Flights of Fancy [JJK Reader Insert]

Chapter 12: Clearing an Infestation

"A monster?"

You tried not to scowl at the mention of such a thing.

Cisco had a frown tugged on his face, although also showcasing some concern at the idea by the children among you.

"No way," he said, trying to sound firm in his response. "No such thing as monsters."

Aitana, the local gossiper of the children, gave a resolute nod, trying to negate Cisco's dismal.

"Yeah, there is!" She was irked at your cousin, "You don't live here! We've seen it before! It goes around here! My mom's seen it! We've even seen it before, right, everyone?" She turned to the other village children, some of whom eagerly nodded their heads or voiced their agreement.

"See?" Cisco still was skeptical.

"I don't believe it," he reaffirmed his stance on the matter. "Last time you said that the Tunche was around here, and the time before that, the Ranamula. This isn't even the jungle!" Cisco scoffed, shaking his head.

He glanced at you, having stood beside him. "It's all made up, right, [Name]?"

Aitana leered at him, quickly turning her attention to you and cutting in before you could reply.

"Why are you asking him?" She motioned to you, and you immediately knew what was coming. It always came back to bite you. "He's the one who would always go, 'The monster thing over there! Look, guys!' 'Don't go far because a monster is there!'"

You looked away, to which Cisco grimaced. He quickly rushed to your defense despite your notorious history and tried to save some of your honor.

Cisco tried to cheer you up the rest of the day, but you only did so when you finally left the village.

===×

Having given Katsumi your only light source, you used Conquest as a walking, furry torchlight. You were lucky he had an affinity for lighting as you learned to have him apply his abilities for various uses. Famine remained on the hybrid's back, using his head as a high point to sniff around.

The hall you traversed through was in a similar state of dismay as the one you had stood upon when entering the hospital, and it came to a point where you found patches of mystery mold growing here and there.

Katsumi was probably right; you might catch something just being here. If a curse didn't take you out, it'd be an airborne fungal toxin.

While divulging your morbid thoughts, a sound made you come to a stop. Your shikigami also halted, perking up at the sound as well. Initially, you thought it sounded like a groan from the building, which you have occasionally heard since coming to the building. However, you knew better than to dismiss it as something simple, as you trusted your instincts rather than your brain in times like this.

But that also didn't mean you should go about like an idiot searching for the noise. You had to decipher where it was coming from within a reasonable distance. And while you had thought before that, it was the building...

"Famine."

That was all she needed to get to smelling out the source, growing slightly bigger to stand higher on Conquest's blue, glowing head. You made sure to be alert for anything, hyper-aware of your surroundings.

The kitsune eventually directed her attention to the end of the hall, where you could make out a large patch of the walls and floor covered in dark splotches.

She didn't bark or yip but stared long and hard, with Conquest doing the same.

You found yourself reaching for one of the tantos sheathed on your hip, albeit if you were still rusty using it.