"In other words, are we inside Beelzebub right now?"
"Mhm... although not exactly right, it's close enough."
Nia waggled her finger mysteriously.
"This isn't the interior of Beelzebub, but a small space similar to the Neighboring World that it created between the real world and the Neighboring World. However, having said that, it's only similar in form; it's a completely different thing from the actual Neighboring World."
"I see... Then what's with these outfits we're wearing?"
"Mhm... although my understanding of this ability is also limited. But judging from the current situation, the so-called 'Phantom Library' should be a space built upon stories known to people. Beelzebub mixes the collected 'stories' together, then traps us inside to play the characters within."
"I see..."
Shido couldn't help but realize. As the original owner of the prototype of Beelzebub,Nia's views obviously held considerable credibility. Moreover, her explanation shared many similarities with his own guesses.
Shido couldn't help but turn his gaze to the side. Yoshino and Tohka were currently teasing the Big Bad Wolf with catnip, like teasing a cat.
"Big Bad Wolf—sit!"
"Awoo~"
"Paw!"
"Awoo!"
"Ooh, Tohka-chan is so cool!"
"Amazing..."
Honestly, Shido was still having a hard ti believing it. After eating just one of Tohka's peach, the Big Bad Wolf, which just monts ago was acting fierce and threatening to eat them, was now sitting on the ground wagging its tail fawningly at Tohka, acting like a husky.
(Should I say, as expected of Momotaro?)
Shido thought, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Unlike Shido and Yoshino, Tohka was wearing a gorgeous surcoat and hakama. She had leg wrappings, a katana sheathed at her waist, her hair tied in a ponytail, and a headband tied across her forehead. Seeing her, one couldn't help but evaluate her handsoness; she looked at a glance like a character highly suited for combat.
And the truth was exactly so. Tohka was playing the role of Momotaro, the protagonist of a fairy tale known to everyone in Japan. The dumplings used to ta the dog, monkey, and pheasant in the story seed to have the special effect of taming wild beasts here.
"By the way, Nia, what character are you?"
Turning back to observe Nia's outfit, Shido showed a puzzled expression.
Unlike recognizable fairy tale characters like Momotaro or Little Red Riding Hood, Nia wore a tight-fitting gray military uniform and a stylish black overcoat. Her asymtrical black leather boots were clearly not a common style in the real world. The holsters at her waist held two silver handguns. By the looks of it, the shots that hit the Big Bad Wolf initially were undoubtedly Nia's doing.
Although Nia introduced herself as so Demon Hunter when she appeared, Shido racked his brains but couldn't recall seeing this character in any fairy tale.
"Oh? This?"
Seeing Shido's question, Nia smiled slightly, stood up to show off her combat uniform, and answered very proudly.
"This is Fatima from 'Silver Bullet'."
"Silver... Bullet..."
Shido repeated the book title Nia said. After a mont, he finally realized.
"Isn't that the title of your manga?!"
"Hehehe. There are no barriers between works, Boy. Of course, the higher the popularity of the story, the higher the possibility of it appearing. Therefore, the probability of folk legends and stories appearing is relatively high. My situation is a bit special; I materialized through a certain connection guiding the author and the 'story'."
"That's possible too...?"
Shido had a half-believing, half-doubting expression, but after agonizing over it for a mont, he accepted this explanation. After all, the idea that the Phantom Library used "fairy tales" to construct the world from the beginning was also just his subjective judgnt.
"Wait... if we go by what you're saying, what if a manga story with extrely high combat power levels appears? For instance, 'Dragon *beep*,' 'A Certain Magical *beep*,' 'Fate/Stay *beep*'... If we encounter enemies from those kinds of stories... what should we do?"
Suddenly thinking of this question, Shido asked nervously.
"Uh—"
To this, Nia, who was just acting smug, instantly stiffened, and copious amounts of cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
"H-How an, Boy. I told you I'm just a special case. No matter how much the Phantom Library actualizes stories, it couldn't possibly choose to summon enemies from those kinds of stories... Alright, I was wrong. I feel like if I keep saying this, it'll turn into a dangerous flag. Boy, next topic, what should we do now?"
"Mhm. Anyway, let's look for clues and regroup with everyone first. I'm very worried about the others' situations."
After exchanging a glance, the two tacitly skipped the topic.
—————————————
On the other side, at night, in a city covered in ice and snow, Itsuka Kotori was crouching deep in the alleyways of the street, wolfing down high-calorie foods like cookies and donuts, the natural enemies of won.
It couldn't be helped. She had been freezing on this icy, snowy street for several hours. Her thin cloth clothing couldn't withstand this severe cold at all. After her physical and ntal exhaustion reached their limits, she collapsed headfirst into a snowbank and lost consciousness.
Honestly, if soone hadn't woken her up in the nick of ti, Kotori felt that this sleep would have probably beco eternal.
"Ooh... so this is a magic item that materializes fantasies, how marvelous."
"Curiosity. Truly an incredible phenonon. Could there be ingredients in gunpowder that cause hallucinations?"
Beside Kotori were twins wearing identical styles of children's clothing—Yamai Kaguya and Yamai Yuzuru. It was they who found the unconscious Kotori in the snowbank and falsely claid that Shido was here preparing to give her CPR and artificial respiration, which scared her awake.
Right now, the two were taking matches from a basket and lighting them one by one for fun. In the space illuminated by the firelight, various ornants resembling skull necklaces or dresses could be seen.
Phantom Matches—This was the only item Kotori had brought with her after coming to this world. Although the items materialized by the firelight were so realistic they were indistinguishable from the real thing, they could neither satisfy hunger nor provide sufficient warmth, let alone be exchanged for money. Therefore, the penniless Kotori had almost starved to death on the street.
By the way, according to Yuzuru and Kaguya, these sweets were broken off from a candy house in a forest outside the city. The old woman in the house originally wanted to invite the two of them in for a al, but due to her suspicious attitude and overly ugly appearance, the Yamai sisters tacitly refused the old woman's request, grabbed the sweets, and ran for it.
In fact, their choice was correct. If Kotori's guess was right, that old woman's goal was probably to fatten up the Yamai sisters and slaughter them for food.
('The Little Match Girl' and 'Hansel and Gretel'... The virtual space created by Beelzebub... Is it planning to trap us and let us die in here?)
Although lacking sufficient intelligence and evidence, Kotori's intuition and judgnt as a Commander still led her to a conclusion close to the truth.
Swallowing the last piece of donut, Kotori stuck out her small tongue, licked the sugar off her hand, and sighed in satisfaction.
"Phew... I'm alive again. Although it would be nice if I could have an after-al Chupa Chups... well, now is not the ti to be demanding. I'll just fantasize about a strawberry-flavored one and make do."
Kotori held a stick without a candy ball in her mouth, swaying it as if she were savoring a candy ball. That realistic action left the Yamai sisters amazed.
"I see it. I see the non-existent Chupa Chups!"
"Astonishnt. An air Chupa Chups!"
Their exaggerated reactions made Kotori smile bitterly.
"What are you talking about. Anyway, I'm saved. Thank you, Kaguya, Yuzuru."
"Kuku—Pay it no mind. Such trivial matters are not worth ntioning for the Children of the Typhoon."
"Agreent. Helping each other when in trouble is a matter of course."
Having resolved the issue of her stomach, Kotori finally had the capacity to think about what to do next.
"Even so... the situation hasn't improved... If this is truly the world within a book, we must find a way back to the base as quickly as possible."
When they were swallowed by the giant book summoned by Westcott, Kotori happened to hear the alarm in the base. It was likely Westcott leading Wizards in a massive attack on Ratatoskr. Kotori was sowhat worried whether the Wizards outside were currently engaged in a firefight with her subordinates for the Fraxinus EX.
"Question. What exactly should we do?"
"Well... I'm not entirely sure either. However, since we managed to et like this, it's highly likely that the others are also in so corner of this world. I believe everyone is also trying to regroup with us right now, keeping an eye out for clues related to Shido and the others, while spreading information about their presence here, and simultaneously investigating a way to leave..."
Then, right in the middle of Kotori's sentence, the sounds of carriages passing on the road and pedestrians chatting drifted in from the entrance of the alley.
"—Tsk tsk, there are so many carriages today, what happened?"
"You don't know? A ball is being held at the castle today, and a shocking piece of news will be announced there."
"Shocking news? What? The king's illegitimate child?"
"Don't speak nonsense! I heard this from a friend working in the castle. It seems soone found a legendary rmaid and is going to present it to the king. Then, the king, who took an interest in this, organized this ball to invite the nobles to enjoy the rmaid's performance together."
"A rmaid? Really? Those things don't exist, right?"
"It's true. It's said she can even sing songs going 'Darling~ Honey~ Where are you~?'."
"..."
This blatant rumor, as if spoken specifically for them to hear, made Kotori and the other two exchange glances, unable to help but associate it with a certain soone.
"...What do you think?"
"Well... how should I put it..."
"Sweatdrop. Although very surprising, if their words are true, that rmaid must definitely be—"
"""Miku!"""
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