Chapter 228: Amnesia Mushroom? What Is This?
"Aaah—waaaaah!"
A series of cute, high-pitched wails echoed throughout the usually quiet corridors of the Hakurei Shrine, accompanied by the frantic pitter-patter of hurried footsteps slapping against the wooden floorboards.
Haruto was successfully jolted awake.
He groaned, burying his face deeper into his futon. The noise was entirely too loud. Even shrinking into the thick bedding and pressing a feather pillow tightly over both ears did absolutely nothing to muffle the chaotic screaming outside his room.
Unable to bear the racket for another second, Haruto heard the heavy footsteps rapidly approaching his sliding door. He sighed, kicked the blankets aside, and rolled out of bed.
Just as he slid the door open a crack, a blur of black and white rushed toward him. It was Marisa, her delicate face twisted into a mask of pure terror. Hot on her heels were two grotesque Oni Girls. One was sprinting down the hallway, while the other was rapidly skittering along the ceiling and walls, her limbs twisting at unnatural angles like a giant, deranged spider.
Haruto instinctively moved to slam the door shut, but a desperate hand had already forced its way into the gap.
Marisa pried the wooden frame open by sheer force of will and slipped inside like a frightened mouse. It wasn't until the door clicked shut behind her that her legs gave out. She slumped onto the tatami mats, clutching her chest and gasping for air as if she had just run a marathon.
After a long, heavy silence broken only by her ragged breathing, Marisa reached out, grabbed Haruto's shoulders, and began shaking him vigorously. Her eyes were wide with lingering panic.
"I almost died! I almost ended up in a coffin right then and there!"
Haruto let himself be shaken like a ragdoll, his expression completely deadpan. "...Actually, they aren't nearly strong enough to beat you."
"Huh?"
"They are incredibly weak," Haruto pointed out, gently swatting her hands away. "You could solve this entire situation with two Magic Cannons."
"Ugh..."
Marisa froze on the spot, her mouth hanging slightly open. She slowly raised a trembling finger to point at the closed door. "But... but they were just like that tall, thin monster from before! They were screaming and lunging at me!"
"Screaming and chasing people doesn't automatically mean they're strong," Haruto sighed, rubbing his temples. "That 096 from before was a rare exception. These things outside? They are, at most, low-level yokai."
A beat of silence passed. The gears visibly turned in Marisa's head.
Suddenly, her expression shifted from terror to absolute indignation. She immediately reached into her apron, pulled out her Mini-Hakkero, yanked the sliding door wide open, and stormed back out into the hallway.
When the two Oni Girls saw their prey reappear, they let out shrill, echoing laughter and immediately lunged at her from the floor and the ceiling.
However—
The Marisa standing before them now was no longer the panicked girl from ten seconds ago.
Raw magic power rapidly circulated through the air. A dense, searing cluster of flames flickered to life within the core of the Mini-Hakkero, illuminating the dark corridor with a harsh, blinding light.
"Boom, boom—!"
Two blindingly bright Magic Cannons shot straight out of the small furnace, the sheer kinetic force rattling the shrine's foundations. The twin beams of destructive energy accurately blasted the lunging Oni Girls mid-air.
The first one was completely blown apart on the spot, reduced to nothing more than scattering ash and lingering smoke.
The second one, the spider-crawler, seemed slightly more resilient. The blast didn't disintegrate her, but the concussive force sent her flying backward like a broken doll, slamming heavily against the far wall with a sickening crunch.
Marisa didn't hesitate. She immediately chased after the downed yokai.
Shouting a string of colorful curses, she swung the heavy metal Mini-Hakkero like a blunt brick, giving the dazed spirit a thorough, merciless beating. It didn't take long before the second Oni Girl was completely smashed apart, dissipating into the air.
"Very impressive," Haruto commented dryly, stepping out of his room to survey the carnage.
Marisa dusted off her hands and tilted her head proudly, a smug grin spreading across her face. "Of course! I can handle as many of those low-level creeps as they throw at me!"
"Marisa is amazing." Haruto deliberately gave her an exaggerated, highly unenthusiastic thumbs-up.
Despite the obvious sarcasm, Marisa's face turned slightly red. She scratched the back of her head, laughing awkwardly. "Ah, well, it was nothing, really."
Haruto stepped forward, his eyes glowing faintly as he channeled his Boundary Power. With a casual wave of his hand, the scorched floorboards and the cratered wall damaged by the Magic Cannon's aftereffects smoothly knitted themselves back together, looking as good as new.
Once the mess was cleaned up, he rubbed his tired eyes. "If there's nothing else, I'm going back to sleep."
"Wait, there is something!"
"Hmm? What is it now?"
"Play with me."
"Goodbye."
Haruto turned on his heel and immediately moved to close his door.
But Marisa was far too quick. She forced her way inside once again, completely ignoring his obvious desire to be left alone. She casually plopped herself down on his bedding, reached over to his personal storage cupboard with extreme familiarity, and pulled out a chilled bottle of grape juice and two large packs of senbei.
Haruto's eyelids twitched imperceptibly as he watched her pop the bottle open.
Why was this girl so practiced at raiding his room?
"Do you come in here often?" he asked, crossing his arms.
"Cough, cough, cough...!"
The sudden, pointed question made Marisa choke on her juice. She frantically patted her chest, coughing violently for a good few seconds. Once she finally caught her breath, she looked away, her expression the picture of guilt.
"My place in the Forest of Magic is just... really messy right now," she muttered, refusing to meet his gaze. "And every once in a while, this magical cupboard of yours just refreshes with some really tasty snacks! So, sometimes, I just come here to sleep and eat."
Haruto's mouth twitched violently.
Does the cupboard 'refresh'?
Did she honestly think it was some kind of magical loot box? He was the one manually restocking it every single week! No wonder his premium snacks were disappearing at such an alarming rate.
"Fine, fine," Haruto groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Just remember to tidy up after yourself. Don't make my room as messy as yours."
He really couldn't hold out any longer. The exhaustion from the horror instance was catching up to him. Ignoring the fact that a blonde witch was currently loudly crunching on rice crackers in his room, he lay back down and wrapped himself tightly in the bedding.
"There's a stack of new manga in the third drawer of the cupboard," he mumbled into his pillow. "Don't call me unless the shrine is literally burning down."
After saying this, he closed his eyes and let the darkness pull him back into dreamland.
When Haruto woke up again, his stomach rumbled before his eyes even opened. A rich, savory aroma was wafting through the room—the unmistakable, mouth-watering scent of a simmering hot pot, heavily laced with the earthy fragrance of wild mushrooms.
He sat up slowly, rubbed the sleep from his eyes, and looked dizzily toward the small wooden table in the center of the room.
A portable stove sat on the table, a large pot bubbling merrily on top of it. Various fresh ingredients and colorful seasonings were scattered around the edges.
Marisa was sitting quietly at the table.
She held a small, transparent glass bowl in her left hand. With her chopsticks, she carefully fished a strange, glowing half-mushroom out of the boiling broth and examined it closely under the light.
"What kind of mushroom is this?" she muttered to herself.
She popped the steaming mushroom into her mouth and chewed carefully. Her eyes widened slightly in pleasant surprise. "Hmm? It's surprisingly good... wait, no!"
She suddenly blinked, her expression going entirely blank.
"Huh? What was I doing just now?"
Marisa scratched her head in utter confusion. She looked down at the bubbling pot, picked up another glowing half-mushroom with her chopsticks, and stared at it intently for a few seconds.
"What kind of mushroom is this?"
She put it into her mouth again, chewing thoughtfully. "Hmm? It's surprisingly good... wait, no!"
She blinked again, the blank look returning.
"Huh? What was I doing just now?"
...Watching Marisa constantly repeat this exact same scene over and over, Haruto's expression became incredibly subtle. He didn't even need to guess to know exactly what the side effect of this particular magical ingredient was.
He let out a long, exhausted sigh and stepped forward, grabbing her wrist before she could fish out a fourth piece.
"Stop eating."
Marisa blinked, looking up at him in surprise. "Oh, you're awake? Perfect timing! I was just about to go call you and Reimu; I cooked enough hot pot for three."
"Don't you notice anything wrong with yourself right now?" Haruto's mouth twitched slightly.
Hearing this, Marisa frowned and rubbed her slightly bulging stomach, a look of total confusion crossing her face. "Now that you mention it... I feel like I don't have much of an appetite? Could it be that the ingredients I picked weren't fresh this time?"
"Not fresh my foot! You're clearly stuffed from overeating because you've been eating the same thing on a loop!"
Haruto held his head in exasperation, pointing an accusing finger at the glowing fungi floating in the broth. "This is a new species you found in the forest, right?"
"I wasn't sneakily eating!" Marisa defended herself instantly, her little face turning serious. "I just wanted to taste the broth first before waking you guys up, but then you woke up on your own! But yes, this mushroom is indeed a brand new species I discovered today. I specifically brought it over to share with you guys."
"This is an amnesia mushroom," Haruto stated flatly. "Don't eat any more of it. I'm going to get Reimu."
Leaving those words behind, Haruto turned and walked out the door.
Marisa sat at the table, looking down at the bubbling pot. She curiously picked up another piece of the glowing fungus, examining it with deep suspicion.
"Is there really such a magical mushroom?"
...By the time Haruto returned a few minutes later, dragging a half-asleep Reimu by the sleeve, he walked in on almost the exact same scene.
"Is this an amnesia mushroom? munch munch... Not bad..."
Marisa blinked, looking at her chopsticks.
"Is this an amnesia mushroom? munch munch... Not bad..."
Reimu, who was still rubbing the sleep from her eyes, stared at the looping witch. Her expression twisted into something extremely strange. "What is wrong with her?"
Haruto didn't bother explaining. He decisively stepped forward and delivered a swift, light hand-chop directly to the top of Marisa's head, forcibly breaking her out of the memory-loss loop.
"Ow!" Marisa yelped, clutching her hat.
Before she could complain, Haruto snapped his fingers. A dark, eye-filled Gap tore open in the air beside the table. He ruthlessly grabbed the basket of uncooked amnesia mushrooms and dumped the entire pile into the void.
"Confiscated," Haruto declared coldly. "I'm doing this to save you from one day eating yourself to death in your own home just because you forgot you already had dinner."
Marisa pouted, looking a bit reluctant as the Gap swallowed her precious harvest. "Can I just have one more taste? It feels like it would be a really good addition to my potion recipes."
Haruto refused flatly. "Can you even remember what it tastes like? Why bother eating it if you forget it three seconds later?"
He sat down at the table, picked up a pair of clean chopsticks, and expertly fished all the remaining amnesia mushrooms out of the boiling hot pot, dropping them into a large ceramic bowl. Once the broth was clear, he opened another Gap—this one directly connecting to the gardens of Hakugyokurou.
He casually tossed the entire bowl of cooked, memory-wiping mushrooms inside.
Although he possessed absolute toxin immunity and could even use poisons to strengthen his own Boundary Power, what if this bizarre conceptual effect didn't technically count as a 'toxin'? It was always better to be safe than sorry. Let the ghost princess deal with it.
Just as the Gap was closing at the last second, a familiar, incredibly excited voice echoed out from the other side of the dimensional rift.
"Ah! It's mushrooms! There are free mushrooms!!"
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