Looking at 'Zero' standing quietly in front of him, Lancer simply put down his shovel and touched the other party's head, then walked towards the main hall.
He wasn't very good at dealing with children, but his three cats liked being patted on the head, so a little girl should be similar, right? After all, both sides were about the same size, and since the other party didn't show any resistance, there should be no problem.
However, his mood at the moment was not happy at all, because when thinking about the matter he was about to face, no one would be happy, right?
As expected, before he even reached the main hall, he heard a messy sound of crying, but the only thing that made Lancer breathe a sigh of relief was that, according to his perception, no one was trying to commit suicide. The few girls who reacted more strongly were just simply crying under the persuasion of the older women.
'Sigh~'
After sighing, Lancer still walked into the main hall.
Undoubtedly, the sudden appearance of a tall man in gruesome armor in a Buddha hall full of blood naturally startled everyone, but many of them had been fainted by Lancer before, and they also recognized Lancer as the one who killed those 'Tengu'.
Then ——————
"I apologize."
Just this simple sentence made most people unable to control their tear ducts, and Lancer was not angry because of the messy crying. After all, he knew that at this moment, they had nothing else they could do but cry, since the culprit had already been executed by Lancer himself.
Lancer sat cross-legged there and waited until they were tired of crying before speaking again.
"I am just an ordinary Lancer, but I am willing to do what I can. I think after what you have gone through, you may not be able to live in the nearby villages anymore, but I am willing to take you away from this area. Perhaps you can start a new life, and I have some connections with the officials, who can also give you some help, and I can even take your family with you as well, how about it?"
This was the only thing Lancer could think of doing. He knew that simple comfort was meaningless. Many people here had already lost hope for the future, and when they got through the sadness and faced despair, they might choose that path of no return. The only thing he could do was point a way for them, which was the only thing he could do at this moment.
After speaking, he took out (bought) some kimonos and placed them on the ground before leaving the main hall.
——————
With some of the women abducted by the Tengu fleeing back, a 'rumor' spread quickly among the common people.
An 'Oni' who was all blood-red, holding two long spears and with a gruesome beast head tattooed on his chest, appeared at the temple where the Tengu resided. After killing those Tengu, he took some young women away and then disappeared without a trace.
The families of those who returned were naturally overjoyed, while the parents of the missing girls were saddened. And people strangely found that the couples whose daughters were abducted also disappeared not long after. Because of this, the people in the village naturally reported it to the officials, but strangely, the officials visited a few times and then ignored it.
On the other side, Lancer, driving a minibus bought from the system, finally picked up the parents of the last few girls and brought them to Takasaki City, several hundred kilometers away. He exhaled sharply.
His job was to deal with those Tengu. His goal was to complete the task, but for some reason, when he saw those helpless faces, he couldn't help but want to lend a hand. Although there was no reward, he felt that he had to do it...
And just as he leaned against the car, preparing to pour himself a drink and rest for a while ——————
"Drinking without inviting me?"
Accompanied by a somewhat frivolous voice, the sake cup in his hand was suddenly snatched by someone.
"Shipmaster?"
That's right, the person who appeared next to Lancer at this moment was indeed the funashiyaku wearing kariginu and holding a bat fan, but he looked a little disheveled now.
But the other party didn't care at all and instead raised an eyebrow at Lancer, seeming to ask why he wasn't drinking, and Lancer smiled helplessly before taking out another cup.
Seeing Lancer pour himself a cup of sake, the funashiyaku also took a small sip with an elegant posture.
"You really caused me a big trouble this time."
Facing the funashiyaku's 'unfounded accusation', Lancer couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"Didn't I already kill those Tengu?"
"Yes, and the Chief is very satisfied with this, but who knew you would cause another 'Red Oni' incident..."
Speaking of this, the funashiyaku couldn't help but feel a headache. He was sure that there was something fishy about the 'Chief' asking him to invite Lancer to eliminate the Tengu this time. After all, when he asked why the other party invited Lancer, the other party said:
'It doesn't have to be him, but there are no stronger samurai left.'
Why did it have to be a samurai? Couldn't they, the Onmyoji, do it?
But despite the doubts, having worked in the Onmyōryō for so long, he knew that many things could only be done and not said, so he didn't inquire further. Now that the matter seemed to be resolved, he had no other thoughts besides being a little curious, and as he said, the other thing the other party caused was even more troublesome.
"Red Oni? What is that?"
This time it was Lancer turn to be confused. Those Tengu could have caused him some trouble if they were outside. After all, he was not very good at aerial combat. The simplest way to deal with them in an open area was to use throwing spears, but who knew that these guys were all dealt with by him in one swoop in the main hall.
His mission should have ended there, but he did a little more for personal reasons, such as taking those girls and their parents to 'Takasaki City', but besides that, he just used the name of the Onmyōryō to ask the local officials to take care of them, that's all.
And looking at Lancer genuine expression, the funashiyaku was somewhat surprised looking at Lancer.
'Is this guy really an idiot?'
Holding the sake cup in one hand, and tapping his forehead with the bat fan in the other.
"Lancer, you really don't know anything?"
"Since you found me, you should know what I've been doing these past few days, right?"
Facing Lancer rhetorical question, the funashiyaku looked a little helpless.
"It seems you really don't know, alright, I'll tell you. Do you remember the Tengu you killed a few days ago?"
"Those scum? I remember, what about it?"
"The women who returned home were asked by their families and said, 'We were saved by a blood-red Oni who was all blood-red', and because those young girls were 'taken away' by you, a rumor appeared sometime ago that 'that Oni kidnaps cute girls'..."
The funashiyaku said while secretly glancing at Lancer from the corner of his eye. As expected, Lancer expression became extremely colorful.