落とし穴１２０堀：そしてお約束は砕かれる (Part2)
Hearing the seniors desperately crying out for help, I realized it was all over.
"Eoid, Amanda..."
I called their names, wishing they would come for us. But miracles don't just happen because you wish for them.
*“Ugh, uhee. Uhehehehe...!!”*
With a jarring, rattling shake of its head, the ghost closed in until it was mere inches from us. All we could do was...
"Ugh, Yuki, Yuki..."
"Yuki-senseeei!!"
"There's nothing left but to jump... but in this region, our bodies..."
"I don't want this anymore..."
We could only lament our fate.
"Yeah, yeah. You called, and I appeared... no, that’s not quite right. Anyway. I’m here."
It reached him. The seniors' voices reached Yuki-sensei.
"Yu, Yuki!? It’s Yuki, right!!"
"Yugizenseee!!"
Kagura-senpai and Mikos-senpai lunged at Yuki-sensei the moment they saw him, clinging to him tightly.
"Oh, there, there. That was scary, wasn't it? Enora, Solo, are you two okay?"
"Y-yes."
I replied, feeling bewildered by Yuki-sensei’s completely out-of-place demeanor. Enora-san, however, clearly understood the gravity of the situation and answered with a frantic edge to her voice.
"Yuki-dono. I'm glad you came, but if you don't do something about this thing, we aren't getting out of here alive!"
She glared at the ghost, which was looming right before us.
"I know, I know. Now then, you there. I don't recall seeing you at yesterday's interview. Am I just imagining things?"
He was talking to it as if it were a normal person, but there was no way it would answer him...
*“Hah! I have no intention of obeying a man who keeps women around him like some real-life harem! I was hiding yesterday, you idiot!! You pervert!! Enemy of all women!!”*
The ghost answered clearly.
"...That way of speaking, are you a modern person?"
*“That’s right! Well, unfortunately, I died. I came to this other world led by Luna-sama, only to find myself a ghost? Not that I mind, it’s actually kind of fun. But my boss trying to build a harem? How cliché and pathetic. You’re probably planning to force yourself on me too!!”*
"Wait, wait, that’s a misunderstanding. It was just a matter of circumstances..."
*“Shut up!! You’re an enemy of women!! Now that I’ve gained ghost powers, I’ll kill you and liberate all the unfortunate women out there!!”*
With that, the ghost lunged at Yuki-sensei.
Hah—it had been a joke-like exchange, but that ghost’s power was the real deal! Yuki-sensei was in danger!
*Grab!!*
*“Eh?”*
*“““Eh?”””*
Our voices and the ghost’s overlapped. Because the ghost, having lunged forward, had been stopped dead in its tracks by Yuki-sensei, who had grabbed it by the head.
*“Wh-why, you!! Let go!! And how can you even touch me!!”*
"Huh? You’re not the first of your kind I’ve dealt with. I’ve got plenty of people like Warrant Officer Yamamoto around, and before that, I was already acquainted with a proper spiritual medium. Look, that schoolgirl over there with the bandage on her forehead? That’s a shrine maiden’s daughter."
*“No way!? Did I step on a landmine without knowing it!? And why!? I thought spiritual mediums were all fake!?”*
"You, seriously? You’re a ghost yourself—did you really think it was convenient enough for spiritual mediums not to exist? Here, if I press this ofuda against you like this..."
Yuki-sensei pulled out a talisman and pressed it against the ghost...
*“Hot!? St-stop it!! That talisman, you’re definitely trying to purify me or something, aren't you!?”*
"Isn't that a good thing? You can pass on. You’ve caused enough trouble for people, so just endure it."
*“Wait, you’re a harem-guy, right!? The flow of things here should be you forgiving me lightly and adding me to your harem!!”*
"No, no, I have the right to choose, too. Besides, I told you it was a misunderstanding, yet you kept hurling insults at me. I’m not such a kind idiot that I’d forgive that."
*“Y-you’re lying, right? You don’t really intend to kill me, do you?”*
"You’re already dead. Just pass on quietly. I don’t know if there’s a 'next time' for you. Though, who knows? Maybe it’s that 'Pure Land' place people talk about."
*“You definitely don’t believe that!! Wait, this is bad, my heart is starting to feel all warm and fuzzy!? Seriously, stop it!! I’m sorry, I’m really sorry!! I was getting carried away!!”*
"Fine. Then go round up all the idiots who cooperated with this Mayohiga."
*“I get it, I get it, just let me go!! I’m gonna pass on—!!”*
The ghost’s pathetic scream echoed through the air. We stood there, staring at Yuki-sensei in a daze, not knowing what to do.
There is always someone above you in this world. The world is vast. If ghosts exist, it’s no surprise that spiritual mediums exist, too. And it’s no surprise that there are ordinary people who can surpass even them.
Unreasonableness exists in this world. That’s just how it is.
But I think everyone realized that this ghost, much like Taiki-kun, had a real talent for delivering a punchline. Is it destined to become the voice of the readers!?