Acting, Still Acting

As consciousness stirred from the darkness, Gu Yu immediately performed a carp flip, springing up from his prone position on the tatami mat.

"Phew, I don't know how long has passed, but..."

Gu Yu immediately looked at the back of his right hand, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.

"--Looks like I won the gamble."

On the back of Gu Yu's right hand, though the clarity of the Rider Emblem had significantly decreased, it at least still retained its power.

"The power to fight is still here, so the rest should be easy."

Looking at the surroundings, which resembled an ancient village, Gu Yu knew he had entered Yae Sakura's inner world.

In the original story, Theresa was dragged into Yae Sakura's inner world by Hiyorimar because she obtained the Stigmata created from Yae Sakura's Herrscher Core.

Five hundred years ago, Yae Sakura, as a Miko of Yae Village, had closed off her heart due to various past experiences.

In the days that followed, Yae Sakura, along with Hiyorimar, was sealed within Yae Village due to Hiyorimar's misdeeds.

Even after five hundred years, Hiyorimar, as the Corrosion Herrscher, and Yae Sakura, who coexisted with it, showed no signs of dissipating.

According to the original story, Yae Sakura should have suppressed Hiyorimar, forcing Hiyorimar to resort to ambushing Theresa through the Herrscher Core Stigmata sent by Yae Sakura.

However, now that Hiyorimar had suppressed Yae Sakura's consciousness, Gu Yu couldn't quite understand.

That stinky fox was once feared even by Pseudo Herrschers like Yuno, so why was it now daring to approach several Herrschers?

Something was wrong, this was really too wrong.

Stretching his wrists, Gu Yu looked out the window.

Outside the window, the scorching sun hung high in the sky, casting an incredibly dazzling light.

The land in front of Gu Yu was incredibly dry, showing no signs of moisture.

"Hmm, the mimicry is indeed good, even the weather is recorded perfectly."

After confirming the weather, Gu Yu walked towards the room emitting noisy sounds.

"Miko-sama, casually bringing back a strange man, this is too shameless!"

"The God-sama might become enraged because of this!"

"Outsider, we must kill that outsider!"

"What a shame, if only that outsider was a woman, we'd have our sacrifice for this year."

Listening to the voices from the noisy room, Gu Yu felt a inexplicable sense of irritation.

Honestly, he understood why these ignorant villagers would think this way.

In that era, with technology and knowledge not yet widespread, it was perfectly normal for people in the Far East to believe in all sorts of strange gods.

After all, in Yae Village, if there wasn't enough rain, crops would naturally fail.

In the period before Yae Sakura was sealed, due to drought, an average of two to three villagers starved to death each day.

A village of a few hundred people losing eighteen people in a week, if Gu Yu were in such an ignorant environment in ancient times, he would have gone mad too.

Under these circumstances, if Hiyorimar, disguised as a god, could bring rain, then in the eyes of the villagers, it was naturally a supreme deity.

But now, facing these ignorant people himself, Gu Yu realized something.

Understanding was one thing.

But accepting after understanding was another.

"I say... I'm right next door."

With a 'swish,' he pulled open the paper door, and Gu Yu swept his cold gaze over the shocked villagers, asking indifferently.

"I'm right next door, and you're discussing killing me? That's a bit much, isn't it?"

"Why did you come out!"

Seeing Gu Yu boldly appear before the enraged villagers, Yae Sakura was completely flustered.

After her sister Yae Rin died, Yae Sakura, who had closed off her heart, had performed the ritual several times.

Each time she 'sacrificed' a girl from the same village, Yae Sakura's heart was filled with immense pain.

Even though her hands were already stained with blood, she, who still had a shred of conscience, had saved the unconscious passerby when she found him.

Therefore, Yae Sakura didn't want to see the innocent passerby she had just saved die at the hands of the villagers due to their momentary anger.

After shouting this, Yae Sakura quickly composed herself and said to the villagers present.

"Everyone, please calm down. Whether this gentleman is related to the recent anomalies still needs to be investigated."

"Investigate what nonsense!"

Listening to Yae Sakura's defense, a villager immediately stood up and yelled at Gu Yu.

"Isn't the Miko's duty to protect the villagers? Miko, kill this outsider!"

"Kill him!"

"Yes, kill him!"

"That demon bear was definitely his doing too. Kill him!"

Seeing the incensed villagers, Yae Sakura was instantly at a loss.

Would she have to...

...bury her sister Rin and then...

...kill an innocent outsider as well?

"Sigh, so much nonsense."

Looking at the crowd of 'villagers', Gu Yu channeled Honkai Energy and directly materialized his weapon, the [Card Holder Sword], switching it to gun mode.

He wasn't like Theresa, who couldn't fight without her Stigmata and needed external rescue.

The solution to this place was actually very simple...

...just smash Hiyorimar away, and all the problems would be solved.

"A bunch of fakes. Do you really think babbling more will make me panic?"

Then, he aimed the muzzle at the ceiling and pulled the trigger.

Countless light bullets erupted from the muzzle, instantly blowing off the ceiling of Yae Sakura's home.

The villagers, who had been so ferocious moments ago, were all stunned by this sight.

"Ah, sorry. Now, will everyone finally be a little quieter?"

"But speaking of which, 'everyone' might not be the right word. After all, there are only three conscious beings here."

Aming his gun at Yae Sakura's father, the Yae God Lord, Gu Yu sneered and said.

"How long are you going to keep pretending, Lord of the Shrine?"

"Do I have to run my sword through your face before you reveal your true form, Hiyorimar?"

PS2: I only found out after reading the comments... Hmm, I swear I didn't intend to torment Theresa when I was writing her chapter, but I recently reread the manga.

Theresa, you're an S-rank Valkyrie, right...

Why were you instantly defeated by a Pseudo Herrscher...

Why, after suffering one setback, did you still dare to be careless when you faced her again...

Why, the second time, did you collapse after just one encounter...

You're an S-rank Valkyrie, right?

This isn't about tormenting Theresa. In reality, a warrior over forty years old, no matter how careless or unskilled, shouldn't be completely unprepared when facing an enemy.

This part of the manga is less about Theresa being foolish and more about the scriptwriter wanting to save effort.

Ah, Theresa needs to meet Yae Sakura. How should she meet her? She gets beaten down.

How does she get beaten down... Ah, just draw it however, she gets instantly defeated.

Fine, I won't say anything more.

PS3: As usual, requesting votes. When I finished writing this chapter, I actually discovered a reader thought I wouldn't finish the chapter today. Regarding your comments, I personally feel...

You're right, sob sob sob, I'm just an idiot. If I hadn't said that, why would I be staying up late to write now? Damn it, damn it, damn it.

PS4: I rarely curse, but the developers of rogue software, every single one of them, should be sent to eat pork cutlet bowls. These scumbags are truly disgusting.