The hospital rose before them like a sleeping giant.
Broken windows.
Imposing structure.
Old medical symbols covered in dust.
The energy was dense.
Uta stood in front of the main entrance, hands in his pockets, staring at the building as if he were evaluating a watermelon at the market.
—Are you ready, guys?
He said it like they were on a field trip.
Naoko cracked his neck.
Akuma gave a crooked smile.
Akihiro studied the windows.
Mitsume mentally reviewed escape routes.
Then—
—Wait!
Hayate came running.
Breathing heavily.
Sweating.
—I want to participate.
Akuma looked him up and down.
Clear thought:
“Who’s this weakling?”
Akihiro tilted his head slightly.
—Are you sure?
The question wasn’t mockery.
It was analysis.
Uta opened his mouth to say something.
But Hayate spoke first.
Shaking.
Literally shaking.
—Yes. I’ll fight with them. I want to help too… my blood is that of warriors.
The silence weighed heavy.
Uta was about to intervene.
But a calm voice stepped forward first.
—Come with me.
Everyone looked.
Yūrei stepped forward.
—I’m Yūrei.
Hayate looked at him, surprised.
—H-Hayate.
Mitsume frowned slightly.
—Are you sure about carrying extra weight?
Her tone was elegant.
But direct.
Not insulting.
Evaluating.
Yūrei answered without looking at her.
—Everyone deserves the chance to prove what they’re worth.
Naoko smiled.
—That’s it, pale boy.
He gave Hayate a small shove.
—Don’t die, okay? It gets awkward afterward.
Hayate laughed nervously.
Scratched the back of his neck.
—Great… monsters, haunted hospital… yeah, amazing plan… what could possibly go wrong…
If he joked that much…
It was because he was terrified.
Uta observed everything.
In silence.
Then he leaned back and sat against a nearby tree.
Exaggerated yawn.
—Very well. If you’re not out in two hours… I’ll come get you.
He smiled.
But not with his eyes.
—And it won’t be pleasant.
The wind moved the branches.
Uta closed his eyes as if about to sleep.
—Show me what you’re worth.
The teams looked at each other.
Team 1:
Akuma, Akihiro, Naoko → the mage.
Team 2:
Mitsume, Yūrei, Hayate → sewers.
Akuma took the first step toward the main door.
—Let’s break something.
Naoko followed.
Akihiro walked last, smiling.
Mitsume headed toward the side entrance leading underground.
Yūrei gestured for Hayate to follow.
Uta barely opened one eye.
Whispered to himself:
—Surprise me… Hayate, Akihiro. I trust you.
The trees creaked in the wind and the hospital shrank in the distance, as if civilization ended there.
A bulky man had placed a rusty fence across the road.
—Toll to go up —he grunted.
A black car stopped in front of him. The music blasted exaggeratedly loud.
At the wheel: Kuro, black sunglasses on, nodding to the rhythm like he was at a private concert.
In the back seat:
Minato, also wearing black sunglasses.
Tadaaki with his hand over his face, questioning all his life decisions.
The man approached the window.
—It’s 5,000 bronze coins if you want to pass—
Kuro slowly lowered the window.
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He said nothing.
Just stared.
Awkward silence.
The music got a little louder.
The man swallowed.
—Uh… you know what? Have a good trip.
He lifted the fence.
Tadaaki whispered:
—We didn’t even do anything…
Minato smiled.
—That was passive intimidation.
A few meters ahead, the car stopped.
Kuro pointed with his thumb toward the forest.
—It’s this way. The river’s source. Find the dam.
Minato got out first.
—Let’s go!
Tadaaki looked around.
—That’s it? Nothing else?
Kuro opened the glove compartment and tossed a bag.
CLONK.
—Food. If you’re not back by nightfall… I’ll assume you’re dead.
He reclined his seat.
Fell asleep.
Literally in three seconds.
Minato opened the bag.
—Mmm… canned food.
Tadaaki sighed.
—Let’s not start.
Narrator
While Team 3 entered the forest…
the camera descends.
Crosses the cracked ceiling.
Moves down corridors filled with peeling paint.
Fluorescent tubes flicker with an intermittent buzz.
And enters the emergency room.
Overturned stretchers.
Rusty wheelchairs.
An unplugged electrocardiogram machine still marking a faint intermittent dead line.
The floor is covered by a low, dense mist that moves as if it were breathing.
It isn’t smoke.
It isn’t vapor.
It’s something heavier.
More alive.
Naoko kneels.
Extends his hand.
His fingers brush the mist.
The fog swirls around his skin as if it recognizes him.
Akihiro immediately steps toward him.
—Be careful.
Naoko frowns.
—My whole body just tensed up.
His shoulders rigid.
Breathing shorter.
—Something’s wrong.
Akuma crosses his arms.
—The only thing wrong is you.
Naoko looks offended.
Akihiro sighs softly, always two steps ahead.
—He’s not waiting for us here.
His eyes scan the room, detecting every micro detail:
badly closed doors, disturbed dust patterns, uneven echoes.
—Let’s move.
He’ll come for us.
Akuma turns toward him.
—And why are you giving orders?
Akihiro smiles. Not from joy.
—And why are you following me?
Silence.
Naoko suppresses a laugh.
Akuma clicks his tongue.
—I’m not following you. We’re just going the same direction.
—Of course —Akihiro replies—. Strategic coincidence.
Akuma steps toward him.
—You think you’re smart.
—I don’t think so. I am.
Naoko bursts out laughing.
The tension breaks for a second.
The mist moves faster.
As if reacting to emotion.
Akihiro notices first.
—He’s coming.
The lights flicker.
A stretcher slides on its own a few centimeters.
Akuma clenches his fists.
Naoko gets into stance.
Meanwhile, in the forest—
Narrator:
The forest closed in around them.
The canopy barely let light through.
The air smelled of dampness… and something older.
Tadaaki walked straight ahead, eyes fixed forward.
Steady step.
Controlled breathing.
Since Giichi’s death, his movements carried different weight.
He didn’t walk to explore.
He walked to calculate.
Behind him—
—?? “Forest field trip, tra-la-la…” ??
Minato walked swinging his arms like it was a school outing.
Tadaaki didn’t turn his head.
—Minato.
—Yes, Tadaaki-san?
—This is serious.
Not a scolding.
A cold statement.
Minato tilted his head.
—I am serious.
He pointed at his face.
Huge smile.
Tadaaki sighed faintly.
—Doesn’t look like it.
Leaves rustled.
A sound cut the air.
SHHHHRAAA—
From the sky descended a shadow.
A gigantic bird, a mix between crow and vulture, uneven wings, feathers blackened like wet charcoal.
Its eyes glowed with a sickly, almost human tone.
Tadaaki barely had time to tilt his body.
Claws grazed his jacket.
—Tch—
The bird spun midair, preparing another direct attack to his neck.
And then—
BOOM.
A clean punch.
Minato leapt from behind and struck the bird head-on mid-flight.
The impact lifted leaves and dust.
The bird was sent flying against a tree trunk and fell unconscious.
Silence.
Leaves falling slowly.
Minato landed clumsily, shaking his hands.
—I am focused, Tadaaki-san.
He smiled.
—But I enjoy the moment.
Tadaaki watched him for a few seconds.
Evaluating.
Then looked at the bird’s body.
—Is it dead?
—No. Just sleeping very hard.
Minato stepped closer to Tadaaki.
—By the way…
He leaned in slightly.
—Can I eat now?
Tadaaki closed his eyes for a second.
Exhaled through his nose.
—Thank you, Minato.
Pause.
—But not yet.
Minato puffed his cheeks.
—You always say that…
Tadaaki resumed walking.
But this time, a little slower.
Making sure Minato walked beside him.
Narrator
Lastly…
We descend.
Below the hospital.
Below the city.
Below the noise of the world.
An old but functional sewer system.
Murky water running softly through the central channel.
Damp concrete walls.
Rusty pipes creaking as if they were breathing.
Three flashlights cut through the darkness.
Mitsume advances at the front, firm posture.
—We need to find the maintenance room.
If we activate the emergency power, the whole hospital will light up.
Her tone is calm, elegant even underground.
Beside her, Yūrei nods slightly.
—If there’s still fuel…
And if the engine still works.
Small pause.
—And if no one sabotaged it.
Uncomfortable silence.
Behind them—
Hayate.
Flashlight trembling slightly.
Breathing a bit faster than normal.
He scratches his neck.
—Uh… guys…
The light illuminates something on the wall.
Scratches.
Long. Irregular.
Too deep to be accidental.
—Is this… normal?
Mitsume and Yūrei keep walking while speaking between themselves.
—We studied the old system map —Mitsume says—.
The generator should be north of the main collector.
—And we reviewed basic electronics —Yūrei adds shyly—.
If the combustion engine still has pressure… it might start.
Hayate looks at the scratches again.
Further ahead there are more.
And more.
He swallows.
—Guys.
No answer.
—Guys.
His flashlight points to the ceiling.
More marks.
As if something had been dragged.
He takes a deep breath.
Straightens his back.
—Okay. It’s fine.
They’re… big rats.
Very big.
Horse-sized.
Perfect.
He gives himself two small slaps on the cheeks.
—Let’s go. Warrior blood.
Warrior blood that would rather be home.
He keeps walking anyway.
Even though his steps splash too loudly in the water.
Mitsume stops in front of a rusty door.
“MAINTENANCE.”
—This is it.
Yūrei shines the light on the lock.
—If this works…
Hayate positions himself behind them.
Very behind them.
Too behind them.
—I’ll guard the rear.
Silence falls.
The water stops sounding.
The pipes stop creaking.
Then—
A growl.
Not loud.
Not animal.
Low.
Vibrating.
Like a signal.
Like something responding to something else in the distance.
The three freeze.
Another growl.
This time farther away.
And more than one.
Hayate raises his hand.
—I want to go in first.
Mitsume and Yūrei exchange a glance.
They nod.
Hayate swallows and steps forward with the flashlight.
—Okay… we’re doing this because yes, because we can, right? We take back control. One two three one two three—
Hayate opens the door.
The maintenance door creaks as it’s pushed open.
Absolute darkness inside.
The smell hits first.
Old oil.
Stagnant water.
Rusting metal.
He gestures around.
—Ugh… this smells awful. If we don’t die here, I’m going to smell like ass for the rest of my life.
Silence.
Mitsume gives him a sharp smack on the back of the head.
—Focus!
Hayate turns, offended.
—What?!
She looks at him with absolute seriousness.
—Basic logic. Would you stay in a hospital with a monster living underneath it?
Hayate opens his mouth.
—No, no, no, no.
He shakes his head exaggeratedly.
—I’d be very far away. In another city. Another country. Another dimension if possible.
Yūrei, shining the light toward the back of the room, speaks quietly.
—It’s not just one.
They both look at him.
—Those growls…
It sounds like communication.
Pause.
—Like a language.
Hayate’s face loses color.
—Language?
Mitsume is already in front of the generator.
An old engine with a side tank.
She inspects it quickly with expert precision.
—There’s something in the tank.
She taps the metal.
—But the engine is jammed.
She looks at Yūrei.
—Do you know how to pray?
Small pause.
—We’re going to need it.
Yūrei adjusts his sleeves, nervous.
—No.
Behind them—
Hayate is already on his knees.
Hands together.
—Our King who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, please if I survive I promise I’ll stop complaining for a whole week—
Mitsume pulls the starter.
The engine coughs.
Nothing.
Silence.
From the outer tunnel—
A growl.
A response.
Another.
Closer.
Hayate prays faster.
—…and I also promise I’ll never say this smells like—
The engine makes a louder noise.
A spark.
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