Shirou didn't answer right away.
He was still debating whether or not he should travel at night.
It wasn't that he felt uncomfortable accepting the old man's offer.
If he'd met someone like himself—someone without a place to stay—Shirou would have extended a hand without hesitation, and without expecting anything in return.
Of course, that didn't mean he intended to freeload off the old man. If he did accept the offer, he would pay for lodging. He wanted to be someone who could help others unconditionally, but he didn't want to receive that kind of help without giving something back.
Put simply, Shirou could accept helping others with no strings attached—but he couldn't accept others helping him that way. He had to contribute something.
But that wasn't the real reason he hesitated.
What occupied his mind was the memory of the monster he had encountered.
Traveling at night might not guarantee a repeat encounter—but it was definitely riskier than moving during the day.
"Is it dangerous to travel at night around here?"
Shirou decided to ask someone local. He was new to this place and didn't know the area at all. He had his own instincts, but without solid information, judgment meant little.
"Well, there are wild animals and the like. But if you're asking about rumors—"
The old man's voice deepened as if remembering something unsettling.
"If you wander around at night, a demon will eat you."
His tone suddenly turned theatrical. He stretched his eyes and mouth wide, pulling a face meant to mimic a ghost.
"Wow, you've got quite the energy, old man."
Shirou responded with a polite but awkward smile.
"So… have you ever seen one?"
"That stuff's just for scaring the kids who like to sneak off into the woods. There aren't really any ghosts in the world. I've been alive a long time, and I've never seen one."
The old man waved dismissively, clearly not buying into the superstition.
Shirou nodded slightly in response.
He already knew that demons—man-eating monsters—really did exist. But it was obvious that most of the people living here had never actually encountered one.
Which meant there were only a few possibilities.
First, he might have been very unlucky—or very lucky, depending on how you looked at it—and had a rare encounter with a being most people would never see. Like vampires from his side of the world: long vanished, nearly impossible to find even if you wanted to.
The second possibility: that Japan in this era had some kind of organization, akin to the Mage's Association, that monitored or covered up supernatural phenomena. Just like most normal people didn't know mages existed, perhaps these villagers had simply never been exposed to the truth.
"What about the rumored weaknesses of these man-eating ghosts?"
Shirou tried asking indirectly.
"Again, that's just stories to scare children. There's no such thing as ghosts," the old man replied, a little puzzled.
Normally, people here would be well-versed in the tales—even if they didn't believe in them, they knew the "rules" of the stories. He just assumed Shirou had forgotten the old ghost stories of their childhood.
"Well, it's said sunlight and wisteria flowers are their weaknesses."
"Sunlight, huh…"
Shirou thought back to the moment he woke up—the sunlight had been pouring down on him.
But based on the timing, the demon should have had plenty of opportunity to kill him before that light reached him.
"Well, kid, any more questions? If so, come back to my place—we can talk over dinner. I'll let you in on a little secret: my granddaughter's very pretty."
The old man looked up at the dimming sky. If they left now, they could still catch dinner while it was hot.
"Cough! Cough!"
Shirou was caught off guard and choked a little.
"Heh, you young folks sure are easy to tempt. You get this flustered just hearing she's pretty—what'll you do when you see her?"
"N-No, I really have something urgent in town. I'll have to pass!"
Shirou waved his hands frantically and started backing away.
"Hey, traveling at night's dangerous!"
The old man stepped forward, trying to stop him.
"It's fine, really. I can handle myself—at least at night, I can defend myself now."
Seeing the old man try to stop him, Shirou panicked and quickly took off down the road the man had pointed out.
"Thanks for everything!"
He shouted his gratitude over his shoulder as he ran.
"This kid…"
The old man let out a sigh and turned in the opposite direction.
He wasn't particularly worried. There was a road between the village and the town. Though unlit, it was safe by day or night—there hadn't been any reports of beast attacks or anything of the sort.
True, a lot of people who went to the town never really came back or sent word—but in the village, that was normal. Some people didn't write for years, or never returned. It wasn't that strange. So the old man didn't dwell on it and headed home peacefully.
After jogging a bit, Shirou left the main village area, though he still saw a few houses tucked into the forest.
Some people clearly preferred the quiet, choosing to live a bit farther out.
That inn's location made more sense now—its bedding and clothing suggested a wealthy, possibly reclusive owner.
"No idea how far this town actually is, though…"
He hadn't asked specifics. If he had, he might've ended up staying at the old man's place after all.
So night really is their domain.
Shirou didn't know if he'd encounter another demon, but it was better to stay alert. Even if the monsters didn't appear, wild beasts were a threat on their own.
I probably survived last time because the sunlight hit the head I kicked off first.
That seemed the most likely explanation.
If direct sunlight caused instant death, it must've been agonizing. And the sunlight had come from the front door of the inn.
So that kick of his must've sent the creature's head just far enough forward for sunlight to hit it.
And since the monster's main consciousness had been centered in that half, it hadn't realized the threat in time.
Once the primary body died, the remaining half went still—like a disconnected device. Not every demon was like Muzan, capable of reviving from any shred of tissue.
If they could regenerate from any fragment, why would a decapitated demon, whose head was in the sun but body remained in the dark, not come back to life?
Even Daki managed to regenerate from half a mouth—so theoretically, one could come back even if their skull was pulp.
So by that logic, aside from the danger posed by sunlight, dispersing the demon's consciousness—or destroying its core awareness—might lead to true death.