As for Dorothy's older brother, Xu Fu did want to save him. But Dorothy's situation could only be considered a special case. Not every evil spirit had such twisted tastes that it would imprison the original owner's soul.
And it was not as if Xu Fu could create some virtual personality to replace Dorothy's brother. Would that not just be self-deception?
Dorothy understood that too. In her heart, she knew very well that her older brother was no longer in this world. That was why she did not ask Xu Fu to save him from the evil spirit's hands the way she had saved her. She could not trouble her savior with such an unrealistic request.
"But at least… please let my brother rest in peace… Please, Xu Fu-sama, stop them… Don't let them use my brother's body to do those horrible things anymore…"
Dorothy's hands gripped her skirt tightly, her shoulders trembling faintly, as if those words had already exhausted all her courage and strength.
"I know Xu Fu-sama has already saved me… I shouldn't be asking for anything else… but… other than Xu Fu-sama… I don't know who else I can turn to…"
An automaton maid doll walked over and, with excellent timing, wiped the tears from Dorothy's face.
"Even if you hadn't said anything, I was already going to go pick a fight with them," Xu Fu said, propping her chin up with one hand. "Those evil spirits are planning something extremely dangerous. Emotionally and rationally, I can't possibly leave them alone… But none of that is something you should be worrying about. You just need to go to school like normal."
She had already given up on correcting the "Xu Fu-sama" title. Ever since Xu Fu saved the girl in front of her, Dorothy had practically begun worshiping her like a god, putting herself in an extremely low position in both speech and behavior.
Maybe after spending more time together, Dorothy's attitude would become more natural. After all, she was going to be living here from now on. Surely it would not take long for Dorothy to see Xu Fu's true nature: a super otaku hopelessly obsessed with Yu Mei-ren, with a house full of figurines, body pillows, and posters. Not someone worth worshiping at all.
...
Later, Dorothy asked about the evil spirit that had possessed her body.
To that, Xu Fu merely answered with a wicked grin.
"She's receiving the punishment she deserves. In the short time we've been talking, she's probably died several more times already."
Xu Fu lowered her eyes and sighed. With "Dorothy" out of contact for so long, The Replaced were bound to notice something was wrong soon.
Xu Fu wanted to take down a few more of them before they reacted, but it seemed several of their higher-ups, including "Oswald," had all gone to Kyoto. Not even "Dorothy" knew their exact location. They could only be contacted by phone.
This information had not come from "Dorothy." Dorothy herself had told Xu Fu. Since "Dorothy" had always kept the doll imprisoning Dorothy's soul by her side, Dorothy knew some information about The Replaced.
"Kyoto, huh…"
Just thinking of Kyoto gave Xu Fu a headache.
Because it made her think of the major boss who appeared in the original plot. His strength far surpassed Kuubou's, and both the local spiritualists and The Replaced feared him, unwilling to get entangled with him. Even among gods, he stood at the highest rank.
Taisai Seikun.
His faith originated from worship of Sui-xing, or Jupiter. During the Warring States period, the concept of Taisui was created to correct errors in the Sui-xing calendar system, and later evolved into a system of beliefs concerning directional taboos and zodiac conflicts.
The Taoist text Sanjiao Yuanliu Soushen Daquan recorded that Yin Jiao, prince of the Yin Shang dynasty, was enshrined as Taisai Seikun. The Jade Emperor conferred upon him the title "Marshal Yin, Earth Office Nine Heavens Roaming Transformation Supreme Virtue Taisui of Slaughter and Authority." As stated in Sanming Tonghui: "Taisui is the ruler of the year and the leader of all gods." After the Qin and Han dynasties, Taisui worship was incorporated into the Taoist pantheon, where he was revered as the God Taisui, Yearly Lord on Duty, commanding the sixty Year Gods.
Later, faith in Taisai Seikun was brought to Japan and integrated into the local culture.
In other words, this guy was even older than Xu Fu from Qin Shi Huang's era. He was an old relic from roughly four thousand years ago.
However, the Taisai Seikun in Kyoto was only an offshoot spirit. Unless something unexpected had happened, his main body should still be within China. But even as an offshoot spirit, he still surpassed the vast majority of gods on Japanese soil.
The Replaced going to Kyoto as a group probably had little to do with Taisai Seikun. More likely, they wanted to cultivate even more powerful evil spirits in Kyoto—like Kuubou, the one Yayoi Hozuki hated most.
But Yayoi Hozuki and the others were destined to fight Taisai Seikun regardless, because one of their friends had been chosen to become a god's bride. Once she reached adulthood at twenty, her soul would be sacrificed to Taisai Seikun.
Although Taisai Seikun did not actually have much interest in this so-called bride, the girl's family had made a contract with him long ago. The family would offer girls to the god as wives, and in return the god would continue to protect the family and destroy anyone who dared oppose them.
Xu Fu was honestly impressed by Yayoi Hozuki. She had gone up against the other party without even knowing which god she was dealing with. Yayoi Hozuki only knew that three Graduates could kill an ordinary god. She did not know that the Taisai Seikun she had provoked was one of the most vicious and troublesome beings among the gods of Japan.
And the key part was, in the original plot, she actually won.
Although that was also because her opponent had treated the whole thing like playtime and held back from beginning to end, Taisai Seikun still said he had fought to his heart's content, found it deeply satisfying, and had more fun than he ever had before.
...
Dorothy woke the next morning in an unfamiliar bed.
"Dorothy-san, it is time to wake up."
An automaton maid doll gently called out to Dorothy, who still looked bewildered. The wake-up time had been set by Dorothy herself the previous night.
That was right… She was staying at Xu Fu-sama's house now.
Her family had been killed and possessed by evil spirits, and even her own body had been stolen from her…
None of that was a dream. It was reality. It had truly happened.
People were more sensitive in the morning and at night. As Dorothy recalled what had happened to her and thought of her dead brother, tears fell from her eyes once again. The automaton maid doll beside her silently and gently wiped them away.
After that came changing clothes, washing up, and breakfast. The automaton maid doll remained by Dorothy's side the entire time, and this young-lady-like treatment left Dorothy deeply unused to it.
"If you're feeling bad, wouldn't it be fine to take a few days off from school? Elementary school classes aren't that demanding anyway. If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask the maid doll beside you. They should be able to answer."
Xu Fu asked Dorothy in confusion, her words carrying concern for her.
Were children Dorothy's age not all fantasizing about using sickness or some other excuse to skip school? Or was that just how students in China thought?
Dorothy shook her head, then patted her own cheeks and put on a brave front.
"That evil spirit… used my body to do something very dangerous at school. I… I can't delay any longer! The teachers and students at school are all in danger!"
Xu Fu knew what Dorothy was talking about. Dorothy had mentioned it to her the previous night. It was a hidden danger the evil spirit had left behind at school while possessing Dorothy, and the longer it was left alone, the more dangerous it would become.
Dorothy had asked Xu Fu to deal with it, but Xu Fu felt this matter was better left to Yayoi Hozuki. She told Dorothy to ask Yayoi Hozuki for help when she went to school.
Xu Fu gave a small nod. "All right, then go to school. Remember to take the doll I gave you yesterday."
"Yes!" Dorothy's eyes shone faintly with gratitude and joy. "Then I'll be going, Xu Fu-sama!"
"Have a good trip."
Xu Fu took a sip of hot milk tea and spoke with perfect calm, giving off the air of someone who had entered retirement life early.
...
The morning light was faint. The sky, as though repeatedly washed clean by clear water, held a bright, almost glasslike blue. A few white clouds drifted lazily through it, shaped by the unseen wind into all manner of strange forms.
The school gate gradually grew lively. Elementary schoolers carried their backpacks into campus, chatting and laughing like flocks of fledglings whose feathers were just starting to fill in. Their rosy cheeks still carried the fresh vitality of morning dew, and their bouncing figures dragged short, lively shadows beneath the sun. That unworldly, vigorous energy made the entire morning feel brighter and more alive.
Compared to those elementary school students, Yayoi Hozuki stood out like a black swan among white ducks. It was as though she deliberately meant to set herself apart from the group. As soon as she sat down at her desk, she started scrolling on her phone, making no attempt to talk to anyone else.
At the moment, Yayoi Hozuki was extremely troubled.
Last night, the television had reported a news story about a Shinkansen derailment.
But Yayoi Hozuki had realized that the Shinkansen derailment was no accident. It had been caused by the battle between Kuubou and Taisai Seikun.
To destroy Kuubou and take back her mother's soul, Yayoi Hozuki was impatient to head for Kyoto.
But she still had school and could not spare the time.
The parents of Eiko Hozuki, who had taken Yayoi Hozuki in, were both ordinary people and had never come into contact with supernatural incidents. Like countless parents who cared for their children, they hoped Yayoi Hozuki could go through elementary school, middle school, high school, and university, and grow up safe and healthy.
In order not to betray their care and affection, Yayoi Hozuki could not casually take leave or skip school.
Because she had started using her phone the moment she entered class, the class representative came over to Yayoi Hozuki, hoping she would try to fit in a little more. Clearly, this had been a long-standing problem.
There was also one boy who, because every fight he had with Yayoi Hozuki ended with him being beaten like a sandbag, had once again come looking for her to get revenge.
When Dorothy arrived at the classroom door, she happened to see Yayoi Hozuki and a boy named Daisuke Gonda cracking their knuckles, looking like they were just about to fight.
"Wh-wh-what do I do…"
Seeing Yayoi Hozuki again, Dorothy somehow felt that the evil spirits clinging to her seemed even more numerous and even more violent than the last time they met.
So scary…
So this was one of Xu Fu-sama's companions?
Whether she was reliable or not was one thing, but she really was terrifying.
"Ah, you're… from the class next door, right?"
Dorothy, who had poked her little head around the door, was noticed by the students inside the classroom, and she flinched violently like a startled rabbit.
"Are you here to find someone in our class?"
"I… I… I'm looking for Hozuki-san."
After her classmates passed the message along, Yayoi Hozuki quickly noticed Dorothy skulking at the classroom entrance.
Yayoi Hozuki remembered this girl. After all, every time Dorothy saw her, she fled far away like a little white rabbit encountering a big bad wolf. It was hard not to notice. Yayoi Hozuki guessed Dorothy might also possess Spiritual Sight and be able to see the evil spirits she kept with her.
Once they came out into the hallway, Dorothy's first sentence made Yayoi Hozuki slightly surprised.
"X-Xu Fu-sama told me to come find you. She said asking you for help with this would be the most suitable…"
Yayoi Hozuki was very curious about what Dorothy needed her to do. However, Dorothy said she would come find her again after school, and they could discuss the details then.
Japanese elementary schools ended early, around two or three in the afternoon. The nearby elementary school let out before Xu Fu's afternoon nap time had even arrived.
After school, Dorothy and Yayoi Hozuki walked through the empty school corridor together, and Dorothy told Yayoi Hozuki the entire story.
That included how she had once been possessed by an evil spirit, how Xu Fu had saved her the previous night, and the "time bomb" the evil spirit had planted in this school.
Just as blind people walked along specially paved tactile paths, ghosts with no attachment left to the world and on the verge of attaining Buddhahood also walked along spirit paths.
However, the evil spirit that possessed Dorothy had deliberately altered the direction of the spirit paths inside the school. As a result, no matter which spirit path the ghosts wandering the school took, they would eventually collide with one another, causing "traffic accidents."
Ghosts that refused to yield to one another on the spirit paths—even if they were not evil spirits—would devour each other, thereby giving birth to a "special individual condensed from intense killing intent and hatred."
And as time passed, that thing would only become more and more dangerous. More and more ghosts would follow the spirit paths and be devoured by the monster inside, becoming nutrients for its growth.
After hearing Dorothy's explanation, Yayoi Hozuki understood the seriousness of the situation.
Then her gaze turned to Dorothy's arms, curiously studying the doll the girl was holding.
"Did Xu Fu give you that doll?"
Dorothy nodded, her eyes filled with trust in Xu Fu. "Yes. Xu Fu-sama told me I absolutely have to keep it with me at all times, and that no matter what happens, I can't be separated from it. This doll can protect me in Xu Fu-sama's place if I run into danger."
Looking at the doll in Dorothy's arms, Yayoi Hozuki immediately pictured Red Hood.
---
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