The Room of Spirit and Time
"Ken."
"Gaaah!"
Ichimaru Shiki stood right in front of the door. Kitagawa Kenichi let out a scream like he'd seen a ghost and toppled backward.
Shiki, holding a steaming bowl of porridge, put on a deliberately hurt expression and said, "Kenichi, don't be that scared of me—it wounds me. I went all the way to make this porridge just for you. Come on, say 'ahh' and open wide!"
"...What the hell is wrong with you?!"
Of course, as the kidnappee, Kenichi felt no joy—only terror.
He'd woken up from a near-death ordeal in total chaos, only to find himself in a completely unfamiliar place.
...What does this guy even want from me?
If Shiki's attitude had been consistent, Kenichi might have been able to predict his next move. But Ichimaru Shiki, always grinning that creepy grin, was an enigma—would he nurse him with utmost care, or just beat the crap out of him? Impossible to tell.
...Just the other day, he'd thought he knew the guy well. Now, he couldn't even figure out which part was real.
His former friend—current kidnapper—Shiki kept talking with that same sly smile.
"Haha, I told you. You've got a duty to protect the world from now on, Kenichi."
"No, I've never heard about any duty like—!"
"Oh, right. The day before yesterday, you awakened your bloodline that's destined to battle monsters forever, didn't you?"
"..."
A fate to save the world. A bloodline compelled to fight monsters. To Kenichi, who'd lived seventeen years as an ordinary guy, it all sounded like utter nonsense.
More precisely, it was surreal that the friend he'd trusted had suddenly kidnapped him and started spouting this crap.
An unprecedented, alien sensation. But after what he'd witnessed, he couldn't just dismiss it entirely.
...Especially Shiki. This guy's dangerous.
Honestly, Kenichi was scared of Shiki now. The chaos before had kept him from noticing, but today he'd seen it clearly. When Shiki drew his sword, the entire classroom—no, the whole world—froze solid.
A truly absurd power. Unbelievable that a single human could pull off something like that.
And his physical abilities felt superhuman too. He looked like a black-hearted villain, and his hidden strength was final-boss level to boot.
And he kept smiling the whole time our swords clashed...
That gentle facade masking ruthless aggression—it was downright eerie. Beyond uncomfortable, straight-up terrifying. He'd take chasing red goblins through a midnight school over fighting this guy any day.
Thud. Having crawled back until his back hit the wall, Kenichi hesitated a moment before speaking.
"...Let's talk. You and me, we're close friends, right, Shiki?"
"Haha, we are talking right now. Oh, wait—did you mean a physical conversation?"
"..."
Kitagawa Kenichi finally realized it. All those times he'd thought he and Shiki clicked so well? Shiki had just been humoring him.
Their topics always matched back then. But this one-sided rambling was driving him insane.
"...Urk."
Watching Kenichi plaster himself even flatter against the wall, Shiki slowly shook his head.
He'd been nothing but generous, but clearly the message wasn't getting through.
No helping it, then.
"Hmm, if words won't work, maybe we should try a different way to communicate. It's inconvenient for both of us otherwise."
With those words, Ichimaru Shiki grinned wickedly, handed the porridge bowl to the maid Dokomo standing nearby, and extended a hand to the wall-clinging Kenichi.
"Kenichi, how about a walk? It'll change your mood."
"...Huh?"
The protagonist of Doomsday Dog, Kitagawa Kenichi, stared blankly at Shiki's outstretched hand.
"...Fine."
He couldn't muster the will to refuse.
"...Whoa."
Unable to appreciate my good intentions and trembling nonstop, Kenichi perked right up the moment we stepped outside. His face brightened as he took in the Shihei Estate under the night sky, where darkness and moonlight coexisted, letting out endless gasps of awe.
Even when encountering clan members—shamans—in traditional robes.
Is it really that impressive?
It felt like watching an orange puppy who'd been cooped up indoors finally let out for a walk.
Simpler than I thought.
Kenichi frolicked across the gravel courtyard, eyes widening at the pond with golden koi swimming lazily and the neatly trimmed green bonsai.
"Whoa! I've only seen mansions like this in comics."
Huh, comics, of course. If I'd known he'd love it this much, I would've shown him around instead of bothering with porridge.
Bitter taste in my mouth thinking of my abalone porridge—full of my heartfelt effort—going to waste. I'd worked so hard on it...
I'll make him pay with extra training later.
To prevent any escape attempts, I watched from behind as he wandered. Once we'd covered the estate, I called out to him.
"Alright, next spot it is."
"...Where?"
Tension rippled through Kenichi's body the instant I spoke. Worried I'd beat him again?
Can't have our future monster-slaying hero suffering depression, so I reluctantly adjusted the plan.
"Hmm, guess beating comes tomorrow instead."
"...What?"
"Haha, nothing!"
"..."
Kenichi looked dubious but mustered courage from the "not today" news and followed briskly behind me.
"Lord Shiki, good evening."
"Lord Shiki, if sleep evades you tonight, allow me to attend you personally..."
"Lord Shiki, the moon is lovely tonight."
"Lord Shiki, I've acquired some rare tea leaves—if you're ever bored, my room is..."
"Lord Shiki..."
We ran into a few Shihei clan members along the way, and each time they greeted the mere guest—me—with bright smiles and kindness.
Nice folks. Kenichi, though, eyed the maids' retreating figures with suspicion—or was it lust?—before blurting at me.
"Shiki, what the hell are you, anyway?"
A voice laced with fear and curiosity. Sensing potential for progress, I smiled warmly in response.
"Hehe, curious? You couldn't imagine the battles I fought to survive here, Kenichi."
"...What kind of battles?"
"Sigh, so many fronts. The early days were rough adjusting."
"...Fronts?"
"McDonald's, Dottour, even Papa Tacho."
"...?"
"I've conquered every fast-food joint in the prefecture—no exaggeration. You have no idea how many shifts I pulled for living expenses!"
"..."
Kenichi's face twisted briefly at my saga, but smoothed into a polite mask when our eyes met.
"...R-Right. If you don't wanna say, fine. But it's night—how's school handling this?"
"Hm, it's night 'cause you slept like a log till now. School's covered as sick leave! Staged it like you had a brutal flu and got carted off in an ambulance."
"...Sick leave? Ambulance?"
Kenichi's face warped in confusion. Frowning, he muttered, "Wait, this isn't a hospital... If I'd been carted off, Hotaru would've visited."
"Haha! Piece of cake—I got a major hospital in the prefecture to claim you had a critical illness, no visitors allowed."
"..."
Hearing the full kidnap logistics, Kenichi looked utterly drained and trailed silently behind me.
The walk got a bit dull, but we were nearly there, so the boredom didn't last.
At a warehouse-like building, I hyped him up before opening the door.
"Dun dun dun—what do you think's inside?"
"...Uh, excited."
"Hehe, glad to hear it!"
"..."
"Here we go!"
Confirming my sole audience's anticipation, I flung the door open. It swung easily, revealing the interior in full.
"...This is."
Kenichi's flat reaction shifted to wide-eyed awe as he stared inside.
A pitch-black void. But not mere darkness—tiny twinkling lights like stars blanketed the space, vast as the universe itself. Near-infinite width.
Our sensitive protagonist couldn't look away, clearly smitten.
"Well? Like your new training ground?"
"Yeah, the vibe's pretty... Huh? Training ground?!"
Kenichi whipped around, face screaming Didn't we agree no beatings?!
Well, a man's word is his bond—I wouldn't whack him one-sidedly.
"But time's short, so training's a must, right?"
"You lying bas—!"
I kicked the indignant Kenichi's butt. He rolled away—degu ruru—and I followed into the space, shutting the door.
—In that instant, all sound ceased.
Footsteps, breaths, even the faint rustle of clothes against skin—gone.
Kenichi, just steadying himself, realized it too and gaped at me in horror.
Ever the gentleman, I just smiled reassuringly.
This universe, forged by shamanism and my powers, allowed no sound, stretched near-infinitely, and bent to my whim.
A meticulously crafted space to avoid shredding by his ability-nullifying demon sword.
Ichimaru Shiki special: The Room of Spirit and Time.
He probably couldn't hear, but feeling chipper, I told him anyway.
"Let's start at ten times a normal person's intensity."
Gripping my sword, I stepped toward the dumbfounded Kenichi.
His eyes widened in panic as he summoned his sword. I showed him a slow, descending strike.
Boom—!
A heavy blow.
"...!"
Reviewing the growth plan as his tutor while he looked bewildered.
Tomorrow was the weekend. Plenty of time ahead.
"Hehe, this'll be fun."
Then I rained down sword strikes with glee.
"...Hinokagutsuchinokami, God of Fire, I beseech you—grant my dear friend recovery from his illness. Accept this offering and bestow your grace."
"Hinokagutsuchinokami, God of Fire, I beseech you—grant my dear friend recovery from his illness. Accept this offering and bestow your grace."
⟨ Prayer to the Fire God ⟩
The Fire Shrine Maiden, Ichinose Hotaru, offered fervent prayer to her patron deity.
All because her damn childhood friend Kitagawa Kenichi had suddenly fallen critically ill and been hospitalized.
Was it malingering? Her star reading said he was on death's door—no joke.
They'd fought recently, but he was still her bestie. She prayed with utmost sincerity.
And perhaps thanks to that.
Three days later, at the Shihei clan main estate, two figures emerged from one building.
Kenichi, who'd somehow survived, grinned brightly at the clear sky.
His ordinary high schooler body had turned steel-hard and rocky-muscled in just three days.
Insanely stronger.
Overjoyed, he uttered one word.
"Ken."
Trailing behind, Ichimaru Shiki wore a sad expression.
"Oh dear, he got stronger, but..."
His intelligence had tanked.