I can't remember?"

"Indeed you have." And you were overbearingly annoying. "You have quite the tolerance but with the number of bottles you downed, I didn't expect it to last."

Not with the way I influenced the alcohol content of those things after you pretty much lost it, just so I could get you to stop.

"Really?" Her course tone had a bit of disbelief in it, her combing stopping to a halt. She held her head, grouching, "I thought I wasn't really planning to get drunk. How come I don't have a hangover?"

"You're forgetting that you made it my job to make sure that doesn't happen." Lemme just pour myself a bit of water while you try to remember when did you made it my obligation, "The aftereffects include dehydration and dizziness, maybe with nausea."

"No nausea." She informed. "So what? Did I pass out and you carried me all the way here to your house?"

Only the last one's correct, girl. Lemme just drink some of my water here. Okay, "You didn't actually pass out. But you were too inebriated to stand on your own. So, I am forced to carry you on my back all the way to my house instead of your Shrine, considering how bloody far it is. Your drunken blathering and nagging made the trip a nightmare."

We were even shouting at one another, you know. I swear we were getting close to throwing Spell Cards at each other there, and I would not have felt the slightest bit guilty if it ever happened.

"Oh." She mumbled, half-embarrassed and half-annoyed. "Well, thanks for lending me your bed and putting up with me the whole way." She told me genuinely, giving back my comb. I took it and put it in my pockets. I look up to her face and I put on a smile, nodding approvingly. "What?" She questioned my stare.

"You look nice, even more without the bow." Forget the lunarian shampoo. I'd still think you'd look great without it.

Despite the dim lighting, I was still able to see her redden quite a lot. She looked away, "Y-you're exaggerating….that's just the shampoo from Eintei. Uh, hey, isn't it a little too dark in here?"

Cute.

"Allow me." But before I open the windows, lemme just pour some rice on your plate.

"You don't have to spoil me, you know." She told humbly, still reeling from the compliment.

"Pardon me. It's a bad habit inside my house." Happens all the time, especially when Remilia comes by. It's part of my Pinoy blood. "Go on and eat ahead."

"Okay."

Now let's get the lights and fresh air in. I'll open the door too. Need some more lighting to reflect from the shiny wooden floors. As I pull it open, the machete hanging behind it clattering for a moment, I step outside and took in some morning breeze.

Damn, that felt good.

Today is Sunday, though. And the schedule's packed as shit. Aside from praying on everybody's behalf thanks to the bountiful harvest and all, I'm supposed to meet Boss' wife today and give her the sash. After that, I'll have to hunt down Bunta's former friends and torture them into fearing me.

3 simple things that's going to take a while each.

Praying's going to take a couple hours but I want the rest done under a single day.

Giving Hina the sash would have been quick, if I didn't have to potentially meet the Moriya Gods doing so. Taking the Cable Car is fast compared to just going to Youkai Mountain on foot, but the line ends directly at their shrine.

I don't wanna meet those goddesses, including Sanae.

I have nothing against Sanae but the sooner she meets me, things are bound to go to hell.

Hunting down the idiots that ignored Bunta is simpler compared to the last one. I just have to lure them straight to me, and decimate them one by one in a closed-circle. I learned the concept of Non-Euclidean Geometry from my NDE and I want to see if I can alter Reality for a bit.

But visiting the Moriya's have long-term consequences. I dread them completely. Even now, I'm getting nervous.

"Eman?"

Oh shit. I forgot. There's still breakfast. [Sorry.] I quickly turned around and hurried back to the table, taming my body language and facial expressions. What the? [Oh?] There's already rice on my plate. I don't remember putting them there.

"Right back at you." Oh, that was you? "Filled your water too."

Now I'm smiling like a goof, [Thank you, Reimu.] She treats it like nothing but she has no idea how much she really made me happy just by this.

As we ate, we discussed several things. She went for the important one first, particularly my power over Miracles and its limits. After yesterday where I simply manipulated the lake and its movements with the Holy Spirit's power, I guess I should have seen this one coming. I openly let her know that it can do literally anything, but my limited imagination hampers it down.

She's surprisingly calm about it, but she did let me know that I must be careful with it. She trusts me enough that she can't see me doing bad things with the same power (and I'll never will) but other people will take advantage of me just to use the Holy Spirit for their own ends.

I'm already aware of that advice but hearing it from her, somebody who would know so much about dealing with this, now the weight of the warning feels a lot heavier on my head.

Admittedly, the pressure ended up being too much for me. It's genuinely causing me to freak out the more I think about it.

So I told her about where all the Bountiful Harvest and the Overgrowth came from as well as the circumstances behind its occurrence, particularly the Wolf Hunt.

She wasn't concerned. All it did was just give the Village lots of yield and made the market cheap, allowing Reimu to buy some for herself without trouble. 'What's so bad about it?' she asked me.

I only said the name: "Moriya Shrine." If it wasn't for them, I would have lived on happily and would gladly repeat this occurrence 4 times per year if I wanted to.

For a few seconds, she was stone-faced. Afterwards, she simply said, "Oh." Cue a Reimu facepalm.

Yep, she figured out my predicament just from that.

I followed up with the information I gathered from Boss, saying that they were now hoarding all the credit, saying they were the ones who brought all these blessings. Other Harvest Gods were benefiting from it as well.

It's one thing to earn something you didn't work for, I had my moments of it, but to exploit it—ugh….

…..I honestly hate them now. I actually do. At first, it was just a petty and maybe-justified prejudice, considering the things they indirectly caused for the sake of Faith. The sooner I see them, I would act politely and courteously, hoping I can get over what bad things I've known of them from my NDE and eventually gain a professional and polite relationship together.

But now…..

…..Now, they made it go far into deep-seated territory. They won't get me acting polite or kind to them the sooner I met them. They will know how much I hate them the sooner we meet. I'm aware that faith is like money to Gods, and they want it just like everybody else, but Kanako….

….….

….….….….

….….….….….….….….

…..or am I just being unfair? Other gods could be doing this too. Not just them. Lots of harvest gods exist, some are a lot more degenerate than the Moriya Pantheon but…..is my anger too petty? Too much? Am I just overreacting or something?

Sigh. I'm fucking tired. And I didn't even leave the fucking house yet.

"Hey, Eman?"

[Hm?]

"Can you help me with something next weekend? I just suddenly have a great idea all planned out, because if we use your powers—OW!"

I just contemplated about people's exploitation on the Holy Spirit's Power. I am not gonna give mercy if you even think about it yourself, Reimu!

"I hoped you would be better and mature than this but it seems I was mistaken." Allow me to pause and rear back this fist I just bonked on your head, primed and ready again in case you insinuate something again, "The Holy Spirit's power is for the benefit of everyone, not just for yourself. If you intend to gain profit from Her, you can forget it."

Still rubbing her forehead, she glared at me along with a sneer, "You didn't have hit me….!"

I kept my eye on her, pouring her glass some more water without looking away before I push the mug to her direction again. Only then did I face downwards and open my palm, letting orbs of Holy Energy float above it. "I will help your Shrine gain popularity in my own way. How you plan to do the same is up to you. Do not get me or the Holy Spirit involved unless it's completely selfless and altruistic."

"Are you to talk?"

Sharp question…..but not really. "I am highly aware that I could accomplish anything with the Holy Spirit's power, but to be frank with you, I'd rather fall on the ground, be humiliated, and go through so much agony just so I cannot be separated from my humanity. I will use the Holy Spirit to help anyone and you—that is a fact—but I will not include myself on that regard."

Her black eyes suddenly morphed, the impression shifting from confrontational to mature, her aura shifting immediately. Suddenly, I'm not seeing the opportunistic and greedy Shrine Maiden anymore.

"It's fine if you have principles, Eman, but they aren't a good enough reason for you to suffer. Value yourself more. Lots of people are going to be emotional if something happens to you. Me included. I don't have to mention that Flandre's one of them, do I?"

There she is. This is the one. This is the woman I fell in love with.

"I do know how valued I am, Reimu." I knew from my NDE, but Sakuya was the one to cement it to my physical brain. I'm still taking it seriously today. "That's why I have been doing what I can to maintain my safety for the past few days."

"Why you attacked that wolf Youkai pack and sealed their pup? Why you said you'll make a reputation that's enough for normal Youkai to back off of you?"

I nodded. They weren't the first phase of my plans, however. They were just the first steps. "I have a Hermit's blood. And Youkai are attracted to it. The moment they see me without my guard up, they will immediately assume I'm just some Outsider they can easily kill and eat. I'm making the effort to make them stop."

She only blinked, listening carefully to everything. "What's your next plan?"

"Today, I am heading to Youkai Mountain using the Cable Car, and then seek out the ones who are currently hunting me." My words literally has two meanings, and I even did it unintentionally. Seems I'm even capable of surprising myself.

"You need me to come with? I think it'll leave a bigger impression."

I agree. They see me with the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, everyone will immediately get the idea that I am not to be trifled with. I'm under her protection. You hurt me, you will earn her wrath.

Unfortunately…..

I pursed my lips, the crease on my forehead forming, "I'd love to have you join me, I truly would…but…."

Understanding crossed her eyes, but the firmness in her gaze is still there, "….is it something you have to do alone?"

"Unfortunately." I replied bitterly. "But I am not concerned about the Youkai. Not at all. It's something else entirely."

"Which is?"

My fist clenched on the table, beginning to sneer that I nearly didn't notice it myself. "The goddesses of Moriya. They will know it's me who caused the Overgrowth. If they have the gall to put their name atop the Miracle the Holy Spirit created and claim it as their own, what would their intentions be if the cause of that Miracle is suddenly right nearby?"

And you also told me about watching out for other people who would take advantage of me for it too, Reimu.

Reimu let out a deep sigh, frowning and curling her fingers on the table. "I won't doubt your worries. I mean, you heard it from me, Kanako's caused a lot of trouble before. Suwako—who the hell knows how that little goddess thinks but Sanae…she's safer. Give her a chance. She's the only one there with a head…if she's not pushing her Shrine's agenda, that is. But still, she's reasonable and she can help you get away from those two."

I understand your faith in her, Reimu. I also think she's the only one I could trust from the Moriya Shrine, but her two 'moms' still hide their agendas from her. In some cases, she's just a valuable cog in their machines. I'm not going to be surprised the sooner they have an agenda regarding me and they told her absolutely nothing about it.

"Still…." Oh, Reimu wasn't done talking, "….my intuition tells me that's not going to help you in the long run. I should have somebody come with you, at least."

That did already cross my mind. That's why I have Bunta and Wriggle to come along, but I doubt they could do anything against those two goddesses.

But I can trust Reimu to send in somebody that can. An extra person could do some good. "I would appreciate it."

"You sure you don't want me coming along?" She asked, just to settle the deal.

I smiled, standing up from my chair, going around the table and wrapping my arms around her neck, basically hugging my crush from behind. Boy, am I so fucking delighted to be doing this. "Oh, Reimu, if it weren't for the current agenda, I would be the one to ask you to come. You have no idea how much I truly wish you would come with me. Woe is me~!" I drawled that one, gently shaking her side to side.

"Stop it, you! You're making it too much of a big deal!" She giggled, slapping my forearms and trying to pull them off her neck.

I chuckled as well before I release her and pat both her shoulders, "Maybe in a later date, I can definitely ask for your help." I then lean forward, looking so far downwards I'm staring at Reimu's face upside-down, my pixie-length hair hanging down, "But that's under the assumption of your lazy butt being willing to do so instead of having me take care of your chores every time you see me."

She smacked a hand on my face. Ow. That was on the nose. "Idiot. Shut up." And she promptly threw me back upright. While I'm still trying to regain my balance, she stood up and took her plate as well as mine, "I'll wash the plates. How's that for a lazy butt?"

I raised an eyebrow, crossing my arms, "Quite minimal compared to everything I do for you, I might say."

"I placed rice on your plate, you ingrate."

"I paid for your breakfast yesterday, you leech."

"Your house is protected because of me!"

"Your donation box steadily gets heavy because of me."

"I'm the one who can protect you better than anyone!"

"I'm the one who can do you better than anyone!"

Wait, that sounded a little dirty.

Reimu's even getting bug-eyed because of it.

….

….the bug-eyed look on her face…!

Pppfft…..the look on her face…..!

[Phhhahahahahahahhaahahaaa!]

"Hahahahahahahahahahaahahaha!"

And we continue as usual. I wipe the table and put the leftovers under the cover of a basket while she washes up the plates. While she's at it, I'm gonna ready her sleeves and bow as well as hair tubes on the living room table. Had them cleaned up beforehand.

Afterwards, I just lie down on the wooden couch, looking at videos on my phone.

Fully charged as always, provided by nothing but pure energy that the Holy Spirit provided. Goes for the free Wi-Fi too. Super-fast, by the way. The range is as far as the forest my house is found in.

I kept my promise, of course. All this proximity charging and internet from the Holy Spirit can supply other people's appliances and give them Wee-Fee if they ever came near my property. I bet Sumireko would feel right at home here if I invite her over.

I wonder…..should I get a TV from Kourindou?

…..nah…I grew tired of regular TV shows. What happens in the Outside World doesn't matter to me anymore.

But I do want to watch some new movies. Some series too. Man, I wanna watch Supernatural or The Walking Dead from the first Season again. Should I make a 100-inch flatscreen HDTV with the Holy Spirit's power and start a movie marathon? Have some people come over to watch it with me, snacks and all?

It's not a bad idea. It's exciting too.

It'd be a bitch to manage, however, as I'd have to introduce to people the concept of Te-le-vi-sion. Not only that, but the people I'll invite would end up inviting more than I anticipated. It'd be a fucking mess.

But that is the point of a Theater, yeah? The excitement is what counts.

There are bad implications, however…..

..….if the viewers think the movie they watched actually happened in real life, their collective belief could cause it to actually happen, creating a catastrophe in both Gensokyo and/or Outside World. It'd be chaos.

I'm gonna have to carefully think it over before I make the final decision.

But I can share it to the Scarlet Devil Family, of course. Might as well include Marisa as well. Don't want her causing trouble in the Mansion while we're too distracted with the movie.

Here comes Reimu, finished with her dishwashing and coming over to put her accessories and sleeves back on.

…..

…..…..

…..…..…..…..huh. That was quite easier than I thought, putting on the hair tubes, I mean.

"Move. I'm sitting." She slapped my shins as she approached me, holding a pillow that was from the other wooden couch.

I complied wordlessly, bending my legs close and she placed the pillow on the open space before sitting down on it.

Then she leaned her back against my lower legs while her own are hung over the armrest, her head resting atop both my knees.

….um…..okay….?

I admit I'm delighted that she's being this close to me but why didn't she take the other wooden couch? Isn't she cramped there or something?

"Comfy?" I asked, just to investigate.

"Kinda." She replied softly and groggily. "Being this full and healthy since only gods knows how long, I feel like not even the shittiest seat could bother me anymore. It feels great, actually."

[Uh huuuuuh…..right.] I get it. She's on the verge of a mini food coma. Any kind of position you can sleep in can make you droop.

But I still wonder why you picked the Eman Knee Pillow instead of the couch.

She stretched her arms up, audibly yawning before lowering them down to exhale. "This place of yours….it's actually cool and chilly despite the season."

Thanks. That's all to the crawlspace in the ceiling as well as the vast amounts of plant life around the building providing lots of fresh and cool air. "Your Shrine has a pleasant breeze too due to the higher elevation."

"Nah." She shook her head, shaking my legs too. "Not in this season. Feels like the wind gods just decided to abandon me for no reason."

[Hm.] Or you could just be avoiding the inevitable work of shearing the overgrowth all over your shrine….

…..which I am responsible for. Shit.

"I think I just might start coming here if I wanna cool down or get some breakfast."

"Don't you even dare, Reimu."

She snickered. "I'm just kidding, you dumbass. I'm not Marisa. I'm not gonna mooch off you."

"Thank you." You get pat-pats on the head for that. Here you go. I'll play with your ponytail too.

"Hm." She hummed over my hair-fiddling. "Though….maybe time to time, I will."

"Fair enough." So long as it's not everyday, that's acceptable. "When will you leave?"

"How 'bout you?" Oh, she turned it back to me, "When're you gonna go to Youkai Mountain?"

Hold on, lemme check the time on my phone. "Today is…..7:48. At 8, I will head first to the Place of Worship, then proceed to Youkai Mountain once I conclude my prayers."

"I'll go at 8 as well." She yawned again, wiggling a bit to get a little more comfortable. "Gonna sleep for a bit. Wake me up when it's time, alright?"

[Sure. Good night.] Okay, unpause the video and continue.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

"You're not going already?" She asked, looking at me while she's afloat a few inches from the ground.

I shook my head. "I will need a bath first. And maybe sort out some of the mess around."

She looked at the right side of my yard, loaded with piles of punched wood that could pretty much overpower the height of my house, all thanks to Bunta's handiwork. Something she has no idea about yet. "Right." She turned to look at me, "I guess I'll see you later."

I nodded. [Yep. I'll see ya in a bit.]

….…..

…..…..…..

….…..…..…..…..…..…..…..

Is she gonna leave or what? She's still there staring at me.

I tilted my head in question, smiling wryly. "Is something the matter, Reimu?"

Me talking got her jolted out of that weird trance that caught her, flinching and instantly blushing, looking away from me.

Okay, now I'm having questions. Does she want something? Is there something she wanna say to me before she go?

Then she made a grouchy face, glaring at the grass beside her. "Grrrghh."

Okay, what the hell? That freaked me out. It was a small growl but geez! That actually freaked me out.

Now she's floating close to me, and it took much of me not to take a step back, wondering what's gonna happen. She's even pointing the grouch at me.

[What?]

She closed her eyes, appearing to be concentrating. Then she took a long deep breath, and let it out slowly. Once she opened her eyes—

HRGK!

….she hugged me. Around my neck. Tightly.

It was rigid for a few seconds. Then slowly, I could feel the warmth setting in and her embrace became a lot softer and more genuine. I was going to question what's going on but I decided not to. This moment is too precious for me to break with trivialities.

I gently wrapped my arms around her waist, returning the affections and warmth she gave me as much as I could, making the embrace tighten up alongside her.

10 seconds passed, and I began to question just what kind of face was she making now. As she continued to hold me, adjusting her arms and tightening back each time, I have my one hand pat her back just for the sake of it.

When I think a whole minute have passed, she finally parted but she still didn't let me go. Me included. Her hands held my shoulders, mine to her waist. Since she's floating, we were pretty much at eye level with each other, up close and personal.

If I wasn't aware that I was blushing a minute ago, I am now. She already was, and her features were unreadable. Her hesitation and shyness added by her silky hair, she looked really kissable right now, not gonna lie.

Then she spoke, "Did I….Did I do anything embarrassing last night? When y-you carried me?"

I gulped, my cheeks now heating up from the memory. "You…you kissed my cheek as a form of thanks for everything I've ever done for you since we've met, saying that I made your life a bit livelier and showed you things you never knew existed."

I won't say that you would have got me in the lips if it weren't for the fact that your fucking breath smelled like that piss of an alcohol you've been drinking that I immediately looked away the sooner I had the slightest whiff of it.

After hearing me, her blush got a lot darker and her features became grouchy again, one hand crumpling the fabric on my shoulder while the other reached up to knead her forehead and hide her face. I smiled lightly, one hand gently patting her waist comfortingly. "I won't mention it again if you want me to."

She shook her head, hand still on her face. 'It's not that', you're saying?

Then what?

She sighed again, removing her hand from her face and putting it back on my shoulder. She still said nothing, only staring at me, the blush on her cheeks still remaining while her lips quivered.

Eventually, after a few seconds, her lips parted and she leaned to—

…..

….…..…..

…..…..…..…..oh…

Parting with a pop, the heavenly soft sensation leaving my cheek, she hugged me one more time, her voice speaking softly to my ear. "Thank you for yesterday. For the food. For your help. For your company. For the money you put in my box. For all that you did for the last few weeks. For…for everything, really. Th-thank you for all that. Compared to everyone else I've met, no one has ever gone that far just for me. When you came around, everything's not the same anymore. It feels like the things I'm used to were beginning to change. And I don't hate it." She tightened her embrace, and her following words barely reached me. "Thank you."

…..…..

…..…..…..…..

….…..…..…..…..…..…..…..

Warmth. That's all I'm feeling in my chest. Immense warmth. She had said almost the same context of gratitude to me last night, but she was drunk that time. It didn't mean anything significant. But now, in her sober and honest self that apparently struggled initially just to express them, it cleanly struck home on where it should land on my heart.

This is what mattered most for all the good and self-hatred I've done: genuine Appreciation. There are some things in life that cannot be compared to everything else, and this is one of them. I loved it. I would do anything just to feel this fulfillment, even if a little.

To hear all this gratitude from her, especially when I have been nurturing my heart to love her ever since my NDE, is just something I cannot express in words alone. I don't have to try and find my reasons to love her for who she is anymore. This is enough.

I embraced her, tightly, trying my hardest not to cry. I reveled in her sincerity and affections, her heartbeats and her touch. All she is giving me, I greedily took them all, burning it all to my memory and hoping to never forget it until it becomes overwritten by something much more significant. "You're welcome, Reimu."

In time, we were finally able to let go of each other and finally part our holding hands. Once we did, she didn't waste time in going on her way, quite frantically too.

Once I was left by myself, I just collapsed on the curb of my front door, holding my throbbing chest as I leaned back on the doorframe.

The first time I've hugged a girl when I was 13, when graduation was going to happen the next day, it was the most bizarre thing that ever happened to me. I got lady-friends before, and I never went far beyond high-fives and arms-around-shoulders. But when the person I had an initial crush on embraced me for real…it was unbelievable. My body moved on to hug her back while my mind was too blank to process it quickly. Though it lasted for only 2 seconds, the feel of her body and her arms around me still lingered.

For the next hour, I was literally stuck with the feeling of that embrace on my body. Whatever body part I move, it keeps going back to the sensation of that embrace. So I just sat down and just….blanked out, ignoring everything around me while my mind is still trying to properly rearrange.

She already had a boyfriend. It did hurt my heart but I didn't have hope for the possibility of me being with her, considering I didn't have much self-esteem before. But that embrace was the catalyst of my maturity. It gave me closure, and cleared my eyes.

For the next few years after that, I avoided boy-girl relationships that are built for the sake of it, knowing it will never last. Quite common for people in my high school age at the time, which I didn't understand. I ended up being a boy who had girls seeking genuine relationships with me instead of the other way around.

In this instance, Reimu's hug should have been nothing by now, considering I have made love to girls before (excluding sex, of course). But now….it's happening again. And it's much more intense, all because of the things she said as well as that kiss, especially with the prospect that something meaningful could come between the both of us.

I think my Rebirth made my body and mind fresh, as if it was unfamiliar with all these sensations once again. But I doubt it, considering I have made love to Flandre post-NDE and it was the same as always. Or maybe the negative emotions from that time dulled it.

But holy hell…..my heart's aching so much and it feels so fucking good.

"Well, well, Mr. Eman~"

"~Reimu and Eman sitting in a tree~!"

Oh no, not you two!

"~K-I-S-S-I-N-G~!"
"~K-I-S-S-I-N-G~!"

[Shut UP!]

Holy Spirit, please shut them up for me?

"OW!"
"GAH!"

For fuck's sake, you ruined the fucking moment my mind and body was having! "Are you two idiots done with your tasks or what!?"

"Goodness, Eman, calm down!" Wriggle exclaimed with a pained smile, still rubbing the back of her head. "It was just a light teasing! Is all!"

"We worked overnight, if that's what you're asking." Bunta shook his head, his boar mane violently swishing in the motion. "But who would have thought that an Outsider has caught the fancy of the infamous Hakurei Shrine Maiden."

I would have been delighted at his normal personality returning and now sparing me from that damned submissive demeanor he kept the last time I saw him but right now, I'm not happy.

I snapped a whip made out of Holy Energy in front of his snout and another one in front of Wriggle's face. Their freak-out was well-deserved, "I'm asking….IF YOU TWO ARE DONE OR NOT!?"

"WE ARE!" Wriggle was the one to scream it out, still reeling from nearly suffering immense pain to the face. "By the gods, Eman, you need to lighten up!"

I simply glared back at her.

…..

…..…..…..

…..…..…..…..…..…..

I groaned, slumping forward before I got myself up to my feet and went back inside my house. [Fucking dammit.] "YOU MORONS RUINED EVERYTHING!"

"We barely did anything except answer your question!"

[Oh, shut up! I'm angry at you two now! Wait there while I get myself ready!]

"What!? What did you just say!?"

*SLAM!*

In my room, finally.

Where's my hands? Where the fuck are they? Oh yeah, they're right there at the end of my arms. Let's just put you to my face here….yeah, there ya go. That feels good. Do the facepalm.

FFffffffffffffffffffffucking hell, that was so annoying. Now the aftersensation of Reimu's hug and kiss on my body is gone. Way to blow it all to the shit, you stupid cockroach.

Sigh.

I put my hands down and look at the tiny girl on my bed, naked and curious.

She had a strange posture, one you wouldn't expect from anybody when on a bed. Instead of sat up with her legs beside her, this girl had the soles of her feet flat on the mattress, legs bent with her knees close to the chest, as if they were ready to get herself moving when she has to.

Normal people would rub their eyes with a fist to get rid of the sand in their eyes. But this girl, she was wiping her hands up to down, from her temple, over her eyes, and down her mouth.

She had smooth brown skin, from toe to head, even her hair matches the same color that it's quite jarring to the eyes. But from her neck to above her collarbone, it was pure white. It heavily contrasted against the cinnamon brown coloration.

My face steeled, my nerves still on guard, I walked over to the bed and knelt down to one knee beside it, eye to eye with this girl.

Her nose kept twitching, and her breathing is so audible even if her face wasn't an inch away from my own, going at a pace of maybe 40 or 60 per minute. And her eyes are very wide as she stared at me, giving me a good look of her pale blue irises.

I near one hand to her head, maneuver it to glide across her hair, and she started stuffing her nose on the palm. And she began licking it. When I tried to move my hand away, she'd crawl after it, lapping it up like a dog.

With my other hand, I place it above her forehead and send a flow of Holy Energy to her brain.

†To a blissful sleep, Holy Spirit.†

And her tiny body immediately went limp. Before her head hit the ground, I quickly caught her with a forearm below her neck and I took a seat on the bed, pulling her to my lap.

In a state of sleep, this girl's nose stopped twitching and her breathing steadied to a rhythm similar to mine.

Reclined slightly as her head lied atop my forearm, I use my free hand to move her bangs aside from her face. Then I began feeling her nose and cheeks. They are far too soft. I stick my thumb past her lips and force her mouth open: hmm, she had a normal tongue and a human set of teeth.

Wiping her drool on the sheets, I continue to search for any sort of details that were off. Her neck's a bit…springy. Her thin arms were quite wiry despite how slim they look. Her torso's the same. Her back's a lot wirier.

…..

….…..…..What the…..?

Her legs…they are rock-hard.

I….I don't know how to describe this. It's like there was a thin layer of squishiness behind her thighs. And past that layer, it was an ultra-hard coating that's covering her leg bones. Compared to her arms, there's more meat in her lower extremities….and I can't press my fingers an inch further into her flesh because of this rock-hard layer. Are they her muscle fibers?

I can't be sure but the likelihood of it is very high.

Her cinnamon brown skin is baby-smooth, as if they never weathered anything in life, including the soles on her feet. It makes her appear fragile compared to what's beneath the skin on her legs. They're even light as their appearance suggests. What the fuck?

[Just what are you?] Not a Youkai. Not an animal. Not even a human too. Her presence in my Spirit Sight is unique. Just what the fuck are you?

Shiiiit.

How am I gonna explain this to Reimu?

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

I had two options on how to deal with what happened. Either I leave her to Eintei and let Eirin figure out what happened to her, or I take her to the Place of Worship with me and figure it out myself using the Holy Spirit's assistance.

It took some time of ruminating and pondering, but I decided to handle it myself. I'll make it a personal research project of mine. But still, I need Tewi's opinion on this. She's dealt with rabbits becoming Youkai and I bet she could give light to what just happened to the rabbit that had slept on my bed the night before.

In the Place of Worship, I was there to pray and give thanks on everyone's behalf for the Bountiful Harvest. I took my time as much as I wished until I think it was enough. Afterwards, I prayed for forgiveness for what I've done and what I'm about to do in a matter of hours from now. Took my time with it as well.

When all is said and done, likely 2 and nearly a half hours passing by, I then prayed for a favor regarding the sleeping naked girl I brought. I asked for answers and guidance regarding her, hoping they come soon.

As much as I'd like to find out what's going on, I can deal with it another time. I have a job today, after all. Not like I'm rushing or anything.

So, I left the girl there in the Place of Worship, still asleep and provided with many fruits she'll eat upon waking up. Hopefully the Holy Spirit can do something about her while I'm gone.

Bunta and Wriggle were nice enough to wait for me. I made sure to mention my appreciation for their patience.

Proceeding with the plan that they wait for me on the T-shaped road leading to Moriya Shrine where it's flanked by lots of onbashira, we parted and I went on alone towards the Human Village.

Luckily, the Cable Car happened to be in the station, waiting for me. So I took it and the conductor pulled the lever. For something made of wood, it smoothly works. To my surprise, this thing's quite faster than I expected. The mix of magic and technology really looks good on this one. It's not hard to see why, considering how far it is from here to the Mountain. People would really need their turn as well.

As somebody that can't fly, I greatly enjoyed the trip. I could literally see everything when the elevation got a lot higher than the Hakurei Shrine. I thought about it many times before but Gensokyo really is a big place. The distance from my house to Reimu's Shrine really doesn't compare to the distance from Remilia's Mansion to the Sunflower Garden, where Yuuka's place is (really sticks out with all the yellow). And the beauty of everywhere else never ceases to please me. I hope it never does.

Man, I could even see fairies flying about, tiny as they are from my point of view in this distance. How fun it'd be to just carpet bomb them while I'm up here. Hehehehe. If I could survive it, what would happen if I turn myself into a human asteroid the sooner I jump off this thing and hit the ground?

Would I end up making a nuke or something? That'd be fun to see.

And as a plus, I got Adarna perched on the backrest of the seat beside me, enjoying the view. I wish I had her eyes, just so I could zoom in on something interesting happening below me.

And damn, it's hella windy. Cold too. Whoo! Should'a seen this coming. Would have brought something warmer than my vest. I could warm myself up with my hellfire but nah, I'm gonna stay on the human side for now. Moments from now, things are bound to go to hell.

…..…..…..

…..…..…..…..

….…..…..…..…..…..

And there it is. Moriya Shrine.

…..

…..…..…..…..

….…..…..…..…..…..…...fffffffooooo…..

Calm down. Calm down.

…..

…..…..

….…..…..…..okay, the Cable Car stopped. We're here. I'm literally at the Moriya Shrine.

Calm down, me. Just calm down. Just hold on to hope. I'm gonna be okay. The Holy Spirit will watch over me. She will. She will keep me from suffering any sort of harm.

Enter Spirit Sight, see who's there.

…..…‼

Mishaguji…so. Many. Mishaguji. Terrifying.

There's Sanae and Suwako.

And who's this non-godlike presence that's inside? Or rather, where's Kanako?

Actually, no. I shouldn't waste time and opportunity. This is a perfect chance to slip. Sanae and Suwako are distracted by whoever's there with them. Even from here, I could hear them talking very animatedly.

Whatever they're talking about, I don't care. I'm leaving.

†Oh, Holy Spirit, put it all into silence†

With that short prayer, my entire presence and every noise I'll ever make is silenced.

Without a second spared, I disembarked the cable car and avoided the open sliding doors that showed the interior of the Shrine. I saw a faint blur of Sanae's green hair there. I could feel Suwako right next to her.

Once I reached the edge of the veranda, away from the distance of the shrine occupants, I jumped off towards the stone ground and bolted, letting panic fuel my speed and vault over the waist-high walls before I reached the stairs in no time, avoiding being in front of the direct entrance of the Shrine, where I will be seen.

Once I was past the Torii gate and the T-shaped road flanked by onbashira I was talking about is in sight, I bolted again to there. My vest was flying behind me like a cape, and I was sweating endlessly like a motherfucker too. I was panicking. I kept thinking I was seen but I dared not to turn around, lest I end up in a situation I desperately wanted to avoid.

I took the right turn and bolted again, running as fast as I can until I was far enough.

When I think it was enough, I quickly hurried to a tree and collapsed under the shade, trying to catch my breath. Holy hell. I think that was, like, a four and a half kilometers sprint. That should be far enough, I hope. I already went past the second Torii gate where the road from there to Moriya Shrine began and now somewhere around this rocky place atop Youkai Mountain.

I've seen it already in my NDE but for a mountain, the top sure has lots of level ground to walk on via its geological connection to the elevated expansive earth behind it.

Okay. After a couple more minutes, I'm gonna stand up and head to Hina's hut found at the bottom of this mountain.

And I can sense two entities coming close. Oh, thank God they're here. I was afraid they were attacked by Sanae and was left unconscious.

"You sure run fast for a human." Wriggle commented, floating down to the ground and squatting down next to me. The insects floating around her and everywhere around me is a little unsettling. "I admit I wasn't expecting it."

"If you don't mind answering, what happened back there?" Bunta asked, crossing his arms as he appeared behind a tree next to the one I'm leaning on. "You ran from there like you're avoiding something."

"Or someone." Wriggle inferred, looking up to Bunta. "The bugs told me Kirisame Marisa was there, speaking to the Moriya Shrine Maiden and the Frog Goddess."

What?

Marisa was the one in there? "Truly?" The hell is she doing there?

She nodded adamantly, "Of course. What? Did you think the bugs would lie to me? Impossible! The insects have never lied to me!"

I stared at her for a few moments before I conceded. "Understood. Allow me a few more minutes to rest before we depart."

"Okay." Wriggle sat down on the tree next to me, beckoning a few bugs to her palm to have a chat with them.

"Fine with me." Bunta simply turned his eyes to what's in front of me, still crossing his arms and sniffing the air.

Wait a minute….didn't Reimu said she'd have somebody to come with me? Don't tell me she picked Marisa of all people to do that. Why didn't she pick Kasen instead…..

…..no. It actually makes sense. Marisa is actually a good choice for this situation. While she isn't notorious in her reputation compared to Reimu, the majority of Gensokyo's Youkai know her well and will have the sense to back off anybody she's friends with, including me.

To be honest, the reason I accepted Reimu's offer of an escort is so she could get the Moriya Goddesses to stay the fuck away from me, not to help leave an impression on the Youkai. I can do the latter by my damn self without any sort of trouble.

With Marisa's loud and chatty self, she was the perfect fit of a distraction in order to keep the Moriya Pantheon's attention off me. Her own personality could draw their undivided attention with no effort at all. I'll treat her to dinner when I see her again as thanks.

Damn it. I miss Marisa. My mind's already settled after seeing her past multiple days ago. I don't care about all of it anymore so I'm not unsettled about seeing her face again and worry about her life story flashing to my awareness the whole time.

Hmm…..should be time now. My energy's now back up. "Let's go?" I asked.

"Now?" Wriggle asked in surprise, then shooed away the bugs near her. "Okay." She quickly stood up and I held out a hand to her with the other to Bunta. "Up you go." Now afloat, Wriggle grabbed my left with both hands and pulled. Bunta stepped close and took my right with one hand, pulling me up to my feet with her.

I then placed a hand on their shoulders, saying, "I will be in your care, you two." Two pat-pats, then I lead the way forward, "Let's go." For the sake of safety, I pull out my machete and keep it in hand all the way.

It was a simple downhill walk, and it's quite calming. Surround yourself with the sound of insect wings flapping rapidly and the gruff inhales and exhales of a boar's nose accompanied by the sound of the wind and the rustling leaves, it all turns into the greatest ambience you can have for a hike.

Not shitting anybody, it actually feels soothing.

"What's with the smiles, Eman?" Wriggle noticed the face I'm making.

"For once, outside my home, I cannot feel the presence of other Youkai near my sensory range." It's like being alone once again after being around so many people whenever you're going outside everyday.

She placed a short arm across my shoulders, smiling to me. "Then you should thank Bunta for that." She gestured to the big man.

[Really now?] Dude's just walking normally, ignoring himself being bragged about. In his boar form, he's actually taller than me because of his thick neck. "What has he done?"

"Well, he's got the ability to manipulate auras! Very nice ability, don't you think?"

Manipulating Auras….well that's something I don't hear everyday. "It sounds interesting."

"Thank you, Mr. Eman." Bunta replied to me automatically.

"Can you explain its usefulness for me, Bunta?" I asked politely.

"Well—"

[STOP!] Wait a minute! Sorry for freaking you both out. "Wait. Hold on for a second."

Holy Spirit, can you put us under Silence, please?

Holy Orb floats out of my shoulder and She began revolving around the three of us.

"Now proceed. The Holy Spirit shall keep your explanation to only the three of us. No one else, no matter how sharp their ears are, can hear it."

"Oooh. That's convenient." Oh, looks like She managed to impress Wriggle.

"I was worrying about telling you in a place like this too but I guess you have something to get past it." Bunta chuckled, scratching his mohawk. "Okay: it's just like she said, I can manipulate auras. I can make myself or someone else look really intimidating or really innocent by changing the impression of their general air. I use it to scare off other rival groups from my own when we don't have the fighting power to deal with them yet…..now when I'm thrown out of mine, I wonder how are those so-called friends of mine handling themselves without me."

An innate ability that's built for intimidation or deception…..I admit, it sounds really useful for a Youkai, especially for those who are low-tiered. If possible, he could even present himself as a Death God and no one would ever think of messing with him.

"Using this, I made the three of us have the same level of aura and presence as the Hakurei Shrine Maiden. That's why not many Youkai are near right now."

[Aaaahh….I see.] That's really impressive, Bunta. I actually like that ability. If I were to have it, no one would think of bothering me anymore and I could live on in Gensokyo the way I wanted it. "Is it safe to assume that it does not work on everybody?"

He shook his head, his black mohawk mane lashing side to side. "Only idiots or those who don't know their place can't be affected by it. I doubt it'd work on Gods too. Apparently, that includes you and your animals as well, Mr. Eman." His grin was quite ironic as he said that. I bet he's still reeling from the memory of being used as a battering ram by Lakit and being tortured by me.

[Hmm…..] I bet it's the Holy Spirit's influence that made me immune to his gift. I don't know about my animals being resistant to it but I can safely say that Lakit does not care about who is strong or weak, considering what kind of blessing she had. She'll just burst into the fight, fangs bare and hissing in fury while growing the size of a mountain. "Bunta."

"Yes?"

"Do you fear me?" I'd better get that demeanor of his out of the way than later.

He stiffened, his fingers curling into tight fists as he tried to match my walking pace. Not a few seconds later, his posture relaxed and he answered me with a rather resigned tone, "Yes."

"How did it become that way?"

He took a deep breath before exhaling it, "Because I underestimated you and suffered for it—"

Without any sort of warning of it coming, I whirled to the side and punched his nearest arm as hard as I could.

"IT'S BECAUSE YOU DENIED ME THE RIGHT OF A SPELL CARD BATTLE, YOU FAT FUCK!"

Okay, this wasn't what I have in mind of dealing with the way he acts around me. But I'm just gonna roll with it and see if I could piss him off. I got a better alternative when I don't wanna do this simply by dialogue and heart-to-heart.

"NOW LOOK WHERE THE HELL THAT GOT YOU! JUST LOOK, DAMN YOU!" I sure had him reeling backwards from the coarse frequency of my voice. "YOU'RE NOW TAKING ORDERS FROM ME! A FUCKING HUMAN! AND YOU ARE A FUCKING YOUKAI! YOUR FRIENDS WERE RIGHT TO THROW YOU OUT! YOU WERE NEVER ONE OF THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE! YOU DO NOT DESERVE TO BE CALLED ONE AT ALL!"

Ooooh, that actually triggered him. The freak-out in his eyes instantly dulled when I went for the balls. I heated up the coal. Now I'm just gonna throw the sticks in….

….or I could just dump some gasoline on it.

"As a Youkai, I wonder how the hell could you see yourself right now. The second time I saw you, you were begging for my help! Does a Youkai ever do that!? I FUCKING BEG ANYONE TO ANSWER ME SO THIS IDIOT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A SHAMEFUL PRICK TO THE ENTIRE YOUKAI RACE!"

I wore the most provoking look on my face—the best one I could make. It either looks stupid or annoying. Former means I did it wrong, latter means I'm doing good.

I'm never built to be a cocky prick. I'm built to kick you in the mouth the sooner you piss me off. That's why I'm not sure.

But with the kind of words I'm using, I don't need to look annoying to achieve the same effect.

"WELL!" As I sheathed my machete, I just put my hands up and gesture to the lack of response to my bombastic request, grinning wildly at Bunta's fury reaching the breaking point. If his ability to manipulate auras is turning him into a Death God, I don't feel a tiny bit of it. I felt Wriggle flying away as far as she can. "WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT!? NO ONE! NOT EVEN WRIGGLE COULD SPEAK UP!"

The next one will definitely trigger the explosion.

I was now up on his face, smirking and just committing suicide at this point, "Some boar you are, pulled along by a leash and asking to be fed in order to eat, only to be fattened up and slaughtered in order to be cooked. In the Outside World, we call them pigs."

Still not gonna blow up? Would you like some salt with that?

{Baboy.}

HRGK!

YEP! THAT WAS THE ONE! I JUST HAVE TO CALL HIM 'PIG' IN MY LANGUAGE!

His big hands covered my entire neck and the whiplash would have snapped the neck bones as he pushed me towards a tree if he wasn't also holding my shoulders. The moment my back hit the tree bark and the back of my head hit it, my breath was literally blown out of me, and he clamped down on my windpipe.

He's not letting me inhale after just losing all of my oxygen. Boy did I really piss him off.

Yep. My struggle against his hold is now real and true. I would have let him blow out his verbal fury at me but damn, I actually pissed him off. I clawed at his wrists or even kicked at his fat belly, using the tree behind me as leverage for more power.

He didn't budge a single bit despite giving it my all.

When he spoke, I barely understood him. His dialogue was guttural and demonic, freakishly loud, and due to him holding me, the vibrations across his body rippled over to me and shook my organs. Vomiting became the one thing I wanted to do more than breathing.

"YOU SHUT YOUR DAMN MOUTH, YOU FUCKING MEATBAG! DON'T EVEN THINK YOU'RE ABOVE ME IN THE FIRST PLACE! YOU ARE MY FOOD! YOU WERE MEANT TO BE EATEN BY ME! IF IT WASN'T FOR YOU! IF IT WASN'T FOR YOUR FUCKING EXISTENCE—OF YOU COMING TO THE BAMBOO FOREST, NONE OF THIS WOULD'VE HAPPENED TO ME!"

Visions darkening. Tears are coming out of my eyes. The vomit stuck on my esophagus is starting to make my neck burst. I'm gonna lose it.

I'm actually gonna lose it!

"MY COMRADES; MY DAILY LIFE; MY IDENTITY—MY PRIDE! YOU TOOK IT ALL FROM ME!"

Pride this, dickhead.

One hard kick to his stomach—

"GUUHAH!"

—and he was the one to lose oxygen this time, letting go of my neck, making me collapse on my front while he buckled from the pain that he didn't saw coming.

First it was the vomit that bursted out of my mouth, and followed after that is tasty oxygen.

My head lying next to the barf pile didn't seem so disgusting when I needed to breathe more than get away from it.

But I'm glad another one of my tests were successful.

As we all know, Jesus is God Incarnate, stepped down from the Heavens to be with His Children, put in a body of flesh perfectly similar to ours.

Jesus' existence is a perfect mix of both Human and God. Not only can He feel emotions, cries over the dead, needs to eat, needs to sleep, suffers agony, despair and could die just like any of us, but He also had all the power in Heaven and Earth and Beyond to shift things to His favor. He raised the dead, healed people when they simply touched his cloak and even calmed storms, among other things.

If I were to emulate such a concept, in Jesus' will to be Human, I could possibly do the same to Youkai too.

Human kicks and punches, no matter how perfect of a form it can be to fatally injure another human, it can never affect a Youkai. Even if you did, it's just a minor setback. It'll just heal. Compared to us, we don't have the same privilege of healing just as quickly.

My foot was imbued with the concept of Jesus' oneness with Humanity in His birth, and when it landed on Bunta, it made him become practically like a human.

If you're a human, a hard kick to the gut will hurt. That's what happened to him. He got humbled to the same level as me. Be like Jesus, motherfucker.

And fucking hell, we are taking so long to recover from our individual agonies.

Bunta's still holding his kicked pot belly. I'm still trying to get my blood oxygenated.

Once half a minute passed, I took in a hefty amount of oxygen and hopped up to my feet, burying my barf in dirt and walking over it. Once I was at a good distance apart from him, I put my fists up, Manny Pacquiao style.

"Then fight for that pride, Bunta." I suggested casually, stretching my leather-covered right arm. "Even if you recover only vestiges of it, take joy in having the chance to take back your honor and do me harm."

He sneered, showing so much teeth that had all the power to snap a spine and making his tusks look far more intimidating. When he growled and squared his stance, it almost looked like he was 10 times larger than he was before.

He slid his cloven hoof right foot backwards, preparing for a charge. "You asked for it, Outsider. No complaining once I break your arms and legs."

"Prepare for slavery and servitude once I break off your tusks again." I shot back, though the context behind it isn't fully clear. I'm still gonna let him have his freedom if I win, but with a few conditions.

"Three cards."

I smirked. Needless to say, I am now proud of him. He truly learned his lesson of fighting in the same playing field everyone in Gensokyo indulges in.

"One."

With an almighty stomp that literally shook the ground and cracked the soil, he roared to the heavens and charged, literally quaking the earth in his every step.

I bolted to his charge head in, watching for his next move once I'm near.

Our distance neared, and he was now rearing his head back for a gore attack. While he was still doing that, I already spun to the side, throwing him off and dodging the strike. I maneuvered my body to smoothly land on my leather-covered right fist, followed by the whole arm, then rolled on my back before fluidly rising to my feet.

Despite missing, Bunta didn't miss a beat and instead slammed his fists on the ground to bounce himself up from landing face-first to the ground and instead smashed the tree he pinned me on earlier.

That tree didn't stand a chance. It just bent in half and toppled to the side.

It didn't fully hit the ground, as he caught it with one hand and threw it at me.

Not kidding around, is he?

This wasn't actually the first time something that big was thrown at me. I mean, Remilia really does not hold back with her mega-sized bullets. I've been adapting to those shots for many weekends now, and since this projectile is not going to explode upon impact, that makes things easy for me.

I just casually duck down, my head reflexively drawn inwards to my shoulders like a turtle as the tree whizzed past above my hair, and I was more than ready when Bunta charged after the thrown tree, going for a second one.

Instead of a goring attack again, he swung for a left haymaker.

He wasn't slow, but even I was surprised at how casually I dodged under it and sent a quick fist to the side of his ribs at the same time as he went passed me.

"GHA!" He quickly slowed down his charge, avoiding a tumble-over from his momentum while holding his struck side. Yeah, that was a Humble Fist. And more are coming. He turned a fiery glare on me, "Bastard!"

He jumped 3 meters in the air, and I quickly dashed to the side before he got me flat underhoof, shaking the ground upon impact. And he jumped again, going for twos. I did dodge it but not far enough. The shockwave of his landing blew me back, but I was able to roll back to my feet upon landing and threw a minor fireball at him.

He blocked it with his beefy forearm and returned fire with a fat brown orb. In my dodge, I immediately followed up with a TD-raiz, flinging fireballs everywhere in the spin, and the follow up Boxcutter flip threw a spread-shot wave of arching fireballs that rained on his position.

He thought fast and charged forward while keeping both arms crossed above him to block, intending to escape the rain of fire, and his every stomp sent multiple bullets flying my way.

I didn't risk it. I just boosted myself off the ground with a boom and I backflipped over him before I landed with a roll, scattering fire bullets along the way and followed up with a handstand, spinning around from the momentum to do a helicopter with my legs, throwing out a spiral pattern of fireballs shooting out of my soles.

Back up to my feet, I did a B-twist and threw a large fireball upon landing.

I thought Bunta was gonna get blown up in the face while he was still covering himself with his forearm. But I was wrong. He swatted off the last of my fireball pellets with his shielding forearm and fucking caught the fireball with his other hand before smashing it to the ground next to him, causing it to fizz out pathetically.

I admit, I literally freaked out from that on the inside.

"«Charge Sign»!" Uh oh. "«Gory Boar»!"

Then came a repeat of his last move. Charging while his steps spew out bullets in all directions. Instead of himself charging, it was a giant danmaku bullet as large as his body and coming straight towards me while spraying smaller bullets everywhere.

I quickly went beside its trajectory and put up my right arm to block incoming shots. I prioritized areas that have more room for the lower body and waist to dodge while anywhere else is blockable.

It almost feels as if the Eagle Glove was absorbing the energy and the momentum of the bullets. The tree barks and the soil that were hit by this Spell Card's bullets were potholed. My arm should be recoiling backwards from each bullet and had me punching myself in the face every time.

Thank you so much for these enchantments, Alice.

I didn't forget Bunta. I kept him in my sights while trying not to get hit. He matched my lane and smashed the ground in front of him with both fists, sending another charging Gory Boar.

I side-flipped back to the right lane, drawing my machete in midair and quickly put the broad side of the blade up to cover my face while my other hand braces it near the tip to keep it steady.

Yep. The bullets do punch like a motherfucker. My left arm's buckling every time.

Oh no, Bunta sent another one. And the second one still hasn't passed me by—

OW! FUCK! MY THIGH!

[RRRGGHHH!]

Down on one knee, my Eagle Glove and raised machete now shielding almost all of me, I had Elmo's right hand form out of my back and grab the incoming third Gory Boar and had it crushed.

I do a TD-raiz and Elmo fully formed his entire upper body before pitching a Big Fat Fireball at Bunta and then disappearing afterwards.

Boar guy threw one last Gory Boar towards the BFF just in time, causing a rather loud boom upon collision.

Bunta wasn't wasting time as he charged through the smoking aftermath and was rearing back a fist. I utilized Elmo's hand to push me off the ground and jump further away, the ground I was last on exploding under his punch.

Flipping in the air, the fiery third hand laid itself on the ground before I practically floated back to the ground. I bolted towards him, my machete flaming up, and I swiped for his fat belly. He backstepped out of the way, and Elmo's hand came overhead to flatten him to the ground.

While he leaped back just in time, the impact zone sending dust and embers flying, Elmo quickly tugged my body forward like a slingshot and I flew with my body curled as it front flipped before uncurling and fucking slammed both my feet to his chest, fuelled with Humility.

I swear I heard 4 bone snapping there before he was sent flying back from my momentum passing onto his body.

Elmo's hand kept me from falling flat on my back and instead righted my form before disappearing again.

Despite tumbling a few times backwards and likely suffering ribcage fractures, Bunta was still capable of getting up to his feet, bleeding from the mouth and growling like a demon.

Boars. Truly dangerous and unstoppable motherfuckers.

As he threw his elbows backwards, his bones snapped so loudly I swear it felt like it was right in front of me, and then he slammed his fists to the ground, burying them halfway into the earth. "«Boar Sign–Unstoppable Boar»!"

Gulp.

Not gonna take chances due to the title of that Spell Card, I quickly blew out explosive shots from my mouth, Elmo following suit by throwing a pair of his own.

Bunta tanked the first volley like a champ, and he did the same to the second and third one that came from Elmo. Those things could blow off 5 trees from the ground in one bang, and he just took those things to the face without even flinching. Not even his fur suffered any sort of burns.

"GGGRRRRRRRGGHHHHH!" Ooookay, he's charging me.

I got myself retreating to the forest, not gonna bother with actually hitting him with anything because I know it's never gonna work. I'm just gonna have to time it out.

I utilized parkour as well as Elmo's hand, getting myself to branches and catapulting to multiple points in order to get further away from him. For my pursuer, he's not bothering with skirting around obstacles. He's not even slowing down. He's become the FUCKING JUGGERNAUT.

HE LITERALLY CREATED A STRAIGHT LINE FROM THE TREELINE TO ALL THE WAY HERE! THOSE POOR TREES! YOU FUCKING MONSTER!

While we're at it, why don't we just proceed with the trip like usual and lead him to the destination of our trip!?

Where the fuck's Wriggle!? She should be with us during shit like this!

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

Timing out the Spell Card was easy, but fucking hell does he run like Usain Bolt. A fatass Usain Bolt.

A fatass Juggernaut Usain Bolt. THE ULTIMATE COMBINATION!

If I was running and parkouring like a normal, he'd have my ass in no time.

I was doing a Tarzan or a Doctor Octopus in my getaway. With the power of my newly-created Hundred Arms from days ago, Elmo's spindly and numerous arms with the flexibility of a noodle, I swung from branch to branch, made possible because of the Holy Flash causing these trees to have such thick limbs that can carry my heavy body. I had a fat molten arm growing out of my back as a failsafe in case I fuck up and hit the floor or face-plant a tree trunk.

If I can't fly, this is my counteract among other things. Strangely enough, this is the first time I'm swinging around trees, and I'm doing really well. I'm even doing slingshot launches and sharp turns like a real Spider Man. Though I'm more like a Jellyfish Man, considering I'm using a lot of arms just to swing instead of one. I need to improve on it.

And when I heard a very loud wooden and thick smack that indicated a tree managing to stop the Juggernaut Usain Bolt, my mind already knew what's next. While descending from a swinging launch, 8 arms grow out of me and grab the nearest trunk before I swung in a circle back and launched off again.

And I see the bent tree with Bunta nursing his head behind it. The Spell Card's out and he gave himself a headache.

With a murder smirk, I aimed my falling trajectory on him and crossed my arms in front of my chest, my legs tucked in.

Then I turned myself into High Explosive Eman before I hit the ground, his face managing to pull off a glorious 'oh shit' expression before the boom.

Many trees were blown backwards from the shockwave, some caught fire, some even got uprooted, and Bunta blew the fuck out of here like a cannonball, smashing another tree in half with his fatass.

And by fuck, it's so hot in being the epicenter of a car bomb.

My form elevated from the ground via the Hundred Arms upon explosion, the falling momentum of my body decimated upon detonation so I didn't suffer a whiplash. I got myself skittering out of the hot zone like a million-armed spider.

These fires are definitely gonna go out of control, especially in a hot and sunny summer.

Just as I was getting near to his position past a couple broken trees that were somehow clumped up in a pile, pale green orbs the size of basketballs literally homed in on me from multiple directions. Being surrounded by my Hundred Arms, they took the blow but disappeared by the numbers each time.

And then the pile of broken trees suddenly exploded, thick and heavy barks of wood that could break my body apart flying straight to me.

I expected the exact same thing to happen, and I was paranoid the whole time. The sooner it happened, Elmo's entire upper body formed above me and shielded me from being flattened. My body literally bounced from the ground each time a log hit the ground.

"«Boar Sign–Porcine Frenzy»!"

The sooner I heard that, my mind immediately went to a Discovery Channel video I watched years ago, presenting a lone lioness getting mobbed by warthogs, being charged and thrown to the air multiple times before running away.

With that in mind, I just bolted the fuck out of there, getting back to the main road where there's lots of open spaces for me to see any attacks to come from anywhere.

I'm now back into the open where the main road is. Taking just a half-second to relish in the not-so-boiling environment and ash-free air, I spun around and drew my machete once again, lighting it on fire.

A buzzing sound from the left made my body do a B-twist, and my instincts were right when another pale green orb passed where my upper body should be. Landing back to my feet, the bullet did a curving turn and started flying towards me again, but I quickly put it out with a quick swing of my machete.

Then a barrage of them come flying out of the forest.

[Shit.] Time to put all the suffering I've been through inside Remilia's Mansion to the test.

Calculating the impact time of the nearest bullet in front of me as well as the place it'll hit on my body, I turn around to see if there's any bullets behind me as well, and I did another B-twist, my feet saved from the wrath of the first bullet behind me and Elmo's hand whacked it out of existence before it did a curving turn.

And I start running. Staying in place will just be disadvantageous.

Cutting down any bullet that was coming and dodging the ones I couldn't take out in time, I utilized my Eagle Glove when things got too desperate and I suffered getting off-balanced by the sudden existence of a knockback from the shots. I guess the chances of bullet momentum absorption depends on the strength of the bullet.

In some cases where the bullets simply slam the ground, they burst out into tiny pellets that still hurt like a motherfucker, like rocks shot from a slingshot. Got me right in the middle of my fucking back. I bet my spine's bruising there.

If those things hit me in the head, I'm dead.

At least the strategy is simple. I just have to get all the barrage to come from a single direction, so I utilized Explosive Sprinting and Elmo's hand to redirect their flight path, and when I had the current wave coming from one direction in front of me, I blew out an inferno from my mouth like a dragon before doing infinite side-flips to have the surviving bullets hit the ground as well as escape their pellet bursts.

When all the bullets were gone, the second wave is coming. And they're coming from all sides.

Okay, desperate times calls for desperate measures.

Elmo's upper body explodes out of my back, creating an extra pair of hands that are shaped like swords and he began spinning like a helicopter's blades, swatting or cutting down any bullet that were coming from above. I focused on the ones coming from my front and back, extensively using explosives on my feet to dash and dodge.

I ended up resorting to lighting my legs and left arm on fire, using them to smack aside any bullets when I have to. It's just like kicking or punching a basketball. It works but it hurts. I only punched one and sweep-kicked two aside before I extinguished the fires and opted to just run and dodge. Ow.

I did get overwhelmed and got myself struck in the chest, making Elmo disappear as well as dropping my machete. However, I rigged myself to explode upon getting hit and it cleared out the ones around me before I quickly ejected myself off the ground using Elmo's hand and flushing heat to my aching chest.

Breathing out flames thanks to this idea of numbing chest pains, I threw out the fires of the Agni Shine, throwing out flower-shaped barrages and they made quick work of wiping out the remaining number of pale green bullets before I caught the last surviving one with Elmo's hand and crushed it.

The third and hopefully final wave…..it's just a fucking tsunami. A literal wave of thousands upon thousands of pale green danmaku descending down on me.

If the Spell Card consisted of actual boars coming at me instead of danmaku-representations of them that run and charge at you with ridiculous speeds and power despite their size, I would never have the heart to do this:

My entire body now set alight in burning red flames and exhuming black smoke, all of my artificial rage boiling to the worst point possible, I screamed to the sky and finally used my one and only Spell Card, "«Roaring Spitfire–Dancing Titan»!"

The biggest version of Elmo exploded to existence from above me, heavily muscular and flailing like bees are swarming him, and he literally erupted like a volcano, shooting out blazing inferno and jets of heat from everywhere in his body as well as lobbing giant balls of explosives in all directions possible.

Yep. I'm tearing the entire area around me a new one. I burned the vegetation. I decimated the tall trees. And I even turned everything around me in a 100 meter radius into the impact zone of an asteroid. Black as charcoal, ash and smoke floating everywhere.

The tsunami of bullets that were coming for me couldn't get close, either from the endless streams of Elmo's inferno or from his bombs, and I simply stood on the ground, ramping up the heat and gritting my teeth.

It's pure suffering.

[It's….so…fucking…..HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT‼!‼!‼!‼!‼!‼!‼!‼!‼!‼!]

It was only a matter of time before I lost my mind and devolve into a monster that makes everything else around me suffer the same thing.

So I went out roaring and screaming as I ran back into the tree line, my body literally exploding in every step and my burning body causing so much heat it literally set anything around me alight just by proximity as well as Elmo's flailing form above me raining down chaos, leaving behind a trail of utter destruction that only Hell can compare.

And when my breaking point was reached, Elmo practically became liquid as he was sucked back into my body, and when his heat transferred to my body and made my blood boil to the point of torture…..

….…..

….…..…..…..…..…..

…..…..…..…..…..…..…..…..I nuked.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

Visente's ears twitched, his head whipping to the source of the sudden explosion and his nose sniffed the air to see if it's nearby.

Apparently not, but the frequency of it was noteworthy enough. In fact, he instantly recognized it.

It was one of his human's explosions. In every battle, they would always resound. The times he fights the bat child and its sister, the timeless woman, or even the small red men, the explosions never cease until a victor stands above the fallen.

With light effort, his hind legs launched his lean form upwards and his longer digits ending in bigger and sharper claws dug into the edge of the Silver Elder's house roof before he pulled himself up and stood on the triangular peak of the domain, standing as high as possible in an effort to see if he could find his human from his new vantage point.

He growled, making parts of the roof vibrate. The bamboo stalks surrounding this place are too high, obstructing every view possible, including the mountains. The sound even came from the highest one as well.

"Visente! Get down from there! It's your turn to be examined! We need to figure out what happened to you!"

His stare turned downwards to face the female rabbit not-human called Reisen and frowned, wondering why her song is suddenly so authoritative.

"Come on! Act more like your big sister!" Reisen crowed, gesturing a paw to the pale and now-bipedal tiger next to her wearing a piece of coating similar to his human's own, "She's behaving well! How could you be Eman-san's favorite if you're just gonna be stubborn!? Are you just going to let Makita-chan take your place!?"

Visente was lost. Whatever she's telling him, he doesn't understand. Her songs aren't like the ones his human sings to him whenever they interact.

A low groan drew his attention to the coat-wearing tiger, looking just like their human in posture, face and shape, stood on her hind legs like him and even lacking fur for warmth except for the head compared to Visente. She leapt up to the roof without the need of her paws and grabbed ahold of his furry arm, tugging him to follow her.

As said by his human's commands, his pack sister must be obeyed while he is given the greatest duty of watching over her and the reptile, to guard them with his life the same way he religiously did to protect his human.

Visente silently complied, his left arm held and pulled while his other one kept his body stable on the steep roof alongside his hind legs, his shortened tail waving side to side. As they both slipped off to the ground, he landed on his front legs while Makita landed much like a human, her hind legs first and bending them before straightening again.

He wonders if he can do the same.

"Thank you so much, Makita-chan." Reisen moved to place a paw on Makita's head, then stopped short from doing so. "Uh….now that you have a humanoid body, I'm not sure if it's impolite to pet you or not."

The tiger's flat snout neared to Reisen's lips and nipped it with her tongue and upper teeth before pulling Visente inside into the den. The rabbit not-human let out an alarmed yelp and fell on the floor, covering her mouth.

Visente was concerned, wanting to know what happened to her, but his pack sister wasn't letting him, maintaining a firm grip on his forearm and leading him back to the Silver Elder.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

A whole kilometer of the forest was pretty much fucked now thanks to me, but I'm picking up after myself.

Since all these bushfires were from my hand, I can easily manipulate their intensity. First, I enter within myself and feel the existence of every heat around me, either smoldering or roaring, and willed them to wilt out.

After doing so for a whole five minutes, trying my hardest not to keel over and pass out from the heatstroke, I quickly gathered any remaining traces of the fires I made, streaking across the air like a visible breeze and coming together into a single ball of blazing heat above me.

And fucking hell, this mini-sun is so hot.

Feeling that there are no more smidges of the fires anywhere, I just launched the mini-sun into the sky like a rubber band, intending to make it explode at the right altitude and hopefully cause a rain. Clouds are just little bits of moisture clumped together. Get too clumped together, they'll form droplets that were too heavy to stay aloft and fall down to earth as rain.

After gathering enough cool under the shade of a burnt tree and energy to look around me, everything's just…..charcoaled. All black and smelling like ash. They're even cool to the touch thanks to my influence.

Welcome to the newest location of Gensokyo, personally made by a walking barrel of gunpowder named Eman Letitia, I guess?

What's a good name for it? Uh…..hmm….Elmo's Garden?

…yeah, definitely Elmo's Garden. There used to be overgrown forests and vegetation around here. Now Elmo painted it all to his liking.

Now just gotta get to Bunta…..…and he's just over there.

I don't know which one to acknowledge. Either he survived that nuke, considering his only signs of damage were burnt forearms and his entire front singed from the blast as well as the lack of a vest….or his head was nearly crushed by a giant tree that was bent in half, having fallen to the forest floor and would have flattened him if it wasn't still connected to the stump. He's just underneath the gap, shielding his face from the sun and resting his head on the roots while staring into space.

Sluggishly walking over to him, I kicked his left cloven hoof to get his attention, "Are you still alive?"

"Does talking to you mean anything?"

I greatly appreciate his immediate response. "Apparently, it does. Now get up from there. We still haven't reached our destination."

He sighed before he placed his hands on the tree bark above his face and pushed the giant tree off him.

Tsk.

Once again, Youkai are just strong. It didn't even look like he was having trouble lifting that off him.

As he sat up, his knees pointing up as he rested his forearms on them, he looked up to me and asked, "Since I lost, I'm now your slave?"

"Only if both your tusks were snapped off. That was the condition." And they're still intact, buster. "Now get up, we're moving."

As wonderful it'd be to have him around and use his ability to my advantage, I need to better organize my priorities first. There's still the matter of the naked girl in the Place of Worship too.

As I got moving and he followed after me, grunting and growling as he shakily got up to his feet, he made a comment, "You surely fucked this forest to hell."

"The rain will give it life when it comes." That mini-sun I sent up didn't simply have Hellfire in it to create the rain, of course. There's a tiny little Holy Orb inside, meant to supply the rain with life-giving qualities as it hits this place. It won't heal the forest but it'll leave the soil fertile, giving it a chance for life around Elmo's Garden to emerge. Maybe even make them grow fast enough to hide the evidence.

"Do you even need me or Wriggle as bodyguards?" He asked incredulously. "If you have such ridiculous power in you, why do you even need us?"

And there's an indication of a mission success thanks to that Spell Card Battle. His demeanor of being a silent and submissive loser has completely disappeared. Now he's an open-mouthed Boar that I'll be seeing around for the days to come.

I'm proud. He and I can be friends starting today.

"Just because, Bunta. Just because." And that's all you're ever going to get from me. "Aside from you or Wriggle, I appreciate the lack of Youkai presence during this trip."

"I don't think you need my ability's help anymore. This mess of yours could just speak for itself before they wanna think about messing with you."

"Maybe, but I can't be too safe." I unstrapped my Eagle Glove and let the arm inside taste the free and really cool air. Damn that feels so good. My right arm is so sweaty. As I got the elbow to make a snapping sound, I wiped my right palm on my vest and ask, "Where's Wriggle?"

"Don't know. But she'll come around." Casually, he answered, "She did run away before she got caught in our fight."

"Better be—"

"Ayayayaya, if it isn't the Outsider who plays the guitar?"

"—soon….." I'm just gonna put my Eagle Glove back on.

Great. That's just fucking great. Fucking Shameimaru Aya is here.

….though I can't say I didn't have it coming. That battle was too loud, and practically close to their territory's backyard as well.

"Hello! Good afternoon! You wouldn't mind an interview, ri—"

"So anyway, Bunta, you represented your kind in that fight very well." Did it amazingly as well that I ended up having to use my Spell Card in the first place even though I planned to look badass and not use it. A multi-thousand barrage of danmaku…crazy. "Fast. Strong. And implacable."

"Right back at you, Eman." A compliment from a Youkai, and even the lack of honorifics? Not something I'd get everyday. "You move your body very well when you aren't using your fire magic. It's like you're dancing or something."

"Um….excuse me—"

"It is meant to be a dance, a sort of sport I indulged in the Outside World years ago, but in Gensokyo, I will use what I have to last longer in a fight."

"Then how'd you get those fire powers of yours? I doubt the Outsider World has any magic, does it? That's what everybody's been saying."

"We do not. These fires were ill-gotten, not of my own will either, but I'm glad for them either way. They saved my life more than my own human abilities could."

"Hello! Excuse me! Can I please have a moment of your time, Mr. Eman?"

"You were there the whole time?" At least do not smash the ground in the direction I'm walking, you piece of chicken! "I hardly noticed. Did you, Bunta?"

He shrugged, "I only heard a buzzing. I thought it was Wriggle coming back."

"Oh, now you're both just being rude, do you know that?" Aya pointed out, smiling wimpily, "I'm here trying to figure out who's causing the explosions and the destruction and you're not helping me at all."

I didn't stop walking and slapped her arm as I pass her by with my backhand, "It was me, obviously. Figure it out. We are the only ones here."

"I see, I see." After rubbing her arm, she furiously wrote on the notepad. Seriously, too many words from my even fewer sentences. "For what reason did it happen? Was there an argument?"

"Spell Card Battle." Thank you, Bunta. Catch on to the drift and answer her as concisely as possible while coming off like an asshole.

"Under what dispute?" She asked, following after us.

"For the sake of it." I'm not lying here. It was for the sake of it. Beating the submissiveness out of him was a lucky bonus.

"Truly? When I interviewed an Insect Youkai earlier, who happens to be part of your traveling party and was nice enough to answer me, she told me it was a matter of pride and dignity."

"That's just one of her assumptions. She was never in the know about what was happening between us." Not like she knows anything about what I've done to Bunta in the Bamboo Forest. She only assumed that based on what I yelled at Bunta's face before it devolved into that fight.

"We were letting off steam." An honest answer. Thank you, Bunta.

"And did it have to involve blowing up the forest as well?" Is it me or are you assuming there's something else behind it all, Aya? Your tone says it all.

Destroying the environment while 'letting off steam' sounds suspect but come on! Doesn't everybody in Gensokyo do that!?

"I'm not the only suspect here." Don't single me out, dumdum. There's a Boar Youkai here as well, "Bunta here has toppled far too many trees and vegetation himself."

"I see." I could hear her pen scribbling on the paper, and even though I've heard it many times by now, it's still amazing that she could manage that type of writing speed. I write in cursive and I couldn't handle 5 words without making them look ineligible under 10 seconds, "Well, thank you for your inputs, you two. It wasn't newsworthy but I'll make do with what I have. On another note, ever since the flash of that bright light last Tuesday, I've been going around interviewing people—"

"We were all mating with the females, and that's all you need to know."

Geez. Even for me, I actually winced at how bluntly that came out of Bunta's mouth. Even though it actually happened, it still comes off as surprising when it's confirmed by somebody that's been through it.

"Aside from that, considering even the Tengu had the same problems as well, but can any of you two tell me what could the source of that light be, even if it's just an opinion?"

"My house was overrun by the Overgrowth at the time. I don't have the leisure nor necessity to worry about who's responsible." Not lying. Not lying at all.

"I can't tell ya much. All I know is that it happened, and the trees were suddenly big and the females needed males."

I wonder how much sexy time actually happened during that time. Thinking about it is just making me a lot more curious. Is there gonna be a boom of Youkai children births in the coming months or something?

"Hmm….." Aya hummed, followed by the sound of scribbling notes again. "…..well, when I went to the Bamboo Forest, the source of the Flash, and interviewed the denizens there, some told me it was an Outsider and some told me it was a Hermit. Some even said it was a God of Life and Healing that did it. Do you two find any of those terms familiar? Any comments or anything?"

Thank God for the concept of rumors. Those Youkai sure know how to gossip and make wild stories, even if they were literally right in the middle of it all. The names all point to me, but it's not like she knows that.

"Nah." Bunta's answer was quick.

"The God of Life theory could be possible." Here's me playing along, while secretly trying to publicize the Holy Spirit, "If it's enough to make even the Human Village crops so bountiful or make every plant in Gensokyo far too vegetated, I couldn't think of any possible culprit. Then again, that is a theory."

No reply. Just scribbling noises.

Here's hoping she doesn't suspect it was me.

"Last question, may I know what are you two doing here?"

Heat flowed out of my body. "That's none of your fucking business."

"I'm just following him." Bunta's the one with the brain here. He doesn't ask questions.

"Okay, okay, no need to act so hissy. I was just asking." I don't believe a fucking word you're saying, Aya. For all I know, you're hired by the Moriya Goddesses to figure out where the Holy Flash came from, and I'm making sure you get nothing from me. "I may be a reporter but I am still a Tengu. Keeping troublemakers out is part of my job. Keep those explosions of yours away from Tengu Lands and I won't have to blow you two away."

I nodded slowly. "I'll keep that in mind." So long as you don't piss me off, that is.

"Okay, I will have to leave now. Bye bye, you two. Friendly warning, Mr. Eman, the Youkai here aren't too welcoming to humans."

With a gust of wind, her presence immediately disappears from my sensory.

Not wasting time, I turned to Bunta and said, "Let's hurry."

And I began jogging. We've been going downhill from this mountain even before Aya arrived. We're getting close.

Just need a good place for Bunta and Wriggle to wait before I go in to Hina's place.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

Welcome to the Great Youkai Forest found at the foot of Youkai Mountain where not even sunlight could pass through, similar to the Forest of Magic. It has quite the haunting atmosphere too, oppressive enough to make you feel like you should turn around and leave before whatever is lurking around here starts having ideas about killing you and eating you. And not in that order either.

I'm not worried. With Bunta's aura enhancement on me as well as a coat of heat on my person, I have enough presence to make people back the fuck off unless they feel inclined to suffer. And I like to make motherfuckers suffer.

We found Wriggle waiting for us at some point during the descent down the mountain, and she griped us about having to start fighting out of nowhere while freaking the fuck out of her because of that nuke, nearly killing the insects she brought with her. Well, we just tell her to think nothing of it and just proceed on the way.

As I was certain we were close to the Youkai Forest, I told them to wait here. They were expressing worry, considering who lives in this part of the woods.

Then I reminded them, "Remember when I said I am delivering a package to a certain goddess?"

Bunta's face was the first to express disbelief before Wriggle blurted out the implication after a full 10 seconds, "You were looking for the Misfortune Goddess!?"

Really? It took ya that long?

Boar guy even gave her an exasperated look. Come on, we just went past the Moriya Shrine. Who else would be here?

….well, except the Aki Sisters but they aren't near this part of the foot of the Mountain.

Now that you get it, I'll just be heading on my way. "I won't be long." Wait for me here, okay?

"Hey, wait!"

[I'm not waiting!] I'm just gonna start running.

"What!?"

Geez.

After taking some distance away, I'm now walking slowly and carefully. Misfortune lingers around here. Accidents and slipups are going to be a lot more common—

*ponk!*

….…..

….…..…..…..

….…..…..…..…..…...well….

That's one, I guess. A fucking stick just fell on my head for no reason.

Entering my Spirit Sight, the place is practically empty of people and even animals….save for the one individual over there that's slowly coming over. There's no other person here except one…..maybe two if the other's up to it.

I continue walking over, hoping to make this trip quick and get out before I accumulate so much misfortune that I'd die from a heart attack from nowhere—

[YAI!] Shit! I just fell on my front! What the fuck did I just trip on!? [Oh, for fuck's sake.] It was just a root covered in leaves.

I'm just gonna stand in place then, hands on pockets.

In my left pocket, the delivery package is inside. I rub my thumb across the smooth fabric. Alice's sewing skills really show, cuz this fabric is really fun to touch.

"Hello there."

My goodness, her voice! So dulcet and orgasmic to the ears! I wanna listen to that voice all the time, even if it's only greetings and goodbyes!

I met eye-contact with the infamous Misfortune Goddess herself, Kagiyama Hina. And yeah, she is just so damn beautiful. Not enough to match Kaguya's but close enough. Boss is seriously the luckiest man I've ever met in my life for having married this maiden.

Sporting a beautiful frilly dress and an even fancier set of hair decorations. Even a ponytail below her chin to tie her long aquamarine green side-locks together.

I bowed politely and returned the courtesy of greetings, speaking softly, "Hello." Then I drew out the package out of my pocket and extend it to her, "An offering."

It's just a simple red sash, specifically designed to look like the ones she's wearing. Alice was quite particular with it considering who'll be the recipient of it, but I just say that I'm giving it as an offering.

But I also have other intentions.

Boss and Hina are a very happy couple, doing sexy time almost every weekend and interacting with each other as if they are still teenagers. She's even preggy with his child, and words cannot express my happiness for them when my NDE showed me that.

But there's still the setback of Hina's aura of misfortune. Even after 3 years, Boss still suffers from it (though he got used to it). I intend to shove a cork on it.

This sash has been blessed and augmented by the Holy Spirit. It's quite a special item, actually. Whenever Hina wears it, it will block her leaky misfortune container while she will still be capable of absorbing some more.

The moment she wears it, she will be just another human with the ability or gift to absorb misfortune without any bad side-effects. Besides, she gains good luck from absorbing it…..don't know how but I'm gonna accept it as it is.

I bet the lovey-dovey couple will rejoice once they notice what's going on.

With delicate and graceful steps, almost gliding across the ground if I wasn't paying attention to her feet, she approached me and held out finely-shaped feminine arms to take the sash off my hand. Careful as to avoid any sort of skin-to-skin contact, she held both ends of the sash and takes it.

As she steps back, her attention was suddenly drawn to the item, and her eyes are giving me the impression as if they were looking at a pair of eyes.

…wait, is the Holy Spirit talking to her?

I….I guess that shouldn't be surprising. I guess gods, no matter what level they are, share a certain kind of wavelength that we lowly humans cannot see nor understand?

It's not farfetched.

"My word….." She muttered, clutching the sash to her chest. Her eyes looked like they were about to cry. Hina turned to me, now looking at me in a different light. "….it brings me no end of joy to receive this from you, kind human. If I were to wear this, then my dear husband will no longer have to suffer in my presence anymore. We can finally be together without him suffering in my expense. He can finally be free of my misfortune…..but why? What made me worthy of such kindness?"

Oh dear….

….she blatantly told me she's married—her status as a wife to a human is not even public knowledge yet, and that clues me on certain things immediately.

But I need to confirm it.

"What did the Holy Spirit tell you?" I asked in a soft voice.

She bowed, looking at the sash in her hands with great reverence, "This sash shall prevent the misfortune I gather from escaping while still leaving me able to absorb them. They have told me that you are also aware of my union to my Daichi, and that you created this in order to end his suffering for our sakes. I must ask, how have you come to know something he and I have been doing our very hardest to keep secret?"

Ah, I see.

So the Holy Spirit told her everything but not all of it. She kept my omniscience classified, hence why she doesn't know how I found out about her relationship with Boss.

I place a half-curled hand to my chest, not meeting her eyes. "For the sake of my own safety, I cannot answer your question. But my intentions are clear and unhidden, for what the Holy Spirit tells you is true and undeniable. I do this for the sake of a union as sacred as the one you share with your husband. In addition, I shall swear to keep your secret classified unless you will it otherwise."

She was silent, hugging the sash to her chest tenderly. For several moments, I simply stared at her and admired the way she looks like she should be put in a portrait, especially with the kind of background she has behind her.

As she opened her eyes, she said to me softly, "I don't know how I can repay you, kind human."

I firmly shook my head. "Instead of paying my kindness back, you shall pay it forward to the next person who shall need it, for I take no pleasure in having someone under my debt, especially a Misfortune Goddess like you. If I ever desire for a reward, you will not be the one worthy of giving it to me."

It's blunt to say such a thing but it's the truth. Only God can reward me for this. I want absolutely nothing from her. My paranoia keeps me thinking anything I receive from her will only lead me to hell due to Misfortune. Besides, the fuzzies in my chest is starting to get a little bothersome.

She now began to weave it around her right arm, delicately and methodically, so much that I actually took pleasure in just watching her do it due to the really elegant movement of her fingers.

Once it was secure, she did one ballerina spin and released a euphoric sigh. As she opened her eyes, she looked at both her hands, curling them in and out for some reason. Doing so for a few seconds, an angelic smile formed on her face before she began spinning again.

I always wanted to see Hina do her iconic spin for real, and now I marvel in every second of it. Literally stood on the tip of her right boot, she never so much as moved as a single inch, her skirt flaring magnificently, her sashes tied to her arms and her hair trailed very stylishly due to the angles she were managing.

It's almost like she's ribbon dancing. She's even making them spiral in their flight as well. The only bummer here is that there's no accompanying music. It would have been awesome.

For nearly 5 minutes, she was spinning and spinning, bringing me no end of satisfaction to her performance. When it was over, she gently slowed down to a stop. Only when the momentum was gone did she place her left boot down.

No dizziness and no exhaustion whatsoever when she spoke again, "Tell me your name, kind human."

My back straightened reflexively, "Emmanuello." Not like boss ever knew my full name so this is safe even if she tells him about this encounter.

She nodded sagely, "All of your misfortunes and your future hardships shall be entrusted to me. Go in peace, Emmanuello, and know only happiness for the rest of your days."

Immense warmth overcame my chest, and I bowed in the most revering way possible before I turned around and walked away, trying not to cry.

The ultimate bummer here is that after this, I'm gonna start torturing Bunta's friends.

So much for future hardships being taken away from me when I wanted to come home with a healing heart, but it beats being used as Moriya Shrine's tool any day.

Now to have a talk with Bunta and then send him and Wriggle home.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

Eman ran. And that was all he did. Heart beating rapidly. The adrenaline made his body move too fast. His face sweated endlessly, cold from the fear and panic running through his system.

He fell to illusions that led him deeper into the forest instead of outside of it. He ran into the claws of other Youkai and suffered harsh bruises when his enchanted shirt protected him from grievous lacerations. When he was pinned on the ground, he resorted to biting the nose off the female Youkai atop him before he could resume to running away.

Eventually, he was surrounded and mending a large cut on his left forearm, spilling all of the delicious hermit blood on the soil and to the air that nearly drove every Youkai around him into a frenzy. They leered, drooled and sneered at the easy prey in their hands, all 16 of them unwilling to share, deeming that only one can take the next climb in the power hierarchy among Youkai.

The only likely outcome is his body being shredded and ripped apart as they fought over every tiny piece and drop of his body and blood while some of the Youkai won't be lucky enough to survive those stronger than them.

Then his entire demeanor changed.

"WAIT!"

A guttural shout, full of demand and ferocity, heavily contradicting the fleeing and bleeding prey he should be, made all belligerent shouting and roaring come to an immediate halt.

All Youkai eyes went wide open, caught off-guard by the Outsider's change in stance, and they watched as his bleeding forearm suddenly clotted in a half second, followed by a straightened posture and a formal request, steady and calm rather than the shaky and panicked intonation from earlier, "Let us settle this via the Spell Card Rules."

The Youkai looked in confusion amongst themselves, wondering if what they're seeing is even happening.

"If I win, all of you will never hunt for my body and blood ever again. If I lose, you will gain the chance to hunt me down the next day."

The conditions were fair, and inconsequential as well. Even if it leaves them unsatisfied despite winning, that only meant they can prepare and plan better in their next hunt. He's giving them a chance instead of making everything in his favor. The essence of fear as well as the fulfillment of their Youkai identity's purposes, the sustenance of all Youkai, is basically handed down to them each time they win. In every hunt, they will feast on his fear as he attempts to elude them, enact their role as a Youkai at the same time, and do so again and again until he either wins or loses the will to fight.

A truly impartial and beneficial reason to accept and spare this Outsider.

Then someone laughed. A heavy majority of the Youkai were inclined to the idea of accepting his terms, but a lone member of their impromptu hunting pack seemed to have otherwise ideas.

It was the same Youkai woman whose nose was once bitten off. The injury has long since healed and her bloodlust could be felt like a knife hidden in her sleeves.

"Are you listening to yourself, Outsider!?" The she-Youkai jeered, looking over her temporary hunting party, "And what the hell are all of you looking like you were about to agree!? Are you seriously letting this one chance to be greater than the Sages go free!?"

Opinions and preferred options suddenly began warping, the scent of delectable Holy Blood and Hermit flesh as well as the seat in the highest place of the power hierarchy now tempting to pass up.

Self-preservation as well as rationality began to lose relevance in a blink of an eye.

"You call yourselves Youkai!? This thing here is an Outsider! No one is gonna give a shit if one dies! We've been eating them for decades already! And now you all are suddenly giving him the cultural treatment!? So what if he knows our tradition!? He's nothing! Not even worth keeping as a pet!"

"Then he's mine! I found him first!" Another Youkai, someone of a wide frame and a gigantic pair of jaws, roared out.

"NO! He's mine! Bunta tipped me first!"

"HA! Who gives a fuck about what that traitor does anymore!? He's going to be dead soon, anyway!"

"Then you eat his fat corpse! I'll eat the Outsider!"

"NO! ME!"

"THEN FUCK OFF, ALL OF YOU! I'LL RIP YOUR FUCKING HEAD OFF IF YOU TAKE EVEN A NIP OF HIM BEFORE I DO!"

"I DARE YOU TO FUCKING TRY!"

"GGRRRRRRGGHHHH!"

"RRAAAAAAAGGHH!"

Their heated discussion quickly devolved into an animalistic competition, flaring out intimidation displays as well as deeply demonic growls that literally shook the ground, momentarily forgetting the human in the literal center of it all.

He was very still, firmly sticking out compared to the frantic Youkai around him.

Eventually, the fiery exchange of might and presence toned down, growls and threat displays simmering to a tranquil but no less unnerving level. Their attention slowly moved from each other to their prey.

Teeth and claws were bare, drool and bloodlust made tangible with very little movement.

"His head's mine."

"I call his arms."

"His lungs and heart's mine."

"I'll take his skin and blood."

"Legs….."

"I want his thighs. Ya can't hog all of 'em…."

As they continued calling for their individual claims, Eman's eyes became shadowed under his fringes, and silent tears flowed out of them.

They weren't easily seen as the sudden rise of the summer heat evaporated them from existence, evidence of immense sorrow and despair forever lost.

Right after, Bunta will soon find out that his suffering in the Bamboo Forest had been the most merciful of tortures he ever experienced.

[Then die.]

For the second time, wildfires erupt in Gensokyo and the screams resounded from all living things.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

Her head whipped to the direction of the sudden flash of light and intense wave of heat below the mountain, the tail of her grey and white hair unable to catch up to the neck-snapping speed of her turn, the burns she suffered from that accursed human witch's colorful laser somehow forgotten.

Her legs moved before she even began pondering over the options of risking another encounter with the witch or seeing her owner again, her bare grey feet gracefully landing step after step on the silver strings and leapt unto the trampoline-like netting before taking off to the air and spreading out all 8 arms, the flexible fabric in-between her appendages carrying her lithe form like a flying squirrel over burnt trees and eventually reaching the edge of Youkai Mountain.

Her waist sash trailed behind her as well as the tail of her short grey and white hair, the altitude of her flight still causing her body to quiver in chills despite rapidly descending down to the heated soil, she kept her eyes on the burning forest, hoping to catch even the scent of the person she had been looking for ever since finding out about his presence here.

Her face crinkled distastefully. So much of the forest was destroyed, almost an entire kilometer wide circle singed black and blazing yellow, exhuming smoke to the air.

She angled her flight path and aimed to somewhere far away from the carbon monoxide as well as the heat. She may be skilled, and comprised of the others she ate, but her weaknesses are still the same.

Letting go of the wing fabric, all 8 arms latched onto the nearest branch and swung her light body to the next tree's trunk. Climbing up to the highest point, she stuck her head out of the tree's shrubs and got comfortable, chewing on a new clump of strings, a pair of arms weaving elastic nylon together to create portable slingshot while keeping her eyes trained on the forest fires, barely hearing the tortured screams.

Her eyes caught the sight of the witch and a blue-white priestess approaching the blaze.

She growled, bits of chewed silver leaking out through the gaps of her teeth like shining saliva. Of course, those two meddlers would be there. The one time he was certain of a trail that led to her owner, they suddenly blew her to the ground with a stupid rainbow laser.

They didn't even give her a chance to notice them…..

{Putangina!}

Her third pair of arms lashed out to the side and the tree she sat on suddenly became a perfectly proportional slingshot with her seated on the right pole, all intrusive branches cleanly cut by invisible strings and falling to the ground, awaiting the elastic band to make it complete.

She spent the next few minutes angrily biting on her silver strings and making unnecessarily lethal strands with the sharpness of a razor.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

The Boundary of Gensokyo is non-Euclidean, which means no matter how far one would walk past it, they never went any further than the point they started.

With the power of the Holy Spirit, Emurdol created a perfect carbon copy of that boundary in a 1-kilometer radius, skipping the enumerable set of steps that were taken to create the dimension that is Gensokyo and not needing the collaboration of hundreds of both Youkai and humans.

His hunters were trapped, enclosed in an invisible dome they couldn't break free out of. There were three explosions, and the first one harmlessly blew them all away from him. The second one vaporized anything around him in a 3-meter radius, sending an enormous wave of heat outwards and disguising the Holy Orb flying to the sky that shall create the minor dimension as well as send every innocent in a one-kilometer radius near him be thrown outside of it safely.

As the third explosion erupted, there was nothing but an emulation of the Burning Hells. Anguish, screaming, suffering, and despair.

This time, there was no restraint compared to the one at Youkai Mountain, where he had to keep collateral damage to the minimum and avoid drawing the full attention of Moriya Shrine and the Tengu. Smoke, heat, flames and ash was all that existed, and the blaze went out of control very quickly, slowly encroaching on the fleeing Youkai like a flow of lava.

Everywhere in a 200-meter radius now reduced to a pile of charcoal, Eman unsheathed his heating machete and walked to the first target. Slowly. The blaze followed close behind him like a marching army following the general. He doesn't need to bother chasing them. Even if they run, it's no use. Even if they fight back, it changes nothing. They will still suffer. The encroaching blaze will still kill them. They will all know the feeling of being helpless, just as he had.

His first target was a spindly thin Youkai, one with long fingers and a deformed spine. Its entire lower half was gone, likely burnt off or decimated by the shockwave. And he mercilessly hacked its stick-like body to pieces upon reaching it, striking in every angle conceivable to cause as much pain as possible instead of immediate dismemberment, splattering his vest and shirt with blood.

No Youkai could ever die to an unimbued weapon, but if left immobilized and incapable of any movement, it will inevitably be scorched to hell in a matter of seconds. And there is nothing it could do to get away.

And Eman made sure his victim is aware of that by not granting him the mercy of death and left him on the soil as feed to the flames, his tortured and agonized screams resounding loudly a few seconds later.

The silence that came after horrified Eman, so he quickened his steps to find the next victim and make their screams fill the silent void in his head, lest he be driven to the brink of madness.

And he quickly found that wide-framed Youkai, the same one who called for his head and lacerated his forearm. He was frantic and clumsy in his escape, constantly tripping and hitting a tree.

At some point, he hit the Boundary of the minor dimension, and Eman did his best not to comprehend how somebody, despite running so fast and reaching a far distance, could not have gone anywhere except Eman himself just getting closer and closer as he walked towards his sprinting target.

The machete drove through his right kidney, and Eman eviscerated the fat Youkai by ripping his weapon sideways, essentially gutting his victim from the right side. More of his front as well as half his entire right arm was now coated with blood.

Elmo's four hands emerged out of the Outsider's back and they picked up the Youkai by his four extremities and he widened the opening on his victim's gut all the way to the other side before he was hung belly down, his guts and blood spilling freely to the increasingly heating soil like a visceral waterfall.

Without ceremony, he was thrown over the shoulder like a piece of garbage, his intestines trailing after him, and the blaze scorched his feet and his spilled guts before the rest of him was slowly burnt to a crisp. His lung and heart the only part of him that was spared from exiting his body, he was left with the privilege to scream while uselessly trying to crawl away before the eventual silence signified his end.

There were a certain number of Youkai trying to escape using Flight, but to Eman's eyes, it looked like they were just floating still, the Boundary giving them false hope.

The Hundred Arms streaked out of his body and grabbed every single one of them before they were pulled towards the blaze and hung over the inferno.

The feeling of being cooked like a deer on a spit was exactly how they imagined Hell to be, and their screams were immensely louder thanks to their numbers. They writhed and struggled against the appendages holding them, suffering innumerable 4th degree burns in their efforts, but the Hundred Arms were rock-solid, unbreakable and immovable.

The last one to fall silent was a female, and her steadily rising pitch sent chills across Eman's spine, furthering the terror and horror going through his head.

What was happening to him? Why is he doing this? Why is he causing so much agony that he thought was never capable of? Why is he enjoying it? Isn't this wrong? Isn't this twisted? If it's so wrong, why is he still doing it? Why won't he stop? Why is he letting it continue? Why is he focusing on their screams?

Why?

He didn't dwell on it, and his mindset shifted, now opting to make things quick. Enough is enough. No more torture. This is going too far. If he continues this, he would only cause irreparable damage to his mental state. It will lead to horrible outcomes. It would hurt his friends. It would hurt him. It would hurt Reimu.

His murder instinct eroding under his rising terror, the fighter instinct taking its place to give him stability, he began to sprint, seeking out the last targets.

In time before the blaze already neared the edge of the Boundary, he had the remaining four Youkai suffering only 5 seconds of searing pain before they were decapitated or dismembered and cornered the one target he saved for last.

The Youkai woman whose nose he bit off. The same one who turned everything to the worst for her temporary Youkai allies. The only one to not could have known better and considered the challenge of a Spell Card Fight that could have spared them all from this Hell.

Eman had no reservations for the anger he felt towards her. He felt exhilaration and fear over the suffering of the other ones. However, her suffering would bring him only the reprieve he had been seeking ever since this Hell began.

And he granted her the mercy of escaping the Boundary while her legs were severed, trying to crawl away from him.

He had her dismembered legs in Elmo's hands, being burnt to the bone and making sure she could smell her own flesh being incinerated to nothing, a prelude as to what's going to happen next.

And he didn't give her the chance to think about it. Elmo's hands pulled her to his proximity and the same pair of arms that reduced her legs to ashes flipped her over, and he was suddenly gripping her neck, straddling her abdomen and roaring at her face.

Eman's arms flailed wildly, disregarding form and finesse. He threw his entire body weight in every swing, his hands set alight with Hellfire and reducing her face to a quintessential mess, splattering the soil beneath her with a darkening shade of red as it quickly dried under the heat.

Punch; slap; backhand; chop; claw—they were all he can do, and that's what he did. Her eyes were the first to fly out or crumble, and her jaw was next. When her jaw was disconnected, leaving her mouth wide open, her tongue became a primary target, mutilating the inside of her mouth to the point of no return and shattering the lower jaw to bloody pieces. He even held her head and smashed it against the ground a dozen times, expunging traces of brain matter out before proceeding to hammering her entire face even further inwards with his Eagle Glove.

His knuckles now protected from being skinned and lacerated from the bone fragments as well as the teeth, it took no time before his entire leather-covered and bloodstained fist was firmly jammed inside her head, every detail that describes a face and a skull no longer existent, now hollow and empty.

Upon near expiration, her body suddenly became enveloped with thousands upon thousands of needle-thin strands of Holy Energy that snaked out of Eman's body, hiding all that's left of her in a shiny white cocoon before deforming into a tiny little orb, hidden inside the fist that used to be inside her skull.

This was the ultimate mercy he had in store for his murderers, and he was satisfied. In the end, he managed to keep his head leveled enough to seal all of them upon near death despite nearly falling down the deep end of his sanity.

His tears freely falling down his blood stained cheeks, making the floating ashes stick to his face as well, the weight of his actions now coming to realization, he raised his bloodied, leather-covered fist in the air, the Youkai woman's sealed soul held inside, he swung it back down to the ground, thumping the bloodied soil.

And the Holy Orb that floated above the center of the Boundary flashed once, essentially erasing the Non-Euclidean geometry of the dimension and wiping out every source of heat in the vicinity, the temperature upon demolition reaching sub-zero levels.

After a few short seconds, the 11 other Holy Orbs that contained the souls of his other victims converged to his right fist, and he uncurled his fingers, letting them revolve all over his hand like tiny little colorful planets.

He whipped his hand against his pocket and the Holy Spirit sent their souls to individual pebbles he kept in his pocket the whole time, keeping them secured there until he takes them to the Place of Worship.

And when he does, the day is finally over.

….…..

….…..…..…..

…..…..…..…..…..…..…..

Eventually, after dozens of seconds spent staring at the patch of blood underneath his face, the steady fall of tear drops became a broken dam, his shoulders hitching in each hiccup and he released a wailing cry through gritted teeth, not wanting to sound like a crybaby but still needing to release his anguish in some way.

The full extent of his actions coming to his awareness were too heavy to bear, and his conscience couldn't withstand the immense guilt as well as the self-loathing coming down on him. He tried so hard to think it was justified—that they deserved it. They intended to kill him. They rejected the Spell Card System. It was either them or him. They had it coming.

But his mind couldn't take the easy way out. It all fell to an irrational and misguided conclusion that lingered in his head: he was a twisted psychopath that delighted in the prolonged screams of his victims.

In his outrage, he slammed his fists pathetically against the ground, flailing like a child, and he finally opened his mouth, keeping his forehead on the soil as he released a hoarse roar, causing a migraine to erupt in his head.

When it struck, he fell silent and quickly cradled his head, kneading the temples, soothing the harsh aching.

….…..

….…..…..…..

….…..…..…..…..…..

Slowly, the pain went away, allowing his composure to build itself back up and the tears eventually stopped flowing down his face. He wiped his wet face with the underside of his shirt, leaving it stained with the ashes that smudged his face the whole time.

For a moment, he acknowledged the success of his task, throwing the mental turmoil outside his awareness, and then he began thinking of the next agenda for the coming weekend. And that is to seek out the other Youkai that are still actively hunting him.

[Myouren Temple….] He muttered his next destination, thinking of the Abbess and her entourage. For a moment, he would like to have a chat with the kindly old monk.

Then he thought of the Youkai that attend her sermons. The ones who still continue to attack humans without any thought of the consequences. The ones who will lose their minds the sooner they found out he exists. They are the next targets.

If they repeat the same thing that Youkai woman did, disregarding the rules and throwing away caution to the air like a fucking idiot, he will….

….he will—

"Hey, brah!"

His stare snapped back up, shooting a scathing glare at whoever was yelling at him so suddenly.

"Sup! It's me! Yer favorite magician friend, Kirisame Marisa-da ze! Nice arm, by the way!"

That oversized hat above that tiny body. That shiny and wavy golden hair along with that cute but infuriating smile that gets on his nerves every time there was something stupid being planned behind it. And especially that broom. That stupid flying broom.

He sighed, smiling lightly and the darkness that was overcoming him suddenly didn't matter anymore. [Marisa. I missed you.] He said softly.

"Shucks!" Marisa smiled brightly, flying downwards and hopping off her broom before squatting to his level. "Were ya gettin' lonely without seein' me again for a while? Don' worry, brah! I ain't goin' anywhere! Big sister will always be around!"

Suddenly, all of his guilt was swept away in the presence of the friend he needed the most by his side. All the horrible things he's done are now fully justified, his brighter state of mind allowing him to see things clearly.

He didn't kill them. They were tortured and suffered horrifying ends, but it was the same price Bunta paid for rejecting his challenge of Fair Play. Their suffering is shared and wrought by their own actions, and he also saved a Boar Youkai from being hunted down by them. He saved a friend from being murdered. That was what mattered most.

Their fates are not dismal. They are with the Holy Spirit now, and it is far beyond what they deserved for even trying to kill him.

As of now, they are not his problem anymore. Whether he should unseal them or not in the near future is a faraway concern.

"By the way, brah, d'ya notice yer eyes turnin' black a couple seconds ago?"

His eyes widened, and he looked at his leather palm, wondering why he thought it was going to show a reflection of his face. Frowning, he asked her, [Do you think it's happening again?]

"The demon possession thing ya got goin' back in the Mansion a month ago?"

For a brief moment, he shot her an incredulous look. She just referenced it like it's nothing. People suffered at that time, including her.

He sighed. Marisa has too much mental fortitude, even for a human. [Yeah.] He nodded, [It's happening again. But it's fine now, this monster only comes out during my fits and I have full control over it.] His NDE showed it well, considering the number of Solomon's demons that are currently housing his body.

"Really?" Marisa turned to the charred forest they were next to, no longer chilly and now sustaining a summer heat temperature. "Then the hell happened here? It looks just like what happened at the library-ze."

[Youkai, Marisa. Fucking Youkai.] His tone had a considerable amount of bite in it, [They bullshitted the Spell Card System and tried to have me killed so they could eat me. Their excuse? I was an Outsider that no one will miss.]

"Riiiight." Her drawl had her usual intonation, but Eman heard a bit of a slightly chilling quality in the undertone. "S'that why ya caved her skull in? What'd ya do to her body? It just….gone."

So she watched him brutalize her earlier, and left him to cry alone. What was she thinking? [Sealed. I sealed her in a rock as well as the other ones with her. And it sounded like you just watched me torture her, and I was even breaking down into a fucking mess when I really really needed somebody to comfort me—why didn't you come sooner!? Why didn't you stop me!?]

"Hey! I was already too late! By the time I found ya, yer hand's already inside her dome-da ze!" She shouted back, shot up to her feet and squaring her stance against him. "I would'a run straight to ya and give ya mah shoulder the sooner I saw ya breakin' down like that but I wasn't sure how'd ya react! Ya just caved somebody's skull in, Eman! Of course I'd be careful! I just waited for ya to calm down on your own before I'd do anything!" Her face grimaced as she looked at him in the eye, "By the way, yer eyes're black again."

Eman was taken aback, his irritation disappearing quickly. He placed one hand over his left eye, unsure if it's still pitch black, and he felt the heat on his palm.

He gritted his teeth, glaring at the ground.

[Marisa…] He gulped, and his fear of his own person began to take over him, [….when you have the chance, stop me before it gets worse. Do not let me get used to this, where I made sure they screamed and suffer instead of making it quick. Do not let what I did to Flandre happen to anyone else.]

There was only silence. Then he heard her dress swishing as she stepped closer, her small hand ruffling his head, "Ain'tcha a self-aware guy. But I hear ya. Yer worried yer gonna be no better than the fucks who're huntin' ya, right?"

He nodded. That pretty much sums up his fear of his willingness to use violence warping whatever good he has in him into something wrong and ungodly.

He wields the power of the Holy Spirit and he cannot have it be handled with a mind as potentially twisted as his own.

"Don't worry, man, I gotcha." And she gripped his locks, roughly shaking his head side to side. "You go bad, I'll just beat ya up. Worked last time."

Eman snorted. She's both right and wrong. She beat him to his senses the first time. The second time was thanks to Meiling kicking his head to the floor.

"So." She walked past him and looked towards Youkai Mountain, "That kilometer-wide black zone up there, there in Youkai Mountain, was that you?"

[Yeeep.] He grunted as he shakily rose up to his feet, stretching his hands up to the air. [It was a clean fight, under the Spell Card System. I was up against a Boar Youkai.]

"Oh? Did ya win?"

[Mmhmm. He and I are friends now.] Usually how it worked around Gensokyo. [Had to blow it all to hell though, his last Spell Card could've done me in.]

"And right in the Tengu's backyard-ze! Yer a fuckin' mad bomber, dude!"

[Hello, Pot, my name is Kettle.] He grouched, picking up his machete but not sheathing it. [If it was you, you'd blow 10 kilometers of green to Hell with that fuckin' laser of yours.]

She looked at him over his shoulder with a bright smile, "And ya can't beat that-da ze!" Then she looked around the sky, seemingly looking for something in particular. "Although, why were ya up there in the first place?"

[Had some business to deal with.] He thought of the Youkai he sealed in the rocks inside his pocket, and he silently growled. Then he thought of the next targets, making him click his tongue. [The Youkai hunting me being one of 'em. Ask Reimu about the details and you'll understand.]

"Wait, what!?" She shot him a betrayed look, "You guys been plottin' agendas and shit and ya didn't even invite me!? The hell!? I thought we're supposed to be best friends!"

[We are, ya piece of shit!] He swung the machete on her head, and she only leaned her head back. [And stop acting like you don't know what's going on, aren't ya sent by Reimu to accompany me hours ago?]

Marisa swung her broom towards his head, which he blocked by holding up his leather-covered arm as if he was answering a telephone. "Well, yeah, she said somethin' like that but all she said was that I gotta keep the folks at Moriya Shrine busy so that's all I did! I thought ya were gonna come over or somethin'-ze."

Moriya Shrine. The mention itself caused a small fire to flicker inside him, and since his friend is here, he might as well vent out his thoughts regarding them. It's a senseless action, and he knows it. All done for the sake of his own satisfaction by relieving the stress. [Well, thanks. I mean seriously, like, thank you for doing just that. I really really appreciate it.]

"Um, dude? Ya okay?" Marisa was thrown off. His gratitude was sincere and childlike, but the sudden pitch-black of his eyes, the reddening of his skin as well as the growing heat coming out of his person that indicated an unstable emotional state didn't mix well.

[Just so you know, I was fucking horrified when I got there in the Cable Car. You have no idea how scared I was. What they're gonna do to me, what they will do to me—you just saved my fucking life! They exploited the miracles of…..of….! GGGGRRRRRRRAAAGGHH! THEY COULD ALL JUST DIIIIIIEEEE!‼]

And his form suddenly combusted, forcing Marisa to shield herself from the wave of heat that swept over her before she turned back to face him, immolating and the black in his eyes remaining.

As he did a full-body sigh, a short burst of fire flowing out of his mouth, the flames went away and he moved to sheathe his blade, the black in his eyes beginning to lighten and regaining the white of his sclerae. [Let's go home, Marisa. I'm hungry—]

For the first time in a while, Marisa freaked out.

From out of nowhere, he was suddenly bombarded by a hail of danmaku.

"Away, demon!" A bombastic shout hollered from the sky, drawing Marisa's attention to the Third Goddess of Moriya Shrine afloat in the air and a geometric rune alight behind her. "How was that for a surprise attack, Marisa!?"

"Sa-Sanae!?" Her head snapped to look at the fallen form of Eman, writhing and cradling his left forearm. Worry overtook her as well as a sudden rise of anger, something that surprised even herself, "The hell!? What'd ya do that for!?"

"He was about to attack you, didn't he!? And I saw his black eyes! Eman-san's been possessed by a demon! Somebody else is inhabiting his body and controlling his movements! Look at all the blood on him! We gotta beat the evil spirit out of him!"

"What!? NO!" She glanced at Eman before she pointed at him, speaking incredulously, "Does that look possessed to….."

Immense heat.

Demonic growls.

Pitch black eyes.

Reddening skin.

Black smoke.

Plant life combusting out of nowhere.

And his attention was planted on the Shrine Maiden.

Marisa was already flying towards Sanae before her mind caught up to her movements, and when she had her arm slamming across the Human Goddess' abdomen, blowing out her oxygen, she flew as far away as possible before—

Heat and light. That was all she acknowledged that happened behind her.

The following shockwave was powerful enough to blow her off her broom and lose her grip on Sanae. What saved her organs from erupting on the inside as well as keeping her bones intact as she crashed through numerous branches were the enchantments she activated on her body, powered by the artifact inside her pocket.

It was a miracle she managed to land on her bum instead of her head despite flipping numerous times in her crash through the trees. But she didn't waste time to get back up to her feet and summon her broom back to her hand.

She could hear Sanae's voice from above, shouting some more grandiose lines she's been practicing for a while. Good. She managed to keep herself afloat. But Marisa is conflicted whether he should tell her to run away or stay and fight.

By attacking Eman without warning, Sanae basically threw a firecracker into a barrel of gunpowder. One instance in the Scarlet Devil Mansion when Remilia left him alone for the whole day only to do a dick move and attack him in his sleep, half the mansion was caught on fire in retaliation.

He rejected the Spell Card System that time. It's safer to assume he's rejecting it now.

Sanae runs away, he'll chase her down to the other side of Gensokyo, burning anyone and anything along the way, no matter who or what it is.

Sanae stays, she'll potentially suffer fatal injuries that the Spell Card System could have regulated.

Marisa sighed. Looks like the heavy lifting is up to her again. It's almost like she's built for the job of beating him to his senses.

Hopping on to her broom and flying through the opening she made from her fall, she muttered a dull promise, "Time ta put ya back ta normal again, dude."

From the greying color of the sky, a rain's about to come. Too much fire, it seems.

~~~~~ « ҉ » ~~~~~

What was supposed to be the comforting presence of God in the shape of a pillar of light that shines in the darkness of night as He guided the Israelites to the Promised Land has instead become a symbolic representation of wrath.

A fiery twister. While mercifully the size of 4 logs clumped together, it is no less dangerous and harmful. Its heat could reach as far as half a kilometer away, and it's pursuing Sanae.

The fireballs shot from it that should be thrown in random directions were aimed primarily at the Human Goddess, and every evasion she did sent whatever was behind her to oblivion, plants, animals, and any unlucky bystander incinerated to hell.

She looked on in horror, appalled at the damage that was happening, and that was a fatal mistake, distracted from the imminent threat that's targeting her and would have suffered a grisly death under the fury of a single fireball just like the Youkai that hunted him if it weren't for Marisa pushing her out of the way.

And as suddenly as it arrived, the fiery twister disappeared, leaving behind a blazing and smoking massacre.

Then a tap resounded atop Marisa's hat. Followed by another. And another. The taps quickly became rapid. Eventually, her headwear began to sag, the fabric getting wet.

The immense heat of the fire was quickly replaced by a comforting and relieving chill.

"Rain…..?" Sanae's confused mutter matched the sudden change of the atmosphere, from a harsh struggle to a jarring calm. The tension, however, didn't leave. She nursed a 1st degree burn on her right forearm, an attempted graze on a single fireball nearly scorching her entire right side.

"Great." Marisa griped, taking her hat off and removing the bow on her braid before fashioning her hair into a ponytail. "Now'm gonna come home wet, and we still can't find'm anywhere-da ze."

Multiple Master Sparks had been blasted several times at the twister under the assumption that Eman was inside, protecting himself inside a cocoon of hellfire. Despite her efforts, it didn't do anything to lessen the intensity. She still doesn't even know where he is, even when she kept her eyes on the foot of the twister before it disappeared.

"Stay here. I'm gonna look for'm." Putting her hat back on, Marisa quickly dived down, expecting to find him sat against a tree and incapable of casting fire thanks to the amount of rain that's pouring down. It's actually very heavy, the splatter of every rain drop on the soil as well as the hissing of burning embers being doused near-deafening to the ears. With this amount of water, a flood is a possibility.

Her feet now placed on the ground, she held up the front rim of her sagging hat, trying to see if he's anywhere nearby, especially at the foot of the twister. It happened to be easier said than done, as tremendous amounts of steam are still filling up the air, obstructing her view by only a hand's reach in front of her.

She stood still, awaiting for clearer visibility while still keeping her guard up, her grip on her broom tight enough to turn her knuckles white while her eyes gazed attentively for any sort of anomaly in the white haze.

After several minutes, all of the steam near the earth are now in the air, flying to further parts of Gensokyo like an encroaching fog, granting Marisa full clarity of everything around her.

And Eman was actually right in front of her, steaming like a wet hot stone and sat against the foot of a burnt tree at a few meters away, most of the crusted blood on his wardrobe and face washed away.

From what she could see, his eyes have returned to normal and he looked quite defeated. He seemed to be pouting too.

She snorted, smiling as she relaxed her body and quickly approached him. Though, she took steady steps once she was just a meter away from him, gauging his reactions. Once she was literally right next to him did she finally let her caution go and jabbed his leather-covered arm, half-shouting just to be heard past the downpour, "Hey, brah, look! It's yer favorite weather!"

He minimally turned his head to look at her before staring into space again. His right hand moved to carefully pick up his left arm lying on the ground next to him and rest it on his lap as if it was about to come off.

The purple coloring on the forearm did not look healthy, especially with the way the middle was bulging.

The last of what Marisa saw from Eman after he was bombarded, he was cradling the same arm as well….

"Oh shit." She muttered, now feeling sorry for the one responsible. Sanae is definitely going to smash her face to the soil a thousand times in her dogeza the sooner she sees this. The screaming and yelling Eman's gonna do to her. She moved to rip a piece of fabric from her skirt, fashioning it into an arm sling. "Here, this'll help ya."

He compliantly leaned forward to allow the loop around his back, and she was extra careful with handling his arm, watching his reactions in case she touched something she shouldn't.

Lastly adjusting the knot above his shoulder, she leaned back and asked him, "How is it?"

He moved his right arm and held it out to her, as if asking her to hold it. She did so and squeezed it tight, shaking it with a smile before she grabbed the hoody of his vest and put it over his head, momentarily giving his face shelter from the downpour.

She rose up to her feet, suppressing a shudder from rolling across her whole body. The rain is starting to get chilly now. "Don't know 'bout you, brah, but I ain't gonna stick around here and freeze ta death. Why don't we go back to yer place and get some ice on that arm, eh?"

He looked up to her for a few seconds before lowering his gaze, holding out an elbow to her. She looped her arm around it and gently pulled him up, the Outsider placing a knee beneath him before Eman shakily rose up to full height.

Marisa readied up her broom, taking a seat on the forefront and leaving ample space behind her for him—

"Ah, Marisa! There you are!"

Heat. Abrupt heat amidst the cold rain.

Horror overtook Marisa. How could she forget?

"I've been waiting just like you told me but you were taking too long! And the winds were getting crazy! Just what were you doin—"

"RUN!"

Marisa managed to scream it out before she was dislodged off the broom as Eman barreled through it, charging Sanae in speeds that weren't possible without a running start. The Human Goddess reacted before her mind caught up to her actions, already flying upwards to the air, but she didn't fly high enough, and Eman was a 6-foot-tall giant compared to the two of them.

A leather hand caught her foot and the Outsider leveraged his entire body weight to bring her down.

In a rough landing that made the growing puddles disperse everywhere, Sanae yelped as her back met the ground. She quickly moved to rise up, and was easily pushed back down, her windpipe closed shut as the same leather hand gripped her throat.

Before her widened and alarmed eyes, she was face to face with the black-eyed demon she was supposedly fighting. Without a stop for breath, growing stronger by every passing second, the heat beginning to be noticeable, the skin of her throat being burnt under his hand, the Outsider roared so loudly it rattled the inside of her skull.

As she scalded her own palms by grabbing at the Eagle Glove grasping her throat, the demon released her, leaned back and raised his fist high above him, rearing back to cave her skull in, the demonic frequency of his screams reaching extreme heights—

"«MINI-SPARK»!"

Another blindsiding attack struck him from behind, a rainbow laser blasting him off her.

Immediately, Sanae coughed and rolled to her front, avoiding any more rain drops from falling inside her mouth and expelling the ones currently inside her throat before taking in precious oxygen, the terrified and pained tears flowing out of her eyes unseen in the downpour.

A strong presence and a comforting hand patting her back arrived beside her, "You alright?"

Sanae found herself leaning to the Ordinary Magician's side before she realized it, desperate for security and protection, feeling ever so grateful that she's with one of the Strongest Fighters of Gensokyo.

[GGGRRRRRRRGGHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAA!‼!‼!‼!‼!‼]

With a fierce look, Marisa shot another Mini Spark at the ground in front of the Outsider. The man himself barely flinched, stood up but hunched over in pain from the laser and steaming more intensely than before, exhuming a massive white pillar to the sky, and the dark eyes in his sockets does not bode well.

"BACK THE FUCK OFF, EMAN!" Marisa roared at him, now rejecting the possibility of this ending without a fight, "IF YA STILL WANNA KEEP THIS BULLSHIT UP, THEN I'LL TAKE YA UP FOR IT UNTIL YA BLEED FROM THE FUCKING MOUTH!"

Eman's face that was scrunched up in fury scrunched up even further, wrinkle lines appearing innumerably on the red flesh and warping his face into something that was not human, growling demonically.

Marisa steeled herself, putting herself in front of Sanae, preparing her biggest spells—

He suddenly keeled over, grabbing at his abdomen and falling to his knees. Past the deafening roars of the rain, she heard him coughing and there was a splatter of red on the soil that came out of his mouth before it was immediately washed away.

An out-of-place concern suddenly filled Marisa's mind. "Dude—"

[Get her out!]

Marisa flinched at the human quality of tone that came out of him. "What? What!?"

[GET HER OUT OF HERE!] He bellowed as he looked back up to her. The pitch-black eyes were still there, but his face was human again. The pain on his face couldn't be ignored. She wasn't sure if it's because he's fighting for control against the monster in him or it's because of the internal bleeding. [SHE'S HURT! AND THIS STORM IS GOING TO GET WORSE FROM HERE! TAKE HER TO MY HOUSE! IT'S CLOSER! GO!]

"Wha…." Conflicted, Marisa looked at Sanae behind her, who was bewildered at the turn of events, before she faced him again, "BUT WHAT ABOUT YOU!? COME ON! WE'RE GETTING OUTTA HERE!"

[NO! LEAVE ME!] He paused, hacking out an even bigger splatter of red on the soil, [I'll catch up!]

Marisa was outraged and exasperated, "I AM NOT LEAVING YA HERE! EVEN IF YOU WALK ALL THE WAY, YER TIRED, YER BLEEDIN' ON THE INSIDE AND YA GOT A FUCKED ARM! YER NOT GONNA MAKE IT!"

[LEEAAAAVE! MEEE! NOW!] The demon was coming back. His face is warping again, [IF I SEE HER AGAIN, I'LL TRY TO KILL HER AND EVERYTHING'S JUST GONNA START ALL OVER! NOW GO!]

Marisa growled, overwhelmed and frustrated, suddenly stomping the ground before she readied her broom and pulled Sanae to it. As she began to float, she promised him, "I'LL BE BACK, ALRIGHT!? JUST WAIT THERE!"

With that, she quickly disappeared from sight.

Now he's left alone in the rain with a broken left forearm and multiple organs bleeding.

…..…..…..

…..…..…..…..…..

…..…..…..…..…..…..…..…..

He looked up to the skies, managing for a half-second before the water forced his eyes to close, letting their stinging touch overwhelm him with a sense of contentment that his body was heavily conditioned to ever since he was a boy.

The sound. The smell. The taste.

The beauty of rain.

Sweet…..comforting….soothing…..rain.

Now experiencing euphoria in this ideal weather and quiet, Eman fell on his right side and lost consciousness, unable to fully immerse himself in the comforts of the isolation for a lot longer.

For a while, the silence of the hard rain as well as the rising puddle was all that's ongoing. Static and unchanging, jarringly peaceful despite the growing intensity of the storm. The charred forest and the scorched earth were slowly falling apart, crumbling under the weight of the weather and the remains were eventually washed away. A cleansing occurrence, one of Divine make and Human initiative, wrought by the same Holy Orb that was meant to heal the kilometer-wide dead zone up on Youkai Mountain.

By the time tomorrow arrives, the forest will be reborn, all life and green restored to their former glory. Whatever Youkai bystander or innocent animal was caught in the crossfire, they will be brought back as if the disaster never happened in the first place. And they will never even realize it.

The multi-armed woman finally decided to step closer, noting the changes on her owner's body. His broken arm had suddenly snapped itself back into place, and the excruciating pain that lingered on his features now relaxed. A sign of his internal bleeding disappearing thanks to ingesting the rain drops that dripped and fell inside his mouth.

She kept in mind that this rain didn't do anything with the Primary Demon inhabiting him. It wasn't controlling his thoughts or actions, it was basically a human losing his temper, the Evil Spirit was there to ride along, and he never let it go, especially when someone directly involved to the Moriya Shrine was right in front of him and was the one who blindsided him.

While her two lower pair of arms moved to bring him close to herself, his back resting on her raised knee, his head and neck supported by two right hands, the uppermost pair of arms that held up the silver sheet to shield her from the downpour moved to have him under it as well.

With a glowing and warming smile that exhumed bliss, her second upper left arm hugged him very closely and tightly like a lover or a mother to a child. The third left arm brushed aside his locks sticking to his wet face and she leaned close to give him a soft kiss on the lips.

Finally.

And now, she truly felt alive. She, who has been dead ever since the Youkai Sage has wiped out all of her children and left her as a hollow husk of her former self for the last 10 years, has rekindled the fires of life that has been abandoned and cold in her heart for so long.

At this moment, the Orb Weaver who once nested inside a matchbox alongside six others and have searched for her loving owner ever since she was released back into the wild before he disappeared has finally fulfilled her long-lost desire.

And now, her life begins anew with a new purpose, to pay back all the love and care she received from the sweet little boy who loved his animals as if they were his children and has now grown up to be a strong man loved back by the Children of Pride.