After receiving the information from Shrine Maiden Tsubaki, Satsuki and Kikyo continued traveling in the direction of Katori Shrine.
Due to the lack of sufficient military forces, the sphere of influence of the Kyoto factions was actually quite limited.
After roughly two days of walking, the two shrine maidens left the areas controlled by Kyoto. The weather visibly began to warm, and greenery on the land grew increasingly abundant.
However, improving weather was not entirely a good thing.
Winter was also a season unsuitable for warfare for most Sengoku-era lords. Low temperatures, insufficient grain reserves, and the tendency of metal weapons to become brittle all constrained the outbreak of war.
But as the weather gradually warmed, some castle lords with poor harvests had no choice but to turn their thoughts toward plunder and warfare.
As a result, along the way, the frequency of group conflicts that Satsuki and Kikyo witnessed was far higher than it had been more than a month earlier.
Among them were even soldiers who were well-equipped and well-trained, but disguised as bandits, openly plundering merchant caravans near neighboring countries. Some even directly attacked military supply convoys.
Of course, there were also many refugees and rōnin who had been forced by circumstances to turn to banditry. However, such people usually did not survive for long. The wilderness was far more dangerous than relatively stable human villages, and the first thing that often happened to them was being devoured by stronger forces in brutal internal struggles.
Within the Musashi Province region, the most famous bandit group was a gang founded by a wild bandit known as Rakshasa Oni.
Although this man was simple-minded, he was quite lucky, and he also had a subordinate skilled at devising schemes—a man known as Spider Demon.
Over the course of several years, this originally obscure bandit group had grown into one of the strongest bandit forces in the region. Not only had their numbers increased steadily, their equipment had also become increasingly refined.
Samurai armor—something even ordinary lords could not provide to every soldier—was not uncommon within this bandit gang. They even possessed a considerable number of horses, which were vital strategic resources.
At this moment, the bandit gang was gathered under the cover of night at a temporary encampment. Dozens of scattered campfires burned as members of the gang sat in small groups of two or three.
Most of them wore short sleeves, with a layer of samurai armor over their clothing. Between the armor and their bodies, they stuffed treated animal hides and woven straw as padding, which both provided warmth and enhanced their defense.
At the very center sat the leader of the bandit gang, Rakshasa Oni. He was currently drinking sake from looted pottery, but his expression was clearly unpleasant.
"Coming into this Paradise Bird's territory has really suffocated me," he said, slapping his thigh as he set down the pottery cup and looked toward the figure across the fire. "Hey, Spider Demon, is your information reliable? We've been waiting here for almost three days. Don't screw this up."
The man called Spider Demon replied calmly, "Trust me. A merchant caravan will pass through here very soon."
The speaker was a man who remained bare-chested even in the cold of winter. Unlike most bandits, he had long black hair draped over his shoulders. On his back were spider-like scars of unknown origin, which was precisely how he had earned his name. Compared to the other bandits, his physique was much more robust, clearly the result of decent living conditions.
Spider Demon's explanation was vague, and one of the bandits who also appeared to be among the core members voiced his doubts.
"Although this is a narrow trade route, the terrain is dangerous and the passage is tight. Aside from black merchants trying to avoid taxes, only very small-scale traders pass through here each year. Is it really necessary for us to specifically stake out this place?"
The concern raised by this bandit was also the source of Rakshasa Oni's anxiety.
His force had grown quite large, and every operation now required sufficient profit to offset the cost of mobilization.
This area was clearly not a suitable target for plunder given the current size of his group.
Spider Demon narrowed his eyes and glanced at the bandit who had questioned him, noticing that the man dared to meet his gaze without hesitation. This made him realize that this concern was shared by most of those present.
They could not understand why he had chosen this place as their target.
—Hmph. A bunch of idiots. No wonder you'll amount to nothing more than third-rate bandits for the rest of your lives.
A faint sneer appeared at the corner of Spider Demon's mouth, but it was quickly concealed.
"If this were the past, a place like this naturally wouldn't be our choice…" he said slowly. "However, a few days ago, I received information that the Seven-Man Squad from the Eastern Lands recently passed through Musashi Province's main trade route on their way to Kyoto."
"The Seven-Man Squad?"
"What's that? Another bandit group?"
…
Hearing Spider Demon's words, several bandit leaders sitting by the fires exchanged looks. They had no idea who this 'Seven-Man Squad' was.
Even Rakshasa Oni himself was the same. Although he did not speak, the look in his eyes clearly revealed his complete ignorance of the Seven-Man Squad.
"The Seven-Man Squad is a group of mercenaries from the Eastern Lands," Spider Demon explained patiently. "Each of them possesses combat power far beyond ordinary people. There are seven members in total, and they specialize in being hired by lords of various countries to fight wars on their behalf."
"So that's it? I thought they were something amazing. Just seven people—what's that supposed to be?" The bandit leader who had questioned him earlier deliberately raised his voice. "Every time we raid a merchant caravan, we kill more people than that. And you dragged the boss all the way here just because of this? Spider Demon, has the cold frozen your brain?"
"Hahahahaha…" ×N
Laughter immediately erupted from the surrounding campfires.
However, the calculating Spider Demon did not lose his composure because of this. He merely cast a contemptuous glance at the man leading the laughter and spoke coldly.
"The Seven-Man Squad is the most famous mercenary group in the Eastern Lands. So far, in battles across the Eastern Lands, the number of people who have died directly at their hands has already exceeded a thousand. This includes the castles of Oyakayama, Daibō, Karasawayama, and Oyama—each of which was independently breached by just those seven people. Every one of those castles was defended by more than a hundred well-armed soldiers."
As these words fell, the air around them froze.
The bandits who had been laughing just moments ago were all stunned by what Spider Demon had said.
Seven people defeating over a hundred well-equipped soldiers and emerging victorious? It sounded like an utterly fantastical myth. If these words had come from any other bandit, they would have dismissed it as a joke.
Although Rakshasa Oni instinctively remained wary of Spider Demon, he also knew the man's capabilities and understood that he would not fabricate such things lightly. Even so, he found it hard to believe.
"The Seven-Man Squad is really that powerful? And they even came to Musashi Province?"
"That's exactly the truth," Spider Demon replied, glancing at Rakshasa Oni. "And according to my investigation, the Seven-Man Squad kills anyone they find displeasing along the way. The main road to Kyoto was soaked with blood dripping from corpses piled on their wagons. All nearby merchant caravans have been so terrified by them that they no longer dare to set out."
"But if the Seven-Man Squad scared those merchants into staying home, what does that have to do with us ambushing this place?"
"If the main road is impassable," Spider Demon said, "then routes like this narrow path become one of the few remaining choices. Under the current conditions, merchants must purchase and stockpile supplies for the coming year. They simply cannot endure a supply chain interruption of more than a week, or they'll miss the farming season. In the end, the nearby caravans will be forced, out of sheer desperation, to take this small road."
Spider Demon was still speaking when…
Suddenly, a distant vibration came through the ground, accompanied by the intermittent neighing of horses.
The eyes of all the bandits who heard it lit up. They immediately grabbed their weapons, extinguished the campfires before them, lowered their bodies, and observed from their pre-arranged positions atop the mountain.
They were far too familiar with this sound.
This was the sound of the long-awaited "fat sheep" walking straight into their encirclement.
...
Satsuki raised her head and looked toward a cliff. Hanging there were the corpses of seven wolves.
Fear and agony still lingered on their faces. Deep wounds pierced by sharp claws could be seen in their abdomens and the backs of their heads. The injuries were so severe that the claws had directly penetrated the skulls, snapping the spine and brainstem in an instant.
Such wounds would be fatal to any vertebrate, even yōkai.
Their chests had been torn open, much of their fur stripped away. Flesh had been ripped from their bellies, exposing steaming internal organs, while red blood flowed down along the sharp stone stakes pinning them in place, as if they were provisions hung out to dry.
"That's the Wolf Demon Clan," Kikyo said, having also noticed the wolf corpses hanging above. The spiritual power of a shrine maiden granted her keen perception, allowing her to clearly sense the lingering yōki on the bodies. "The natural enemy of the Wolf Demon Clan is the Paradise Bird. It seems there should be a Paradise Bird nest somewhere around here."
"These two races really are resilient," Satsuki remarked.
Her gaze reached farther. High atop the mountain, she could see a long-ponytailed figure leaping back and forth across the rocks, evading attacks from the surrounding Paradise Birds.
It was a wolf yōkai in the form of a young man. He wore wolf pelts draped over his body, with a katana tucked into his waist, yet for some reason he did not draw it despite being besieged by the Paradise Birds.
Not far away were two other humanoid Wolf Demon Clan members dressed similarly. They were clearly less capable than the long-ponytailed man. Under attacks from small groups of Paradise Birds, they appeared flustered and barely holding on.
If not for the many companions still in wolf form around them, providing harassment and diversion, they would likely have died without even leaving a corpse behind.
"Kōga, haven't you found it yet?"
One of them—a white-haired wolf demon with a mohawk-like hairstyle—shouted toward the sky after narrowly dodging an attack from a Paradise Bird.
"Quit whining. The caravan has already run into the narrow pass ahead. If we don't break through this flock of Paradise Birds, we won't be able to catch up at all," another Wolf Demon Clan member replied as he kicked a Paradise Bird flying through the air.
The massive bird slammed hard into the cliff, let out a shrill cry, then tumbled down into the abyss.
However, there was no joy on the wolf demon's face. Instead, he said grimly, "Kōga, let it go this time. Too many of our kin have already died. We're barely holding on."
An extremely displeased expression appeared on the face of the man called Kōga. He kicked off repeatedly, darting across the heads of several Paradise Birds in midair. Then, with a sudden flip, he executed a tomahawk-like plunge, smashing all the Paradise Birds beneath him straight into the ground.
Boom—
The dull impact echoed outward. Even Kikyo sensed the vibration and instinctively drew her bow.
"What was that sound?"
Her question never left her lips, because she quickly saw the source of the noise—a Paradise Bird tumbling down the sheer cliff face.
Unfortunately, Kikyo and Satsuki were standing precisely where the bird was about to fall.
Satsuki narrowed her eyes, preparing to push the Paradise Bird's corpse away with repulsive force.
However, before she could act, she heard a sharp whoosh split the air.
In the next instant, Satsuki saw Kikyo loose an arrow beside her.
Powerful spiritual energy clung to it. In the blink of an eye, the ordinary arrow transformed into a brilliant streak of light in the darkness, shooting straight toward the falling Paradise Bird and purifying its massive body into a shower of light particles in midair.
This sight immediately drew the attention of all the yōkai present. Compared to internal struggles among yōkai, the immense spiritual power contained within Kikyo's demon-purifying arrow was a far greater bane to them all.
When faced with shrine maidens, the vast majority of yōkai wished nothing more than to kill them outright.
Thus, a group of Paradise Birds immediately changed targets, shrieking as they dove toward the two women below the cliff.
"Do you need my help?" Satsuki asked casually, glancing at the Paradise Birds swooping down. Against such low-level yōkai that could not even assume human form, a single look from her would have been enough to annihilate them.
Kikyo, however, chose to answer with action.
Whoosh—
Whoosh—
Whoosh—
...
Her fingers danced across the bowstring. In a single breath, she completed the sequence of drawing, aiming, and releasing several times in succession.
After releasing the arrows, Kikyo maintained her shooting stance, sending her spiritual power and focus along with the arrows as they flew, transforming them into violet demon-purifying arrows that streaked straight toward their targets.
The Paradise Birds locked onto could not react in time. With their limited intelligence, these low-level yōkai never imagined that the shrine maiden before them possessed spiritual power of such magnitude.
They followed in the footsteps of their fallen companion, being purified in midair until not even a trace remained.
This time, the entire flock of Paradise Birds fell into panic. Those that had been entangled with Kōga in the sky immediately changed direction, calling out to one another as they retreated.
"Tch… troublesome," Kōga muttered.
He sniffed the air. Although he was a wolf yōkai, his sense of smell was exceptionally sharp.
As a humanoid wolf demon, his intelligence far surpassed that of the Paradise Birds. He instantly realized that a shrine maiden capable of firing demon-purifying arrows of this level was no ordinary opponent.
"But this is a perfect chance to get away."
An idea struck him. He shouted to the others, "Hakkaku, Ginta, stick close to me!"
"Kōga, what are you doing?"
"Quit talking and follow me!"
Kōga flipped his body, drew the katana at his waist, and severed the wings of a panicking Paradise Bird. He fastened them to both sides of his armor, then leaped straight off the opposite cliff without hesitation.
Using the Paradise Bird's broad wings, his figure glided through the air toward the distance, covering hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye.
"So that's how he's doing it?"
Ginta and Hakkaku exchanged looks, then followed suit. Though they lacked katanas, as Wolf Demon Clan members they naturally had sharp fangs and claws.
Before long, they fashioned crude wings of their own and chased after Kōga in the same direction.
"Haha, with these wings, catching up to that caravan from earlier won't take much effort at all," Kōga laughed, secretly praising his own cleverness.
Suddenly, however, he caught a whiff of an unfamiliar scent of blood.
Unlike the stench carried by yōkai blood, this scent was faintly sweet, carrying a strange allure.
—The smell of human blood.
"Something's wrong!"
Realizing this, Kōga immediately accelerated his glide. After cresting the next mountain ridge, he saw, from afar, groups of people locked in mutual slaughter.
"I've found you—thieves who stole my clan's treasure!"
—
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