Deep in the Living

Chapter 557 The House of Resentment
Roddy was separated from the woman by several dining tables.

Observation reveals that the other person is constantly on edge, glancing around the store from time to time, as if something unseen is following her.

Just as Roddy was about to approach her and ask what was going on,

Snapped!
Two steaming bowls of tonkotsu ramen were already placed in front of him; he hadn't even noticed when the owner had arrived.

"Could it be... again..."

Time stands still.

Blurred vision

A dialog box appears.

Luo Di was also filled with helplessness. He never expected that he would encounter such a thing after going to great lengths to find a ramen shop outside the city.

A string of distorted, small characters first appeared at the top of the retina.

The ramen shop owner brought over some tonkotsu ramen, but the bowl looked strange. The meat slices didn't seem fully cooked, and the noodles were wriggling like earthworms. You noticed the owner's eyes were completely white; he didn't seem like a living person.

The owner just stares at you like that, as if he won't leave until you finish eating.
Your choice is...≯
"I don't care, I'll just eat my ramen."

"Indicates that the food is not to their liking and they refuse to eat."

"Find an excuse to leave the ramen shop"

"This time there are actually three options."

The latter two both mean "to refuse," but in different directions.

The last option seems harmless; choosing it should allow you to leave the store immediately. However, during your time away from the store, the woman might encounter trouble, and the clues you've obtained might be lost.

Refusing to eat in front of someone will most likely anger them.

If you were to eat it directly, and this bowl of tonkotsu ramen were actually made with fish, the level of alienation would probably increase even further.

"Let's play it safe. Even if we lose the clues, I can find them slowly..."

Just as Roddy was about to choose the last option, he suddenly realized that the word "slowly" was problematic. He couldn't afford to slow down at all now; he had to end this incident as soon as possible.

My eyes are focused on the first option: noodles!
Roddy's body began to move uncontrollably.

Pick up your chopsticks and start enjoying your meal.

Although this process was not initiated by Roddy, he could still feel the entire eating process, the texture and taste of the food, and so on.

It definitely didn't taste quite right, especially the noodles, which seemed to wriggle in my mouth like living things, and even after I bit them off, they kept struggling.

As Roddy finished drinking the entire bowl of soup, a notification appeared on his retina.

"Physical fitness test successful!"
Ramen may seem strange, but your digestive system is far superior, successfully killing and absorbing the "living things" within the noodles. This bowl of ramen is incredibly nutritious, not only filling your hunger but also giving you a noticeable boost of energy.

The text on the retina gradually faded.
Roddy felt a surge of immense power coursing through his body, and he could even see the muscle tissue moving beneath his skin, with his muscle density increasing.

While maintaining the same body shape, the weight increased the weight of this bowl of ramen.

"Is this even possible? I thought the fish-related substances mixed in would increase my mutation, but it actually benefits me and improves my personal abilities?"

If viewed this way, does this alienation not seem entirely harmful?

Just as Roddy felt his body brimming with energy and his power amplified,

He suddenly noticed that Katayama was actually eating noodles by himself, which was strange, since Roddy had skipped the noodle-eating process by "selecting".

"Katayama, didn't you encounter any options?"

"I encountered it, and I chose to refuse. Then they said I had successfully passed the charm test, and the owner made me a normal bowl of noodles, which was actually quite delicious."

His bowl of tonkotsu ramen really is tonkotsu ramen, there's nothing wrong with it.

Seeing how intently Luo Di was watching, Katayama asked in a low voice, "Want some?"

"No, you eat."

Roddy turned his gaze back to the woman opposite him.

The shop owner happened to serve the other person a whole fish noodle soup.
The noodles were topped with pieces of undercooked sea fish, and even the broth had a marine sheen.

"what is that……"

Through his unique gray vision, Roddy saw something incongruous.
A clump of black hair had appeared at the woman's feet without her noticing.

The clump of jet-black hair was slowly wrapping around her legs, now extending past her knees, and an arm covered in runes could be seen hidden within it.

"Ju-on?"

Roddy decisively spread the gray color over, attempting to mark it.

This poor woman was about to be devoured by the curse.
Sudden changes.

The woman devoured the fish like a hungry wolf, while simultaneously shoveling soup into her mouth.

As she ingested the fish, an unusual aura was released from her body.

The black hair that had been wrapped around her body slowly receded, symbolizing that the threat of the curse was fading away on its own. It seemed that the curse itself was being resisted and rejected.

"The fish... is it influencing Ju-on? Has this movie, which originally belonged to a corner, been distorted and constrained?"

Roddy continued to watch the woman frantically eating. She herself seemed to sense the departure of the curse, and her expression gradually changed from panic to maniacal laughter.

Peeking through the gaps in that smile,

Her mouth was filled with fish scales.

The structure of the tongue has also changed, becoming thin, long, and mottled white.

Beneath the skin, there appeared to be some kind of strip-like structure moving about, resembling a strange metallic structure.

She may appear to be human on the outside, but her body has probably undergone a complete transformation.

The woman quickly finished all her food, and just as she was about to get up and leave, Roddy sat down directly in front of her.

"Hello, I'd like to ask if you're being chased by something and need to eat fish to feel normal?"

The woman had long since lost her initial panic, her eyes wide as if about to leap out of her skin. "What's it to you? I'm leaving."

The woman had just gotten up.
Snapped!
Roddy grabbed him, but this time he didn't use any of his abilities to avoid causing the same kind of abnormal death as before.

"I can help you resolve this."

"No need, thank you for your kindness. And nothing is chasing me, please let go of my hand."

Roddy didn't insist, decisively letting go and allowing the other person to leave.

His goal had been achieved: to touch the woman and obtain the resentful aura emanating from her. Combined with the cursed substance he had previously marked in gray, this would greatly reduce the investigation time.

"Katayama, let's go."

"Oh~"

Although the gray markers provided weak signals, they were enough for Roddy to pinpoint a general urban area, and the vehicle soon stopped at a street intersection.

Before us lay a gloomy street, with rows of detached houses lining both sides.

The marker is located within the building's perimeter.

A chilling wind blew out, carrying a foul, fishy stench—the smell of dead fish.

"It should be inside. Let's go."

Walking into this alleyway where no more than five people can walk side by side, most of the detached houses on both sides are deserted, and dead fish can be seen everywhere on the ground.

Even in some abandoned courtyards, you can see these dead fish scattered on the rooftops.

"There are far too many fish corpses. Are they specifically used to suppress the curse?"

while walking,

Roddy stopped in his tracks.

It stopped outside the gate of one of the houses.

This was the only place without any dead fish, and the aura it emitted was similar to that of the restaurant woman that Roddy had touched.

Looking in from outside the courtyard,

The house itself is a typical two-story structure in Japan.

Low and oppressive.

The entryway was small and shrouded in shadow. The dark wooden door was tightly shut, preventing any possibility of peeping or entry.

The small vent above the door, its glass filthy, resembled a half-blind, cloudy eye, coldly gazing out. Behind the vent, only impenetrable darkness drowned out any light attempting to penetrate.

The second-floor window was eye-catching; the curtains were dirty, faded linen-colored, and hung heavily... It always felt like someone was standing behind the curtains, secretly watching the visitors downstairs.

The windowpanes were also covered with years of grime, reflecting no brightness of the sky, only an unsettling haze.

The hedges surrounding the house were unusually dense, their stiff branches and leaves huddled together, blocking the view of outsiders and deepening the sense of isolation of the house itself.

The soil near the base of the house seemed darker in color, and it was damp and cold year-round. An invisible chill seemed to emanate from the shadows in the corners of the walls.

"Is this the infamous Ju-on? It's definitely different."

Without hesitation, Roddy stepped into it.

To my surprise, my vision blurred again, and some strange prompts and dialog boxes appeared.

<You are entering a private house that stands out from its surroundings. What is your choice?>
[Inspect the front door]

[Check the backyard]

[Check the front yard]

[Attempt to climb up to the second-floor window]

(End of this chapter)