The Strongest Sorcerer, Chapter 37: Tokyo Onmyoji Branch Arrives!

Magano.

A relentless and unprecedented hunt was underway.

Countless Kegare of various shapes and sizes surged through buildings and streets. Their sharp claws and fangs were their weapons, mercilessly claiming human lives.

In a narrow alleyway, a middle-aged man crouched in a corner, trembling in fear. He clasped his hands together in prayer, muttering desperately under his breath.

“Don’t see me, don’t see me…”

‘Thud, thud, thud—’

The sound of massive footsteps echoed.

The man’s body stiffened, and he slowly raised his head in terror. Not far from him, a gigantic humanoid Kegare, standing over fifty meters tall, was passing by.

He instinctively held his breath.

Fortunately, the Kegare didn’t seem to notice him. It raised one enormous foot and lumbered away into the distance.

“Phew—phew— cough, cough…”

Seeing the Kegare move away, the man exhaled in relief, greedily gulping in air. However, after just a few breaths, he began coughing violently.

The air in Magano was filled with miasma.

Humans with low or no cursed energy couldn’t survive here for long. They would eventually pass out from the toxic atmosphere.

“No, no, I have to stay alive,” the man murmured to himself.

Scrambling to his feet, he decided to find another place to hide.

But just as he stood, a small, beast-like Kegare appeared at the entrance of the alleyway, blocking his path.

The man froze, a bitter smile forming on his lips.

“Ah—!”

A bloodcurdling scream echoed through the alley.

Similar tragedies were unfolding everywhere in Magano…

Inside a building resembling a shopping mall.

Umaru, Ebina Nana, and Masuzu Natsukawa were hiding in a store, along with over a hundred other people.

These were the survivors who had managed to escape from the park.

When they first arrived in Magano, the area around the park was crawling with Kegare. Although over ten people had died, the vast majority—nine out of ten—had successfully fled.

They had gathered in this shopping mall, the closest and safest hiding spot they could find.

“Umaru, do you think… we’ll ever be able to go back home?”

Behind the cashier counter, Ebina’s eyes glistened with tears as she spoke in a choked voice.

The sudden arrival in this horrifying world, being chased by several pitch-black monsters, and witnessing people being devoured alive during their escape had pushed the usually cheerful girl to her breaking point.

Umaru didn’t respond. She bit her lower lip hard, remaining silent.

She didn’t know.

She didn’t want to know.

But deep in her heart, the scales of her thoughts were already tipping toward one ominous conclusion: We might never make it back.

“…Onii-chan…”

Looking at the protective charm she had been clutching tightly since entering Magano, Umaru’s façade of strength crumbled.

Tears rolled down her cheeks, dripping onto the charm in her hand.

She was scared—terrified that she might never return to the real world. Terrified that she might never see her brother again.

“It’s okay. We’ll definitely make it back,” Masuzu said suddenly.

Forcing a strained smile, she tried to comfort the tearful Ebina beside her.

Although her own body was trembling with fear, she still tried her best to reassure the others.

“Do you think the monsters haven’t come here yet because they’ve already left?” someone in the group speculated hesitantly.

“I don’t buy it. Why don’t you go out and check for yourself?”

“Why should my husband go? Why don’t you go?”

“I—I… because your husband suggested it…”

In the store, a small group whispered nervously, while the majority sat silently, their eyes vacant, still trapped in their fear.

‘Roar—’

Suddenly, a deafening growl reverberated through the building.

The once-whispering group instantly fell silent.

‘Creak, creak—’

The sound of Kegare footsteps echoed like a death knell in the eerie stillness.

The Kegare was circling the area. It could sense the cursed energy of humans within the building.

Floor by floor, it ascended.

Finally, on the fourth floor, a gorilla-like Kegare paused.

Tilting its massive head, it moved toward one of the stores.

The very store where Umaru, Ebina, and Masuzu were hiding.

“The monster’s coming this way!”

One of the people who had been keeping watch outside suddenly panicked.

In the tense silence, the sound of the Kegare’s footsteps grew louder.

For one boy in the group, the pressure became too much. His mental defenses completely shattered.

Grabbing a clothing rack bar, he rushed out with a crazed look in his eyes, screaming at the top of his lungs.

“Die, you monster!”

He swung the bar at the Kegare.

HP: -0.

The Kegare caught the bar with its right hand and effortlessly flung it aside. The boy, still gripping the bar, was sent flying into a wall, slamming into it with a sickening thud. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

“Ahhh! Somebody help!”

“Save me! Please save me!”

“I don’t want to die! My parents are waiting for me at home!”

“…”

The group wanted to rush out, but more Kegare had arrived, completely blocking the store’s exits.

Despair descended.

‘Die, Kegare!’

Suddenly, a voice filled with righteous fury echoed from the sky.

A figure clad in white descended rapidly from above, wielding a massive sword.

With a single strike, the sword pierced the back of the gorilla-like Kegare.

Pulling the blade free, the man swung it again and again, dispatching the Kegare blocking the entrance. Each one disintegrated into glowing five-pointed stars.

Exhaling heavily, the man turned to face the terrified crowd, his expression calm but firm.

“It’s okay now. I’m an Onmyoji from the Tokyo branch. I’ve come to rescue you.”