Shirou and Village Chief Akechi / Akechi and Hatano's Grudge

"Of course it was awful. The cave was pitch black, and you had to go to the deepest part of the cave to use the toilet. The whole cave reeked. How could you be in the mood to look for any secrets in such a horrible place?"

"But you don't think every sacrifice is effective, do you?" Shirou asked.

"Well, after all, many problems can be solved without sacrifice. I think it's because the Akechi family members are all very intelligent; they can always accomplish things that others think are impossible. I know all four generations of the young lords, including Akechi, his father Hachibei, his grandfather, and his great-grandfather. They are all extremely smart. Although they each have their own personalities—some are people you keep your distance from, and some are kind-hearted people—they all have one thing in common: they are smart."

You meant 'clever,' not 'petty cleverness,' right?

"Their family members probably know some knowledge about the omens that precede events, like signs of a changing weather or warnings of bears. In short, as long as you listen to them, you can find a way to get through whether it's a flood or a drought."

"So it's not based on intuition, but on learned knowledge?" Shirou wondered. Did this have anything to do with Magecraft? But one thing was certain: the village chief's family maintained this ritual.

"Once they discover the omens, they will gather the villagers together to perform a ritual to enter the cave, and then eliminate the calamity. All the credit will be attributed to the sacrificial ritual."

Shirou stared intently at Granny Songbai. Her hands and neck were covered in wrinkles, and her short stature could easily be mistaken for that of a primary school student. Yet, her boundless energy and sharp mind made Shirou murmur, "Old foxes are indeed shrewd..."

Have you shared your views with the villagers?

"Of course I didn't say that. How could I say such a thing? Don't be silly." Granny Songbai laughed. "But I did mention it to my husband, my deceased husband, and I immediately got a good scolding. He said, 'What nonsense are you talking about! You're not allowed to speak ill of the villagers!'"

Shirou wondered what this old woman looked like when she was young. He tried to picture her in his mind, but he couldn't imagine what she looked like decades ago. Even if she was old back then, she could be called an old woman, so he decided to forget about it.

"By the way, what was the incident you mentioned earlier?"

"The Nobunaga Incident?"

"Yes."

"That incident was really strange. You know, how could anything happen in such a small village with nothing, but it really did. It happened when I had just turned 60. He was a nasty fellow, in his early thirties, who never worked properly and spent women's money traveling around having fun. But he happened to be handsome, and then he died."

"Died like Wei Jie?" Shirou asked in surprise.

"Miso? Who's that? A Chinese person?"

"No, it will be called an 'incident,' meaning his death was unusual?"

"That's right, Nobunaga died in the cave, and he happened to be the sacrifice that time."

"Were living people still being sacrificed back then?"

"How could that be! We still send him three meals a day as usual. Since I married into this family, there has been no such thing as human sacrifice. That's why Nobunaga's death in the cave caused such a commotion. And what's even stranger is that Nobunaga died in the cave, but the cause of death was multiple fractures throughout her body."

Chapter 1159 Shirou and Village Chief Akechi

"Mountain disaster?"

"I heard it was a total comminuted fracture, every bone in his body was shattered, as if he was crushed bit by bit by the bare hands of a savage or a bear. I really don't know how it happened. There's no way he could have been injured like that in a cave. Everyone finds it unbelievable. He was locked up properly, how could this happen?"

Shirou narrowed his eyes as if staring intently into the darkness; the old man did not appear to be lying.

"And... I heard that around those same days, Hatano's girlfriend committed suicide, and the criminal who bullied her also collapsed and died on the street. In a small place like ours, anything that happens will be heard by everyone within a day. Let alone three people dying in a row, so I've always remembered it."

"So, in your opinion, after Hatano's girlfriend was tortured and committed suicide, did someone take revenge on that person by using the cave? And just like that, Nobunaga, who was in the cave, became the sacrifice, just like when the bandits disappeared at the beginning?"

The old woman pointed to the other side of the mountain and said, "Beyond this mountain is the neighboring county." Shirou, however, did not think that this mountain could be crossed so easily.

Shirou imagined the woman being roughly dragged into the bushes by the man, then abandoned there, alone in her torn clothes, curled up in despair, not knowing what to do.

What were her feelings as she left that place? Because she was ashamed to face anyone, she dared not cry out loud, nor did she dare let her family or boyfriend know. She just stared blankly at everything, finally understanding the meaning of her own life...

Shirou thought again of the woman who was sent as a sacrifice into a cave where day and night were indistinguishable, in order to deal with mountain bandits. What exactly happened to her? Was she suffering from hunger, or was she truly sacrificed by demons, or did she encounter some kind of evil mystery?

What was she thinking before she died? What were she feeling at that moment? Was it deep despair? Or anger? Shirou wondered. Of course, it was all too late to know. But this path was even heavier than he had initially anticipated.

"We'll be there soon," said Granny Songbai.

The two arrived at the entrance to the mountain, where the road was only half the width of the previous one. The asphalt road also turned into a flat dirt path here. Shirou walked towards the rock wall on the right.

"Do Akechi and Hatano really have a bad relationship?" Shirou tried asking again.

"I don't know what happened either," Granny Songbai did not deny it. "In the past, those two were very close. They would play catch together from morning till night, and they were inseparable. They even crossed the finish line at the school marathon at the same time. When they argued with the older students, they were always on the same page." As she spoke, a smile appeared on her face.

"I heard that the reason their friendship fell apart was because Hatano's girlfriend passed away?"

"Who knows?" Granny Songbai gave a vague reply, then sighed, "Rumors are never really true, are they?" But Shirou could tell that at least the rumor was true.

Just then, Granny Songbai, her brows furrowed, suddenly looked up at the distance and opened her mouth in surprise, "Ah, Akechi, what's wrong? What are you doing here?"

Village chief Akechi had probably heard about the strangers staying at the Kinoshita's house. When he saw Shirou, he neither panicked and shouted, "Where did this stranger come from!" nor did he get angry. He simply stared at Shirou and asked rudely, "What are you doing here?"

"My car's in that state now," Shirou said, pointing to the left. The rented car, just like yesterday, was completely tilted to the left, the angle so daring it evoked sympathy. "Even with a car, I can't get home. I'm really worried about it."

Akechi nodded, lowered his chin, and said, "I'll help you." His voice was deep, and he didn't look fifty years old; he gave the impression of being shrewd and capable.

"Then I'll go first, I still have to deliver the food." Granny Songbai said, turning to leave, but Akechi immediately called out to her, "Don't go! Some of the rocks at the food delivery point have crumbled, you might get hurt if you put your hand in."

"But we can't just stop delivering meals because of that," Granny Songbai said, showing Akechi a box full of food.

"Leave it to me, I'll deliver it later."

Granny Songbai seemed a little upset, her face hardening, but she still handed the lunchbox to Akechi. "Oh, I see. Thank you for your help." She then asked Shirou, "Are you coming along too?"

"I need to move my car."

After watching Granny Songbai leave, Akechi said, "Alright, let's move the cart." His voice was completely flat, as if a pair of cold hands were touching Shirou's neck.

Akechi looked thin with narrow shoulders, but he was surprisingly strong when he moved. He muttered something to himself, and his grip on the car's chassis was very steady. He was putting all his strength into helping to lift the car. However, even with their combined efforts, they still couldn't lift the car. They decided to try a different method: pulling it back onto the grass.

"One, two, pull!" With a combined effort, the two pulled the car up as the roadside soil collapsed, and the four wheels came to a steady stop on the grass.

Shirou got into the driver's seat, started the engine, and managed to drive the car away from the grass and back onto the gravel road.

Shirou turned the car around, reversed, and stopped it so that the front of the car was facing downhill. He then got out and thanked Akechi.

"Thank you so much! You're incredibly strong. Even with three of us, we couldn't handle this before." Shirou didn't expose him; Akechi had clearly used Magecraft that enhanced his physical strength, otherwise he wouldn't have such power. Normally, this cart would require at least four strong men to tow, but now Shirou and Akechi were doing the work of two.

Akechi's fighting prowess should not be underestimated; he should be considered Grand Mage in this world. Shirou currently has no magic power, so subduing him won't be easy. However, this also means that Shirou hasn't aroused Akechi's suspicion.

"People from the mountains climb up and down mountains every day, so naturally they have better stamina. Now that the car is ready, it's not a good time to entertain guests in the village. Please go back early and come again another time," Akechi said indifferently.

"Actually, I'm here to find someone." Shirou took out a photo and showed it to Akechi, while watching his expression.

Observing people and reading their expressions is an essential skill for detectives. Before each investigation, he would try his best to understand the daily routines and behavioral patterns of his target. Work involving the dead is generally left to the police; they wouldn't allow an unknown detective to get involved.

Therefore, Shirou's job involves dealing with living people most of the time, so the key is to find clues from their words and actions. Thus, the ability to read between the lines becomes an indispensable skill.

Akechi appeared expressionless, as if wearing a mask. He had single eyelids, a thin, long mouth, fair skin, and striking, delicate eyebrows that seemed glued to his face, motionless. He looked at the photograph, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes.

Chapter 1160 The Feud Between Akechi and Hatano

"Do you know this person?" Shirou asked.

No, I've never seen it before.

"But your eyes just darted around." Shirou's judgment was that, with this kind of person, you should honestly reveal your hand.

"Who is this person in the photo?" Akechi remained unmoved.

His name is Kameda.

"This Kameda doesn't seem like a decent person," he said, pointing to the photograph. "It would be troublesome if there were someone like him in our village. If I'm feeling uneasy, it's because of this." It was unclear whether he was making excuses or speaking the truth. Akechi then asked, "May I ask who you are?"

"My name is Shirou Emiya."

"Mr. Emiya, please leave now that you've finished your business. Staying in our village must be quite boring."

"I want to go see that cave."

"You've heard?" Akechi finally changed.

Akechi's expressionless face was filled with disgust and displeasure. "You must think it's a barbaric custom of an undeveloped village, right?"

"That's a good custom." Shirou shrugged. He felt that preserving traditional customs that transcend generations was definitely not a bad thing. Nowadays, there are almost no ideas passed down from generation to generation in Japan. People do not cherish ideas and common sense, using them and then discarding them. They are also unaware of the importance of accumulating wisdom and knowledge.

"The person currently locked up inside is named Hatano, right?"

"They're not locked up inside; they're entering the cave to pray for blessings," Akechi emphasized.

So Shirou tried a different approach. "Is the Nobunaga Incident real?"

Akechi seemed taken aback, as if he hadn't expected so many villagers to be so gossipy. "That matter has become a huge lie."

Isn't that the truth?

"Only one thing is true—Mr. Nobunaga, the sacrificer, is dead, that's all. It was probably a heart attack. Afterwards, someone embellished the story, and the rumors grew bigger and bigger. That's how rumors are; they spread and become more exaggerated. To put it bluntly, it might just be for fun, or perhaps to evade responsibility."

"Escaping responsibility?"

"The problem lies with Hatano." Akechi finally uttered the name. "The divine messenger at that time was Hatano. You know what a divine messenger is?"

"The person responsible for delivering three meals a day to the sacrificers."

"Not only that, the divine messenger also had to keep an eye on the physical condition of the sacrifice, because it would be terrible if someone died. But at that time, Hatano, as the divine messenger, did not notice that Nobunaga was unwell."

"So, Hatano spread rumors that Nobunaga fell to her death in the cave? Why would he do that?"

"They probably wanted to fabricate a bizarre incident to completely absolve themselves of responsibility, and as it turns out, the villagers' focus was on Nobunaga's mysterious death, and no one blamed Hatano for his dereliction of duty."

"So, Nobunaga's death shouldn't be attributed to the bizarre fracture, but rather to Hatano's personality, is that right?"

"Hmph, does he even have a personality?" Akechi's words showed a lack of class.

"May I go and take a look at the cave of the sacrificers?" Shirou asked again as he attempted to enter the challenge.

"I'm sorry, I can't agree to that. Our village may be small, but it has its own space, and I hope you won't break our rules."

"Alright." Shirou answered readily, even surprising himself. Of course, he didn't give up exploring the cave, simply because Akechi was right. Everyone, everywhere, needs their own little space.

Shirou neither resisted nor argued, and silently got into the car.

"Shall I give you a ride?" Upon hearing Shirou's invitation, Akechi hesitated for a moment, but still got into the car.

Shirou drove Akechi to the entrance of the village. Akechi said, "Welcome to visit again. Next time, please avoid the period when we go into the cave for the sacrifice. That way, I'll have more time to show you around." He then got out of the car.

"Ah, I'd like to ask you something," Shirou called out from the car window to Akechi's retreating figure.

Akechi made no attempt to hide his displeasure; his face clearly said, "You've asked enough questions!"

Why can't you and Hatano get along?

Upon hearing Shirou's question, Akechi remained expressionless and silent for a long while before rudely blurting out, "Because we can't trust each other."

"But didn't you two play together like brothers when you were little?"

"You probably didn't understand anything when you were little."

"Oh, right." Shirou stepped on the gas.

The car headed towards the hot spring town. After traveling about a kilometer, Shirou the car over to the side of the road. There was a small forest on the left filled with evergreen trees, so he drove into the forest, parked the car, got out, and after making sure no one was around, turned back and headed towards the God Manifest Town.

Several questions flashed through Shirou's mind:

"Village Chief Akechi wasn't holding the lunchbox that Granny Songbai had given him."

When the two of them towed the car back to flat ground, Akechi didn't have Granny Songbai's lunchbox in his hand, and he got into Shirou's car without delivering the food to the cave, which means he must have thrown the box and the food away together.

"Why did Akechi do this? Why throw away the sacrificial offerings?" Questions flooded Shirou's mind.

"Does Akechi really want to harm Hatano?"

"And Kameda..."

Shirou then realized that his primary task should be to find Kameda, but if Akechi really wanted to kill Hatano, then he had no choice but to get involved.

"How did it go?" Shirou stepped into the Kinoshita house again, where he was greeted by the leisurely Holmes and Nene's gentle smile.

"I only visited one household and met Granny Songbai."

"Your mother-in-law is very healthy, right?"

"Hmm, quite amazing." Shirou shrugged. "I also met Akechi later." He didn't tell Nene that he had gone to that rock face.

"Oh, yes."

Shirou asked her where Kinoshita had gone, and she pointed to the closed paper sliding door on the left. That was Kinoshita's studio, meaning Kinoshita was probably creating something.

"Don't let his appearance fool you, he's incredibly dedicated when he's behind closed doors creating his art."

"After all, he's an artist."

"Mr. Kinoshita's work is very stylish; I like it very much," Holmes said admiringly.

"Thank you for the compliment. He's always been the kind of person who has to follow the rules in everything." Nene's complaints about her husband's shortcomings were tinged with a hint of pride.

Shirou took off his shoes and went inside, being careful not to make any noise that might disturb the artists in the studio. As soon as he sat down at the kotatsu table, he said, "I have something I'd like to ask you."

"Regarding the person you're looking for, I really haven't met him." Nene shook her head.

"It's about Akechi and Hatano." Shirou observed Nene's reaction.