Key Choices: The Qi Sea's Path, Shizuoka Prefecture's Plea for Help, Minamoto Shizuka's Apology Gift (8k)

The dark, deep mountain forest suddenly fell silent.

It seemed as though those eerie sounds from moments ago had all been nothing more than nonexistent hallucinations.

Spiritual energy flowed quietly, forming a funnel-shaped vortex. Following the Imperial Spirit Technique, which had likewise begun operating instinctively, it poured straight into Brahma's body.

Spiritual energy naturally counted as a form of qi.

Uesugi Tetsu raised his head and looked with a rich smile at the terrifying Supernatural Phenomenon that had caused the deaths of who knew how many ordinary people during this period.

After all, under most circumstances, making phone calls was something people did every day.

Yet before he could take two steps, Uesugi Tetsu discovered that the distance between him and the rust-spotted, iron-clad Black Phone Booth had not decreased.

He had definitely walked forward.

So had the Black Phone Booth moved backward?

Brahma's hearty laughter rang exceptionally clearly through the mountain forest.

Trying to run away now?

"It's a little too late for that, isn't it?"

The White Brahma's ferocious mask appeared before the vintage phone booth together with his voice.

Uesugi Tetsu extended his blue-black, five-clawed hand and firmly gripped the loose, rusted handle.

Creak...

Accompanied by an ear-grating sound from the turning shaft, the robust White Brahma stepped inside. Just moving his body was enough to burst the narrow phone booth apart.

Bang!

He slammed the semitransparent glass door shut.

Uesugi Tetsu turned back and looked at the exquisite, entirely scarlet rotary phone.

The rotary phone's immaculate lacquered surface reflected light with an expensive enamel-like sheen. The ring of dialing buttons around it was made of matte brass, engraved with elegant artistic lettering.

The rotary phone's overall quality was completely out of place with the entire old-fashioned phone booth.

"Your shell is quite nicely made."

Uesugi Tetsu