Human-Headed Spider

"I understand. I want to become a Demon Hunter too someday. Uncle, you're Father's friend, and you're a Demon Hunter too, right? Could you teach me?"

The little girl blinked and leaned close to Kurozawa, speaking in a low voice. She looked as though she had heard some great secret and was afraid of being overheard, so she did not dare speak loudly.

A ray of sunlight fell across Kurozawa's face, while half his body happened to be beneath the eaves' shadow. Amid the contrast of darkness and light, Kurozawa smiled faintly. "I can, but you'll have to wait until you're a little older."

"Your grandfather is taking care of you, right? Don't mention these things in front of him. When you're able to stand on your own, if you still feel the same way, come to the foot of Mount Sagiri."

"Then, I'll teach you how to become a Demon Hunter."

The little girl held out her pinky, so happy she was nearly bouncing. "Then let's pinky swear."

Seeing her delighted expression, Kurozawa gently hooked his pinky around hers, sealing their promise.

As the sun sank westward and the sky gradually darkened, Kurozawa walked unhurriedly along the mountain path, lifting his gaze toward the mountain sprawled across the ground like a spider.

Mount Natagumo.

The mountain was not very tall, but it covered a vast area. From afar, it resembled a giant spider, which was how it had earned its name.

Perhaps because frightening rumors often came from the mountain, there were very few travelers on Mount Natagumo's paths. Along the way, Kurozawa had only encountered one or two people hurrying past.

Because of its appearance, Mount Natagumo placed a certain psychological pressure on people. It was only natural that passersby did not wish to linger. People had an instinct to seek fortune and avoid danger; perhaps, subconsciously, they had sensed the threat posed by Mount Natagumo.

"A large number of swordsmen have gone missing. But just how large is 'a large number'?"

The forest was lush and dense. From a distance, without exceptional Pupil Power, one could see only a deep, pitch-black mountain. Aside from the cries of birds and beasts, the chirping of insects, and the rustling of the night wind through the trees, Mount Natagumo made no other sound.

Looking at the silent Mount Natagumo, Kurozawa recalled the Kasugai Crow's report that a large number of swordsmen had disappeared.

The more one dwelled on those words, the more chilling they became.

Rather than rashly entering the mountain, Kurozawa stood where he was, bathed in the bright moonlight beyond the mountain, and pondered quietly.

The word "spider" gave him a vague sense of familiarity. When he had first heard the name Mount Natagumo from the Kasugai Crow, Kurozawa had not reacted. But as he considered it afterward, it began to feel strangely familiar.

The plot he had known well from the original work had already passed. What remained of his knowledge of this world came from posts he had happened to browse through. Racking his memories, Kurozawa finally recalled something.

The process was agonizing. That feeling of being just one step away from remembering, yet never quite getting there, left him itchy and inexplicably irritated. Fortunately, when he thought of the word "spider," inspiration suddenly struck.

"Spider... Rui?"

Kurozawa had read introductions to the Twelve Kizuki. Naturally, only the more famous characters had received extensive descriptions. One of them was a Lower Rank, and Kurozawa's first impression upon seeing him had been that he looked rather like a spider.

Once that spark of inspiration came, familiar memories surged into Kurozawa's mind like a river bursting through its banks. At last, he remembered Rui's story.

"Mount Natagumo. That's right. Just as Master said, I really have run into a Kizuki."

"My luck is as good as ever."

If Kurozawa remembered correctly, the one responsible for the disappearance of so many swordsmen on Mount Natagumo was a Kizuki who liked playing house: Rui, Lower Five. His Blood Demon Art seemed to have something to do with threads.

That was all Kurozawa remembered. The memories were too distant, and when he had read those posts back then, he had not paid much attention to the Lower Ranks, so he had forgotten the rest.

"Could those swordsmen have been captured and forced to play house with him? Maybe some of them can still be saved."

Kurozawa was not alarmed by his opponent's identity as a Kizuki. Once he had confirmed who it was, he even felt a trace of excitement.

After dealing with the Serpent Demon on Hachijo Island, Kurozawa had returned to Mount Sagiri to spar with his master. Without using sword forms, Sakonji Urokodaki was already completely outmatched by Kurozawa.

Sakonji Urokodaki had said that Kurozawa's strength and stamina were already nearly comparable to the Lower Rank Kizuki he had slain in the past. He simply lacked the demons' hard bodies and limitless regenerative abilities.

When sparring with Sakonji Urokodaki, Kurozawa had used Total Concentration, bringing his physical average to over 0.8. This indicated that the Lower Ranks' physiques were around that level as well. There might be some variation, but likely not much. What made them troublesome was their Blood Demon Arts.

Looking at the more than five hundred Potential Points accumulated in Gray-White, Kurozawa was brimming with confidence. With a leap, he charged into Mount Natagumo. As long as he had enough Potential Points, he feared nothing.

Inside Mount Natagumo, the dense trees blocked much of the moonlight. Only the occasional bright patch of moonlight fell upon the ground, providing Kurozawa with illumination.

Thanks to his powerful physique, Kurozawa's Pupil Power was no longer what it had been when he first entered the Ruined Shrine. Even under the faint moonlight, he could see everything around him clearly. He could even spot spiders the size of human heads crawling on leaves dozens of meters away.

"This is practically night vision. Even fighting at night without any light won't affect my combat strength."

Kurozawa gave his current Pupil Power a mental thumbs-up.

But suddenly, he sensed something was wrong.

"Wait. Spiders the size of human heads? What the hell are those?"

The black lightning-like figure racing through the mountains came to an abrupt halt. As Kurozawa was about to turn and look toward the spider's previous location, his perception detected intense malice.

A faint whistling sound came from behind him. Kurozawa frowned, spun around, and reached out in one smooth motion, catching the creature attacking him.

Squeak, squeak, squeak. With a hard squeeze, fluids splattered from his hand, slick and nauseating, while a sound like a rat's squeal rang out.

Pulling back his hand and looking at the struggling little thing, Kurozawa raised an eyebrow.

"That is one bizarre, grotesque-looking creature."

Trapped tightly in Kurozawa's large hand was a deathly pale human head. There was not a single strand of hair on it, and its eyes were stretched wide open, filled with bloodshot veins.

Where its neck should have been, several spider-leg-like limbs had grown out, thrashing wildly.

"Wait, why does it look familiar?"

The Human-Headed Spider went mad, opening its mouth to reveal dense, interlocking pointed teeth as it tried to bite Kurozawa. But it could not reach him, so it squealed anxiously.

Unmoved, Kurozawa frowned and carefully examined the face on the human head.

After cultivating a Breathing Technique, his memory had become excellent. Even people he had only crossed paths with once could be clearly stored in his memories. They normally remained buried, but when the right trigger appeared, he could recall them.

"On Mount Fujikasane, I think I saw a swordsman with this face..."

After only a few breaths, Kurozawa's gaze sharpened. He understood the source of his familiarity.

The Human-Headed Spider's face was difficult to recognize due to its lost hair and its current pale, crazed appearance, but certain similar details still allowed Kurozawa to remember.

Its appearance was strikingly similar in certain details to that of a swordsman who had taken part in the same Swordsman Trial as Kurozawa.