Side Quest: Twist and Turn

Side Quest—Twist and Turn

In the withered, desolate farmland, that ghastly white apparition twisting and turning seemed to possess some strange magic, making it impossible for Uesugi Tetsu to look away after seeing it once.

The mask of Laughing Brahma twitched for a moment, but in the next instant, the once-imposing face that needed no anger to inspire fear revealed an eerie smile.

A hoarse, distorted voice involuntarily emerged from deep within Uesugi Tetsu's throat:

"Twist and... turn..."

Although Uesugi Tetsu felt utterly disgusted, his smile grew brighter and brighter. His exhausted body seemed to fill with energy as he stood up straight.

Then, together with that ghastly white apparition in the farmland...

He twisted and turned.

On the lawn, Uesugi Tetsu suddenly opened his eyes and let out an intensely nauseated dry heave.

"What the hell..."

Even now, Uesugi Tetsu's mind still retained the image of that unbelievably bizarre, twisted white shadow, along with the sensation of his body being completely beyond his control.

After lying on the lawn to rest for quite a while, Uesugi Tetsu finally managed to restore his chaotic thoughts to normal.

—This time, he had actually died on the spot simply because he looked at the thing in the farmland one time too many.

Did looking at it one more time make it explode?

That was ridiculous.

How many stars did this thing have? One star? Or one and a half?

After memorizing several characteristics of the twisted white shadow, Uesugi Tetsu took out his phone without hesitation and asked the all-knowing office-slave netizens.

[Moon Sand-chan]: I have a friend who saw a white apparition twisting and turning in a field. It looked like a scarecrow. Is this thing dangerous?

In the office, Nanjō Emi was resting her legs clad in black stockings on her desk and happily sipping her soda when she couldn't hold back and sprayed it all over the face of Shizuma Mafuyu, who was working seriously across from her.

The corner of Shizuma Mafuyu's mouth twitched, but she said nothing. She simply pulled out two tissues and silently wiped the soda from her face and neck.

—Even though it had only been half a day, she had already grown used to Nanjō Emi's shameless behavior.

In private, this Onmyo Junior Official was completely different from the person she appeared to be in public.

She was nothing like a workplace elite. Instead, she was remarkably similar to Shizuma Mafuyu's younger sister, who was still in high school—she liked gulping down soda, eating puffed snacks, and frequently whispering to Shizuma Mafuyu about their coworkers.

Shizuma Mafuyu sighed inwardly.

I feel like my illusions have been shattered.

—But Nanjō Emi believed she had a reason for spraying out her soda.

It had only been a few hours. Hadn't she just told Uesugi Tetsu to behave? How had he already provoked another famous Supernatural Phenomenon?!

Was he so bored that he had nothing better to do?

The classic "I have a friend" excuse couldn't fool Nanjō Emi. She had no idea how many times she had used that little trick herself in the past.

However...

Nanjō Emi was somewhat puzzled.

Judging by her Imperial Spirit Technique's perception, the doll she had given Uesugi Tetsu had not been damaged. If he had really encountered Twist and Turn, the doll should have acted already.

Even if this sort of specific Supernatural Phenomenon born in rural areas became widely known, it would not be especially powerful.

Because this was modern society.

It was like sending the famous Supernatural Phenomenon "Miss Mary" back a thousand years. Her power would also be greatly reduced because there were no telephones. It was the same principle.

[Work to Death]: Then your friend should be dead soon. This is "Twist and Turn," a very famous Supernatural Phenomenon. Anyone who sees it will fall into a state of mental hysteria, go insane, and then die.

When Uesugi Tetsu saw that every characteristic matched, he thought, That's right.

He had mentally collapsed and died within minutes of seeing Twist and Turn, experiencing another brand-new method of death.

—This thing was so powerful. Could it be related to the side quest?

[Side Quest Two: The White Scarecrow—In a field corroded by chemical wastewater, a scarecrow sways in the wind.]

Uesugi Tetsu read the quest description carefully again and felt that Twist and Turn was very likely related to it.

That raised a question.

If he couldn't even look at it one more time, how was he supposed to kill it?

Uesugi Tetsu truthfully told the netizens about this problem.

—Nanjō Emi felt that Uesugi Tetsu had already gone mad.

Twist and Turn stayed in the sparsely populated countryside and did not run around. It could be considered one of the most harmless types of Supernatural Phenomenon.

Why on earth would you provoke it when you've got nothing better to do?

Although that was what Nanjō Emi thought, she tossed over a key and said, "Mafuyu, go get that Vajra statue from the safe. When you go over this afternoon, take it with you..."

Halfway through her sentence, Nanjō Emi suddenly realized that Uesugi Tetsu had asked [Work to Death], not Nanjō Emi herself.

If she gave the item to Uesugi Tetsu, wouldn't her disguise be exposed?

So Nanjō Emi quietly took the key back.

[Work to Death]: There is indeed a way, and it isn't difficult.

[Moon Sand-chan]: What insight does the expert have?

[Work to Death]: Since seeing Twist and Turn makes you go insane, why not close your eyes and hack it to death?

—Hack it to death with his eyes closed?

Uesugi Tetsu laughed. Did the office-slave netizen think he was some swordmaster with "Mind's Eye" or "Fist Eye"?

But after sitting silently in place for a while, Uesugi Tetsu realized that this idea... might not be impossible after all.

—Ririko had said that identifying an opponent's position by sound was the most basic skill of a qualified swordsman.

There seemed to be some truth to that.

When he saw Ririko that afternoon, he would ask her about it.

After thanking the netizen for the prompt reply, Uesugi Tetsu did not waste any more time and entered Arakawa Ghost Village once again.

—After killing the foreman, he hadn't had time to go to the blacksmith to claim his reward.

A tremendous pressure of water assailed him.

Uesugi Tetsu had gradually grown accustomed to the transition cutscene. Without a word, he put on his mask and headed straight for the blacksmith's shop.

Along the way, he did not forget to test the effects of the Foreman's Crowbar, a rare-quality weapon.

After testing it in practice, Uesugi Tetsu was pleasantly surprised to discover that the crowbar's effects far exceeded his expectations.

For the locked doors of ordinary thatched cottages, he only needed to lightly tap the lock with the crowbar to break it, making it seem like a master key.

Even thick wooden doors blocked by planks and various pieces of furniture could be sent flying along with everything behind them with just one swing at normal strength.

Although it was powerful, he still seemed nowhere near discovering the crowbar's limit.

"Maybe I'll try it on the iron door to the school rooftop later."

Uesugi Tetsu put away the crowbar and thought this just before entering the blacksmith's shop.

When he entered the blacksmith's shop, Uesugi Tetsu discovered that there was no sound of hammering from the backyard this time. Instead, a short, hooded figure stood beside the blacksmith.

"Making such a small child learn blacksmithing? This is child labor exploitation..."

After muttering inwardly, Uesugi Tetsu was about to explain everything to the blacksmith when he saw the other man smile and set his hammer on the table.

"Tell me, what kind of weapon do you want?"

Uesugi Tetsu, who had nearly thought the man intended to kill him after he had served his purpose, froze for a moment and put the woodcutter's knife away. He had not expected the old blacksmith to be so straightforward.

He said, "I practice Tennen Rishin-ryū."

The blacksmith froze, and his smile faded.