Help! I changed the gender of the male protagonist in the yandere game

"Alright, now that we know this guy is the culprit, let's head back."

Having gathered the key information, Hyakusuke planned to retreat.

The enemy's strength was completely unknown, and he didn't want to risk it. All he needed to do next was transmit the information.

Hyakusuke took out the communication shikigami.

Calling it a shikigami was generous; it was essentially a disposable tool.

A low-ranking ninja like him had weak spiritual power, making it impossible to control even a general-purpose shikigami. Fortunately, the communication shikigami was designed to be sustained even by a low-ranking ninja's spiritual power; after all, it was essentially a one-time-use cursed tool.

Suddenly, Hyakusuke felt a violent chill run down his spine, a primal sense of danger that had saved him countless times on the battlefield—his body reacted even faster than his mind.

His legs leaped powerfully, and the instant he jumped, the rock where he had been standing exploded into countless fragments.

A low boom echoed in his ears, and Hyakusuke saw clearly how a boulder twice his height had been blasted with a single punch, leaving a mortar-shaped crater.

The monstrous strength contained in that punch nearly shattered the rock completely, and the flying debris grazed his arms and cheeks.

The communication shikigami he had thrown was also pierced by the accelerated gravel, like a bullet, emitting a wail before disappearing.

"A Yama-otoko."

Hyakusuke landed on the ground. He looked up to see an ape-like monster resembling a Bigfoot lunging towards him.

"Damn it!"

Hyakusuke knew what was happening. Without stopping, he jumped to the left, then backwards, widening the distance between himself and the fist's owner, and thrust out the gun in his right hand.

Whoosh!

Utilizing the space he had gained and the length of the gun, he thrust forward with all his might. However, the Yama-otoko flicked its right hand, easily deflecting the gun tip that was imbued with his full strength.

Hyakusuke launched a series of gun thrusts, but it effortlessly neutralized them with just its fingertips.

Damn!

He couldn't help but curse inwardly, deeply feeling his own weakness.

The Yama-otoko possessed no sorcery or special abilities; its only skill was brute strength.

Yet, even against such a demon, he found it difficult to win head-on.

Hyakusuke gritted his teeth.

He was just that weak.

If the powerful exorcists of this world were playing an exhilarating ACT game, then he was playing a Souls-like game.

Fighting demons, he had no invincible dodge frames, a hit to a vital spot would kill him, he had no healing potions or mana potions, his stamina and endurance were limited, and close-quarters combat was practically risking his life.

'Crap! And even risking my life might not be enough!'

Faced with the monster before him, Hyakusuke was forced to taste overwhelming powerlessness, feeling the veins behind his ears throbbing and cold sweat pouring down his back.

"Stop it."

Suddenly, Koosaburou's voice drawled, "This is a rare guest. Killing him so directly would be such a waste."

The elderly retainer had also shed his disguise, exuding an aura of evil, leading yamawaro wielding short swords and axes as he slowly approached.

"Who... who exactly are you?"

Hyakusuke's gaze was drawn to something Koosaburou held in his right hand, a purple jewel radiating light—instantly, his eyes widened, because he recognized what it was.

...A Cursed Blessing Orb?!

Damn it, so that's it! This Koosaburou... is he with the 'Eight Fortunes Society'?

—The Eight Fortunes Society.

A dark organization in the game 'Oborozuki no Akari', a villainous faction, a group of heretics, fiends, and those who defied taboos.

The organization's high-ranking positions were named after the Seven Lucky Gods: Ebisu, Daikokuten, Bishamonten, Jurōjin, Fukurokuju, Benzaiten, and Hotei, with an eighth seat left vacant.

The organization had eight branches, with the 'Cursed Blessing' lineage under Daikokuten developing cursed tools called 'Cursed Blessing Orbs', which triggered major events in the game's later plot.

However, this was the early stage of the game. Hyakusuke couldn't imagine that this orb, which shouldn't exist, would be in Koosaburou's hands.

"I am Koosaburou."

The old servant's wrinkled face twisted into a sinister smile.

"Low-ranking ninja, you've arrived sooner than I expected."

"You knew I was coming?"

Hyakusuke frowned slightly.

"Underestimating others is never a good thing."

Koosaburou waved his hand, and a ladybug-shaped shikigami landed on the back of his hand.

"I've been watching you all along. Besides this shikigami, there's another one watching that Chuunin named Saizou. He's leisurely leading the group of low-ranking ninja further and further away. Heh heh, it seems you're all alone now."

Hyakusuke felt a chill in his heart and tightened his grip on the gun.

"What... what exactly are you trying to do?"

The old man chuckled gleefully.

"What do I want to do... do you know? Someone like me, an ordinary sorcerer, born a commoner, without noble blood or a prestigious lineage. Because my power is weak, I have no money. Even if I knelt before those folk Onmyōji seeking knowledge, they would treat me like trash."

As he spoke, the old retainer radiated an intense demonic aura.

"You ask what I want to do... of course, I want everything. Revenge on those people, and money, women, power, status, I want it all."

Koosaburou narrowed his eyes.

"Low-ranking ninja, you're clever. Killing you would be such a waste... Among the trash sent by the Kurohimeyama family, you're the only one who saw that the little girl was under suggestion. You're smart. I have a proposal for you. Why don't you join 'us'?"

"'Us'?"

"See this orb?"

The old man proudly held up the orb.

"This is a cursed tool that can amplify the power of a weak sorcerer like me tenfold... Low-ranking ninja, you sneaked back here, didn't you, for the money hidden in the cave, the belongings of the dead, or perhaps to earn merit?"

Koosaburou's eyes narrowed, and he smiled smugly.

"Whatever you want, you can obtain it if you join the organization."

"Is that so?"

Hyakusuke suddenly swung the butt of his gun behind him, nearly hitting the figure approaching from behind.

"Oh... you're quite vigilant."

Koosaburou had somehow appeared behind him, one hand holding the orb, the other holding a knife ready to stab.

If not for the backswing with the gun butt, the knife tip would have pierced his back.

"All this useless chatter is just a ploy to ambush me. How despicable."

Hyakusuke said calmly.

Smart people don't talk on the battlefield. If they do, it's to buy time.

Koosaburou had created an illusion in place, while talking nonsense, he secretly slipped behind him, wanting to stab him in the back with a knife.

At the same time, the false Koosaburou in front of him dissipated into a cloud of mist.

"Heh heh..."

The old man cautiously retreated several steps, avoiding the gun's attack range.

"I told you~ I'm a weakling. If it were a one-on-one fight, it wouldn't be strange for a combat-skilled low-ranking ninja like you to kill me. You call it despicable, but for those without power, using means is despicable. What about those born strong, those who inherited fame, bloodlines, and various special abilities from their ancestors? What is their power considered?"

The Cursed Blessing Orb could indeed enhance the spiritual power of the weak, but it forcibly extracted life force and even lifespan—to simultaneously control dozens of yamawaro and even a demonized Yama-otoko was a huge burden for Koosaburou.

'If this low-ranking ninja chooses to run, I won't be able to control the Yama-otoko to chase after him.'

This was different from controlling simple artificial shikigami. To control living beings required vast spiritual power, draining the brain's function.

'Moreover, that Yama-otoko isn't really tame... Dominating it is too much of a burden for me.'

In fact, every time he issued a command to the Yama-otoko, his brain and nervous system overloaded, as if pierced by tens of thousands of needles.

The old man quickly made a decision. He threw away the long knife in his right hand and quickly took out an iron-like object, the symbol of a hundred arts—a "firearm."

At this moment, the old man was holding a matchlock gun without a trigger—far inferior to the flintlock and wheellock guns of the same era. He even secretly used an artificial shikigami behind him to control the lighting of the fuse, to conceal the small action of lighting the fuse.

'Those sorcerers who pride themselves on their status would never use such a clumsy method of killing, but I don't have that luxury...'

Koosaburou didn't hesitate, raising the gun to shoot Hyakusuke.

Just at this critical moment, a lightning-like flash of light shot out, knocking the matchlock gun out of his hand.

"Damn it!"

Koosaburou's expression changed. The back of his right hand was pierced by a shuriken.

The matchlock gun slipped from his hand, and as it hit the ground, it misfired with a bang, and the barrel exploded.

Koosaburou gritted his teeth and retreated another step.

'Kill him.'

He issued the command in his mind.

The Yama-otoko and yamawaro lunged towards that direction.

However, in that instant, a figure shot out from behind the Yama-otoko, using burning hands to press down on the Yama-otoko's head from both sides.

"'Burning Body'."

The special ability that allowed flames to explode, blasting the Yama-otoko's head off.

"What?"

Koosaburou was shocked.

The figure who had easily killed the Yama-otoko didn't stop at all, leaping up from the Yama-otoko's body, flames erupting from the palms of his hands.

The flames condensed into a fireball, blasting towards him.

Koosaburou was hit by the fireball, and smoke and fire engulfed his figure.

The surrounding yamawaro were about to surround and kill Hyakusuke, but were hit by several large fireballs, and they screamed miserably.

These demons also had their own racial language, and as they were engulfed in flames, the yamawaro made various sounds.

—Fire, it's a fireball.

—Ooooh... Waaaaah! So hot, so burning.

Smoke filled the air, and sparks flew in all directions.

The fire was burning, and some demons were burning. The smell of burnt meat filled the air. The yamawaro cried out, wanting to escape this place.

"Sorry~ Hyakusuke."

Saizou's clear, languid voice sounded in Hyakusuke's ear.

"I'm not very good at stealth techniques. Maintaining invisibility while avoiding the shikigami monitoring me is a bit difficult for me... Sorry, I'm late."

Hyakusuke finally breathed a sigh of relief. The reinforcements had finally arrived.

Smart people don't talk nonsense on the battlefield—so, it wasn't just this old geezer stalling for time, he was also waiting for reinforcements.