Namida's realization about the true nature of witches has left him with a difficult decision to make. He must decide whether to continue his mission to eradicate the witches or seek a new path.
After spending the night by the river, Namida and Aisuru continued their journey towards the mountains. As they reached the mountains, Aisuru commented on how the mountains brought her sadness because she remembered when her people were purged by the samurai and how her loved ones were killed. Namida assured her that he wouldn't let that happen again.
As they crossed the mountain, they found a valley filled with corpses and other horrific things. The sight was gruesome, and Namida felt a sense of disgust and anger.
As they kept walking, they were suddenly surrounded by a group of witches. The witches were ready to attack Namida, but Aisuru stopped them and explained that he was on their side. The witches were skeptical at first, but they started asking questions to verify Aisuru's claim.
"Who are you?" asked one of the witches.
"I am Aisuru Kirai, and this is Namida Mirai," replied Aisuru.
"We are on a mission to discover the truth about this whole situation about witches who consume negative energy."
"Why should we trust you?" asked another witch.
Namida looked at the witches with a mix of confusion and curiosity.
"I don't understand," he said.
"All my life, I was taught that witches were monsters who consumed negative energy to destroy the world. But now, I see that they are not what I thought they were. It's all so confusing."
Aisuru nodded in understanding.
"I know how you feel, Namida. It's not easy to question what you've been taught your whole life. But sometimes, we have to look beyond what we know to find the truth."
"But what is the truth?" asked Namida.
"Why are the witches consuming negative energy? And what can I do to help?"
"The truth is that the witches are not the monsters we once believed them to be," said Aisuru.
"They are the keepers of balance in the world. The negative energy that they consume is necessary to maintain that balance."
"But how can that be?" asked Namida.
"How can something so negative be necessary?"
"That's what we're trying to find out," said Aisuru.
"We believe that there is more to the story than what we've been told. And we need your help to uncover the truth."
Namida hesitated for a moment. He didn't want to be a samurai, but he was chosen. He felt a sense of responsibility to do what was right.
"I'll help you," he said.
"But I need to understand more about what's going on. I need to know why the witches are consuming negative energy and what we can do to help."
"We'll find the answers together," said Aisuru. "But first, we need to earn the trust of the witches. And that means surrendering your sword."
The witches were surprised to hear this and started discussing among themselves. After a few minutes, their leader stepped forward and said,
"We believe you. But we can not let you leave with your sword. We need to make sure that you won't use it against us."
Namida looked at his sword and then at the witches. He knew that he had to earn their trust if he wanted to learn more about the witches and their ways.
Namida hesitated for a moment but then decided to surrender his sword to the witches. He knew that he had to earn their trust if he wanted to learn more about the witches and their ways.
Slowly, he unsheathed his sword and handed it over to the witches.
As Namida handed over his sword to the witches, they created a powerful field to protect themselves as they talked. The witches began to explain to Namida about the negative energy and its role in the universe.
"Negative energy is the darkness that surrounds the entire universe," said one of the witches.
"We feed on it to balance out the light and the dark. One can not exist without the other."
Namida listened intently, trying to understand.
"But why do you need to consume negative energy?" he asked.
"And what does Raia have to do with all of this?"
"Raia is a jealous entity who created a false rumor that we feed on negative energy to devour all living things," said another witch.
"But it doesn't work that way. We consume negative energy to maintain balance in the world. Without us, the darkness would consume everything."
Namida was still confused. "But how can consuming negative energy maintain balance? It doesn't make sense."
The witches looked at each other, unsure of how to explain.
"That is a question that we have been trying to answer for a long time," said the first witch.
"But we believe that there is more to the story than what we've been told. And we need your help to uncover the truth."
As the witches continued to talk, Namida felt a sense of unease. He knew that there was more to the story than what they were telling him. But he didn't know what it was. The conversation left him with more questions than answers, and he wondered what he had gotten himself into.