Chapter 90 Weird! Tsuchimiya Mask
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
It was just past 10 PM. In the Student Council’s special building, the materials room was showing a recorded video of the Owl Bear briefing that had taken place in the evening, with the Newspaper Club invited.
The Newspaper Club had 4 members, including the Head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura Kiyoshi, and 3 other club members. The Student Council had 3 members: the president, Amahara Karen, the treasurer, Ukita Shoko (her best friend), and the male treasurer, Inami Hitomi. Higurashi Asuka from The Last Survivor also joined them.
”I see… This is very urgent information that could affect lives right now. The fifth issue of the ‘School Daily’ will start printing at 11 PM tonight, but I’ll try to squeeze it in even if it delays the schedule.”
As Tsuchimiya finished explaining on the TV monitor and began answering questions from supporters, Head of the Newspaper Club Shimomura spoke up.
”Best regards.”
Amahara lowered her head to the Head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura, with a relieved expression.
”President, if we change the layout of the 3 pages, we can fit it in, but it might be hard to understand with just text…”
One of the Newspaper Club members, who was working on a laptop, spoke to Shimomura while continuing their task. The other members were also busy taking notes, writing articles, and reviewing the overall structure.
”Yeah… Higurashi-san, can I ask you to draw an illustration for the explanation? If possible, please take it seriously.”
The head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura, asked while watching Higurashi draw an illustration on the whiteboard at an amazing speed.
”Sure, leave it to me. It’s no problem at all.”
Higurashi took the paper from a club member, pulled out a ballpoint pen, and started to quickly draw an Owlbear in one go.
”If we include illustrations, there really isn’t enough space, huh? Maybe we should just add more pages. How about using the back side for a map of the shops around the special zone’s main street? There should be a demand for that.”
”President, with this amount of information, we won’t fill one page. We also don’t have time to refine the content.”
The head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura, frowned and tapped his temple with his fingers as he thought.
”Ah, in that case, I have some information I want to share as a warning. What do you think?”
Higurashi spoke while drawing, and Shimomura looked at her with surprise.
”Oh… a warning? Go ahead and tell me.”
With Shimomura’s approval, Higurashi began to speak.
”The other day in class, we learned about ‘Orc Ecology,’ and it seems that in this world, people use them for food. So, I got curious and went to the special zone, and I found Orc meat for sale.”
Orcs are humanoid monsters with faces like pigs or boars. They have their own language and are known for being violent and cruel. They are about the same size as humans or a bit bigger, with muscular bodies and great strength. It seems they sometimes attack human villages in groups, accompanied by goblins.
”I’ve heard that in our world, orcs are sometimes used as food in games and novels. What’s the deal with that?”
”Maybe, but eating them could give you Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.”
At Higurashi’s words, the sound of the club members typing on their keyboards stops.
”W-what’s that…?”
The treasurer, Ukita Shoko asks, her eyes wide in confusion.
”It’s mad cow disease (BSE)…”
The head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura, mutters, and everyone looks shocked, their eyes wide. This name seems to be more familiar.
”Right. The incubation period is from 2 to 30 years. Once it shows up, your body gradually stops moving, you lose control of your emotions, and you can’t think logically anymore. You’ll be bedridden in 6 months and will definitely die. There’s no treatment.”
As Higurashi explains, everyone’s faces change color. Inami Hitomi, the male treasurer, looking pale, speaks up.
”I remember hearing that it spread among cattle in America a long time ago and caused a big fuss. Japan even temporarily stopped imports, right? You get infected by eating contaminated meat, don’t you?”
”We don’t know the exact conditions or how much you need to eat to get infected, but there’s a case of a vegetarian woman who got sick after just one bite of a hamburger when she was young.”
”Are you saying orc meat is contaminated?”
In response to Amahara’s question, Higurashi shakes her head.
”Jacob’s disease is caused by a protein called a prion that mutates, and you can get infected by consuming this abnormal prion. It’s not a virus, so cooking it doesn’t help. The mutation of this prion doesn’t happen naturally very often. However, there are factors that are believed to trigger it with a high probability. That factor is ‘cannibalism’.”
”Cannibalism…”
”I heard that the mad cow disease incident was caused by feeding cattle bone meal to livestock.”
”They say that Jacob’s disease occurs in about one in a million people, but in tribes where there is a custom of eating parts of deceased relatives, reports show that nearly 20% of the population of about 200 people had Jacob’s disease. Many animals instinctively avoid cannibalism, and there’s a good reason for that.”
”──Wait a minute! Does eating the orcs from Monster count as cannibalism, Higurashi-san!?”
Inami Hitomi, the male treasurer, suddenly raised his voice and confronted Higurashi. The newspaper club members also stopped what they were doing and listened.
”I mentioned in class that orcs sometimes use humans for breeding. If they can breed, that means they are very close to being the same species from a biological and genetic standpoint. I suspect that goblins are the same, but orcs might actually be mutated humans.”
”That’s terrible… So, eating that meat sold in stores is like eating humans…?”
Amahara murmured with a face that turned from pale to white at Inami Hitomi’s words.
”That’s definitely something we can’t ignore, but we don’t know if our scientific knowledge and laws apply here. If what Higurashi-san says is true, there might be a lot of people in this world who get Jacob’s disease, right?”
”Amahara-senpai, I looked into that in the library. There are a lot of books donated by the School Management Committee. According to those, orc meat is cheap and mainly eaten by the poor. Nobles and wealthy commoners hardly ever eat it. Also, there’s an incurable disease called ‘Beastification Disease’ that only commoners get, and its symptoms are very similar to Jacob’s disease.”
”………”
When Higurashi looked up and scanned the room, everyone was silent with furrowed brows. Finally, Shimomura, the Head of the Newspaper Club, broke the heavy silence.
”Well, that’s pretty much decided then. I was interested in orc meat too, but after hearing that, I definitely don’t want to eat it. Got it, I’ll include that information in this week’s school newspaper. More students are reaching the 3rd floor, and some might have the money to try it. Let’s make it a color page with a bold headline warning them.”
”Yeah, please do.”
”Hikone-san, do you think you can handle the article?”
Shimomura the head of newspaper club called out to a club member who was focused on typing away at the keyboard.
”Yes, leave it to me. It’s not that difficult, and I’m aiming for medical school, so I have some knowledge about it.”
”Alright, let’s head back to the club room for now. Aim to submit by 11 PM as planned. Higurashi-san, if your illustration is done, bring it to the club room… Wait, is it already finished?”
Higurashi, placing her pen down, presented the paper with her illustration. The Head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura, had a mixed expression of surprise and disbelief.
Looking over it, he saw a creepy owl bear with its wings spread wide, drawn in a way that didn’t seem possible to finish in such a short time. There were also many lines pointing to different parts of its body, each labeled with strange descriptions like (Owl Eye: Sees through darkness and never misses its prey) (Owl Claw: Can easily tear through leather armor!) (Owl Stomach: Can slightly melt hard bones!) like a monster encyclopedia.
”Hmm, I’d want this talent for our club. Can I ask you to do more?”
”If there’s a reward, I can take it as a part-time job when I have free time. Since I was the one who asked for this, I’ll consider it a favor this time.”
”Hahaha, you’re quite clever. When that time comes, I’ll wish for it again.”
The Head of the Newspaper Club, Shimomura, chuckled happily and led the members away.
* * *
In the hallway of the school late at night, a figure walked briskly.
The emergency exit lights glowed green, and the moonlight cast shadows in the eerie atmosphere of the 3rd-floor corridor, which was silent and unsettling. However, the figure, likely a female student, walked confidently down the center of the hallway without fear.
Her blazer, which is the uniform of Seito Academy, is light blue, representing the first-year students, with a skirt and ribbon tie. She wears pure white Combat long boots that decorate her long legs, and her hands are covered with white gloves that go up to her elbows. A pure white cape drapes over her shoulders, and around her neck is a bright red scarf. The upper half of her face is covered by a red butterfly-shaped mask.
She is the mysterious figure causing a stir at the academy, Kamen Papillon.
Moving from Building C to the end of Building A, Kamen Papillon slowly descends the stairs while searching for any signs of presence.
At that moment, her butterfly ears picked up a faint male voice coming from the end of the 2nd-floor hallway.
Peeking carefully to observe, she saw about 5 figures sticking to the window in the west hallway, whispering quietly. Confirming this, Kamen Papillon quietly returned to the 3rd floor and looked down from the window at the stairs.
The area in front of the school building, illuminated by the outdoor lights, was empty due to the late hour. To the left in the east, there was the school gate, and to the right in the west, there was a teleportation facility that resembled a temple.
Holding her breath and watching for a while, she eventually saw a group of 5 or 6 people emerge from the teleportation facility.
Even at this hour, there are parties diving into the game. Nighttime is considered dangerous because a large number of undead appear, but it also has the advantage of quickly earning experience points.
Basic methods for gathering monsters in front of safe zones and techniques using the terrain for efficient farming are continuously researched and refined, but these are usually kept secret as confidential information within the parties.
And Kamen Papillon had received information from a certain source that there had been a series of muggings targeting parties returning from their successful missions late at night when there were few people around.
A party that had just come out of the teleportation facility passed by Kamen Papillon, chatting excitedly. At the same time, it seemed that the presence of men downstairs was getting closer, stopping in front of the stairs.
To enter or exit the teleportation facility, one must always pass in front of this Building A. Therefore, Kamen Papillon had guessed that if she were going to scout for prey, this would be the place, and it seemed she was right.
The party stopped in front of the school building and split into 2 groups. Four of them headed toward the school gate. They were probably going back to the dormitory or student residence. Meanwhile, a pair of boys and girls entered the school building. If they weren’t heading to the student dormitory C or their club room, they were likely aiming for the 24-hour shop. There was also a possibility that it was a date under the pretense of that.
When the two entered the school building, Kamen Papillon sensed multiple people going down the stairs below.
Kamen Papillon grinned and quietly followed the presence.
Kamen Papillon is a modified human! For the peace of the academy, she fights against the evil organization ‘Demiurge’!
That’s the concept, but right now, the focus is more on Kamen Papillon as a vengeful figure against Demiurge, rather than being recognized as a hero protecting the peace of the academy by the other students.
This won’t do!
She must convey this burning feeling to everyone at the academy. Thinking this, Kamen Papillon decided to start by easily taking down small evildoers.
(At this rate, those two will be attacked by those suspicious men. That’s when I’ll swoop in and defeat the evil. A perfect plan!)
Kamen Papillon chuckled confidently as they checked the weight of the weapon hanging from their combat belt.
Upon reaching the 1st floor and peeking down the hallway, Kamen Papillon spotted the backs of uniformed men peeking into the lobby from around the hallway corner.
The leading man turned to his comrades, raised a finger to his lips to signal silence, and the group moved into the lobby together.
Kamen Papillon swiftly approached the corner and peeked into the lobby.
Beyond the quietly advancing men, a couple walked hand in hand, close and affectionate.
Though it seemed they were heading toward the shop in Building B, they instead exited through the right-hand door of the connecting corridor into the courtyard.
Upon seeing this, the men hurried toward the door. After confirming they had slipped into the courtyard unnoticed, Kamen Papillon began to move silently.
* * *
In the courtyard of the school, illuminated by the dim light of the outdoor lamps, a couple sat closely on a bench.
After exchanging a few words, they leaned in and kissed, embracing each other.
The boy, physically larger, pulled the girl closer, fondling her chest with a rough, kneading motion. The girl let out a sweet moan, her hand reaching unhesitatingly for the boy’s groin, starting to rub his p*nis.
As their arousal grew, so did the boy’s urge to climax as she continued teasing his p*nis.
”Yuki, wait a second.”
The boy, flustered, tried to stop her, but the girl──Yuki──smiled sadistically, pulling him back as he tried to retreat, continuing to tease his p*nis with slow, deliberate movements.
”What’s the matter? Are you about to c*m? What if you came right inside your pants?”
”No, please, give me a break! I’ll take them off, just wait a bit!”
As a guy, c**ming in his pants was something he desperately wanted to avoid. Plus, they had plans to shop afterward, and walking around in pants drenched in s*men was the last thing he wanted. Since he had evolved into Evold, his volume had significantly increased, making things even worse.
”Nope~♪ You’ll just have to hold it. If you do, I’ll give you a reward.”
Yuki whispered seductively as she straddled him, pressing her panties-covered slit against his p*nis.
”W-wait…!”
He tried to grab Yuki’s hands as she began loosening his tie, but she pressed her hips against him harder, grinding her slit against him.
He panicked, almost coming, and quickly released her, causing her to stop her movements abruptly.
”Good, just behave, Hide-kun. I’ll take good care of you.”
Confirming that his resistance had stopped, Yuki leaned in and devoured his mouth while unbuttoning his shirt. Each time Hide tried to resist, Yuki would grind her hips against him, preventing any escape.
By normal standards, Yuki would be considered quite the predator, but for Evolds, this kind of behavior was pretty common. When it came to s*x, there was often a power struggle between boys and girls, but boys who still clung to the outdated notion that girls should be passive often left themselves vulnerable.
Just as Hide began to melt in her arms, Yuki suddenly sensed something and whipped around sharply.
Looking up, she saw several male students approaching them, closing the distance in a way that formed a circle.
”What do you want?!”
Yuki quickly stood and took a defensive stance.
”Hah, you’ve got good instincts, don’t you? Do you have some sort of sense for detecting presences?”
”You’re so noisy. We’re in a nice place, so can you not disturb us?”
There were 5 guys. Yuki’s face tightened as she sensed the disadvantage, but she had just come back from the dungeon and was feeling high, so her fighting spirit didn’t waver.
Hide, who stood up late, tried to fix his shirt a little as he stepped forward, but Yuki pushed him back by shoving his shoulder.
”Rearguard shouldn’t step in front of the vanguard, you idiot!”
”Well, but…”
Yuki was right, but as a guy, it was a complicated feeling.
”Just stay here and go get Shinji and the others!”
”Hey, you think I’m gonna let you go?”
The guys completed their encirclement, forming a half-circle around the bench.
”What do you guys want?”
The guys briefly glanced at Hide, who raised his voice with a smirk, but quickly returned their attention to Yuki’s every move without letting their guard down.
It’s not uncommon for boys and girls to fight, but girls usually have a higher winning rate. This is mainly because the boys aren’t used to fighting girls and hesitate to hit them, which makes them hold back. On the other hand, girls seem to have no such hesitation and attack without mercy. In fact, they might even feel a sense of catharsis from overpowering a guy.
Many boys instinctively stop when their fists connect with a girl’s face, but girls who have evolved into fighters get even angrier at half-hearted attacks and immediately counterattack.
The physical abilities of both boys and girls in Evold are considered equal, but those who originally have stronger power remain strong even after becoming Evold. Still, the fact that girls, who are supposed to have weaker original power, can match boys means that in the ‘Player System,’ girls are favored. When it comes to girls who have trained their bodies well in sports clubs, in one-on-one fights, they usually won’t lose to boys in physical combat.
Many students still don’t realize this, but it’s already a well-known fact among parties that send girls as vanguards to advance through the 3rd floor layer.
It seems the 5-member group understands this too, as despite having an overwhelming advantage, they ignore Hide in the rearguard and keep their eyes on Yuki.
”You guys look pretty confident. It’s a shame we can’t take any money, but how about showing us the items you have?”
”And also, tell us how to hunt zombies. You’re doing something in the northwest area of A2, right?”
”!”
Yuki and Hide’s expressions changed at the boy’s words. These guys have been involved after investigating this thing.
The trick for zombie hunting using the terrain is a top-secret matter for the party. For a while, they planned to save money and level up before challenging the boss. Since developing this, life has become easier, and they can see hope, but if it leaks to the outside, they’ll have to start competing for the location. If multiple parties become competitors, they might not even be able to enter that hunting ground anymore.
”Don’t mess with me! There’s no way I’m telling you!”
”Haha, then let’s see how your body feels about it.”
The leader-like guy reached behind his waist and pulled out a baton, and the other guys followed suit, getting their batons ready.
”Ugh…!”
Yuki’s weapon is stored in the locker, so she is unarmed. There’s no way she can win.
It’s a hopeless situation, but she has to find a way to escape with Hide and call for help. To communicate her thoughts, Yuki slowly stepped back.
”……?”
Yuki was carefully watching the movements of the men, but suddenly she noticed that they were wide-eyed, staring behind them. At the same time, she felt an overwhelming pressure on her back that made her hair stand on end.
The men stood there with their mouths half-open, stunned. If they were going to run, now was the chance, but the terrifying pressure kept Yuki from moving even a finger. She could hear heavy breathing right behind her, and she realized Hideo was in the same state.
”W-What is ‘that’…?”
One of the pale-faced men managed to squeeze out a voice.
Hearing the word “that,” Yuki’s spine went cold as she realized it was something not human.
In response to that word, a deep voice echoed from behind Yuki, as if it came from the depths of the earth.
’I, am… Tsuchimiya Mask… Your… un-gentlemanly behavior… cannot be ignored…!’
”Eeek…!”
The men let out pathetic sounds and stepped back in fear.
”Ah!?”
Then Yuki also sensed something passing right above her head from behind and screamed, sitting down.
Looking up, she saw a bag-like object floating and moving toward the men.
…
……
………
Third Year Class F, Demiurge Member (Underling) Toshihiko Ugasaki
We were just a small delinquent group, trying to stay under the radar so we wouldn’t attract the attention of serious guys like Kibakura and Yamazaki.
When I first came to this world, I thought, “It’s the end of the century, Hyahha! We’re going to live however we want!” But after seeing the flashy guys get crushed one by one by Demiurge, I decided it was better to keep a low profile.
Still, when I saw the Demiurge guys having fun, I got jealous and thought we should join Demiurge too.
”Kibakura-san, we want to have fun too!” I bowed my head. Well, I couldn’t meet Kibakura-san directly, though. I didn’t want to meet someone so scary anyway.
But joining Demiurge turned out to be pretty tough. Life was already hard, and we had to pay 35% of our dive results as a tax to Demiurge. What’s with that 5%? At least make it 30% so we can do the math!
So, with the backing of Demiurge, we were trying hard to shake people down, but then I noticed that the guys hunting undead in the night dungeon were doing really well.
While we were hanging out in the safe zone on the 2nd floor, we spotted a party heading to the 1st floor just before the undead started to spawn. I remembered their faces and tried to follow them, but I got scared of the undead and turned back halfway.
Then, while patiently waiting for them to come out at the academy, we planned to hurt two of them who were separated from their group to find out how to hunt zombies.
Suddenly, a pumpkin-headed bag appeared and called us non-gentlemanly, coming at us with a scary look!
You probably don’t understand what I’m saying, and honestly, I have no idea what’s going on either!
I want to go home already! I shouldn’t have joined Demiurge!
…
……
………
The leather bag looked really worn out. It was cut in a weird cross shape, but some parts were stitched together just enough to keep the bag’s shape.
From a hole that looked like a slit, red light was leaking out, floating in the air as if glaring at the men. Above that cut, the two characters ‘Tsuchimiya’ were written in marker.
”What the heck is this… a monster?”
”This is bad… we can’t use skills or magic at the academy…”
”But it’s just one. If 5 of us go at it, we can handle it, right?”
”Before we get taken down… right?”
Ignoring the anxious feelings of the men, the Tsuchimiya mask spoke in a low voice.
’Now, here’s a question. …Once upon a time, there was an old man and an old woman living together. The old man went to check the river on a rainy day──’
”Attack!!”
”Oooh! Let’s do this!”
”I don’t care about some old man! It’s your own fault, you idiots!”
”Yahaha! Die!”
The 5 of them raised their clubs and charged, but the Tsuchimiya mask smoothly rose up to avoid the attack.
’I see… it’s a problem before the judgment. Communication is impossible. You are not gentlemen. I will dispose of you here.’
”Huh?”
As the Tsuchimiya mask suddenly dove down, it dodged the clubs and landed on the face of the leader.
”Whoa!?”
”Toshi-chan!?”
”Hey! Are you okay, Toshi-chan!”
Ugasaki Toshihiko, forced to wear the Tsuchimiya mask, screamed and clutched his head in agony, twisting his body wildly.
Worried, the friends rushed over, but Toshi-chan swung his arms and knocked them away. One friend, hit hard, flew back and rolled on the ground.
”What are you doing, Toshi-chan!”
”I’m not Toshi-chan. I am Tsuchimiya Mask.”
Toshi-chan, wearing the Tsuchimiya Mask, said this in Toshi-chan’s voice.
Then, they stepped forward toward the fallen friend and raised the baton.
”Eek!?”
Just as they was about to bring it down, a fierce voice cut through the darkness.
”That’s enough! You villains!”
Toshi-chan stopped moving and turned to look at the one who spoke.
A figure was confidently walking toward the group, stepping firmly on the grass. It was a girl wearing a white cape and a red scarf, with a red butterfly mask covering half her face.
”Do you call me… a villain? Who are you?”
Anger surged from the Tsuchimiya Mask. The girl, undaunted, shot a sharp gaze at Tsuchimiya Mask through her mask.
”I am the messenger of justice from Planet Papillon! Kamen Papillon!”
”I am the masked gentleman! Tsuchimiya Mask!”
Without being asked, Tsuchimiya Mask immediately replied with their name.
The two locked eyes, sparks flying between them.
Here, 2 masks met.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.