Early the next morning, as soon as the sun rose, the villagers began to leave their homes.
As usual, some villagers took their axes up the mountain to chop wood, some took their hoes to the fields, and some took their bows to hunt.
But the moment the villagers stepped outside, they saw a signboard standing on the road in front of their doors, with strange writing on it.
Looking closer, it was an invitation?
[Hello, villagers!]
[I am the kind red oni!]
[As an oni, I strictly follow the teachings of my elders. I hold no ill will toward humans. I have even helped human children find lost toys many times!]
[My friend Blue and I have just moved to this mountain. As newcomers, we ask for your kindness!]
[Right now, I have prepared snacks, watermelon, rice balls, and tea at home!]
[Please come and visit!]
[Invitation from the Red Oni!]
[Map to the Red Oni's house: %￥#@#%!]
...
Seeing this invitation, the villagers clicked their tongues in amazement, but none of them paid it any mind.
After all, how could an evil oni invite people over?
Someone must be playing a prank.
But after walking a few steps, they saw a second invitation board.
A few more steps, and they encountered a third.
Gradually, the villagers grew more and more curious.
"I heard there's a wicked blue oni and a vicious red oni living on the mountain. Is this their invitation?"
"Strange things happen every year, but this year is especially strange. Even oni are inviting people to their homes?"
"Could these evil oni have turned over a new leaf and stopped biting people?"
"A dog can't stop eating dung, and an oni can't stop biting people. Don't believe it, or you'll be eaten by the evil oni!"
"That's a bit exaggerated."
"Those two may be oni, but they look thin and small. They're probably not even adults yet."
"Does anyone want to go take a look?"
"Let's go see. We'll find out what's going on. And we can drive those two evil oni away while we're at it."
And so, the villagers found time, grabbed hoes and wooden sticks for protection, and headed into the deep mountains.
"Damn it. Who drew this map?"
"It's completely wrong!"
"Let's keep looking. It should be this way."
"Don't let me find those two evil oni, or I'll beat them until they're begging for mercy."
"Evil oni these days are getting worse and worse. They can't even draw a map right. They really should find a teacher to study with."
Though the villagers were dissatisfied, as they saw more and more invitation boards, they grew more and more interested in the two oni.
They had already walked halfway. How could they give up now? They could only keep searching for the red oni's house.
Meanwhile, the red oni, who had slept at the blue oni's house all night, had already woken up.
When he thought about inviting the villagers over, he panicked and rushed back home.
It was over.
Completely over.
His house was so messy and hadn't been cleaned yet. How could he let guests inside?
And the snacks, rice balls, and tea hadn't been prepared either.
When the red oni ran home in a panic, he saw the tidy room, the snacks on the table, the freshly made rice balls, and the steaming tea.
He was stunned.
He turned his head slightly and saw the blue oni, who had been busy all night, asleep at the table.
The red oni understood everything instantly.
It must have been his good friend the blue oni who had prepared everything for him.
Looking at the blue oni asleep at the table, the red oni carefully helped him up and carried him to the inner room, laying him on the bed.
"Blue, we're about to succeed!"
"Once we become friends with humans, the villagers won't throw beans at me anymore, and they won't throw beans at you either!"
"Our oni race will have hope to continue."
After saying that, the red oni closed the door to the room, afraid the guests would disturb the blue oni.
He sat in the living room, continuing to heat the tea and keep it warm.
Waiting for the guests to arrive.
...
Meanwhile, on the path up the hill, the villagers followed the map on the invitation boards and searched for a while before making a shocking discovery.
It wasn't that the blue oni had drawn the map wrong.
It was that they had been holding the map upside down.
After seeing the map correctly, it didn't take the villagers long to find the red oni's house.
And at the red oni's door, they saw a sign.
[This is Mr. Red Oni's house!]
[Everyone is welcome to visit. Please come in and rest, and taste the red oni's snacks and rice balls.]
[Wake every guest!]
[Invitation from the Red Oni!]
Seeing the content, the villagers couldn't help but laugh.
Look at this evil oni.
Not only did he dare to invite villagers over, but he even made it look so proper.
Was he plotting something?
Did he come up with this method to harm the villagers?
"That's right. This is definitely the red oni's invitation."
"It does look quite sincere."
"Be careful. Don't trust it so easily!"
"An evil oni inviting people over, and making it look so proper. He's probably trying to trick us inside so he can pounce and bite us."
"That's a possibility."
"Is anyone willing to go in and test it out?"
A group of villagers gathered at the red oni's door.
Seeing the sign at the entrance, they all looked at each other, but no one dared to be the first to go in.
They pushed each other, wanting someone else to go in and test the waters.
"It's so quiet inside. Maybe the evil oni isn't home?"
"There might be a trap."
"Damn it, this evil oni is really bad. He tricked us by saying there's food and lured us all here."
"How despicable."
"There are two little oni and a whole crowd of us. Are we really afraid of them?"
"Fine, if none of you want to go in, I'll go take a look!"
"Let's see what these two little oni are up to!"
One brave villager volunteered and stepped forward first.
He would scout the way for everyone.
But the moment this villager took a step, before he even entered, his body began to tremble.
Cold sweat kept seeping out.
This was an evil oni's house. No matter how brave he was, he was still afraid.
But he had already spoken his bold words.
If he didn't dare to go in, the other villagers would definitely laugh at him.
This sturdy villager mustered his courage, took another step forward, and carefully pushed open the wooden door.
He poked half his body inside.
The moment he looked in, he quickly scanned the red oni's house.
The first thing he saw was the animal bone decorations on the wall, which he mistook for human bones.
He nearly fainted from fright.
This damned evil oni. How many people had he secretly harmed?