The setting sun dyed the sky orange-red.
Its lingering rays filtered through gaps in the trees, scattering dappled light and shadow across the leaf-covered path.
Uesugi Sasuke walked home with a bundle of freshly chopped firewood on his back.
He was only twelve this year, his body not yet fully grown, but his steps were steady.
The outline of the wooden house at the foot of the mountain was already visible. Cooking smoke curled upward, slowly dispersing in the air.
That was the way home.
Sasuke quickened his pace, the firewood shifting softly against his back.
"I'm home."
He pushed open the wooden door, and the aroma of food greeted him.
His mother was busy in the kitchen. Hearing his voice, she poked her head out with a gentle smile.
"You're back, Sasuke. Go wash your hands. Dinner will be ready soon."
"Okay."
Sasuke answered and neatly stacked the firewood beneath the eaves.
His father sat inside, wiping down a farming tool by the remaining daylight. He smiled when he saw him, too.
"You cut some good firewood today. Nice and solid."
"Of course."
Sasuke lifted his chin, looking a little pleased with himself.
The family soon gathered around the dinner table.
Dinner was simple: miso soup, grilled fish, and a few pickled side dishes.
To Sasuke, it was the most delicious food in the world.
His mother ladled soup for him as she cautioned him.
"Sasuke, it seems the mountains haven't been very safe lately. I heard from people in the neighboring village that there seem to be fierce wild beasts prowling around. Livestock from several families have been bitten to death."
"From now on, you mustn't stay in the mountains so late when you go chopping wood. Do you hear me?"
"I understand, Mother."
Sasuke mumbled his answer, his mouth stuffed with rice.
They were just wild beasts.
He had grown up in the mountains and had seen wild boars and black bears from a distance.
As long as he did not provoke them, they would not readily come down the mountain to hurt people.
His father noticed his indifference and spoke in a stern voice.
"Listen to your mother. It never hurts to be careful."
"Yes, Father."
Only then did Sasuke put down his bowl and chopsticks and nod solemnly.
The warm family dinner soon ended.
Night shrouded the land. Outside the window, there was only the chirping of insects and the occasional sound of wind.
Sasuke lay on his little bed and soon drifted off to sleep.
The night deepened.
Everything fell silent.
A strange sound startled Sasuke awake.
It sounded like sharp claws scraping against wooden boards.
He frowned and rolled over.
Probably a wild cat from the mountains.
With that thought, he prepared to go back to sleep.
But immediately afterward, a heavy thud came from his parents' room next door, as though something had fallen to the floor.
Sasuke's heart leaped into his throat.
He held his breath and listened closely.
His father's stifled roar rang out, short and furious.
Then came a teeth-grating growl that sounded nothing like a human.
The sound was filled with savagery and hunger.
All the blood in Sasuke's body seemed to freeze in that instant.
Something was wrong!
This wasn't a wild beast!
He sprang out of bed, his whole body trembling slightly with fear.
His gaze swept across the wall, where the woodcutting blade he normally used hung.
Almost instinctively, Sasuke rushed over and snatched the blade into his hand.
The cold iron gave him a tiny shred of courage.
"Father! Mother!"
Shouting, he rushed toward his parents' room.
The door was shut tight.
He slammed into it with all his strength.
Bang!
The wooden door burst open.
The sight inside made Sasuke's pupils shrink to pinpoints.
Blood.
His vision was filled with glaring crimson.
A misshapen monster crouched on the floor, devouring something in great mouthfuls.
The monster had grayish-white skin and a pair of eyes that flickered with an eerie red light.
Beneath it lay his father's mutilated body.
Not far away, his mother lay in a pool of blood, a huge hole in her chest, already lifeless.
Hearing the noise, the monster slowly turned its head.
His father's flesh and blood still clung to the corners of its mouth.
A bloodthirsty smile spread across that face, so humanlike yet utterly hideous.
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