Mayuri's Hell (2)
"Trainees, change into your uniforms and tidy up your bedding—quickly, quickly! Repeat after me!"
"Five minutes remaining!"
"Louder! Three minutes left!"
The instructors' shouts echoed around me. In the midst of it all, I just stood there in a daze.
Assimilation was an anomaly that forced you to endure what you personally found the most terrifying. I swallowed hard.
"F-Fuck…."
I clapped a hand over my mouth without thinking. Okay, sure, this was definitely terrifying…!
But why this of all things?! Bring on ghosts or zombies! Summon some monsters! Hell, even aliens would be better! It couldn't possibly mean I had to do "that thing" for the next year and a half, right? Ugh…!
Calm down….
I wanted to smash everything in sight, but I gritted my teeth and folded my blanket instead. Skill was muscle memory, apparently. Perfect corners, crisp as a razor. Made me wanna off myself just a little.
But that was probably exactly what Assimilation wanted. Haha….
A laugh slipped out unbidden. Yeah, this was scary. Really scary. Utterly horrifying.
And at the same time, it pissed me off to no end.
You've crossed the line.
I nursed my quiet rage. Like hell I'd let this bullshit devour me. Like hell I'd cower from some lame-ass fear like this. I'd endure. I'd grind my teeth and endure.
And I'd find a way out of here. Then I'd get revenge. No matter what.
"You there, trainee… hold up a sec."
I was steeling myself when an instructor's voice barked right behind me. I glanced back, and he was staring straight at me.
"Me…?"
"Trainee, are you… a girl by any chance?"
I looked down at myself. Ah.
I tested my voice. High soprano pitch. Exactly like my usual one. Ran my fingers through my hair—soft strands wrapped around them. My viewpoint was the familiar low 142cm.
Uh….
"Y-Yeah. I've been the cutest girl in the universe since birth…."
"How'd a girl end up here…? Did you enlist in the women's corps or something?"
"N-No!"
I answered, but honestly, I was the one gaping like an idiot. What the hell? What was even going on?
"Come with me for a bit."
I followed the instructor without a word.
"Looks like some computer glitch or whatever. But seriously, how the hell did you process her enlistment? Letting a girl sign up?"
That's when I overheard that. The admin office was in chaos, the company on high alert. Shouting from the company commander's office next door, endless phone calls, clerks running around like headless chickens. Even individual interviews for the trainees.
This had to be….
The Cute Girl Mod clashing with the anomaly.
No other explanation. Assimilation, which inflicted your worst personal nightmare. And the Cute Girl Mod, which always locked me in as the cutest girl protagonist.
So even in this hell, I was still the cutest girl in the universe. A situation that defied all logic.
"Aigoo, we're so sorry for the inconvenience…. You can head home now."
The officer bowed deeply in front of me. Seeing brass grovel felt pretty damn good. All thanks to me being the cutest girl in the universe, huh? What an experience.
"We'll cover your transport too. Aigoo…."
"Can I take the slippers?"
"No, that's not allowed…. Can't just hand out military supplies…."
"Oh well."
I'd hoped to snag some slippers as souvenirs. And just like that, I was out of the training camp.
Tweet tweet. Birdsong drifted in from afar. Morning sunlight stabbed at my eyes. I sat up on the massage chair.
"Home…? When did I even get back?"
My memories were fuzzy. Like I'd skipped straight here, no in-between.
Then—ding dong—the doorbell rang out.
I peeked at the intercom. Nao's face.
……? Why was she ringing the bell?
I climbed down from the chair and opened the door.
"Nao? Why ring the bell? Just punch in the code."
"It's your house, unni. Gotta get your permission first. Plus, I was just passing by on my way home. Dropping off a gift and heading out."
"On your way home? This is your home?"
She'd been living with me for a while now.
At that, Nao's eyes went wide.
"That's ancient history from 50 years ago. You still half-asleep? You're getting old too, unni."
"Old…?"
What the hell was this now?
I glanced at the mirror by the entryway. Still the 142cm cutest girl in the universe. Could pass for middle school, but no way anyone'd peg me for a 70+ grandma.
"Eat this with Ari."
Nao handed me a cake box.
"How's Ari doing?"
"Uh…. Probably fine…?"
"It's been over 30 years since Ari holed up. Must be tough on you, unni."
Nao shrugged.
"Call if anything comes up. Us old folks gotta stick together."
With that, she turned and left.
Even after Nao was gone, I mulled over her words for a good while.
"Fifty years passed? Ari's been shut in for 30?"
I wandered inside with the cake, still not getting it. Then I spotted the door labeled "Ari."
I opened it, and stale, unventilated air hit me like a wall.
"……."
Ari was in the dim room, glued to a computer screen. Unwashed hair matted into a total mess. Greasy bangs half-hiding her face. Buried under blankets, she crunched on potato chips.
Pure hikikomori incarnate.
That's when it clicked. The horror of supporting Ari for 50 years.
And it might not end there—maybe 100. Or until the day I died.
"G-Gross…."
Damn you, Assimilation…! Military didn't break me, so now you're pulling this card!
A wave of despair threatened to crash over me, but I shook my head.
This wasn't real. Just a hallucination from Assimilation. The moment my resolve cracked, it'd have me.
I repeated that to myself, steadying my heart.
"Ari…. Nao brought cake. Wanna eat?"
"Leave it there and go."
She didn't even look my way.
"H-How about dinner later? We could eat out for once?"
"No."
"Fried rice then…? Call Lisa and Nao, eat together…."
"No. Order delivery. Gimme money."
"……."
Brutal. Her speech was way more fluent than the Ari I knew, laced with edge. Cute Girl Mod perk, maybe? We both stayed cute even after 50 years—no obvious signs of age.
Picture this: A 50-year-old unemployed daughter freeloading off mom. Peak ghost story nightmare.
This is legit scary.
I sat by her after a moment's thought, closing the door. Pulled the blanket over my head too.
"…What."
She was watching mukbang videos. The hallucination felt way too real. I knew it was fake, but it hit too close—could be my actual future.
Ari wasn't cut out for society. If I shoved her out now, she'd fail spectacularly. And end up holed up like this. Failure hurts everyone, wounds everyone.
But with infinite time? Humans always rise again eventually. Gotta keep going as long as you're breathing.
"What delivery you want, Ari?"
No solutions came to mind. So I just stayed with her.
In this place, I tidied the house and moved to a one-room. Too big for just me and Ari. Made a killing on real estate, no need to work. Closed the office too. Nao sent money now and then—always plenty for living.
Days blurred: Watching videos with Ari. Mukbangs, Netflix dramas, munching chips, chowing chicken.
One year passed. Two. Three. Five.
"Mayuri."
Eight years in, Ari finally spoke up.
"Wanna go there."
An ad for "Food Festival."
Fake or not, Ari's gluttony endured.
"Sure, let's check it out."
Ari threw off the blanket and stood. Washed up, dolled herself pretty. We headed out.
Shaking vision. Intense vertigo. A strange headache.
Being alive means pain. Everyone dreams of a smooth ride, but you can't reach the end without scars and trials. You crash into walls under the banner of "growth," writhe, embrace or overcome the agony—that's living life.
Or maybe just burning through it.
Pain flared. Proof I was alive. I hadn't been crushed yet.
"Ha…."
I exhaled. Blinked. Unfamiliar place? No—another hallucination. Wait, not unfamiliar. I'd been here once.
Took a sec to recognize with the changed vibe. Bedroom. Blackout curtains blocked the outside. Furniture rearranged oddly.
That alone might be normal. But I was tied tight to a chair.
Nao's place before we moved in together. Why the hell was I bound?
"Still no interest in becoming a vampire, unni?"
I looked up. There was Nao, eyes gleaming, fangs fully bared.
"Become one with me, unni. We'll enjoy immortality together. Human bodies are so frail, right? Hate this aging flesh? Healthy bodies are better? Being alone sucks? But as vampires, us two—no more loneliness? Together forever, no solitude? Even if everything ends, we'll remain? Become a vampire, unni. Right now."
"N-Nao would never say that!"
My sweet Nao! I yelled without thinking.
No. Military and freeloading didn't faze me, so now you're going full horror? I was floored.