Miyatake Ryuji: 18 years old, Japanese. I was born and lived in Sapporo, Hokkaido. I'm the last member of a clan once famous for fighting demons and monsters. We can purify corruption with a magical power blessed with purity, though how we attain this power is unknown. In the modern era, the clan is long gone, leaving me as the sole heir to this dying bloodline.
Given the description, you might think I'm a Taimanin. But no. In my world, I'm called a Mage, someone who uses magic primarily for combat. That's right, I'm from another world. Remembering how I got here, I can't help but reflect on my spectacularly bad luck.
3 days ago…
"I can't believe I'm playing this stupid visual novel," I muttered in my room, staring at Taimanin Yukikaze on my screen. "Aaaaah, why did I accept that bet?"
It started when a friend, Sato, made a wager: who could cleanse a building infested with evil spirits the fastest? Confident in my superior combat and tactical skills, I accepted without a second thought. I took Building A, he took Building B.
The spirits were weak, and I cut through them easily with my katana, not bothering with my guns. Why waste ammo? Another mage might have lectured me about caution, warning that a powerful spirit could be hiding. But I was sure. My ability, the Third Eye, lets me sense any living being, even intangible spirits, within a wide radius when I concentrate. It also picks up emotions and killing intent at close range. A perfect warning system.
My bad luck struck then. A massive, muscular evil spirit burst through a wall, having suppressed its aura to evade my Third Eye, and landed a punch that sent me crashing into the opposite wall. ‘An intelligent one.’
‘No panic,’ I thought. ‘It's just one.’ Then it spoke. "F-fRiEnDs! cOmE aNd pLaY!" Its shout acted like a beacon, drawing weaker spirits to it. Now I faced not just a powerful foe, but a one that can coordinate with it lesser.
Fighting a coordinated horde was difficult. I shattered the floor beneath me to escape and catch my breath. In hiding, I considered my guns but decided against it, bullets are expensive. My strategy, whittle down the lesser spirits from a distance, negate their numbers, then finish the leader.
After thinning the herd, I confronted the large spirit. Using Iaido, a sword art emphasizing draw speed, I took my stance, channelled aura into my scabbard, and struck. Its head hit the ground before it could react.
I sighed in relief. "Man, that took too long. Hope Sato didn't run into any trouble."
Then I froze. ‘If that spirit could hide from my Third Eye…’
"Shit!" I rushed out from the building and sprinted towards Building B. I skidded to a halt, sensing a familiar presence radiating pure glee. Sato stood there, face smug.
"Well, well, look who finally showed up." His satisfaction was palpable, and I fought the urge to punch him. "Since I finished first, I won."
"What?! Not fair! I had a powerful spirit that hid from me!" I protested. There was no way this counted.
"Excuses, excuses. I didn't encounter anything strong."
"Y-you!" Did he have a luck-stealing artifact or something? Who was I kidding? My luck had been terrible since birth. Defeated, my energy for argument drained away. "F-fine. What do you want?" I swallowed my rage, bracing for his demands.
His list was long: dinner, anime figurines, merch. He was bleeding me dry. I deeply regretted not using my guns to end the fight faster. As we finally parted, he gave his final request: buy Taimanin Yukikaze and deliver it to him tomorrow evening. Of course, I bought it discreetly, not wanting to be seen purchasing an 18+ game.
The next morning, in my one-room apartment wearing just a tank top and boxers, curiosity got the better of me. I played it. And as I expected, it was shit. There was no gameplay to speak of, just text and pictures. And then there was the story. Seriously, who in their right mind sends two recruits to infiltrate a brothel as prostitutes? A brothel that uses brainwashing, genetic modification, and drugs! The plan was so idiotic, I wanted to jump into the game and throttle this ‘Asagi’ character.
I felt a flicker of sympathy for Tatsurou. His self-doubt reminded me of Sato when he was new, always doubting himself, always question if he had a right to be a mage or not. As his senior, I'd guided him and taught him all I could. Now look at him, he had become an arroga- ahem, a confident and reliable squad member.
After speed-running the story, skipping most sex scenes and predictable dialogue, my instincts screamed. A surge of powerful magical energy filled the room. I moved to leap through the window, but it was too late. A blinding light swallowed me whole.
I awoke lying on a grimy street. The first thing I noticed was the sky, or rather, the massive, artificial ceiling that stretched over the entire city. I stood and took in my surroundings. The place was flashy yet awful, neon signs and colourful buildings contrasted with trash-strewn streets, scurrying pests, and people with green skin or animal-like features.
"Oi, young man! Want to have some fun with me?" A prostitute approached, a beautiful older woman with a voluptuous figure. I declined immediately; I needed information, not distractions.
"No, thanks. Can you tell me where I am?" She ignored me and moved on. 'That bitch!' I reined in my irritation. A bar was the next logical step, a place where loose tongues and complaints flow with alcohol.
Finding one was easy since there are a ton of bars here, but I pick the closest one, the 'Drunkin Shell.' Inside, it was full of gangster types. Their eyes tracked me, marking me as an outsider, probably my looks and the way I dress since I only wear a tank top and a boxer. I kept my expression stoic and approached one.
"Hey. What city is this?"
"How can you not know? This is Yomihara. A city under demon dominion."
"What?" It felt less like a demonic stronghold and more like a red-light district run by a criminal syndicate.
"Hmm. You don't belong here, do you?" he pressed. I opted for a half-truth.
"Someone dumped me here. I don't know who." I hoped that would suffice.
"You look young. Handsome. Clean clothes..." He leaned in, sniffing, and I recoiled. "...you smell nice."
Am I being sexually harassed? I stood to leave, but he grabbed my arm.
"Leaving so soon? You haven't had a drink." He smirked. I felt the others closing in, their gazes predatory. "I'll pay if you're short on cash." There was no talking my way out of this. I had nothing to give them. There was only one thing left to do.
I twisted my arm, seizing his wrist and wrenching it upward. He cried out as I pulled him off-balance, then drove a palm strike into his abdomen. He flew back, slamming into the wall. "Come on then, all of you! I know you're itching for a fight!"
"Bastard!"
"You'll pay for that!"
Five of them. I decided to hold back my magic, using only basic strength reinforcement. I couldn't risk my magical abilities becoming known. With my Third Eye predicting their amateurish movements, I delivered precise counters, leaving them groaning on the floor.
Let rumours spread about a skilled teenager who won a bar fight. That was far safer than anyone learning I was a magic user.
Once it was over, I fled, putting distance between myself and the bar. Ducking into an alley, I found a secluded door. I bit my thumb, drew blood, and inscribed a magic rune on its surface. The door swung open to reveal not another alley, but a sunlit, endless field of grass.
This is the Sanctuary, a separate dimensional space only accessible to clan members or their invited guests. Inscribing the rune on any door creates a gateway, even through lock doors. To anyone else, it's just a door.
I'm eternally grateful to the founder who created this refuge. I made a silent vow to leave an offering at the clan shrine if I ever escaped this city.
Over the next day, I scouted and gathered information. The exits to the surface were heavily guarded; no simple walk to freedom. Smugglers existed, but cost a ton of money that I didn't have. However, a persistent rumour caught my ear: someone had captured some Taimanins, and they were being held in a place called UnderEden.
A plan began to form. Allies would be a very good thing to have.