Episode 05

**The Monster** (怪物 *Kaibutsu*) is the fifth episode of the *Dead Mount Death Play* anime.

## Official Blurb

Just when he thought the cops were bad enough, Polka comes face to face with Lemmings, Shinjuku's most legendary criminal. Will Polka reveal his necromancy to save his new friends? And will his powers even be enough to save them if he does?

## Synopsis

Clarissa instructs Koruto and Izuna not to attack Lemmings just yet, since he would have killed someone already if that had been his intention. Kōzaburō similarly tells Iwanome to stop trying to guess Lemmings' true intentions, as analysis is pointless when they should focus on capturing a nationally most wanted criminal. Iwanome reminds Arase that witnesses are present, darkness notwithstanding, as Arase and his men prepare to attack.

Misaki Sakimiya whispers to Corpse God that Lemmings is probably far more frightening than the police. Corpse God agrees, frozen in place, for he can see a mass of spirits hovering about Lemmings—possibly his victims—in a warring state of fear and hatred.

Two of Arase's underlings are flung into a wall by Lemmings, followed by a third. Arase kicks up a broken bottle and drives its jagged end into Lemmings' torso while Deathclaw Saya leads patrons—potential witnesses, as Iwanome haplessly reiterates—toward the exit. The broken bottle shatters sans effect, so Arase swings a baton at Lemmings' head, only for Lemmings to effortlessly catch it mid-swing, much to Arase's personal insult.

Lemmings preternaturally dashes over to Misaki, bows, throws her over her shoulder, and runs away from Corpse God, who outthrusts his hand to cast a spell—and falters. His desired peace would be forsaken if the police were to witness his magic or if he were to take a stand against "that monster," who, like Shagrua Lugrid, appears to be a human who has pushed beyond human limits. Between forsaking peace or forsaking "the girl," only one is the obvious choice: forsake the girl and run.

Arase attempts to handcuff said monster, who kicks him against the far wall and leaps past the second story to grasp Youtoukorou's massive chandelier. When Lemmings is swinging from it to the second floor, two necromantic spells unleash serrated bone blades at him under the cover of darkness and the actual under-cover of the second floor. Corpse God acknowledges that he has already "messed up [his] reincarnation," but it is with a smile that he tells him remembered master, "Teacher, it seems I've become quite a fool."

**Opening credits.**
Lisa extinguishes her flame as Iwanome strains to see what is happening through the gloom. Corpse God uses a skeletal hand to catch a falling Misaki and, when she loudly calls out Polka Shinoyama's name, hisses at her to be quiet so the two of them can abscond. The bone blades fracture with such a clamor that Arase darts to protect Iwanome from the noise's source and perhaps from the debris they can hear hitting the ground. Iwanome activates his smartphone's flashlight and aims it hither and thither; the light briefly falls on Misaki and the skeletal hand giving her a ride to the first floor and then on Lemmings, who runs toward Misaki as if unhindered by the pitch darkness.

Lemmings ducks, weaves, and sprints across all the skeletal blades and arms that Corpse God throws at him. Occasionally he punches back, bandaged fists shattering skeletal hands of far greater size (and shrapnel consequently shattering bottles and glasses) until he finally shatters that which holds Misaki. He murmurs a question in her ear that she refuses to answer, lest she be reprimanded—but when he looks at Corpse God, she grabs his arm, says Polka is innocent, and whispers something in his ear.

"Well, I told you!" Misaki says. "Satisfied now?" As a "freebie", she attempts to bite Lemming's hand, complaining that the bandages are too thick, then jams her fork from earlier into Lemmings' thigh. Lemmings sways from the paralytic saliva, vision blurring, but the saliva's trace amount is too faint to keep him from lurching to his feet. Misaki giggles. Corpse God converts all the souls haunting Lemmings into magic with which he conjures a massive articulated skeleton. The skeleton outthrusts a hand at Lemmings and ultimately causes him to leave the premises.

Electricity, once restored, illuminates a thoroughly wrecked bar. Chairs and tables are overturned, liquor is spilled from shattered bottles, and glass shards coat torn upholstery and the counters, the latter of which are scratched and gouged like the walls. Iwanome freely admits that the police were useless in preventing or stopping the altercation and suggests to Arase, who lights Iwanome's cigarette, that the next time their team returns, they return in full gear. This sounds a little extreme to Lisa, but Iwanome just as freely admits that he is not courageous enough to return unarmed. Lisa subtly reinforces her territorial authority by pointing out that Iwanome is in a non-smoking area.

Shinjuku is bathed in an early sunset when Lemmings reports back to Takeru Shinoyama, who throws a file and attached Shinoyama family photograph onto his desk and chides Lemmings for taking unusually long to return. Lemmings has taken at least a day since the first news he murmurs to Takeru is of Jinba's murder. This is not particularly trifling news, but it is not the only news that Lemmings—or "Nezu," as Takeru calls him—has brought. He points to Polka in the family photograph,

Misaki puts Takumi Kuruya's call on speaker as she and a disquieted Corpse God walk down a street. Takumi exclaims that they survived an encounter with one of Shinjuku's urban legends, more or less, and assumes that Corpse God accomplished this by expending much of his magical reserves. Corpse God confirms this to be true, but says that he recouped the magic and gained more besides from the sheer amount of spirits haunting Lemmings. While waiting for a pedestrian crossing light to turn green, he thanks Misaki for protecting him at the cost of telling Lemmings a secret. She kindly replies that she evened the score between herself and Corpse God since Corpse God had saved her from Lemmings.

Corpse God remembers how his necromancy mentor encouraged him to help someone if he wanted to, no matter how long he had known that person. After all, she expects a necromancer like him to live so long that distinguishing durations of time will someday be impossible. Therefore, it is better not to worry about how long something will last and instead rely upon one's accrued habits and experiences.

However, Corpse God does not have the habits and experiences of someone local to Japan, let alone Earth. He has a frail body that can neither protect himself nor others. He has no money to buy magic-storing gems in a world with a paucity of magic, not that he would have realized so soon that gems require exorbitant amounts of money without Takumi's reality check. What he does have is friends—Misaki, Takumi, and the real Polka—all of whom he humbly asks to teach him about this alien world and themselves. He declares that he wants no peace predicated on the sacrifice of someone who has laughed with him, no matter how briefly.

Once Lemmings has left and the sun has set, Takeru laughs in disbelief that Polka is still alive. How thoroughly Polka had him fooled! With a sneer, he informs the absent Polka that "playtime is over."

Corpse God tells Takumi his intent to start a business the following day. If he has taken anything away from yesterday's encounter, he desperately needs money to live a peaceful life despite the mana limitations. *Despite* since Corpse God would be foolish not to monetize his actual necromancy or actual magic in a world that has no true market competitors. One tamer, cheaper use of necromancy is making contracts with sane spirits and letting them possess or move objects—such as, for instance, a sane spirit called Hosorogi with whom Corpse God made a pact after discovering him in the Abandoned Building's basement.

By dint of possessing Misaki's mechanical pencil, Hosorogi autonomously writes to an amazed Takumi and Misaki that he is honored to meet acquaintances of the famed intermediary Clarissa. However, his eloquence gives way to shady unscrupulousness when he floats the idea of legally flipping this building via duping a land swindler; he even writes out the onomatopoeia of laughter (heh heh heh) to convey a collusive tone. Corpse God shows off to Takumi, Polka, and Hosorogi the business sign he made with Misaki's help: it is crude at best, advertising something vaguely called "The Shop" with equally unhelpful clarifications ("We do things") and celebrations ("Yay!") scribbled in the white space.

Takumi has reservations. "I know you're a freaky monster who could kill me with no sweat, but I'll say this anyway: Are you out of your mind?" Hosorogi, who is merely out of his body, declares that he has a better idea for a money-making scheme.

Three days post-suggestion (undefined in the episode)

A long line of clients queues outside the building's front entrance, where an artistic sign advertises "Fortunes" without further ado. Corpse God sits at a table with a crystal ball, clad in fortunetelling garb that conceals his eyes. Behind him stands a 'uniformed' Misaki, and across him sits a relatively young man who confirms that his career is related to medicine when Corpse God 'divines' it. Corpse God also divines that the man has a blocked energy flow in his left leg. "That's right!" exclaims the man, explaining that he broke it and is still in physical therapy. He is further astonished when Hosorogi autonomously advises him to cut back on playing video games. "Is there anything," the man cries, "you *don't* know?"

***Note:** See the list of changes in #Changes for details on the anime's potential alterations to the timeline.*

One-week post-suggestion (implied in the episode)
With a wad of bills in hand, Takumi looks at the pile of yen on the common room's coffee table and incredulously remarks on Corpse God's success: he has made one hundred grand in one week. Misaki attributes some of the credit to their much-improved sign, which Hosorogi redesigned and drew. Hosorogi now jots down the "keys to sham fortune telling," i.e. *hot readings* and *cold readings*, which Takumi and Polka respectively handle. Even Takumi admits their setup is a good one: he secretly supplies the *hot readings* by using the data from clients' intake forms to research the clients online; Corpse God reads the data on the monitor via the eyeball spy perched on Takumi's shoulder while performing his own *cold readings*.

One client appointment is shown by way of example. The client is an elderly woman whose husband died last month from overeating, per his spirit's sheepish explanation to Corpse God. Corpse God 'divines' the husband's death, then relays what the husband whispers in his ear: the location of a hidden key in the woman's garden. The woman wonders out loud if the key could be a safe combination, which her beaming husband with a double thumbs up.

While the fortunes themselves must appear entirely genuine, Takumi continues, the schtick with the autonomous pencil must come off as a "total gimmick." Hosorogi replies that initially allowing the clients to be suspicious will allow them to conclude on their own that the fortunetelling is the real deal. "That will lay the groundwork for more potent brainwashing to come. Heh heh heh..."

Takumi, having gathered up the week's worth of earnings, expresses doubt that brainwashing is conducive to Corpse God's peace before handing Corpse God the gathered stack of bills. This is the first money that Corpse God has earned on Earth, and he immediately sets to dividing it between himself, Misaki, Takumi, the real Polka, and Hosorogi. Where Misaki and Takumi are gratified, Polka rejects his share even when Corpse God tries to frame the money as compensation for borrowing Polka's body. Polka insists Corpse God tells the others that he did nothing to earn a share of the profits.

Polka has probably seen enough money in his life as it is, Takumi says, having momentarily forgotten that Corpse God has limited access to Polka's memories. Before he can alleviate Corpse God's confusion, men in suits escort their young charges Kazuki Shinoyama and Shizuki Shinoyama without bothering to knock. The twins, who can only be younger than Polka by five or six years at most, imply that it has been half a month since they have seen their *uncle*. Corpse God looks down at a nervously fidgeting Polka, and back at the twins with the shocked realization that they are "this body's niece and nephew," i.e. people he absolutely needs to fool.

Corpse God yanks his hood over his head and says he is not Polka but the Corpse God, a "sorcerer strayed into your world from far beyond the veil." While Shizuki asks, "Who do you think you're fooling," Misaki notices that a bodyguard is eyeing her; she eyes him back. Shizuki concedes that "Corpse God" is a "kinda cool" moniker, making the cool vs. uncool score two to Takumi's one.

Kazuki declares that the only plausible reason for Uncle Polka running away from home is that "these peasants must have put him up to it." Takumi does not miss how Corpse God hunches in on himself, aware that his peace will vanish should the twins realize they are not speaking to their uncle. For now, Kazuki sits opposite "Polka" because she wants him to tell her and her brother's fortune. Right now? No one can do that. Corpse God says, though Misaki helpfully adds that the Shop will open tomorrow at 10 AM.

Takumi invites the twins and their entourage to leave, not that Kazuki had permitted him to speak. Although Kazuki considers it brazen for a peasant to try and argue with her, she entertains it by asking what Takumi shall do if she refuses. "Call the cops," Takumi shoots back, 'on the people who brazenly strode into a closed business.' What else can a poor, frightened peasant do?

Do...? Takumi must have no idea as to who Kazuki and her brother are, Kazuki retorts, oblivious to her brother staring slack-jawed at Takumi's audacity. He does, but instead, he hazards a guess: "Classless nouveaux riches who look down their noses at people they've just met?"

One of the bodyguards claps his hands over Kazuki's mouth before Kazuki can shout her name in a loss of temper; another bodyguard worriedly warns her that Takumi could be recording or even streaming this conversation, so stating her name would be unwise. Takumi goads her again before Corpse God tells him to back down; although he appreciates how Takumi spared him by making himself the target, there is no need to prolong the aggression when "this child is on the verge of tears."

Kazuki flushes with humiliation, but Corpse God interrupts her furious denial by pulling her into a hug. Shizuki attempts to speak up for his sister and is thwarted in the same fashion. With one arm around each twin, Corpse God whispers to them their fortune: they both have a future because he shall protect them. Shizuki finds such a statement "rich" coming from Polka—except Corpse God is just an *acquaintance* of Polka, as he reminds them, and he has it on good authority that Polka will return home tomorrow. The twins, then, ought to go home themselves.

As Corpse God speaks, he tilts his head upward. His promise is as much for the warped, smoldering spirit that looms over the twins while moaning, "Somebody, help these children" through charred fingers. He tells her not to worry, for he shall keep the children safe.

After the twins, bodyguards, and spirit leave, Corpse God watches them through the window and opines that the spirit does not seem evil. Instead, she has clung to a desire to protect the twins even though she has gone half-mad. Takumi questions whether it is wise to trust the spirit and comments that Corpse God seems "awfully soft" concerning the children. Corpse God admits the children did remind him of other children who had attempted to act tough, privately recalling his found family in the cave.

When Misaki asks where Polka's family lives in light of Corpse God resolving to follow through with the home visit, Takumi hands Corpse God a dossier about the Shinoyama Group, which Takumi explains is a financial group that acquired its fortune and "assets in the trillions" because of the Shinoyama Bank. Polka Shinoyama is the second son of patriarch Rozan Shinoyama, who turned 79 earlier in the year and would therefore be entitled to part of the inheritance should anything happen to Rozan. After all, it is no wonder that someone wants Polka—i.e. technically, Corpse God now—dead.

Corpse God falls to his knees in a lament of his peaceful life. Polka-the-plush acts similarly woefully surprised, which takes Takumi aback. He reiterates that he still does not know who ordered the hit on Polka, but he *can* speculate that it was one of the many relatives who might have a financial motive. He is unconvinced that charging into the enemy territory, which is Polka's home territory, is the best course of action. Still, Misaki insists it is a course that Corpse God can handle. Sure, Takumi says, provided that Corpse God can afford to use his magic in the open.

Corpse God mentions that he had bodyguards when he was alive, including a zombie saber-toothed tiger and a skeleton heavy cavalry soldier—how very peaceful, Takumi drawls—so, by way of substitute, he sticks clothes on a skeleton and hangs a sign over its neck that reads "I'm a silent bodyguard. Please don't pry." For some reason, Takumi vetoes this as unbelievable. A bodyguard who looks human, however, would have a far better chance. He and Corpse God turn in unison to consider Misaki. She ceases fooling around with Hosorogi and asks what the two have been talking about.

While the Shinoyama entourage walks down another street, Shizuki wonders why a wimp like Polka is acting grown up out of the blue. What could be wrong with him? Kazuki quietly wonders in turn whether Polka was *really* their Uncle Polka, but Shizuki has no reply for her as they approach a sleek black car. Inside is their older brother Takeru, to their great startlement, who chides them for being out playing at such a late hour. The twins meekly apologize and, when Takeru inquires about Polka's health, respond that Polka is well and will be returning home tomorrow.

Takeru smiles thinly at the good news as he glances over at a man—Shinoyama personnel—using binoculars to spy on "Polka" through the window. He remarks that he shall have to assign Polka a babysitter and sternly cautions the twins to be careful as well: there is no guarantee that an accident like that which happened to Suzuka Shinoyama cannot happen again.

Even with his stern gaze fixed on his siblings, he cannot see the smoldering spirit that looms behind them, her eyes rolling in their sockets.

In a traditional Japanese home, Rozan muses over the idea of Polka "playing a magician in Shinjuku." He supposes that Polka must have "gotten it" from his mother Kanon Shinoyama, whose photograph of herself and an infant Rozan addresses directly. With a grin, he further supposes that he cannot die just yet.

## Adapted From

* Chapter 9
* Chapter 10
* Chapter 11
* Chapter 12
* Chapter 13 (first two-thirds)

### Changes

Click "Expand" to reveal a non-exhaustive list of changes per and across chapters. Due to the number of chapters adapted at once, there are far more omissions and changes in this episode than in the prior episodes. At least one omitted scene is extremely likely to be included in a later episode.

A key difference between this episode and the source material is a change of timeline regarding how long it has been since Polka ran away from home / saw the twins and the duration of time that elapses between the Youtoukorou incident and the twins' visit.

Chapter 9
* The anime omits much in the way of internal monologue, including:
	+ Iwanome's thought process when guessing at Lemmings' motive and Iwanome's sizing up of Arase versus Lemmings.
	+ Corpse God's vivid impression of who or what Lemmings is, e.g. "By all accounts, it appears human, but the pressure is all wrong. Like a colony of ants taking human form."
	+ Corpse God's internal debate over whether or not to save Misaki: "You only met her a few days ago. The whole of your relationship has been you killing or being killed by her. She's not family. Not your friend. Not your lover. She worked as an assassin. She must be prepared for her own death." The exclusion of this conflict makes Corpse God's decision to save Misaki in the anime seem like a swift one, or at least only concerned with the ramifications of revealing magic to the police and not with whether Misaki herself is specifically worth saving.
* Iwanome expressing surprise that Lemmings' target was Misaki is also omitted.
* The anime omits that only a meager few people could perfectly grasp Lemmings and Corpse God's battle through the gloom. One of them is "the Grim Reaper," a troublemaker who had quietly mingled with the fleeing crowd.

Chapter 10
* The anime truncates the flashback with Corpse God and his master. In Chapter 10, Izliz / Easlies informs Corpse God he is the property of the imperial empire and, upon observing Corpse God's distaste at being talked of like an object, assures him that she does not look down on her property as others do. She tells him he will become a necromancer and says she will introduce him to the on the morrow. For a full recap of this conversation, see Chapter 10's article.
* Iwanome and Arase's post-battle scene occurs near the bar, with the officers standing rather than sitting in a booth. The anime omits Iwanome's remark to Arase that when the police return next time, they shall make use of *all of them*, by which he means the Youtoukorou staff. That is when Lisa invokes the non-smoking section rule.
* When Corpse God is considering the frailness of Polka's body, he wonders whether he would have survived if Lemmings had targeted him instead of Lemmings. He moreover wonders, "With what I've become...can I still call myself a god?" This does not filter through in the anime.
* The anime omits a minor panel of Lemmings walking past Yochigi to Takeru's office.
* It also omits Lemmings indicating to Takeru that his shoulder is stiff and that the air around him has brightened.

Chapter 11
* The anime shifts Takeru's description of Lemmings as an urban legend named after a rodent from the morning conversation about necromancy's possibilities to the Chapter 10 conversation from the prior evening where Corpse God says he will not sacrifice anyone who has laughed with him in the name of peace.
* The anime omits from the morning conversation Corpse God's recollection of moving the Dragon Emperor Bug's corpse with necromancy during the war against the Kingdom of Nyanild, as well as Corpse God's comment that spirits can also be made to possess weapons.
	+ Hosorogi's punchline to that setup is concomitantly removed; Hosorogi suggests two ways, at minimum, by which he could be used as a weapon, such as sticking him up someone's nostril or using him to puncture someone's brain stem. Polka considers Hosorogi lucky to be able to communicate with Takumi and Misaki; not long after, he tries using Hosorogi to scribble something on a pad of paper.
* Corpse God and Misaki present the shop sign to Takumi outside the front entrance instead of in the room. Unlike his anime counterpart, Takumi highlights how Corpse God's approach seems counterintuitive to Corpse God's desire to live in peace before asking if Corpse God has lost it. Right: to live an unassuming life, Corpse God had the brilliant idea of moving into an unmaintained ex-Yakuza dumping ground for victims owned by a mediator and then fraternizing with the mediator's murdered assassin. That makes *so* much *sense*. Takumi does not bother listing all the risks of the Shop in either iteration.
	+ Corpse God's nostalgic response, "I haven't been spoken like that since I was on the brink of death in my last life", and Takumi's exasperated reply, "That was just a few days ago!" are also cut.
* The rest of the conversation is slightly trimmed in the anime, including Hosorogi's plan to spread the word of the shop in Youtoukorou and Takumi's concern that the business depends heavily on the pencil gimmick despite Hosorogi's talk of brainwashing.
* The anime entirely omits Iwanome and Arase's return to Shinjuku Police Station, taking place the same morning. Iwanome talks to Saki Aikawa about the presence of something on another level than the rest of Shinjuku's troublemakers at the bar and how Clarissa talked him into covering some of the damage. He asks whether *sensei* has heard of the bar incident yet, and Aikawa responds that *sensei* has been too enamored with a recent discovery that he calls "the real occult this time" and therefore gallivanting about despite *his bone having yet to heal fully*. This is the medicine-field man from the session. Iwanome says to Iwanome that the two of them will question some troublemakers.
* The anime does not clarify that the long line and the young man's session take place three days later, not one week later. The building trio's conversation about earnings takes place during a break.
	+ Kazuki and Shizuki's visit happens seven days *after* the above day in the manga.
	+ The anime, therefore, conflates two conversations with Hosorogi into one.
		- Hosorogi's breakdown of hot and cold readings takes place during the three-day-later break. Hosorogi still rolls about in a money pile and (the anime omits this) fantasizes about possessing a gold fountain pen. This takes place in Chapter 11. The second conversation...

Chapter 12
* ...where Corpse God divides the earnings one week later, shortly before the twins pay Polka a visit, takes place in Chapter 12. Once again, Hosorogi rolls across paper yen with monetary glee.
* In the manga, Corpse God initially introduces himself to the twins as "K. Orpse God." Shizuki has the same concession about "Korpse God" being cool.
* Kazuki says to Uncle Polka that "...it's been ten days" in the manga and not "half a month" as she does in the anime. "Ten days" is consistent with the manga's three-day + seven-day timeline, provided Kazuki is referring to how long the business has been open and not how long it has been since Polka ran away. She must be since Polka spent a few days as Corpse God prior to the last ten days of business operation. It may be that the anime chooses to have Kazuki refer to how long it has been since Polka ran away rather than the length of the operation. That does make more sense for a child to invoke than the number of business days passed.
* Takumi's bonus fabricated reason for calling the cops is that he "feel[s] intimidated" as a lowly commoner; the anime staff presumably felt this unnecessary to include.
* The anime omits Hosorogi's observation that Takumi will probably be arrested on suspicion of kidnapping a minor if he calls the police, which Takumi was likely more than aware of when he made the threat.
* In a true bastardization of the manga's sharkish core, Misaki's comparison of Takumi and Kazuki's exchange to a trope in a shark movie is omitted.

Chapter 13
* Corpse God goes into more detail about what happens to spirits when they lose their consciousnesses and/or senses of self and why he thinks the half-mad spirit is slightly unusual. For a full version of the entire conversation, see Chapter 13's article.
* Corpse God and Polka's shared dismay upon learning of the little family problem that would more than explain the large bounty on Polka's head takes Takumi aback since he had been convinced that Corpse God intentionally chose a "rich son" to be reborn in. Was it a coincidence after all? Corpse God explains that he has different criteria for what corpse he would possess and that he wound up in Shinjuku despite them. Perhaps he simply flubbed the ceremony...?
	+ The anime omits Takumi and Corpse God's back-and-forth about Corpse God's corpse criteria. It also omits Corpse God's claim that he is not much of a fighter compared to his master, who was more than accomplished in combat. Corpse God added that he did not use the tiger or skeletal soldier when he was trying to conceal his necromancer identity in broad daylight. In such instances, he employed (typically) more humanoid Vampires and Zombies as his bodyguards. This was an unsubtle segue to Misaki.

## Trivia

* This episode adds Hosorogi to the ending credits.
* As explained in the episode, *hot readings* entail presenting intelligence gathered on a client in advance as on-the-spot divinations, and *cold readings* are on-the-spot deductions of a client's thoughts from the client's words and actions.

## External Links

* Crunchyroll (legal stream)
* /r/anime discussion (old.reddit link)
* /r/deadmountdeathplay discussion (old.reddit link)
* MyAnimeList discussion