spr | The House in Which Nightmares Dwell 14.2

Hirota headed straight to the door window facing the garden.

"I'll check whether there's an ambush or not. I’ll guide you out."

He said and opened the window. He put his hand on the shutter.

-- The shutter didn't move.

He attempted to shake it lightly several times. Mai rushed to him, supported him with her hand and said:

"It won't open!"

It didn't look like it was unperturbed. Perhaps it was fixed with something from outside.

"At this rate the same will be done to the windows in the entranceway and the balcony."

Hirota's whisper swayed the candle light inside the room and went out.

-- ‘Calm down’, Naru warned while he himself was self-aware of calming himself down enough. However, it was essential to be calm above being self-aware. This time for sure there should not be a flaw in his thoughts. He should not commit a failure beyond this.

-- What about the furniture on the first floor?

A cupboard, a table and chairs in the dining kitchen. A tall shelf and a washing machine in the dressing room. The kitchen’s refrigerator, the living room’s television furniture, 18 inch color television and mini stereo system. A sofa and a low table. A single low chest in the base.

-- Can they block the entrance with only this much?

Build a barricade in front of the full-length mirror. -- However, that door turns open to the outside. Outside is the narrow backyard. If they open the door and carry out the stuff that was piled up, it would be sufficient. With only that much, would they really be able to stop those people?

-- It's better than not doing anything.

"-- Hirota-san."

Naru approached the door of the living room. He realized it was possible that the Sasakuras were already outside this door.

"... ... What is it?"

"Please come. We're moving the furniture."

"-- Furniture?"

"Let's build a barricade in front of the full-length mirror. We might be able to stop them for only just a little while."

He opened the door while saying that. He was completely careful, but he didn't let that carefulness be noticed by the other people. Panic would definitely ensue if they realized that it was likely that the Sasakuras were already in this house. Putting aside Mai if she recovers at the last moment from losing her nerves, he didn't know how the other three would get out. Until Mai recovered, he was also anxious for her.

It wasn't possible to deal with four people, who were frightened and in a frenzy, and be on alert for trespassers on top of that. Above all, it was important not to have them panic.

"Understood."

He stopped Hirota who was about to follow and come after him, and pointed at the door leading to the dining room.

"Please get the table over here."

The Sasakuras might be in the corridor and they might already be bating their breaths in the dining room. If Hirota and Naru passed by both directions, they would at least be able to confirm the living room's safety.

While looking at Hirota who nodded, Naru searched for any presence in the back of the corridor. -- No one was there. It seemed like no one was there.

Then he stepped outside the door. At least he couldn't see anyone in the corridor. He closed the door behind him and examined the top of the staircase. He walked the corridor, opened the door of the dressing room, and then he opened the sliding screen of the 4.5 tatami mat room. -- So far there was no one around at least.

He looked towards the full-length mirror. He could see nothing strange about it.

-- Outside was the backyard. It was surrounded by walls on three sides and couldn’t be an escape route. Just because they block this up, it shouldn’t stop being a path of retreat.

The moment he thought that, he put his hand on the chest in the 4.5 tatami mat room. It wasn't heavy to the point that he'd have to drag it along. Immediately after there were footsteps behind him, he heard Hirota's voice.

"-- Can we block the full-length mirror with this?"

When he nodded, Mai and the others who came in a bit later, rushed in with small steps.

"-- We'll help."

'I'll leave it to you,' Naru said as he parted, and went towards the second floor.

"-- Naru?"

"I'm going to check whether the doors upstairs are locked."

-- Whether the doors are closed, and whether someone is already upstairs.

"-- Is this fine?"

Naru came down after confirming that no one was around on the second floor. A barricade was already built in front of the full-length mirror with the table and chest.

"Put something in the gap between the chest and the wall."

Taking care so that it wasn’t possible to carry the barricade along from the outside, they brought and placed the monitors from the base into that gap with the wall. Furthermore, to make sure that the corridor was blocked up, they moved and placed the cupboard and refrigerator against it.

-- It would be good if those people gave up because of this.

"Go upstairs. Wrench open the shutters of the balcony.

There were only three escape routes to the outside. The entranceway, the door window of the living room and the balcony on the second floor. All were blocked from the outside -- Naru had confirmed that. -- But, it wasn't impossible to wrench one open if they took the time. Even so, when those people have invaded, the one on the second floor was probably the safest.

There was a possibility that Lin and the others were on standby in front of the Sasakura house, but the window of the Sasakura house faced the front garden of the Agawa house. If those people sneaked away from that window, it wouldn't be impossible if they slipped through Lin and the others' view and entered into the garden. Even if they broke the shutters at great pains, it was meaningless if they were on the wait outside. If it's from the balcony, they'd at least be able to confirm any shadows of people in the garden.

While Mai went to the second floor at Naru’s demand, she suddenly sensed something cold along her spine in the middle of the staircase.

Ice slipped down. Thoughts were unnecessary.

"... ... Naru, he came."

She looked over to Naru who was the last to come up right after Hirota.

"-- Kosori is there beyond the door... ..."

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The House in Which Nightmares Dwell 14.2

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