Standmaku Crusaders

Standmaku Crusaders (**スタンドマククルセイダース** *Sutandomaku Kuruseidāsu*) is the first story arc of A NEET's Bizarre Adventure. It was serialized on WattPad beginning April 24, 2019 and spanning 76 chapters including a short prologue.

Taking place in the year 2002, it follows the exploit of serial NEET Kaguya Houraisan who is unwittingly thrust into a battle between good and evil when the return of the vampire Sakuya Izayoi, a.k.a PADIO, brings about the awakening of mysterious powers called 'Standmaku' in people all over the world.

## Plot Summary

### **The Girl Possessed by An Evil Spirit**

The story begins with a prologue explaining some of the back story. Shortly, we are introduced to our protagonist, Kaguya Houraisan who is accosted by a group of robbers, part of a gang of youkai who roam the countryside. Despite handing over her money, they intend to take her hostage to get a ransom since she seems like a rich kid. Without warning, she dispatches all four men with a seemingly invisible force before a town watchmen stumbles upon the seen and take the youth into custody.

Later, Eirin Yagokoro shows up at the detention facility. She finds out from the officer in charge that Kaguya had seemingly brutally beaten the four men who were part of a wanted gang and for some reason, has decided to remain in her prison cell, much to the policeman's displeasure. After failing to convince Kaguya to leave, she demonstrates at last what she calls her 'evil spirit' by suddenly producing a can of cola and a comics magazine. To the officer's shock, she then grabs his pistol from his holster before firing the weapon at point blank range at her own head. The officer sees a bullet floating in midair, but Eirin sees something much more sinister. A muscular ghostly hand holding the bullet between its fingers.

Meanwhile, the story transitions to the tale of a boat that had been found mysteriously floating in the sea (implied to be Sea of Okhotsk) and how its crew had seemingly disappeared without a trace. On board, a single massive chest opened with a blowtorch bearing the the letters P A D I O. The disappearance is chalked up to another urban legend and creepypasta.

Back in the present, Eirin awaits the arrival of Fujiwara no Mokou. A mature, strong-willed and knowledgeable woman, especially when it comes to the occult. She relates to her about the ghostly arm that only she could see, and Mokou seems to already know what it is. As they arrive back at the holding center, Kaguya is none too happy to see Mokou. The truth is, the two are rivals of some sort. As a younger child, she would fight bitterly with Mokou over the smallest things. Annoyed, Kaguya demonstrates her ability to Mokou as well by pulling a button off her shirt. With this though, Mokou is certain what she's dealing with. In response to Kaguya, she too calls out her own 'evil spirit'. A massive humanoid standing 6 feet tall with the body of a naked human male rippling with muscle, and the head of an ancient phoenix. Kaguya recoils as the heat of this spirit makes her flinch. Mokou reveals that she too has the same ability, and the creature she had summoned is called Fujiyama Volcano. After a brief struggle Mokou goads Kaguya into leaving her cell, finally standing down, having accomplished her mission. Eirin finally explains that what she believes is an evil spirit is actually the manifestation of a person's mental energy. A so-called "Standmaku".

Now seated at a café at the heart of Ningen no Sato's grand bazaar, the Eirin begins to explain what is going on. She demonstrates her Standmaku's ability of spirit photography and shows the group a picture of a nude woman with a scar around her neck.. The woman formerly known as Sakuya Izayoi (a.k.a PADIO) has awoken, haven stolen the body of the legendary Reimu Hakurei. The event caused an imbalance in the immaterial realm, that is, Limbo. People with latent Standmaku abilities and high mental energy have had their Standmaku awakened, including Kaguya. Mokou decides that she will stay with the group while they figure out the situation.

Later while at home, Kaguya trips and nearly injures herself falling down a flight of stairs before meeting a strange Earth Rabbit who helps her. Curiously, she looks different from all the rest, being taller and much more well spoken. The stranger introduces her as Reisen Undongein Inaba and leaves her a handkerchief to clean herself up. Later in Eientei's clinic, Eirin tends to the scratch that Kaguya receives on her knee. However, it isn't long before Eirin begins acting weird and soon, attacks Kaguya with a scalpel. She is later shown to be under the influence of the Standmaku belonging to Reisen named Lunatic Red. Despite getting the upper hand at first, Star Sapphire easily overpowers Lunatic Red and manages to knock Reisen unconscious She is later revealed to have a flesh bud on her, a tumor-like growth made from PADIO's vampiric cells that attach itself to its victim's brain. Kaguya removes this, learning from Reisen that she was in the employ of the Lunar Capital on a mission before meeting and then being forced to do her bidding.

Elsewhere in Eientei, Mokou discovers Mokou discovers the unconscious body of Keine Kamishrasawa, close friend of the household and a teacher at the school that Mokou also worked. Apparently she began to manifest a vine like Standmaku on her back. However as a peaceful and mild mannered woman, she lacked the mental will and fighting spirit needed to properly control a Standmaku. Now it was draining her very life force itself. Mokou reveals that this was also due to PADIO's doing, and that the only way to prevent Mokou's death is to cut off the source of the uncontrolled psychic power that flows through the immaterial realm. Together, the crew discover that PADIO is hiding out in Cairo, Egypt. Unexpectedly, Reisen returns, pledging to pay PADIO back and unable to return to the Lunar Capital now that she had gone AWOL. Before they leave, Yagokoro Foundation doctors arrive at Eientei to help Keine and Mokou asks Kaguya to choose a spellcard from a box. These items once held great power before, but have become useless in the modern day after the death of Reimu. Randomly, Kaguya chooses Love Sign: Master Spark, the spellcard once wielded by a skilled warrior named Marisa Kirisame who previously fought alongside the young shrine maiden Sanae Kochiya in order to prevent the Oni from returning. Naming Kaguya's Standmaku Star Sapphire in Marisa's honor, the group set out on their long journey to Egypt.

### **Bound For Hong Kong**

Although Lunatic Red manages to eliminate the Standmaku with its tentacles, the user manages to kill the pilots before dying, causing the plane to crash land into the ocean just a few kilometers off the shore of Hong Kong.

After taking break to have a meal at a Chinese restaurant, the group decides to go the rest of the journey to Egypt by land and sea, rather than risk anymore innocent lives by taking a commercial flight. Later, they encounter a woman named Youmu Konpaku who arrived in Hong Kong from Japan. After a brief meal together, she reveals she is an assassin working for PADIO and challenges the group to a fight. Mokou chooses to take her on and two decide on a meeting place. Youmu is defeated by Mokou, but not without a serious fight. Youmu has the chance to throw a dagger at Mokou as she's turning away, but decides not to. Even under PADIO's influence, she can't shake her honorable nature and chooses to die with dignity rather than backstab Mokou or kill herself. Impressed by this, Mokou spares her life. She later reveals that the reason she willingly worked for PADIO was to find information on a strange man with two right hands who had killed her father, the master swordsman Youki Konpaku. She decides to join the group as she knows the killer is also working for PADIO and the group of four take off on a boat bound for Singapore..

### **Arrival In Singapore**

On board the Yagokoro Foundation freight ship, the crew is waiting around on the deck. All of a sudden the crew members reveal that they had discovered a stowaway girl. She attempts to escape by jumping from the side of the boat but doesn't realize the waters are shark infested. Narrowly saving her from the jaws of a great white, Kaguya rescues the girl who she discovers is a young female nekomata. The captain appears, commanding the crew to hold the girl below deck.