"Hmm......"

Onizuka Kirita came to his senses in the darkness.

She felt like she was falling into a pool of water, her white clothes and hakama soaked and sticking to her skin.

"Where am I?"

Onizuka groped her way up from the ground, her movements stirring up the sound of noisy water.

I touched the talismans I was carrying, and sure enough, the rune paper was completely soaked, and most of them became crumpled.

However, although they have been soaked in water, these talismans are not completely unusable.

They are not so fragile yet.

And in fact, with the strength of Onizuka, he was able to rely on his own spiritual power to form a seal out of thin air a long time ago, so that he could freely use various bellflower techniques.

The main reason why they still carry rune paper with them is because it is faster to activate spells with rune paper prepared in advance.

Moreover, there is rune paper as a basis for casting spells, and the consumption of one's own spiritual power is relatively small compared to forming a spell out of thin air.

The little witch deftly twisted a wet yellow talisman with her fingers and spread her palm downward.

Her spiritual power converged into the palm of her hand, and the embodiment became visible to the naked eye, like a thick dripping dew that shone golden.

The yellow talisman was instantly dried by the gentle fiery power.

Onizuka Kirihoru shook her fingers, and the rune paper turned into golden shavings of light and spread out in all directions.

The steady light makes the surrounding scene visible.

"I'm ...... In a cave? ”

Onizuka saw the thick, damp rock walls around him, with strangely shaped stalactites growing everywhere and illuminated by faint flickers of light.

I saw the water under my ankles.

The soaked witch costume adhered to her body, and the white hakama half-penetrated outlined the girl's graceful and delicate body. Water drips from the hem of the garment, dripping into the stagnant water, causing small ripples and the sound of water to echo.

Onizuka doesn't like the feeling of being soaked in clothes.

She pulled out another piece of talisman paper and lit it on her fingertips.

A red, warm and hot force enveloped her body, quickly drying her clothes and hair, and turning the remaining rune paper into a dry state.

Except for the white foot bag that was still soaked in stagnant water and wet and adhered to the skin on my feet, I felt much better.

Then the light came on, and Onizuka continued to look around.

The stagnant water on the ground looked somewhat cloudy and tinged a strange scarlet hue.

But it doesn't smell too much, and you can see the ground through the water.

Underwater, it appears to be a huge, concave pentagram.

"It looks like a five-pointed star of the Sunny Kikyo."

In the center of the circle, there is a stone platform about two meters long and half a meter wide.

The surface is smooth and mottled.

"On this stone platform, there seems to be a faint smell of blood. The smell of blood that has existed for an unknown amount of time and cannot be dissipated...... There may have been some kind of ritual here. ”

Whoop –

Onitsuka walked forward, and once again the sound of water flowing under his feet echoed in the deep and oppressive cavern, and there was an indescribable strange feeling to hear.

She saw a torii gate in the cavern space ahead. The mottled crimson wooden pillars, most of which had rotted away, were still barely on top of the cave, intertwined with the cold stalactites around them.

If there is a torii, it means that the nature of the place is similar to that of a shrine.

The bright red torii gate is embedded in the oppressive deep cave, how strange it looks.

On the stone wall behind the torii gate, there is a heavy stone gate, which is tightly closed.

The little witch approached and raised her hand to try to push.

"There seems to be a chaotic and majestic force attached to the stone door, and I can't open it."

She continued to observe.

In the center of the stone gate, there is a depression with a diameter of about 20 centimeters.

A fragment of a bronze mirror with a pierced edge and an irregular shape is embedded in it, filling a small part of the groove, reflecting the light reflected by the talisman.

"So, there should have been a complete bronze mirror here?"

Just as he was observing the bronze mirror like this, Onizuka suddenly felt the cave shake violently, and he wailed and trembled.

But fortunately, this terrifying spatial vibration only lasted less than a few seconds, and quickly subsided.

The little witch who had re-stabilized her body suddenly felt something, and looked down at her left hand.

In her hand, she has been holding a small pentagonal painted horse.

This is what she once gave to Kamiyagawa.

It was also at the Juqiong Shrine that I somehow saw this painted horse floating with a red rope that the ghost mound appeared in this strange place right now.

She gripped Ema a little tighter, the edges of the small wooden sign tingling her palm.

Then I suddenly saw that the slender red rope on the ema reappeared, bent and fluttering, extending into the air, and then straight through the bronze mirror on the stone door.

The other end of the red rope was inside the bronze mirror, on the other side of the stone gate.

"Achuan?"

Some thoughts and perceptions were clearly transmitted to her heart through the connection of the red rope, not for a reason, but they could be clearly known.

"Ah Chuan, on the other side of the stone gate!?"

Onizuka was stunned.

However, she couldn't feel anything other than the clear feeling that the other end of the red rope was connected to the Kamiya River.

There seems to be no way for the two sides to communicate directly through this connection.

It took about half a minute for the little witch to calm down and calm herself.

Then he reached out and grabbed the red rope in the air.

This touch of red is ethereal, but when you hold it, it has a real feeling.

Pull.

Short pulls, short pulls, then slow pulls......

Onizuka Kirita began to experiment with rhythmic and conditioned tugging of the red rope.

Morse Code.

In the countermeasure room, there is a set of Morse code for its own use, which does not correspond to the English alphabet, but directly corresponds to the Japanese fifty tones, and some simple and clear command abbreviations for internal use.

Once you are familiar with it, you can use it to communicate easily and clearly with other people who have also learned this code.

Of course, Onizuka has systematically learned and mastered this since he was a child.

And she knew that Kamiyagawa had also studied on his own after joining the countermeasure room.

Overall, Kamiya is a studious person.

[Achuan, are you over there?] Red rope, the other end? ]

Soon, the red rope also came back with a pull with regulations, in response.

Onizuka patiently discerns carefully.

[I'm here.] What is your situation? ]

Receiving a response, the little witch breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, it seems that he can communicate with Ah Chuan over there.

See, there's always nothing wrong with learning.

Maybe someday it will come in handy.

The two sides began to communicate briefly and reported each other's situation, and the reply was "security for the time being".

Then there is the exchange of information on the environment in which the two sides operate.

The little shrine maiden noticed that the place where Kamiyagawa was located seemed to be very similar to the cave she was in now.

There are also pentagrams, stone gates, and broken bronze mirrors.

However, there are a few more things on the Onitsuka's side than Kamiya's side.

For example, the scarlet-ting, turbid water, the stone platform that looks like it could accommodate a single person to lie down, and the rotting torii.

corresponding, but not exactly.

After thinking about it briefly, after the sentence on Kamiyagawa's side had an ending symbol, Onizuka pulled the red rope again.

[Your, Bronze Mirror Fragment.] In the groove, position? ]

[Top left, around 45 degrees.] ]

[Mine.] Upper right, around 45 degrees. ]

Onizuka responded again, vaguely guessing.

"After the stone gate, will it be a mirror world that does not exactly correspond? Like, me and Achuan, one outside the mirror and the other in the mirror? ”

She passed her conjecture to Kamiyagawa in Morse code.

Soon got a response -

[Agreed.] Hotaru, try to piece together the bronze mirror. The mirror is intact, and I can break through the stone door steadily. ]

[Roger.] ]

Being able to communicate with Kamiya River reassures Onizuka a lot.

Moreover, she had already received general information from the other party about where she was now.

It is likely to be the Tuyumen Mansion of the descendants of Abe Harumi, and it is likely to be related to the two pillars of the gods of Tiandian and the fate of the gods.

Abe Harumi and Tenden are enshrined in Juqiong Shrine.

As a result, Onizuka felt that this place might also have a great connection with his giant Qiong Shenzi.

Of course, it is not ruled out that I came here because of Kamiya.

But, one way or another, things have happened.

In Onizuka's opinion, she and Kamiya have been trapped at opposite ends of the stone gate.

The most important thing now is to find the broken bronze mirror and try to put it together, so that you can meet Kamiyagawa and leave here together.

It's not too late to take a closer look at other things.

[Hotaru, the Tsuchigomon Mansion is under the influence of the power of the gods, so be careful.] ]

Kamiyagawa's side seems to be worried about the situation of the little shrine maiden.

[I will.] You also have to be careful. Let's leave together. ]

After responding to Kamiyagawa, Onizuka Kirita grabbed the red rope and tried to wrap it around his left wrist.

After tying the strong knot, I waited for a while, and the red rope floating in the air slowly disappeared again.

There will also be no restrictions on movement.

However, as soon as you hold on to the horse again, the extra red rope will float out again.

"Although I don't know why, it seems that my contact and contact with Ah Chuan will be more stable."

Thinking like this, Onizuka Kirita felt the beating in his chest become more and more stable.

"Am I a little dependent on Achuan? When did it start......"

Dependence is dependence, and the little witch does not deny this in her heart.

From the exchange just now, it can be seen that if the Kamiya River wants to steadily break through the power on the stone gate, it must be based on the premise that the bronze mirror is replenished.

It is not entirely certain what the relationship between the two spaces inside and outside the door is.

Perhaps both sides should be completed with complete bronze mirrors.

Or, the various fragments that they filled into the grooves of the stone door would appear directly in each other's space.

And in either case, Onizuka must act.

"Anyway, I have to get out of here with Achuan."

Ghost Tsuka encouraged himself like this, raised his hand to tie up his long hair, turned around and walked in the opposite direction.

If this is the end of the cave, then it should be the entrance to the cave shrine.

……

Whoa, whoa.

With two talismans twisted in his right hand and cold, turbid water under his feet, Onizuka Kirita carefully walked along the cave towards the outside.

There is no fork in the road in this cave, and it is not difficult to get out.

Slowly, she felt that the white foot bag on her feet was no longer soaked in water, and there was a clear light in front of her.

After leaving the cave, the view widened.

The world outside was groggy, like a turbulent emulsion, and it was impossible to tell whether it was day or night.

Onizuka found himself in the middle of a mountain forest, and the village could be seen faintly in the distance.

The village is surrounded by dense forests, which act as a natural barrier to the outside world. The houses here are built in a unique style, with old wooden structures scattered and scattered, but they are all gray and decayed.

You can see a thick miasma permeating every corner of the village, fluttering by itself. The miasma wrapped around every piece of wood, on every tile, enveloping the entire village in an oppressive atmosphere.

In the distance, there are endless woods and black mountains that don't know where to go.

"It's so depressing, is this the Tuyumen Mansion that Agawa said?"

Onizuka spreads out the palm of his right hand downward.

Once again, her spiritual power manifested concretely, and the thick golden light slowly fell from her palm, and then quickly dissipated.

The little witch maiden entered the Tuyumen Mansion suddenly, and she didn't make any preparations at all, except for some rune paper, the commonly used spirit removal props were not brought in.

Now you can only rely purely on your own spiritual power to cast spells to explore activities.

Sensing his surroundings in this way, Onizuka closed his eyes slightly and opened them again, and gently clenched his right hand into a fist.

"Now that there is no clue to the fragment of the bronze mirror, should I try to go to the village?"

Onitsuka held Ema tied to his left wrist and simply conveyed the information he had seen to Kamiyagawa, and then walked towards the dense forest in front of him.

The mountain forest is covered with miasma and is very damp.

Tall trees, low shrubs, ferns and mosses squeezed every inch of space, and the green was gloomy and eerie in the midst of the miasma.

Because I only wore a foot bag for indoor activities, the rocks and dead branches on the ground were a little awkward.

Walking some distance in the direction of the village, Onizuka suddenly had some sense, reversed the route he was traveling, and walked deeper into the forest.

Ahead, beneath two twisted pine trees, she saw a dark green tent.

"Waterproof tent...... Agawa said that the Tsuchigomon Mansion was destroyed after the Meiji Restoration, and it disappeared completely. The tent was old, but it didn't look like a product of that era. ”

Onizuka came closer.

The tent was zippered open, and it was already covered with rotten leaves, and an old blue sleeping bag could be seen, which looked more modern like the tarp tent.

"It seems that it's not just me and Achuan. After the Tsuchigomon Mansion was supposed to disappear, there were other people who had stumbled into this place by mistake. Well, there's this, I don't know if I can use it for psychic—"

Inside the blue sleeping bag, where the fallen leaves are piling up, Onizuka found a few yellowed sticky notes.

The notes above are blurred, but some are probably recognizable:

[I seem to have been here all day, I can't see the sun, I can't see the moon, and I don't have a cell phone signal.] Southeast of Kyoto near the Higashiyama Mountain Range, Mt. Kiyomizu and Mt. Grand Cross. It's not the first time I've been camping here, but what the hell is this place now? ]

[I've heard from other climbers before that occasionally someone goes missing on this side of Higashiyama and never finds it again.] Are the missing people here like me? Perhaps, I can't get out of here? ]

[There are others here, absolutely!] I feel it. No, no, no, they, perhaps, are they really people? ]

[I hear the sound of children playing.] I heard them singing, singing 'The Childish Lady of the High Heavens、...... Great God, and the ...... that I didn't mention just now, it's not clear. I wanted to go and see it, but the children all fled before I could get close. ]

[Did they get lost in the mountains too?] Or are they something else? But they were children. ]

[Someone is heard running out of breath, someone is heard screaming.] I'm scared, where do I hide? Damn, I can't stand it anymore, I'm going crazy to the limit. ]

[I see a young woman.] She stood there, staring straight at me, and then she was gone. ]

[The woman reappeared, and I could feel her gaze, but I didn't know where she was.] ]

[I heard voices like shouting and singing, and I was very sad. She was calling someone's name, but not me, and I don't know why I was a little lost. I'm so lost. I'm so lost. ]

[Everything brought with me has been eaten, and there is nothing left.] ]

[Here she comes again.] ]

[Calling me to go with her.] ]

Onizuka stood in front of the tent and glanced at the legible handwriting on the sticky notes, and suddenly he heard—

"Ho Ho ......"

It was the sound of extremely heavy breathing, like coming from the throat of a wild beast.

Subsequently.

Syllable!

Inside the half-open tent, a thin, pale arm poked out, and its jet-black nails dug deep into the ground.

Then, a face that was so rotten and swollen that it was hard to see clearly peeked out from under the tarp. (End of chapter)