It was another night that could not be explained.

Taking advantage of the fact that there was no one in the middle of the night, Shimura sneaked in front of the firewood house where Hanako was confined with food.

Under the moonlit night, the silver-white cold color overflowed on the tall man with a light waist. Wisps of cold air rose in the forest, and the wet cold made people shiver.

Mixed with the chill of the night wind was the sound of the night birds' wings. It is so clear and audible, and in a trance, it makes people feel as if they are in pure and immaculate silence -

An indescribable night of silence.

The tall man, Shimura, glanced around like a thief, and when he was sure that no one was there, he quietly leaned down and poked his hand into the hole at the bottom of the right wall of the firewood room.

"Girl, let's have something to eat. It's been three days since I had anything to eat, and my body won't be able to hold it if I continue like this. Shimura sighed and stuffed a few steamed buns wrapped in cloth into the hole in the brick wall.

Since that ghost crusade, Hanako has been imprisoned in a firewood room waiting to be released.

The person who has been bringing her meals is Shimura.

Maybe the squire just had the idea of confinement Yuhanako to death, not to mention delivering food for so many days, and even Shimura who came to visit her was the only one who came to visit her.

Shimura's question went unanswered, and a small, dirty hand quickly rolled the cloth bag into the hole.

After a while, the sound of chewing food came from inside the house. There are no words, only the sound of chewing. The oppressive atmosphere is upsetting.

"Girl, you say something, you ...... like this"

"What else can I do?"

Shimura's dry and hoarse voice shocked him, is this still the Yukako who laughs and is lively on weekdays? The Yukako with a smile like a flower?

"Yuhanako! Your voice!? ”

"I'm already the one who doesn't look like a ghost...... Skinny...... You can even feel the weight of the skin hanging from the bones......"

"Stop talking! Your body is already weak, if you continue like this! ”

Shimura's face was full of pain, and he suddenly knelt down holding his head. He could even peek through Hanako's words into the desperate girl cowering in the darkened corner of the lightless darkness, like a withered tree with no eyes in her eyes!

That Yukako would ......

As soon as he thought of this, Shimura's heart was like a knife, and that strong sense of guilt continued to burn his heart. He gritted his teeth and endured the self-blame in his heart, and the knuckles of his hands that were clutching the dirt turned white from overexertion.

……

Just as Shimura blames himself for the torture he received from Hanako, there is a sudden "poof" sound from the confined hut, which is like the sound of not holding back a smile and leaking.

"Hahaha! Uncle Shimura! I've been tricked again, haven't you? ”

The girl's laughter kept ringing like a silver bell, and even if the laughter still seemed a little dry, it made Shimura feel extremely relieved - she was still the Yukako who loved to joke and was smiling at all times.

Despite this, Shimura still put on a straight face and pretended to be very angry and reprimanded: "You wild girl! The boldness is getting bigger! How dare you joke with your elders? ”

"Hey, that's not because Uncle Shimura Gen Ben just doesn't have the appearance of an elder~"

"You're still stubborn! It seems that I am in good spirits, and I was thinking of bringing roast chicken over tomorrow......"

"Wow! I was wrong! ”

There was a burst of chickens and dogs jumping in the house, and after a while, Yuhanako's panicked exclamation came: "I haven't touched oil and water for so many days, don't let the roast chicken leave me!" ”

Shimura sighed and handed the gourd filled with water through the gap: "You wild girl, get down to business." You still have the heart to play. Alas......"

"Gollum...... I was locked up for three days, and I was suffocated! "It seems that Yukako, who is carrying a gourd to fill the water, is heartless. Angry, Shimura gritted his teeth.

"Still laughing! If you don't find a way to get you out, you'll be locked up here until you die! You know? ”

“…… Let's think of a way to talk about it, it's good now. ”

Hanako's voice froze, and it took a while for a while to spit out a sentence.

Seeing this, Shimura couldn't say anything more, so he could only sigh and shake his head continuously.

He leaned against the broken wall and looked up at the silver and immaculate moon; She leaned against the broken wall, staring down at the darkness through which even the moonlight could not penetrate.

The two of them were back to back, separated only by a broken moss-covered wall.

They are like father and daughter, and like brother and sister.

Invariably, they can all feel the current predicament, but a sense of powerlessness arises spontaneously from the bottom of their hearts, and the feeling of being stunned at a loss has not diminished even after three days.

That's it? That kind of leisurely routine was easily broken?

Yuhanako doesn't understand, and Shimura doesn't understand it even more.

But they were all depressed.

——————————————————————————————

Gradually, they began to talk through a wall to relieve their anguish.

“…… You say you're a stupid boy, you want to pick up a ghost and raise it. It's good now, something happened, right? ”

"I don't care if it's a ghost or not! It's my savior! The phrase "the grace of a drop of water should be reciprocated by a spring" is also what you taught me! ”

For some reason, Yuhanako's emotions suddenly became excited: "You adults just like to assert themselves, and you want to bury it alive even if it's not wrong!" ”

"There's no way around it......"

"Ghost, is that annoying?"

Yuhanako's words that seemed to be a complaint made Shimura a little stunned, and then he reacted and shook his head and said, "Youkai, everyone will hate." ”

"Why?"

"yes, why ......"

Shimura repeated Yuhanako's words like a dream, and it seemed like a hidden doubt in his heart.

After a long time, he spoke—

"Back then, when I was very young. I was in front of a samurai in that big, big Kyoto......"

Shimura, who was muttering to himself, seemed to have returned to his youth in a trance......

"At that time, the samurai was a very difficult trade, and every day I had to gamble my life with all kinds of demons and monsters to fight. The samurai's fellow officers changed almost every day. Naturally, those old faces who can survive are definitely the elite of the elite......"

"Stop bragging, let's move on!"

As soon as she heard the story, Yuhanako became extra energetic.

"No, it's all bloody memories that don't deserve to be mentioned, and they're covered with corpses all the way...... It's hard work. ”

“……”

"However, I was a couple for a long time, and I was the best friends with them at that time, and we had a very close relationship in private."

As if remembering something, Shimura's face seemed to have become younger.

"One day, war broke out. It's a war between people and monsters, and how terrifying that battlefield is, it's like the sky is falling, and the threat of death is wrapped around everyone's heart-"

"The couple, gave me the baby. And then threw himself into the war without hesitation......"

"...... kid?" Yuhanako chewed on the word, and suddenly her face became extremely ugly.

"Ah, yes. I escaped from that meat grinder like a dead dog, and I was scolded by my colleagues and threw myself into a different battlefield as a deserter. ”

"The couple ......"

"Died, didn't come back. I heard that they died together. Shimura's face was bitter.

The transformation from a glorious ghost slayer to an ordinary farmer is not easy, and even if the spiritual power is exhausted, there is a threat of being hunted down by monsters. For the happiness of this girl, Shimura sacrificed a lot.

But Shimura didn't regret it because it was a man's promise. Since he promised that guy, he must gamble everything to fulfill his promise.

True glory is never something that merit can replace. A promise must be investigated, which is the true glory and the real samurai.

This is the truth about the man named Wataru Shimura.

“……”

Choked sounds.

"It's too early to tell you this, but ...... Sometimes it's not a bad thing to remember hatred. ”

“…… Uncle, I want to be quiet for a while. ”

The girl's voice was trembling, and Shimura could already feel that she had suppressed her emotions to the extreme, as if it would pour out in the next moment-

"Understood, I'll figure out what happened to the squire."

Shimura got up and patted the dust off his body: "You are the child of the [Oni Slayer Who Was Killed by Demons], and as long as you are alive for a day, this fact will always exist. ”

"It's time to mature a little, girl."

The man left, leaving only the girl locked in a small dark room and crying alone.

It was another night that could not be explained.

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The sun is hairy! The sun is hairy! The sun is hairy! The sun is hairy! The sun is hairy! The sun is hairy!