20. Brawl at the Mall
You must be thinking this guy is a complete and utter moron to have walked into this. And, fair I get where you’re coming from, but in in my defense, I read the light novel like, years ago and to then expect me to construct a detailed calendar of all the events from memory is a rather tall ask. It’s not like every chapter started with a neat little date in the corner. No, you had to go off the college semester starting, and holidays, and stuff like that to work out the timeline! Also, I’m not totally convinced that this world isn’t self-correcting. Like, in the original story, the original Katsumi was at the mall event too. Yes, okay, he showed up late after Tarō had already defeated the demon, but pretty boy was present to taunt the hero that he would’ve been able to slay the demon too, but without ruining half the mall.
Come to think of it, pretty boy was a better demon-hunter than me wasn’t he? Whatever! Doesn’t matter! I’ll rise far higher than he ever did! And then I’m going to be a pretty girl and just chill.
The screams haven’t stopped. Haruki has her hand on my shoulder.
Tarō might save the day and take down the demon salamander, but right now he isn’t here. We have to play for time. Let the people find safety somewhere.
Down at the plaza of the mall, the giant salamander with the sickly, semi-translucent white skin lumbers forward on its hind legs. It’s a formidable foe, you can tell by simply looking at it. It might not be the fastest given its size, but its grabby hands are going to hit like a truck. It lacks eyes so it senses its surroundings through other means. Sound and smell the most obvious alternatives, probably magical enhanced to a degree. I wish I’d remembered more from the encyclopedia or the novel—no time for further reading.
At the moment it’s busy finding someone to devour on the open buffet. There must be a hundred people at its feet ripe for the taking. It’s a misery demon, so it'll go for those who are depressed and downtrodden first, but at that size it might not care anymore, everyone carries at least a nugget of misery.
We have to stop it before it makes its decision.
I look up at Haruki, tall and imposing with her big sword resting on her shoulder, standing next to me. I glance over to Mayumi and Chie, talking aim close to the railing of the walkway which overlooks the alley and the plaza further down. Mayumi already has an arrow knocked and begins pulling back. Chie is taking aim with her rifle braced against the metal of the railing.
I can’t deny that I’m scared, that I want to run.
We can’t win against that thing, but we don’t have to. Just keep it away—away from the others until Tarō arrives. He's somewhere here. I know he is. I read it.
And if Mayumi and Chie and Haruki are brave enough to face the lumbering giant, so am I.
I'm going to be an A-rank demon-hunter. I won’t back down, not before the fight has even started! I will plunge my sword into that thing! I can do this!
I rise from my chair and summon my sword.
A little charm dangles from its pommel, a fossilized Ammonite shell, the same Hikari got me.
Mayumi calls out and her arrow flies.
Chie pulls the trigger.
The shot rings out with the sound of giant bell being struck.
So it begins.
Shouts pass between Chie and Haruki, while I stare at the demon. Both attacks hit their target, hard to miss something this big even at that distance.
It has its intended effect. The white beast rears its head in our direction and my resolve crumbles again.
It’s so fucking big. If a giant salamander could approximate something like a sneer it does just that. I shiver.
Haruki pulls me forward towards the demon. She brings us to one the bridges that span over the first floor, joining the two sides of the second. For a moment I feared she’d have us fighting at his feet.
Haruki pushes me towards the opposite end of the crossing.
She shouts something at me but I’m unable to comprehend it. I understand what she wants from me regardless. This thing will come barreling through here on its way to punish those pesky girls who dared to throw rather hurtful darts of mana at it. And when it does, the bridge will slow it down and Haruki and me will use that to hack at its side in a pincer move.
I ready myself. A tight grip, a firm stance, a single motion from the shoulder, the edge of the sword must be in line with the arc of the strike. Don’t look where you hit, concentrate on what the demon does. What attacks does it prepare? What are its defenses? Watch it closely!
It’s coming.
Okay… maybe it isn’t as slow as expected. It’s actually quite fast.
Fuck, it’s fast.
I exhale.
The demon, a hulking mass of muscle, crashes into the bridge. Broken tiles and glass are thrown everywhere in a great ripping screech as the girders deform. The impact leaves the floor shaking. Despite its terrifying speed the obstacle still serves its purpose. The demon slows, metal and concrete giving way under its strength.
I spring into action, close the distance as fast as I can.
I feel weightless.
Everything is a blur.
My sword strikes.
I force the blade into it’s flesh.
It fails to cut deep.
Poor alignment, not enough strength.
My inertia carries me forward, straight onto the massive beast's back. A flea, not a hunter. No time to stop. I find my balance best I can.
The demon made short work of the bridge. It's gone. Shredded metal and shattered glass. The remains are being tossed aside.
I slide over its slimy hide towards Haruki.
I see her.
Her sword is driven deep, evidently stuck and the demon is pulling her with it.
I grab her as I skid next to her, and she lets go. We fall to the ground in a heap.
The Demon passes us, the bridge a rather minor obstacle in the end.
The disgruntled huff of a dragon fills the space.
We are nothing to it.
A paper-cut and a tiny thorn.
It picks up speed again.
Mayumi and Chie are close, at the railing in front of the cafe.
Haruki and I scramble to our feet.
In an instant the demon is on them.
Haruki dismisses her sword and resummons it in her hand.
We run for them.
The demon pulls back one of his arms.
Rainbow flashes alight the scene and the sounds of bells being struck deafen me momentarily. Attacks of pure defiance. Desperate and ineffective.
Only a meter in front of us, its hand crashes down and rakes across the walkway. The floor quakes and debris flies as it sweeps across the entire space.
A scene of terror.
Fuck!
NO!
Dust fills the air in the wake of the strike. More screams follow, but their words are lost on me. My heart sinks.
In the dust, I can make out two shadows rising.
Mayumi is pulling Chie to her feet.
They’re okay!
What a relief.
Over the cracked and lopsided floor, Haruki and I run towards them. We fall into each other. A deep embrace. Chie looks fine but Mayumi has scrapes on her arms, and blood running down her scalp.
Where's Hotaru?
I don't see her!
A giant white fist emerges from the dust cloud barreling towards us.
No time.
This is it.
I’ve been here before.
I know how this will feel.
I won’t close my eyes this time.
Blinding white light arcs, fading into the rainbow sheen of a see-through mana barrier. The demon's attack smashes itself against it at full force, only centimeters in front of us.
I snap around to catch a glimpse of an already fainting Hotaru standing before the smashed front of the cafe.
The barrier flickers out, the demon yelping and screaming in pain, momentary loses interest in anything else. It rears backwards. It hurt itself pretty good throwing that punch against Hotaru’s barrier.
I feel Mayumi’s hand on my arm, pulling me into the ruined cafe.
Haruki has picked up the limp Hotaru. She drained herself saving us.
Chie is in the back hammering the butt of her rifle against the door to the back room.
It crashes open and we all follow her, the screams of the demon in our backs.
The narrow hallway swallows the thrashing of the beast. Its anger and fury suddenly far away. Everything sounds intimate and close, our shoes hitting the ground in haste, our panting and only a low rumble making the danger we're in ever present.
In the front, leading our retreat, Chie calls out “Look for a map, there should be a shelter here, it’s code.”
“Fuck the shelter!," Mayumi spits, holding my hand now with a tight grip. "Just put enough concrete between us and that thing, so it gives up or loses our scent or whatever it’s locked on!”
Chie wants to say something but stops at the eerie wail of sirens. We're all familiar with their meaning: A-class demon spotted, seek immediate shelter, do not go outside until the all-clear has been given.
Through gritted teeth Mayumi repeats, “Fuck the shelter!”
All our phones chime with the push notification, which gives the same instructions as the sirens do.
We don’t stop.
A maze of cramped hallways, and we go ever deeper until Chie pulls us into a big windowless room which appears as an odd cross between an office and break room.
Haruki rests the still barely present Hotaru down on the ground and collapses beside her.
Chie, jittery and with the clear drive to keep going, turns around to face us. There's a second door on the far side of the room, but Haruki’s actions make her position on fleeing further very clear.
I watch the realization hit Chie’s face as she takes in the scene. Haruki is drenched in sweat, exhausted from hauling a basically unconscious Hotaru at full speed through narrow passageways. Mayumi looks downright frightening with a good quarter of her face covered by blood coming from whatever wound hides under her hair.
Chie freezes up.
Next to me, sitting on the ground, Haruki gestures towards Chie to come to her. The big and gentle Haruki pulls Chie into her and starts stroking her hair.
In the meantime, Mayumi went for Chie’s messenger bag and pulls out a first aid kit.
I have a bottle of iodine and balls of gauze shoved into my hand.
“Just find the damn thing” Mayumi growls at me and starts pulling her hair apart.
Making her sit on the ground, I comb through her wet strands. The culprit is easily found, a cut. It doesn’t look deep or anything, but it bleeds a lot nonetheless.
I try to wash it best I can and press the gauze on it.
Mayumi immediately takes over and presses down hard on her wound.
Rummaging through the bag one handed, she tosses an energy drink, a straw and a granola bar at me.
“See if you can get our sleeping-beauty to drink and eat something Katsu-chan.”
Following the order, I shuffle over to Hotaru and place her head on my lap, preparing the can for her. she—to my surprise—starts drinking eagerly.
A few minutes later she gives me a friendly squeeze and sits up best she can, resting her back against the wall.
Mayumi grins, “Welcome back, Sunshine. So what do your spirits say, how many points do you get for saving all our asses?”
Keeping her eyes closed—visibly drained and exhausted—and in the voice of a tiered mother, Hotaru replies, “Do not mock the Kami, Mayumi, they might take offense.”
“They're not here, relax. Windowless office break rooms aren’t really their thing.”
Hotaru manages to glare.
I join her, sitting against the wall and pulling my knees to my chest. A blank space is where my thoughts should be.
There are infrequent rumbles and you can feel the ground and wall shake slightly, signs that the demon is still out there, most likely engaged with Tarō in a fight to the death. I pull my knees even closer.
That’s when it registers. I’m wearing a dress! And over-knee socks and cute shoes with tiny heels!
The tension I’ve been under finally gives.
I giggle. It feels so absurd that I sit here somewhere in the bowls of a shopping center seeking shelter from a giant demon. A demon I attacked with my sword, and I’m dressed like a cute girl.
Oh wait.
“Fuck, our stuff.”
By my side, Hotaru comments, eyes still shut, “Handbags and purchases are behind the counter of the cafe. If that’s still there, so are they.”
Mayumi sighs, “You really think of everything, Sunshine, don’t you?”
“You girls would be lost without me,” she mumbles.
That earns her smiles from all of us.
I take in our surroundings, a small kitchenette, lockers and a few desks and computers. We're not alone, far from it. A group of store clerks all in uniform and name tags from different stores are huddled around the tables. They give wry smiles and tiny bows at my gaze.
We sure made an entrance.
Not far from them, on her own, a young woman leans against the wall. Her eyes fixed on the phone in her hand.
Wait, is that… I stand up.
“Rin?”
She lets her phone sink and looks confused.
It's a strange relief seeing a familiar face, especially one which tells me that Tarō isn't far.
There is no reply she merely stares at me.
What’s wrong with her?
Is she scared for Tarō? There is no need for that, he got his overpowered demon-killer sword. He’ll be fine. He is the hero after all.
I smile at her and try to reassure her, “Don’t worry he’ll be fine.”
"KATSUMI???"
With fast steps she stomps towards us.
“YOU’RE A GIRL!?”
Oh…
Shit.
“Uh… no… I…”
“Yes she is! Got a problem with that?” Haruki intervenes.
“What’s it to you!?” Rin barks at Haruki, before her ire lands on me again. “So you pretended to be boy all this time? What the fuck!?”
Haruki cuts in again, “Chill it hot-shots.”
“I’m not talking to you,” Rin sneers.
Mayumi rises, “Yeah, but we're talkin' to you, and you're gonna respect our girl, understood?”
THIS ISN'T HELPFUL?! Why are they still doing the honorary girl thing?
This is so bad that Rin saw me like this! How do I even explain this?
'Well you see I’m really bad at being a guy and I don’t like being one, so I thought I could turn myself into a girl with that one restricted hunter’s gear and I because I’ll end up as a girl eventually and all the high ranking hunters have cool themed outfits I decided to crossdress in the meantime. Also hunting demons as a cute and mysterious shrine maiden is ten times more fun than as a drab konbini boy. And my new friends are super understanding and I think because they want to help me out and ease me into the whole being a girl thing they treat me as such in advance. Also they really really want me to crossdress when I’m with them, but I don’t really have an explanation for that.'
Rin's eyes snap back to me, “Flanked by your squad? You truly don’t change do you Katsumi, despite…" Her gaze rakes up and down my frame.
Oh shit, she's convinced I'm still the same sadistic bully. But I'm not! I'm nothing like pretty boy.
“I’m not like that anymore! I don’t… that’s no longer me.”
“You drop the boy-act and it's good all of a sudden? I'll believe it when I see it. So what was that weird comment earlier?”
“I was trying to reassure you. Tarō is going to be fine, he’s going to prevail against the demon. I know it.”
“What exactly is problem, Katsumi? Is this supposed to be a joke? We got separated, Tarō is over at the shelter. Are you insane? He isn’t fighting a literal class-A monster!”
“But… he has his family heirloom, the sword his grandfather gave him…”
“What are you talking about? What sword? You know what? I can’t deal with your crazy right now.” Rin leaves shaking her head.
Tarō doesn’t have the sword!
The duel!
Of course! He was supposed to lose against pretty boy and then when he came home disheartened and angry his grandfather was to reveal that he comes from a long line of folk-hero demon-hunters and gift him the sword of his family!
But we never dueled!
Because I was completely broken, couldn’t deal with anything, after the realization that I had to be a guy for a second time. So he never got his sword!
This world isn’t self-correcting at all!
I fucked it all up!
Tarō, the hero, he's just some F-rank nobody, thanks to me!
Fuck.
I’m an even better rival than pretty boy was. I reduced Tarō to nothing without even trying.
A tug on my hand.
Hotaru gestures for me to sit down again. I follow her invitation and she rests her head on my shoulder.
Mayumi asks, “So you knew that bitch?”
“Yup, from high school.”
“Don’t listen to her.” Hotaru mumbles.
“Yes. Don’t. Who reacts like that?” Chie adds, still sitting on Haruki’s lap.
We wait.
I don’t know how long.
I can’t stop thinking about how I inadvertently removed the hero from the story. What's going to happen now?
The thought won't leave my mind.
It's stuck, same as we are.
Doomed to sit around and do nothing.
I close my eyes.
After a while, the low rumble finally abates, and a minute later, the siren spools up again to signal the all-clear. A push notification informs us of the same.
It further names two A-rank hunters who were able to take down the demon. This was supposed to be his big fight, the one that makes him who he is, the fearless hero.
Another fundamental change to Tarō's story. It's so broken it's basically gone now… by my hand.
Iron chains around my heart, they’re cold.