Chapter 84.4

Chapter 84.4

Outside the village, outside the boundary of the boundary, the calamity youkai, Kamaitachi, their last clone, sitting on a branch, howled as they looked up at the sky.

"...Hey, you've come back well, Rouya. Well, it's been a rough first battle for you, hasn't it? And to make it worse, you had to fight against a fellow half-youkai. What rotten luck," the calamity youkai said sympathetically. The original appearance of this chapter can be found at Ñøv€lß1n.

Feeling the presence of Rouya, Kamaitachi looked down and sneered at the figure below, who was holding his face and breathing heavily.

"Hahaha, your skull is caved in. Well, don't worry about it. Compared to being roasted by that fire, it's just a little beating. If it's just an injury like that, you'll be fine after you eat and sleep... Can't you hear me?" they taunted, their voice dripping with sarcasm.

Yuka tried to comfort her junior jokingly, but halfway through, she noticed that the wolf wasn't even listening to her and was becoming frustrated. It is not hard to understand why.

In the past, there was a calamity youkai named "Senbiki-ōkami," who was feared and called upon in Fusō-kuni. The legend says that he commanded a thousand wolf youkai, but it was just a distortion of the truth over time.

When the youkai was slain by the imperial court, it divided its soul and power into a thousand pieces and escaped. It dreamed of someday coming together and being revived... But even now, it has not been accomplished, and many of its incarnations have been killed or devoured by other youkai.

For the calamity youkai 'Okuri-okami' Rouya, a half-youkai who had been carrying the factor of one of the many alter egos, it was nothing but an unwanted interference in a significant first battle against a fellow half-youkai, a compatriot with the same origin in a double sense. That's why he growled and continued to rage.

"Don't be so upset," the weasel said with a reassuring smile, "It's true the mission failed, but you did manage to defeat one of their family members, right?"

"And besides," Kamaitachi added with a hint of excitement, "the people we met this time are quite interesting. If we report to our superiors, we won't be held accountable for our failure."

As they spun through the air, the weasel landed on a branch and declared nonchalantly. They boasted as if it were someone else's problem. Then, squinting their eyes, they looked in that direction.

They saw a demon (oni) hiding behind the trees.

"...Shall we end things here for now, Blue Demon Princess?" Kamaitachi asked, looking over to the demon.

"I guess so," the demon responded, appeared among the trees and taking a swig of sake from her gourd, "I think it's a good idea to hold off on the match for now, for dramatic effect?"

She took a swig of sake from her gourd again and hummed a tune. Her appearance was somewhat dirty as she had obtained it during a rampage in the Shukuba City the other day. Although she was a demon, even she could not have easily taken down more than ten exorcists in the end, without killing them.

"But it was worth it, wasn't it? Kekeke," the demon chuckled brashly, "it was a really good accompaniment to the sake, wasn't it?"

"That's terrible, isn't it? Treating our job as if it's nothing..." Kamaitachi muttered, before turning to Rouya and restraining him from moving forward. "Hey, stop it. You won't be able to do it."

Then she continued observing the demon.

"Could it be that you've been observing us all along?" Kamaitachi asked, studying the demon's appearance, "No, considering your character... well, well, you've become quite nasty since becoming a demon, haven't you? Hmm?"

Kamaitachi, who had arrived at the answer of what the demon was plotting in this whole commotion, clicked her tongue and sarcastically remarked. Truly, demons (oni) were a bunch of ill-tempered folks.

"I could say the same thing to you, you know?" the demon retorted, taking another swig of sake, "You've also become quite flashy. Same goes for that Tsuchigumo guy, is it a recent trend?"

"Perhaps the goal is to gather pawns from those people there?" Aoi snarled, her voice dripping with disgust. "How despicable."

The script to protect him is already in place. So, Aoi had thought that old hag might need to silence the Ezo people from the village, but she never imagined that she try to recruit the daughter of the village head.

(Although it was a strange power... it's not like she's invincible or anything.)

Aoi pondered, hiding her mouth behind her fan, but it still didn't feel right.

Far from being invincible, the young girl was clearly defenseless. Mentally immature, too. Aoi thought she could crush her head with the first blow from as far as the horizon, even before that black thing reached her. If that girl had time to train, she might be a little more useful, but who has time for that?

"Or... could it be?" Aoi's voice trailed off as she pondered the possibility.

It was her beloved's relative who lived in that village. But she couldn't help but laugh at the idea. That would be a ridiculous story.

Although he himself was relieved that the maid was safe, Aoi couldn't sympathize with his actions.

From Aoi's point of view, his family was nothing more than a bunch of vulgar people who sacrificed him for their own protection. He might still have some feelings for them, but even if it was... it didn't seem right to bring them back for his sake.

This is a bad relationship that has finally been broken. It should not be reconnected. They have done him more than enough for his birth. He should be set free. All the more because he's kind, and they shouldn't be around him. They also become an obstacle when she gives him everything she has. Besides, they say that success brings more relatives.

Especially, Aoi, she didn't trust her "family" at all. She had never had any evidence that her family was on her side. The only person she could trust, even in the depths of despair, was the one person who was always on her side...

"...I'll have to question her later," Aoi grumbled, resting her cheek on her hand. She would like to have the old woman's influence and wisdom to her advantage, but couldn't fully trust her considering her past. She was a real pain in the ass. If only she could get the upper hand on her sooner, she wouldn't have to worry about being so cautious with her allies...

"Princess! Princess Aoi...!?"

As she was lost in thought, a loud voice called out to her from a distance. It was the voice of one of the miscellaneous worker in the house. Aoi connected her sight to the shikigami serving at the estate and immediately furrowed her brows.

"You are making a lot of noise on my property," Aoi scolded, securing the miscellaneous worker who had rushed into her place using the simple shikigami at her disposal. Even if it was in the garden, Aoi was not happy to see her own property being trodden on. There was only one person in the world she would allow such an outrage.

"What is it? Answer me clearly and concisely," Aoi demanded through the shikigami, considering herself a forgiving person.

However, there was no way the miscellaneous worker could not understand such a thing. If it was a meaningless issue, she would break their arm as punishment, but that was a form of mercy.

Thinking so, Aoi asked in a bored tone. But...

"T-The head of the family! The head of the family has just awakened...! Whoaa!?" the worker exclaimed, completely unaware of Onitsuki's domestic situation. The person conveyed the news with joy, only to be thrown off balance and fall to the ground when the shikigami released them. The worker didn't even have time to brace themself and ended up hurting their back.

The worker wouldn't be able to work for a few days due to the pain, but this situation was of no interest to Aoi.

"...What?" Aoi was momentarily lost for words upon hearing the news, as if she were no longer present... This is an animated illustration of a spider dance. But because of the comments, it has started to look like that dance (referring to a popular dance) in a weird way => here