The calamity of Higashimacho stemmed from a demon named Shikeji Ro.
At first, this demon devoured only one or two couples, drawing little attention.
But Shikeji Ro captured the children of those families, using some method to control their life and death.
Then, with those children as a starting point, he summoned their playmates or friends, gradually ensnaring more and more until he controlled every child in town.
Finally, by holding the lives of all the town's children hostage, he dominated the entire population of Higashimacho.
Thus, Shikeji Ro made Higashimacho his stronghold, lurking here, incessantly feeding on the town's couples or passing travelers.
His secrecy was so effective that he remained undetected in Higashimacho for half a year.
Having grasped the general situation, Horitake needed to clarify specific details.
"Sir, please don't cry. I urgently need to know what method Shikeji Ro uses to control the children. Without understanding this, I'll be hamstrung, unable to act.
If he's holding the town's children as hostages, one wrong move could be my downfall."
The man, trembling with agitation, replied,
"It's some kind of sorcery! That monster uses a technique that makes plants grow wildly at an unnatural speed!"
It had to be a Blood Demon Art.
Horitake pressed carefully.
"Makes plants grow wildly? Any plant? How fast? How powerful is this technique?"
"Very powerful!" the man said, his voice laced with fear and dread. "He once gathered the entire town to demonstrate his sorcery as a warning!
During that gathering, he not only made surrounding thorn bushes grow rampantly into a wall of brambles but also, in an instant, sprouted two massive trees from the grass!"
Horitake was mildly surprised.
"Sprouted two trees from nothing?"
"Yes!"
"Just two trees? Not a forest or a grove?"
"How could it be? Two trees were terrifying enough!"
"Good," Horitake exhaled slightly. "It's not Wood Release."
"What release?"
"Nothing. One thing I don't understand: Shikeji Ro's ability to accelerate plant growth is unique, but how does it control so many children?"
The man gritted his teeth, fear and hatred warring within him.
"Because he made every child in town swallow a peanut."
"A peanut?"
"Yes. When he activates his sorcery, the peanut in a child's stomach takes root, sprouts, and grows wildly, embedding itself in their flesh! The sapling bursts through their skin! The death is gruesome!"
Horitake considered this, looking at the man.
"From your tone, it sounds like you've seen this?"
"Yes…" The man's voice shook. "During that town gathering, he demonstrated it in front of everyone. A child who defied him most was killed that way!"
"But wouldn't a peanut be digested and expelled?"
"Not these! At least, not the ones he gives! Once, a child who ate a peanut tried to escape days later, but he was still killed when the demon made it sprout!"
Horitake nodded, deep in thought.
This demon's Blood Demon Art was intriguing.
"I've been wondering," he said. "If his peanuts are so powerful, why not make the entire town eat them? Wouldn't that be easier?"
"I don't know. Maybe… he doesn't have enough special peanuts?"
"Or perhaps… he can't control that many sprouting at once."
Horitake posed another question.
"One more thing: this demon, Shikeji Ro… is he a child? Or at least, does he look like one?"
The man shivered, nodding with lingering terror.
"Yes! He's a monster that looks like a child! And he still has a child's playful nature!
Shintaro told me he gathers the orphaned children around him, forcing them to play games with him—childish games of all kinds."
Horitake's expression turned icy, colder than frost.
Eating those children's parents, then forcing them to play games with their enemy—how twisted and cruel!
Or perhaps this demon had never developed a normal human sense of morality!?
Another question clarified itself for Horitake.
So, Shikeji Ro wasn't targeting couples in general—he was preying on parents with children!
Horitake pressed the man further.
"Why does this demon target other people's parents? Is it jealousy of their happy families?"
The man shook his head.
"I don't know."
Taking a deep breath, Horitake asked his final question.
"Where in town does Shikeji Ro hide?"
Thus, Horitake learned the demon's lair from the man.
After comforting the anguished father, Horitake stepped to the house's entrance, glancing at his haggard face and offering instructions.
"I'm going to slay this demon and restore peace to Higashimacho.
I'll save those children, including your son Shintaro, unharmed.
After I leave, lock your doors and don't come out until dawn. There might be a big commotion, maybe even lightning and thunder. Don't worry—that'll be my doing."
With that, Horitake stepped out, leaped high, and bounded across streetlamps and telegraph poles, vanishing swiftly into the night.
Watching him go, the man felt a flicker of long-lost hope.
This man is so strong—surely he can kill that monster!
Following the man's directions, Horitake quickly found the demon's hideout, landing lightly on a nearby rooftop to observe silently.
Indeed, the house's windows and doors were boarded shut—a clear sign of a demon's dwelling.
Horitake's timing was perfect. He saw Hana, the girl with the lantern, leading Shintaro toward the demon's lair.
Those two kids move so slowly? They're only just arriving?
Or perhaps, gripped by fear, they'd unconsciously slowed their steps?
No matter how terrified, they'd arrived and had no choice but to enter.
Horitake slipped into an alley beside the demon's lair, activating his spiritual vision to faintly peer through and observe.
Hana, clutching her lantern, took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
Shintaro, behind her, was trembling uncontrollably.
The door opened, revealing another small boy.
His eyes were vacant, his demeanor like a walking corpse. Seeing Hana and Shintaro, his expression remained lifeless, as still as stagnant water.
Hana, accustomed to such sights, led Shintaro inside with her lantern.
Within the large house, she navigated several turns, guiding Shintaro to the innermost room.
Shintaro's body shook like a sieve.
Hana knocked on the sliding door, and a voice from within called, "Come in."
Sliding open the door, the scene in the deepest room revealed itself to Shintaro.
The dim room was lit by only two lanterns.
Despite its spaciousness, numerous children sat inside.
A closer look revealed none bore the lively spark of normal children—they were all lifeless, steeped in anxiety and unease.
At the center of these children sat a figure, roughly ten years old, with green skin, fanged teeth, red eyes, and blue hair. He wore loose gray clothes, his hands adorned with sharp, elongated nails.
One glance, and it was clear: this child could not be called human!
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