Challenge: The Fool with the Surname Okayamine

Chapter 200: The Neighboring World Arc - "The War Begins"

"The master's command is to kill the enemy... and incite rebellion!"

Ibusuki Panie spoke in a dull and complex voice, as if she were a puppet controlled by solid strings.

"Ugh?!"

"It seems quite obvious now. This young lady, like that Prochshi, is also a puppet pre-arranged by the 'Puppet Master'."

After glaring at the strangely behaving near-elf, Wuming only hesitated for a moment before confirming the possibility.

"Ah! How is this possible! This doesn't follow the rules! The Dominator is participating too!"

Shirley shouted, her expression at that moment was incredibly interesting.

"Is that so... Sending out puppets to compete, and then winning the championship by killing the other contestants... Hmm!"

(Does this mean we can reap the benefits without bloodshed?)

Li Bo, standing beside Wu Ming, was making his judgment, but just as he was about to utter his conclusion, Wu Ming immediately covered his mouth with his gloved hand.

"Shhh."

Wuming said softly, then looked back at Ibusuki Panie over there, and raised an eyebrow.

“Slight fluctuations of spiritual energy around me, to the left... to the right, upstairs next door, two hundred and forty-seven of them? Is it because I am a quasi-spirit in her eyes? Then the remaining forces should be with Tokisaki Kurumi’s side.”

In the instant of making that decision, Wuming, without any hesitation, blocked Hijikata's [Fallen God] between Tonami and Ibusuki Panie, and turned back with a smile, saying:

“I can easily deal with this kind of trash. Ms. Tonami, why don’t you take Ms. Sherry, who is practically useless now without solar energy, and go find Ayame and Hijikata?”

"You really……"

"No doubt about it."

"I see.

Although Libo was somewhat worried, he nodded and, before Shirley could react, immediately grabbed her collar and, under Wuming's watchful eye, made a full-speed retreat towards the only safe direction behind them.

How to put it? Although Rinpa was worried about the nameless lord, whose spiritual power she could currently sense was almost negligible, as his subordinate, she would not hesitate to obey his orders.

"Ugh! Tonami! You could at least have told me when you took my clothes!"

Sherry was completely bewildered, but before she could react, Rinpo grabbed her and fled backward with all her might.

"Aren't you going to chase them? It's one thing for you to do nothing on the surface, but I didn't expect that those little guys hiding on the rooftop don't seem to be giving up either."

Wuming waved his hand and teased.

"Master's primary order is to eliminate you. Any unexpected enemy, except for Kurumi Tokisaki, is not worthy of being called a threat."

The doll's tone gradually became more human-like.

"I am truly honored to be on equal footing with monsters like elves."

The moment the words fell, he swung his katana with all his might toward Ibusuki Panie's neck.

Just as the blade was about to touch Ibusuki Panie's neck, the cascading puppets instantly enveloped Wuming. Wuming felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, surrounded by attacks from puppets on all sides.

He swiftly wielded the [Fallen God], its blade flashing, slicing through any approaching puppet. But the puppets were numerous, and new ones constantly filled the gaps.

"Tsk, damn human wave tactics."

Wu Ming gritted his teeth, channeling the last of his spiritual power into flames that enveloped his body, attempting to break through the puppet's encirclement.

Just as he was putting up a fierce fight, a puppet attacked him from behind and pierced his back with a spear infused with deadly poison.

"Damn! How could my spiritual energy be so depleted..."

Wu Ming let out a muffled groan as a sharp pain shot through his body.

The poison spread instantly throughout his body, and he felt a painful sensation in his limbs, similar to being corroded by acid.

"Is that Ms. Nogi Ai? She was turned into a puppet even earlier than I thought."

Wu Ming endured the excruciating pain, knowing he couldn't collapse like this. Just as he was about to give up, a tiny doll crawled up his neck.

In just a moment, the nameless angel wielding the scythe had severed the nameless man's head, which fell to the ground.

"Well, out of 400 'me's', I'm surprised I was able to complete my master's orders so quickly."

He walked forward step by step, directing the remaining 192 puppets to remove Wuming's hands and feet, and cut open his chest and abdomen. His doll-like smile remained unchanged.

"It's a pity that your body is empty, without even a soul crystal that can be extracted. Otherwise, I really wanted to make someone as clever as you my master's friend. Oh well, I wonder how things are going on the main battlefield against the elves?"

Looking towards the battlefield, there is no doubt that what will be shown to the world in this competition is the ultimate terror of the Dominator—the 'Puppet Master'!

—On the other side at this moment~

He seemed to have fallen asleep without realizing it—when he opened his eyes, he saw Kurumi staring at his right arm, her hand opening and closing repeatedly.

"How are you feeling right now?"

After Kong Wu asked the question with trepidation, Kurumi chuckled.

"It's alright, it seems to be passable."

"Very good……"

Kong Wu also breathed a sigh of relief from the bottom of his heart.

Under the morning sun, the raging mountain still bears the scars and bloodstains of yesterday's fierce battle.

Do you have time to take a shower?

"...That's true, we still have some time."

"Then, I'll go get you a change of clothes... uh, where are the clothes?"

"I'll make it right away. Please put it away for me."

After Kurumi finished weaving the clothes with her spiritual power, she threw them to Sora.

"Understood. I'll go make a cup of coffee."

"I want to add three spoonfuls of sugar."

Not long after Kurumi entered the bathroom, the sound of a shower began to fill the air. Listening to the shower, Sora placed her change of clothes on the sink and glanced casually at Kurumi.

Although her face couldn't be seen through the frosted glass, her fair back, vaguely visible, was inexplicably sexy early in the morning, causing Kongwu to start having wild thoughts, and he quickly looked away.

She wanted to throw her dirty clothes into the washing machine while she was at it, so she picked them up.

Looking back, the clothes were originally woven with spiritual energy, so they could have just been thrown away. But Kurumi probably didn't expect that Sora would plan to wash the clothes.

Therefore, discovering that photo was purely accidental.

As I picked up the clothes, the photo fluttered onto the bathroom carpet. Thinking it was some kind of note, I picked it up, flipped it over, and froze.

The sound of the shower, and everything else, gradually faded away.

If the photo were of Kurumi, I'd probably find myself smiling unconsciously.

If the photo shows Kurumi and someone else, I would probably feel sad thinking that it's the friend Kurumi mentioned earlier.

However, Kurumi was not in the photo; instead, two other people were present. One was a short-haired girl with blue-tinged hair, and the other was a girl who was also familiar with Kurumi.

Nothingness.

An empty self, a self without memories, a self that is weak and powerless.

He was holding hands with a short-haired girl, looking shy.

"This...this is...me...?"

If Sora were to regain his memories immediately upon seeing this photograph, he might even let out a gasp of surprise.

But she didn't feel anything at all. To be honest, at most she just thought, "The person in the photo looks exactly like me."

But she was stunned, her body stiffening in surprise. Yet, she felt no sense of reality whatsoever.

The two people in the photo looked so close, but she had no memory of them at all.

Kongwu quietly put the photo back into her clothes, placed the clothes she was going to change into next to her, and walked out of the bathroom.

She only had one question left: Why did Kurumi have her own photo, and why did she hide it?

Should I say I'm hiding it... or that I cherish it very much?

Could it be...?

"My encounter with Kurumi...wasn't accidental?"

Is that so? Was that encounter planned? ...I don't understand, the more I think about it, the more dizzy I get.

It feels as pathetic as desperately searching through an empty cabinet.

Kongwu brewed coffee while blankly reminiscing. But—regarding that photograph, he felt nothing but surprise, no other emotion.

...Am I that heartless? Am I that thick-skinned? No, I feel like I am a little bit.

Am I so pathetic as to completely forget a friend I once valued so much?

"Phew...that feels much better."

Take a deep breath.

Kong Wu turned his head, a smile on his face.

"The coffee is ready. Add three spoonfuls of sugar, right?"

"Yes, thank you."

Kong Wu thought to herself that she should be smiling naturally.

"Alright, let's go."

"Okay!"

Kong Wu tidied up the bed in the dormitory for the time being. Although no one would be using this room, it was still necessary to observe basic etiquette.

Kurumi waited with a wry smile as she finished tidying up.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Kurumi. Let's go!"

The voice was exceptionally loud and completely ordinary. Suddenly, a very light, electronic sound rang out. A sound that was impossible to recall, impossible to hear.

Kurumi had already gripped her pistol tightly, while Sora was just staring blankly at the front door.

Kurumi slowly opened the door.

"..."

Before them stood a silent girl in an armor-like cheongsam, and Kiri Rion, who seemed to have just been put down from their shoulders and was squatting on the ground, vomiting something.

Seeing this, Kurumi raised an eyebrow slightly.

How did you know I was here?

"There was the sound of water hitting the ground. You can't find it by following the fluctuations of spiritual energy or by searching, but as long as there is a pure sound, it cannot be completely concealed."

Cang said calmly without any attempt to hide her feelings, while Rion Meng, whom she had placed aside, was still vomiting.

"Ugh... Wuming, the speed at which he carried people away was so... ugh, gentle? Sigh... As an idol, I guess it's enough for me to just throw up..."

"No! It seems like I can't go back to being an idol if I don't spit it out, right? Fine, I'll just spit it out!" After a similar internal struggle, a bunch of "rainbow mosaics" appeared on the floor.