[Part 4/4]
It was just like a moth drawn to a flame in the dead of night. I gently grasp Mari's injured hand. I touch her shoulder on the other side. And...slowly push her down.
Looming over her from above.
"Tomobe-sama? Just what is..."
'(* ́・ω・)...'
Oblivious to the danger, Mari simply looks up at me puzzlingly. Her sexual ignorance and blindness really was a saving grace. Otherwise she surely would have screamed long ago.
She surely would have cowered at my beast-like gaze.
"...!!!"
"Ngh...!?"
'( ・`д・ ́) Nom nom!'
I unconsciously squeeze the arm I grabbed. Seeing Mari's expression twist in slight anguish only further provoked my sadistic desires. Both body and soul, I truly wanted to just devour her whole...
'(^ω^) It's lunch time!'
"Ah!"
A dull pain shoots through my arm, pulling me back to my senses. Looking, there's the white spider going '(* ́ω`*) Nom nom...' stupidly making eating motions.
What I can say for now is this thing didn't particularly help me out of consideration for the situation.
"Tomobe...sama?"
"...Let's treat it, or it'll get worse."
Noticing the change in my demeanor, Mari looks back confusedly. I mutter briefly and then heave a deep, deep sigh. Venting the intense impulses and cooling my head. Getting off of her, I take out medicinal paste and bandages from the shelf.
"Let's stop the performance here for today. Get some rest."
Pretending as if nothing had happened, I treat her fingertip...'(ノ ́Д`)ノ My lunch!' By the way, I promptly peel the white spider off my arm. I'm gradually finding it difficult to keep putting off her growth if I don't purposefully limit her food. Oh well, knowing it'll break out...'(* >ω<) Eek!' ...I nonchalantly toss it in the insect cage and shut it up. It really is troublesome.
...Or rather, that's how I pretended to be calm about it, but my heart was still in turmoil huh?
(Ah. That was dangerous. Really, dangerous...!!)
It was proof I've been considerably taken over by the youkai. I had been momentarily completely consumed. Mentally I had become an youkai. Crap, is the limit approaching despite the pills and bloodsucking...!?
(While partially is one thing, next time if I fully transform it'll be pretty bad...!!)
In the original work's depiction, we hadn't even reached the peak story yet, it was still the case that hell lay ahead, and yet my greatest trump card was already halfway sealed away. No laughing matter. Really, no laughing matter.
Or maybe, it's because of that couple. They've likely noticed the abnormal changes happening to my body. Mari's existence isn't simply a hostage, and also carries the meaning of deterring me from becoming an youkai and targeting lives right? Or perhaps making me... if the stupid spider doesn't joke around, hahaha! Damn beast!!
"Tomobe...sama?"
"We've done this before...right?"
Sensing my completely agitated state of mind, Mari calls my name anxiously as if just realizing. To gloss over it, I casually bring up a past event as I treat her finger injury. I think it was when she got hurt sewing before? Looking closely, I could see several old scars from injuries on her fingers.
"Ahaha... sorry for being so clumsy."
Noticing my gaze, Mari awkwardly laughs it off.
"Don't mind."
I reply, and then hesitate for a bit...before embracing Mari.
"Eh...?"
"Sorry. Just for a bit...for a short while, let me do this okay?"
At a loss as I suddenly embrace her, I plead to Mari. Beg her. I could say those words precisely because she was blind and unassertive.
Spilling over, pathetically exposing my own weakness.
"...Yes. As much as you like,"
The reply was an guileless, affectionate, loving smile.
"Sorry..."
My murmured voice sounded squeezed out, and I cherished the sensation of Mari embracing me back. I treasured it.
Silently, I indulged in relying on the blind girl. Thinking about the adversities lying in wait ahead.
And steeled myself. To definitely protect the siblings who would get caught up in it until the end...
"Ngh...!?"
Inside the cavern, the girl suddenly regained consciousness. Upon regaining consciousness, she was thrown into confusion. She becomes flustered at the situation she finds herself in.
What exactly is this? Where is this place? The girl recoils in fear of being in the dimly lit space.
She combed through her memories. That's right, her hometown no longer existed. It had been lost to youkai over a month ago. The exorcists and army who have just arrived have avenged my family, but... that was it.
With her home, belongings, family, friends all lost, she had no choice but to abandon her hometown like the other villagers. It was impossible to rebuild the village with less than a quarter of the original population after it had been reduced to rubble.
Begging while selling off the food and money gathered from the debris along the highway... Fortunately, the snow had already melted, and she was able to progress by following behind a merchant troop. Where people gather, thieves and youkai also become wary and keep their distance.
And at last, she arrived at Seki city. Overflowing with other refugees who had wandered there after losing their villages like her.
Finding work was difficult. Still, she was fortunate. She was somehow able to start working as a serving girl at one of the shops in the city. The wages were paltry, but having a bed to sleep in and three meals was good enough. After that, gradually growing accustomed to the work after a month, she gave thanks to the Buddha.
Yes, she had been lucky. She was supposed to have been lucky. ...Until this happened.
"Huh...?"
She noticed. The sound of a sutra chant echoing from somewhere. It was the murmuring of mantras. No, this was... it was different from sutra recitation. The words were different? A foreign language?
"From over... there?"
As if drawn like a moth to a flame towards the brightly lit depths of the cavern, she staggered along unsteadily. And then she witnessed it emerging from the shadows.
A great bonfire, and gathered around it chanting curses were grotesque priests. The sacrificial beast had been skinned and its internal organs were exposed. The stench irritated her nose. An all too sacrilegious scene...!!
"Kyaa!?"
She let out a scream and immediately covered her mouth. The ritual attendees don't notice her presence. She breathes a brief sigh of relief thinking she got away with it...
'Gaa gaa gaa...'
A creepy growling sound leaks out from behind and a chill runs down her spine. And then, she slowly turned around. And realized.
The reason they hadn't reacted wasn't because they hadn't noticed. They didn't want to see it.
They didn't want to see the two-headed bat monstrosity voraciously devouring a human before their eyes...
"Ah..."
The last thing the girl saw as she tried to scream was the inhuman evil god drawing nearer with two mouths far larger than her own wide open...
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