Koishi: Hurry mister Y/N, you're starting to lose!

She yelled to the man following her with the energy that a normal human would have under the influence of adrenaline, casually using the steep side of the mountain to jump up to a higher platform. Landing, he dashed forward and began performing a perfect act of balance by jumping on small pieces of the mountain sticking out, large enough for only a single foot to land on it. Not willing to lose the challenge given to him, he used that shortcut to get beside the youkai taunting him and ran past her.

Y/N: How about you catch up with me before saying something like that?

He showed her a grin and went ahead of the path, sparkling the competition between the both of them. Not willing to lose, the girl with green hair flew behind him and charged past the librarian, taking the lead a second time.

Koishi: Hurry up then if you want to be first!

Her figure began to gain some distance, leaving the librarian behind to himself. Unfortunately, with the speed she was going at, there was no way that he could turn the tide and was forced to give up, his lungs already on the verge of ripping apart.

Y/N: ...

Gritting his teeth, he jumped back on the path and felt his heartbeat going so fast that the oxygen was starting to damage his insides. With his lack of energy, that reaction was expected after running for around 30 minutes nonstop in an uneven mountain.

Y/N's mind: I don't think she realized that I'm not following her.

The air was whipping his face, torturing him even more in his current situation. With that pressed against him, Y/N stood silently in place and recovered from all the running he did in that short amount of time, silently looking down to the ground.

...Not much was done in that 30 minutes, he could even say that they did not even do 10% of the mountain but it was still high enough to give him an incredible view of the surroundings and see what was hidden on the surface of this world.

Y/N: Looks like there's a village in the distance, no idea who's living there though. With my luck, I can assume they all want to murder me.

He mumbled to himself, knowing that nobody will hear his opinion. He was courageous enough to seek for someone that could potentially kill him effortlessly just to remove a curse on him to allow himself to fight an even stronger opponent. Life's not that easy for him and it never was from the moment of his birth.

Y/N: And that way... looks like a forest of bamboo, what is that doing here?

It was another question that will be left unanswered. Ready to continue his journey to the top, he placed the palm of his hand on top of the katana sheathed by his side and looked in the direction where Koishi disappeared.

...She still hasn't come back for him, "She must be really oblivious of her surroundings." were the silent words he mumbled to himself. Meanwhile, the wind began to die down while the powerful Sun was starting to lower towards the horizon, less than 4 hours before the end of the day.

Y/N's mind: I suppose there must be a reason if she didn't want us to go there during the night, I should hurry.

He pressed onward and the small rocks beneath his feet fell down the cliff beside him, taking a dangerous shortcut to reach a higher level of the mountain. After a certain point, he jumped and dug his elbows into the dirt of the ground above him, pulling himself upward with that new anchor. Reaching a new axis in altitude, he glanced around and discovered an entrance leading inside the steep hill with a path leading inside.

???: This isn't gonna do! I need something major!

The voice of someone echoed and the man crouched slightly in response, his hand around the handle of the weapon by his side tightening. Being wary of the nature around him, he quickly made a check to determine a possible escape route. The ones offered to him was to jump down the sharp cliff or rush in the entrance.

Y/N: ...

Taking his chances with the path, he turned around and ran inside without looking back, sure of his decision. Entering the dark area, his footsteps began to multiply, as if shadows of his past were copying his every movements. They all mimicked him until his body was shoved to the side by something.

???: Ouch! What was that?

Sitting in front of him, a short black haired girl with a white top and a black dress was facing him. On top of her head, a small red hat was resting there and an orange fan in her hand, a camera in her second one. Her red eyes landed on the man and widened a little in surprise before standing up on her odd shoes, odd in Y/N's eyes.

???: I'm sorry, hard to see much in a cave like this if you're not used to the lack of light.

She apologized and placed the camera around her neck, still holding her head with a slight pain. The librarian frowned and did the same, taking his distance from the girl. Now that he gained a certain amount of distance between the both of them, he could faintly see the outline of dark wings in her back.

Y/N: Youkai.

???: Hm? Woah, now that I have a look at you, what is that attire?

She asked with a certain surprise that left the man unfazed, reaching for his weapon. The youkai noticed his movement and raised her hands in the air, showing him that she wasn't planning on hurting him.

???: Hey hey, no need to be violent!

Y/N: ...How can I trust you? You might just backstab me like everyone else.

His hostile tone left the one questioned speechless. Normally, she was the one asking questions to people, not the opposite. Recovering her professionalism, she looked at the man glaring at her with mistrust.

???: How about we start over, we definitely didn't start this conversation on a good note.

She raised her hand and showed it to Y/N, who frowned in response.

???: I am Aya Shameimaru, proud journalist of the truth, you must have heard from me!

Y/N: So you're a fraud, I see.

The girl's face became livid at his cold remark, her hand shaking a little as well. It was a normal reaction after getting her whole ego shattered in a mere second. Her eyes were now blank and she was spacing out as well.

Y/N: A journalist can only lie for their benefit, they want the popularity and nothing else while many die for their sake. Those people die for the sake of knowledge and you trample over their sacrifices like you are above them.

Aya: I am not a liar! I would not disregard the sacrifices for the sake of knowledge and the truth!

Y/N: ...

Aya: Plus, how would you even know that?

Y/N: ...

Aya: Not answering? Fine.

Her tantrum out of the way, she observed him from top to bottom with her eyes, sparkling with a certain interest.

Aya: Are you an outsider perhaps?

Y/N: No idea, I only saw the light of the world today.

He mumbled back, still holding the blade by his side. The youkai acknowledged that he would not move it away from the weapon and decided to ignore it for now.

Aya: With an outfit like that, you definitely aren't a human from the village but I can tell with a glance that you are human, you could only be an outsider.

Y/N: And you think so because...

Aya: Journalist's instinct.

She answered with a proud smile, taking out a notepad and an old-looking pen. She gave the man an imposing gaze and began her usual duty when her interest reaches a certain level.

Aya: I can't let an opportunity such as this one slide, why don't you tell me your life before arriving at Gensokyo?

Y/N: ...

The librarian immediately knew that telling a single word to her would be a fatal mistake and ran past her, fleeing the scene with steady movements.

...When the path began to rise up, the youkai was greeted with a sight that left her with even more interest, witnessing the man jumping up the slope with small jumps repeatedly to keep himself in the air during his ascension, something that a human would have great difficulties achieving.

Aya: *Chuckle* No matter how fast you are, nobody can escape the great journalist Shameimaru!

That statement was no joke and with a small boost, she flew at a speed that would put Y/N's performance to shame. She elegantly landed at the very top and the man reached her but didn't stop, running past her with a fierce look, aiming for his escape.

Playing along, the girl took off and rushed for the exit of the dark cavern, where the man will be forced to go through if he wanted to leave. Soon, she saw his figure ran towards her with a mind of steel, not hesitating for a second.

Aya: That's surely gonna make a lot of people gawk when they see this.

She grinned and aimed the camera to the man, waiting for the perfect picture. She pressed the button and a sound of confirmation told her that the picture was successfully taken. However, it left her at a large disadvantage. The librarian pulled out the sword and lunged at the girl with no hesitation.

Aya: Woah-!

Many slashes flew in her vision like a spectacle of light and once that was completed, she turned around and saw the man brake in front of exit, looking back at her. Glaring in her direction, he sheathed back the katana and the sound of metal fell down on the ground. She silently followed the sound and discovered her camera destroyed into pieces and on the ground, now mere scrap.

Y/N: Taking pictures such as this one without someone's consent is a crime.

He turned around and ran away, leaving the girl behind to mourn the death of her trusty ally. Looking around her body, she couldn't find a single scratch on her clothes or even her at all, all his hits were perfectly made to only destroy the device.

Aya: That was...

She looked back at the exit, the human long gone now. With a thought crossing her mind, her shock turned into a grin, a plan forming inside her head.

Aya: That one will surely be the scoop of the year, no doubt.

She flew outside of the cave and aimed for the top of the mountain. She knew that he was aiming for the top at this rate and knew very well how to intercept him. All that was missing was to introduce someone she knows to him and her scoop will surely fall into her hands.

...

...

Y/N: *Gasp* Damn it, not again.

Leaning against a tree that grew up in the mountain, he was loudly panting while his heart was rotting away. His exhaustion consuming it like gasoline at a rate that was exceeding the worrisome stage, his lungs trying their hardest to recover from all he did in that short amount of time.

Y/N: Doesn't help that the oxygen might start to lack for me at the top.

His legs gave up and he dropped on the green grass below, his head falling against the trunk. The Sun was beginning to disappear and let the Moon rule over the sky. Of course, he was probably around 40% there so he would have to make a part of it during the night, putting him at a great disadvantage.

Y/N: Koishi still isn't back, where the hell did she go?

Maybe that was her plan, to convince him to go somewhere as dangerous as this and discard the librarian there to the monsters, she betrayed him just like the others who came from outside that door. It was a miracle that the food her sister brought wasn't poisoned but it won't matter since his life will end here.

Y/N: *Sigh* I shouldn't stop, time is not something I should waste.

He slowly stood up and walked to the next level of the mountain, following the used path by those from the past. The light of the day weakening with each passing moments, the nightfall of pain will emerge soon and once it does, chaos will ensue.

Y/N: At least I should be able to see someone who use flames as weapons from afar.

Talking about his guest, he could feel the wind slowly coming back, announcing a fresh night. The librarian outside of his safe haven glanced at everything he did to get there and continued, hoping that a better terrain will greet him later.

...

...

Koishi: I won!

She exclaimed while landing on the path leading to the shrine, a victorious smile as well. Her arms raised in the air, she took a deep breath, enjoying the moment and turned around, expecting the man to follow soon after... only for him to never show up.

Koishi: ...Mister Y/N?

She weakly called his name and stepped away from the shrine, back to the path she raced with him on. It was completely devoid of his presence and no matter how many times she called him, she would never receive an answer.

???: Oh, Koishi, what are you doing here?

A voice called her instead.

Koishi: Huh?

She spun around and faced the girl wearing a white and blue shrine maiden outfit, green hair with a small hairpin in the shape of a toad in them. She was holding a broom in her hands and gave the girl a confused look, not expecting her sudden visit.

Koishi: Hey Sanae!

Sanae: Do you need something?

Koishi: Not me but someone else does.

Sanae: Really?

Koishi: He got cursed by youkais and I told him that you deal with stuff like that so we both began climbing the mountain.

Sanae: A curse?! We should take care of that as soon as possible, where is that person?

Koishi: No idea, he was following me last time I checked, maybe he became lost.

Sanae: This late into the day, we can't just leave him there! Where did you last saw him?

Koishi: At the bottom of the mountain.

Sanae: ...What?

She asked with an expressionless face, her fears dropping inside a black hole known as shock. She silently stared at the youkai standing in front of her and felt like giving her a lecture about not paying attention to her surroundings.

Sanae: This is bad, we should go look for him.

Koishi: I'm sure he's fine, he's strong!

Sanae: A human?

Koishi: Yep, he said that he even fought Suika! Although... he did lose in the end.

Sanae: Of course he did, this is Suika we're talking about! No normal humans could face an oni!

Koishi: ...So that makes him abnormal? I'm not sure I follow your train of thought.

Sanae: Now isn't the time, we have to go find him before a youkai finds him first. What does he look like?

Koishi: An outsider, he has weird clothes.

Sanae: ...Y-You abandoned an OUTSIDER!?

???: What is going on?

Another person joined the conversation and the duo with the same hair color faced the newcomer. She was around Koishi height and wore a purple dress but the most prominent part of her was the hat with eyes looking at the both of them on it.

Sanae: Lady Suwako, it has been brought to my attention that an outsider is lost on the Youkai Mountain.

Suwako: An outsider?!

Koishi: Well, not really an outsider, he was hiding underground-

Sanae: WHAT?! Do I need to know anything else before I have a cardiac arrest?!

Suwako: Sanae, deep breaths.

Sanae: Yes...

She soon began to do so and the second girl stepped past the shrine maiden, approaching the one who arrived at their shrine.

Suwako: Do you have an idea of where he could be?

Koishi: Nope.

Suwako: You didn't even hesitate, at least think of an answer before saying that.

Koishi: Hm... Well, he is quick but he also quickly runs out of energy after a while, at least that's what I saw from him.

Suwako: From what I've heard you last saw him at the bottom of the mountain, do you think he gave up and went back down after a while?

Koishi: I don't think so, he said he wanted to get his curse removed.

Suwako: What kind of curse are we talking about?

Koishi: Dunno, one that you get by devouring the heart of youkais.

Suwako: ...

Sanae: ...What?

They were both shocked and looked at her with wide eyes. The girl responded back by tilting her head to the left, silently asking them if something was wrong. The shrine maiden was the first one to respond and she was not happy at all.

Sanae: The both of you need a good lecture once we find him!

Suwako: We should hurry and go find his location before the night begins or else we can assume the worst.

Sanae: What about the shrine?

Suwako: It's Kanako's shrine, her responsibility. Plus, he wants our help, how could I not help then?

Koishi: We should hurry then.

Suwako: The last thing we want is for him to pick a fight with the tengus.

The three of them glanced in the direction of the path that a human would have taken to get here. Time was against them and a life was in danger, at least Suwako and Sanae thought so. Koishi simply spaced out with her usual smile, knowing that Y/N would not die that easily.

Koishi's mind: ...

But her smile soon dropped, remembering that book talking about him and about how tired he was. Maybe his lack of sleep caught up to him and he collapsed on the way.

Koishi: We definitely should hurry.