"Is that all? So weak! Disgusting and useless."
Hidan continued to mock recklessly.
After all, a monster of that level wasn't even worthy of being called a 'monster.'
It was trash!
Shinsuke felt something was off. If it was just a [Grade 3 Cursed Spirit], the guards sent by the Land of Grass wouldn't have been so easily defeated.
But the fact is, they couldn't even send out a message, likely meaning they were completely wiped out.
So, what went wrong?
Shinsuke glanced at Hidan and suddenly remembered something—they might have fallen into a mental trap.
The old man kept talking about a monster that eats people, but he never said there was only one!
For a place as dangerous as this, it's impossible that there would only be a mere [Grade 3 Cursed Spirit].
Could there be more, stronger cursed spirits lurking here?
[Grade 2 Cursed Spirit] or [Grade 1 Cursed Spirit]?
Or maybe even the most terrifying... [Special Grade Cursed Spirit]?
Shinsuke felt a sudden headache. This was supposed to be an ordinary mission—how did it suddenly become so troublesome?
He thought of leaving, but he couldn't just walk away from the [Cursed Soul Value] that was so close.
Besides... it might already be too late to leave now.
So many days had passed, and neither the Land of Grass nor the Cult of Jashin had received any information about the 'monster,' not even knowing it existed. This means one thing:
The monster treats this place as its hunting ground, allowing no humans to escape!
If anyone tries to flee, they'll be caught and eaten immediately.
Shinsuke had a hunch that his guess was close to the truth.
"Tonight won't be peaceful."
...
In a cellar of a certain house:
"Mom, I'm hungry..."
"Be patient, my dear. Dad will be back with food soon."
In the darkness, a mother and daughter huddled in a corner for warmth, covered with a worn-out blanket.
Afraid of attracting the monster, they didn't dare light even a single candle.
If they weren't so desperately hungry, the woman's husband wouldn't have risked going out to find food.
It had been over an hour since the man left, far beyond the agreed time, and the woman couldn't help but fear the worst.
Whether he abandoned them or was caught and eaten by the monster, she knew that she and her daughter wouldn't survive on their own.
The woman's face was full of sorrow. She gently stroked her daughter's hair, using a soft tone to tell a fairy tale she'd already repeated hundreds of times, trying to distract her from the hunger.
After a while, the story ended once again.
The daughter suddenly looked up with innocent eyes and asked, "Will a brave knight on a white horse really come to defeat the evil monster?"
"There will definitely be one!"
The mother answered with absolute certainty, as if comforting herself as well.
"Then... is the white horse tasty?"
The mother couldn't help but laugh through her tears at her daughter's innocent question. "The white horse is for riding, not eating. It's the knight's companion."
Hearing that the white horse wasn't for eating, the daughter looked disappointed, then asked, "So if we become the knight's companions, we won't be eaten?"
"Mom, I don't want to be eaten. Can I go find the knight?"
The woman's heart skipped a beat. She held her daughter tightly, her face full of guilt and fear.
She felt guilty for being unable to feed her daughter and terrified at the thought of losing her.
After all, fairy tales are lies—there wouldn't be a knight riding by on a white horse to slay all the monsters and save them.
But her daughter believed that if they became the knight's companions, they wouldn't be eaten—how ironic!
As the woman started to cry, a noise suddenly came from above them. Someone was moving the wooden cover off the cellar entrance.
The woman was startled but spoke with a trembling voice, mixed with joy and anxiety, "Runichi, is that you, Runichi?"
"Yes, it's me. I'm back, and I found a lot of food. Hold on, I'll come down..."
"It's Dad!"
Hearing her father's voice, and that he brought food, the little girl eagerly broke free from her mother's arms.
But the woman suddenly went mad, pulling her daughter back and quickly bracing the cellar door with a piece of wood they had prepared long ago.
"Mom, what are you doing? It's Dad! He's back with food."
"Shut up! That's not your Dad—it's a monster!"
The woman gritted her teeth, tears streaming down her face.
Even though the creature outside imitated her husband's voice perfectly, she knew it wasn't him.
They had a secret code, and Runichi wasn't her husband's real name—she used it as a test, but the creature didn't hesitate to respond, as if it had no idea about the code.
So, despite the pain, the woman knew she had to take a chance to protect herself and her daughter.
Thud, thud, thud!
The sound of something hitting the wooden cover echoed, but it didn't open because the door was braced.
Then a voice came from above, "Why won't it open? I'm Runichi! Let me in, I found a lot of food."
The woman stayed silent, huddled in the corner, holding her daughter tightly and covering her mouth to keep her from making any noise, hoping the monster would leave if it couldn't get in.
When there was no response, the 'man' outside began his next act.
"Who are you? No, don't take my things, that's my food, my water!"
A while later...
"Hurry! Let me in! There's... there's a monster, the monster is coming!"
Hearing her father was in danger, the daughter began to struggle fiercely, trying to let him in.
But the woman summoned all her strength and refused to let go, even when her daughter bit her.
Finally, it went quiet outside, as if the monster had left.
The moment the woman relaxed, her daughter broke free and pushed the wood to let her father in.
The woman rushed to stop her.
At that moment, they heard a cracking noise above.
The woman looked up and felt as if she had fallen into an icy abyss, her body trembling uncontrollably.
The wooden cover had been split open by a sharp weapon, and through the gap, a greedy, horrifying eye was staring at them.
"Found you, food~"