As A Result of Trying To Live An Erotic Slow-Life, I Have Become The Underground Ruler of This Upside-Down Otherworld - Chapter 62: Two Rats

Chapter 62: Two Rats

A day and a half after leaving the capital.

With no major issues on the journey, Shuri and Kazune reach their destination.

“Man, Hounds really make a difference.”

“No doubt. Schedule cut by a day.”

The sun sinks directly into the horizon.

At first glance, a peaceful farming village.

Judging by its size, the population’s probably under a hundred.

The villagers must already be indoors—no one’s out on the streets.

“Shuri-cchi.”

“I know.”

In a farming village, it’s not unusual for people to turn in at sunset, but it’s too quiet.

Sensing a strong unease in the silent atmosphere, the two nod and slip into Shuri’s stealth.

“Something’s off.”

“At this hour, you’d expect to hear voices from houses… Shuri-cchi, can we check out that bigger house over there?”

As Kazune’s fox tail bristles, Shuri nods and moves through the shadows.

Kazune’s ears twitch, straining for any sound.

Shuri’s eyes catch the fields.

Food here comes from monsters—farming villages grow the raw materials for them.

Naturally, precautions are needed. Getting killed by your own crop would be absurd.

But there’s no sign of such measures in this village.

Maybe they have a dedicated adventurer on contract.

It’s common for a skilled adventurer to stay in a village, getting their living expenses covered in exchange.

But…

“Tch… seriously quiet. Creepy, even.”

Kazune’s voice carries a hint of irritation.

Shuri stays calm, but she can’t deny a growing impatience—this isn’t getting them anywhere.

The most likely scenario is a resident adventurer.

To investigate properly, confirming that presence is the starting line, Shuri feels.

Their goal is to verify if Yuri’s from this village.

Ideally, they’d also learn if it was through a legal contract.

“…Dangerous.”

“I’m thinking the same. This is straight-up weird.”

But their Rat instincts scream there’s something to do before Yuri’s investigation.

It’s like being caught in a spider’s web.

The more you struggle, the less you can move.

“Pull back.”

“Got it.”

So, while they still can, Shuri and Kazune erase their presence and sound from the scene.

※

“Shuri-cchi.”

“Mm.”

The two set up camp out of sight of the village.

Patipati—sparks crackle from the campfire between them.

“…Why’d you betray us?”

“…”

Shuri’s hand, tending the fire, freezes.

Like rusted gears grinding, she turns to Kazune, meeting eyes that seem purely curious.

“…I was scared.”

“Scared?”

Relieved it’s not anger or negativity, Shuri exhales and speaks.

“Towa-sama changed. You changed too… I was scared of changing.”

It’s not the time for forgiveness, but she speaks her heart honestly.

“If Goshujin held me… I thought I’d probably end up happy.”

“Yeah. I’m, like, super happy right now.”

Kazune tilts her head, not getting it.

Mixed with some lovey-dovey vibes, she genuinely feels happy being with Arius.

Her skills, body, heart—she feels she’s given and had them taken, and she’s thrilled about it.

“Now… I kinda get your feelings, a little. But back then, I… didn’t want to know there was more happiness out there. I didn’t want to admit what I felt fulfilled by was empty.”

“…”

She’s sorted out the reason for her fear.

Shuri truly offered loyalty and admiration to Towa.

Carrying out Towa’s orders, seeing her pleased or praised—that was enough happiness.

“It wasn’t a mistake. I was genuinely content. Just getting praise from Towa-sama.”

She still takes pride in being that loyal servant.

“But that environment was changing. Towa-sama’s words would become, ‘You did well because Goshujin was pleased.’ I hated that. I was scared.”

“Ah… yeah.”

A spark of understanding lights Kazune’s eyes.

Even Kazune, who once did it for money, questioned herself when she started thinking she didn’t need it if Arius was happy.

For Shuri, work done to please Towa turning into pleasing some stranger wasn’t easy to accept.

“But.”

It’s still just a sliver, but spending time with Arius, touching unknown warmth, Shuri’s realized something.

“That warmth only exists in Goshujin’s world.”

Only Arius can make Towa happy. She couldn’t do it herself.

So, protecting Arius indirectly protects Towa.

“And I… want to say goodbye to the current me and become someone who can touch that warmth.”

“Shuri-cchi…”

Fear lingers in Shuri’s eyes as she speaks.

Talking about after the mission might be risky.

“Then we gotta disband the Rats quick.”

“Fufu, yeah. And become the new Rats.”

She has no intention of going back on her word.

Kazune, the Rat, will never forgive Shuri in her lifetime.

But the future Kazune wants to join hands with the new Shuri again.

“Ugh… so not like me.”

“Kazune?”

Kazune scratches her head gashigashi, and Shuri looks at her with concern.

“No, no! I’m not thinking! Not thinking I might like the new Shuri-cchi or anything!”

“Hm?”

“Ugh! Let’s sleep already! We’ve got, like, three days to investigate if we’re gonna make it back! Time to get pumped!”

With that, she dives into her sleeping bag, hiding her flushed face.

※

Back in the village, undercover.

Two days of surveillance reveal something.

“Like freaking puppets.”

“Probably.”

The villagers lack vitality.

They’re alive, sure, but it’s like they’re being kept alive—no will in their eyes.

“Following a set routine.”

“Honestly, it’s gross.”

Meal times, work hours.

Even bathroom breaks and marital sex happen at the same time, in the same way.

Even the crops, whether they turn into monsters or not, are culled by an adventurer-like woman at a fixed time, a fixed amount.

Some of the culled crops are replanted into the soil, like nothing happened.

“How are they even alive?”

“Agreed. It’s like a divine balance.”

Self-sufficiency might sound better.

But the crops cycle just enough to keep everyone from starving.

“Whoever’s managing this is seriously skilled.”

“Shitty taste, though.”

That’s why there’s a concern.

What happens if outsiders, unscripted cogs, interfere?

That’s why they haven’t talked to anyone for intel.

If they disrupt the routine, it might trigger some glitch.

Maybe nothing happens, maybe they’re ignored.

But unless they’re marked for death, they don’t want to kill.

“The problem is…”

“Why hasn’t this become a problem?”

Shuri nods.

Exactly—why is this state of affairs being left alone?

There must be exchanges with other villages. If that alone caused a breakdown, it would’ve happened.

That should spread word to whoever’s managing this village.

The fact that it hasn’t means…

“Someone’s covering it up.”

“…We screwed up. Either we’re being played, or we’re the ones being investigated.”

“High chance of that.”

“What do we do? If our moves are exposed, just keep investigating? They’re definitely being messed with. Direct contact might let us sense something.”

Shuri hesitates at Kazune’s suggestion.

Retreating now means handing the unseen enemy the fact that they investigated, but they’d escape safely.

Letting Kazune sense something?

That risks the earlier concern coming true.

Whoever can maintain this bizarre state, the traps they’ve set—or could set—are unimaginable.

“High risk, high reward.”

“I’m… fine either way. I trust Rat Shuri-cchi.”

Her words make Shuri’s cheeks soften for a moment, but she ponders deeply.

Yuri, back then.

The moment the thread appeared, he grabbed Arius’s hand—a memory overlapping with these villagers, naturally unnatural.

“Kazune. The thread-like magic on Yuri—what was its wavelength?”

“Got it memorized. Obviously.”

Kazune puffs her chest confidently.

The reward for taking the risk: confirming if it’s the same as that trap.

Is that worth braving the danger?

“…”

What to do, what’s right—Shuri wrestles.

What would Rat Shuri do?

The leader of what was once the underworld’s top intel unit—what judgment would she make?

“Shuri-cchi?”

Closing her eyes, she pictures a scene behind her lids.

Arius’s smile, Towa’s smile. And the opposite—sad faces.

Strangely, they’re all easy to imagine.

The new Shuri knows a new world enough to imagine them so clearly.

So…

“Set the trap.”

“Got… no, understood.”

Go the opposite way, Rat self.

Carve a new path and place a new self at its end.

“—”

Kazune’s form flickers.

With deft skill, she lures one target to a back alley.

“One minute!”

“Got it.”

Kazune’s perception activates.

At the same time, the puppets’ lifeless eyes turn toward the alley.

Shuri draws her dagger, bracing for what’s coming.

“…”

Slowly, so slowly.

Arms outstretched, they approach with warped steps.

“Fufu.”

As the terrifying scene closes in, Shuri laughs at herself.

Instinct made her grab the dagger, but these people aren’t guilty—she can’t swing.

Even if they’re in on it, it’s not confirmed, so it’d be wrong.

“Gaa!!”

“—!”

So she takes it, absorbs it.

The impact of their arms, softened as much as possible.

“Gu, u…”

Stupid strength.

The attacker’s arm bends in a way it shouldn’t.

Completely unrestrained.

“Ha, gu…!”

Even so, they slam their broken arm at Shuri again.

No pain felt—or something else?

Meanwhile, Kazune focuses on perception, not sparing Shuri a glance.

She knows Shuri will make that one minute, no matter what she says.

So, she’ll sense it all in that minute.

She knocked the target out on abduction.

With no consciousness, she dives deep into their inner self through perception.

Like swimming in a dark sea, suffocating, struggling.

“Got it! Shuri-cchi! Pull back!”

“Under… stood…!!”

Was a minute always this long? Shuri’s battered body is scooped up.

“Percep… tion?”

“Same as then! The thread’s magic is from the same person! This place is a hit! With this info—”

“—Oh? With that info… what happens next?”

They leap to a rooftop, landing.

Ahead stands…

“Don’t mess with us, okay? We’re kinda busy.”

“I’m not exactly free either. But since we’re all busy, how ‘bout some tea together?”

“Hah! Come back lat—gh!?”

“Haha! Sorry, my invites aren’t optional.”

A black-robed figure, common anywhere.

A masked woman stops Kazune and Shuri.

“Can’t… move…?”

“Gu, u…!”

“There we go, good work. Catch ya later.”

And takes their consciousness too.