I Became A Ghost In A Horror Game-Chapter 73: Fairy Tail Tea Party

I met him while patrolling the area around the children, making sure nothing unusual was happening over the weekend.

The moment our eyes met at a crosswalk, he waved enthusiastically and approached me.

A green-haired boy.

A plant-growing game.

We exchanged simple introductions.

Jack whistled in admiration.

"Ooooh...! Hey, Alice! I didn’t expect to run into you here!"

"Same here. I have a lot to talk about."

I took Jack to a quiet café so we could have a proper conversation.

Even as we walked, Jack kept muttering strange things.

Nothing seemed particularly important, so I ignored him.

But seeing how he kept chattering to himself, even when I didn’t respond, made me slightly concerned about his social skills.

After sitting down, I ordered drinks.

I let Jack talk as much as he wanted while waiting for the drinks to arrive.

Once they were served, I summoned the Silent Horror from my mirror.

Now, no matter what surveillance devices might be present, no one could eavesdrop on our conversation.

"Oh, coffee! Bitter and disgusting!"

Jack took a sip and immediately complained.

Then, he eyed my fresh fruit juice with clear interest.

I quickly pulled it out of sight.

No one was taking my sweets.

Jack pouted in disappointment.

Well, he shouldn't have ordered coffee in the first place...

"Let’s get to the point. Jack, have you ever ended up inside a game?"

Even if I wasn’t entirely sure whether I was still inside a game or in reality, I was leaning toward the latter.

The world I knew wasn’t filled with this many monstrosities.

But if the Organization had always been suppressing them, it was possible that I had simply never noticed.

And, more importantly, my senior’s grave—the one I thought should never have existed—was real.

This world felt much closer to reality.

Jack nodded.

So, as expected, he had also been pulled into the game he had played.

"Ah-ha! So that’s what you were wondering!

Of course! I ended up in a game, too! That’s how I ended up like this! Hehe!"

"It’s nice to meet someone who actually understands."

I was honestly surprised at how easy it was to talk to him.

The Story’s Demons were supposedly as tricky as the Dominators, but Jack seemed more normal than I had anticipated.

Then again, if they weren’t normal, wouldn’t that just be an insult to myself?

"Yeah, it’s nice to be understood. I’m glad you’re not some weird demon."

"...Weird demon?"

"?"

This chapt𝒆r is updated by frёewebηovel.cѳm.

Jack stared at me for a moment, then suddenly widened his eyes in realization.

Then, he loudly declared:

"Hmm! I should run away!"

"???"

Jack abruptly stood up and actually tried to flee.

I hurriedly grabbed him.

Jack resisted.

...Why the hell was he so strong?!

The table ripped apart like paper under the force of his struggling.

Even though my own strength was far from normal, Jack’s resistance was growing stronger by the second.

At this rate, he was going to break the floor next.

"Wait! Why are you running?!"

"I thought about it! And—you’re a female demon!"

"...That’s... technically true?"

I was confused by his reasoning.

Did demons also have gender biases?

"The two female Story’s Demons I met before were both completely insane!

And even demons from regular games are crazy!

A female demon from a horror game?! There’s no way she’s normal!"

I couldn’t argue against that last part.

A demon from a horror game probably did seem particularly dangerous...

But still, this was unfair!

To clear up the misunderstanding, I quickly corrected him.

"Wait! I’m actually not a girl! So calm down!"

"Ha! I knew it! Are those in your chest just padding?!"

What the hell.

"Y-you little brat! Watch your mouth!"

With no other options, I used my most effective method to subdue him.

I pulled him into a hug.

Jack’s face sank into my chest, and his body instantly went limp, melting into a blissful state.

"Ooooh... so warm..."

"Hah..."

So this little brat was this strong, huh?

I let out a deep sigh, then spoke to Jack in a serious tone.

"Haa... Jack, I need your help.

I need information and cooperation.

I won’t force you, but please—could we talk a little longer?"

I made my request as earnestly as possible.

Jack pulled his head away from my chest and gave me a thumbs-up.

"Wow, you’re really gentlemanly!

You might actually be different from the other demons!

Alright, let’s chat!"

His mood changed way too fast.

I was already exhausted.

"Ahem. Let’s start over. Jack, do you know anything about the Dominators?"

If the High Priest had mentioned the Story’s Demons, then the Machine God must have encountered at least one of them before.

Could that have been Jack?

"Hmm! Nope! Never met one! Who even are the Dominators?"

...Are you kidding me?!

Does this guy even know anything?!

"Ugh... Just think of them as insanely powerful beings that can trigger apocalyptic scenarios."

"Ohhh, got it!"

"..."

Stay calm.

Even if he seemed clueless, he was still one of the Story’s Demons.

He wasn’t some low-tier creature like the Needle Demon—I had just felt his strength firsthand.

Just from his physical power alone, I knew that ordinary monstrosities wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

"Alright, Jack. I need to stop those things from attacking my loved ones.

To do that, I need allies.

Do you know any other Story’s Demons who might help me?

Or... would you be willing to help me?"

"Hmm...! Thinking’s not really my specialty! But if it’s about factions..."

Jack folded his arms and went deep into thought.

I wasn’t exactly confident in his ability to come up with a solid answer,

but the fact that he was even thinking about it meant there were at least some candidates.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

"Ah. How about meeting Ariel?"

"Ariel... as in The Little °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° Mermaid?"

"That’s right! I’m part of a faction, you know! Just so you know, she’s not exactly normal either, so don’t get your hopes up too much!"

"..."

You’re the one who seems abnormal to me.

I was about to ask Jack how to meet Ariel.

But before I could say anything, Jack spoke up first.

"Then let’s go see Ariel together!

We’ll head to my faction—Fairy Tail Tea Party, where only the Story’s Demons gather!"

"...!"

Bubble, bubble...

Sea foam rose around us.

The space around me warped and distorted like light refracting underwater.

"Oh? Was that the trigger phrase? Well, whatever."

"Wait, what the—?!"

My vision blacked out, and I felt like I was drifting, caught in waves.

And then, slowly, I opened my eyes.

"..."

"Jack! How could you bring Alice here without discussing it with me first?!"

"What’s the big deal? We could always use more members! There are seven seats, but it’s always just the two of us."

"Are you talking back to me?"

"Agh!"

I heard Jack arguing with a girl.

I got up and walked toward the voices.

As I drew closer, a soft melody filled the air.

At a tea party table set with seven chairs, Jack and a red-haired girl were in the middle of a heated exchange.

They both turned to look at me.

"Look, I got dragged here out of nowhere. I'd appreciate it if you treated me like a guest."

"...Oh! That’s true! Welcome, Alice! To our Fairy Tail Tea Party!"

Judging by her appearance, this must be Ariel.

The protagonist of The Little Mermaid.

I asked her to confirm.

"Rhythm game?"

Ariel smiled.

Her face was alluring—she looked far more demonic than Jack.

Given that she was dressed in an idol outfit, it made sense that she had come from a rhythm game.

"That’s right. I’m Ariel. A human who became a Story’s Demon thanks to Mephistopheles."

...Thank god.

She sounded far more reasonable than Jack.

Jack had said she wasn’t normal either, but considering his definition of normal, I decided not to believe him.

"Finally, someone I can have a proper conversation with."

"I know, right? Let’s skip the formalities and get straight to what we both want."

Straight to the point. Good.

Building camaraderie was nice, but that could wait.

The fact that she said "both" meant that they wanted something from me, too.

I decided to hear Ariel’s request first.

"What do you want from me?"

"We want you to join Fairy Tail Tea Party.

Our goals are:

Finding and recruiting other Story’s Demons.

Protecting each other from the Organization and other factions.

Tracking down the one who created us—Mephistopheles."

I gave her a skeptical look.

"Just the two of you?"

"...With you, that makes three.

Demons tend to be independent, so even when we invite them, they don’t respond.

But hey, three out of seven is still a majority, right?"

"Wahaha! Ariel, are you bad at math?"

"Shut up, Jack."

...These guys are way too unorganized.

I’m starting to worry if I can even rely on them.

"Alright... and Mephistopheles?"

"M.P. Ever seen or heard that name?

It’s sometimes the credited name of game developers—just initials.

You probably heard his voice the moment you became a demon."

"..."

M.P.—the name of a game developer.

And also an abbreviation for Mephistopheles, the demon.

The last voice I heard back then... was my senior’s.

...My senior is Mephistopheles.

I always knew he wasn’t ordinary.

But I never imagined he was such a famous demon.

I couldn’t even begin to process it.

Why had he turned me into this?

That must have been what the other Story’s Demons wanted to know, too.

"You seem to have something in mind."

"To find Mephistopheles, we need more members.

That guy is bound to be unbelievably powerful.

So our first request is for you to join us.

We won’t force you to do anything.

Just show up if we call for you.

And if you get the chance, help us recruit more Story’s Demons."

It wasn’t a bad deal.

Uniting the Story’s Demons could only work in my favor.

And I did want to find my senior.

Now it was my turn to make a request.

I looked Ariel in the eye and stated my demand.

"Alright. In return, I want you to lend me your power to fight against the Dominators."

"Ehh... That’s a bit much."

...

"What?"

I let out a dumbfounded sound.

For a moment, it felt like all my expectations shattered into pieces.

Aren’t you guys supposed to be strong?

If this were a manga or a novel, readers would be throwing rocks at them right now!

"Huh? What do you mean, 'What?' It’s obvious.

We don’t know everything about the Dominators, but we do know they’re insanely powerful.

It’d be a huge problem if we just casually agreed to help fight one!

And honestly, it’s not worth the effort for us at all!"

"Ariel, you’re so stingy. You could help a little, couldn’t you?"

"I told you to shut up, Jack."

"..."

I stared at her, feeling completely betrayed.

Ariel scratched her cheek awkwardly.

Then, with a resigned sigh, she spoke.

"Listen. If we make enemies out of them, we’re screwed too.

Sure, there are some who fight the Dominators head-on, but...

Alright, let’s at least hear the details.

Depending on the match-up, we might be able to help.

So, what kind of opponent are we talking about?"

"Well... A giant mechanical titan that thinks it's a god..."

"Nope. No way. We’re out."

Ariel immediately waved her hands, rejecting the idea outright.

Once again, she betrayed my expectations.

I thought these guys were supposed to be strong?!

"Why?!"

"I told you. It depends on match-ups.

Its abilities are a pain to deal with, and we’re not interested in direct physical combat.

Look, if all three of us fought together, we probably wouldn’t lose. But—"

"Then—"

"But if we burn through all our energy fighting at full power, we’d be helpless if the Organization or another faction attacked us afterward.

That completely goes against the purpose of our Tea Party."

"...You mentioned match-ups.

Then is there anyone who can defeat the Machine God?"

"..."

Ariel fell into thought, seemingly going through a list of candidates in her head.

She muttered to herself—

“That one’s locked up... That one doesn’t communicate... That one... I have no information on...”

Then, as if she finally remembered something, she looked at me.

"Pinocchio.

Find Pinocchio.

He’s a merchant, so he won’t help for free, but if you pay the right price, he might lend a hand."

Pinocchio.

I had heard that name before—back when I caught a petty thief.

At the time, I brushed it off, but...

He was probably someone involved with crafting and mechanics.

I asked Ariel for more details.

"Where can I find him?"

"Hmm..."

Ariel thought for a moment.

"He’s always looking for rare materials—or rather, parts.

So wouldn’t he be somewhere with lots of mechanical components?"

"Alright. Got it."

She didn’t seem to know much either.

But still, this was useful information.

My first goal was set—find Pinocchio.

"Since you’ve joined the Tea Party, we’ll help you however we can.

But don’t expect too much, and don’t feel too safe.

We can’t actually do much.

...Maybe we could watch over the kids while you’re busy?"

...!

"How do you know about them?"

I asked sharply.

Ariel grinned slyly.

Something about her reminded me of Carol.

"You broke a crystal ball a while back, didn’t you?"

"Oh... yeah."

The crystal ball Ha-rim bought at the occult shop.

It had some kind of weird power...

Did Ariel make it?

"That was mine. I saw you through it.

Ah, don’t misunderstand—I didn’t hand it over directly.

I was low on snack money, so I sold it to the shop owner.

If you put your ear to it, you can hear my singing, like a music album.

Want to buy one?"

Ariel pulled out another crystal ball.

I politely declined.

"I’ll pass."

Ariel pouted.

"Hmph... Jack, no snacks today."

"WHAT?! No way!"

"..."

After finishing our conversation, I returned to my original location.

If I stayed out for too long, James would start worrying.

As she watched me leave, Ariel fell into thought.

...Hmm. She really is beautiful.

But that’s not enough reason for him to favor her...

Mephistopheles.

What makes that girl so special?

...I might be a little jealous.

And when I get jealous... I tend to play nasty pranks.