give it all to miss machima

Machima looked at the documents and reports that Ryoko had painstakingly collected and discovered that the incident dates back to 1930. Since then, the village has…

What does "disappeared from the map" mean?

"The literal meaning... At first, we just thought it was the locals trying to hide the village's location, but..."

As the most rational parasite, Tamiya Ryoko always felt powerless in the face of such bizarre and supernatural events.

"...Now, whether we use satellite maps or high-altitude reconnaissance, we haven't found this village. We've only found a mountain path that's almost completely covered by vegetation—logically, even after so many years, there should still be some ruins left... If it weren't for the unwavering assurances of the local people, I would even doubt its authenticity..."

"When did that dam surveyor go missing?" Machima asked.

“A year ago, because of your order, even missing persons cases that had already been filed were to be reopened if they involved any possible supernatural or ghostly anomalies. Although the local police had already determined this case to be a missing person case, it was relatively recent, and since it involved supernatural elements, we only sent investigators out a few days ago.”

"Has the surrounding area been sealed off?"

"It's already under lockdown, but we don't have enough manpower on the ground, so it's difficult to implement a complete lockdown."

Machima nodded.

"Arrange a plane for me immediately, I'll go there myself."

"Are you... sure? We're still completely unsure what happened there..."

"I do know a little bit, but... it's only a rough estimate."

Minakami Village is located quite far from Tokyo, almost at the northernmost part of Honshu Island, separated from Hokkaido by the Tsugaru Strait.

After transferring from the plane to a helicopter, Machima arrived at the approximate location of her destination, and it was already dark. Ryoko Tamiya sat to the side, looking at the latest satellite map:

"Based on the comparison, the location of Minakami Village should be in this vicinity. Our team also lost contact after traveling here, but as you can see, there is nothing here."

Machima looked down at the barren mountains and forests below and shrugged:

"The conventional methods have probably detected Minakami Village, but it might not exist in this time and space... Let's go down."

The Special Investigations Division had set up a temporary command post by the roadside at the foot of the mountain. When Machima arrived, she found several local police cars parked there. Upon inquiry, she learned that two sisters had gone missing in the nearby woods that afternoon.

After their parents reported the incident to the police, local authorities organized a search and rescue operation, only to run into the Special Investigations Division, which was sealing off the surrounding area. The Special Investigations Division, which already lacked manpower in the area, simply requisitioned their personnel.

"What are the sisters called?" Machima asked.

Tamiya Ryoko quickly summoned the person in charge for questioning and learned that the older sister was named Amakura Mayu and the younger sister was named Amakura Mio. They had gone missing while playing in the vicinity.

"Oh wow, twin sisters? Interesting..."

Machima couldn't help but lick her lips—it's common knowledge that the heroines of the Zero series are all very beautiful.

Today, either lust or cowardice must be cured!

"I have a feeling you know something?" Ryoko Tamiya, standing to the side, noticed the gleam in Machima's eyes and sensed that she was up to something again.

“A little bit, leave things here to me. Ryoko, you’re in charge of another matter—search all over Japan for information about Mount Hikami and the Himuro Residence. Also, see if you can find out where the only surviving girl went.”

Tamiya Ryoko nodded: "I will do my best for Mount Hikami and the Himuro residence, but that surviving girl... that era is too long ago, I'm afraid..."

"Just do your best."

After saying that, Machima waved her hand, took a specially made walkie-talkie, and stepped into the forest alone, heading in the direction where the investigation team had disappeared.

Because she didn't bring a light, Machima closed her eyes in the dark.

A few seconds later, her pupils completed the simulation of a cat's eye—changing the pupil structure and increasing the number of light-sensitive rod cells.

Even with just a little moonlight, the dark forest suddenly became bright in Machima's eyes. If someone were to approach her with a light source at this moment, they would first see a pair of bright eyes shining in the darkness.

With this keen sense, Machima quickly found the footprints left by the survey team on the mountain path, which was almost completely covered by trees, vines and bushes. Each of them was panting in military boots, and because they were fully armed, their footprints were heavy and particularly conspicuous in Machima's field of vision.

Hmm...it feels a bit like being a Witcher now.

Following the footprints of the survey team, Machima ventured deeper into the dense forest. After walking for about an hour, she suddenly felt the air around her grow cold, and... the sounds of the tiny animals and insects in the forest, which were already quite faint, all disappeared.

After walking a few steps forward, the mountain path suddenly opened up, and a tranquil village appeared before her.

Machima paused for a moment, then pulled out a walkie-talkie:

"Ryoko, can you hear me?"

The only response she received was a rustling sound.

"...Okay, as expected."

Putting away the walkie-talkie, Machima strode towards the village.

Chapter 154 Amakura Mio

Humming a song, Machima skipped and hopped through the torii gate at the village entrance and into the village.

On the ground, the footprints of the survey team suddenly became strange, as if they had suddenly become chaotic. Machima looked back and saw that the original mountain path behind her had disappeared, leaving only a dark forest.

As expected, the disappearance of Minakami Village was literal.

Judging from the footprints, the survey team clearly noticed the anomaly the moment they passed through the torii gate. They seemed to want to leave, but judging from their footsteps, they eventually returned to the entrance of the village.

Is it like being trapped in a maze?

Machima was curious whether the strange power surrounding the village of Kaishin could still stop her if she broke through from the sky.

However, she didn't try it. After all, she came here to have fun and broaden her horizons.

The survey team lingered at the village entrance for a long time, as if hesitating, but eventually entered the village, as did Machima.

The surrounding buildings were extremely dilapidated, most of them were beyond repair, only some large mansions remained basically intact.

Machima wandered aimlessly through the village. After only a few steps, she saw a ghost.

It was a pale figure, but like a normal human being, swaying as it walked along a village road in the distance. Judging from its clothing, it seemed to be a modern person.

"Oh! Hello! Please wait a moment!"

Machima greeted her warmly, as if she had met an acquaintance on the street, and quickly caught up with her. She came to the female ghost, tilted her head, and looked her over.

"Excuse me, are you Sudo Miyako? The girlfriend of that missing civil engineering guy?"

The female ghost's appearance wasn't even scary; in fact, it was clear she had been a beauty in life. However, she looked completely bewildered and didn't even glance at Machima.

However, he wasn't completely unresponsive to Machima's words; instead, he muttered to himself in a low voice:

"Shinmura...Masumi...I need to find him...to escape together...together..."

Machima noticed that there seemed to be some kind of strangulation mark on the other person's neck.

Seeing that the other person was ignoring her, she deliberately brought up a sore spot and asked:

"What happened to you before you died? Look at your neck, was you strangled by something? By whom? A person or a ghost?"

However, these words seemed to have touched some taboo of the female ghost, and she instantly turned ferocious, then roared and pounced on Machima.

The translucent hand seemed to have a real physical form at that moment, tightly gripping Machima's neck, making it difficult for her to breathe. At the same time, a chilling power surged from the other party, making Machima feel as if she had been doused with a bucket of ice water, and her strength rapidly disappeared.

Is this the power of vengeful spirits? It's so unoriginal, and it's nowhere near as good as Sadako...

Machima looked at the other person and instead smiled:

"So agitated? Could it be that your boyfriend strangled you to death? Oh! Your reaction is even more intense, looks like I guessed right? Did he strangle you while you were alive, or did he strangle you after he died and became a ghost? Tell me about it."

Unfortunately, the female ghost refused to answer the question, and just screamed like a madwoman, increasing the force in her hands until she almost snapped Machima's neck.

Just as Machima raised her hand, preparing to snap her fingers to summon the Cat Demon Fire and see if the flames could purify the evil spirit, a flash suddenly appeared from the side—the kind of flash that comes when taking a picture.

Machima turned her head and saw a girl of about fifteen or sixteen years old looking at them in a panic, holding an extremely retro projector in her hands.

Even more strangely, when the evil spirit was photographed, it immediately let out a scream, as if it had been injured, and immediately released Machima.

Immediately afterwards, the girl snapped a few more photos. Visibly, the evil spirit howled and vanished in a wisp of smoke.

The girl quickly went to Machima and looked at her with concern: "Are you... are you alright?"

Machima looked at the other person curiously.

The other person had a dark chestnut-colored bob haircut, wore a red top and a white skirt, but underneath the skirt was a pair of leggings.

Machima rubbed her neck discreetly and coughed lightly, as if to make a sound.

"Ahem, not bad. May I ask your name...?"

“My name is… Amakura Mio…”

"You're one of the missing children? Hello, my name is Machima, and I'm one of the people in charge of searching for you."

Machima looked around.

Where is your sister?

"You...you're a rescue worker!? I...we...Cocoon...she...she's...I'm also..."

It was clear that the child was excited because she had finally met a living person, and she only calmed down after Machima gently hugged her.

"Don't be afraid, come on, tell your sister slowly what happened here?"

With Machima's skillful comforting words, the girl finally recounted the whole story, her voice trembling with tears.

Almost everything went as Machima had predicted—the two sisters inexplicably got lost in the mountains and then arrived at the village of Kaishin. Suddenly, it got dark, and the two tried to find clues to get out of the village. During this time, they also encountered the evil spirit from before.

Because of the close contact with the other person, Amakura Mio was so frightened that she fainted. When she woke up again, she found that her sister was no longer beside her.

Originally, Amakura Mio was able to explore and search for her sister alone in this terrifying village, but now that there was an adult she could rely on, her emotions suddenly exploded.

"This place... is full of evil spirits! And... and terrifying corpses..."

"A horrible corpse?" Machima raised an eyebrow. "What kind?"

"It's...it's terrifying...its head...is very long and covered in sharp spikes..."

"Can you take me to see it?"

Soon, led by Mio Amagura, Makima found a corpse—the corpse of a parasite from the investigation team.

Judging from the marks, he had clearly become separated from his teammates and must have encountered the evil spirit here, leading to a battle—the room was riddled with bullet holes and cuts from sharp blades.

Unfortunately, neither rifle bullets nor the transformed blades were of any use against the evil spirit.

After a fierce struggle, this guy was probably completely ensnared by the evil spirits and died a miserable death. His combat suit and body were undamaged, but his skin was bluish-black and had several obvious pinch marks, indicating that he was strangled to death by several evil spirits.

For the parasite, it was despair enough—a group of food that it could kill at will in life, but the evil spirits that it turned into after death could do nothing to it.

"Sister Machima, what... is this?" Amakura Mio asked fearfully.

"I don't know, maybe it's some kind of monster? Like something that twists and turns..."

Machima held the other person's hand, comforting the girl like a truly gentle older sister:

"Don't be afraid, we will find your sister and then escape together."

Chapter 155: Red Wedding Sacrifice

The village became lively again.

Like a signal, evil spirits began to appear one after another in the dilapidated village roads.

Compared to the unfortunate civil engineer and his devoted girlfriend, these people were dressed like villagers from decades ago.

They carried lanterns or torches, and held weapons such as sickles and machetes. They were in groups of three or five, as if searching for something. If you got close, you could faintly hear their murmurings:

"Found...the priestess..."

"For the village..."

"The Red Ritual Ceremony... is about to begin... hurry..."

"Find them, we must... finish..."

As soon as they see a living person, they slowly pounce on them, and judging from their behavior, it seems that they are heading towards Amakura Mio.

To be honest, Machima could probably just do a mock barbecue with her cat demon fire and burn the whole village down, but that would be too boring. So she just picked up Amakura Mio and used her agile movements to dodge the evil spirits that appeared from time to time.

The exorcism camera in Amagura Mio's hand was invented by a man named Aso Kunihiko. Its internal lens is a divine mirror, and it is unknown what principle it works on, but in any case, it can indeed harm evil spirits.

If there are any that can't be avoided, just let Amagura Mio shine her light on them, and they'll be able to repel the evil spirits effectively.

Therefore, in Amakura Mio's view, with the cooperation of this older sister named Machima, the safety of the two of them was greatly improved - her camera could harm evil spirits, and Machima could make up for her lack of physical strength. Unlike her, who would pant after running a few steps, older sister Machima carried her all the way without even panting.

The other person was holding her hand and would keep touching places that made her feel shy, which made her blush.

But seeing the other person's serious expression, it must have been unintentional, so Amakura Mio just blushed a little throughout and didn't say anything.

The two wandered aimlessly through the village, attracting many evil spirits like a train lord, but managed to shake them all off with their speed. Suddenly, some red butterflies appeared ahead of them.

"It's appeared! A clue and a guide!"