Why is my Isekai in the Slice of Life anime was become a Horror Story?

Interlude 1-04: The Beginning of a Less-Than-Ideal New Day

What the heck is going on?

For a moment, Takakai's whole body tensed up, and he almost jumped out of bed, ready to rush to the bedroom door.

He was certain he had escaped from this sacrificial game.

And all day, nothing unusual had happened. Clearly, he was still in a safe environment. So why had this thing appeared as dusk approached? Could it be that strange creatures like this really existed in the world? Were they normally hidden in some undetectable state, and because he had participated in the "Sacrifice Game," he had unlocked some sort of "clairvoyance" that allowed him to see them?

Countless thoughts raced through Takakai's mind.

But soon, he furrowed his brow.

He didn't feel anything special from the woman's face before him.

Thanks to the blessing the little girl had granted him, Takakai could distinguish goodwill from malice, humans from non-humans.

This ability didn't work on the woman's face.

It was as if this thing didn't exist here, or it was merely a natural phenomenon devoid of any intent or emotion.

"..."

After a moment of hesitation, Takakai got up, walked to his desk, and reached out to open the window.

The woman's face remained motionless, gazing straight ahead, floating in place.

Takakai reached out to touch her.

His hand passed right through it.

Nothing.

It was like some kind of 3D projection, with no physical substance to touch.

But what was this thing, exactly? And why could he see it?

After some thought, Takakai got dressed and left the house.

This time, he saw even more.

Under the gloomy evening sky.

In the air, distorted silhouettes hovered over the city—flickering, vanishing, then suddenly reappearing.

Takakai saw countless corpses, countless bizarre creatures, and countless warped, grotesque figures.

Most of them floated in the sky, but a few, like the pale woman's face, had descended, aimlessly drifting through the city's corners.

People passing by didn't seem to see them, and the entities paid no attention to the passersby.

Occasionally, someone would walk right through them, and the entities would also phase through pedestrians, vehicles, walls, and everything else, like glitches in a game—lacking collision detection, able to pass through walls effortlessly—like malfunctioning programs, illusions drifting unnoticed.

What were these things?

Takakai felt his anxiety growing stronger.

The horror game called "Sacrifice," the restless spirits trapped by some unknown beings, endlessly replaying objects imbued with obsessions, and... these apparitions manifesting in the real world. It was like a curtain slowly being drawn back, and he was just one of the actors in this play, unable to foresee, unable to predict what would happen next, or where the ending of this performance would lead.

"No other choice but to take it step by step, huh?"

With that thought, Takakai turned his head and saw a girl with long black hair and striking light golden eyes walking past him, engrossed in her phone. She wore a school uniform, looking like she had just finished school and was on her way home, or perhaps heading back after some outing.

It seemed she lived right next door to him.

The girl's innocent, adorable face, rare even in the world of anime, carried a faint air of frailty and pity.

Takakai couldn't help but glance at her a little longer.

Let me make it clear first: Takakai isn't the type of guy who's always fascinated by beautiful girls. While he's well aware that he has a rather flirtatious nature and enjoys beautiful things, he isn't the kind of person to immediately start fantasizing and acting foolishly when he meets a pretty stranger.

It's just that, since he knows this is a cross anime world and has already met characters like Shinomiya Kaguya and Shijo Maki, Takakai suspects that the beautiful girl he met could be a character from some work. So, he paid a little more attention to her.

As for the girl before him… it was hard to recognize her. There were many anime girls with long black hair, but the only thing he could be sure of was that she wasn't Yukinoshita Yukino, because her chest didn't seem like Yukino's.

But he did pay attention to her house number… Hmm, Yotsuya's house? If it's Yotsuya's… could she be the protagonist from "Mieruko-chan," the girl who's tormented by strange creatures every day, crying her eyes out, Yotsuya Miko?

If she's here, does that mean that the things normal people can't see, one day, will become visible, slowly being noticed by the people around them, and then…

Forget it. Thinking too far ahead won't help. It's better to think about how to survive the next mission.

Takakai wasn't intending to approach the girl just because she seemed pretty. He turned around, searching for a hair salon while continuing his thoughts.

If the first mission in the Shirakawa apartment was rated Dusk, then the next mission would likely be at the same level as this one. As long as he acted carefully, he would be able to get through it safely. Umu, there shouldn't be any major issues, as long as he doesn't run into people like Old Guo and Fake-Maeda, those bastards.

Thinking this, Takakai spotted a hair salon by the roadside and walked right in.

"Boss, I have to meet my girlfriend tomorrow. Could you help me style my hair in a way that's eye-catching?"

Takakai's voice rang out clearly.

Everyone in the shop simultaneously looked up.

"Here you are."

A young staff member wearing glasses said gently.

"Here he is, the type of customer the boss was talking about. Doesn't order anything, just gives demands. Likes it if it's good, but won't pay if it's not to his liking."

A staff member not wearing a t-shirt nodded slightly, his expression serious.

"Are you sure?"

The last staff member, who appeared to be a normal person, raised his hand and asked gently.

Clop—

Finally, a middle-aged man wearing a pink cat-themed apron slowly looked up, locking his gaze onto Takakai, who had just entered the shop.

"Kid, daring to make a request of me, one of the four hairdressing kings of Tokyo, Fujimura, huh? Now you've piqued my interest. It looks like today's the day I'll make my comeback, and restore my legendary 'Twisted Hands' reputation."

Takakai wanted to complain about these people, thinking, "Are you guys overusing classic lines or what? Even though this is a cross anime world, do you really have to make it so forced? Am I in some comedy show?"

Despite wanting to retort, Takakai resigned himself to continue, just getting his hair fixed a bit to look more presentable. Then, he went out and bought a few decent outfits. They weren't extremely fashionable or stylish, but at least they were a lot better than the makeshift clothes he wore when he met Maki last time.

By evening, Takakai contacted Maki and Kaguya, asking if they could see the strange things outside. But both of them responded that they couldn't.

It seemed that, among the players, only Takakai could see these things.

"If I had to say what makes me different from the other players…" Takakai lowered his head, looking at the black watch on his wrist.

Was it this thing that had given him the ability to see these demonic entities?

There was no answer to that question.

So, in the end, Takakai stayed home, playing games, trying out all the gaming consoles, and reflecting that he never could have the peace days like this in the future. He spent the night happily playing until late, before finally going to bed.

That night, he had a strange dream. He dreamed that he was standing on a straight road.

On one side of the road was the adorable Maki, and on the other side were several girls dressed provocatively.

Takakai walked toward Maki, and he heard her snort before turning her face away.

"Who need you choose, you pervert, baka!"

Takakai turned to look at the other girls, and they waved at him, calling him over.

"Handsome, come play with us～"

Takakai seemed hesitant, then turned back to Maki, who had her back to him.

"Hmph, if you want to go, go ahead, you pervert!"

He turned back again to look at the girls and walked toward them.

"Aho, who told you to really go?"

Immediately, a worried voice called out from behind.

Takakai turned around and saw Maki charging toward him, slamming into him. The impact was so strong that Takakai, caught off guard, and Maki both fell backward and landed right in the middle of the group of girls.

The chaotic noise was interrupted by a "beep——" sound. Takakai opened his eyes, and the sky outside the window was getting brighter.

Ah, it was just a dream.

"Why did I dream something like that?" Takakai wondered, but he eventually decided to brush it off, stood up, took a shower, and ate the bread and milk he had bought before coming home the day before. He then checked his phone and confirmed a message from Maki, preparing to head out to the agreed meeting place.

Just then, after turning off silent mode, his phone emitted a sound.

Takakai looked down and saw a news report about the discovery of a woman's body in the bathroom of a bar in Tokyo. The victim had been disemboweled, and the scene was horrific. There was a blurry photo in the report, but the rest of the details were unreadable.

The news had only obscured the important parts, so Takakai quickly focused on the woman's clothing.

This outfit… could it be... Maeda Miwa?

Realizing something was wrong, Takakai abruptly stopped in his tracks.