"Uika... come over quickly..."
At this time, the strange voice of indistinguishable gender came from below the staircase once again.
Hearing the strange calling voice, Misumi Uika's body trembled, and she struggled with force:
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
Taki and Yahata Umiri had held on until now and were both completely exhausted. Coupled with Kitahara's appearance diverting their attention, they accidentally let Misumi Uika break free in a moment of carelessness.
The blonde girl's footsteps faltered as if she had lost her mind, stumbling and rushing toward the darkness below the staircase.
"...Kitahara, quickly stop Uika!"
Taki was out of breath, calling out anxiously.
"Uika, stop..."
Just as Yahata Umiri shouted out, her vision suddenly blurred.
The unfamiliar boy who had been standing at the top of the staircase just now appeared beside Misumi Uika in a flash as if teleporting, his speed so fast that her eyes could barely see clearly.
Immediately after, Kitahara reached out his right hand, directly grabbing the clothes at the back of Misumi Uika's neck, casually lifting her up like a kitten.
"So fast..."
Yahata Umiri widened her eyes in disbelief.
With such fast speed, if he went to compete in the Olympics, he would definitely break records and win the world championship, right?
Yahata Umiri had been full of doubts earlier, constantly worried that Taki had been tricked, thinking that the exorcists of the Management Bureau must be mature and steady adults, whereas a high school boy was so naive and likely only knew some inside information to deliberately brag in front of Taki.
But at this very moment, Yahata Umiri's doubts completely vanished into thin air.
"Taki, what happened to your friend?"
Kitahara turned his head to look at Taki, asking about the situation.
"Phew..."
Taki let out a breath of relief, clutching her chest as her mind settled, and then quickly explained what the three had encountered.
"A strange calling voice that makes people lose their minds?" Kitahara nodded gently, understanding in his heart, "It seems it's not simply an anomalous space; there must be a monster inside... just like a rattlesnake in the desert that uses its vibrating tail to draw prey right to its doorstep."
Hearing these words, Yahata Umiri subconsciously tensed her body, feeling a wave of lingering fear in her heart.
If Taki hadn't remained calm the whole time and continuously provided a sense of security for the two of them, they probably would have long been bewitched by the strange voice and walked right into the trap.
"Here."
Kitahara casually handed Misumi Uika over, his tone offhand:
"A monster that pulls people into an anomalous space will definitely kill many innocent people if it isn't dealt with... Hana, stay behind to take care of Taki and the others, I'll go resolve that guy down below."
Taki hugged Misumi Uika's arm once again without stopping him, only saying in a soft voice:
"Kitahara, stay safe."
Although she didn't know what kind of monster was lurking in the dark, in Taki's mind, Kitahara was naturally far more capable.
"Wait for me to come back."
Kitahara waved his hand, walking downstairs as if taking a stroll in a garden.
Yahata Umiri ultimately couldn't hold back, turning to look at Taki and asking in a low voice:
"Taki, isn't your boyfriend being a bit too impulsive?"
Impulsive was Yahata Umiri's tactful phrasing.
In Yahata Umiri's mind, her actual thought at this moment was 'arrogant, reckless, and impulsive'.
(He doesn't even know what is in the darkness, yet he just walks down completely unprepared like that—isn't he clearly a fool!)
"Umiri can rest assured." Taki's eyes were bright, without a trace of worry on her small face, her tone confident, "Kitahara is super amazing."
Although Kitahara was a harem scumbag who loved lewd things super much, aside from those two flaws, Taki couldn't find any other shortcomings in him at all.
For instance, right now, since Kitahara said he could resolve the monster in the staircase, he would definitely deliver on his word and wasn't blowing smoke or boasting.
Seeing Taki so confident, Yahata Umiri couldn't help but hesitate... Could that male high school student really be super amazing?
"I hope so."
Yahata Umiri let out a soft breath, turning her head to gaze at Kitahara's back.
As she watched, a familiar sense of déjà vu suddenly welled up in her heart.
(His back looks so familiar, as if I've seen it somewhere before...)
(Impossible. If I had really seen Taki's boyfriend before, even if it were just a chance encounter, I wouldn't have forgotten.)
(Why is there this inexplicable sense of familiarity?)
Yahata Umiri knitted her slender dark eyebrows, thinking seriously.
It was not until the moment Kitahara's back disappeared into the darkness that a flash of inspiration suddenly crossed Yahata Umiri's mind, and she blurted out:
"Is he the Fox Fairy Hero who destroyed the monster with a single punch on the commercial street?!"
Back then on the commercial street, the scene where Kitahara destroyed the monster with a single punch was filmed by many people and caused a massive sensation on the internet; Yahata Umiri had naturally watched the corresponding video.
Just now, Kitahara's back and the back in the video had overlapped perfectly, which was why Yahata Umiri blurted it out, but she regretted it immediately after saying it.
She must have recognized the wrong person, right?
However, in the next second.
Taki quietly raised a finger and held it to her lips:
"Umiri, please make sure not to speak of this matter to anyone, help keep it secret."
Yahata Umiri: "..."
(Taki actually didn't deny it, so he really is that Master Fox Fairy?)
(Someone that amazing is actually a high school student?)
(When did Taki get to know him?)
(And when did she start dating him?)
All sorts of questions surged in her mind. Yahata Umiri opened her mouth, her curiosity already exploding, but in the end, she swallowed her words back down.
The situation was urgent right now, so it wasn't the time to be blabbering; she would ask about it later.
At the same time.
Kitahara stepped down the stairs, using supernatural vision to pierce through the mist, already arriving at the end of the staircase.
At the end of the staircase was remarkably a pool of water, the pitch-black water exceptionally icy cold, its depth reaching up to a person's knees, while in the center of the pool, a monster shaped like a giant fish was sprawled out.
A disgusting tentacle hung down from the monster's forehead, with the lower half of a woman's body remarkably suspended at the tip of the tentacle; the woman's eyes were hollow, her eyes shining with a blood-red sheen that made one's mind fall into a trance when looking directly at her, her mouth opening and closing every now and then, opening to call out Uika's name.
"So ugly."
Kitahara knit his brows, a look of disgust appearing on his face.
"Feels like an anglerfish that drank nuclear wastewater, ugly to the absolute extreme."
Although the difference in size between the two was quite obvious, both were equally ugly beyond measure.
"As for that woman..." Kitahara observed carefully for a couple of moments, discovering that it wasn't some unlucky human who had been absorbed, but an organ the monster had simulated on its own. "In that case, killing it with one punch comes with no burden."
After simply gathering information, Kitahara silently activated the ability [HP Bar Warrior].
His eyes warmed slightly, and a red health bar quickly emerged above the monster's head.
"Over three hundred HP... it's actually an elite monster?"
Kitahara's eyes lit up.
Hana's original ability was devouring evolution, but weak anomalies couldn't provide experience points; only elite monsters could. After devouring an elite monster, there was a certain probability of acquiring the opponent's ability.
Kitahara had originally intended to kill this monster in one punch, but now he changed his mind, deciding to feed it to Hana.
"Hana, come eat."
Kitahara used his inner voice to summon Hana over.
"Master, calling me." Hana heard the inner voice and looked down toward the lower stairs, "We, go down."
Hearing Hana's words, Taki straightforwardly agreed:
"Umiri, let's support Uika and go down together."
Yahata Umiri had a hesitant expression:
"The monster is right below, won't us going down add trouble for Kitahara?"
There wasn't the slightest hesitation on Taki's small face:
"Just trust Kitahara."
"Alright then..."
Yahata Umiri bit her white teeth, ultimately agreeing after all.
The two girls supported Misumi Uika, following behind Hana as they walked downstairs together.
Fortunately, before they had walked long, Kitahara came up from downstairs to meet them.
Snap.
Kitahara lightly snapped his fingers, activating the power of the domain, then briefly explained the situation:
"...Don't worry, that monster is very weak, I just called Hana down for an extra meal."
Being inside the domain, Misumi Uika's condition quietly improved, and she barely recovered her conscious awareness.
"Eh... who is he?"
"Uika, don't be nervous." Taki quickly explained in a soft voice, "He is..."
Halfway through speaking, Taki's small face flushed slightly red, and she lightly bit her white teeth, saying:
"He is my boyfriend..."
Kitahara looked at Taki, smiling without a word.
"Don't laugh!"
Taki glared over in embarrassed shame, then explained the reason to Misumi Uika in a low voice.
"Thank you, Kitahara..."
After learning the cause and effect, Misumi Uika hurriedly thanked him in a low voice.
"You're welcome." Kitahara nodded slightly, "Let's keep walking, we'll be able to leave very soon."
"..."
A moment later.
Kitahara brought the three girls to the bottommost layer.
Looking at the ugly monster sprawled in the pool, its body size comparable to a small pleasure boat, Yahata Umiri widened her eyes in disbelief:
"Such a massive monster, and you actually say it's very weak?"
"S-So ugly..."
Misumi Uika was startled, and at the thought that she was actually about to walk down in a daze to serve herself up on a silver platter, her already pale, pretty face turned even more drained of color.
This time, even Taki wasn't as confident, nervously raising her eyes to look over:
"How about we leave first?"
"Trust me."
Kitahara raised his hand and rubbed Taki's little head, then stepped toward the giant beast in the pool.
Three hundred health points was already considered a pretty good elite monster; letting Hana go straight up would inevitably lead to a struggle, and might even let the monster escape.
So...
Kitahara had a calm face as he slowly clenched his right hand into a fist, beginning to gather power.
It was worth mentioning that Kitahara maintained the state of having his domain active the entire time; the monster hadn't noticed Kitahara's presence at all, remaining quietly sprawled in the pool, continuing to 'fish for humans' with its tentacle.
Under the nervous gazes of the three girls, Kitahara's right fist smashed out abruptly.
Boom!
A seemingly plain and unremarkable punch carried incredible power when it landed on the monster.
The monster, which had been comfortably sprawled on the water surface, suddenly let out a miserable, bloodcurdling scream; all the scales on its body abruptly burst open, as it violently struggled and twitched like a dying fish.
Under true damage, all beings are equal.
If it weren't to give Hana an extra meal, Kitahara could have sent the monster to see its ancestors with a single punch.
Kitahara floated back, dodging the splashing dirty water, and turned his head to greet Hana:
"Hana, come get your extra meal."
Hana stepped forward, and as her footprints fell, flowers rapidly grew from the ground, as if spring returned to the earth and ice and snow melted; the gloomy, dark pool quickly turned into a splendid sea of flowers.
Immediately after, countess vines quietly emerged from underground, wrapping up the monster; the hideous monster had only a tiny sliver of HP left, completely unable to break free from the restraint of the vines, and after a brief final glow before death, it quickly fell completely motionless.
"So pretty..."
Yahata Umiri was dumbfounded, involuntarily calling out softly.
"Such a small elementary school student can actually be this amazing?"
"Really so amazing..."
Misumi Uika's lips parted slightly, equally dumbfounded.
Only the experienced Taki was the most calm:
"Hana isn't human; she is Kitahara's contracted companion."
"..."
A moment later.
Countless vines quietly dispersed, and the monster inside had completely disappeared, becoming Hana's fuel.
With the monster destroyed, the gloomy space naturally could not continue to exist; accompanied by a "crack" sound that seemed both illusory and real, the world before their eyes suddenly shattered.
The three girls subconsciously closed their eyes, and when they opened them again, they found that they had already returned to the real world.
The golden setting sun spilled in obliquely from outside the window, laying down a warm, dim yellow layer over the hallway.
"We... are back?"
Yahata Umiri looked around nervously and expectantly, terrified that everything before her was just a fantasy.
Kitahara's voice sounded gently:
"The monster has been dealt with, everyone has indeed returned to the real world."
Taki let out a soft breath, her eyes sparkling as she glanced at Kitahara, and then softly comforted her good friend:
"Umiri, don't worry, let's keep going downstairs; this time we will definitely be able to walk out of the hallway."
"..."
A moment later.
The three girls followed behind Kitahara and quickly arrived on the first floor; the exit of the school building that they couldn't find no matter what before now appeared clearly in front of them, and there were even a few late-returning schoolmates walking outside in twos and threes.
"We're out! We're out!"
The three girls hugged each other, cheering out loud one after another.
"Ugh, smells so bad." Taki quickly covered her nose and took half a step back, "What is that smell on you, Uika?"
"Eh?"
Misumi Uika was startled, looking down to sniff her sleeve, a panicked expression quickly appearing on her face:
"Eee, how can my clothes smell so foul?"
"I have a foul smell on me too." Yahata Umiri raised her arm, sniffing her sleeve, her dark eyebrows furrowing, "I remember now... when we were by the pool, we got splashed by that black water; the smell on us is so terrible, it should all be the smell of that wastewater."
Misumi Uika nervously hugged her chest:
"Could that wastewater be toxic and harmful like nuclear wastewater?"
Hearing these words, Taki and Yahata Umiri both instantly grew nervous.
Smelling bad didn't matter—at worst, they could just wash a few more times with soap—but if that black water was toxic and harmful, that would be terrifying.
"Don't worry." Kitahara's voice was steady, like a shot in the arm, quickly calming the three girls down, "If the black water were toxic and harmful, as ordinary people, you three would have already passed out cold by now."
Taki: "..."
Yahata Umiri: "..."
Misumi Uika: "..."
Although the words were hard to hear, they had to admit it made a lot of sense, causing the anxiety in their hearts to quickly vanish into thin air.
"That wastewater is just filthy and foul, not harmful." Kitahara gave a guarantee, "If your bodies feel uncomfortable, you can tell me anytime, and I'll resolve it."
"Kitahara, can we go take a shower and change clothes?"
Taki looked over pitifully.
Even if the black water wasn't toxic or harmful, the feeling of being covered in filth and foul odor was super uncomfortable; to Taki, who had mild mysophobia, it felt like countless ants were crawling all over her body right now, and she couldn't wait to wash her body clean.
"Naturally you can." Kitahara nodded lightly without refusing, being quite thoughtful instead, "Go together with your friends; is ten minutes enough?"
Taki hurriedly nodded: "More than enough."
Ten minutes in the real world was enough to stay for nearly two hours in the inner world; let alone taking a shower and soaking in the onsen, it was even enough for washing clothes.
"Uika, Umiri, why don't you come soak in the onsen with me?"
Taki turned her head to look at her two good friends, extending an invitation.
Yahata Umiri crossed her arms over her chest: "Right now I just want to go home, take a good shower, and change clothes; I'll soak in the onsen another time when I'm free."
"Listen to me explain..."
Taki looked around, saw no one else, and quickly explained the existence of the Onsen Village in a low voice.
"Will it cause trouble for Kitahara?"
Yahata Umiri's voice was hesitant.
"It's fine." Kitahara looked over with a smile, giving Taki plenty of face out in public, "You are Taki's friends, so naturally you are my friends."
"Hmph~"
Taki's small face flushed slightly red, and she let out a soft hmph, shyly turning her head to look elsewhere.
Only then did Yahata Umiri and Misumi Uika agree:
"Then we'll be causing trouble for Kitahara..."
Girls are naturally clean-loving; now that they were covered in a terrible odor, whether taking the subway or the train, they would definitely attract countless disgusted looks, so being able to take a shower and change clothes right now was as good as it gets.
"Then it's settled."
Kitahara extended his right hand, bringing the three girls into the Onsen Village.
"Sakiko is still waiting for me outside, so I'll head back first."
Kitahara waved his hand, agreed on a time with Taki, and turned to leave the Onsen Village.
If it were just Taki alone, Kitahara would naturally stay behind to help scrub her back, but right now Taki's two good friends were also there, so Kitahara naturally chose to avoid impropriety.
"Incredible, unbelievable..."
Yahata Umiri quietly breathed a sigh of relief and began looking around in all directions:
"Are exorcists all such amazing figures?"
"Of course not." Taki crossed her arms over her chest, raising her chin with pride, "It's just that Kitahara is exceptionally amazing, that's all... Come on, let's go shower, throw our clothes into the washing machine after showering, and then soak in the onsen together; by the time we finish soaking, our clothes should be almost dried."
"Uika, what's wrong?"
Yahata Umiri tilted her head and looked over.
"Ah..."
Misumi Uika snapped out of her thoughts, hurriedly shaking her head and raising her hand to tuck the hair near her ear:
"It's nothing... I just feel a bit tired, that's all."
Apart from exhaustion, what she felt more was actually curiosity and concern.
The Sakiko that Kitahara mentioned when leaving just now... could it be the Sakiko she had been yearning for day and night...?