This Japanese Monogatari Isn't Lame
Chapter 368 - 260: Tired Woman (4000 words)

Chapter 368: Chapter 260: Tired Woman (4000 words)

On the way there, Beichuan Si told Shen Gu Mirai about the Voodoo Doll.

But to be fair, Beichuan Si had never used the doll himself, so he did not know the exact effect of its substitution ability; hence, he only shared the general effects with Shen Gu Mirai.

After all, if Shen Gu Mirai thought having the substitute doll would allow her to lower her guard, that could actually lead to bigger problems.

Thus, Beichuan Si did not exaggerate the doll’s use and explained it in a straightforward manner.

Upon learning of the Voodoo Doll’s significance, Shen Gu Mirai blushed and placed it in her shoulder bag.

She didn’t speak of returning the doll to Beichuan Si.

Because she knew for certain that Beichuan Si would not take the Voodoo Doll back.

Moreover, Shen Gu Mirai’s self-assessment had always been accurate.

"Helping Beichuan Si as much as possible without causing him any trouble."

That was Shen Gu Mirai’s self-placement.

She had always been sharp-witted.

Whether it was investigating the Sanmu Puppet Factory or investigating Yuchuan Town.

Shen Gu Mirai had always had a fundamental understanding of her abilities. Based on that understanding, she would obediently wait in place for Beichuan Si to solve the problem, instead of rashly doing something suicidal.

The two of them packed their change of clothes and then went downstairs to head to Beichuan Si’s house.

During this period, Beichuan Si remained silent, occasionally glancing at Shen Gu Mirai.

"Mr. Temple?" Shen Gu Mirai blinked.

Beichuan Si, tilting his head and staring at her, responded thoughtfully after hearing her greeting, "I’m thinking about some things."

"Is it about the issues with this strange tale event?" Shen Gu Mirai ventured after some thought.

"Exactly," Beichuan Si nodded, "This incident is somewhat puzzling."

A vengeful spirit generally consists of a collection of grievances.

Powerful vengeful spirits are capable of manifesting physically.

But this kind of attack on someone from within a dream, as it is happening now, was something Beichuan Si had encountered for the first time.

It gave him a feeling akin to the movie "A Nightmare on Elm Street."

Yet, the reality was also somewhat different from the feeling in "A Nightmare on Elm Street."

Firstly, there were the scars.

As Nakano Youko said, in the dream she fell into after fainting, the Faceless Woman had gripped her neck with her hands, nearly snapping it.

But in reality, Nakano Youko exhibited symptoms similar to spasms; Beichuan Si had already examined her neck and found no injuries except for a layer of cement dust.

The vengeful ghosts in "A Nightmare on Elm Street" killed people in a way that had direct physical effects in reality—that was the biggest difference.

"And even in a dream, does the adversary truly possess such formidable strength?"

Beichuan Si pondered.

Did the ritual game of calling spirits from the four corners truly have the capability to summon such a vengeful spirit?

To enter someone’s dreamscape, take control of it, and then manipulate it...

Beichuan Si didn’t have enough information at the moment to put together any useful clues.

"Regarding... what you’re... thinking about now, I think... I might have some clues."

The voice of Shenzhu Shihui echoed within his mind; she spoke with a hint of uncertainty: "I... saw something in the strange records at the Shrine... concerning the kind of... vengeful spirits you mentioned."

She mused slowly: "In the village, they call... such spirits... tired women."

"To become a tired woman... a female must face death in a half-asleep, half-awake state... and she must be aware that she is approaching death, harboring resentment against all the living. Usually... a tired woman suffers inhuman torment while alive... and even in death, it’s much slower than for the average person... which results in a deeper resentment."

"Approaching death slowly, and being in a ’will soon die’ state for an extended time... That’s when a tired woman is formed. From there, the vengeful spirit created can pull others into their dreams."

"Half-asleep, half-awake? Tortured while alive? A slow death? And being in a ’will soon die’ state for an extended time?"

Beichuan Si frowned.

The conditions for forming seemed far too stringent.

There’s a saying in China, ’killing a person never goes beyond a dot.’

It also illustrates that killing someone is typically a very simple and fast act.

However, the method of creating a tired woman was different.

Endless torture while alive, half-asleep, half-awake, holding pure malice towards the living, requiring a slow approach to death, and remaining in a ’will soon die’ state for a long time.

Even a psychopathic serial killer wouldn’t torment a person like that, would they?

"A newborn tired woman is very weak... At least, it needs a growth period of one to two years... During this time, it can only wander the place of its death, affecting only those it has touched."

So that’s how it is.

It wasn’t due to the ritual game of calling spirits from the four corners.

Instead, it was because of the location chosen by Shen Gu Mirai and her group.

The place Shen Gu Mirai selected three years ago was precisely where the tired woman died.

They had intruded upon the tired woman’s place of death, and so they invited pursuit and attack from the other side.

No wonder Akisai Ikki was the first victim.

According to Shen Gu Mirai’s prior statement, Akisai Ikki was the only one who had been touched by the tired woman, and her subsequent death was unsurprising.

And after a certain period of growth, the tired woman had outgrown her original frailness, starting to take action against people like Shen Gu Mirai.

What the tired woman needed to do now was to kill all of those who had intruded upon her place of rest: Shen Gu Mirai, Akisai Ikki, Sato Taku, and Nakano Youko.