The Story of the Monster

"Hahahaha! So much gold! I want my son to become the top scholar in the imperial examination right here! Hahahahaha!"

"It's mine! All mine! Nobody can fight me for it!"

"My son married the daughter of a scholar! We're not peasants anymore! Hahahaha!"

"Even if you have lots of money, you're still a peasant. We're going to the town, to the Imperial City! We're going to become superior to everyone else!"

"Give it to me, give it to me! Give me more gold! It's not enough, it's not enough!"

"Damn monster! You had so much gold, yet you didn't tell me! You clearly knew I lost a gamble last month and was drowning in debt, but you turned a blind eye! What right do you have to accept everyone's offerings?"

"So much! So much gold!"

"Hahahahahaha!"

"Won't we kill the monster if we keep this up?"

"How could we? Monsters can't die. It isn't human, hahahaha!"

"That person said monsters can't die. Even if all its blood were drained and only its skin remained, it would grow flesh and blood again. It's a monster, after all!"

"Gold! A mountain of gold we can never use up! Hahahaha!"

"..."

The gold was golden, yet it dyed everyone's eyes red.

The kind, adorable, devout villagers of the past became more terrifying than the monster in that instant.

They used sickles, hoes, hooks, and their bare hands to madly reach into the monster's wounds and stir. The more blood the monster lost, the more land was dyed red with blood. Specks of golden light shone through the crimson, and then the golden glow kept spreading.

They took out the baskets and sacks they had prepared long ago and frantically stuffed them full. Some people even shoved the wooden stools from their homes into