Humans are strange creatures. Even if something is erroneous... illogical, if most people believe it to be correct, then it becomes the truth.
And for those few who know it's wrong, if they dare to speak out, they won't just be ignored. They'll be rejected by the majority, deemed as heretics.
To avoid being ostracized, these individuals who secretly know the truth often choose to feign agreement with the masses, despite their own beliefs.
Before the altar, a hunchbacked old woman knelt on the ground. With an expression of religious fervor, she clasped her hands in prayer. "My child becoming a gift to the esteemed god is truly something to be proud of."
Behind her, on the altar itself, a girl was bound in chains, her eyes covered...
Suddenly, the old woman noticed how pitiful her situation was...
However... A strange change seemed to take place within the girl's body...
Observing the girl's slight struggles and soft moans, the old woman didn't notice a thing, continuing to mutter as if possessed. She addressed nothingness above as she chanted, "Oh great Fox God... we offer you our faith, pray for you to drive away the fiends, scare off evil gods, and protect our village with peace and prosperity..."
Just as the old woman completed her prayer, something extraordinary happened.
An enormous shadow appeared in the sky above, seemingly materializing out of nowhere.
The old woman's eyes widened, her breath nearly stopping entirely.
It was a massive fox spirit, its body as solid as stone and as colossal as a mountain. It exuded a suffocating pressure, its enormous maw filled with teeth that looked like they belonged to some evil spirit. That pair of crimson eyes were like those of a violent god.
In the villagers' minds, such a being could only be associated with one thing:
"A god..."
According to the ancestral legends of Yae Village, a powerful fox god guarded the village. By offering sacrifices, the villagers could summon the god's presence and fulfill their wishes.
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(Note from author below:)
Foxes... In the Far East, the fox has held a position of immense reverence. Regardless of whether depicted as divine entities or supernatural beings, fox motifs consistently rank among the highest esteemed.
One notable example is Inari, one of Japan's most widely worshipped deities, who emerged as a spiritual fox spirit. On the monster side, we find the nine-tailed demonic fox, Yamata no Okami—the most iconic of the three great demons—leading the pack.
In Japanese folklore, Yamamoto no Okami did more than bewitch the emperor. During her escape, she slaughtered nearly 870,000 soldiers and most of the country's mages and onmyouji practitioners. It took a final tribute of 200,000 remaining soldiers and the collective lifetime cultivation of every remaining exorcist to cast Ganjin's spiritual arrows and barely suppress Yamamoto no Okami.
Yamamoto no Okami stands as the most powerful creature in all of Japan's monster lore, save for one eight-headed serpent or another.
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Thus, the people of the Far East never doubted the immense power of the fox god.
The old woman's face turned ashen as she struggled to speak under the crushing pressure that seemed to freeze even the air itself.
"O mighty god..."
"Boom!"
...But what greeted her was unrelenting death.
The fox god's rampage made the earth tremble with a thunderous roar. It opened its blood-red maw, tearing the old woman's body to pieces. Its fearsome appearance was like a demon crawling from the very depths of hell!
(TL Note: Good job fox thing! ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )✧)
Blood-soaked limbs and chunks of flesh scattered across the ground, staining the earth a color as if burned by raging flames. The horrifying spectacle caused some villagers to faint on the spot. Only then did the others react, their screams and panic filling the air as they scrambled to escape.
In that moment, the villagers' faith in the fox god crumbled completely.
The powerful fox god had truly appeared, but... it was not the benevolent spirit protecting their village, but an evil demonic entity!
Yet oddly, as the fox spirit ruthlessly slaughtered the villagers, the young girl who was meant to be the sacrifice got up unharmed.
"Too late..." the fox god murmured, its voice echoing like the toll of a funeral bell.
"How could it be, Fox God? No, perhaps it's a Fox Demon..."
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When Yae Sakura, Serenade, and their companions arrived, they found it was too late. As they witnessed the scene before them, their faces turned pale with shock.
The Fox God—no, the Fox Demon that should never have existed—had truly appeared, its demonic energy raging...
As if sensing their arrival, the Fox Demon fixed its overpowering, menacing gaze upon Yae Sakura and her group. It let out a series of guttural growls, baring its teeth in a posture that screamed readiness to erupt at any moment.
The ground, scarred and ravaged; the world, ablaze and burning; and before them, such a monstrous fiend standing tall.
If an ordinary person were to lay eyes on this nightmarish vision, their legs would surely buckle, perhaps even causing them to swoon from sheer terror.
But these were not ordinary individuals—these were self-proclaimed Valkyries, human-shaped weapons. Their very mission was to vanquish such grotesque demonic entities. It was a task left to Kallen and her kind.
Or rather, they had long since transcended the limitations of "human" classification.
The gruesome scene before them—the villagers perishing in front of their eyes—affected Kallen, Sakura, and Serenade differently. They were primarily concerned with the safety of those they cared for; as long as their loved ones were unharmed, they could handle anything else.
But... Kallen was different. From a young age, her belief had been to protect the weak and defend civilians.
Especially... she felt compelled to save those civilians from the clutches of Honkai Beasts.
In this moment, Kallen could no longer bear it.
Standing amidst the rubble-strewn ruins, facing the horrific sight, Kallen froze momentarily. The instant she raised her weapon, her gaze transformed.
It became cold and resolute, that of a hunter solely focused on combating Honkai.
As she drew her twin guns, an intangible aura emanated from Kallen.
With fierce spirit and proud poise, Kallen resembled the battlefield's Manjushaka flower—one that embodied the solemnity and beauty of war, yet also radiated a chilling malice.
Kallen didn't ponder why there would be such terrifying Honkai Beasts here. Nor did she speculate on what Serenade and the others might do. She couldn't let the murder of these villagers go unanswered.
She raised her gun, ready to strike first, but then several chains suddenly burst forth from the ground. With the agility and swiftness of water snakes, they wrapped around Kallen, binding her limbs.
"What... is this..."
Kallen gasped, her heart sinking.