The reason a creature fears something is that it poses a significant threat to the survival of its kind.
In the process of evolution, those who couldn’t avoid such threats have all perished. The ones that survived left descendants, and among those descendants, there are those who flee and those who cannot.
When this process is repeated over and over, the selected genes imprint what one should fear to increase the chances of survival—and moreover, what enhances the survival of the species.
…Ghosts and spirits exist. At least in this world.
Souls may exist too. I’m here, after all.
And Yōkai too—
“Of course, those born with such traits are few and far between. Yōkai don’t always cross over from their world to this one.”
Nirlas mentioned a moment ago. If crossing over to this world is possible, then going to the afterlife is also possible.
No, to be precise.
Yōkai build nests to exist in this world. These nests become halfway points between where the Yōkai are and this world, allowing them to exist vaguely on this side.
What that means is—
“……So, you’re saying Yōkai don’t have specific places to dwell, they simply cross over from the afterlife?”
“I wouldn’t really know. There’s no reason for me to pay such beings any mind.”
He says that as if it’s a tease.
“However, I want to inform you that there’s a lot in the world that can be understood simply by observing.”
“Then, that thing over there.”
“This time, I think it’d be good to think simply.”
Nirlas whispered in my ear.
“If it can exist in the afterlife, then it can also exist in this world. If it can be created in the afterlife, then it can also be created in this world, don’t you think?”
And there are existences that exist equally in both realms.
Human souls.
At the very least, that’s the law here.
I don’t know what the afterlife is like. I just think it’s a place one goes to after death, simply called “the afterlife.”
So, the only thing I can imagine as “something in the afterlife” right now is just one soul.
“……What I’ve cut down until now—”
“Isn’t it funny how principles can be so absurd?”
Nirlas whispered.
“In a place where there is nothing, isn’t it odd to just believe that there is something?”
Nirlas chuckled lightly.
Slowly, very slowly, blood began to rise from my wrist.
“Believing that the lightning striking from the sky is the wrath of God.”
The blood stretched and intertwined as if it were being knitted.
“Believing that diseases and floods are divine punishments.”
And finally, it became a sword.
“Is it foolish to think concepts like rights and freedom are absolute?”
The sword descended slowly from the air.
The only things moving around were the sword and my hand.
Against my will, my hand elegantly moved to grasp the hilt of the sword.
The way I slowly lifted it up appeared somewhat indecent.
“If they really did meet something that could be called a ‘God,’ what would they think—”
“Ah, wait—”
Before I could finish saying “wait,” my body was already moving.
Gently, as if taking a pleasant stroll.
Barefoot with my patient gown soaked in blood and dirt.
“Koto Ne?”
Yuka called out to me in a flustered voice as I moved like that.
The surroundings were already in motion.
“—Would they pray to the ‘God’ they believe in, shedding tears, or would they struggle, clinging to that illusion? I’m curious, you know.”
As if a dancer were waving a ribbon, my left hand rose lightly.
The sword smoothly passed through the air and drew a line through the center of a head floating above.
For a brief moment, as if a droplet in zero gravity was sliced left and right, the head split in two and hung in the air before falling straight down.
The cross-section starkly resembled the human models I often saw in science classes during my childhood.
“I’m curious about your reaction too.”
“How on earth—”
“Didn’t I tell you?”
Nirlas said with a mixed voice of laughter.
“The response is merely the heart of the one who answers.”
And my hand slowly came down.
“Now, what will you do from here?”
“……”
I kept my mouth shut.
Blood pooled around my feet, soaking them. It smelled just like human blood.
“Knowing that I can move you, would you still entrust your body to me? Or will you just hide behind someone you believe is your friend and watch as their hands get dirty?”
I gritted my teeth.
With those words, Nirlas didn’t speak to me any further. It seemed he had no intention of moving my body willingly.
Everything was implying that I should make the choice.
Though I could only choose one thing.
“Koto Ne!”
As I started to move my feet, I heard Yuka shout from behind.
“We have to go.”
I told Yuka.
Then, before I could even hear her response, I dashed out of the hospital room.
*
Seeing Koto Ne move, Yuka hurried to follow.
In the hallway, bloody footprints stretched long behind. The marks left by blood flowing from my torn wrist were clearly visible.
“Koko…!”
“Yeah!”
Koko quickly grabbed Yuka at her cry.
It was the second time I felt this, the speed that surpassed what a human could achieve. But maybe because I had experienced it once, this time it felt a bit familiar.
As soon as Koko stopped, the sound of flesh being sliced by a knife echoed.
It was the same sound I had heard just moments earlier in the hospital room. The sound of an abnormally sharp sword slicing through flesh as if ignoring even bones.
Shlick, a sickening sound followed.
Yuka was, in fact, somewhat used to such sounds.
Wasn’t it a scene she had witnessed since childhood? She had fought to protect ordinary people from otherworldly beings.
From entities that had crossed over from somewhere far away, beyond this place.
But she felt that the opponent she was dealing with now wasn’t such an entity.
A nestless Yōkai.
…It wasn’t that she hadn’t heard tales.
On the contrary, in the stories passed down through generations, Yōkai was such a being. Existing nonchalantly beside people, sometimes harming and consuming them, but some would communicate and coexist as well.
In the old tales, there was no mention of a “nest.” Such concepts were solely part of the lore handed down by certain families that had hunted the Yōkai as a threat.
It wasn’t that she didn’t have any idea about this Yōkai’s identity.
Nukekubi.
The head that moves independently from the body. A Yōkai that disguises itself as a regular human during the day, and at night, its head detaches and roams around.
But even so.
A Yōkai should have a nest.
“Yuka!”
Koto Ne shouted.
“Ah.”
While Yuka was momentarily dazed, something rushed toward her.
It was also a head that had fallen off, a person who shouldn’t have been able to move.
No, a Yōkai?
It felt strange. There was none of the anxiety normally felt when seeing Yōkai, nor the chilling sensation that arose when encountering spirits or ghosts. There was disgust stemming from its grotesque appearance, but that was all.
Crack.
And a red knife was embedded into the temple of that Yōkai. As if the two eyes hanging from the eye sockets shattered from within, its appearance became bizarre. A transparent, slightly viscous liquid mixed with red blood flowed down like tears.
As Koto Ne swung the sword, that head was knocked to the ground, leaving a red line behind as it slid.
It didn’t disappear.
It was only after seeing that sight that the chills crept in.
Even while knowing that Koto Ne needed to be stopped, it confused me that I empathized with the situation.
“Yuka.”
Koto Ne spoke calmly, just as she had seen earlier that evening. Koto Ne’s body was covered in blood. With nothing but a patient gown on, it appeared even worse. The blood-soaked clothes clung to her body, revealing her gaunt frame through the slightly large neckline.
“Yuka. Listen carefully.”
Voices began to be heard again. Over there, the voices were coming from that direction. Everybody gather! It sounded like voices from people talking.
Though it was common for Yōkai to converse using human language—
“Yuka.”
Turning my head at Koto Ne’s words, I saw Koto Ne looking directly at Yuka.
Her captured shoulder soaked heavily. There was so much blood smeared on Koto Ne’s body.
“I won’t last long.”
Koto Ne said.
“Then I—”
“No.”
Koto Ne interrupted.
“You need to….”
Then she closed her eyes and thought briefly before saying,
“Go request help. There must be people doing similar things to you.”
“There are, but—”
“Leave it to those people.”
Koto Ne opened her eyes.
The light within them was intense. So bright it was visible even in the darkened hallway.
“I’ll create the path.”
Koto Ne said so.
The sound of footsteps grew closer.
“Koto Ne?”
“……Koko.”
Koto Ne turned her gaze to Koko.
“……You help Yuka.”
“Koto Ne!”
“……Please.”
At Koto Ne’s words, Koko’s expression turned blank.
Koto Ne had asked Koko for something before. But she had never shown such a desperate expression.
In this situation—
“Only you can do it. The one who can contact those people. Right now.”
“……”
“And to move as quickly as possible, Koko’s strength will be needed. I need to be here. There may be living people, and above all, those things are targeting me. If I go outside, those things will swarm out, and who knows what could happen?”
“……”
“And I’m not weak enough to die to things like these. Both of us, we’re watching now.”
Koto Ne held Koko’s hand, who still looked unsure about what to do.
And spoke earnestly.
“Please, help Yuka.”
“Can you promise me?”
Koko asked warily. As if not yet sure of herself.
Then she extended her pinky finger toward Koto Ne.
“Can you promise me that you can wait here?”
“I’ll promise.”
Linking pinky fingers, Koto Ne spoke.
“I haven’t broken a promise, have I?”
“Right.”
“Then, help Yuka. Gather the people. I’ll be waiting.”
“Uuu.”
Koko hesitated until the end, but in the end, she did as Koto Ne had said.
*
Yeah.
Let’s stay calm.
Stay calm.
Even if the origin of what I’ve cut down until now is a human soul, there’s no need to feel guilty.
In the first place, they aren’t “human” beings. If they’ve crossed over from the afterlife, then they’re something that cannot be called a human. It’s only natural to send them back to the afterlife. Think of it as similar to exorcism.
However, that doesn’t mean I need to confuse Yuka with guilt and chaos.
Though they weren’t created from the afterlife, I still don’t see them as “human.”
Because if a person’s head detaches from their body, that person is dead. I’ve never heard of a story where someone survives after having their head severed.
In that case, whatever happens, they must be eliminated. Regardless of whether they have nests, they’re already dead.
Yeah.
I might not be the one to speak since I’ve had that profession.
But still, there’s some consistency in this.
If these things, like Yōkai, don’t disappear after dying and remain here, who will end up receiving that “misunderstanding”?
In this situation, who will bear that burden?
Even if Yuuki’s family would somehow take action, it would be unreasonable to wish that such a major incident wouldn’t get out to the public. Perhaps those in high places might try to “pin the blame” to suppress the incident.
Koko didn’t seem to fully grasp the situation, and Yuka was in a panic, unable to think of that fact.
Before they understand that, it’s essential to send them away.
Just me alone is enough.
Yeah.
Who else would do it if not me?
“If your conclusion is such, then I have no further comments.”
“……What on earth are you saying after so blatantly letting me loose?”
I moved my hand.
My body felt light.
I could slowly feel it getting cold. Perhaps it was blood loss shock or something similar. Even as my body’s danger signals began to escalate, I was able to move like this and utilize my abilities thanks to the blessings from a powerful entity whose whereabouts I could not discern.
Should I call it divine nature? Well, at least on the surface, it didn’t appear very divine.
“But don’t get the wrong idea.”
I said to Nirlas.
“I’m not an entity that will merely move as you wish.”
“Even so, isn’t there already trust between us?”
Nirlas replied.
“I believe that if you give me help, you would be gifted joy in return. That’s the nature of our relationship.”
I didn’t bother replying to Nirlas’s words.
I don’t know why these things are here right now, but I don’t need to think about such reasons for now.
First, let’s deal with what’s in front of us and then think about the next step.
I shook the sword once. Blood fell to the floor.
Then I solidified the blood on my left hand.
I formed a crystal-shaped blade just like I did when I fought before.
Footsteps grew closer.
I charged toward the first person who came in.
Their eyes widened in surprise. On the surface, they looked like an ordinary person’s face. A girl running toward them with a knife appeared to be in panic.
But this nurse also had a decapitated head.
It wasn’t just the nurse.
The elderly in patient gowns behind her were similar. There were some younger people among them, and others were in casual clothes that seemed irrelevant.
“……”
As I closed in, I swung my left hand. A projectile of blood sprayed, and heads momentarily swayed.
Yeah. No matter where they were born, a Yōkai is still a Yōkai.
I thrust my sword into the mouth of a head that was in the middle. Swinging the sword, I sent the head flying sideways as if it had been hit by a baseball bat.
The cut surface was clean. Not a drop of blood flowed. Perhaps it was already dead.
Even the head, which had been embedded in the sword, couldn’t withstand the centrifugal force of the swinging blade and came loose, flying away with a swoosh sound.
“Ugh…!”
But the other hand—
And two more, still not dead, clumsily reached toward my body.
My right arm was grabbed. Their nails had grown sharp. As I swung the sword, a few fingers were severed.
Thump!
As the crystal embedded in the opponent’s neck burst, for a moment, the head turned into a red rocket. The momentum from the splattered blood sent it flying back. The head that had originally belonged to the back of its body flipped over and fell, and I kicked it out of sight, embedding it where the writhing body’s heart was.
It felt disgusting.
I pulled out the sword and launched into the next target without even confirming whether the first had fallen.
“Patient, please return to your room!”
Hearing that voice made me chuckle.
“Pain! It hurts!”
“You want to go home, huh, kid?”
“You better stop playing around.”
What could I do for beings that are no longer people?
The best thing is to simply help them find peace. It’s not as if someone can live in society with a severed head.
…
Well, there is the case of Koko, but.
Isn’t this different from Koko? They’re all aiming to kill me.
I swung my arm at the three charging in. Blood sprayed like a fountain, and their heads swayed momentarily.
Yeah. No matter where you’re born, a Yōkai is still a Yōkai.
I thrust the sword into the mouth of the elderly figure in the center. Then, I swung the sword to the side, and the head on the left flew away as if struck by a baseball bat.
The cross-section of the severed neck was immaculate. Not a single drop of blood flowed. Perhaps they were already dead.
As I forcefully swung the sword, the head embedded in it couldn’t withstand the centrifugal force and flew away with a swoosh sound.
“Gah…!”
But the thing with the remaining hand.
And the two others were still not dead, seeming to grope around for me.
My right arm was caught. The sharp nails of the opponent reached for me, and my body began to be pressed down by five of them approaching from behind.
As I fell to the floor, I barely managed to turn my left arm around toward the body pressing against mine. It wasn’t warm. That brought me some relief.
Crack.
A crystal, extending vertically from my wrist, pierced through my body. Blood gushed from the severed neck, soaking my face, but I didn’t shut my eyes.
The long crystal transformed into something writhing.
As the opponent’s body gushed blood, it flailed around like a madman.
Thump!
That large tentacle burst again, and the body drooped.
I forcefully shoved that body aside and got to my feet.
“Ugh…!”
Suddenly feeling pain, I glanced down to see a head gripping the back of my ankle, near the Achilles tendon.
I stabbed down with my sword and shook my leg to dislodge it.
“Hah, hah…”
Even if Nirlas had enhanced my body, it was still difficult. The blood flowing out wouldn’t regenerate in real time, and as more blood flowed, the speed of healing the injuries on my body also slowed down.
Am I going to die like this…?
No.
I shook my head.
That can’t be it.
There’s a prophecy.
At the very least, as long as Yuka is near me, I won’t die right now.
I staggered and moved.
Hearing footsteps, I turned in that direction—
Huff!
I stumbled and fell to the floor.
I crashed against the wall. Struggling through the pain, I managed to stand up to see—
“……Ha, haha.”
I let out a laugh without realizing it.
What was there was a cow.
I wondered if that was what it felt like when some terrible person, wanting to create a minotaur, cuts off a cow’s head and places it on a human mannequin.
Well, that’s not a mannequin, but it had such an unrealistic appearance that it was impossible to be recognized as a person.
I heard a soul-shattering moo.
It wasn’t the peaceful sound of a cow leisurely grazing in the plains. It was the loud cry of a cow sensing the coming of its doom, as if it were being taken to the slaughterhouse. A sound that a mother cow would make when its calf was taken away.
Its eyes were bulging out, and it seemed like they would pop out any moment.
The cow charged at me.
I hurriedly rolled to the side. Though I had fallen awkwardly on my shoulder, I forced myself back up.
Thud!
I heard the sound of something heavy hitting the wall, sending chills down my spine.
The cow turned toward me again.
And leaped toward me—
Before it could land, I raised my sword. Standing it up as if it were a lightning rod ready to be struck.
The cow’s head flew into the air first.
And then, as it fell toward me, it dramatically speared itself onto the sword I was holding.
The cow’s head was much larger than a human’s. Naturally, the bones inside were thicker, but the sword penetrated so easily as if jelly had stuck to it.
The cow’s head came to a halt in place.
“Gah!”
But as that droopy, stout adult male body fell on top of it, I genuinely thought I was going to die. The sword hilt had already started to dig into my abdomen, and with the weight of the man’s body falling onto me, I felt like my insides were rupturing.
But at least, I wasn’t killed instantly.
I survived.
“Ugh… Guh.”
I rolled sideways and pushed myself up. Standing was difficult with my bitten leg.
“Hah, hah… Huh…”
Using one hand to lean against the wall, I stood up.
Stumbling a few steps, I suddenly listened closely.
Unlike the noises of many feet running around earlier, it was now completely silent.
How much time has passed since Yuka and Koko went out? I was sure it hadn’t even been five minutes.
“Cough, cough…”
A head was looking up at me, muttering through its lips. Was it trying to crawl toward me?
I pierced it with my sword.
It silenced immediately.
“……”
The horrific scene unfolded before me. Eight or so corpses were mutilated and cut up, each of their heads rolling across the floor.
It was an unbearably gloomy and melancholic spectacle.
“……”
Slowly, I leaned down and sat on the floor.
My vision blurred a little.
Is this over?
…
No.
It wasn’t over.
From a distance, footsteps echoed.
It didn’t sound like Yuka.
As if the events happening here didn’t concern them at all, those footsteps were leisurely and calm.
Someone was approaching from that distance.
I had to stay conscious. If I faint here, I would surely—
But that was the last thought I had.
*
“Honestly, there’s not a single thing I like about you.”
As such words were uttered, she walked forward.
While looking down at the sprawled-out bodies, Kosuzu lamented inwardly. She always wanted to show a relaxed demeanor, but the scene before her made it impossible.
Calling the Oni was fine. It had redirected the attention of all the hunters in Kyoto.
In that span, she had succeeded in creating those things as well.
They were all dead, but.
…Was it a wrong judgment to have tried to kill that thing? At that moment, she thought it was a golden opportunity.
“……I’ll have to give up on using you.”
It looked up at Kosuzu.
There were wounds all over, and too much blood had flowed. At least, it wasn’t impossible for it to end its life.
“Well then, Watley—”
But the moment she spoke that—
A chill ran down Kosuzu’s back.
“—Wait!”
She raised her hand, but Watley already stretched forth his tentacles.
And those tentacles—
Did nothing.
There was no blood flowing in the air. It went back to how it was as if it had never performed such an action.
Kosuzu saw it.
The tentacles reverted to their state before Kosuzu had commanded them, as if the narrative itself had been edited.
Not quickly returned. Just… as if amended.
“Mya.”
And what followed was the sound of a cat meowing.
“……”
Sitting in front of the fallen Kurosawa Koto Ne was a cat, idly sitting and licking its paws.
“……Why.”
Kosuzu muttered.
“Why, why, why!?”
Her previously relaxed and calm expression crumbled.
Furrowing her brow, she stomped her feet like a child throwing a tantrum. Due to her fair features, some might have felt endearment at her behavior.
“Why!? After I quit, why are you doing this? What are you? What is Kagami!? Surely the talent should have been mine! The fate should have belonged to me—”
The cat turned away, seemingly uninterested in Kosuzu’s words.
And then it leaped lightly onto the body of the fallen Kurosawa Koto Ne, curling around and yawning broadly.
“Not a god, nor a sword! Not flesh or blood! A failed product that isn’t either!”
Kosuzu shouted like a madwoman.
And suddenly, her words were cut off.
She took a deep breath and her shoulders heaved up and down significantly.
“……Well, fine then.”
Pushing her disheveled hair back, Kosuzu regained her calm demeanor.
“I’ll have to keep trying. This might be a revelation. The will of the great ones, who’s to say I could ever understand it? All I can do is believe.”
Kosuzu said in a relaxed tone once more.
“In the end, it’s just a matter of whether you can see me or not.”
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