Kikanshita Yuusha no Gojitsudan : Chapter 26

Chapter 26 The Hero’s Summer Camp 8

　All the members who were present started moving together.

　However, we’re not riding our own bikes, but instead four bikes with two people on each.

　It’s not fun when there are too many bikes, he said. I do not understand why he insisted on this, but well, I think it’s a good idea. After all, it would be annoying to have eight bikes riding in a row.

　Yamazaki says that in the old days, Fukushima Prefecture was famous for the Onibaba of Adachigahara, and is one of the most famous regions in Japan for its many bizarre stories, both ancient and modern.

　…I have a feeling that there are many other places in Japan where people have said something similar to this, but I won’t argue with him because it sounds tiresome.

　We arrived at our destination after about 30 minutes of traveling in this manner.

　A ruin in the mountains with a hot spring.

　The appearance of an old hotel faintly reflecting the moonlight gives it a very fitting atmosphere.

　Rather, the building is quite big.

　It’s not going to collapse, is it?

　Apparently, we are going to explore the inside of this abandoned hotel as a test of courage.

　Yamazaki told me beforehand about the horror stories that were said to have happened here, but that’s just the usual arrangement, so I guess it’s okay. (TL : Not sure about this sentence)

　Unlike in the other world, a ghost won’t suddenly attack us and zombies or skeletons won’t appear, and to me, who has good eyesight at night, it won’t even surprise me.

　I’ll enjoy this as one of the signature summer events.

　And if a frightened girl comes clinging to me, that’s a bonus in itself.

---

　There was a time when I was thinking like that.

“Hah …… I wonder why Kashiwagi-kun is the one who was paired with me…”

“I’m truly unwilling to be blatantly sighing, but I vehemently agree with what you’re saying.”

　I respond to Akio-senpai, who walks next to me and complains while shining a flashlight ahead of us.

　That’s right.

　Of the eight people who took part this time, there were three girls. Akane, Kubo-san and Kobayashi.

　We decided to form pairs and walk through the building in turn, except of course there were more boys than girls, and when we drew a lottery, Akane was paired with Kubo-san and Kobayashi was paired with her boyfriend, Aikawa, without problems.

　The remaining four participants were all male pairs.

　Aside from Kobayashi, who already has a boyfriend, normally if this happened in a story it would be either me and Akane or Kubo-san as a pair, right?

　I wish they would have followed the usual flow since we are doing a template event.

　The sad thing is that I have to go around a haunted house with other men……

　The inside of the ruin is quite large and there are a lot of broken pieces and graffiti all over the place, which makes it really feel like ‘The Ruin’, which is quite eerie.

　Though many of the contents of the graffiti are quite silly.

　We didn’t go around one by one, but after one group went in, we had to wait for a few minutes before the next group could enter.

　Otherwise, it would take a long time because the room is too big.

　Since the route was already explained by Yamazaki beforehand, there is unlikely for us to meet with the other group on the way.

“H, hey, Kashiwagi-kun. Why don’t we walk while talking about something?”

“Akio-senpai, aren’t you too quick to be scared.”

“I, I, I’m not scared at all, you know? What are you talking about?

　Even though we’ve only just entered the building, Akio-senpai is looking around restlessly and behaving suspiciously while saying words without a shred of persuasiveness.

　he’s a bit too frightened, but I can understand his feelings.

　It’s not quite late at night yet, but this is an abandoned hotel located in the middle of nowhere, and there are no exterior lights at all.

　All you can hear is the sound of insects, the dull sound of the wind passing through the building, and the voices (sometimes scream) of the other group who have entered the building ahead of us.

　As expected, I don’t feel a little scared at all.

“A conversation, is it …… Speaking of which, have you known the president and Okazaki-senpai for a long time, Akio Senpai?”

“O? Oh, I’m the one who joined the circle first, so that makes them my juniors, but both of them have that kind of personality. Kanzaki naturally obeyed the seniors from the beginning, and Mayumi-chan is like that. Still, it wasn’t hard to get along with either of them, though.”

…………………u u u u a…………………

“I respect you for being able to call Okazaki-senpai ‘Mayumi-chan’.”

“Just that part?!”

…………………ahhhhhhhhhhhhh…………………

“No, well, the only person who is able to call Okazaki-senpai with ‘chan’ is only Akio-senpai, right?”

“It’s pretty tricky, though, that’ said, Mayumi-chan has some rather cute parts too, you know? Especially when she’s with Kanzaki, she seems love-struck.”

　……iiiiiiiaaaaa ……

“? Could it be, by any chance, the president and Okazaki-senpai are?”

“Huh? You didn’t know?”

“Are you serious?”

　…… uhhhhaaaa ……

“Yeah. Furthermore, Mayumi-chan is the one that strongly approaches him in high school.”

“…… Unbelievable.”

　The shocking truth!

　To begin with, I can’t imagine Okazaki-senpai being love-struck.

“It is true. …………. By the way”

“…… What is it?”

“I think I’ve been hearing something since earlier, but it’s just my imagination, right?”

　It seemed that Akio-senpai had noticed it too.

　Since we came up to the second floor, I’ve been hearing a faint moaning sound.

　With every step we took, the voices got louder and louder, and I could sense signs of multiple presence around us.

　I will be honest with you.

　I’m really scared. Yes.

　It’s because, you know, in the other world, dead spirits are treated as a monster that attacks with full intent to kill you.

　That’s why when attacked, I don’t have to hesitate to fight back.

　In contrast, Japanese ghosts seem to do everything they can in order to scare people.

　In Japanese ghost stories and urban legends, they don’t attack you directly, but they hunt you down and kill you mentally, right?

　Compared to ghosts from the overseas countries, it’s more insidious, and the sense of physiological fear is very strong.

　It seems to get stronger and stronger every time we walk around.

　And, 

“Hie! Ka, Kashiwagi-kun? What’s that?”

　In the direction that Akio-senpai pointed, I saw a thick smoke-like substance in the air, drifting erratically.

　I wondered if it was the so-called “human spirit”.

　As I looked around, I saw other similar things floating in the air.

　Or rather, they were circling around, surrounding us.

‘Help me.’

　Suddenly, I heard a voice from nearby.

　I saw a small figure as I turned around and looked into the darkness behind me.

　A child?

‘Who are you people?’

　I hear voices from different directions.

　This time I can see a faint figure that looks like a woman.

“Somehow, I have a bad feeling about this.”

“…………”

“How about we just run away?”

“…………”

　I call out to Akio-senpai, but there’s no answer.

　I hurriedly looked at senpai’s face.

　…… He fainted with the white of his eyes visible. ……

　Now, what should I do?

　Akio-senpai is in such a state, I believe I could carry him and run away, but I don’t want them to be following us.

　Besides, it’s also an issue if they appear at the other members’ place, especially Akane’s.

　The best course of action would be to deal with it right here.

　Fortunately, the potential witness, Akio-senpai, is unconscious.

　However, I’m not sure if my magic is effective against the ghosts in this world as well.

　For now, I will release a little of the magic power that I usually hold back.

　The movement of the human soul-like thing instantly becomes intense.

　…… Does this mean that these guys came out because of my magic power?

　When I noticed, the translucent figures already surrounded me.

　They don’t seem to try to attack me. They’re just surrounding me.

　I slowly take a deep breath and suppress the fear inside me.

　It’s okay.

　If my magic is working, there’s no way I’m going to lose.

　I take another look at the ghosts.

　Most of them are expressionless, with some of them having a pained or even angry expression.

　Either way, these guys probably don’t want to exist in a place like this, either.

　I slowly and drastically expand my magic power to form a magic circle.

　“Purification”

　Faint light fills the floor we’re on at the same time as the magic is activated.

　Then, the ghosts that were wrapped in that light disappeared one by one.

　I wonder if it’s just my imagination that they seemed to be smiling a little.

‘Thank you.’

　I felt like I heard that voice in my ear.

　When the light disappeared, the room was once again shrouded in darkness, and I didn’t feel any other presence around.

　The only thing present was me, Akio-senpai and the light from the flashlights we each held.

　It seems that I have succeeded in purifying it.

　Now, let’s quickly go back outside through the remaining route.

　However, what should I do with Akio-senpai?

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