Chapter 226: Yakumo Yukari:???
"My... my food!"
Yuyuko knelt on the woven tatami mat, staring at the tragic remains of her late-night snack. Pastries and delicate sweets lay scattered across the floor, their pristine surfaces ruined by tiny, muddy footprints. Her hands trembled as she reached out, her peach-pink eyes pooling with unshed tears.
Youmu had anticipated this exact reaction. She stepped forward and swiftly slapped away the crushed mochi Yuyuko was about to shove into her mouth.
"Lady Yuyuko! This is already dirty! You cannot eat it!"
"Just one bite..."
Youmu mercilessly knocked the next pastry from her master's hand.
Puffing out her cheeks, Yuyuko twisted her body away, retreating to the corner of the room to sulk in absolute misery.
Standing near the broken shoji screen, Yakumo Yukari narrowed her purple eyes at the chaotic courtyard. Out in the darkness, several small, spectral figures were still sprinting in circles, their high-pitched, piercing laughter echoing through the night.
"Youmu, what did you just say you remembered?"
"I... I..."
Youmu stammered, her gaze darting away. She had already deduced that this catastrophic mess was entirely Haruto's fault. She desperately wanted to cover for him.
But under the crushing, dual pressure of Yukari's piercing stare and Yuyuko's depressing aura of starvation, the half-phantom finally cracked. She spilled everything she knew about the cursed merry-go-round from the horror instance.
The more Yukari listened, the more her expression blanked. She immediately tore open a Gap, peering into the spatial tear to survey the rest of Gensokyo.
The sight greeting her was pure absurdity.
The Forest of Magic, the Misty Lake, and countless other quiet regions were absolutely crawling with those miniature Oni Girls. The night air was saturated with their shrieking giggles. A few of the braver spirits had even managed to sneak into the Sunflower Field.
An illusion?
It had to be an illusion.
Yukari closed her eyes, took a slow, measured breath, and opened them again.
The Oni Girls were still there, sprinting through the grass and cackling like maniacs.
"Lady... Lady Yukari, are you alright?"
Watching the Sage of Youkai experience a deep moment of existential doubt, Youmu could not help but ask in a tiny, timid voice.
"I am perfectly fine!"
A terrifying, entirely fake smile stretched across Yukari's face. "My hands have simply started to itch. I feel a sudden, overwhelming urge to beat up two people for fun."
"Eh? Two people? Is there someone else besides Little Bai?" Yuyuko tilted her head, momentarily forgetting her ruined snacks.
Yukari nodded, her forced smile remaining frozen in place.
Based on Youmu's description, the merry-go-round alone could never produce an invasion of this scale. The cursed item had clearly been modified and enhanced. And knowing her idiot younger brother, he absolutely lacked the technical expertise to pull off such a massive spiritual amplification on his own.
Therefore, he had an accomplice.
Ran spoiled the boy rotten, but she was far too pragmatic to agree to a stunt that would result in her losing a layer of fox fur to Yukari's wrath.
By process of elimination, the accomplice could only be Reimu.
This level of property damage and noise pollution was absolutely intolerable.
Yukari immediately expanded her sensory net, scanning the borders until she locked onto Haruto and Reimu sneaking through the dense woods near the Hakurei Shrine.
Leaves crunched underfoot as the duo made their way through the dark forest.
Haruto suddenly froze in his tracks.
"What is wrong with you now?" Reimu asked, stopping beside him with a tired sigh.
"My scalp is suddenly tingling... it is probably just an illusion."
"Then hurry up and clean up these little brats so we can finally go back to sleep." Reimu rubbed her temples. She had genuinely believed this merry-go-round business would be a lucrative money-making project. She never expected it to spectacularly blow up in their faces before turning a single coin of profit.
Haruto took another step, then violently threw his weight backward. "Dodge!"
He launched himself to the side, rolling wildly through the dirt and underbrush.
Reimu, completely exhausted, failed to react in time. A dark Gap ripped open directly above her head, and a pale fist descended like a falling meteor, smashing squarely into her skull.
"Waaah—ouch!"
The Shrine Maiden of Paradise crumpled straight into the dirt, face-planting hard.
Yukari stepped leisurely out of the Gap. She cracked her knuckles, her gaze fixed on Haruto, that same horrifyingly sweet smile plastered on her face.
"You little brat, you are quite fast at running away."
"What do you think you are doing? Are you seriously bullying a child? I am warning you, the Shrine Maiden of Gensokyo is..."
Haruto pointed a dramatic finger, fully intending to use Reimu as a human shield. His voice trailed off as he looked down, realizing his designated meat shield was already knocked out cold, twitching slightly in the grass.
He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing in the quiet forest. He offered a very tentative, nervous grin.
"Can we... still settle this peacefully?"
Far away in the bamboo forest, Eientei was normally a sanctuary of quiet research.
Yagokoro Eirin stood in her laboratory, her steady hands carefully concocting a highly volatile potion.
A sudden, chaotic commotion erupted outside her window, accompanied by a heavy vibration that shook the floorboards. Eirin's hand jerked, nearly dumping an entire vial of reactive blue liquid into the cauldron.
She raised a silver eyebrow, glancing toward the closed door.
The noise did not fade. If anything, it grew louder. She steadied her wrist, took a breath, and slowly tipped the blue liquid toward the bubbling pink mixture.
"Aaaaah—waaaaaah!"
A deafening, shrieking laugh blasted through the walls.
The cauldron violently exploded.
A layer of gentle, blue spiritual power instantly flared out, containing the blast to the immediate vicinity of the desk. Eirin released a long, exhausted sigh, brushing a stray speck of soot from her sleeve as she looked back at the door.
The frantic shouting of Reisen and Inaba Tei, mixed with that bizarre, piercing laughter, drifted continuously from the courtyard. It was a chaotic chorus of chasing footsteps and shattering pottery.
What exactly were those rabbits up to now?
Eirin expanded her perception outward. She blinked, her usual calm demeanor cracking slightly.
Her brow furrowed in sheer disbelief. She set down her empty vials, walked across the room, and slid the door open.
The courtyard was a warzone.
Inaba Tei was sprinting for her life across the stone path, furiously grumbling and shouting curses over her shoulder. Right on her heels was a miniature Ghost Girl, its face twisted into a manic grin as it chased the rabbit youkai.
Reisen was trailing far behind them, wildly brandishing a heavy iron rod and accidentally smashing decorative lanterns as she tried to swat the agile spirit. In the corners of the garden, three more identical spirits were charging through the bushes, cackling at the top of their lungs.
A heavy creak echoed from the right corridor. The door at the far end pushed open, and Kaguya stepped out, rubbing her eyes.
"Why is it so noisy out here? Are you all holding a secret late-night party without me? I want to..."
Kaguya took one look at the shrieking Oni Girls, the fleeing Tei, and the swinging iron rod.
Before she could finish her sentence, she stepped backward. The door slammed shut with a resounding bang, immediately followed by the crisp, heavy click of a metal lock turning into place.
The Human Village had fared no better.
Given its close proximity to the Hakurei Shrine, the concentration of escaped Oni Girls here was significantly higher than at Eientei. Nearly half of the spectral horde had flooded the quiet streets.
Watching the little monsters scurry across the rooftops and shriek in the alleyways, Fujiwara no Mokou stood in the center of the road, absolutely vibrating with rage. A layer of intense, crimson flames surged around her body, illuminating the dark street.
The fire was not massive, but the sheer heat radiating from her skin visibly distorted the night air.
"If I find out who is behind this absolute nonsense in the middle of the night—"
Mokou ground her teeth together, her fists igniting. Two brave Oni Girls lunged at her from an awning. She threw a brutal double punch, blasting them out of the air. "I will skin them alive!"
She had only come out to grab a quiet late-night snack at a street stall.
A steaming bowl of noodles had just been placed in front of her. She had barely picked up her chopsticks when that shrieking laughter erupted from the shadows. Before she could even process the noise, a tiny, giggling imp had rushed the counter and completely flipped her bowl onto the dirt.
These imps possessed no real combat strength, but they made up for it with sheer numbers, blinding speed, and an atrocious level of noise pollution.
"Do not let me catch whoever did this!"
Meanwhile, deep within the Sunflower Field.
Kazami Yuuka had returned to the quiet comfort of the Dream Mansion. She leaned casually against the window frame, sipping a warm cup of tea while flipping through a manga volume Haruto had carelessly left behind on his last visit.
She suddenly paused. Her vibrant scarlet eyes shifted, looking out the glass toward the sprawling field of yellow blooms.
That distinct, shrieking laughter drifted through the night breeze.
Yuuka calmly set her teacup on the windowsill. She picked up the green parasol leaning against the wall, popped it open, and stepped out into the cool night air, walking directly toward the source of the disturbance.
Before long, the intruders revealed themselves. Several small figures dressed in white floral dresses darted between the tall stalks.
They hid behind the massive sunflowers, poking their pale little faces out to flash hideous grins at the imposing Youkai. They released bursts of mocking, shrieking laughter before attempting to scatter in all directions.
Yuuka did not rush. She simply raised her parasol, aiming the tip with casual precision.
Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.
Small, condensed Magic Cannons fired one after another in rapid succession. Whether the targets were fleeing into the distance or weaving through tricky angles, every single beam found its mark with absolute, devastating accuracy.
In the blink of an eye, the flower field that had been plagued by chaotic noise just moments ago returned to its serene, deadly tranquility.
Yuuka lowered her parasol, the tip smoking slightly in the cool air.
A soft sigh escaped her lips, a rare hint of fond helplessness softening her scarlet eyes.
If it had been literally anyone else responsible for this mess, she would have already dragged the culprit out of their bed and buried them deep in the soil to serve as fresh flower fertilizer.
[Inorin's Note:
Hey guys, hope you're enjoying the novel! A quick Power Stone, comment, or review really helps the story grow and keeps me motivated.
Hate waiting for updates and cliffhangers? You can skip the line, avoid all those annoying ads, and binge 50 chapters ahead by supporting my work here:
🌐 Read on our site: Search for Elysian Reads on Google or Check the link in my Webnovel Profile bio!
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters & Ad-Free): Search InorinTL on Patreon
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]