Chapter 367

367 – There’s a Demon Living in the Underground of the School #3

Elementary school, middle school, high school…

In every educational institution I attended, there were commonly spoken legends or ghost stories.

Stories about the statues on school grounds coming to life, or about schools being built on cheap graveyards.

“Actually, there’s something horrifying down in the basement of this building. It’s said that the clergy sealed away an ancient demon…”

Thus, Marda’s whispered story made some sense. Something about the ancient demon being sealed on the thirteenth step leading to the basement.

Why do schools always seem to have their own terrifying tales?

Perhaps places like schools, hospitals, and the military where large numbers of random people gather, have an inseparable connection to such ghost stories.

As I was quickly losing my doubts about this, Antiope asked back.

“Ancient demon? You’re saying there’s a demon in the basement?”

“Yeah, yeah, well, actually, those stairs might also be some kind of illusion conjured by the demon…”

Marda seemed to feel quite irreverent for speaking about demons, quietly muttering “Oh God of Light, please forgive me.” Was Marda once a sun worshipper?

But Antiope looked into the dark entrance with a grin, as if such details were irrelevant.

“Ancient demon, you say. It’s probably just a beast or a monster masked as something grand. Sealed underground – sounds fun!”

I’ve noticed this before, but Antiope is quite aggressive. Like an unleashed pit bull, always looking for something to bite into.

“Alright.”

Eventually, Antiope approached the gaping, pitch-black entrance and started descending the steps.

Clomp, clomp…

“Alright, here we go. One, two, three…”

The sound of descending footsteps echoed loudly.

“Five, six…”

Whoosh…

Just as the sounds for seven and eight should have come, her figure vanished into the darkness. Even though she had only descended a few steps, both her steps and her form disappeared entirely.

Would it even be possible in such darkness?

“Hey, Antiope! Can you hear me?”

Calling down into the basement, there was no sound in return.

I felt a bit curious.

Also, this peculiar staircase in the basement began to look slightly different to me.

It reminded me somewhat of the unlit basement stairs seen in American horror films.

The kinds of stairs where people check out a noise from the basement and then get attacked and fall down by an unknown assailant. Why don’t people ever turn the lights on when they approach these places?

Why are houses in foreign places always dark? Is electricity so expensive?

Why move into houses rumored to be haunted?

Why do people keep putting babies to sleep alone in dangerous houses?

Clank…

Suddenly, my rising anger was interrupted by a sound from beneath.

Soon, phwap! A small flame ignited, and a light like a lantern flickered from down the stairs.

“Nothing here! Everyone, come on down!”

The voice was Antiope’s. She somehow reached the bottom and was now calling us from below.

I, personally, wouldn’t have descended into such darkness so easily.

Indeed, the brave Amazons are different.

If this turns out well, I should give Antiope a day off.

As I was about to take a step towards the dark underground passage with that thought in mind, someone grabbed my back harshly and screamed.

“Master Hassan, it’s dangerous…!”

“What?”

“Master Hassan, what in the world are you trying to do…? This is a very, very dangerous situation…!!”

It was Paranoi.

I don’t know why she was so angry, but Paranoi yelled furiously at me.

“What is this? Suddenly, what?”

“Not suddenly what…! Following voices from such basements is forbidden in the utmost sense…! It’s the most dangerous act…!”

What does that even mean?

I wondered if Paranoi’s hysterical symptoms hadn’t recurred. Nevertheless, she scolded me with a face more serious than anyone else’s.

“Perhaps Antiope has already fallen to the enemy…! The voice calling us from below might not be Antiope’s but a terrifying entity disguised with her voice…!”

Ah, I see.

I understood what Paranoi said.

This was like a scene from horror movies too – the brave one who goes down first falls victim, and the ones that remain are lured in by the voice of the victim.

“All of you, what are you saying? Hurry down here. There’s something interesting.”

“Sir, we must not listen to such wicked words…! This is the temptation of the demon…!”

Whatever. This is absolutely no fun! Quickly, come down!

“Master Hassan, you must not listen…! The demon disguised as Antiope is scheming to lure us into this damp, smelly underground…!”

I was overwhelmed by Antiope’s voice from the basement and Paranoi’s frantic behavior beside me.

I don’t know whose words are correct.

But soon, approaching with clomp, clomp, footsteps, Antiope appeared again with a lantern in her hand.

“The stairs only have twelve steps. So why are all of you standing there frozen? Did you see something strange?”

Antiope inspected our faces as if she had no clue. Thus, I had no choice but to explain to her what happened with Paranoi just now.

“What? I didn’t say anything.”

Antiope only reacted as if the voice we heard earlier from the basement wasn’t hers. Both Paranoi and I were surprised.

I asked.

“Just a moment ago, you called us from down the stairs, right? You weren’t the one?”

“What are you talking about? I was trying to tell you not to come down because of the dust and spiders.”

What is going on?

I felt a discord between my left and right brain, like something akin to schizophrenia might occur.

Similarly, Paranoi screamed, trembling.

“It’s, it’s true then…! A terrifying scheme impersonating Antiope’s voice…! I saved Master Hassan and the entire party from calamity…!”

Indeed, Paranoi seems to have been correct by this point.

We were obviously conversing with something pretending to be Antiope. Startled by this fact, Marda, who had been speechless for a while, quivered in fear and spoke.

“The, the legend seems to be true…!”

“What legend?”

“When Sunday evening comes, all the chaplains at the university have to perform silent meditation due to this. It’s said that after late Sunday afternoon, a malevolent entity that mimics known voices appears and lures everyone…”

Swallowing thickly, Marda continued.

“On Sundays, if you hear a voice, know it’s the temptation of the devil, they say. Our junior clerics and professors don’t talk during silent meditation anyway because…”

Though the explanation was incoherent, I roughly could understand.

So there is a malevolent existence in this dormitory that mimics voices.

Ordinarily, I would have dismissed such tales as mere jokes, but after hearing that voice from the basement earlier, I was sent a chill down my spine.

Right at that moment.

Graaaah-!

A familiar voice emerged from the basement again. Unlike the calm conversation we shared earlier, it sounded more akin to a roar or scream fueled by pure wrath and malice.

“That, the demon seems to be angry for failing to tempt us out…! It’s truly frustrated…!”

Indeed, Paranoi was right.

Thereupon, Antiope also seemed to rub her chin briefly, showing a look of irritation.

“Whatever it is, a powerful entity seems to be down there. Quite unsettling at this dark hour of night. Entering a basement is as dangerous as it gets. Let’s try going down together once the morning sun rises.”

“Exactly, the wise decision that befits the real Antiope…! Judgment becoming of a follower like Paranoi…!”

“Alright. Let’s close the door for now.”

Creeeak…

Antiope closed the iron door she had just climbed through, looking quite bothered by it.

Creeeak… BANG.

Finally, the massive door was closed, and the voices from the basement disappeared just like that.

*

We calmed down a bit and found a place to rest.

“Master Hassan, it’s definitive that something is amiss here…! Evidence being the prickly sensation on the back of my neck, like ants crawling around…!”

In the narrow, dark path, Paranoi was chirping away about something.

Ordinarily, I would have paid it little heed, but this time, it was indeed as Paranoi said.

“Aaah…! There really was an ant…! The hygiene situation is a total mess…!”

…

Anyway, this school is not an ordinary one.

It’s so eerie, as if something dark and unsettling lurks beneath my feet.

Whatever entity was mimicking Antiope’s voice earlier, there’s no doubt it was trying to deceive us.

Is it the ancient demon that the school’s clergy sealed away, as Marda had said?

Marda’s story of a school legend, as I initially thought, might indeed be true now.

Then, what should we do next?

I pondered. There’s no more dangerous act than blindly rushing in to exorcise some demon or other.

It’s important to first understand and know about this existence, the ways to tackle it.

We decided to convene our opinions in the university cafeteria, a large hall.

While Marhta was anxiously looking at the dim interior of the cafeteria, I asked.

“So, any places to gather information about that ancient demon or whatnot? Maybe some duty professor of this university, someone like that.”

Shaking her head at my words, Marda replied,

“Even if someone dies, there’ll be no response on Sunday evenings.”

“Then, what about leaving a note or something. Surely that’s possible.”

“Since they’ll likely barricade themselves in their rooms… Anyway, isn’t it a bit chilly?”

At Martha’s words, I perceived the chilliness of the cafeteria dining hall for the first time. Indeed, it was a bit cold, to the point that my breath was visible.

Marda said,

“Normally, it wasn’t this chilly. Could it be due to what happened earlier? I’m frightened… The school starts to feel scary. Is this place usually so dark and silent?”

Apparently, Marda is starting to feel the dread of things she didn’t notice before. I also had similar moments before.

Like using my phone in the dark and only seeing the light around it, with everything else in total darkness. Or walking half-asleep to the bathroom in a dark and quiet house, momentarily feeling a chill—these fears often start from everyday situations.

“Still, Master Hassan, since you’re God, you can protect me, right?”

Marda even began leaning on me now. Quite unlike the marauder who attacked my shrine just this afternoon.

Of course, the reply came from Paranoi.

“Master Hassan fears no demon…! Master Hassan is the nightmare of demons and malevolent spirits…!”

So Paranoi thinks I’m some kind of Terminator, huh.

“For that reason, Master Hassan could fetch a bit more firewood for this stove over there…! It’s freezing…!”

Swoosh…

In the dim and dark dining hall, Paranoi pointed to a stove far away.

Through her fingers, I could see the stove glowing faintly amidst dark and damp stone walls. It seemed like a walk to get there, and under these circumstances, quite a challenging task.

“Master Hassan, darkness isn’t scary to you, so adding firewood should be like drinking cold spring water for you…!”

You little brat Paranoi, you’re too scared to do it yourself, huh?

Still, it is cold.

“Where is the firewood?”

“Over there, behind the dining hall side.”

“Alright then.”

Swooosh…

I rose from my seat.

Though being scared can make even a harmless piece of scrap paper seem like a poltergeist, it’s said that malevolent spirits like ghosts and demons thrive on people’s fear and terror.

I thought sitting here afraid would only empower some unknown entity. Resolving to move my body and shake off my fear, I decided to take action.

“I’ll be back quickly after adding some firewood to the stove. Shout if anything happens.”

“Then, I’ll sing a song until Master Hassan returns…! If the song stops, you’d know something’s happened to me and come help…!”

“Sounds good.”

Leaving the girls sitting at the table behind, I moved slowly into the darkness. As I clenched and unclenched my hands, “Graceful Radiance” activated, illuminating the area around me quite well.

“Water, water, water, a tiny puddle, a small spring appears-. Smell the honey, it energizes the young lady of the small spring…”

Behind me, Paranoi’s quivering song echoes faintly. What kind of song is that?

Ignoring her voice, I reached a small storage-like place at the edge of the canteen and was about to open the door.

.

Just then, I heard a strange scraping sound on the floor—scritch-scratch-scratch.

A rat, perhaps?

I looked down, but nothing was visible.

Scritch-scratch-scratch…

The sound wasn’t fading; it was getting louder.

…give.

Then, I even heard a voice.

Leaning down slowly, I could hear through the cold walls, from beneath: a voice.

Help me!!

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