Chapter 8

**Chapter 8** is the eighth chapter of the *Dead Mount Death Play* manga, and the last chapter of Volume 1.

## Official Blurb

A new threat emerges from the shadows, spelling trouble for Polka and Misaki!

## Summary

While members of Materials Compiling Group No.3 bustle about Shinjuku Police Station in the wake of the Shakuzawa Building fire and Lemmings incidents, two station employees discuss Lemmings' jack-of-all-trades troublemaking over the last five years and the urban legend status he has acquired among the youth. The older man claims that he once saw Lemmings in person; as he and his younger colleague unknowingly pass Lemmings himself in the hallway, he describes an incident in which Lemmings withstood a barrage of semi-automatic gunfire before breaking the shooting gang members' necks.

The two men enter an elevator—nearby, Fumiyo Yamada hurries into a room with a first aid kit—and the younger man asks what Lemmings is *really* like, having presumed the story was one of the urban myths. His colleague clarifies that the assault he just described was the one he *personally witnessed*, the younger man is quite unnerved that their jurisdiction allowed Lemmings to go unchecked.

Meanwhile, as Saki Aikawa and Yamada are shepherding Kōzaburō Arase out of the room, Aikawa senses something off and turns to look behind her. Finding nothing amiss, she shrugs and turns away *from Lemmings*, who stands silent at her back. Once Aikawa and the others are gone, Lemmings approaches the nearby desk atop which Aikawa left a file and photograph pertaining to the 'human knots' incident.

Once the elevator reaches the ground floor, the older male colleague acknowledges that as much as he would like to haul in Lemmings, Lemmings is under Comps-3 jurisdiction. As he and his younger colleague leave the station, he remarks that as eccentric as Comps-3 manager Tsubaki Iwanome can be, he has a lot of spirit going for him.

Over in Youtoukorou, a seemingly tipsy or drunk Iwanome enjoys the company of two waitressing '"bunnies' while Clarissa Kuraki and Urai the bartender. Urai wonders why Iwanome came at all, and Clarissa recalls what happened half an hour before; she had offered Iwanome a drink due to him being late. Though he initially refused, he changed his mind when she said the drink—a high-grade alcohol priced at 60,000 yen per glass—was on the house.

Even so, she suspects Iwanoome has actually come to interview them, since that is all he can presently do without a warrant. On cue, Iwanome bangs his head against his booth's table and demands that 'Lisa' "tell it to [him] straight." He claims that she is involved with troublemakers; specifically, he believes that the Grim Reaper is a part of her clan, rather than Lemmings or the Fire-breathing Bug.

The 'bunnies' on either side of him make light of Lemmings' and the Grim Reaper's names, but Iwanome insists that Lemmings is bad news; he was 'terrified' when Lemmings broke through a thirty-strong police riot squad. With an 'oops', he requests those present to not disclose what he said to the media.

Urai expresses concern over how freely Iwanome seems to be divulging Shinjuku Station's secrets, but Clarissa reminds him that whatever happens in her club *stays confined* to the club. In fact, she suspects Iwanome knows this full well and is only baiting her; over at the booth, a knowing, decidedly more sober-looking smile graces Iwanome's face before he returns to tipsy merry-making.

While Iwanome fools around, two of Clarissa's more prominent subordinates quietly discuss the possibility of a new local troublemaker in light of the skeleton sightings. The blonde is adamant that they cannot have Iwanome investigating them; the brunette, agreeing, adds that they ought to warn the fake 'Polka" and the others as well.

Much to the two women's chagrin, the Corpse God—who carries the real Polka Shinoyama in his hood—and Misaki Sakimiya walk into the bar not a moment later, with Misaki loudly announcing their presence to Clarissa. Iwanome observes that Misaki appears too young for a bar, but she assures him that she is only going to order milk. As she and the fake Polka go consult a menu at the bar, Iwanome receive a text from Arase which describes the appearance of someone now believed to be connected to the 'human knots' case.

Iwanome glances up at Misaki, fires off a return text, and then offers to buy Misaki juice in exchange for information on the latest trends among 'the youth'.

Meanwhile, Takumi Kuruya notices Arase leaving the police station via live footage of the station's front entrance. When he realizes that Arase is heading for Youtoukorou, he accidentally spills his coffee in the alarm of the moment; thus distracted, he misses Lemmings scaling the exterior of Youtoukorou's building in a separate video feed.

Inside the bar, Misaki is busy regaling a beatific Iwanome and blank-faced "Polka' with a tale of her friend Hagane. "Polka" is more interested in his unfamiliar but tantalizingly tasty drink than the story; however, he snaps to attention when Takumi contacts him via his wireless earpiece. Takumi urges him to leave the bar via the back door if he is there, but the warning comes too late; Arase and several policemen in suits stride into the bar as if they own the place. When the bouncers obstruct his path, Arase assures them that he and his men are customers for the time being.

Clarissa instructs the bouncers to let the men pass as [Arase] already has a friend—Iwanome—on the premises. Iwanome laughs and waves at Arase from where he is sat next to Misaki and the Corpse God. Arase admits surprise that Iwanome is already 'with' them, leading Iwanome to congratulate himself for his sharp thinking as he pats Misaki on the back.

Misaki's smile slips when Iwanome slyly asks, "Right? Little lady?" Then, she dramatically cries out that Arase must be the same man who tried to assault her earlier, an accusation which startles the customers at a nearby table. Arase flatly denies the accusation; with Arase finally present, Iwanome drops the pretense and asks Misaki if they—as on-duty government officials—can ask her a few questions. Before she can reply, Lemmings cuts the lights and plunges the room into darkness.

Faced with immediate suspicion from Iwanome, Clarissa truthfully states that her people are not responsible for the power outage. The Corpse God meanwhile agrees with Misaki that they use the chance to flee and, upon using his Evil Eye and life-force detection spell to determine everyone's positions, he offers her a hand and to lead the way.

The two crouch-crawl their way out of the booth and onto the open floor, whereupon the Corpse God's search for the back door leads him to freeze at 'something' *on the ceiling*. With sweat trickling down his face, he thinks, "*IF I'm not careful, we'll be in trouble...!*"

Twin chills run down both Iwanome and Arase's spines at a creaking sound from somewhere within the gloom. Clarissa, however, remains calm and lights a few candles on the bar counter—and the light reveals Lemmings *hanging upside-down* from the large overhead chandelier. He drops onto a table with a ferocious crash; as he stands, silent and menacing, Arase identifies him as the urban legend Lemmings.