NOVEL ONLINE FREE Side Story 6
Side Story 6. Cleaning
This is a mundane day in the life of Amano Shizuku. A tale from my past, back when I was a newlywed, head over heels in love.
A trivial story about me. One where someone listens to my tale, writes a script, turns it into a hit drama—guaranteed to blow up—then adapts it into movies, novels, anime, and eventually becomes legend. Just one story from my life. A very ordinary little story.
Timeline-wise, it’s around when Amatsugahara Corporation first started its full-scale operations.
Back when Amatsugahara Corporation built a market in the abandoned town and people began gathering. Roughly a month after opening.
People came half-doubting, half-curious, drawn by rumors. Around the time monster core purchases began and food started being sold.
Probably around then. Sense of dates is fuzzy in the abandoned town, so it might be a little off.
To put it in terms of the books, it’s like when people say, “Wait, the timeline for this side story and the main story’s a bit wonky, no?” and I’d reply, “Well, it’s the abandoned town, so who knows?” If it were Sakimori-san, he’d probably look away all hard-boiled and coolly say, “This old man don’t recall nothin’.”
Back then, a reception desk was set up to buy monster cores, and the former station building sold stew with vegetable scraps and okonomiyaki whose ingredients were best left unexamined. But the preparations were a nightmare.
Even after opening, the underground passages sprawled like an ant nest, and subway tunnels remained. Point is, monsters still infested the place.
The former station building and the department store next to it were vast, with multiple floors. Connected by passageways, with fire shutters down and lockers and desks barricading the paths, they’d become a natural dungeon.
The building had small rooms, vents, and staff-only passages—all teeming with monsters. Even trying to clear them out was a life-risking endeavor.
No electricity, no windows—darkness ruled the department store. Shattered glass cases, signs, and mannequins littered the place, making it hard to walk.
Then, beams of light sliced through the dark, followed by clunk-clunk footsteps. Amid the squeaks of giant rats scrambling away from the intruders, a human voice echoed through the floor.
Ten or so people filed in, headlamps lit, shoulders hunched, faintly nervous.
“We gotta clean this place too?”
The burly man at the front called out to the guy beside him, who wore a worn leather outfit.
“Yep. Sakimori-san said it himself, right? Gotta clear the whole building, or it’s dangerous. You’re the guy who took down a goblin, ain’tcha?”
Teased, the large man scratched his head sheepishly.
“C’mon, don’t bring that up. I was young back then.”
“That was, like, yesterday. When you picked a fight with Sakimori-san. Right, Ohki-kun?”
The man glared, and Ohki-kun—the burly one—waved his hands frantically, voice full of remorse.
“I said I’m sorry! Back then, I’d just come from the outer streets, didn’t get how strong the boss was.”
“Yeah, yeah. You’re kinda famous for all the crap you pulled after that. Dragged me into it too. Never thought I’d be stuck monster-hunting.”
“Heh. My bad. I owe you one, Komaki.”
Komaki was Ohki-kun’s mentor. Ordered by the boss, Shingen, to teach him the rules of the abandoned town. But Ohki-kun kept causing trouble—picking fights with Sakimori-san, luring monsters—and Komaki was fed up. This time was no exception. “Collective responsibility,” Shingen said, sending them to clear out the monsters lurking in Amatsugahara’s market building.
Normally, a guy like this’d vanish within days, but…
“When this is over, I’ll treat ya to a meal. Oh, and I’ve got some good booze saved up, so look forward to it. Hey, you guys too—dinner’s on me after this!”
Komaki just sighed at the cheerful reply. Behind them, the others cheered. Ugh. Somehow, I just can’t hate this guy, he thought, smiling wryly.
Even if Amatsugahara’s food was cheap, with this many people, the reward’d be gone. Yet Ohki-kun showed no regret—just a grin. What a hopeless guy.
“You’re being too loud. This is already monster territory. Best stay alert.”
A voice colder than steel cut through the camaraderie.
“The price of carelessness is your life.”
Komaki and the others turned to see a small figure in a full-face motorcycle helmet. The voice, sweet as a bird’s, suggested a girl. The baggy black coat made it hard to tell.
“Uh… guy or girl?”
Ohki-kun tilted his head. The figure shrugged.
“I’m a girl. No need to remember my name. More importantly—”
Mid-sentence, she stepped forward, leaning into the abyss. The headlamps barely caught the dagger in her hand.
“Gyah!”
A sound like glass scraping echoed from the dark, followed by a heavy thud. Panicked, they swung their lights toward the noise—just in time to see the helmeted girl standing over a twitching something, dagger in hand.
“Wh-what was that?!”
“A monster. A Shadow Devil. Common trash-tier demon. Slithers from shadow to shadow, paralyzes prey with its claws, drags ’em back alive to feed.”
Her explanation was clinical, no pride. The group shuddered. They hadn’t noticed a thing.
“You’re too loud. Sharpen your senses, or you’ll die out here.”
Komaki’s group froze, realizing how close they’d come. Unfazed, the girl stretched a hand sideways and began to dance.
A whirling girl. The dagger flashed in the lamplight as thud-thud sounds piled up—shadow monsters falling. Clever things, sticking just outside the light, silent. Impossible to spot.
Well, impossible for everyone but her.
“Nyaan!”
And one other. The Shadow Tiger lunged into the dark, pouncing on something. A shelf crashed, followed by a ghastly death cry.
But the girl was the star. Her dance split the dark, felling the writhing shadows. Monsters lunged, but none could keep up, exiting the stage of the living.
Komaki’s group stood by, weapons unused, mere spectators to the performance.
[Sound carries oddly well in station buildings. Wide floors, few walls.]
[Meaning even footsteps need care, huh?]
The helmeted girl’s identity? Amano Shizuku. Inside the helmet, her expression stayed cold as she sent a thought to Sakimori-san.
Today, Sakimori-san—in spirit form—drifted alongside her, conversing telepathically.
[Shadow Devils aren’t strong. Physically weaker than the average adult. But darkvision and paralytic claws make them deadlier than goblins.]
As she explained, Shizuku turned slightly toward a shadow writhing at the edge of the light. It lunged—she sidestepped. The monster’s tar-black claws swiped air as it stumbled past.
In that instant, her dagger flashed. The Shadow Devil’s head toppled, body crumpling.
[See? This is a Shadow Devil.]
[Huh. First time seeing one. abandoned town folks avoid dangerous spots. Never seen ’em in dungeons either.]
[Their dungeons have narrow entrances—no humans getting in. They only haunt deserted places like this. Common yet rare, in a way.]
Shizuku pointed at the corpse. A monkey-like creature, 60 cm tall. Four milky eyes, mole-like nose, round worm-mouth. Disproportionately long limbs, claws coated in inky fluid.
“Ugh, this is the monster?”
“Small but fast. Nasty.”
“Hey, Komaki… that ‘bait’ bit ain’t about me, right? Why’re you pushing me?!”
Watching the two men’s comedy act, I sighed and stepped forward.
“No issue. Shadow Devils are weak.”
Her cool voice drew stares. With a flick, she spun the dagger, smiling beneath the helmet.
“Numbers mean nothing against quality. Now, everyone—light up the area.”
“Weak?! These things?”
“Fine with the lights, but…”
“Like this?”
Having seen her skills, the group obeyed. Beams crisscrossed, briefly illuminating the hall.
I narrowed my eyes, scanning.
“Enough. Now, light me up. Make me stand out.”
Baffled, they focused the beams on her. In the dark, she alone glowed.
“What’s the plan, kid?”
Komaki frowned. She faced him.
“They’ll swarm me—like moths to a flame. Their weakness. Dumb enough to come from all corners.”
On cue, raspy simian cries echoed. A lot.
“Gyah!”
“Gyah!”
“Gii-gii!”
The group tensed.
“H-hey, wait! Sounds like a lot!”
“Relax. That’s why this job’s already over.”
“Hah?! You’re taking ’em all? We’re running!”
She waved, smiling, then stepped into the dark.
“Of course. I’ve mapped the floor. Their cries tell me where they are.”
Melding into the shadows:
“Wait a bit. I’ll clear them out.”
The earlier lighting had two purposes: lure the monsters and survey the terrain.
A few seconds was enough. Broken shelves, shattered glass, chairs, trash—all logged.
“This darkness is daylight to me. Fighting Shadow Devils at noon is like playing Space Invaders before the Nagoya patch.”
Pity they can’t see my smile. Maybe the helmet was a mistake.
And so, the huntress danced in the dark.