During the time stop, Hayato's first move was to pull Tachibana away from the creature, getting the teacher to safety. Only then did he take the opportunity to observe the entity more carefully.
This one was drastically different from the creatures at the Love Hotel.
Unlike the front desk woman's grayish-black infection symptoms, this thing's face was covered in chunks of charred flesh. Red meat was clearly visible through the cracks, with liquid oozing out continuously. The smell was stronger up close, making his eyes water. He could see the flesh still smoldering in places, tiny wisps of smoke rising from the blackened surface.
It looked like a corpse that had been burned alive. The kind of thing I'd see in the aftermath of a fire, except this one was moving...
After his observation, Hayato grabbed a heavy stone from the roadside and launched a brutal assault, the hard rock connecting with the creature's head in rapid succession. Each impact made a wet, sickening thud.
But the thing barely reacted, its head lolling with the blows but showing no real damage.
But Hayato had no idea if pure physical attacks would even work. Just like the hotel receptionist, physical damage had been practically zero against a supernatural being.
"This way, sensei."
After pulling Tachibana to her feet, Hayato dragged the teacher away, running as fast as they could manage.
Even now, Hayato hadn't heard the task completion notification from the Death Game. That meant the creature wasn't dead, and the game didn't end.
After running about twenty meters, Hayato glanced back and saw the fallen figure staggering to its feet. Under the streetlights' glow, its body seemed to emanate a faint blue aura.
The creature was moving again. And it seemed slightly faster than before.
"Ha... Hayato-kun, what was that thing...?"
Tachibana gasped for air, her chest heaving with each breath. Her eyes unconsciously glanced back before snapping forward again in fear. But that glimpse alone made her heart race even faster. The image of that burnt face was seared into her mind.
"A monster. We need to get out of here first."
Hayato could probably handle the creature alone, but with the teacher here, getting her to safety took priority.
"Y-yes!"
Tachibana nodded vigorously, her hand gripping his so tightly it almost hurt. Her palms were sweaty, slipping slightly against his skin. Like if she let go, she'd be abandoned to that thing. Her nails dug into the back of his hand without her realizing it.
She'd graduated from university, become a high school teacher, supposedly an adult. But faced with genuine supernatural horror, she was just as helpless as anyone else. Pure instinct took over. Fear, panic, the desperate need to find something safe to cling to. All those years of education and professional training meant nothing when faced with something that shouldn't exist.
Right now, in her mind, Hayato was her only lifeline. The only thing standing between her and that nightmare creature.
"Hah... hah..."
"Here... this should be... far enough, right?"
After running for over a minute straight, Tachibana was completely winded. She bent over, one hand pressed to her abdomen, gasping for breath in huge gulps. Her throat burned. Each inhale felt like fire in her lungs.
It had been so long since she'd exercised this intensely. She felt like she might throw up everything she'd eaten for dinner. The taste of bile crept up the back of her throat.
Tachibana looked back the way they'd come, squinting into the darkness. The figure was nowhere in sight. Just an empty street stretching behind them, silent and still.
"It's gone. Thank god. We should call the police right away..."
With trembling hands, she pulled out her phone, only to find it completely useless. The screen lit up, but where the signal bars should be, there was nothing.
"Why isn't it working? No signal? That doesn't make sense. This is Chiba City!"
This wasn't some remote mountain area. There was no reason for zero cell reception here. She'd had full bars just minutes ago.
But her phone's signal bar showed absolutely nothing. Completely dead. Like they'd been transported somewhere beyond the reach of civilization.
"Did my phone break?!"
Tachibana Hina tapped the device against her palm. Tap tap. The sound felt hollow, desperate.
"Hm?"
Meanwhile, Hayato's attention was fixed on a vending machine in the distance. Next to it sat a trash can, and beside that, a plastic bottle lay on its side. The label was facing them, partially torn.
If I remembered correctly, that vending machine had been behind us when they started running.
Hayato turned around sharply, looking back the way they'd come. In the distance, an endless street stretched out, streetlights casting pale glows on both sides. The lights seemed to go on forever, fading into a darkness that felt more absolute than it should.
To the right front, there should have been the train station entrance. But now there was nothing.
His heart sank as realization dawned. The pieces clicked together in his mind, forming a picture he didn't like.
He'd known reality-based missions wouldn't be simple.
Tachibana noticed his reaction. Something in his expression had changed, become darker.
"Hayato-kun, what's wrong? We're safe now, aren't we?"
"Sensei, unless I'm mistaken, we're temporarily trapped in some kind of looping space."
"Huh?"
Tachibana blinked in confusion. The words didn't make sense to her logic.
Hayato pointed at the vending machine.
"If I remember right, that vending machine was behind us. But now it's in front of us."
"Maybe it's just a different one? They all look the same..."
Tachibana's response came automatically, grasping for rational explanations. Her mind refused to accept what he was suggesting.
Vending machines all shared similar designs. Mistaking one for another would be completely normal.
"Haven't you noticed that we haven't seen a single other person? No car sounds either. Not even insects chirping or birds calling."
"Now that you mentioned it..."
Tachibana looked around more carefully, really paying attention for the first time. And realized the silence was indeed terrifying. The kind of quiet that made your skin crawl. Even in the dead of night, there should be something. The distant hum of traffic. A barking dog. The rustle of leaves. Anything.
But there was nothing. Just the sound of their own breathing and the faint buzz of the streetlights overhead.
"That's... that's probably just because it's late at night, right?"
Subconsciously, she didn't want to accept Hayato's explanation. Because if he was right, that meant they were trapped. Trapped with that mysterious thing.
"Either way, let's keep moving forward. Maybe we'll find people up ahead."
She'd caught her breath by now, recovered enough to continue.
Hayato didn't argue. They started walking together.
This time, Hayato paid close attention to their surroundings. At one utility pole, he deliberately made a mark.
Tachibana watched him do it and immediately understood his purpose.
"Look... there's someone ahead!"
A light appeared in the distance, and Tachibana's face lit up with hope.
She even quickened her pace, taking two eager steps forward. But when the figure's true form became clear under the streetlight, her expression froze.
Why?
Why was that monster ahead of them now?!