Tokyo Detective Chronicles

As the smoke and dust slowly dissipated.

Fushimi Iori waved her hand to dispel the residual magic, and the whistling, swirling air currents gradually subsided.

He tore off the cloth blocking his view, and his vision gradually cleared.

The tiled corridor in front of us, which was previously dirty but still relatively intact, is now like ruins after a typhoon.

Large sections of white checkered tiles were forcibly peeled off and torn from the wall, leaving exposed cement layers on the wall, with spider web-like cracks extending forward for more than ten meters.

Those hanging ropes and paper pendants that used to hang so densely have now all been snapped in two.

Broken rope ends, shredded paper, and those...arms hanging from the ceiling.

Countless severed arms fell from the ceiling, scattering across the corridor floor.

Some of the arms were neatly severed by sharp blades, while many more were violently torn apart, revealing pale bone fragments and black muscle texture.

"Tsk."

What's truly disgusting is that these severed hands are still wriggling.

Amidst the black blood scattered on the floor, fingers twitched and bent unconsciously, palms opened and closed, and the severed wrist was evenly smeared with black blood on the floor.

Some arms tried to support themselves on their five fingers, crawling forward with their stumps, their fingernails scraping against the tiles with a soft "crackling" sound.

The air was filled with a strong, fishy stench.

Not far in front of him, in the very center of this ruin of severed limbs, knelt a man.

Several ice spears pierced his body, and shadows bound his limbs, pinning him firmly to the spot, unable to move an inch.

Fresh blood gushed out from his pierced wound.

An ice gun, carried by the airflow, hovered less than ten centimeters above the man's forehead.

If Fushimi were willing, he could pierce the other person's brain in an instant.

Fushimi looked down at his hands.

"Time is still too tight... there's simply no chance to practice."

Clearly, he couldn't control the two powers he borrowed from the Tengu and the Yuki-onna very well.

In the instant I sensed the danger, my body instinctively reacted... and I accidentally used too much force.

They made such a big commotion in the narrow passageway.

I wonder if I scared Rina...

Once he fully immersed himself in the ordinary world, Hoshizaki Rina's voice began to slow down and become drawn out.

The time in the two worlds began to diverge, causing the signal to be completely cut off, thus making communication impossible.

But it is enough.

At least it allowed him to recover his vision almost without any loss; otherwise, he might have needed continuous high-energy monitoring and protection to ensure his safety while his eyes were closed.

At the same time, it is impossible to accurately judge the speed of time passing, and there will be big problems if the time of opening eyes is too early or too late.

Fushimi looked at the man he had trapped in front of him. It was clear that this level of sneak attack could not hurt him.

He gripped the axe and walked toward the man who was nailed to the ground.

The axe blade was pressed against the man's chin, and with a slight force, his head was lifted up.

No breathing, no pulse, eyes cloudy and unfocused...

It's probably long dead... Was it a puppet controlled by something?

Fushimi frowned, deep in thought.

The next moment, the man suddenly raised his head and bit down hard on the axe blade with all his might...

"Snap!"

"..."

A teeth-grinding, crisp sound.

Several teeth shattered on the spot, mixed with dark red blood clots, spilling from the corner of his mouth, and his jawbone made a clicking sound as it struggled to bear the weight...

"How pitiful..."

Fushimi sighed.

The ice spear pierced the brain of the man who had been dead for an unknown period of time, finally bringing him to a standstill.

Fushimi pulled out his axe, shook off the saliva and blood, raised his head, and looked around.

Looking at those intact hanging ropes and paper pendants in the distance...

This real scene is even more eerie than Hoshizaki described.

The white tiles on the wall gleamed greasyly in the dim light, and thick, black pus seeped from the cracks.

Without further hesitation, Fushimi stepped forward.

For the next period of time, Fushimi began to wander in this almost infinite loop.

Corridors, side paths, repetitive tiled walls, the occasional closed door... everything is repetitive.

He tried to mark the way, cutting off the monster's limbs and piling them at the crossroads.

He quickly realized that this was a stratified world divided according to the strength of the invaders, and Fushimi was currently in what was probably the least threatening outer area...

To use a rough analogy, it's like the forest outside the starting village filled with low-level slimes.

I was really underestimated...

In the mortal world, the distinction between strong and weak is probably based on whether or not one has awakened spiritual abilities...

Unfortunately, all of Fushimi's abilities and powers came from the Sphere of Obsession; even the power he borrowed from the two great demons did not belong to him.

Therefore, due to a bug, it was judged by this world to be in the weakest tier...

Fushimi shook his head, deciding not to pursue the matter further.

In short, let's try to find clues on this floor first. The cult's lair... is very likely to be on the outermost layer.

He continued on his way.

Along the way, he encountered nothing that posed a real threat to him.

The deformed monsters that occasionally crawl out of the shadows are mostly unable to catch even a casual swing of his axe.

……

What was that huge, swollen old face that Hoshizaki mentioned earlier?

That thing clearly far exceeds the level a monster of this caliber should be, so why is it still able to move freely and unrestricted here...?

Was my perception wrong?

Or……

A not-so-good guess popped into my mind.

Could it be... the Lord of the World?

The eternal world is a folded space based on the real world, and its area, if viewed abstractly, can be infinitely large.

Therefore, different worldly creatures will reside in each region, along with their corresponding "masters" or "lords".

Psychics generally refer to him as the "Lord of the Eternal World".

Even the weakest among them, Changshizhu, possessed the strength of a Ghost King, a Demon Lord, and some low-level gods.

If that face truly is a projection of some eternal being, or even their true form...

Fushimi gripped the axe handle tightly and shook his head; this was merely his guess.

As he was pondering, Fushimi returned to the crossroads that he had previously wrecked with the power of the Tengu.

Some of the severed arms were even still wriggling.

But what surprised Fushimi even more was that he actually saw a child in the Mortal World...

Fushimi stopped in his tracks.

He looked only five or six years old, and his height was less than Fushimi's waist.

Her hair wasn't short, but it was a messy, matted mess, covered in dirt and dark red bloodstains.

Her little face was dirty, but her eyes shone brightly in the dim light.

He was wearing an oversized, worn-out leather jacket, clearly an adult size.

It looked like a suit of armor on him, with the hem dragging down to his knees and the sleeves rolled up several times to barely reveal his wrists.

He was holding a bunch of things in his arms.

Fushimi saw it clearly.

He was holding a pile of severed limbs that Fushimi had cut off...

The child was very focused, his little hands, stained with blood, laboriously holding the still slightly twitching arms in his arms, as if he were collecting firewood.

The movements were very practiced, clearly not the first time he had done this.

Then, he quickly noticed Fushimi's gaze.

The small body suddenly froze.

Her large eyes stared unblinkingly at Fushimi...

The next second, she made her most instinctive reaction.

run!

Clutching that heavy pile of severed arms, he took two short steps and stumbled and rushed into the depths of the corridor!

The hem of her oversized leather jacket tripped her, causing her to stumble half a step, but she quickly regained her balance and ran even faster.

Fushimi: "..."

Seeing the girl's wriggling arm, her short legs ran incredibly fast...

The strangeness made Fushimi begin to doubt whether it was human or not.

Judging from my first impression, he was just an ordinary human child. But how could a child of that age be in the mortal world?

Even if it fell in by accident, it wouldn't survive for long.

The child seemed very familiar with the place, clearly having lived there for some time.

Fushimi, of course, would not miss such an opportunity.

No child could outrun him; he took a few steps forward and grabbed him by the back of the neck.

"Hmm!"

The child let out a short gasp and was lifted up.

The severed arms in his arms fell to the ground with a "clatter," and a few of them bounced on the floor.

He began to struggle, like a kitten being pinched by the scruff of its neck, wildly flailing its arms and legs in the air.

Realizing he couldn't reach Fushimi, he suddenly turned his head, opened his mouth, revealed his small teeth, and bit hard at Fushimi's wrist, which was gripping his collar!

Fushimi easily dodged with a flick of his wrist.

"Oh……"

Then, he raised his other hand, bent his middle finger, and aimed it at the child's forehead.

"Thump."

A light tap on the head.

"Ugh!"

The child, in pain, immediately covered his reddened forehead with both hands, his eyes wide open, instantly filled with a layer of aggrieved tears.

It obediently stopped trying to bite, glared at Fushimi with grunts and made sounds from its throat like a small animal making a show of force.

Like a kitten with its fur standing on end.

Only then did Fushimi use the dim light.

It's finally confirmed... There's breathing, a pulse, and body temperature. This really is a human child... It's unbelievable.

He reached out and gently pinched the other person's face to examine it.

Her dirty little face still revealed soft contours, long eyelashes, and a small nose and mouth despite being covered in grime.

Wow, she's still a young girl.

With his filthy appearance and short hair, he didn't recognize him at first and thought he was a little boy.

Fushimi put her back on the ground, but as soon as her feet touched the ground, she tried to run away.

He had no choice but to use his shadow to bind the little girl, preparing to take her with him as he left.

But Fushimi was surprised to find that even now, the little girl still seemed reluctant to let go of the arm on the ground, reaching out to grab it.

What does she need this for?

For a moment, after a brief moment of thought, a bad thought instinctively appeared in his mind, even though Fushimi desperately didn't want to accept it...

Could it be for the sake of eating...?

Yes... In this mortal world, where can you find normal food?

He looked at it, then kicked away the disgusting severed limb on the ground.

He put the little girl down, rummaged through the emergency food he carried in the shadows, and found a large piece of milk chocolate...

As Fushimi tore open the foil, the rich, sweet aroma of chocolate immediately filled the air.

He broke off a small piece and held it to the little girl's mouth.

The little girl stiffened her neck, but her eyes kept glancing at the chocolate.

"Not eating?" Fushimi asked.

The little girl swallowed, but stubbornly kept her mouth shut.

Fushimi smiled. Quite stubborn for such a young age…

He popped the small piece of chocolate into his mouth and chewed it slowly. The sweetness of the milk chocolate melted on his tongue, and he deliberately made a sound of enjoyment.

The little girl's gaze was fixed on his hand, and her throat bobbed again.

This time, Fushimi broke off an even bigger piece and held it to her mouth.

This time, the little girl's willpower clearly wavered.

She stared at the white chocolate, her little nose twitching slightly as she smelled the unfamiliar sweet aroma.

After struggling for a few seconds, she finally cautiously opened her mouth, revealing two small front teeth...

Fushimi withdrew his hand.

"Awoo."

The little girl bit into empty air.

She froze, then looked up and glared angrily at Fushimi with her large, watery eyes, as if to express her accusation against this wicked fellow.

Fushimi couldn't help but chuckle softly.

Stop teasing her and gently put the chocolate into her mouth.

The little girl immediately and clumsily held the chocolate with her bound hands, taking small, precious bites.

The moment the sweetness spread in her mouth, her eyes lit up noticeably, and she ate even faster.

Fushimi waited until she finished that piece before picking up the remaining large chocolate and handing it to her.

Then, he snapped his fingers.

The black ropes binding the little girl's wrists and ankles quietly disappeared.

The little girl, now free, instinctively wanted to back away, but after looking at the chocolate in her hand and then at Fushimi, she hesitated.

Ultimately, the craving for food outweighed the wariness towards strangers.

She hugged the chocolate, squatted down, turned around as if guarding her food, and focused intently on eating it, occasionally glancing up at Fushimi.

Seeing this, Fushimi picked up his axe, stood up, and looked around warily. The monsters that had just crawled out of the shadows and were eager to make a move then wisely retreated.

He frowned slightly, wondering how the little guy had managed to survive in such an environment.

Just as he was thinking this, the little girl suddenly lay down by the roadside, bent over, and tried to drink the puddles on the ground...

"Hello!"

Fushimi grabbed him and pulled a bottle of water out of the shadows.

Fortunately, with the help of Huali's shadow, he was able to carry a lot of things.

The girl gulped down almost half the bottle before awkwardly screwing on the cap, handing it to Fushimi with great politeness, and even bowing slightly…

Then he stuffed the remaining half of the chocolate into his pocket and squatted down, hugging his knees.

It seems they wanted to save it for later.

Fushimi also squatted back down in front of her, maintaining a distance that wouldn't make her feel pressured.

Lowering his gaze, he said with a smile:

"If you eat my food, you'll have to listen to me obediently."

The girl clearly understood what Fushimi was saying, and she stuck out her neck with a stubborn expression that said, "When did I eat your food?"

Fushimi smiled. It was good that he understood; he didn't intend to argue with the child about these things.

"How long have you been here?"

"..."

silence.

Well, Fushimi realized he had asked a stupid question. How could a child of that age possibly know how long he had been in a dark and gloomy environment?

He changed the question.

"You usually..."

He carefully chose his words: "Where do you stay? Is there a place to sleep?"

Fushimi could tell that she had lived here for a long time, so it was impossible for her not to have a safe house. That place was very likely the hideout of the cult he was looking for...

That's probably why this child is still alive...

The little girl had her head down, her dirty toes unconsciously rubbing against the floor.

He looked up at Fushimi again.

I hesitated for a long time.

So long that Fushimi thought she wouldn't answer anymore.

Then, she slowly raised one of her small hands and pointed towards a fork in the road.

Fushimi smiled and asked no further questions.

"Set off!"

Before the little girl could react, he bent down, slipped his arms under her knees and back, and easily lifted her up.

The little girl was frighteningly light.

Holding her in my arms, I could clearly feel her extremely thin body beneath her thin clothes.

There were some wounds on her exposed neck and wrists...

Fushimi probably thought these were signs of abuse.

His gaze darkened.

Without asking any further questions, the little girl stopped resisting and seemed to have been won over by a piece of milk chocolate.