Tokyo Detective Chronicles

Chapter 73 The Ruins of the Fushimi Family

Modern Tokyo, Chiyoda Ward, in front of Fushimi's house

Once they were standing still, Hoshizaki Rina finally got off his back and stood beside him.

Then the two of them looked at the mess in the yard.

The morning light had fully illuminated the scene, and the view now was even more breathtaking than the one from last night…

Half of the wall had collapsed, and the tree that had been planted for many years had been uprooted and lay to one side. There were black and red bloodstains all over the grass, the glass door was shattered, and the house was a mess.

The massive ice pillar, several meters long, the monster's corpse, and the completely wrecked car have all been taken away by the Special Affairs Division.

Today's morning news explained the incident as a gas explosion.

...Isn't this a bit too perfunctory?

In the courtyard, a small group of little monsters were still busy at work, and not far away were some collected corpses...

They didn't notice Fushimi returning.

Several monsters were working together to carry books, some broken equipment, and other relatively intact furniture out of the ruins on the first floor.

A wall-dwelling animal used its heavy body to block the half-collapsed wall, preventing more pieces from falling.

There were also a few unnamed little creatures digging through the rubble with their claws, trying to dig out what was buried underneath.

Some of them had broken horns, some were missing ears, and most of them were injured...

Fushimi stood still, watching them.

If it weren't for them holding it back yesterday, that monster would probably have broken through the barrier even faster.

They are all little yokai that Fushimi has picked up over the years, or that were homeless and couldn't find a place to live... They probably already consider this place their home, and they are unwilling to leave even after such a thing happened.

Finally, a monster raised its head and saw Fushimi.

It froze.

Then it makes a "chirp" sound.

The other little monsters stopped what they were doing and turned around.

They just stood there, watching Fushimi.

Fushimi, surprisingly, noticed a hint of self-reproach in their expressions, as if they felt disappointed in him for not protecting his house.

It was as if he was waiting to be angrily questioned...

But how could they possibly withstand a disaster of that level?

Fushimi looked at them, his gaze sweeping over each one.

The familiar faces I used to see every day are much fewer now.

He walked up to the living little monsters and squatted down.

"Thanks for your hard work."

The little monsters looked at him; some lowered their heads, some whimpered, and some ran around him.

Fushimi stood up.

He felt a pang of sadness, sighed, turned, and went inside.

When he came out again, he had many more things in his hands... incense offerings for large-scale sacrificial ceremonies, and some wine.

He placed the offerings in the courtyard and lit a large amount of incense and candles.

Wisps of smoke rose into the air.

The little monsters gathered around, squatted in front of the offerings, and quietly watched the wisp of smoke.

Fushimi raised his head and looked in a certain direction.

He made up his mind that he would build a shrine to worship the little monsters who fell into the mortal world due to death, and guide them to be reincarnated so that they would not get lost on the other side...

Or extradite them to live a normal life in Shirakawa.

In the room.

Rina Hoshizaki was squatting on the ground, helping Fushimi pick up the things that were still usable.

The documents were scattered all over the floor, some soaked in blood, others relatively intact. She picked up the intact ones and stacked them into a pile.

The chandelier was broken, the bookcase was overturned, and the decorations on the wall were scattered all over the floor.

She sighed as she picked them up.

"This is troublesome..."

Fushimi walked in and stood in the center of the living room.

He looked at the messy room.

The ceiling was cracked, the walls were covered in bloody scratches, and the floor had several dents. When the monster's hand reached in earlier, it had pierced through the wall and ripped open a corner of the living room.

However, the main structure is still relatively intact.

Although the first floor is destroyed, the second floor should still be habitable.

He was thinking about whether he should take this opportunity to completely renovate the house.

Anyway, the Special Affairs Division will foot the bill, so we can take this opportunity to strengthen the building's structure.

This house is quite old, and the makeshift psionic system that was temporarily installed back then is no longer sufficient.

The direct consequence of this is that the Fushimi family's barrier energy circuit is too simple, resulting in a poor energy conversion rate, which makes it impossible for the barrier to operate more efficiently for a long time.

However, that would be too drastic, and it would take at least several months of back and forth...

Well, I'll just make do with this place for now.

Just as he was thinking this...

"Boom!"

A muffled thud came from above.

Fushimi looked up and saw a crack in the ceiling, directly opposite his bedroom.

The crack widened rapidly, and debris fell in a flurry.

Fushimi's pupils contracted slightly, and he reached out and wrapped his arms around Hoshizaki Rina's waist.

"Huh?!"

Before Hoshizaki could react, he was lifted up and pulled backward.

Immediately afterwards, the entire ceiling collapsed.

"Bang--!!!"

Smoke and dust billowed up, a huge sound came, and gravel and wood chips flew everywhere.

Rina Hoshizaki let out a scream and shrank back against Fushimi.

Fushimi raised his other hand and shielded her face.

The debris hit his arm and fell down in a flurry.

Wait until the smoke and dust clear.

Fushimi stood before a pile of ruins.

His bedroom is directly above the living room.

At that moment, along with the bed, the bookshelf, and all the things he had saved up for years... everything was smashed down from the second floor and piled up in front of him.

They smashed up the living room again, which the monsters had just tidied up.

The bed legs were crooked, the bookshelf was broken, and the bottles and jars were shattered all over the floor.

Hoshizaki peeked out from under his arm: "Wow..."

Fushimi: "..."

silence.

A very long silence.

Well, this is terrible. Now we have to completely rebuild the entire Fushimi family's psionic circuits... Luckily, the Special Affairs Division is here. That contract we signed this morning was a real steal.

Fushimi withdrew his gaze and sighed heavily.

Then they rolled up their sleeves and started digging out anything still usable from the ruins.

Rina Hoshizaki also came over to help.

"I'll help you, I'll help you..."

The two of them and the many little monsters squatted in the ruins, rummaging through the pieces one by one.

"Hey! Iori, you still have this photo...?"

"..."

The morning light shone through the broken roof.

The sunlight shone on them, making them look dusty and gray, but the sunlight was very good.

……

It took a considerable amount of time to salvage some important items and move them all to the completely undamaged basement.

However, the Fushimi residence is now uninhabitable.