Shirou and Human Sacrifice / Shirou and the Sacrificer

'Shouldn't strong arms be an essential requirement for sculptors who carve stones or wooden blocks?' Shirou thought to himself helplessly.

"You probably didn't start carving at a young age, did you?" Holmes asked, examining the old man's hands.

"Hey, you have a good eye, kid. After all, I haven't even been in this business for ten years yet," the old man said noncommittally. "But when it comes to art, calluses on your hands don't really have anything to do with it. The key is talent! Talent!"

"... Even if talent is required, it's not something a sixty-year-old like you should be saying, is it?"

A true genius can accomplish three times more efficiently than others in half the time.

"As the saying goes, 'beautiful men are all poor and weak'"

This phrase is used when a handsome man humbly refers to himself as having nothing to offer except for his looks, or when an ordinary-looking man mocks a handsome man with a defiant attitude. It's similar to Wei Jie, the ancient Chinese hero who was as famous as King Lanling, who was surrounded by fans and eventually died from exhaustion after returning home and becoming bedridden – truly a case of beauty leading to a tragic fate.

"If I had to say, I could agree with that reasoning, but could you please lend a hand with your artist's arms? I need your help to get the car back on the road," Shirou pleaded again.

"No, no, three people can't do it." Kinoshita, Kinoshita his white hair, spoke kindly, but was surprisingly stubborn. In a way, not being indecisive was a great advantage; after all, how could someone without perseverance become an artist?

Once it was clear that the old man couldn't help—after all, he had already put his hand on the car— Shirou had no reason to blame him even if he didn't offer assistance.

"Otherwise, can I go to your village and ask someone else for help? How long does it take to walk there?"

"Okay, I'll take you there. It'll take about twenty or thirty minutes on foot."

Kinoshita had already taken a step, Shirou quickly followed, while Holmes strolled leisurely behind as if sightseeing. According to their assigned duties, fighting and negotiating were Shirou's tasks. Although his detached and leisurely attitude was quite annoying, partnering with him was necessary.

What's the name of the place you're staying in?

"The God Manifest Town," Kinoshita said.

Shirou and Holmes exchanged a glance, then Shirou smiled and said, "Great!"

"That's great!"

"Yes, we actually came here to find someone," Shirou replied.

"Looking for someone? Who?"

Shirou and Kinoshita walked out of the crossroads and onto the asphalt road. The winter sun shone all around, and the forest below the rock wall should be shady by now.

"It's a man named Kameda," Shirou said, taking a photo of Kameda from his inner coat pocket. It was information they had gone to great lengths to find. He was a Magecraft with yakuza connections, who seemed to have previously been working for Moriarty, but had now escaped here alone with a fragment of the Power Gemstone.

The Magecraft in this world aren't particularly powerful, but if they possess fragments of the Power Gemstone, it's a different story—the level of danger increases tenfold or more.

"He looks like an old thug, with tattoos, and he's dressed all in black." Kinoshita, shaking his head in disgust as he looked at the photo as he walked.

"This person couldn't possibly be in God Manifest Town," Kinoshita said with certainty. "Although it's called 'God Manifest Town,' it only has a little over a thousand people. It's not small, but it's not big either, just about two hundred households. And all the young people have gone out to work; it's mostly elderly people who come and go. Outsiders have nowhere to hide. If a man that looks so terrifying were to be wandering around the village, the news would spread immediately. We haven't seen this person over there."

Shirou wondered to himself, could Kameda be hiding somewhere in the village? "Could I look for him in your town?"

"Go Hatano; he should be able to find a way to help you."

"Who is that?" Shirou asked. "The village chief?"

"No, the village chief is Akechi. Akechi Kōichirō."

"Akechi?"

"Yes, Akechi! magnanimous! The Hatano I'm talking about is completely different from him. The Hatano family are carpenters."

"A carpenter and a village chief are two different things?"

"Completely different. Those two are worlds apart. Hatano kind and helpful. If you ask him to find that guy named Kameda, he'll help you without hesitation. No problem. He's well-connected in every village, from the upper to the lower village."

"That Hatano sounds quite reliable." Shirou said, and although there was no need to confirm, he still asked, "So, you're implying that Village Chief Akechi isn't very trustworthy?"

"Yes. That guy always has a stern face, acting all mysterious, and who knows what he's doing behind the scenes. The villagers actually all have a problem with him," the artist readily admitted.

"Can you take me to Hatano?"

"You want to find him..." Kinoshita scratched his white hair, "But he just happened to be in seclusion as a sacrifice. You really have bad luck."

"Is this some kind of ritual unique to this place?" Holmes asked curiously.

Kinoshita repeated, as if finding it difficult to speak, "It's not exactly unique; it's just that the tradition of human sacrifice in the village has been preserved from our ancestors."

"Human sacrifice?!"

A cold glint flashed in Shirou's eyes. This village didn't seem ordinary either. Human sacrifice was partly due to the ignorance and foolishness of the ancients, such as sending a bride to the river god. However, there were also mysterious beings that genuinely needed things from people, such as vampires and demons that fed on human souls...

So what's the guy who got the Power Gemstone fragment doing at this human sacrifice altar?

Chapter 1152 Shirou and the Human Sacrifice

As they walked along the road, the sun gradually set, and the sky grew darker and darker. The entire space where Shirou was located seemed to darken and become gloomy as well.

A shadow of gloom crossed Kinoshita's face, but he quickly spoke, "Never mind, it shouldn't matter. It's not like it's anything shameful."

As if convincing himself, the old man continued, "That 'sacrifice' is actually a custom in our village."

"Custom?" Shirou asked in surprise. How could it involve human sacrifice, and it's considered a custom? Is this really 21st-century Japan? A long-established developed country.

"It's a custom that's passed down in our village. As for its origin, it seems to date back to the Edo period." Kinoshita along the straight road, glancing at Shirou's expression as she spoke.

From the Edo period, from Tokugawa Ieyasu seizing the spoils of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, to the swan song of the Mibu Wolf, led by Okita Souji, serving the shogunate as samurai, is that a long time ago or not?

Shirou had no way of knowing.

"Our God Manifest Town is located on the border of this county, you should know that, right? Once you cross that mountain, the other half is another county." Kinoshita pointed in the direction the two had come from.

"Ah, that's true."

"In short, we are a very remote village. In the past, very few people would cross this mountain road to reach Yamagata. Everyone would take a detour to avoid this mountain and stay far away from it."

"Is it because the mountain road is too steep?" Shirou recalled the process of driving here, which was full of steep slopes.

"That's one of the reasons, but not only that. The main reason is that there's something awful here!"

"Were they bandits?" Holmes interjected. "In those days, it was common for bandits to gather in the mountains and forests, making a living by attacking passing merchants and plundering nearby villages."

"Hmm! Mountain bandits live in gangs in the mountains, leading a life similar to that of outlaws. I've heard they're quite brutal. Besides attacking travelers and stealing their belongings, they also reportedly raid villages from time to time to rape women or destroy fields. They're quite arrogant."

Kinoshita became more and more excited as he spoke, describing everything from how vicious the burly bandits who surrounded the young woman were to the bewildered and indignant feelings of the farmers facing their ruined homes, spitting as he spoke.

However, he hadn't gotten to the point, making Shirou want to interrupt him.

"And then..." Kinoshita's tone changed, "The village chief at the time had a dream."

Shirou paused, pondering to himself. Dreams? There are quite a few mysterious creatures capable of such things, such as Merlin with the blood of a dream demon, the Demon Pillar like Solomon's, and the evil gods from other realms.

However, the succubi feed on human dreams, so there's no need for such bloodshed; as for the Demon Pillar, while they do need meat and magic, their style of doing things wouldn't be so cautious, and they should all have been defeated and left without a trace.

As for evil gods, they are a bunch of indescribable things. When they possess a human, perhaps some can be understood, but otherwise, just seeing them would lower one's sanity and drive one insane. But for this village, it seems a bit too peaceful.

Although it's uncertain what it is, these caves might actually contain something real!

What kind of dream was that?

Simply put, it's about human sacrifice; offering someone to the gods is believed to avert disaster and misfortune.

Shirou felt a chill run down his spine. However, it wasn't surprising that people would resort to sacrifice when faced with a calamity that had no apparent reason. "It's certainly very possible."

"It's not just possible, they really did it." At this moment, Kinoshita suddenly stopped talking, and the surroundings became unusually Serenity. He pointed to a narrow and hidden path on the left and said, "Go this way." Shirou hadn't noticed this path when he drove past earlier.

"So the village chief told everyone about the dream of the living being sacrificed and suggested that the villagers hold a ceremony." Kinoshita continued the previous topic.

"A proposal to sacrifice living people? That's impossible to pass, isn't it?" Holmes said, stroking his chin.

"You think so too, right? But I heard the villagers agreed. Normally, they would never agree to something like that, but when people are forced into a corner, they become numb. Perhaps the villagers really suffered too much at the hands of bandits, so even with such cruel methods, they would cling to any possibility of redemption. And maybe it's precisely because it's so cruel that the villagers agreed, isn't it?"

"Indeed," Shirou also felt that such a method was more suitable for venting pent-up anger. The more dangerous the environment, the easier it is for people's hearts to be swayed, and the easier it is to be incited to go to extremes. "Perhaps cruel and simple methods are especially attractive. At that time, everyone is eager for a way to solve all problems cleanly and efficiently."

"Right. In the end, the villagers chose a woman to be sacrificed."

"A woman." Holmes frowned.

"The villagers must have persuaded her, maybe they begged her while crying, or perhaps they threatened and beat her, or maybe they betrayed her." Kinoshita's mind seemed to be racing with all sorts of scenarios. "In any case, that woman went into the cave."

"Cave?"

"Because the village chief's dream instructed that the human sacrifice ritual must involve locking the victim in a cave. Since the dream clearly stipulated this, the villagers could only try their best to comply. So they moved large rocks to block the cave entrance, and then the villagers fled the cave as if they were escaping, not daring to approach that rock wall for quite some time."

Where is the woman?

"She's dead. Some say she bit off her tongue to commit suicide, others that she starved to death, and still others that she was bitten by poisonous insects in the cave. There seem to be all sorts of speculations circulating among the villagers, but what's certain is that the woman dutifully completed the task of the sacrifice." Kinoshita nodded repeatedly with admiration. "Afterwards, the village held a ceremony to bury her."

A festival?

"I really don't know what the point of holding a festival is. Is it because they're especially happy? Or because they're especially terrified? Everyone must be trying to forget their guilt through this."

"Where are the bandits? Are they still around?"

"Gone!" Kinoshita's eyes lit up. "The bandits vanished the moment the sacrifice ended."

"Did that dream come true?" Holmes asked, a look of interest on his face.

Shirou thought to himself, "This is too easy. If it really is a Magecraft ritual, then it is indeed possible to achieve this effect. Magecraft requires a price: magical power, gems, and various mediums that can replace magical power or enhance its flow. For example, summoning circles use the blood of living beings, and if you want to limit your contact to powerful Servant, you need corresponding relics."

Where did those bandits go?

"Who cares about them? Some say they suddenly died while sleeping in the camp on the mountain, while others say the mountain god appeared and made them disappear. From then on, the villagers were able to cross this mountain and travel between Yamagata and Miyagi without any problems." Kinoshita had an expression that said, "Let them die or what." "Anyway, ever since then, whenever the village is in trouble, they hold a human sacrifice."

Chapter 1153 Shirou and the Sacrifice

"So the victims are called 'sacrificers'?" Shirou asked, frowning.

"Yes, this area doesn't have any special products. At most, we can grow enough rice to feed ourselves, but that depends entirely on the weather. If it doesn't rain for a while, there will be famine. We can't rely on anyone else, we can only rely on God!"

"That's certainly possible." Shirou disagreed with the other person's approach, but it was reasonable for people of that era. Even today, temples and monasteries are thriving. Life is full of things that science can't solve, and we need to rely on fate.

"It wasn't just a possibility, it really was a famine. And what happened? When drought struck, the villagers chose to sacrifice people."

"And then the chosen ones are locked in the cave?" Holmes asked.

"Were you scared?" Kinoshita asked, looking at Shirou and Holmes.

"Hmm, that's terrifying," Shirou agreed. But was it the mystery and horror of the cave itself, or the villagers who imprisoned others inside for sacrifice that was more frightening?

"But you don't seem scared at all," Kinoshita said with dissatisfaction. "Anyway, as soon as the victim enters the cave, it rains immediately, or the mountain traps catch a bear. They're said to be very effective."

How exactly were the victims chosen?

Upon hearing that Holmes and Shirou were interested in the topic, Kinoshita immediately moistened his lips, as if he had forgotten to mention a crucial point, and began by saying, "This is where things get interesting."

Is it interesting?

"Ah, we're here!" Kinoshita suddenly exclaimed, not caring that the story was only half-finished.

Shirou looked up and understood that Kinoshita meant they had arrived at God Manifest Town, but there was no sign or archway that read "Welcome to God Manifest Town," nor were there any houses neatly arranged like in a residential area. Instead, there were only farmlands, cultivated land, and houses scattered along both sides of the road. This was a village surrounded by mountains.

"Come sit at my place for a bit, and I'll introduce you to my wife," Kinoshita said, leading the way.

"Huh? You got married?"

"Of course, otherwise what do you think I was doing before I turned sixty?" Kinoshita said irritably.

Kinoshita's house is a single-story building with a blue tin roof. Inside, there are two spacious Japanese-style rooms, one of which is used as a studio. Wood chips are scattered all over the floor. It seems that the wind outside can blow into the house, and it is a bit cold inside. But once you sit down at the kotatsu table, it gets a little warmer.

The woman who brought out the tea looked to be in her early fifties. Her name was Kinoshita Nene, and she claimed to be three years older than Kinoshita. Although she couldn't hide the wrinkles on her face, her skin was still very well-maintained, and she looked younger than Kinoshita.

"He used to work for the city government, and he did it for a long time," Nene said after serving the tea. "Until nine years ago, he suddenly quit his job and moved to this village, saying he wanted to be an artist, even though he didn't have any savings. He really suffered a lot back then." She emphasized the word "really".

"No, that's not it. Who said I wanted to be an artist? I said I absolutely have to be an artist." Kinoshita held up the piece of wood in his hand and said, "I found some good material on my way back." Then he went into the next room.

"This guy is just a big kid. Look at him picking up pieces of wood from the ground, carving here and whittling there. I just think he's a little kid playing with wood." Nene frowned. "Sigh, but there's nothing I can do about it. It feels like I'm taking care of a younger brother."

"You've really gone through a lot." Shirou offered a polite word of comfort, though the woman was actually enjoying herself. If she weren't such a tolerant person, she probably wouldn't have been able to get along with the old woman.

"I don't mind the hardship; I know that suffering is part of life. But what if none of his works sell..."

What if they can't be sold?

"It's really disheartening," Nene said with a lonely smile. "More than money, I think a person should achieve at least one thing in their life that makes them happy enough to shout 'I did it!' Don't you think?"

Who exactly is he trying to yell at?

Shirou thought of Moriarty, who had boldly challenged Holmes, perhaps just to defeat the great detective as the villain. After all, in the books, he was always destined to lose. So he went so far as to come to another world and create a battlefield for himself and Holmes.

"Actually, we're looking for someone." Shirou took out Kameda's photo and placed it on the kotatsu table.

Nene leaned closer to examine the photo. "I've never seen this person before. Is this person from our village?"

"If there were any guys like that hanging around the village, word would have spread by now." Kinoshita had returned to the kotatsu table at some point. "Like when we moved here nine years ago, the moment we stepped into the village, everyone was whispering and gossiping. People here are very sensitive to outsiders."

"Because our village isn't very big."

"Excuse me..." Shirou asked, bringing up something he'd been curious about for a while. "I've been wondering, what's the difference between this village and the town of Shinrai?"

"The place we live in is a village, a place where families from this area have lived together for generations. But whether it's classified as a village or a town depends on how the government defines it. This God Manifest Town is made up of more than ten villages, and the village office is located in Onsen-cho, so the village chief, Akechi, has to go to the village office from here every day."