Chapter 727 - Chapter 140: Is There Such a Life? (4)

——[In the blink of an eye, five years have passed. Fourteen-year-old Nagato Tsuruko is preparing to take over Zaodao Shrine from the Early Rice Shrine Maiden. However, before that, Tsuruko must complete a priestess's challenge. The challenge is to expel a toad demon that has recently wandered into the mountains near Zaodao Village, without relying on the power of the Dog God. Fourteen-year-old Tsuruko already possesses quite strong spiritual power, and the Early Rice Shrine Maiden has confidence in her. But Tsuruko has never previously expelled a monster on her own, so she's inevitably a bit nervous before setting off. From the time she was six, when she watched Tsuruko grow up, to now at fourteen, these eight years have made the Dog God squatting in front of the shrine very familiar with some of Tsuruko's little habits that others don't know about. For instance, when she's nervous, she'll sweep the courtyard in front of the shrine at dusk.]