Readers can't help but grumble. That darn Shikikan! Hu Tao's earlier story dealt with ghosts, but because the protagonist was Hu Tao—who isn't afraid of ghosts—the atmosphere wasn't scary.
Hu Tao's calm demeanor and lively personality made readers subconsciously feel that ghosts couldn't scare or harm her, so they weren't afraid either.
It's like someone playing a horror game while cracking jokes—you just don't feel scared.
But this time is different. The Traveler and Paimon are together. The Traveler's fine, but Paimon is terrified.
The Traveler doesn't talk much, so Paimon's reactions become highly contagious, making everyone else scared along with her.
Still, despite the fear, curiosity is unstoppable.
It's like watching a horror movie—you cover your eyes in fear, but when you hear a scream, you can't resist peeking to see what's happening.
You might end up shielding your eyes with your fingers, leaving a tiny gap to squint through. That's Furina right now.
One hand covers her face, the other flips the page—now we know what a "slap-sized face" looks like.
The next page shows the woman crouching in place, muttering to herself.
["You can't do this, Chizuru…"]
["If desire overcomes reason, it will bring misfortune to others. You mustn't repeat the same mistakes…"]
["Just endure a little longer. You've held on for so long—what's a little more time, right?"]
Readers don't know what "desire" she's referring to, but in this creepy atmosphere, they can't help but wonder if it's a desire to eat people.
In the story, Paimon takes a closer look and realizes the woman is just an ordinary person crouching there. Breathing a sigh of relief, she approaches and asks:
["Hello, have you seen three weird guys pass by here? Um… they look kinda like this…"]
Before Paimon can describe them in detail, the woman, who calls herself "Chizuru," stands up.
[In a gloomy tone: "You… are you speaking to me?"]
She stiffly turns her body, her neck twisting at an angle that looks like it might snap, her head tilted back, her gaze vacant.
["Speaking… to someone like me?"]
(Chizuru's appearance is somewhat reminiscent of a female Muzan Kibutsuji.)
[Paimon, terrified: "W-WAAAH!!!"]
Paimon is scared out of her wits, but readers fall silent, observing this woman named Chizuru.
Black hair, red eyes, a large deep red flower and several smaller ones above her left eye—how to put it… she's kinda pretty?!
Oh no, oh no, the lower house is about to overrule the upper house!
Come on, bro, you built up all this atmosphere, and the "female ghost" is this good-looking? How are we supposed to be scared? She should be scared of us!
[Chizuru, eerily: "You shouldn't have come here. You shouldn't have approached me…"]
Lucian seems to be "trying" to maintain the spooky vibe, with the illustration's perspective warped, carrying a trembling sense of space.
The image shows Chizuru's full body: a black kimono with red flame patterns and a few red flowers, somewhat resembling the flowers on Hu Tao's outfit.
Readers nod in approval: not only is she pretty, but her clothes are too.
[Chizuru continues: "If you want to live, leave quickly. Otherwise, your souls will be trapped here forever."]
Though her words are menacing, readers aren't scared at all.
They just want to say: Quick, Shikikan, you've got three seconds to write her detailed profile!
[Chizuru: "Don't repeat the same mistakes. Go back… go back…!"]
As Chizuru speaks, the Traveler smells a floral scent and falls unconscious.
This snaps some readers, swayed by their "lower house," back to reality. This girl named Chizuru is no ordinary person!
This is the Traveler—someone who takes on Archons, pummels Hilichurls, and uses passing Slimes for soup!
And she knocked her out! Not ordinary—extremely not ordinary!
At this point, readers haven't realized that while the Traveler has high combat strength, physical resistance, attack, defense, and HP, she's vulnerable to status effects.
She's the type to fall hardest in a hypnosis book—I mean, lulling you into the deepest, sweetest sleep.
Lumine scratches her head. She is a bit weak to status effects, which is why she sometimes wants to bring Lucian along.
Lucian's resistance is sky-high, and say what you will, he's fast at running.
Mona would work too—prophets are all quick runners, pros at escaping.
When the Traveler opens her eyes again in the story, someone's waking her.
The illustration is from the Traveler's perspective: opening her eyes, she sees a red-haired boy with two beauty marks.
[Shikanoin Heizou: "Wake up, hey, wake up."]
After showing a beautiful woman, now it's a handsome guy. The Traveler's daily "diet" is top-tier—always meeting either gorgeous guys or stunning girls.
With this perspective, if she doesn't wake up soon, it's time for CPR—some places would do it like that.
But compared to the Traveler, there's someone even less resistant to hypnosis nearby.
Paimon lies on the ground, sleeping soundly, flailing her limbs and talking in her sleep.
[Paimon, tearfully: "W-Wah… don't eat me… I'm not tasty at all…"]
["Traveler, you have to avenge me…"]
Adorable Paimon makes readers laugh. Looks like in her dream, she's been eaten.
In reality, Lumine is a bit "annoyed." Dreaming that I need to avenge you? That means I didn't eat you?
How dare someone steal my emergency food! Draw your sword!
She'll still protect Paimon—hoarding food counts as protection, right?
Seeing Lumine's slight anger, Paimon feels a bit happy. The Traveler's so good—she gets mad when I'm scared. She spoils me~!
Looking at Lucian nearby, Paimon thinks: this guy finally agreed to adventure together, but he's been out of it the whole time.
With his mental state, Paimon bets if they met a hypnotist, they'd all wipe.
Lucian's helpless. He writes novels day and night—how can his mental state be good?
If Lumine hadn't promised to avoid dangerous places and treat it as a trip, he wouldn't have come.
Now that it's dark, he's finally resting. Lumine and Paimon read, Lucian naps, and Xiao sits in a tree, keeping watch while reading.
That's right—Xiao came along too, acting as their bodyguard.
By the way, the team isn't just the three of them. Shenhe, Guizhong, Xianyun, and others are here too.
Guizhong wanted to take a walk, and with Xianyun and the others worried about her going alone in her current state, they joined Lumine's group.
Back to the story: after Paimon wakes up, she notices the "female ghost" is gone and sighs in relief, assuming Heizou and the Traveler chased her off.
But Heizou didn't see any ghost. When he arrived, he only found the Traveler and Paimon sleeping on the ground.
Heizou says: "Wake up, no sleeping here," and that's what roused them.
===✧✦✧===
Character Voice · Yae Miko: About the Akitsu Kimodameshi · Part One
"Seeing Ayato and me stirring the pot, you'd know it wouldn't be simple. But I didn't expect it to be about that time…"