As Reimu and Marisa were Fighting, Cassidy slipped away, she then found a mask, a happy-looking mask, she shrugged and pocketed the mask it had the words, Mask of Joy, as she went to the betting side of the Torment, too saw what was happening with the ring she set up.
As Reimu threw a yin-yang orb the size of a small boulder, Meiling screamed, flipping over the edge of the ring like an Olympic gymnast on caffeine. "I AM NOT PAID ENOUGH FOR THIS!" she yelled.
Marisa laughed, riding her broom upside down. "Ain't no pay at all, ze!"
"That's the joke!" Meiling shouted as she dodged a Master Spark that turned part of the stadium wall into cosmic confetti.
Meanwhile, in the betting lounge, Cassidy plopped down on a comfy chair, her scythe now disguised as a baseball cap, sipping tea from a mug labeled "Definitely Not Scheming." She opened her Scroll to check odds. Reimu was slightly favored—by two points and a divine blessing. Marisa had more chaotic energy, though.
Cassidy smirked. "Hope y'all bet responsibly. Or don't. I profit either way."
She then took out the "Mask of Joy" again, looking it over. It shimmered unnaturally, and for a split second, her reflection was… smiling? Uncomfortably smiling. She blinked and pocketed it again. "Nope. Not dealing with cursed masks today. I learned after the last 'happy accident'."
Back in the ring, Marisa and Reimu had somehow tangled each other up in streamers, sparklers, and what might have been someone's laundry.
Chris looked down from his illusionary projection booth and facepalmed. "Why does this feel like a festival sponsored by chaos itself?"
Junko, sipping wine beside him, giggled. "Because it is."
Koakuma looked at him as she spoke. "You seem to deal with this very easily, why is that".
Chris looked at her as he stopped his announcement he remembered a particular Brown hair girl, almost as determined as Cassidy when they were in the Freddy Pizzarea, and another one of his childhood friends. "Let's say I soul spent some time in a very 'unique' place before coming to Gensokyo".
Koakuma blinked, tilting her head as she watched Chris's face shift from the usual mischief to a rare moment of seriousness. "A… unique place?"
Chris's gaze drifted into the distance, just beyond the tournament arena where Reimu had somehow suplexed Marisa into a conveniently placed gelatin sculpture. "Yeah… you ever hear of a place called Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria?"
Koakuma squinted. "Is that a type of bakery?"
Chris chuckled dryly. "If by bakery you mean a place where animatronic death is a nightly hazard and the power bill is the final boss, then sure. I 'worked' there once. Soul was… kind of stuck there for a while. Long story short, I met some weird people… like a brown-haired girl who wouldn't stop smiling even in hell, and Cassidy, back when she was all rage and no wings."
Koakuma raised an eyebrow, clearly not expecting that level of cursed backstory. "You're kidding."
Chris looked her dead in the eyes. "I wish."
A loud explosion pulled their attention back to the ring where Reimu had gone full exorcist mode while Marisa had summoned a small galaxy. Meiling, still the referee, clung to a pole with her dear life, muttering prayers to every pantheon she could think of.
Chris casually picked up his mic again, voice echoing over the crowd. "And that's why I don't flinch anymore, folks. When you've watched a cupcake try to eat your soul at 3 AM, this is just Tuesday."
Junko laughed from her box seat. "Truly, only the cursed survive in Gensokyo."
Cassidy, watching from her betting booth, sipped on her soul-coffee and muttered, "Ain't that the damn truth."
"So what was it like"
Chris saw who the voice was from, it was Seiga, as he looked at her. "Mostly lived in an Animatronic Golden Bear with Cassidy and the other missing Kids"
Seiga looked as he spoke. "Missing Kids?"
Chris looked at her as he spoke. "Yeah, not starting the Missing Children Incident"
Junko looked at him as she spoke. "You, I am very well informed about the Missing Children Incident".
Chris looked at her as he spoke. "Of course you are, You are a God".
Seiga blinked, processing the weight of what Chris just casually dropped. "You mean to tell me… you lived with vengeful spirits?"
Chris nodded, arms crossed. "For years. Cassidy was the only one who kept me sane."
Junko's amused smile softened into a more contemplative expression. "And now she follows you, even here... I see."
Koakuma, slightly wide-eyed, leaned over to Meiling, whispering, "What is his past?"
Meiling, still recovering from dodging earlier attacks, just sighed. "Apparently too insane for Gensokyo standards."
As the banter continued, the sounds of Reimu and Marisa's battle echoed through the arena—spellcards lighting up the sky in a rainbow of comic overkill. Reimu was yelling about money again, and Marisa was trying to steal the donation box mid-duel.
Chaos, as always, reigned.
A few minutes later
Chris then spoke. "Ok, everyone, we will take a break, as the Reimu has won, and the ring needs to be fixed, so magic users get to business".
A low groan echoed from the cracked arena as debris still smoked from the last clash.
Chris floated gently into the center, brushing dust off his coat. He tapped the microphone rune again. "Alright, folks, time for a break! Reimu takes the win with her usual donation-driven fury, and our ring looks like it went through a small war. So—magic users, please fix this mess before the next round."
A few fairies reluctantly flew in with glowing tools, while Kappa engineers popped up with blueprints, arguing over magical reinforcement spells versus duct tape.
Meiling, who had narrowly survived the referee role, collapsed into a seat next to Koakuma. "Never again…"
Koakuma, sipping tea from a conjured cup, muttered, "At this point, I think we need hazard pay."
Cassidy, counting coins at her betting booth, chuckled. "Hey, profit's profit. Just wait till the semifinals."
Meanwhile, Seiga was poking at the Mask of Joy Cassidy had found earlier. "This thing's got weird energy… might keep it."
Junko smirked, leaning back. "This is shaping up to be quite the masquerade."
Chris looked around at the scene of chaos, smoke, and absurdity and sighed. "And we're only halfway through…"
Chris then looked around a bit, as he spoke. "So, what are you planning to do in this Break".
Seiga came Infront him, as she had a smirk. "Oh, what do you think".
Chris looked at her as he spoke. "I don't think you have any plans, but do tell, why aren't you allowed in Heaven?".
Seiga blineked as she spoke. "Oh, who told you?".
Chris looked at her as he spoke. "Take a guess, I know a lot important people in Gensokyo".
Seiga looker at as she spoke. "Will, I have a got an Body that doesn't age Normal, I Brought back someone, and few more things"
Chris just looked at her as he spoke. "Ok".
Seiga just blineked. "Just, Ok? That is all you are gonna say?".
Chris shrugged, hands in his coat pockets as he leaned slightly back. "Yeah. Just ok."
Seiga narrowed her eyes. "I said I defied Heaven's laws. I revived someone from death. I have a body that ignores normal human limitations. That usually gets at least a dramatic gasp."
Chris tilted his head. "You want a medal or a trial?"
Seiga's smirk twitched. "You're really no fun."
Chris looked her dead in the eye. "I spent years inside a haunted animatronic with a vengeful ghost child, got teleported to a land where flying magical girls start fights over tea preferences, and I once saw Yukari gap in a kitchen sink during a diplomacy meeting. Your weirdness barely registers."
Seiga crossed her arms with a pout. "Still rude."
Koakuma chimed in from the side, flipping a page in a book. "If it helps, he's equally rude to everyone."
Cassidy leaned on the wall nearby. "He once told a literal God of Hell to 'take a number and wait in line.'"
Chris raised a finger. "To be fair, Hecatia was being very pushy that day."
Seiga blinked again. "...What even are you?"
Chris just smiled. "The host. Now go enjoy the break or stir more chaos. Your choice."
Cassidy came down to Chris as she pulled out the Mask of Joy. "Chris, use your Power on it".
Chris grabbed the Mask of Joy; he used his Holy Light of Kindness and Narrowed his eyes as he returned to her. "Nope, No Agony or Remnant".
Seiga narrowed her eyes as she spoke. "Oh, and what are does".
Chris tossed the mask lightly back to Cassidy, who caught it mid-air with ease.
"Agony and Remnant," he said, dusting his hands off like he just finished checking for explosives. "They're… let's just say, the leftovers. Bits of souls, trauma, grief, resentment — nasty stuff that clings to objects and refuses to pass on."
He looked at Seiga with a calm but serious gaze. "Back where I came from, those things turn masks, dolls, even pizzerias into haunted deathtraps."
Cassidy flipped the mask in her hand, inspecting it again. "So, this one's clean?"
Chris nodded. "As clean as a magically-appearing, smiling mask in a combat tournament can be."
Seiga tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Interesting… and you can detect that sort of residue with your… Holy Light of Kindness?"
Chris smirked. "One of the perks. It lets me tell if something's spiritually corrupted or not. Think of it like a divine blacklight."
Koakuma made a face. "That… sounds both useful and disturbing."
Cassidy pocketed the mask again. "So, what do you think it's doing here?"
Chris shrugged. "Probably tied to whatever's making this tournament spiral into a comedy battle royale with god-tier nonsense. But it's not cursed. Yet."
Seiga stepped closer, curious. "And if it was?"
Chris gave her a look that was both amused and serious. "Then I'd blast it with enough holy energy to fly it into the nearest Hakurei shrine ward trap."
Cassidy chuckled. "Fair enough."
Junko, overhearing the conversation, gave a light smile. "My, my. Gensokyo has never been more… lively."
Chris crossed his arms. "It's either that or let Yukari name another incident. And I still haven't forgiven her for calling one 'Double Spoiler.'"
Everyone nodded in agreement. Even Seiga couldn't argue with that.
To be continued
Hope people like this Ch and give me power stones and enjoy