Touhou - Grimoire of Oneshots

The Horrors of Being a Loner

Gensokyo is a paradise for youkai, divine beings and those forgotten by humanity and time. But it is the former that usually suffers when it comes to this place.

Natives live a peaceful, mundane albeit fearful life here. They're stuck in the old ways, but some like it that way, while others try to grasp whatever they can find from the Outside World, forced to live in a world made for youkai, unaware of the world dominated by humans, away from Gensokyo.

Most stories in this land are told through the lens of powerful figures. And that, tragically, twists the true face hidden behind the tea parties, festivals and celebrations.

While the natives have it rough, living in fear without much of a choice to change it, the ones who really are in for a lethal surprise, are the outsiders. Humans without roots in Gensokyo, often too weak, or too disoriented to actually do something about it. And this is such a story.

Tatsuya was your normal guy, but adulthood proved a harsh challenge after his graduation. University was a fulfilling, but stressful experience. Still, that wasn't enough to take his hopes for the future. His dreams were crushed once he joined the workforce.

At first he tried his best to put up with the challenge, working tirelessly, putting as much effort as he could to climb the ranks and make something out of his life.

"One more year, one more year." He repeated to himself again, and again. But like a stone in a river, his optimism started to erode, unable to stop the flow of time.

His work wasn't fulfilling. His personal life was a wreck, and that's when he realized he was all by himself. All his friends moved on, either marriage, starting families, risking it all to start a new business, you name it.

He tried many hobbies to distract his mind, and maybe introduce new people to his life, only to find himself unfulfilled by those meaningless interactions. He blamed himself though. He knew he replaced his entire personality and mentality for one of a mindless servant for his bosses. He couldn't blame people for disliking someone who's entire personality was as bland and gray as his.

Even the internet felt like a tasteless, insipid mush of trash content and empty words.

Dark thoughts slowly but surely, started to bubble up in his mind. "What's the meaning of life if you can't share it with anyone?" That single phrase, again, again, and again repeating endlessly inside his mind like a mantra.

One day, after a particularly rough day at work, he went to sleep. He knew that he was a few bad days away from snapping completely, but he didn't care.

He woke up the next morning, his body was sore and his neck was stiff. Then he noticed he wasn't sleeping on his bed. He was on the ground under a tree. The sun, gently caressing his face. He stood up, looking everywhere. Tatsuya was in the middle of a forest, but not too far from where he woke up, there was a path. The poor guy thought all of this was a dream, but at least it felt pleasant enough. Just a brief respite from the everyday grind.

Once Tatsuya reached the path, he started walking without paying any attention to where he was going. The road was long and winding, and some curious but beautiful red flowers were all over the place. He tried touching one, but as soon as his finger touched a petal, an unpleasant and sharp jolt of pain went through his hand. It lasted merely a second, but he noticed something.

People say you can wake up from a nightmare if you try to pinch yourself in your dream, and touching that flower felt like a thousand pinches all at once. But he was still in this otherworldly place. And that was not all. Some of that mind fog, some of those dark thoughts started to feel less dense, less heavy on his mind.