Simple, honest folk?

Suguru Geto soon vanished from Aikawa Kaze and Megumi Fushiguro's sight. His vague remarks gave Kaze pause, and he decided to give Megumi a warning.

"Megumi, this might not be as simple as it looks."

Kaze considered his words. Rather than stating his suspicions outright, he offered a tactful hint.

"There are good people and bad people, whether they're ordinary people or jujutsu sorcerers."

"I know."

Megumi nodded, his expression unusually composed.

"Kaze, I've seen just as much as you have."

Although his memories of his father's face had already grown blurry, Megumi was fine. He still vaguely remembered traveling from place to place behind him, and all those different, ill-intentioned gazes.

He had grown up among all sorts of unsavory people, after all.

"I only want to save people I consider worth saving."

"That's good, then."

Kaze breathed a sigh of relief, feeling much more reassured.

True, Megumi wasn't like Yuji, who stubbornly wanted to save everyone. It was best if he could think it through himself.

Suguru Geto plus an incident in a village was practically a full stack of debuffs. Kaze instinctively felt that nothing good could come of it.

He could more or less guess what had happened: another young jujutsu sorcerer feared and ostracized by the villagers, perhaps even abused-just like Nanako and Mimiko, whom Geto had taken in years ago.

To his surprise, Geto had held himself back instead of acting immediately.

Was that a sign of progress and greater restraint, or should he lament that Geto had become even more "cold-hearted," withholding intervention to achieve his goals?

"Woof! Woof, woof!"

"White found something! Wait, not a cursed spirit, but... a person?"

White's barking drifted over from a distance. Megumi paused, rather surprised.

"It seems to be a child, too. Let's go take a look!"

"...Okay."

Could it be a child imprisoned and abused in the forest?

Kaze's expression turned serious, and he hurried over with Megumi.

The village was isolated, and the surrounding forest was quite wild. There were signs of wild animals nearby, too. It didn't look particularly safe, so they had better check on the child first!

On his way over, Kaze braced himself for a horrific sight. Reality, however, was nothing like he had expected.

"I... I don't have any food left... really..."

Inside a cave, a little girl with long black hair hugged her knees, curling into a ball in a corner as she helplessly tried to drive White away.

White panted and wagged his tail, apparently trying to show his friendliness, but that only seemed to make the girl more anxious.

"Really! There's nothing here. Please leave, okay? Don't come any closer!"

The girl sounded close to tears.

Megumi sighed. Still, he knew not everyone liked dogs. Some people were even afraid of them, which was perfectly normal.

White might be cuter and more affectionate than Little Black, but anyone afraid of dogs would still be scared.

"White, come back!"

"Whine~~"

White seemed a little hurt, but he obeyed and trotted back to Megumi's side, joining Little Black to guard them on either side.

"Sorry we scared you. White doesn't mean any harm."

Megumi cautiously apologized to the girl in the cave.

"We just... got lost here, so we had White scout ahead. He happened to find you, and we thought you might be in trouble."

"You..."

The girl instinctively shuddered at Megumi's voice, but after hearing the rest, she raised her head dubiously.

When she saw two utterly unfamiliar faces outside, both belonging to city boys whose clothes looked unmistakably "expensive," she couldn't help relaxing a little.

"Oh, I see. You're outsiders!"

The girl sighed in relief. She was less defensive now, though still somewhat wary.

"There's nothing here except a rundown little village. How did you end up getting lost here?"

"We just wanted to find a creepy-looking forest and play an adventure game."

Megumi answered without hesitation. After all, they had just encountered middle schoolers out exploring yesterday. It was probably popular among young people these days.

To make his story more convincing, he even thought of the old shrine they had seen when they first arrived.

Though the shrine looked remote and shabby, the path leading to it was clearly defined, suggesting people often visited to worship.

Moreover, the shrine looked old because of the obvious marks of time, but it wasn't really dilapidated. Instead, it was clean and tidy, with offerings laid out. People must have visited regularly.

"We also heard there's a shrine here that really answers prayers, so we wanted to see it."

"!!!"

At the word "shrine," the girl's somewhat relaxed body tensed again, and she instinctively stepped back.

Under their puzzled gazes, she seemed to realize her behavior was strange and could only offer a strained explanation.

"There's nothing here... You'll only be disappointed. Keep going north, and you should be able to get out. You should hurry home!"

While Megumi spoke to the little girl, Kaze had been examining the cave.

Jujutsu sorcerers had exceptionally keen senses. Even in the dim light, he could roughly make out its interior-the signs of habitation here couldn't have accumulated in just a few days.

In other words, the girl had most likely been living here for a long time.

Why? Could she be the young jujutsu sorcerer, living here after fleeing persecution by the villagers?

Her earlier behavior had been strange, too. Rather than fearing dogs, she seemed more afraid of "people." She had actually relaxed upon learning they were outsiders.

If so, it all made sense.

If the girl wasn't currently in danger, it was no wonder Geto had chosen to delay a day and let them "see the world."

But...

The girl's cursed energy was indeed a little higher than an ordinary person's, but it seemed too low for a jujutsu sorcerer.

Could it be because she was young?

Confusion flickered in Kaze's eyes, and he decided to probe for more information.

As the girl urged them to leave, he cut in.

"But we're almost out of food and water. Could you tell us where the nearby village is? We just need to buy some supplies. We'll pay."

"!!!"

The girl said nothing, but her resistant expression spoke volumes. She didn't want them going to the village.

Kaze felt he had figured out the situation, but feared stating it outright would frighten her, so he spoke gently.

"Did you run away from home? Don't worry. To thank you for giving us directions, I won't tell anyone where you are."

"..."

"Oh, right! You seem short on food and water, too. We could bring you some!"

"You... really won't tell on me?"

"Of course not."

The girl hesitated, then, considering what they had said, finally nodded.

"Okay, then. I just came out here for a couple of days because I was upset. Don't let anything slip! I'll tell you how to get to the village..."

After receiving her directions, Megumi and Kaze left. Only once they were certain they were out of earshot did Megumi sigh.

"She lied. She hasn't just been away from home for a few days. Judging by the signs of habitation in that cave, it's been at least several months, maybe even years."

Megumi calmly analyzed the situation.

"But she means no harm, and... even though she really didn't want us going to the village and was afraid we'd tell someone, she still gave us directions."

Following her directions, they soon found a fairly decent road. It seemed she had told the truth about that.

Megumi shook his head, a little worried.

"That child trusts people far too easily... Good thing we aren't bad people."

"She does seem like an innocent, kindhearted child! I wonder if she'll leave that cave."

Kaze agreed with Megumi. In his mind, he had already equated the girl with a "poor, oppressed young jujutsu sorcerer."

He had expected her to refuse them any information, yet she had actually told them.

Kaze thought that if she were a little sharper, she should leave the cave immediately. After all, they were strangers, and the risk was considerable.

In her position, he would have given the two powerful strangers information out of fear, but he would also have taken precautions and moved elsewhere first.

"Yeah, I already left Little Black there to keep her safe," Megumi said, shaking his head helplessly. "But he says she hasn't left."

"..." She's far too trusting!

She was so cute, with black hair, red eyes, and pale skin, like a delicate doll. She looked clever, yet apparently wasn't all that bright.

Even if they really wouldn't tell on her, how could she take no precautions at all?

"Ahem, maybe the people here are simple and honest."

Megumi was clearly surprised, too, but still tried to preserve the girl's dignity.

"Besides, it shows she's innocent and kind by nature. Isn't that a good thing?"

"I suppose it is."

But would a budding jujutsu sorcerer really be so innocent and harmless?

Megumi lacked experience and didn't know the story behind it, but Kaze had more or less guessed the circumstances. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

"Whatever the case, let's ask around in the village first."

"All right. We'll ask if anything strange has happened recently... though I don't think this incident necessarily involves a cursed spirit."

Geto said there had been an "incident" here. Surely he had some basis for that?

With that thought, they reached the shabby, backward little village, once again using the excuse that they had "gotten lost while exploring."

The villagers weren't particularly welcoming. They even seemed hostile toward outsiders, treating them very coldly.

Still, after the two launched a monetary offensive, they managed to glean some information in a tea shop.

"Strange things? Other than poor harvests these past few years, what could happen in a little place like ours?"

"We're all busy preparing for the Mountain God's festival. We don't have time to entertain outsiders."

"The Mountain God is the Mountain God! Damn it! If the last sacrifice hadn't gone wrong, why would we be punished?!"

"It's all that monster's fault. Why else would the Mountain God stay angry?"

Kaze and Megumi exchanged a look, forming an idea as they both focused on the keywords "Mountain God" and "monster."

This village seemed quite superstitious.

"Do monsters really exist? Surely not?" Kaze immediately put on a skeptical expression. "You should trust science. How could there be monsters in this world?"

"How could there not be? We saw it with our own eyes!"

Annoyed at being doubted, the villagers argued back.

"We saw a dead butterfly come back to life in her hands! What is she if not a monster?!"

"Exactly! Everyone saw it! She even angered the Mountain God!"

"Our harvests have been so terrible because she escaped the sacrifice!"

"..."

This time, Kaze said nothing. Like Megumi, his shock was mingled with the delight of discovering a treasure.

Only reverse cursed technique could heal, and that ability was exceptionally rare and precious.

Could she be someone who possessed reverse cursed technique?

Megumi was still uncertain, but Kaze thought of the little girl almost immediately.

-That had to be what made her special, and why the villagers called her a "monster."

As for cursed spirits...

Neither had heard of a cursed spirit wreaking havoc by ruining harvests, but cursed spirits had all kinds of strange abilities. Perhaps one had a similar power and affected the crops!

"Kaze... that sacrifice they mentioned..."

Megumi's expression darkened. He lowered his voice until only Kaze could hear him.

"If it were just the usual singing, music, and dancing, that child wouldn't need to run away, would she? So could they mean..."

"I'm afraid so."

"That's utterly insane!"

Megumi frowned. He hadn't expected such primitive, cruel sacrificial practices to persist in modern society. He even felt an urge to deal with those people directly.

Fortunately, the impulse lasted only an instant. Megumi quickly calmed down. They had no evidence, only conjecture. Perhaps that wasn't what was happening.

"Shh! Megumi, listen over there!"

Kaze suddenly spoke, signaling with his eyes. Megumi immediately fell silent and pricked up his ears.

They overheard a conversation.

The speakers were some distance away, sitting in a corner of the tea shop. Normally, they shouldn't have been audible, but jujutsu sorcerers had unusually sharp hearing.

"...You still haven't found that monster?"

"She must be nearby! The town is too far away for a little girl like her to reach on foot!"

"I've been keeping a close eye on that monster's relatives. Sentaro looks very suspicious..."

"I knew it was him! He was always the only one who defended that monster!"

"They are cousins, after all..."

"Every so often, Sentaro sneaks into the forest at night with supplies. He must be hiding that monster!"

"Wonderful! Once we find that monster and sacrifice her to the Mountain God, he'll surely stop being angry..."

"..."

The group began talking over one another, discussing plans to capture her. Megumi and Kaze exchanged a look, silently agreeing to follow them that night and investigate.

At that moment, both had completely forgotten the "mission" Geto had assigned them. All they wanted was to help that poor child.

With that in mind, they didn't rush to leave or investigate anything else. They simply wanted to find an inn or a homestay where they could settle in for now.

Otherwise, they would have to wander around until the middle of the night. That would be far too suspicious and would definitely draw particular scrutiny.

Unfortunately, the village had been isolated for years and rarely received outsiders, so it had no such accommodation.

In the end, they happened to run into the Village Chief, a kindly-looking old man who said he had plenty of houses and could lend them an empty one to stay in for the time being. That finally solved their problem.

The Village Chief even refused when they tried to pay him.

Megumi Fushiguro was deeply touched at first. Aikawa Kaze responded by catching a sparrow by the roadside and feeding it some of the food this "kindly" Village Chief had brought them.

"Megumi, remember this: pies don't just fall from the sky. If one does, it's probably a discus."

For some reason, Aikawa Kaze felt a powerful sense of déjà vu as he said that, as though he had experienced it himself.

Megumi Fushiguro silently watched the sparrow pass out with its feet in the air after eating the food and couldn't help sighing.

This was the Village Chief's home!

If even their leader was like this, the Village really did have "simple, honest folk."