August 13, 2000, Kitano Village. Six days had passed since Sato's appearance. During that time, with Aoki's "Filth Attraction," Igarashi Amaha had managed to maintain a pace of exorcising around two grade 4 cursed spirits every day.
His strength had now barely reached the level of a grade 3 jujutsu sorcerer. If he could wait until those women's resentment formed a cursed spirit today, he would be able to break through these shackles.
Clatter!
Chains rattled, and Igarashi Amaha and Aoki Akawa looked up at the same time. They exchanged a helpless glance. She had come after all.
The footsteps drew closer. Aoki Akawa stopped watching, turned his head away, and began playing dead.
Click, clack!
High heels struck the concrete floor with crisp clicks as two familiar figures appeared beneath the dim light.
"Y-young miss... this guy..." Yokoyama's eyes widened as he stared at Igarashi Amaha's completely uninjured body and murmured in shock.
Sato was much the same, staring in disbelief at the boy on the Blood Claw. After a while, she came back to her senses. The shock gradually faded from her eyes, replaced by a trace of frenzied excitement.
"This is... incredible... What should I do? What should I do? I'm starting to feel reluctant to part with you. Hahahahaha."
Sato rubbed her thumb hard across her blood-red lips, then began smearing it over Igarashi Amaha's face, her expression crazed and sickly.
"Well then, let's begin. Hehehe."
The inhuman torture began. People only feared the unknown. With his previous experience, Igarashi Amaha could be said to have felt relatively at ease this time, but the pain was still very real. If his experience of living two lives had not given him a greater capacity to endure, he probably would have wanted to kill himself long ago.
A long time later, Sato panted as she surveyed the boy before her, covered in wounds.
By then, Igarashi Amaha was in too much pain to speak. The blood flowing from him had already pooled beneath his feet, yet Sato still seemed unsatisfied and kept staring at him.
A sudden change occurred. Sato stared at Igarashi Amaha's face with scarlet eyes and an icy gaze. She turned to Yokoyama and said coldly, "Use all your strength." She pointed at the boy's forehead. "Punch him hard, right here."
Everyone in the basement was startled by her words, Yokoyama included. He said awkwardly, "But... young miss, I'm afraid this guy will die on the spot."
He was a genuine grade 2 jujutsu sorcerer. A full-force strike wrapped in cursed energy would instantly kill even a sturdy adult, let alone a boy bound to the Blood Claw. Was this a joke?
Igarashi Amaha was just as startled. Under the Blood Claw's effects, he used his last ounce of strength to gather all his cursed energy in his head. This woman's madness had exceeded his expectations. Fuck, I pushed it too far.
Smack!
A crisp slap rang out. Sato spoke to Yokoyama in a hostile tone. "A mere servant dares to defy my decision? Do you want to die?!"
Yokoyama trembled, a flicker of fear passing through his eyes. Without another word, he hurriedly bowed and apologized. "I'm sorry, young miss. Please forgive me."
"If there's a next time, I'll use your wages to pick out a nice burial plot for you. Go on. I want to see where this Igarashi brat's limits lie. Just strike. I won't take it out on you if he dies, so don't worry."
Hearing this, Yokoyama inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. He no longer hesitated, quickly stepping forward and raising his fist toward Igarashi Amaha's head.
"Zero Style: Rock Breaker!"
Boom!!
Blue-green flames ignited around Yokoyama's massive fist, their searing heat sending ripples through the surrounding air.
At the sight, Igarashi Amaha felt a sense of absurdity. Fuck, seriously? He's even using a skill? He's not going to stop until he kills me...
"Hah!"
Boom!!! Crack!!
Igarashi Amaha flew backward along with the Blood Claw and smashed into the wall behind him. The thick concrete wall cracked on impact, countless spiderweb-like fissures spreading across it.
The blow landed squarely on his forehead, and Igarashi Amaha's last trace of consciousness vanished in an instant. His head tilted back, his mouth hung wide open, and his unfocused eyes stared blankly at the ceiling. He moved no more.
Yokoyama stepped forward to examine him, then turned back to Sato and said gravely, "Young miss, this boy's body truly is exceptional, but with the Blood Claw amplifying my strike, he's now lost consciousness. I expect he'll stop breathing altogether before long."
Sato did not reply. She merely gave the unconscious Igarashi Amaha a long look, then turned and left without looking back.
Yokoyama glanced at Igarashi Amaha, then at Sato, who was about to disappear into the distance. He crouched down and unlocked the Blood Claw restraining Igarashi Amaha. Just as he was about to pull Igarashi Amaha off and take the Blood Claw away, a cool voice rang out.
"Leave it for now. You can collect it next time," Sato said without looking back.
Hearing this, Yokoyama set down the shackles in his hands and hurried to Sato's side. Puzzled, he asked, "Do you think that boy will recover, young miss?!"
"Who knows? Hehe."
The footsteps grew more distant until chains rattled, and the basement fell silent once again.
Yokoyama walked briskly up to a luxury limousine and respectfully opened the rear door for Sato. He then circled around to the driver's side. Opening the door, he looked up at the gray sky, a sense of inexplicable unease stirring within him.
Dust drifted, tiny stars dotted the distance, and Yokoyama stood there just like that, his loose strands of hair fleeing ceaselessly. The noise in the street vanished entirely. A wisp of a barrier cut off the mortal world, and at that moment, the world retreated in disarray.
"Why aren't we leaving? What are you waiting for?"
"N-nothing. It looks like it's going to rain." Sato's indifferent voice had brought Yokoyama back to his senses.
Sato raised her eyes to look out the window and said casually, "Drive. Back to the family."
"Yes, young miss."
The car started and drove into the distance along the country road.
The sky was gloomy, the light exceedingly dim. Looking up, one could see banks of dark clouds drifting in from the horizon. Black and gray, their uneven layers seemed to press down overhead, creating an intense sense of oppression.
Before long, thunder roared and fine rain drifted down. Raindrops fell from the sky onto the basement's iron door, sending up roars that sounded like the heavens' mournful cries.
Rumble!! Patter!!
"Brat, brat! Igarashi Amaha! Igarashi Amaha!"
Rumble!! Patter!!
"Hey, wake up! Igarashi Amaha! Igarashi Amaha!"
Bzzz...
Who is it...
It sounds like someone's calling me...
No, that's not me... My name is He Liangchuan... not Igarashi Amaha...
Just...
What is going on...
Please support me in any way you can. I'd be deeply grateful.