Part 101: Episode 93: Scarecrow

If the scarecrow went down there with the doctor, it would need to be a pretty big opening…

We’ll have to go and look.
I looked at the clock to figure out how much time we had left to solve this mystery.

…7PM already. We only have three hours until we’re overrun with bloodthirsty humans.
We don’t know for sure if there’s an escape route in the basement, but it’s our best bet.
Maybe we should get everybirdie from the gym to come with us as soon as we find the stairs…
Leave that to me.
Mr. Leone!

Well, then. Thank you, Mr. One.
Umm… You aren’t going with him, sir?
I’m going to come with you, Kawara. We never know what could happen!
…Thank you, sir.
You’re welcome. I am your homeroom teacher, after all.

…What about you, Sakuya?
……
…You two go ahead. I’ll catch up with you.
Right… Okay. We’re going to get out of here together, okay?

Too much has happened today, for both Sakuya and me.
I don’t know what’s on his mind and he doesn’t seem interested in telling me, but--if he wants to be alone, that’s for the best.

I guess it’s the two of us then, Mr. Nanaki.
If something bad happens, one of us can come back to warn you and the others, Mr. Leone.
Understood.

Not so fast!

Before we could leave, however, I heard the familiar sound of glass breaking.
The music stops.

A-Anghel…?

What does he want now? We don’t have time for messing around…



Uhh… The Abyss of Despair…?
I sense Demon Spores far greater in power than even those released by the Tree of Blight… I cannot allow you to face the Dark Sorcerer Wallenstein alone!

The Wallenstein guy is the doctor, right?

Okay, uh…

Wait, Anghel, we need to be careful! Wait!
He certainly is lively. Let’s go!

And so the two of us chased after Anghel in order to keep him out of trouble.
The music stops.



Mmm, yes. Not a very friendly room, but not distasteful, either.
This place is flooded with Demon Spores. Any good bird would normally avoid it.
Can you think of anything, sir? Like a hidden door, or…
I don’t come here very much, so… hmm…
Do you feel a draft?
A draft…?
There are no windows in here… It must be coming in from the basement.
!



Gate of Erebus! Guide me to the Abyss!
Wait, calm down, Anghel! You can’t--

My warning fell on deaf ears, however, as Anghel swung around and completely destroyed a nearby mirror. The glass fell to the floor with a loud shatter.
The music stops.

Oh, there it is. So it was behind the mirror all along?
He’s… he’s a lot more clever than he acts, isn’t he…?

Even if he does spout nonsense whenever he opens his beak.





How far does it go? The basement itself should be pretty big… This is sort of like the entrance into a subway tunnel.

Let’s go.


When we reached the end of the staircase, a long corridor stood in front of us.

This is… a lot fancier than I expected.

I never knew this huge place was underneath the school…
This facility has been used for research to kill humans since the school was founded…
I--Goon--none of us ever knew. We lived our carefree lives with all this going on beneath our feet…

Hmm, I don’t see anybirdie. I wonder if it’s closed now…?
Yeah. It’s clean and orderly, but… I don’t get the feeling that it’s still in use.
There was a fire somewhere down here five years ago, and since then the whole facility’s been shut up--
I supposed they froze whatever project they were working on…
Hey, Anghel. Which was do you think we should go to find the doctor?

The Midnight Hunter approaches!

!
Even I could tell what he was referring to with that name. I turned around.



C-couldn’t you have said so earlier!?
Oh, dear. If we don’t get past him, we can’t go on.
We cannot reach Wallenstein without first defeating his dark servant… This trial cannot be avoided!
But all we’ve ever managed to do is run away from this thing! How can we--
Hyu… hyuo… hyu…

The scarecrow-man swung his arm wide, hitting the wall.

We can’t get anywhere just by running away… Do we have any sort of weapon?
A weapon…? I do have the stungun Mr. Leone lent me…
Will it even work on a scarecrow…?
Maybe not at normal output… But it looks like a living creature, so I doubt it would be completely unaffected.
The Midnight Hunter is a hound bred from the Black Void. We must purify it with holy water!
Oh, yes! That’s a good idea.
Wh-what? What did he even say!?

Mr. Nanaki hobbles toward the wall, and pulls out the hose.

…Of course!
Ready…

He points the hose at the scarecrow, and opens the valve.

Anghel, Sir! Get back!

I set the stungun to maximum, and hurl it at the scarecrow!
The music stops.













……

It collapses with an unpleasant noise.
Its electrified metal arm twitches for a moment, but then it is still.

We did it!
Electricity is a powerful thing indeed…

Hyu… o, o… oa…
…o…
…………

With one last metallic creak, the scarecrow-man finally falls unmoving and silent.

Goodbye, Mr. Scarecrow.
…Onwards!