Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 266: A Friend of Justice (2)

Dragon Raja 3

The Death Servitors had suffered a massive blow, but the airtight door, which could have held them off for a while, was now destroyed. Who knew how many more of those creatures were outside? If they got caught in a fight, Erii, being a human weapon, might be fine, but Lu Mingfei, an ordinary mortal, would likely be killed just by being too close.

As expected, soon enough, more creatures stepped onto the blood-splattered ground. Pale humanoid figures, dragging long snake-like tails, moved forward in formation, their tails sweeping lines into the ground as they moved. The scene was like an upgraded version of Resident Evil, but Lu Mingfei didn’t have a “Chicago Typewriter” with unlimited bullets【Note: “Chicago Typewriter” is a nickname for the Thompson submachine gun, known for its high firepower. It was used by bank robbers in the early 20th century and is featured in Resident Evil 4 as a special weapon with unlimited ammunition.】. These Death Servitors were nothing like the slow zombies; Lu Mingfei knew they could sprint as fast as cheetahs and survive being hit head-on by a car. However, they seemed to fear something.

Erii glanced at the bodies lying in their own blood, her expression momentarily sorrowful. So, it turned out she wasn’t entirely unaffected by death—just barely so.

She casually tossed her toothbrush into the hallway. The plastic toothbrush traced a parabolic arc and landed before the group of Death Servitors. To them, this simple object looked like a ticking bomb. They recoiled in fear, not daring to cross the invisible line marked by the toothbrush. It was like Adam and Eve being cast out of Eden, where God had placed a flaming sword at the entrance. From that moment on, humans dared not return to the garden. The Death Servitors’ fear of Erii was like sinners’ fear of God—it wasn’t the fear of a powerful foe but the instinctive submission before a supreme being.

Erii grabbed Lu Mingfei by the wrist and turned to walk down a long corridor. Behind the vault door lay this corridor, the floor lined with wooden planks, with sliding wooden doors on either side. Behind the doors, candles burned, casting warm light and grid-like shadows over both Lu Mingfei and Erii. A subtle scent of sandalwood filled the air. This corridor seemed more fitting in an old mansion, where each wooden plank held the weight of time. The wooden floor gleamed from years of polishing, as clean as a mirror. Lu Mingfei quickly removed his shoes, feeling the coolness of the wood under his feet. Though this wasn’t the right moment to ogle the girl’s back, he couldn’t resist a glance or two. Her figure was graceful, her skin glowing faintly gold in the candlelight. They passed through the grid shadows like walking through a bamboo forest on a moonlit night, the bamboo’s shadows dancing over them.

Lu Mingfei thought that Lu Mingze was right—this place did feel like Lanruo Temple, where a helpless scholar encountered a lonely ghost after centuries of isolation.

Erii slid open a door and pointed to the tatami-covered floor, signaling for Lu Mingfei to sit and wait for her. She then stepped into the inner room. In the middle of the room was a kotatsu (heated table). Lu Mingfei sat by the table and looked around. The plain white walls had minimal decorations—just three paintings depicting Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo. Amaterasu stood bathed in radiant sunlight, holding the Yasakani no Magatama; Tsukuyomi stood beneath a pitch-black full moon, holding the Yata no Kagami; and Susanoo, portrayed as a young man, stood atop the corpse of an eight-headed dragon, wielding the legendary sword “Ame-no-Murakumo.” Though Lu Mingfei didn’t understand much about Shinto, he recognized these famous figures, who had appeared in countless anime.

Aside from these three paintings, the room was devoid of any other decor. There weren’t even the typical flower arrangements you’d find in a Japanese home. The open closet held only neatly arranged miko outfits. When Erii had entered the inner room, she hadn’t closed the door, revealing a similar setup inside, with the kotatsu replaced by a floor mat. The only form of “luxury” in the room was the giant LCD TV, which was connected to a PS3. The house was undoubtedly luxurious, with that ancient sakura wood corridor alone being priceless—anyone would proudly show it off to guests. Yet, the one living here was not some elderly religious woman, but Erii.

Lu Mingfei sat up straight, imagining what it would feel like to live in this room… probably like a wooden doll, sitting motionless in a field, watching the sun rise and set, the rains come and go, until one slowly took root and became a tree…

Judging by her age, Erii was about as old as Nono. How many years had she lived here? Fifteen? Twenty? Without a heart of wood, anyone living here would surely go mad.

Erii reappeared from the inner room, now dressed in undergarments. To avoid an embarrassing nosebleed, Lu Mingfei stared intently at the floor. Erii nonchalantly pulled a miko outfit from the closet and put it on. It seemed that she only ever wore this kind of outfit. Lu Mingfei was almost certain she had never left this house. She had no experience with public transportation creeps, had never watched adult videos, and had never been flirted with by a cocky upperclassman. To her, Lu Mingfei was likely the same as her—a creature with a flat chest.

“Let’s go,” Erii wrote in a small notebook and held it up for Lu Mingfei to see.

Lu Mingfei realized then that she couldn’t speak, which was why she always carried a notebook and pen.

“Where to?” Lu Mingfei asked.

“Outside.”

“There are Death Servitors outside!”

“Farther outside.”

Lu Mingfei was becoming increasingly confused. Even if Erii’s bloodline made her unafraid of the Death Servitors, he was definitely terrified. Things were in such chaos outside—why not stay here, have some tea, and relax? Better yet, lock the heavy metal door behind them. There was even a game console here! Dynasty Warriors or Resident Evil? I’m good at both! We can beat hard mode together!

“Let’s go out and have fun while my brother’s not around,” Erii wrote in the notebook and held it up in front of Lu Mingfei.

Lu Mingfei finally understood—Erii just wanted to sneak out of her home. To her, the world was divided into two parts: inside and outside. As long as she was outside, it didn’t matter where she went.

Erii opened the closet and pulled out a cardboard box, placing it in Lu Mingfei’s hands. Inside the box were all kinds of toys—plastic Ultraman and little monsters, plush Rilakkuma, and Hello Kitty dolls. Each toy had a small label on it, with some reading “Erii’s Ultraman” and others saying “Erii’s Rilakkuma.” It seemed that, like an ordinary girl, she had a strong sense of ownership, writing her name on each toy. Lu Mingfei had no choice but to hold the box and follow behind Erii, step by step, as they approached the menacing group of Death Servitors. Out of fear, he stayed close to Erii, the smell of soap from her mixing with the heavy stench of blood.

The Death Servitors silently parted ways. They suppressed their menacing growls, crouching low and pressing their heads to the ground, showing absolute submission to Erii. But as Lu Mingfei passed, some of the Death Servitors bared their black teeth, as if they were either about to roar or bite through his throat. Suddenly, Erii reached out and grasped Lu Mingfei’s wrist. This small gesture made the Death Servitors realize that Lu Mingfei was under her protection, someone belonging to this girl—someone they had to look up to as their queen. The commotion settled, and they once again bowed low. Every step Lu Mingfei took was filled with terror, while Erii walked like a queen. Yet, he wasn’t her attendant—he felt more like a piece of ham she was carrying through a pack of hungry wolves. The wolves drooled over him but dared not touch the queen’s food.

What kind of creature had he released? Was this really a girl? Or was she a monster of monsters?