At midday, sunlight spilled into every corner of the town, yet it seemed unable to dispel the gloom hanging over the townspeople's hearts.
Teiichi returned to the inn where he was staying with a heavy heart.
He pushed open the slightly aged wooden door and stepped heavily into the lobby.
The innkeeper was sitting at the front desk with a yellowed ledger in his hands. He looked up as the door opened. Catching sight of Teiichi's tightly furrowed brow and somewhat weary expression, he could not help asking curiously:
"What's wrong, Kato? You look like you have a lot on your mind."
Teiichi stopped, looked up at the innkeeper, and shook his head slightly, as though trying to shake away his worries. He sighed softly and answered:
"It's nothing. Another child in town has gone missing, that's all."
"What? Someone else was taken by a demon?" The innkeeper's voice rose involuntarily, but he immediately realized he had lost his composure and hurriedly lowered his voice to ask:
"Whose child was it?"
"Apparently, a child from the Kawashita family. Kawashita Wakamaru." A trace of helplessness and sorrow came through in Teiichi's voice.
"Amaru? That child who was always smiling..."
Hearing this, the innkeeper could not help sighing, as though he could share the pain of losing a loved one. He looked at Teiichi and continued:
"Kato, my friend, if you've finished your investigation, remember to leave soon. You've seen what things are like here in town. If this keeps up, I'll have to consider moving away myself."
Teiichi nodded without saying anything more, then turned and headed toward his room.
Meanwhile, the innkeeper sat at the front desk, watching Teiichi's retreating figure, unable to keep a flood of feelings from welling up within him. He sighed and grumbled under his breath, "Why do creatures like demons even exist in this world? Why do they hurt innocent people? If only there were no demons..."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Teiichi suddenly stopped and turned to look at him. A glimmer flashed in his eyes, as though he had found an important clue.
That's right!
Eating people!
Demons capture people to eat them!
I wandered all over town last night without smelling any blood, and there hasn't been any word from the townspeople about finding human bodies, either.
That means the demon isn't eating people inside town. He's taking them outside to eat them.
And the demon has been hunting in Yamada Town lately, which means he must be somewhere nearby.
After all, who would go all that way to hunt for no reason?
The more Teiichi thought about it, the brighter his eyes grew. He turned around and walked back to the front desk.
The innkeeper had already slumped over the desk. Realizing that the light on his face had been blocked, he looked up at Teiichi's eyes, which seemed about to shine, and asked timidly, "Uh... Kato, my friend, is something wrong?"
"Are there any abandoned houses outside Yamada Town?"
"Houses? Are you buying a house? Why would you buy one outside Yamada Town? Even if you wanted to buy..." As he spoke, the innkeeper abruptly cut himself off and answered Teiichi's question. "As for houses, head out through the north side of Yamada Town. Seven families used to live outside town over there, but they all moved into town later. Those houses should be abandoned now."
"Good! Thank you!"
Hearing this news, a trace of firmness and resolve flashed through Teiichi's eyes. He thanked the innkeeper, then turned and walked out through the inn's doors.
Heh, I knew that lad had come specifically to investigate the demons, the innkeeper thought smugly as he watched Teiichi leave.
North of Yamada Town lay a desolate, silent stretch of land.
A full hour had passed since Teiichi left the inn. He searched the area carefully, his sharp gaze sweeping over every inch of ground, hoping to find the slightest trace of the demon.
During that hour of searching, Teiichi found three abandoned houses in total. They stood alone beside the road, as though speaking of the desolation and loneliness of the past.
He pushed open their doors and went inside, carefully inspecting every room and every corner, but found nothing unusual. Dust and the smell of mildew filled the air, yet the expected gloom and terror were absent.
Now, Teiichi's brisk footsteps along the road gradually slowed. He stopped, took a deep breath, and slowly let it out. His brow was tightly furrowed, and his gaze roamed his surroundings, as though searching for a clue.
He continued his analysis aloud. "If I keep going, I'll be closer to another settlement than to Yamada Town. Of the seven homes, I've only found three so far, which means the remaining four are in the forest."
"Right! The demon must be hiding in the woods!"
Teiichi abruptly raised his head and looked at the woods on either side of the road, determination shining in his eyes.
He quickly turned around, deciding to return to the woods he had passed earlier and search them carefully again.
Rustle-
In the deep, silent forest, Teiichi was making his way swiftly and tensely through the trees. The fallen leaves beneath his feet made faint sounds as he stepped on them, as though playing a unique melody in the quiet forest.
Two hours had passed since Teiichi decided to turn back and search the woods.
During those two hours, he had barely paused, remaining highly vigilant and focused throughout. Over the course of this long search, he found two abandoned houses, but unfortunately, neither contained any clues about the demon.
Teiichi could not help feeling somewhat discouraged. He had already found five of the seven abandoned houses, yet he had still seen no trace of the demon. He began to doubt his own judgment. Had he been heading in the wrong direction? Or was the demon not in these houses at all?
He recalled the innkeeper's words and felt some regret. He should have asked whether the innkeeper had a rough map or more detailed clues. That would have been better than searching all over the forest like this.
Suddenly, Teiichi caught an unusual shadow out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head and saw the faint outline of a house standing silently among the trees ahead to his right.
His heartbeat quickened as he confirmed that it was a house he had not visited before. Steadying himself, he changed direction and ran toward it.
As he drew closer, a nauseating stench of rotting corpses drifted out of the house and spread through the air. The smell was so pungent and strong that Teiichi almost vomited. Yet he forced down his discomfort, an excited smile appearing on his face.
I've finally found you! Teiichi rejoiced inwardly, but his footsteps involuntarily grew slower and lighter.
As he approached the house, the stench of corpses grew increasingly strong, almost suffocating. Yet Teiichi began to frown. He had originally felt he would find the demon here, but now he no longer thought so.
Although demons had changed from humans into demons, their ability to distinguish smells remained the same as a human's. It would not fundamentally change simply because their identity had changed.
Teiichi did not think a demon would choose to spend the daylight hours in a house reeking so strongly of corpses. This was more likely a place for dumping bodies.