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V13 Story II – Part 01

Mayuzumi Azaka has always lived on her own terms.

I never listened to what anyone said.

I lived like a noble, spoiled cat. I never did anything I disliked.

I didn’t eat properly, never ran on my own feet, and whenever I grew bored, I sought out gruesome incidents.

Whenever Odagiri-kun thought back on our days together, he probably felt dejected.

I used him as a shield, stabbed him in the gut, and even exploited his anger.

I treated him like a pawn. Yet he stayed by my side like he had no other choice.

That’s how it has always been. But I alone knew those days wouldn’t last forever.

I believed that one day, when he woke up, I wouldn’t be there by his side—or anywhere else. I had always known this would happen, as sure as the night follows day.

The day would inevitably come when Mayuzumi Azaka and Odagiri Tsutomu would part ways.

He doesn’t try to understand me. I don’t listen to him.

But then again, he didn’t listen to much of what I said either.

We would never see eye to eye. We would always be like parallel lines, never intersecting.

Still, for some reason, we always stood close, side by side.

Odagiri Tsutomu doesn’t try to understand Mayuzumi Azaka. Mayuzumi Azaka doesn’t listen to Odagiri Tsutomu.

Mayuzumi Azaka doesn’t try to understand Odagiri Tsutomu. Odagiri Tsutomu doesn’t listen to Mayuzumi Azaka.

I mocked him from the bottom of my heart.

Yet, I also knew that his foolishness was invaluable.

---

“It’s done, Odagiri. She should stay calm for a while now,” Asato said, releasing my hand.

I glanced down at my abdomen. Underneath the ugly, swollen scar, Uka had settled back into her usual sleep. I was worried about waking her so abruptly, but it seemed she was fine. Letting out a sigh of relief, I surveyed our surroundings.

Desolation stretched out before us. We were still standing on top of a pile of rubble. Despite the destruction of a whole room, the surrounding houses remained silent, their windows tightly shut. This odd reaction was actually good for once.

As we tried to make our way down from the pile of rubble, I collapsed after only a few steps, weakened by blood loss. Wearing a look of exasperation, Asato grabbed my hand again and closed the wound. Without his help, I would have bled to death. In hindsight, unleashing Uka was a reckless decision. At that moment, Asato was so upset he could have easily let me die. But without thinking of the consequences, I reflexively chose to destroy the room—just like when I asked Shirayuki to topple the pine tree at the Saga residence.

I wanted that place gone from this world.

Mayuzumi Azaka was alive. Her funeral was unnecessary. An empty casket was pointless. But the fox had intended to live alone in it. If that was the case, I had no choice but to destroy it.

In the end, I wasn’t sure what made him decide, but Asato had agreed to help. Even though I was the one to suggest it, I still couldn’t fully believe his response. But after declaring his cooperation, Asato sealed my wound, proving he was serious about helping. For the first time, I had a glimmer of hope—hope that I could retrieve Mayuzumi. I clenched my right hand tightly.

It was a thin spider’s thread, but it was a lifeline to hell nonetheless. Except this one was not a means to escape from its depths, but a way to descend into it. Climbing back up along that thread would likely be difficult.

I might be heading straight into hell, but if I hesitated now, I’d lose my resolve.

Shaking my head, I grabbed the bag I’d packed earlier and began descending the rubble. Then, I stopped abruptly. Countless eyes seemed to watch us from all directions. The houses, still silent, were observing our every move. I suddenly realized that the people hiding inside knew about Mayuzumi Asato’s abilities. He could do anything, depending on his will and others’ desires. Those outside were likely terrified that they, too, might be blown to bits like the room. But we had no interest in the main Mayuzumi household. They could stay locked away, letting themselves rot. Ignoring the piercing gazes, I took a step forward. But Asato didn’t follow.

“What’s wrong, Asato? There’s no point in staying here. Let’s go.”

“Leaving isn’t the issue, Odagiri. Where exactly are we going?”

“Huh?”

His question caught me off guard. Now that he mentioned it, I hadn’t thought about our destination. Asato looked at me with a mix of disbelief and impatience.

“I can walk on the surface of the spirit world,” he continued, “but I need a crack to get there. Remember when you and the others turned that neighborhood into the spirit world? A temporary crack formed in a place already prone to connecting to the spirit world. If I remember correctly, I slipped into the spirit world from a corner of a lonely shrine. But now, the space is completely stable. The Mayuzumi household is sealed off. There should still be red petals fluttering around your apartment or my sister’s office, but they must be faint by now. Most cracks would already be sealed. So, what’s your plan, Odagiri? Do you even have a destination in mind?”

“This is a rare alliance we’ve forged. You can wish something from me, I suppose. But remember, my abilities come from the scarlet woman. I wouldn’t recommend using me to open the spirit world unless you’re fine with the enemy knowing our every move. The outcome is obvious.”

Mayuzumi Asato’s eyes gleamed with a fox-like cunning. My breath seized. He was right. I had intended to ask Asato to guide me to the spirit world, but I hadn’t considered the steps needed to get there. It was too late to rethink. I needed to find a usable crack first.

Maybe the gap between the buildings where I last saw Mayuzumi? Red petals should still be gathered there. They might have thinned out, but one or two cracks should still be intact. I frowned as the words I’d heard in that deep, hidden part of the spirit world echoed in my mind.

“Even the ruler of the spirit world doesn’t monitor every nook and cranny of her own womb.”

Some parts of the spirit world were only loosely monitored, while others were heavily guarded. The alley between those buildings had already served as a portal once. Using it again would be risky. We should avoid using the same door twice. I stopped overthinking and looked up. Right now, we needed a place to regroup and figure out our next steps.

“For now, let’s head to my apartment.”

Rumble.

The rubble nearby shifted, catching my attention. The maid was clinging to a broken table. The once immaculate figure who had guided me earlier was now covered in dust. I couldn’t help but stare at her trembling shoulders. Then, without warning, she looked up. Our eyes met. Her face twisted into a fierce scowl. Before I could tell her that I didn’t mean to mock her state, she thrust something toward me. Instinctively, I shielded my head, but when nothing hit me, I opened my eyes. With an irritated look, she handed me a cellphone. I quickly took it and pressed it to my ear.

“It’s been a while, Mr. Odagiri Tsutomu.” A deep voice greeted me. “Uh, I’m not entirely sure what’s going on, but I heard the room was destroyed right after you visited Mayuzumi Asato. What exactly happened?”

“Ah, sorry. It wasn’t destroyed. More like I destroyed it. But wait—this is Sadashita, right?”

“Yes, it’s me. I was in a meeting when I received an urgent call. But the maid’s explanation was a bit vague, so I decided to call you directly.”

“Yeah, sorry, but I did blow up the house.”

“Is that so? How bad is the damage?”

“Well, you can see the sky where the roof used to be. There are no walls left, so I guess it’s pretty much destroyed.”

“That’s a lot of damage. This is a problem. Do you think insurance will cover it?”

“Probably not. It’s hard to classify this as a typical human-caused incident.”

Sadashita sighed at my response. As I listened, I couldn’t help but wonder.

Would he come after me for the damages? Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough savings to even buy a car. The only thing I could sell was my organs. As I wrestled with these thoughts, Sadashita’s tone changed.

“You… used the demon, didn’t you?”

His voice was as sharp as a needle. From his tone, it was clear what he was really concerned about. Not the damage to the room. Sadashita, though from the branch family, was still part of the Mayuzumi clan. He had a deeper understanding than anyone about the supernatural powers of the demon and the fox.