Chapter 51: Alice "Megatron" & Mechagodzilla.
....
Thud! Thud! Crash—!
BANG!
Clatter—!
After a series of chaotic noises erupted from inside the little house, Marisa finally stumbled out, covered in dust.
"Cough—cough! I knocked something over and almost got stuck inside…"
She wiped her face and handed over a cloth bag.
"There are ninety-nine magic mushrooms in here. If I sell any more, it'll start affecting my experiments. That's all I can give you."
Kihara didn't mind. He took the bag without hesitation.
"How much?"
"Hmm… give me 5,000."
With a thought, Kihara converted fifty gold coins into Gensokyo currency inside his inventory and handed it over.
Marisa froze.
She had not expected him to pay so easily—without even bargaining.
These mushrooms weren't particularly valuable. They just required some effort to gather.
Selling them for 1,000 would already be a huge profit.
But 5,000?
That was highway robbery.
For a moment, Marisa felt… guilty.
After stuffing the money into her pocket, she scratched her cheek awkwardly.
"…Uh, do you need anything else? Or maybe help with something? The Kirisame Magic Shop is kind of like an all-purpose service, you know."
"I'd like to visit the dollmaker in the Forest of Magic. Can you guide us?"
"Oh, that's easy. Consider it a bonus for shopping here—I'll take you."
On the way, Akane leaned closer and whispered:
"Kihara… that dollmaker you mentioned… is she the kind I'm thinking of?"
"Yep. The type who creates dolls and controls them to do all kinds of tasks."
"Ohhh~ That's kind of like how I make kaiju, isn't it? No wonder you brought me here!"
Akane beamed and hugged his arm, standing on her toes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.
Her whole body radiated happiness.
"You two really are close," Marisa muttered.
"Of course we are."
It was meant to be a casual comment.
But for some reason, Kihara's reply left a faint sour feeling in her chest.
To hide it, Marisa sped up.
Before long, they arrived.
A beautiful white house with a blue roof stood before them.
A neat cypress fence enclosed a small garden filled with blooming flowers.
Five or six small blonde dolls floated around, tending to the plants with tools in hand.
"Alice! You home? Someone's here to see you!"
A doll dressed like a maid floated over and gave a polite bow.
"My apologies. My master is not at home at the moment."
"Huh… that's weird."
Marisa scratched her head, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Alice usually never leaves the house. No idea why she's out today. Want me to bring you again next time?"
"It's fine. I've memorized the location."
Kihara turned to the doll.
"Please let your master know—there's a girl who's also skilled in designing dolls who would like to meet her."
"I understand, Mr. Kihara."
"…Wait. You know me?"
"The news about the shrine maiden's fiancé has already spread throughout Gensokyo."
Smack.
Kihara covered his face.
"That tengu reporter… one day I'm going to make her understand why flowers are so red."
"…You mean you're going to give her flowers?" Marisa asked, surprised.
"That's a weird way to respond to rumors…"
"No."
Kihara's expression darkened.
"I'm going to smack her so hard her face turns red."
"Hahaha! Oh, that's what you meant. Well, good luck with that. I've got things to do—I'm heading back."
"Alright. See you."
As Marisa left, Akane stared at the dolls, deep in thought.
Then suddenly—
"Kihara… do you think if I collaborate with this Alice… we could build a Mechagodzilla?"
"…Whoa."
Kihara inhaled sharply.
"You know what? That might actually work."
He wasn't joking.
If Alice agreed to cooperate…
They might really be able to pull it off.
After all—
This was Gensokyo.
Anything was possible.
Akane's eyes lit up instantly.
"Kihara, let's go back! I need to start designing right away! If we meet her next time, I can show her the plans and recruit her into my kaiju army!"
"Alright, alright. Let's head back."
Kihara summoned his motorcycle and sped off with Akane.
On the second floor of the mansion.
Behind drawn curtains.
Stood a girl with golden hair and skin as pale as porcelain.
Alice.
She had been home the entire time.
She simply didn't want to meet strangers.
But the words "Mechagodzilla"…
And that strange vehicle Kihara had ridden…
They had piqued her curiosity.
"…Perhaps next time… I'll meet them."
With that thought, she returned to her beloved doll-making.
…
[The Community Center seems to have received some unusual visitors.]
Early the next morning, after "feeding" Rikka Takarada and Akane Shinjo, Kihara received the system notification.
He calmly took a shower, prepared breakfast.
Only then did he head to the Community Center.
Creeeak—
The worn wooden door groaned as he pushed it open.
Inside—
Several small figures froze mid-motion.
Looking closer.
It was Cirno, along with Rumia, Daiyousei, and a group of other fairies he couldn't quite name.
They were playing inside.
"Oh! It's you!"
Cirno immediately brightened, landing on his shoulder proudly.
"He's the new friend I told you about! Daiyousei, Rumia—the milk you drank before? He gave it to us!"
"…Uh, nice to meet you. I'm Kihara."
Daiyousei, far more polite than Cirno, floated forward nervously.
"Mr. Kihara… we were just drawn here by the atmosphere. We're not causing trouble."
"The atmosphere?"
Kihara looked around.
"What's different about this place?"
"I know! I know!" Cirno shouted loudly into his ear.
"This place feels warm—like a fairy home! And I found it first, so from now on, this is my territory!"
"Cirno! You can't just claim it like that!" Daiyousei protested.
"Hey, I'm the strongest in Gensokyo! Of course Kihara will agree, right?"
Kihara glanced at the fairies looking at him expectantly.
He didn't hesitate.
"…Go ahead. You can play here. I don't mind—in fact, you're welcome."
"YAY!!!"
"Wooo!!"
[Gensokyo Fairies have moved in. Sacrifice function unlocked.]
So that's how it works…
Kihara nodded to himself.
The Junimos had been replaced by Gensokyo fairies.
Which meant—
Other special events were likely tied to Gensokyo's residents as well.
Looks like I should explore more.
After playing with the fairies for a while, Kihara returned home.
And began studying the newly unlocked Sacrifice Function.
....
Thank you for reading.