The fact that I could act so boldly up to this point was largely due to chance. More precisely, it was because I managed to reach the 'Drying Room' by chance.
Perhaps the first appearance was in a fan movie. From there, the return from the 'Mayoiga' to the outside world became a standard template in escape-themed 'Mayoiga' fan works. "Everyone comes to the 'Drying Room' first, huh?" or "If we keep escaping the same way, they'll probably patch it in the next update," were criticisms that were repeatedly discussed on certain bulletin boards. It's true that using the same joke can become monotonous, but in this case, it was welcome. Lives were at stake, after all.
"Now then... the ground is becoming muddy. Be careful not to slip!"
I shouted to the group following behind me as I see the ground getting wetter and wetter. Even while shouting, I was secretly relieved that we hadn't taken the wrong direction.
From the various jokes running around in the 'Bakemono no Ma,' there are at least four rooms that can be accessed, as revealed in setting guides and fan movies.
The first room is the 'Rinku no Ma (The Ring Room),' where when you lean out into an old well deep in the forest... to be precise, when you lean out, a white hand forcefully pulls you into the room. In this dim underground-like room, the vengeful spirits of victims who have become the minions of a shrine maiden that turned into monster welcome visitors. If you enter this room, you should run away with all your might. If you can't escape, you'll end up joining the ranks of the undead.
The second room we can reach is the 'Jiin no Ma (Room of Compasion).' When you pass through the gate of the abandoned temple located at the summit of the mountain, you suddenly find yourself teleported there. The dilapidated temple would have turned into a magnificent grand temple by now. For some reason, you are forced to undergo a year-long training in Buddhist practices by the youkai monks in this room. If you escape during the rigorous training, you'll be banished to a high-difficulty room as punishment. However, at least during the training, your physical safety is guaranteed. If you're lucky, you might even learn monk skills or martial arts. Finally, you receive a formal name as a monk from the wooden Daruma (Mokugyo-daruma) and are sent directly to several low-difficulty rooms. In a sense, it could be considered a room for relief.
The third room is the 'Juku no Ma (Bedding Room),' which you can reach if you sleep together with others in the forest for more than a day. ...Yeah, it's one of those rooms where you can't leave until you do certain things (XXX). What's terrible is that the partner you're entangled with is not just a woman but not even necessarily human. If you happen to get lost in the 'Mayoiga,' I don't recommend going to this room with ulterior motives. You might end up being forced into being someone's second partner in a dragon-drawn carriage mating.
And finally, the fourth... If we go south from the mountainous part of the 'Bakemono no Ma,' the ground gradually becomes muddy. Ahead, there is a swamp, and there's a door. The door that leads to the 'Kaeru Taishō no Ma (Room of Frog General?)' is sitting there. That's the room I'm aiming for.
...This labyrinth that resembles an infernal hell has only a few exits, and this room connects to one of them. '(｀･∀･´) When you skillfully navigate the labyrinth, it's so cool!!' Are you in your chuunibyou phase?
"What are you babbling about... Well then... ummm?"
At a point where we continued through the deep forest's rough path, the view suddenly opened up, and I found myself in an unexpected situation. People around me were looking at me as if something had happened, so I coughed to cover it up. Then I looked at the scene in front of me again, still perplexed.
It was mud. The expanse before my eyes was a land of mud. It was as if the plug had been pulled from a bathtub, and the water in the marsh had disappeared. It was the bottom of the marsh. Only the muddy ground covered the entire area.
(Did someone cause a big commotion somewhere?)
For a moment, I was dumbfounded, but I immediately considered the possibilities. The internal spaces of the 'Mayoiga' may seem infinite, but they are finite. More accurately, the things within the space are finite.
For example, the deformed villagers in the 'Tatari-bito no Ma (Room of the Vengeful Spirits)' or the cursed dolls that chased after Izayoi and the others in the 'Hito-oibito no ma (The Room of the Pursuer)' were just things that the 'Mayoiga' had taken in from the outside. Water, grass, and the surrounding resources are nothing more than things absorbed, nurtured, or created by incorporating the power of the spiritual veins. There is a limit to the creation of rooms and props, and the bending of rules is not possible. Despite appearing difficult to comprehend at first glance, everything within the 'Mayoiga' follows a certain order.
In other words, somewhere a room consumed a large amount of water or something similar, and the repercussions reached us. It's possible that they replenished the water from relatively low-priority rooms... that's one possibility.
...Or maybe they anticipated our presence and set up a nuisance?
'(＾ω＾) Papa, look at that!'
"Yun-shoku, that..."
"Mm... Ah, it's a door."
The servant leader, Sakuama, rushed over to me as I fell into silence due to confusion and agitation. He came by my side and whispered while pointing. Setting aside my doubts and speculations for the moment, I nodded and looked at the direction the leader was pointing (not because I was following the response of a stupid spider).
It was about a hundred meters away from our current location. In the middle of the muddy ground, there stood an old-fashioned door with moss growing on its edges. The ground beneath it formed a small hill. It was probably an island while the marsh was still filled with water. If we searched the mud there, we would likely find the chocolate transfer boat (Adventure Boat Arufouto-maru) somewhere.
"Well, well..."
I sharpened my awareness and surveyed the surroundings. At first glance, there were no signs or traces of any youkai nearby, but...
"For now, let's secure the area around the door, shall we?"
I stepped into the muddy ground, and the rest of the group followed, keeping a slight distance...
"Wait. Just in case."
I uttered words of caution to the others behind me. Then, I handed the end of the rope to Sakuama's servant leader and signaled them to hide in the shade of the trees. Confirming that they understood the intention and followed the instructions, I proceeded further alone. I wrapped the rope around my waist and continued through the mud.
"It's like a receding tide on a beach. I don't want to get stuck... Is this spot okay?"
I stopped my steps halfway between the door and the group, about fifty meters ahead. My feet slowly sank into the mud under my own weight, but I paid no mind. If the worst came to worst, I could ask Sakuama's servant leader and the others to pull me out. But before that, there was something I needed to do.
"If nothing goes wrong..."
I remained highly alert to my surroundings and took out something from my pocket. I took out the 'Enchanted Summoning Bell.'
Ring-ring, the sound of the bell echoed through the marsh and the surroundings. I observed the area in silence.
"..."
And then, I rang the bell again, ring-ring. And immediately, it happened. A resounding rumble. They were indeed here...
'w(ﾟДﾟ)w Ha! Your foot!!'
"Huh? Ouch! What the... coming from there!?"
For a moment, I twisted my head at the spider's words echoing in my mind, and then I screamed in pain as I pulled my foot, which was sinking into the mud, out. I pulled out the foot that had been slashed and remained sitting on the ground covered in mud. Tears filled my eyes as I looked ahead. Emerging from the mud was a sickle.
A water-dwelling creature, boasting a somewhat human-sized body, emerged from the mud, lifting its sharp arm.
"Why did you have to come after the wounded one!?"
It felt like nothing more than harassment to target my leg, which was wounded because of the attack of nail-winded earlier. Did it sense the smell of blood or... Oh, damn it!?
"Tsk!"
I instinctively blocked the swinging powerful arm with my short spear and deflected it. The water-dwelling creature continued to protrude from the mud, aiming its short, insignificant proboscis towards me. I had a terrible premonition.
'w(ﾟДﾟ)w Whoa!!'
"Dangerous!"
A mouth stinger shot out from its proboscis. It stabbed into the captured prey, sucking out its bodily fluids. I narrowly tilted my head to avoid it, barely escaping the tip of the sharp needle-like stinger.
I shouldn't worry about the slight red streak flowing from my neck.
"Yun-shoku!?"
"Don't come! I'll handle this myself! Maintain vigilance around me! Uoahh!"
I commanded the others who were shouting, and at the same time, I avoided the stinger attack for the second time by falling backward. Is this guy aiming for my head this time!? That thing that sucks out the contents of my skull!?
"Don't you dare shove that thing at me!"
Instead of avoiding the third stinger attack, I confronted it head-on. I unsheathed my dagger (tantō) from my waist. With a quick motion, I sliced off the stinger from halfway. A viscous mysterious liquid sprayed out. '(*´∀｀*) That dagger is impressive! It's like a chocolate fountain!'
"I'm a Pocky person, you know!?"
'?!'
As I retorted to the whimsical playful remark echoing in my mind, I delivered a kick to the face of the water-dwelling creature with its round, adorable eyes. It was a strike with a geta sandal that had an iron plate embedded in the sole. Startled, the water-dwelling creature floundered. Was it trying to escape? Unfortunately, the mobility of an aquatic insect on land was far inferior to its movements in water.
"Take this!"
Closing the distance, the thick and large arm of the water-dwelling creature became powerless when I got in close. I immediately pressed the dagger against its face. I stabbed it. I stabbed it multiple times. Despite piercing its face so many times, the water-dwelling creature still didn't die!
"Here, have this!"
I twisted a talisman into the wound on its face where I had stabbed it. It was an explosive talisman. Immediately after, I stepped back. The explosive talisman I activated in my mind caused the head of the youkai to completely explode. The body, now without a head, writhed and then ceased its movements.
"Haa... haa... haa... serves you right!"
Glancing at the twitching corpse of the water-dwelling creature, I spat out in contempt. Dammit, it gave me so much trouble!!
Enduring the pain, I continued through the mud. Finally, I arrived at the vicinity of the door. I untied the rope from my waist.
The rope served as a lifeline to prevent the others from sinking into the mud.
"I should tie it tightly... like this, good. Are you ready to go? Hey! Let's retreat over there for now!"
After firmly wrapping the rope around the side of the door, I informed the others to withdraw...
"Oh, wait. Seriously?"
Before me stood another water-dwelling creature. It was a big individual, accompanied by about thirty of its young kin. They stared at me with their round eyes. Perhaps they were furious.
