The white beast is an Inukami.
It stood there as if it had been there all along, its head level with a human’s height. But there was no doubt—it was a phantom beast. She had just seen one recently, so she was sure of it.
“Oh no! We need to get out of here!”
However, none of Himari’s friends reacted to her words.
It was the same for nearly everyone present. They were stunned into silence, bewildered by this sudden disruption in their daily lives. Their minds sought reasons to deny the reality, making them unable to move.
But that paralysis shattered when a startled driver lost control and caused a collision.
The crash and blaring horns snapped everyone back to their senses. With frantic expressions, they screamed and scattered, desperately trying to escape.
At the beef bowl restaurant, people shoved each other at the entrance in a rush to get out, shouting in panic. This agitated the nearby Inukami, which burst through the glass doors and attacked. Outside, cars honked as they sped away, only for one to get crushed by another Inukami leaping down from a building above.
And it didn’t stop there. More Inukami were appearing, their white bodies emerging from various alleyways as if bubbling up from nowhere.
Chaos engulfed the area.
“Everyone, this way!”
Himari spread her arms to gather her friends, directing them toward a nearby emergency shelter. These shelters, some free and some paid, were scattered throughout the city for protection in case of a beast disaster.
“This is the worst!”
People in a panic were running everywhere, screams, shouts, and explosions blending in a cacophony as confusion took over.
“I shouldn’t have come! I should’ve stayed home!”
Grumbling, Himari sprinted with all her might.
She was supposed to be heading into the shelter with everyone, but she’d suddenly realized something and worried about it, so she left the group to act on her own.
And—just as she feared, she found a girl with pink-tinted hair deep in the bookstore, calmly reading a book with a suitcase beside her, as if nothing were happening.
“Alright, that’s enough.”
The girl didn’t notice her approach, so Himari reached out and took the book from her.
“H-hey…! Wh-what’s going on all of a sudden…? You startled me.”
The girl, who seemed to have noble blood, widened her golden eyes in surprise and let out a strange squeal. She was so startled that she stumbled back, nearly falling—Himari had to grab her arm to steady her.
“Calm down. Just quietly look outside.”
“Huh… wh-what?”
Through the glass facing the street, she could see overturned cars and smoke billowing from buildings.
The classmate, whose name she didn’t know, gaped in shock, her mouth hanging open. She looked nothing like the “cool beauty” or “school princess” that people called her. If anything, “awkward beauty” seemed more fitting.
“Got it? The phantom beasts, the Inukami, are out there. Umm… oh, sorry. We’re in the same class, but I forgot your name…”
“Naruse, Naruse Shizuna.”
“Oh, right, Naruse-san. Well, I’m—”
“Shitara Himari. You ranked 58th in the last finals, no club affiliation. Active as an influencer selling quirky art and T-shirts, currently with around 16,000 followers on a steady upward trend. You have one older brother, a samurai, and your address is…”
Shizuna, who had been reciting smoothly, suddenly stopped and shrank back, looking up at her sheepishly, clearly embarrassed. She seemed to regret saying too much.
“Uh… forget I said that… please forget it.”
“Ah, I don’t mind. But, wow, you know a lot about me.”
“Yes… I remember all my classmates’ profiles.”
“That’s impressive.”
Nodding, Himari found Shizuna to be quite an amusing girl.
“For now, let’s get out of here. It’s dangerous. Although… it might be worse outside.”
Himari said, recalling their evacuation from the festival grounds. But Shizuna shook her head.
“This is… a bookstore… only bookshelves here… there’s an office in the back, but it’s probably not suitable for hiding.”
“Got it.”
Even in this situation, Himari was impressed. Honestly, she had rushed here because she was worried about Shizuna Naruse, but she hadn’t thought at all about what to do afterward.
“Well… in these situations, it’s recommended to hide in a safe place and avoid moving around unnecessarily. But with these phantom beasts called Inukami, hiding doesn’t help.”
“That’s so true. I was just chased by an Inukami the other day.”
“You posted about it on social media…”
“You saw that?”
“J-just a little! It’s not like I’m following Shitara-san and checking all your posts… I don’t do that! Not at all!”
Shizuna flustered, her awkwardness surprisingly endearing, rather than off-putting. Himari couldn’t help but smile, even at a time like this.
“For starters, just call me by my name. Himari.”
“Wh-what!? By… by your name!?”
Shizuna’s face turned red, her eyes wide, clearly flustered.
“Ah, did you not want to?”
“…N-not at all… then, I’ll… I’ll call you by your name… Himari-san… and, um… please, call me by my name too… please… call me Shizuna…”
Her last words seemed to take all the courage she had. Shizuna really had a unique personality—not so much the “cool beauty” or “noble lady” she appeared to be. Himari felt a warm fondness for her.
“Nice to meet you, Shizuna. Now, for our escape plan—toward the castle, right?”
“Y-yes. The samurai and armed foot soldiers will be there… so it’s safer near the castle. And if we find a shelter along the way… we can hide there.”
“Sounds good. But you’ll have to leave that luggage behind.”
“Th-that’s fine. It’s all books anyway… I’ll leave it and come back for it later.”
Why she was lugging around so many books was a mystery, but now wasn’t the time to ask. Knowing they could travel lighter was enough.
“Then let’s get going.”
“Y-yes… um, and… thank you… for coming all the way here.”
“Don’t mention it. Let’s hang out after this is all over.”
“O-okay… I’d like that.”
The two sealed their promise and started their escape.
