In retrospect, there were four wood carvings that were truly distinctive.

It is incompatible with the finished and half-finished products next to it, and there is a certain indescribable difference.

The four sculptures are all humanoid, a young man, a young girl, and two old men.

There are actually not many human figures in the carvings of Granny Ishiyama, but if you recall them carefully, you can detect the strangeness of the four figures.

It was as if it was a huge black ink on a white paper, and it was impossible to ignore.

First of all, the four wood carvings are extraordinarily fine.

Even though most of the wood carvings of Granny Ishiyama are lifelike, those four are still the most detailed and realistic among them, and they seem to be carved according to the scale of a living person.

The second is the look on their faces.

It was an expression that was somewhat indescribable in words.

It's not pain, but it's not "joy" or "happiness", and it's not very similar to the "peace" of Buddha statues in Buddhism.

If you really have to find an adjective among many moods, it is probably only .....

Peace?

It's very relaxed, very light, as if I have let go of all the distractions in my heart and reached some kind of magical realm.

But as far as Aono, as a bystander, the feeling that that look gave him was contradictory, both this peace of mind that approached happiness, but also a kind of indifference that chilled down the spine.

But what does this mean? ’

After a few moments, Aono walked out of the meditation room and did not explain the suspicion to Hino Ayaka and them.

Because, at that time, Aono's state was not normal, and he was in serious sequelae.

When observing things, it is easy to be affected by indescribable influences, such as as the soul being sucked away by a wooden carving, and an indescribable monster coming out of the shadows.

In that case, the conclusions drawn from memorization may not be accurate.

Taking a step back, even if the wood carvings were really anomalous, it was probably just that they had a special meaning to Akiko Ishiyama, or that they were instilled with extraordinary powers, and it was very likely that they would be destroyed in battle as a weapon of self-defense.

Taking a step back, the rampaged Tomie may have been hostile to the transcendent things around him, and he might have destroyed the four wooden sculptures at will.

In short, judging by the current situation, it is impossible to say what is the reason for the doubts of the wood carving.

On the contrary, the remaining "dirty" traces in the corners, as well as the so-called mysterious rituals, are more valuable clues.

Walk back into the small courtyard.

Aono saw that the three people, including Kanda Yukie, had all gotten rid of the stupid situation of "reducing intelligence" and returned to their usual sobriety and calmness.

It's just that there is still a minute or two of fear in the bottom of his eyes, and his face is pale.

It seems that that that special residual substance still caused a lot of damage to their souls, and their sanity has plummeted by about ten points.

"Aono-kun!"

Kanda Yukie screamed quietly, worried.

"Are you alright?"

Aono shook his head and touched her little head, signaling that she didn't need to be so nervous.

The little girl lowered her head with a blushing face, and her mood immediately stabilized.

- Aono has long mastered the skills of appeasing Kanda Yukie, a little one touches his head to kill, and he has a special attack on Kanda Yukie, and the top of her head is really easy to touch!

"Saika-senpai, have you ever seen a similar situation like this?"

Aono saw some information in Hino Ayaka's expression, and looked at her calmly.

"It's ......"

Ayaka Hino struggled to recall what she had to say about the situation, and she did have an impression of it.

The more she recalled, the paler Hino Ayaka became.

"Aono-kun, have you heard the story of the snow monster?"

"Snow monsters?"

Aono frowned suspiciously.

The legend of the snow monster should be spread all over the world, but the monster hidden in the snowy mountains should have nothing to do with the current situation anyway, right?

Yuki Hino, who was beside him, also changed his face after hearing this word, obviously remembering the events that had happened.

Muttered in disbelief.

"Is it the same group of people......

Ayaka Hino glanced back at the deep meditation room, and there was a surging of uneasiness in her eyes, as if a monster would burst out of it at any time.

Oh no, that's far from being a monster of that level.

She froze and said again.

"This is a story that is different from the common sense of snow monsters, please listen to me......"

So, in such a strange atmosphere, Ayaka Hino told this short story:

It is said that a long, long time ago, in a cold place near the snow-capped mountains, there was a remote town. In the town is an ordinary family of Orion brothers. The older brother is married, his wife is gentle and generous, and he has also given birth to a lovely daughter. The younger brother is young and strong, and the two brothers have a very good relationship, taking care of their elderly parents together, and they are a happy family.

I don't know what day it began, a rumor began to circulate in the town that there was a man-eating snow monster near the snowy mountain.

It makes the hunters in the town feel worried.

But hunting is their source of livelihood, so how can they not dare to go out because they are afraid?

Finally, one day, Yongwu's younger brother disappeared while hunting with his companions.

The family knew that going missing in the snowy mountains was tantamount to a declaration of death.

One day after spending a few days in grief, the elder brother returned from hunting near the snowy mountain, and suddenly saw the figure of the younger brother on a path.

Following the footprints on the ground walking in the snowy mountain, the elder brother suddenly heard the call of his younger brother again, he followed the sound, and found that the younger brother, who had been missing for several days, was actually standing intact in the snow.

Both brothers rejoiced in this touching reunion, and the elder brother asked how his brother had survived these days as he walked home.

Suddenly, the younger brother grew white hair, and his body became huge, and he ate the elder brother into his stomach.

"Drink!"

The elder brother woke up from the soft, warm bed next to his sleeping wife, and his daughter's cot not far away, and realized that he had just had a ridiculous nightmare.

The dream is over.

But from this day on, my brother began to become more and more strange.

He noticed that his skin was growing white hairs, and when he occasionally looked in the mirror, he felt his face gradually distorted, and the teeth in his mouth were unusually sharp.

He also began to sleepwalk, and when he woke up from his dream one day, he came to the vicinity of the snow-capped mountain wearing only a single coat, and unexpectedly, he did not feel cold at all. Fortunately, his wife slept very deeply that day, and she didn't seem to notice his abnormality, but the young daughter opened her big bright eyes and looked at her father blankly.

He no longer lives in the same room with his wife, just to hide his anomaly.

He also likes to devour raw meat, and is increasingly unable to control himself, and a considerable part of the prey he hunts is secretly eaten by him in the snowy mountains.

A few days later, when his family came home after shopping together, they unexpectedly saw this picture-

The wife's husband, the old man's son, the girl's father, crouched on the ground, like a wild beast that had lost its mind, gnawing at the raw flesh covered with blood.

Under the stunned gaze of the family, the elder brother finally came to his senses, and he gradually understood everything.

It turned out that the real him, when he returned home that day, along with his body and soul, was devoured by the man-eating snow monster.

And now it's just a monster in human skin.

So it shed bloody tears, its white fur stained with scarlet, and it ate his family alive in a cry of pain.

When the other residents of the town heard the screams of women, old people and children knocking on the door, it was opened by a young girl who was ignorant and had no idea what was happening, and her family was gone.

“...... This is the story of the snow monster. ”

Ayaka Hino finished telling the story.

Kanda Yukie only felt creepy, just listening to this story made her feel depressed, and she didn't know what to say.

Yuki Hino reacted in a similar way - this is a complete horror story!

Even if it wasn't the first time he had heard this story, every time he listened to it, he still shuddered.

Aono's reaction was quite normal.

Compared with the "bedtime story" told to them every day by an old gentleman in Aoyama Hospital, this kind of story is nothing more than "That's it?" "That's it.

It hurt Hino Yuki to see Aono's timidity, but his goal was not achieved at all.

"Actually, it's not just a story."

Ayaka Hino once again spat out a message that made Kanda Yukie's pores shrink.

"It's just that usually, 'snow monsters' are just a metaphor to describe the monsters that exist in the inner world."

"And long ago, there was such a group of extremely dangerous believers who were dedicated to descending into the surface world through strange rituals that called upon them."

Kanda Yukie carefully digested the information brought by Ayaka Hino, but she thought about it carefully for a while and couldn't help but say.

“...... But what does this have to do with Tomie? ”

"Don't worry, wait until I'm done."

Ayaka Hino can understand the urgency of Yukie Kanda at this time.

It's just that somehow, some of the content about those believers in my memory seems to be lost, and it can't be said to be forgotten, but it is more or less unreal, and I need to think about it carefully.

"However, in fact, the carrier of the 'snow monster' is not something that ordinary people can do."

"It usually has a couple of very harsh conditions."

"First of all, it has to endure great torment, and it is only in a state of extreme pain that they are of special interest or two."

"Secondly, it wants to have a deeper contact with an indescribable state, which is equivalent to leaving a special mark in its body, through which he can come to the surface world."

"Finally, it's going to be in a state of unpreparedness, prompting special rituals."

"And so, the snow monster was born."

Ayaka Hino stared at Aono with a slightly nervous gaze.

"And your friend, Tomie, happens to meet these conditions......"

In fact, the meaning of her words has been very clear.

Tomie, who has obtained unspeakable power, is naturally an unstable factor, and there is a possibility of being ignited and exploded at any time.

Even if you are not affected by the ritual, you may suddenly go out one day.

And this method itself is unpredictable, and it is deliberately targeted, and Tomie is really normal to be recruited because of this.

In this way, everything has a reasonable explanation.

Because of the influence of the mysterious ritual, Tomie, who was in a state of being treated, became a "snow monster" or "carrier".

Now she is no longer a living human being, but just a well-deserved monster in human skin.

Even maybe before that, she was a monster physically.

But now, not only the body, but also the soul of Tomie's self no longer exists.

"How could it be...... Such? ”

Kanda Yukie's eyes were gloomy, and a very uncomfortable emotion poured out inexplicably in his heart.

You know, three days ago, she didn't like Tomie at all, and she was at the top of the list of "most hated people" in the little girl's mind.

But after that day of getting along, Kanda Yukie unexpectedly changed his opinion of Tomie.

Knowing that she was nothing more than a poor person like herself.

And if you think about it carefully, the "envy" that Tomie said in his mouth is not just talking.

I still have Aono by my side, and although Tomie's brother is still there, he can't recognize each other, that feeling must be extremely tormenting, right?

It would be a good thing if she could really achieve spiritual liberation in that way as she had originally thought.

But.

But now......

Kanda Yukie didn't know what words to use to describe the mood at the moment.

"Is that what happened?"

Aono muttered to himself, glancing again at the deep room.

This explanation is indeed reasonable and logical, and there is no loophole to be found, but ......

He put aside his chaotic thoughts for a moment and said.

"You can't just leave the things left in the room like that, right?"

“...... Well, yes. ”

"We'll have someone dedicated to solving it."

Ayaka Hino was a little caught off guard by Aono's reaction, or rather, very surprised.

Shouldn't you be a little worried about your friends? Even if you show sadness because of this, it's not impossible!

How did you change the subject so quickly?

But this reaction still made Hino Ayaka feel a little at ease.

Next, the Tokyo Rangers, as well as the night watchman, will definitely carry out a new round of wanted for Tomie, and the intensity of this round will definitely be unprecedentedly huge.

If Aono had been against wanted in the case, they would have found themselves in a rather awkward position.

"So, let me help."

Aono thought of a way that might work, and spoke.

"Then ...... Please. ”

In any case, Aono's strength is still very trustworthy, and Hino Ayaka naturally has no opinions.

So, Aono picked up the blood-colored spine and walked into the meditation room.

“...... Huh? ”

The method that Aono thought of might seem incomprehensible to outsiders, but to him, it was not surprising.

Or rather, his intuition told him that it worked.

It's almost the equivalent of ......, "I wonder if this can work?" ”

On the other side, outside the room.

Ayaka Hino picked up the phone, and her face changed suddenly.