NOVEL NEXT WORLD After the doll burst through the wall and ambushed us.
That thing looked like it escaped from a low-budget horror movie, lifting its sharp arms to crash down on Sophia.
Just before that arm fell on her,
My body moved reflexively, and before I knew it, I had kicked it far away.
――BAM!
The sound of a solid object breaking apart.
The doll, sent flying by my kick, couldn’t even resist and started soaring down the hallway.
Before long, it reached the end of the hall with a loud crashing sound, smashing into the wall.
―――CRASH!
A vibration that shook the entire hallway.
The doll twitched a few times as if it were a malfunctioning machine on its last legs, but soon stopped moving altogether.
I stood there, with my leg still extended from where I’d kicked it, calmly assessing the situation I found myself in.
‘Well, this is a mess.’
Great. Totally ruined.
Whatever that was, my plan to feign normalcy using the pitiful-girl act just went up in smoke.
Of course, I don’t regret saving Sophia.
Even if her recent behavior had felt a bit overwhelming, she had always treated me with affection.
Regardless of our relationship, I’m not the kind of person who could just stand by and watch someone die in front of me.
That’s what sociopaths and crazies do.
And unfortunately, I’m a perfectly sane human.
‘So, what the heck is that…?’
I gazed at the unidentified heap of a doll that had smashed into the wall.
A doll that seemed to have torn off a person’s limbs and bizarrely stitched them together.
If judging solely by appearance, you might think it belonged to a slasher film with a particularly offbeat vibe.
But the force that could shatter thick walls and its ruthless behavior that aimed to kill people informed me that this situation was no simple film shoot or Halloween surprise.
“Is it… alive…?!”
From behind me, I heard Sophia’s voice, clearly frightened.
I turned around in response to her voice, but all I saw was her looking at me with an expression full of questions that were hard to describe.
“….”
Yeah, I guess so.
What she sees right now is just a tiny girl kicking a monster several times her size.
And if that’s a fact that can’t even be explained away, it’s no surprise she reacted that way.
So what am I supposed to do now?
Should I confess that I’m a human who ripped open space and returned to my hometown?
Or should I shamelessly continue to pretend I’m a girl with lost memories like I’ve been doing?
“Sophia.”
Honestly, I don’t know either.
I don’t even know what this situation is, let alone have the quick wit to come up with a clear answer for such an ambiguous situation.
All I know is that some monster attacked us, and the two of them were trying to escape.
In such a scenario, the best choice I had was to take down the monster in front of me.
“Run.”
After saying that succinctly, I began to walk slowly toward where the doll had smashed into the wall.
I thought it had been neutralized by the last hit, but I noticed it starting to twitch slightly again, which didn’t look good.
Moreover, the multitude of sounds coming from further down the hallway indicated that the doll wasn’t the only one of its kind.
“1, 19th…?”
Her voice came from behind me.
Was she worrying about me?
Despite my urging to run away, she called out to me as I silently walked on.
“Y-You could talk?!”
So loyal to her curiosity.
But that was truly an inappropriate question for the situation.
“….”
Uh, well…
What on earth am I supposed to say if someone suddenly asks that?
Is that even the sort of thing you’d be that curious about in a situation like this?
I almost died just a moment ago. At least let’s run to that safe house or whatever, and save the questions for later.
A question that threw me for a loop.
To answer it, I paused for a few seconds, trying to come up with some excuse.
“…I learned.”
I said what I thought was the most fitting thing I could come up with at the moment.
Then, like it was nothing, I started walking forward again, trying to blend in as much as possible.
――Creak, creak!
The sound of machinery creaking began as the doll restarted its movements.
Crack, crack, crack — the doll began to spread spiderweb-like cracks along the wall.
It thrashed around as if trying to escape from where it was lodged in the wall.
Before long, pieces of debris scattered as it tore itself free from the wall and prepared to charge straight at me.
‘It’s tougher than I thought.’
I couldn’t help but admire its durability.
Although I kicked it reflexively, I definitely didn’t pull my punches while doing so.
I expected that under normal circumstances, it would have shattered right then and there.
Maybe I should experiment to see how much it can actually take.
―――CRANK!!
Was it getting angry?
The sounds coming from the doll, merely parts grinding against each other, felt somehow more intense than before.
Not long after, the doll charged toward me, as if it were about to stomp on everything in its path.
――THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP!
The heavy sound of feet pounding on the ground echoed.
Like a furious bull charging at a red flag, it rushed at me without a care for what was happening around it.
With a stance reminiscent of a matador, I momentarily stepped into its path.
Then, just before it collided with me, I sidestepped with minimal movement like a trained bullfighter and kicked its legs with all my might.
――SMASH!
Debris scattered.
Unlike before when it only had a crack, now its leg was completely shattered.
Now that it had lost a leg, it couldn’t maintain its balance anymore.
It couldn’t stop its body from pitching forward due to its own speed and slammed its head into the ground.
――CRUNCH!
As I stomped on the doll’s head, I heard it shatter beneath my foot.
I figured there was no need for a finishing blow, but I still couldn’t just watch as this massive body slid toward the two behind me.
So, as it fell, I stepped on its head with all my strength, pinning it to the ground so it couldn’t move anymore.
“….”
The doll twitched like it was having a seizure.
But whether that was its final struggle, it soon fell limp as if its string had been cut.
I confirmed that it had completely stopped moving before pulling my foot away.
“…Not going?”
After dealing with the doll, I looked back at Sophia, who still stood in place.
To be honest, it was a bit problematic for her to keep standing there, so I prompted her gently.
She finally seemed to realize she was still in danger and started trying to wake Arthur, who had knocked his head against the wall and fainted from shock.
“Arthur, Arthur! Are you alive?!”
“…Ugh, huh? What happened, senpai… just now――”
Fortunately, it seemed he had only been lightly stunned as he began to open his eyes.
Not fully comprehending the situation, he looked around with sleepy eyes.
“W-Wow?!”
After spotting the shattered doll lying beneath me, he seemed to recall everything that had happened just before he lost consciousness and panicked, scrambling to move away from it.
“Calm down. It’s all over now. Look, it’s completely destroyed.”
“…Y-Yeah.”
Sophia pointed to the thoroughly smashed doll, trying to reassure him.
Arthur took a deep breath, showing signs of calming down, but soon his frightened gaze transformed into one filled with questions as he turned his eyes toward me.
“…How?”
What do you mean, how? I just kicked it really hard.
Of course, I knew the answer he wanted wasn’t that simple.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have time for lengthy explanations.
Both of them seemed to realize that the sounds of many footsteps approaching from deeper in the hallway meant we didn’t have time to sit around and chat.
Throwing aside any small doubts and curiosities, they began sprinting away for their lives in the opposite direction of the hallway.
“Hurry, before it’s too late!”
As the two raced towards the end of the hallway, their faces showed they wanted to ask me plenty of things, but as mentioned, they had no time to inquire or listen to answers.
Concerned that their pace might lag, I reminded them that the situation was urgent.
――THUMP, THUMP, THUMP
The sound of many heavy footsteps approaching, contrasted against the receding sounds of two lighter rushing feet.
Occasionally, Sophia looked back at me as if lingering, but fortunately, Arthur held her arm, trying to keep her moving.
I waved my hand lightly to reassure her until they disappeared down the hallway.
After the two disappeared,
Not long after, countless dolls emerged from the opposite end of the hallway.
――CRANK
――CRANK, CRANK
――CRANK, CRANK, CRANK, CRANK
Dozens of dolls that looked just like the one before.
All of them appeared to be battered, broken, and damaged, as if they had just come from a fierce battle.
But that alone clearly wasn’t enough; they had arrived here hunting for new victims.
―CRUNCH
As I turned my head while grabbing the back of my neck with one hand, the sound of my bones popping lightly filled the air.
Sadly, I still had no idea what was happening here.
Suddenly, a loud siren rang out, Sophia came to get me, and a bizarre doll ambushed us, so I just kicked it.
I had no idea what that doll was or why it was so hell-bent on killing someone.
But… sometimes things can be solved just by smashing them.
For instance, when you need to destroy all the murderous dolls full of the facility.
Or making the one who messed up someone else’s plans face the consequences and venting your frustration about it.
Fortunately, those were tasks I was more than confident in handling.
Spotting my prey, the group of dolls began to weave and rush toward me.
Making all sorts of bizarre sounds as they filled the hallway, it looked like a tidal wave crashing down.
I had no intention of dodging the tsunami heading my way.
I charged forward, throwing myself into that wave without hesitation.