【PC】妖人｜ あやかしびと

後天的全身性特殊遺伝多種変性症(ASSHS)と呼ばれる疾患があった。

その罹患者は人妖(じんよう)と呼ばれ、人の限界を超えた様々な特殊能力を持つ。が、それらの常識を超えた力は迫害の対象となり、特定地域への、重篤患者に至っては特殊な医療機関への隔離が行われていた。

主人公の青年武部涼一は幼少の折、変質者からあわや危害を加えられるかという時、逃げ込んだ公園で、そこにあったジャングルジムを操りその不審者を撃退する。恐怖からとったこの行動であったが結果として第参種人妖としての認定を受け、離島の医療施設へ隔離されることとなった。

幼年期から青年期に至るまで、彼はその離島の施設で学び成長した。

そこでの学問の一環として、彼の師とも言うべき九鬼耀鋼と出会い対人妖専門の武術「九鬼流」を教わり、その一方病院裏の森に時々出かけてはそこに暮らしていた白い雌狐(彼がすずと名付けた)との心の交流、先輩患者にして彼の姉のような存在でもあった飯塚薫との親睦などを経て、彼の人物と性格は形成されていった。

ある日、彼は自身の首に爆弾を埋め込まれる手術を受けることとなり、その折病院からの脱走を図るのだが……

In face of human technological advancement during the Meiji Restoration, the youkai of Japan were forced to make a hard decision:

1) To remain as youkai and watch over the land,

2) To return to the netherworld,

3) Or to give up their power and status as youkai and live amongst humans.

While there were some that chose otherwise, the majority of the youkai decided it was best to become human. It was tough, but as time passed these youkai were able to blend in with the human world and live peacefully amongst them.

However, blood is thicker than water. The offspring of these youkai displayed the powerful abilities of their ancestors in times of great anxiety, often manifesting in horrible and dangerous ways, and were labeled by society as monsters.

Officially their condition was named "Acquired Systemic Special Heredity variety Syndrome", or "ASSHS" for short and treated as a non-contagious illness, but the common people began to refer to them as Jinyous (half-youkai) nevertheless.

Of these Jinyous, most were sent to Kamizawa City: an isolated urban area walled off from the rest of Japan to keep all the Jinyous together and away from the human population. However, the ones that were deemed especially dangerous were sent to a medical facility on an uncharted island near the shores of Japan where they would be under constant surveillance.

Takabe Ryouichi was one of those who were sent to said island at the age of five. This is a story about him along with the girl called Suzu, his only friend on the island, escaping to Kamizawa City to live a normal life. What they didn’t expect was that Suzu carried a secret that attracted much unwanted attention…

[Edited from a review by Warum]