Chapter 5 (m)

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Maaya: "Ha ha! Nice one, but ultimately pointless. I know what you're thinking, there's no way the spirit wouldn't have the answer to this question. After all he must have been here when the crime happened. But at the same time it would be troublesome if he named a person that will be proven to be innocent later. So you think that with this move you're going to put me into a difficult position.

Well, I'm very sorry, but I was already prepared for this. As I said, I'm way ahead of you! You must have forgot a particular: I already have an answer to this question! Who killed Hitomi Gotsuji? It was Pazuzu of course! From the perspective of a spirit it doesn't matter which was the material vessel that executed the crime! In the end it's Pazuzu the one who guided the murderous hand!"

The sixth energy stream explodes inside me. There is nothing anymore, only fire, and a faint silhouette of what remains of my essence.

Maaya: "Why do you need to make it this painful?"

Erika: "Pain..."

Maaya: "That's right: pain. You must be completely overwhelmed by the most indescribable pain."

Erika: "I don't feel..."

Maaya: "Uh?"

Erika: "Any... of it..."

Maaya: "… Huh?!"

Erika: "This is... nothing! I've been through... much worse!"

And I'm not even lying.

Maaya: "G-give up... Give up already!!!"

Erika: "Never!"

Maaya: "Shut up!!! Just vanish already! I'm getting sickened just by watching you! Remove your infectious presence from this world at once! Aah! Let's end this! Let the spirit spell the final word that will banish you from existence! Observe! The planchette is already moving! Only three syllables separate you from oblivion! Each one of them will be like a knife carving the life out of you! Observe and writhe in pain! Die in knowing how pathetic and foolish you are! Die and... Ugh!!"

Maaya's hysterical ramble is abruptly interrupted.

In its place a loud thump can be heard.

I am sure, if there were spectators watching this, they would be all applauding now. Who wouldn't want to see the annoying character finally receiving the well deserved smack on the head? I can't think of many other situations that would instill a greater sense of justice being delivered.

Finally! About time! Shut up, bitch!

Maaya has been hit so hard that she has even lost consciousness for a second, and she is still absolutely confused. It wasn't anything particularly magical or grandiose, no, it was just the old hard object being smashed against one's body. In this case it was her face. Her nose is red and it is bleeding a little. But what I enjoy the most is her expression of absolute bewilderment.

Maaya: "W-what... what the..."

Her confusion becomes horror as soon as her eyes come in contact with mine. I am still under the effect of her tremendous power, and of my body very little remains, very little is still discernible. And yet nothing of what she sees is how she expected it to be, in its place there is just the most devilish and malevolent grin that she ever confronted.

I can imagine how she must feel now. An enemy isn't that scary once you reduce him to a pulp. But let's imagine that that enemy is still illogically alive after receiving absolutely devastating wounds, and let's imagine that he is still moving and laughing maniacally.

That would be terrifying.

Maaya finally recovers from her stupor and the picture of what has just happened becomes clearer in her mind. The object that hit her was the very shield that was supposed to protect her. One second before it was floating in front of her like usual, but then it suddenly sprung toward her.

Maaya: "Why..."

She still hasn't figured it out, she still cannot comprehend how such a thing could have happened.

Maaya: "How? Why? What's the meaning of this?! What did you just do?!"

Erika: "Me? Well... how should I put it? Oh, wait... I guess I'll let the facts speak for themselves: observe!"

This time I am the one who is inviting Maaya to look at what is happening in the world below.

Her human counterpart is frozen still in front of the Ouija board. She looks extremely pale even in the dim lit room. Her eyes do not blink. Widely open they keep staring at the character where the planchette stopped on.

Maaya: "What's wrong? That's the character 'pa' of 'Pazuzu', right? Why am I staring at it in shock?"

Erika: "No, that's not quite it. Take a better look."

Maaya: "Uh...?"

The shield once again strikes her, this time even more violently than before.

She was hit so hard that she falls for several meters before regaining control. It is as if I just saw a bee being swatted midair.

At the same time, in the world of humans, the planchette slides over the next character. Everyone is looking astounded, no one dares to breath. Soon the name of the culprit will be revealed.

Maaya: "Stop! Stop, stop, stooop! Stop it! What the hell are you doing?! How?! How can you..."

Erika: "What are you talking about? I'm not doing anything. It's the spirit, it's the spirit that you summoned! *giggle* *giggle*"

Maaya: "Stop messing with me! What spirit?! There's no such thing!"

Instantly several cracks appear on Maaya's shield, a loud sound similar to that of a glass being broken can be heard. She, however, doesn't seem to notice.

Erika: "It's true, it appears that you indeed summoned a spirit. That's why amateurs shouldn't play with Ouija boards. Perhaps so far you've been just messing around, but this time... it's actually happening!"

Maaya: "Shut the hell uuuup!"

Erika: "Look, the planchette is starting moving again. It'll soon tell us the last syllable of the culprit's name!"

Maaya: "This is a fraud! You're just using one of your dirty tricks! Spirit my ass! Who do you think you can fool with that?!"

As if it took offense by those words, Maaya's shield charges against its own mistress for the third time.

Maaya: "Buzz off, treacherous tool!"

Enraged, the witch of power intercepts the incoming threat. Without regards, without any restraints, nor any hesitation, she sends to the already damaged shield one of her magic beams of light.

There isn't even the slightest resistance. The shield explodes into a million of fragments. Beautifully they spread and slowly fall, glimmering like a shower of many little broken crystals. Maaya, paralyzed, is in the middle, surrounded. With a blank stare she witnesses the shattered remains of her stalwart defense as they disperse and disappear. Only now she realizes what she has just done.

Erika: "Good job."

In the world below there is a great commotion. The spell has been broken. The suggestive and intimidating setup can no longer prevent the younger girls from murmuring and whispering. Teramoto is no longer in control. Her lackeys don't know what to do or think. They hilariously remain speechless while everyone else around them keep talking and discussing animatedly.

Erika: "Teramoto, it appears that you're the culprit. *giggle* *giggle*"

Her eyes finally move away from the planchette. She looks at me, confused and angered.

Teromoto: "Wrong..."

Erika: "Wrong? Are you saying that the spirit is lying?"

Teramoto: "I'm saying that you're doing this! You defiled this sacred ritual by tampering with the planchette! You have absolutely no respect for the spirits! You shall be punished for this insolence!"

Erika: "What are you talking about, Teramoto? I'm not doing..."

Teramoto: "Lies! Who do you think you can fool?!"

Erika: "But it's true, I didn't move the planchette, it was the spirit!"

Teramoto: "Shut up! We all know that you don't believe in the supernatural!"

Erika: "That was before, you convinced me, spirits exist!"

Teramoto: "Lies!"

Erika: "But how can that be denied? The planchette moved by itself! We all saw that!"

Teramoto: "Lies! You moved it! You did that!"

Erika: "How?! It's impossible!"

Teramoto: "Impossible my ass! You just used double-sided tape!!!"

Nice, everything fell silent again. Although this is certainly not the outcome that Teramoto intended her words to have. This is a very awkward silence. For her at least...

It's amazing how a simple revelation can turn the world upside down. One moment you think that something is impossible, and a second later you realize that it wasn't impossible at all. And not only that, the truth strikes you mercilessly with its absolute simplicity. Just how in the world couldn't you see something so obvious? It didn't really take a genius. I am sure that many of the girls in this room right now are putting their few little gray cells in motion. I can tell that just by looking at their lower jaws awkwardly hanging. They now look almost as dumb as they actually are, and it's not that they looked smart to begin with.

But Teramoto realizing that she fell right into my trap is by far a better sight. Her lackeys looking at her in shock, disbelieving what they just heard, is a close second.

I bask in this delightful moment for a while. There is no rush, pleasure is more rewarding for those who can wait. The strawberry should always be eaten last, the anticipation will make it even more sweater.

But at the same time, it's important to catch the moment. Once you have gained momentum, you can't let it go to waste. That's why I shouldn't give them the time to recover from their bewilderment. It's time to let them witness my magic.

And so the planchette begins to levitate. That's right, it detaches from the board and moves upward in a fluid motion. At the same time it rotates by 90 degrees and it finally stops sideways just in front of my face.

Naturally during this whole process it never left my finger, though the same cannot be said about everyone else's. That couldn't be helped, the planchette is outside their reaches now. It stands on my fingertip in a perfect balance, apparently defying the laws of physics.

Those who aren't completely idiot realize that a simple double-sided tape cannot explain this bizarre phenomenon. This is my miracle, and everyone, including Teramoto, are looking at me in awe, speechless, astonished, breathless.

Erika: "So that's your trick, Teramoto. No wonder your magic was defeated by mine."

I grab the planchette with my other hand. With a snap I separate it from my fingertip. Part of my skin is ripped off in the process.

Erika: "I used superglue."

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