Stardew Valley of Gensokyo

After racking his brains to no avail, Akina Ze simply gave up thinking and rushed out of the yard, leaving the gate wide open without even locking it.

But after taking only a few steps, Akina Sawa hesitated again.

"Is Nikua heading east or west?"

A narrow path connects the left and right sides.

Just like a parent whose child has gone missing, Akina Sawa felt increasingly powerless, with a feeling of pent-up anger in his chest but nowhere to vent it.

"It's heading east~"

A clear female voice suddenly rang in my ears.

Akina Sawa also turned his head sharply.

The path was deserted, the grass swayed in the wind, but no one could be seen speaking.

"Who's there?"

"It's Lianlian here~"

A girl in green clothes gradually appeared on the deserted path, waving her arms.

She seemed to have always been there, creating a strange sense of harmony.

Akina Sawa also knows her; she is a youkai named Komeiji Koishi, and he also knows her older sister, Komeiji Satoru.

Memories that had been isolated from my mind gradually resurfaced. Or rather, they had always been there; I just hadn't realized it before.

This phenomenon reveals many strange things, and if it weren't for something else, Akina would have liked to study it in more depth, but not now.

"Thank you, Miss Lianlian!"

After bowing deeply to Lianlian, Qiuming Ze turned and ran eastward without looking back.

“They’ve been gone for a long time,” Komeiji Ren tilted her head.

But in that short time, Akina Sawa had already gone far away.

The path was deserted, a gentle breeze blowing.

He is in a hurry.

Nikua went out for a long time without his knowledge.

Various possible scenarios were swirling in Akina Zeya's mind.

What if something happens?

This made him even more anxious.

The road to the east leads far away from the human world; if you keep going east, you will reach the mountain of monsters.

Could they have been kidnapped by a monster?

The precipitous Monster Mountain sits quietly on the edge of the sky.

Upon closer examination, one can feel the oppressive atmosphere brought about by the sheer size of the object.

Akina Zeya's eyes betrayed his undisguised worry...

Soon it got dark, and the changing seasons were vividly displayed in the sunrise and sunset.

A crescent moon hangs in the sky.

The path was pitch black.

After running for so long, my feverish brain needs a little time to cool down.

Akina Sawa also took a quick look around.

The trees along the roadside, whose branches and leaves looked lush and green during the day, now looked menacing and gloomy.

rustling~

A sound came from the bushes that made one's mind wander.

Perhaps Nikua has already gone back.

Once such a thought arises in your mind, it's impossible to suppress it.

Akina Sawa also had the idea of ​​going home.

Chapter Sixty-Four: Reckless

Whoosh~

A gust of wind from the north blew through the wild grass along the narrow path.

The rampant weeds temporarily lowered their heads, which had been held high at that moment.

Akina Ze on the road also wrapped his thin clothes tighter.

He felt a chill.

I was in such a rush when I left that I forgot to bring my comfortable jacket, and now I'm only wearing a thin T-shirt.

It's impossible to rely on it to ward off the cold of the night.

The reason we've made it this far is thanks to Akina Zeya's own qualities.

But even his body, which was stronger than that of an average person, was about to give out.

The night wind was colder than I had imagined.

Creak, creak, creak~

That's the sound of teeth chattering uncontrollably.

This cannot continue.

You can grit your teeth and bear the cold for a while, but you can't keep up with the loss of visibility.

The crescent moon was completely obscured by the clouds.

The last bit of moonlight on the path leading to Monster Mountain has disappeared.

It was so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face; you could only make out faint outlines.

Only faint lights belonging to the human village could be seen twinkling in the distance.

The light was small, as if it might be extinguished at any moment, but it shone brightly and steadfastly.

It's time to go back.

Akina Ze took one last look at the towering Youkai Mountain, then turned and left without looking back.

step

two steps

third...

He could easily relax the muscles at his joints and put his foot down, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

His feet were dangling in the air.

"What am I even thinking?!"

Akina Sawa also grabbed his hair in frustration.

With stiff legs, he stomped down heavily.

Perhaps Nikua is perfectly fine and nothing has happened to her; perhaps she's at home right now, probably complaining about where she's going to have dinner.

But what if... just what if.

She is in a dangerous situation and needs help right now, but I chose to go home.

This outcome is unacceptable no matter what!

Even if it's just wishful thinking, I will persist!

With his jaw clenched, Akina Sawa tried his best to move his stiff legs.

A passionate heart was pounding in my chest.

On the dark path, a shadowy figure walked with its back to the human village toward the mountain of monsters.

----------------

"So, you suspect Nikua is inside Monster Mountain?"

"I'm not really sure either. I heard it from... um... from who...?"

Aya Shameimaru closed her notebook and looked up to face Sawaya Akina, who was sitting opposite her.

"You traveled such a long way and visited Monster Mountain in the dead of night just for some information that you don't even know if it's true?"

"I didn't want to either..." Akina Ze also showed a helpless smile on his tired face.

“Let’s leave those aside for now.” Aya Shameimaru stood up from her chair and walked to the window, her back to Zeya Akina, looking at the brightly lit tengu village. “Don’t you know that the Youkai Mountain is dangerous at night?”

"If the patrolling tengu force hadn't found you, you'd probably already be eaten by a monster."

"But I didn't get into any trouble..." Akina Ze shook his head dismissively.

"You dare talk back?" Aya Shameimaru's eyes sharpened.

A round fan slammed heavily onto Akina Zeya's head.

"Ouch!" Akina Sawa, clutching his head, looked at Shameimaru Aya in confusion. "Why did you hit me!"

“This is to teach you a lesson. If it were a monster, it wouldn’t be as simple as just hitting your head with a fan.” Shameimaru paused, a dangerous glint in his light brown eyes.

Akina Sawa also swallowed hard; the Aya Shameimaru in front of him seemed to have transformed into a ferocious beast that devoured people.

"You will be torn to pieces by the monsters, your corpse dragged into the dense grass by wild beasts to be devoured, and your remaining blood absorbed by the earth. No one will ever know that a human once came to the Monster Mountain."

"Finally, you will be listed as a missing person in one of my newspapers."

Horrifying words kept coming out of Aya Shameimaru's mouth.

Sadly, Akina Sawa couldn't refute it either, because everything she said was true.

Humph~

Feeling a bit tired from talking, Aya Shameimaru patted the table, then picked up the teacup to clear her throat and looked at Sawa Akina, saying...

Do you understand?

"I understand all of that, but Nikua is missing..."

Akina Sawa also looked troubled.

"You idiot!" Aya Shameimaru finally lost her temper.

She gained a new understanding of Akina Zeya's stubborn mind.

"Mount Yokai is so big, do you really think you can find a tiny little demon all by yourself? It's like looking for a needle in a haystack. In the end, you'll still have to come to us Tengu for help."

"And you, sneaking off into the mountains all by yourself in complete darkness, were you looking for someone or just to feed the wild animals?" Aya Shameimaru said, hands on her hips, her anger palpable.

"If you died, I would be troubled too!"

"I......"

Speechless after being spoken to, Akina Sawa sat timidly in his chair, his broad shoulders hunched over his chest, like a child who had done something wrong.

"I know I was wrong, but could you please check if Nikua is home first? I'm afraid she's really gone..."

Akina Ze also said with a troubled expression.

"That's no problem, let... never mind, I'll go myself, I'm the fastest flyer."

Shameimaru Aya rolled her eyes at Akina Sawaya, and just before leaving, she turned back to warn him, "Don't you dare run away again!"

"No, then I'll leave it to Lord Aya Shameimaru. I'll definitely send a thank-you gift when I get back!"

"Who cares about your gift? The best reward for me is that you didn't die on Monster Mountain."

"And don't call me 'sir'!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Aya Shameimaru flapped her wings and transformed into a shooting star, flying rapidly towards the human village.

In the newspaper office near the waterfall, only Akina Sawaya remains.