## Chapter 268 – 268. Doll Play
268. Doll Play
Hakurin (白林).
A quick internet search revealed their identity.
They were a criminal organization operating in Japan. On the surface, they claimed to be working to change the corrupt state of Japan. However, people didn’t believe in Hakurin’s cause.
People considered Hakurin to be a terrorist organization even worse than the Yakuza.
Hakurin’s activities included political assassinations and attacks on the Japanese Hunter Guild.
Seitaro was believed to be the leader of Hakurin, an S-class criminal. In other words, a criminal with the power of an S-class hunter.
His ability was to become an ethereal being, and despite his appearance in his 30s, he was actually in his 60s and a highly skilled Onmyoji.
‘Shit. What is this?’
I scratched my head.
I couldn’t understand his thinking. Why attack now, with the whole world watching? There were two S-class hunters right there; attacking now was practically suicide.
‘Space rifts… they must be similar to dungeons.’
The rift hadn’t disappeared before the TV screen cut out. It was probably still there.
I launched the Yuhee Life app.
‘It’s unlikely, but just in case…’
I wondered if I could see the situation of the sex doll, Amatsuka Koyori.
And my hunch was right.
Koyori’s image appeared on my smartphone screen. She was on guard, along with the female ninja, Kouga Mio, who had been caught up with her. Judging by the drab walls and dark atmosphere, they seemed to be indoors.
‘Other rifts must be the same… Jin Seyoung will be safe!’
The situation had suddenly changed, and I couldn’t just sit still. I opened the door and went outside.
“……?!”
I saw something translucent and mint-colored outside the hallway window. I opened the window and looked out. A large mint-colored barrier was enveloping the entire Fuka Shrine.
‘Figures. That bastard put up a barrier.’
I frowned. It would take time for outside help to get here. And it would probably be impossible to get out.
I ran to where the Wind Vane Festival was being held. The Fuka Shrine’s barrier was shattered without a trace, and I could enter the venue without any hindrance.
The spectator seats, which had been crowded with people, were now empty. Trash was scattered on the floor, and space rifts were everywhere in the spectator area. There were at least 500 large and small space rifts.
I felt uneasy looking at the rifts. The people here had been sucked into the rifts. They hadn’t been able to resist. The S-class hunters hadn’t been able to avoid being sucked in because the space rifts had appeared right where they were.
‘Am I going to get sucked in too?’
I cautiously walked towards the rifts. Contrary to my worries, I didn’t feel any force from the rifts.
‘It seems that sucking people in only happens when they first appear.’
I carefully moved around the rifts. I was heading to where Jin Seyoung had been. Everyone here had been invited and had assigned seats, so it wasn’t hard to find her location.
‘A rift appeared right in front of Jin Seyoung. …Should I go in?’
I was worried about Jin Seyoung. But part of me thought that I might be more of a hindrance to her.
‘With my current skills, staying put might be the best way to help.’
I crossed my arms and looked around. The rifts were still there.
‘Seitaro said he’d play for ten days. Does that mean the rifts will stay open for ten days?’
I took my smartphone out of my pocket and checked Koyori’s situation.
Koyori was currently fighting a monster.
It was a bipedal monster that looked like a crocodile. It was 2 meters tall, and its head and tail were identical to a crocodile’s. Its body was covered in thick, hard scales.
It was a C-rank monster, a Croker.
The Croker was torn apart by Koyori’s spear without much resistance.
‘A C-rank monster? Maybe it’s not as dangerous as I thought.’
With Jin Seyoung’s skills, a Croker wouldn’t be a problem. Besides, she wouldn’t have gone in alone. Shin Jihyo and the guards were in the nearby seats.
Shin Jihyo and the guards were all A-rank hunters, so there was no need for me to step in.
“…Hmm.”
I looked around. Should I go back to my room and sleep? But then, one rift caught my eye.
It was the rift where the delinquent and his girlfriend had been sitting.
‘There are a lot of small rifts clustered nearby. Did they go in separately from the others?’
I was about to turn around when a thought struck me, making me shiver.
This could be an opportunity!
A chance to get with the gyaru girl!
I moved to the gyaru girl’s seat, avoiding the space rifts. But when I was about to go in, I hesitated.
‘What if I die if I go in? This is a trap, maybe I should just go back to my room and sleep?’
I was calmly considering when someone popped out of a nearby rift.
“Huh?!”
It was a man in a suit. As soon as he came out, he looked around in surprise, and then our eyes met.
I ran towards him.
“Hey! What happened inside the rift?! Please tell me!”
“Uh, w-well…”
The flustered man stammered. I patiently continued the conversation. The well-groomed man was Japanese.
“It was similar to a dungeon inside. A maze-type dungeon. I was moving alone, so… I just kept moving. Orcs appeared, but they couldn’t stop me.”
The more he spoke, the more confident the man became.
Orcs.
It seemed that Crokers weren’t the only monsters inside the rifts.
“Then I met a clown.”
“……A clown?”
“Yes. Don’t look at me like that. It’s not a lie, it’s real. That clown said he was a special agent from the World Hunter Association.”
The World Hunter Association.
It was the higher-level organization of each country’s hunter association. It had transcendent authority beyond national borders in special situations.
“Did you believe that?”
If a clown you met in a maze said he was a special agent from the American Hunter Association, you’d naturally think it was a lie. It was too suspicious.
“It was hard not to believe him. That clown spoke English well, and he had an ID. He didn’t tell me his name, which was a bit suspicious… but I have a good eye for people, and I somehow trusted the clown.”
He continued to talk about the clown. The clown had said he had entered the maze while investigating Hakurin. When he told him what had happened outside, the clown’s face had hardened.
“Maybe the clown makeup is because of his ability. But how did you get back here?”
“The clown told me how to get out.”
He held out his hand. He showed me a gray stone he had been holding.
“You can use mana on this white stone to get out. It’s gray now, but it was white until I used it. According to the clown, it will turn back into a white stone after 30 hours and can be used again to escape the maze. I was skeptical… but it turned out to be true. That’s how I got out. But how did you get out without a white stone?”
“I didn’t even go into the rift.”
“Huh?”
“I was resting in the shrine’s room due to the aftereffects of yesterday’s sparring.”
“Ah. I thought I’d seen you somewhere, you’re the one who sparred yesterday. I’m sorry. I didn’t get a good look at your face yesterday.”
“It’s okay. More importantly, can you give me that white stone?”
“I was planning to hand this over to the Japanese Hunter Association…”
He stared at me. I made my expression as earnest and urgent as possible.
“You seem to be in a hurry. I’ll give it to you.”
“T-thank you! But are you sure it’s okay to give this to me?”
“Didn’t I say I have a good eye for people? You might not understand in this situation, but I want to become friends with you.”
“Thank you! I won’t forget this favor. I’m Sung Yujin!”
When I bowed my head, he said that grand greetings were unnecessary and offered his hand for a handshake.
“I’m Kagaya Mizuchi.”
I was surprised to hear his name.
“The successor of the Kagaya Group!”
“Haha. Yes. That’s me.”
The Kagaya Group, one of Japan’s top conglomerates.
But I knew him not because he was the successor of the Kagaya Group.
Kagaya Mizuchi. He was a C-rank hunter because of his ability, even though his combat power was terrible.
Mizuchi’s ability was ‘Either/Or’. It was an ability that told him which of two choices would be more beneficial to him.
For example, if there was a delicious fruit in front of him, and the choices were to eat it or not, the Either/Or ability would tell him not to eat it. It turned out that the fruit was poisoned.
In a way, it was an ability close to precognition. Because of that, Mizuchi was receiving special treatment from the Japanese Hunter Association.
I had heard about Mizuchi’s ability about three years ago, and at first, I had scoffed at it, calling it a strange ability. A precognition-type ability? There was no way such an ability existed.
‘But compared to my ability, the Yuhee Life app, it’s not that strange. I can enter fictional worlds.’
Mizuchi’s ability was great, but it wasn’t omnipotent. It was an ability with limitations.
I was about to go into the rift when I stopped. And I asked Mizuchi.
“……Was it because of that ability that you gave me the white stone?”
“Haha. You knew about my ability as well. Yes. That’s right. Among the choices of ‘give’ and ‘not give’ to Sung Yujin, my ability chose ‘give’. I don’t particularly like this ability, but it’s beneficial to me, so I have to follow it.”
“…Hmm. Somehow…”
“Somehow you feel uneasy? Haha. I understand. I feel that way sometimes too.”
Mizuchi smiled. I thanked him and then jumped into the rift. It was the rift near the seats of the delinquent and the gyaru girl.
•••
As soon as I entered the maze, I felt suffocated. The humidity and temperature had increased. I also smelled a strange odor.
I took out the Hwaryeon Flying Daggers from my inventory and was on guard.
The ceiling was 5 meters high and the distance between the walls was about 8 meters. It was a maze, but it was quite large. Also, a faint light was coming from the ceiling, so I could see the inside without torches or lights.
I looked around and saw traces of battle and bloodstains on the floor. The blood hadn’t coagulated yet. I carefully followed the blood.
Grrrrrrrrr.
“Get lost!”
I heard the growling of a beast and the voice of the tanned gyaru, Yoshikawa Misa. I suppressed my presence and carefully moved towards the sound.
About 50 meters away, I saw the delinquent and Misa fighting a thorn tiger.
The delinquent was unconscious with a wound on his side, and Misa was standing in front of him, taking a fighting stance. Her face was full of tension.
The thorn tiger was a tiger with sharp thorns growing on its head, body, and tail. It was a C-rank monster.
‘The gyaru girl is stronger than me, so she’ll be fine… no, wait a minute. She doesn’t have a weapon.’
The delinquent was wounded and unconscious.
Misa was trying to protect the delinquent with her bare hands.
The thorn tiger was a C-rank monster.
“Hehehe.”
A smile formed on my lips. The perfect opportunity.
I ran towards the thorn tiger.
“You hedgehog cat! You’re fighting me!”
“Grrr?!”
The thorn tiger turned to me, its blue eyes flashing.
As I ran forward with killing intent, the thorn tiger also charged at me with killing intent. Its speed was much faster than mine.
Crackling!
Red lightning pulsed on the blade.
The monster was right in front of me. I used the ‘Moment’ skill when it pushed off the ground and charged at me. Its speed slowed down considerably.
I moved below the monster.
‘Moment.’
I used ‘Moment’ continuously, raising my sword and slashing the thornless abdomen.
“Kuaaaaaah!”
Blood and guts spilled out, and the thorn tiger collapsed on the floor. I ran to the struggling monster and slashed its neck with my sword.
‘If I didn’t have the Hwaryeon Flying Daggers and ‘Moment’, I wouldn’t have been able to catch it so easily.’
Anyway, I won.
I retrieved the thorn tiger’s magic stone and walked towards Misa, who was looking at me. I tensed my face. I was afraid that a sinister smile would appear if I let my guard down.
