Bear Demon

Before the black-haired girl stood a masked figure in a black robe, their form indistinct, and a large brown bear, already slain by a sharp blade.

The mask was that of a fox, representing the faith of many surrounding villages – the Fox God.

The masked figure remained silent, placing a small piece of black crystal onto the recently deceased brown bear. The right hand, revealed from beneath the black robe, appeared pale in the moonlight.

A short while after the black crystal was pressed onto the dead brown bear, its eyes eerily opened. Bony protrusions sprouted from its body, two thick tentacles grew from its back, and its very size seemed to swell.

Under the influence of the crystal, this brown bear had transformed into an incredibly powerful Honkai Beast.

"Roar..." A low growl rumbled from the throat of the brown bear Honkai Beast, as if expressing its hunger.

"Nnngh!"

The black-haired girl felt even more terrified by what was happening before her. She struggled desperately in the tree, but it was all in vain.

The masked figure petted the head of the brown bear Honkai Beast. Surprisingly, the bear, now a Honkai Beast, did not attack the masked figure. Instead, it lowered its head, allowing the masked figure to pet it more easily.

"Don't be nervous... Don't be afraid..."

The masked figure said to the black-haired girl, "Because... your life is about to end..."

The masked figure patted the head of the lowered brown bear Honkai Beast and muttered to itself, "The beasts in this mountain forest... have a very interesting trait..."

"That is, when a carnivorous beast accidentally tastes human flesh, it will naturally begin to view humans as prey..."

"Humans, being easy to hunt and easy to fill one's stomach with, are very popular among beasts that have already tasted human flesh..."

"And right now, I need a monster... that will hunt humans..."

"So... thank you for your contribution to my plan..."

"Go... my dear child..."

After signaling the brown bear Honkai Beast, the masked figure turned away, no longer looking at the scene unfolding behind them.

Listening to the sounds of beasts tearing flesh and the girl's muffled whimpers of pain, the masked figure looked up at the round moon, like a jade plate, and murmured.

"Ah, Yae Village... and the Deities..."

In the blink of an eye, it was daytime. In the graveyard of Yae Village, Yae Sakura stood before a slightly damaged stone monument, her expression sorrowful, as if recalling past events.

Just as Yae Sakura was lost in her grief, someone ran from the direction of Yae Village, shouting, "Miko-sama! I finally found you!"

"Something terrible has happened! In the mountains... a Yokai has appeared in the mountains!"

Yae Sakura turned to look at the person running towards her. Though her expression was normal, it inexplicably gave off a strange feeling.

When Yae Sakura returned to the Shrine and took her sword from the wall, Kallen, who was recovering from her injuries in the room, saw her.

"Sakura?"

Kallen asked with concern, "What happened? Why are you going out with your sword?"

"It's nothing."

Yae Sakura didn't even turn her head as she answered Kallen's question. "Your injuries haven't healed yet. You should rest well here in the Shrine."

"..."

Seeing Yae Sakura like this, Kallen still didn't know what had happened, but she didn't press further until Yae Sakura left the Shrine.

However, remembering Yae Sakura's appearance just now, Kallen got out of bed, bit down on her bandages with her teeth, tightened the bandages around her wound, and put on her nun's habit.

Picking up her weapon, which she hadn't touched in a long time, Kallen felt a sense of unfamiliarity but followed in the direction Yae Sakura had gone.

She couldn't stop worrying about Yae Sakura's state.

The black box, which she had carefully stored in a safe place, had its inlaid jade ring emit a faint glow and flicker after Kallen left the Shrine.

Xu Yanwu's calm voice echoed in the empty Shrine.

"Touching the heart with the soul, though the connection isn't fully restored yet, I've managed to gather a bit of power..."

A small figure of Xu Yanwu, like a holographic projection, sat cross-legged on the jade ring, grinning playfully.

"I say, Main Body, how have you fallen so low after thousands of years? Is it that difficult without me?"

"...Shut up."

Xu Yanwu reprimanded his heart. "Hurry up and gather energy, there isn't much time left..."

"At least I need to contact Kallen and get my heart back in place..."

Outside Yae Village, near the forest.

"Help! There's a Bear Demon!"

A villager from Yae Village ran stumbling, pursued by the brown bear Honkai Beast, which the masked figure had transformed with the black crystal.

At this moment, the brown bear Honkai Beast was chewing on half of a villager's corpse in its gaping maw, and the ground was stained with blood from the Honkai Beast's slaughter.

"Help me!"

The fleeing villager's cries attracted the attention of the brown bear Honkai Beast. Its chewing did not stop, but the tentacles on its back were raised high, smashing down towards the fleeing villager.

Just as the tentacle was getting closer and closer to the villager, a sharp blade light flashed. The tip of the tentacle fell to the ground due to gravity, still writhing uncontrollably, not yet devoid of life.

With its tentacle severed, the bear Honkai Beast roared in pain and anger at Yae Sakura, who had cut it off, not even bothering to eat the corpse by its mouth.

Yae Sakura slowly raised her blade. Although she didn't know why her swordsmanship hadn't improved as much over the years as it had in her childhood, she still possessed good swordsmanship after long practice.

But... this was her first time facing such a large beast, or rather, Honkai Beast.

More importantly, the blade in Yae Sakura's hand was merely an ordinary iron sword, forged and sharpened by the blacksmith in her village.

With these factors combined, Yae Sakura's weapon shattered into pieces after only a few exchanges with the bear Honkai Beast.