The Eighth Delusion (1)
Riiiiing.
Huh?
This is the department store manager’s call. Did something happen while they were monitoring the Male God?
“Yes. I’m calling because I have something to report, miss.”
“All right. Did something happen while you were watching that couple?”
“Yes. Right before the couple entered the theater, a woman approached the man.”
!!!
What? Someone made a move on the Male God?
Damn it. Now that I think about it, I never considered that ordinary people who saw the Male God’s face might unconsciously try to approach him. Fuck.
“So what happened?”
“Ah, yes. We kept our distance to avoid being noticed, so we couldn’t catch the exact conversation. But it looked like the man told the woman who approached him that he wouldn’t give her his phone number.”
Phew.
That’s a relief. Of course the Male God wouldn’t be interested in some random woman wandering the streets.
“However, the woman wrote something on her business card and handed it to him. The man accepted it.”
What? And what was the woman in the couple doing? Someone’s trying to seduce her man and she just stands there?
“What was the woman in the couple doing at the time?”
“The man had stepped away to use the restroom. That’s when the woman approached.”
“Did you get a description of her?”
“Yes. I’ll send the video file right away.”
The manager sent over a video file. It showed a stunningly beautiful woman with brown hair.
With looks like that, she could easily be a top-tier actress. A woman this beautiful visited our department store and there wasn’t even a stir? Was she hiding her face somehow?
Could it be… some kind of perception-inhibiting ability?
She’s clearly connected to the world of supernatural powers. Maybe the old woman disguised herself and tried to approach the Male God?
No, that doesn’t fit.
Even in disguise, the old woman would never change her hair color. She’s far too proud of that pink hair. She didn’t earn the title Pink Devil during the Great War for nothing.
Then who the hell is this woman? This entire country lies under our family’s rule. Every ability user should be under our control.
Riiiiing.
“Yes! Miss~! This is Karen!”
“Hey, Karen. It’s been a while. I need you to look into something for me.”
“Sorry. I’m really late, aren’t I? We didn’t miss the movie, did we? Let’s hurry inside!”
“There’s still time. You took so long I was starting to think you got lost.”
“I’m truly sorry. Something came up. I’ll tell you about it on the way… Huh? Wait, isn’t your watch running a little slow?”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean, ‘huh’? Compare your watch to that clock over there. It’s ten minutes behind.”
The watch this other woman ‘me’ wore was roughly ten minutes slower than the electronic clock hanging above the theater ticket counter.
Now that I thought about it, back in the original world I had also kept putting off changing the battery in my own watch because it was annoying. Looks like she did the same.
“Oh? Then the movie’s already started. Hey, we’d better run.”
“Huk, I’ll tell you the story after the movie. Let’s go watch it first.”
Wow, damn it. The movie had already begun? No matter how many previews they play these days, this was way too late! It was the long-awaited sequel after thirteen years. We couldn’t miss it. Time to sprint.
In the end we were a little late and missed the opening.
Ah, now the beginning would keep nagging at me. And because of this, I couldn’t even rewatch it properly.
“Still, it was really fun.”
“Yeah. It’s been so long since I watched a movie. I’ve been stuck at home studying so much I can’t even remember the last time.”
“Ah… Sorry.”
“No, no, that’s not what I meant. I just meant it felt amazing to watch a movie after such a long time.”
It really had been good. Watching a movie after so long turned out to be genuinely entertaining.
Now the mood was turning awkward because of me for no reason. My life wasn’t that miserable pit anymore.
“By the way, it’s so late that the whole mall is dark and empty.”
“True. But don’t they usually have security guards on duty?”
I had stayed for late screenings many times before. The mall would be closed, lights mostly off, no people around, but a guard would always be there to guide us. Why wasn’t anyone here tonight?
“It feels a little scary with no one around.”
“Yeah. What if something jumps out at us?”
Ah? Suddenly even the few remaining dim lights went out. What the hell?
“Why are the lights turning off already?”
“I’m scared. Let’s get out of here fast.”
I suddenly wanted to leave as quickly as possible. In this vast empty space with all the lights off and only the two of us, it was genuinely terrifying.
First, open this door.
Clank.
Huh?
“What? This door is locked.”
“Is it a security door? There’s no sign. Let’s try the one beside it.”
Clank. Clank.
“What? This one’s locked too?”
“The next one is locked as well.”
“Why are all the doors locked? They should keep them open for people leaving after late movies.”
“What do we do now? Every other exit will be locked too, right? This was the only way out.”
Wait… were we trapped? Did this even make sense? What was going on?
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Footsteps echoed.
Was it the security guard? In this world I should probably say security guard auntie, but anyway—we were saved!
A black silhouette appeared in the distance, gradually drawing closer. As it stepped into the moonlight, the person’s face became clear.
Huh?
It was the incredibly beautiful older sister I had seen earlier at the clothing store. The one whose eyes had met mine while I was buying clothes. She was walking toward us while tying her hair back.
“Hello. Did I perhaps interrupt your precious time together?”
“Ah, no, no. It’s not that. We were trying to leave but the doors are locked. Is it normal for them to be locked at this hour?”
The other woman ‘me’ pushed me behind her back as if on guard and answered the sister.
“Hmm? Well… the doors are usually open at this time. I wonder why they’re locked. That’s strange.”
“Isn’t there another exit?”
“No. At this hour everything except this door is locked. This is the only way out. This is inconvenient.”
“The security guard lady is nowhere to be seen either.”
“She’s usually stationed here. Since she isn’t, she must have stepped away to the restroom. Let’s wait here for a moment.”
Ugh. We had to wait until the security guard returned? Still, having one more person made it slightly less frightening.
She had been wearing a uniform at the clothing store earlier. Did she work there?
Huh? When our eyes met before, were her eyes red? I could have sworn they were black.
“By the way, are you two a couple? You look really good together.”
“Huh? Ah, no. We’re just close friends.”
Did we look like a couple? But no matter how pretty she was, she was still another ‘me.’ I couldn’t date myself.
“I see. So the two of you are not romantically involved?”
“Yes. That’s correct.”
“Then you’re no longer needed.”
“Huh?”
Suddenly the sister vanished and reappeared right in front of the other ‘me.’
Thud—
Kwaaaaang!
The moment the sister struck the other ‘me,’ she flew backward and slammed into the wall.
Huh? What the hell just happened?
How could a single hit send someone flying that far?
“Hello, Male God. We finally get to speak like this. Some strange bitch kept trying to get between us, so I cleared her out of the way.”
“Y-you… who the hell are you? Why… why did you do that to ‘me’?”
Wasn’t this supposed to be a slice-of-life story set in a gender-reversed world? Was the other ‘me’ all right? She wasn’t dead, was she?
Did this even make sense? The female version of ‘me’ dying just like that? We had only met today.
“You think I did that to her? Hmm. Are you shocked because the sight was too brutal? Don’t worry. Once she sleeps for a while, everything will be over.”
The monster wearing the mask of a beautiful sister gripped both my shoulders.
Her two red eyes began to glow.
What was this? What exactly was she trying to do to me?
Rustle.
“Hey. Fuck. Who the hell are you?”
!!!
The female ‘me’ was standing up in front of the wall she had crashed into.
She was alive!
Thank god.
“What? Even though I held back, you’re still standing after taking my attack?”
“What the hell is this bitch babbling about?”
“You’re not an ordinary human.”
“Get your hands off her, you crazy bitch.”
“Hmph. That’s all you’ve got.”
Snap—
The sister lifted her right hand from my shoulder and flicked her fingers lightly.
Blood-red chains erupted from the ground and wrapped tightly around the other ‘me’’s body.
Crazy. What the hell was that?
“Ugh. What is this? Chains out of nowhere!”
“Hah. Just sit there and watch like the loser you are. Watch this man become mine.”
“What? Hey, stop! What are you trying to do? Don’t! Why won’t this come off? It’s urgent!”
The sister grabbed both my shoulders again.
What was this?
What was she planning to do!
Didn’t I have any kind of superpower?
Stop it!
Thud!
Swoosh—
Kwaaaaang!
Huh?
The strange sister suddenly flew sideways and crashed into the opposite wall.
Could it be… that I had gained some kind of superpower too?