Chapter 179-4

Chapter 179-4

[Part 4/4]

"A whistle?"

Immediately after, I hear the hunter’s whistle as he charges towards me. I momentarily freeze, confused by the meaning of this action. The answer becomes clear almost instantly.

'Grrr...!!'

"What!? Gah!?"

I'm attacked by a hunting dog that charges in from the side. Its sharp claws, meant for hunting youkai, tear into my arm. The deep wound causes blood to gush out as I clutch my arm.

"Damn it!?"

With no regard for animal welfare laws, the hunting dog attacks. I try to kick the dog, but it quickly retreats and snarls, keeping its distance and intimidating me.

"Alright, keep him busy!!"

The hunter shouted. I could hear footsteps and a presence closing in. When I looked, I saw the hunter loading his matchlock gun. I quickly searched for cover, but found nothing suitable. I had exposed a gap to the hunting dog and knew I wouldn’t be able to dodge the next attack by even a hair’s breadth.

"Then...!!"

Without hesitation, I charged at the hunter, taking advantage of the moment he was distracted by loading his gun. I swung my sickle again as I approached. But that was a mistake.

"Do you think I'll fall for a surprise attack twice?!"

The obvious act of loading was a deception. As I got closer, the snow at my feet was kicked up. I flinched at the scattering snowflakes and closed my eyes. Then, there was impact. I was thrown back by the hunting dog's charge.

"Cough!? Hah, hah...!!?"

With my face buried in the snow, I endured the pain in my joints and got back up. Then I looked up. At the pitch-black muzzle of the gun.

...In other words, it was checkmate.

"Hah, hah... you monster!"

"Just because we lived together doesn't mean we're the same... that's cruel, isn't it?"

Breathing heavily, the hunter spoke with pure disgust, and I tried to retort. However, the hunter directed even more hostility at me for speaking back.

"I have 2 questions. Answer honestly. First, where is the girl possessed by the fox? What happened to her?"

"..."

I fell silent at the hunter's questioning. I couldn't reveal where my mother was, where Shirona was, or where I was headed. Even if it meant sacrificing my own life...

"...You don’t plan to earn any merit, do you? Then here’s the second question. Where did it start? Was it back then? Or was it even earlier? From the very beginning?"

"...? What are you talking about?"

At the hunter's second question, which sounded almost desperate, I couldn't help but express my confusion. What is he talking about...?

"Don't act like you don't know now. I know who you really are. With that much blood, it's clear how deep the wounds are...!!"

In the depths of a cave, there was a child sobbing all night. A mother was there to comfort her child.

"B-big brother... it's terrible. It's so terrible!"

With snot and tears flowing freely, the child cried while being held by her mother. It was understandable. For this child, the world was just herself, her family, and their home. Now that the boy had left, it was like losing half of her world. The shock was unimaginable.

"..."

The mother would not tell her daughter the meaning of his choice... She couldn't. She couldn't leave any deeper scars on her daughter's heart. She had understood her kind son's wish just by exchanging glances last night. So...

(...I'm sorry)

Desperately, with boundless sorrow, she sought atonement from her adopted son. And with gratitude, she prayed. She hoped that he would find a way to escape and survive.

...Or perhaps, she even hoped that he might change his mind and truly run away, even if it meant abandoning them. She would accept it as fate. It was a form of resignation. She left everything to the heavens, as that was all she could do in her powerless state. Her mind was filled with only the acceptance of reality.

"...!!?"

"...Shirona?"

So, it took her time to realize the significance when her daughter, who had clung to her chest and cried, suddenly perked up her fox ears and turned her head toward the entrance of the cave.

"Who? Big brother...?"

"Eh...?"

"It must be big brother!!"

"Ah!?"

Shirona's hopeful cry made her leap out of the cave on all fours, despite her painful feet. The mother was too late to stop her. Even with her injured feet, Shirona’s half-youkai abilities proved their worth.

The white fox had sensed an approaching presence near the cave with her keen senses, and without doubt, she believed it to be her returning brother. She couldn't believe that her beloved brother, who was as important as her own half, would truly abandon her and their mother. She still held onto the hope that it might be a joke or a prank.

"Hehe...!!"

Sniffling and wiping her tears, she thought about getting angry at the returning brother, crying, and then clinging to him with all her might. Her lips naturally relaxed with that thought.

"Big brother!!"

As Shirona dashed out of the cave to call her precious brother, she saw the shadow of an arm raised above her head...

Fanart:

- Botan illustration: here

- Princess Aoi color illustration: here

- Blue Demon: here

But you know, I think the hunter was also scared. Even after getting shot in the back and having his head blown off, that kid just kept running and talking. It was super creepy. I bet the hunter's expression when he saw the main character was like Lars when he shot the dog that came out of the Antarctic base.