The Haunted Bookstore – Gateway to a Parallel Universe Vol. 4 by Shinobumaru

The Haunted Bookstore – Gateway to a Parallel Universe Vol. 4 by Shinobumaru

Author:Shinobumaru [Shinobumaru]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Tags: light novel
Publisher: Seven Seas Entertainment
Published: 2022-04-21T07:00:00+00:00


***

The woman woke up and blinked a few times. Uncertain where she was, she explored her surroundings with her eyes, not daring to move her head. It was dark—dark enough that she couldn’t see past an arm’s length away into the gloom. The stifling smell of trees stung her nose. Beneath her was a bed of soft fallen leaves.

She realized she was, at the very least, not tied up and pushed herself upright. “Where am I…?” she mumbled.

Just then, she sensed somebody’s presence and looked up.

“Oh, you’re awake! Good morning! Er, good afternoon? Good evening…? I dunno, but you’re up and that’s all that matters!”

A blinding light suddenly shone down on her. She reflexively squinted and covered her eyes, struggling to make out the source of the light: it was a lamp held by a youth in unusual garb.

The young man wore black monk robes with blue puffballs on the front. On his head was a small cap often seen on mountain ascetics. He looked exactly like a yamabushi mountain monk, save for the mask he wore that covered half his face—it seemed to be a bird mask, given the black beak.

The young man pranced forward with spring in his step and grabbed the woman’s hand. “You were asleep so long, I was beginning to worry! You all right? Not hungry, are ya?”

“Huh? Oh. Um… I’m okay. Thank you.”

“Not at all, not at all!” The man’s eyes smiled from behind the mask.

Who is this man? At least he doesn’t seem like a bad person, the woman thought. A swirl of other thoughts flitted in and out of her mind—How did I get here? What is my name? Where am I?—but they all faded without causing her any lingering worry. She felt as though she were in a dream. She looked around. “It’s pretty dark… How did I get here?”

The man tilted his head. “You don’t remember? There’s something important to you here; something that’s more important than anything else.”

“There is?”

The man grinned toothily. Another man appeared beside him, this one with red puffballs on his monk robes instead of blue.

“Helloooo! I hope you had a nice nap!” Unlike his more energetic, blue-puffed counterpart, the man with the red puffs spoke with a slightly sleepy cadence. He approached the woman and patted her back, giving her a warm smile. “I was beginning to think you wouldn’t wake up! Now let’s waste no time getting down to business. We have something important to return to you. Will you accept it?” He gently took her hand and pointed.

“Huh?” The woman couldn’t believe her eyes.

“Manma!”

From within the darkness, a baby appeared. The dazzlingly bright lamplight shone on them, illuminating their soft and plump arms, legs, and cheeks. Sparse hair sat gently atop their head. It looked like a baby of only some-odd months, one that would still drink their mother’s milk.

“A child…?” the woman said. “What are they doing out here?”

The two young men behind her each put a hand on her shoulders. They began to speak to her, practically whispering.



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