I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

No, no, it's nothing, thank you.

Originally, Uesugi Tetsu wanted to immediately distance himself from the train, which was extremely similar to the "Tokoyo Train," in front of this senior intelligence officer from the Special Affairs Department.

But now that he's sitting here, the train will speed up because of his words.

Surely, someone's gaze must have been silently watching him from some unknown corner.

We await his reply as well.

Therefore, after thinking for a while, Uesugi Tetsuya decided to laugh it off and try to gloss over the matter: "The situation is a bit complicated..."

Upon hearing his answer, Tamamo immediately shook her head and then nodded.

"Brother Uesugi, you don't need to say anything more, we understand!"

This sentence eliminated Uesugi Tetsuya's need to consider any further responses, making him marvel at how easy it was to chat with intelligent people.

If it were a straightforward guy, he would definitely dig deep into this question and not give up until he gets an answer.

After saying that, Tamamo turned her gaze back to the disheveled demons who had stood up again and started squeezing for seats, and squeezed her legs together.

The current situation is almost like putting a harmless little lamb in a fence and then placing it in the same transport vehicle as a group of blood-sucking Siberian tigers.

It's impossible for Tamamo, an ordinary person, not to be afraid of being in such close contact with so many demons who can turn her into several pieces with a single slap.

This has nothing to do with my own thoughts; it's simply a physical instinct.

"do not be afraid."

Uesugi Tetsu seemed to see through her thoughts and said calmly, "As long as you're on this train, the demons must absolutely follow the rules and be good passengers."

Tamamo chuckled twice without saying much, but focused her gaze on the rapidly decreasing distance on the station map.

Four minutes and ten seconds later.

The train, which had already accelerated to its limit, suddenly slowed down to zero and came to a stop.

Buzz!

Uesugi Tetsu could almost hear the train's groans as it struggled to keep up with the strain.

The demons inside the carriage were launched out of their seats with an even more ferocious force than before, surging like a tidal wave and irrationally blocking the front of the carriage.

Feeling a surge of energy within him, the bull demon turned his head and silently stared at the solid railing, which he had slightly dented from squeezing it too hard.

At that moment, it had only one thought in its mind.

—Damn it, I'm not going to have to pay for this myself, am I?!

—The answer is definitely yes, because in order to save some Soul Ashes, it didn't even purchase the VIP customer service for the [Kisaragi Train]!

"It's time to get off."

Uesugi Tetsu's hoarse voice interrupted its thoughts.

The bull demon, whose heart was bleeding, looked up and saw Bai Banruo, whose strength was barely passable, pick up a black card and a white slip of paper from his unique chair.

Let's set aside the note for now.

But that card...

The devil's face, as big as a washbasin, twitched.

What did it see?

VIP Card!

—It's black and gold! The highest level! And it's said that this level is just a rumor, and no actual card has ever been issued!

Niu Gui turned his head and found that the few wealthy guys who had bought bronze and silver VIP memberships were also dumbfounded, and their expressions were even more volatile than his own.

Now it felt much better.

As the white-robed demon watched the ordinary humans beside her disembark from the train, the bull demon, who had already remembered what had happened today, spread his legs slightly indignantly, wanting to loosen his body.

But he couldn't spread his legs because there was a demon sitting right next to him.

It turned its head and discovered that sitting next to it was a three-and-a-half-star Red Prajna.

"go away!"

The bull demon opened its eyes wide in fury, causing the usually bloodthirsty Red Prajna to move its body without uttering a word. However, on the other side was another powerful demon of the demon god level, who said the same thing to it.

Finally, Chi Banruo could only stand dejectedly in the middle of the aisle, staring angrily at the black and red reserved seat not far away.

It clenched its fist and made a silent vow.

Thirty years from now, I want to sit in that seat too!

……

A brand new bus stop in Shizuoka City.

As Uesugi Tetsu stepped off the train, he turned directly to the person beside him and said, "Tamamo, look how far away the incident site is from here."

Having already prepared, Tamamo immediately gave the number: "Southwest direction, 1.2 kilometers as the crow flies!"

"Ten seconds."

Uesugi Tetsu grabbed Tamamo in the same manner and shot her into the clouds with a huge howling sound like a hurricane passing by, before crashing down from a height of 100 meters in a few breaths.

boom!

Amidst the sudden cloud of dust, fragments of asphalt and gravel flew everywhere, landing on the somewhat dazed Special Affairs officers.

Fa, what happened?

The operative, who was coordinating intelligence and information from the surrounding area, blinked with difficulty and subconsciously tried to press the virtual red button on his phone.

But the next moment, the familiar ID book emerging from the smoke and dust made him abandon that idea.

"Hello, Shizuoka City Operator ID K203. I am Tamamo from Numazu City."

Wearing uniform trousers on her lower body but still in pajamas on her upper body, Tamamo, whose appearance clashed sharply with the serious art style around her, spoke at an extremely fast pace.

"The person next to me is Agent Uesugi Tetsuya from Arakawa Ward, Tokyo, who has participated in solving supernatural-level incidents."

Upon hearing the keywords, the operator first glanced at Uesugi Tetsuya, who was radiating terrifying spiritual energy, and then immediately perked up.

Ignoring Tamamo's conversation with the local operators for the time being, Uesugi Tetsu silently raised his eyes and looked inside the yellow and black warning tape.

What the interpreter sees is not the cloudless blue sky behind him.

Instead, it is a deep black color that symbolizes curse and isolation.

An endless expanse of deep black coalesced into an opaque bowl, which was then inverted in a location not far from the center of Shizuoka City.

An ominous aura emanated from the dense, tadpole-like patterns that clung to the black surface.

It's like a barrier.

But Uesugi Tetsu knew that what was in front of him was not a barrier set up using Yin-Yang magic.

— "Haunted house".

Nanjo Manami told him that this was how the Special Affairs Department referred to this phenomenon.

This is the first and most obvious sign of the inevitable transformation from a three-and-a-half-star ghost story to a four-star ghost story, which is the transformation into a demon god.

This phenomenon can only occur when a [Strange Tale] advances; ordinary demons will not produce such a commotion when they advance.

In the haunted house, the power of the ghost stories themselves and the related rules of the ghost stories are greatly enhanced, and at the same time, some rules in the real world will also be altered to varying degrees.

For ordinary people, it is extremely dangerous.

Uesugi Tetsu narrowed his eyes, surveying the edge of the haunted house, which was just ten meters away.

But this haunted house doesn't seem as creepy as Nanjo Manami once described...

[The urgent, limited-time mission, "The Demon Guide Association's Probe," is now open!]

Just as he was thinking this, a red mission notification suddenly appeared in front of Uesugi Tetsuya's eyes.

A test from the Demon Guide Association?

Uesugi Tetsu remembered that the black telephone booth was indeed a ghost story belonging to the Yokai Guild, but what did this "test" mean?

He didn't have time to think much before looking at the detailed mission description below.

The objectives of this mission are as follows:

[Main Objective - Probe: Prevent the ghost story "The Weak Black Telephone Booth" from being promoted to four stars.]

[Secondary Objective - Tamamo's Request: Rescue Tamamo's five family members from the disaster area and ensure their survival.]

[Note: If the ghost story "The Weak Black Telephone Booth" is exorcised, the quest reward will be greatly increased!]

[This limited-time mission has a short time limit. Please complete the mission before achieving four-star promotion in the mystery "The Weak Black Telephone Booth," otherwise the mission will be considered a failure.]

"A weak black phone booth!"

Uesugi Tetsu's eyes lit up; his feeling earlier was indeed correct!

Why does this haunted house not feel particularly oppressive?

—Because the black phone booth itself had already become extremely weak under the pursuit of the Special Affairs Bureau!

If it drags on for a few more days, the special affairs commissioner will exorcise it from some unknown corner. But if they fight to the death in Shizuoka City, they still have a chance to become a demon and survive.

Uesugi Tetsu breathed a sigh of relief and turned his attention to the secondary objective.

He hadn't forgotten that he had come to Shizuoka City because of Tamamo's request!

"Five people... Tamamo's younger sister, two younger brothers, and their parents."

After taking a dozen seconds to tidy up the situation, Uesugi Tetsu walked towards Tamamo, who was bombarding the operators with questions like a machine gun.

Operator K203: "We have sealed off the haunted house area as quickly as possible and called for support from the nearest Ghost God-level combat force. They should arrive in about forty minutes!"

Tamamo said anxiously, "Forty minutes is too long! Right now, immediately, tell me the details of the haunted house, the precautions for the ghost stories, how many special affairs teams there are, their situation, and the best route in the haunted house..."

"No need to bother."

Uesugi Tetsu raised his hand and gently pressed on the shoulder of the petite girl who was already breathless from a single sentence.

Tamamo's trembling body gradually calmed down.

She took several deep breaths before turning around and forcing a dry smile: "Brother Uesugi, thank you..."

"Operator K203, I only need to know two things."

Uesugi Tetsu held up two fingers to the operator with a blank expression: "First, the location of the black phone booth itself."

"Second..."

Uesugi Tetsuya looked at Tamamo, who immediately understood and said, "The location of Operator A032's phone!"

The agent was speechless for a moment.

Because neither of these matters is information that someone at his level should know.

Sweat beaded on his forehead, and he immediately began operating his phone.

"Um, you two, I'll go on your behalf..."

"No need."

A middle-aged man's voice came from not far away.

The next second, he was already in front of Uesugi Tetsuya.

"Young Master Yasui!"

The operative turned around and immediately straightened his back.

The man called Yasui made a slight gesture with his palm, then turned to look at Uesugi Tetsu and extended his palm: "Uesugi-kun, you are a subordinate of that Nanjo lord, right... I have seen you before at the True Sword Trial."

That makes things much easier.

After a brief handshake, Uesugi Tetsuya was about to speak when Yasui interrupted him.

"The location of the black phone booth itself has not yet been determined, but the locations of all the black phone booths that appeared in the haunted house have been marked on the map and will be sent to you immediately."

The location data for phone A032 will also be sent along with it.

"also."

Yasui glanced at Operator K203 and said seriously, "Issue orders to all squads still in contact within the haunted house. From this moment on—Operator Uesugi has the highest command authority!"