Mob Yandere

[Part 2/4]

"I see. Then I'll take my leave."

"We plan to resume mountain work starting tomorrow. With just that income, it'll be tough to get through the year, right? If you can, come out quickly."

Those were the words of the hunter and themymother as we saw them off. I closed the door.

"...They said it's starting tomorrow. It's good that it's early."

"Are you going? Isn't it okay to wait a little longer?"

"The superior said it too, right, mother? It'll be tough with just that money."

If it becomes a real winter hibernation, even the peddlers will hardly come. We need warmth, and without food, we could either starve or freeze to death. This year's harvest wasn't that great, and there were more than just 2 mouths to feed. We had to stock up before the village was buried in snow. We needed money.

"But... isn't it dangerous?"

"They've already been dealt with, so it should be fine, right? You're worrying too much."

"But..."

I guess she understood it logically. But emotionally, my mother seemed really resistant to letting me work outside. It felt like the sudden chance to earn some extra money was pushing her even more.

"Mom, big brother, are you... okay? Is there nothing scary outside?"

The question that interrupted our conversation came from the back of the room. The closet door opened a little, and a young face peeked through...

"...Y-yes. Everyone has gone home now. You can come out, okay?"

After checking the outside, my mother responded. My little sister, who came out, hugged me and looked at our mother.

"Mom, big brother, let's all get along, okay? Families should be close... right?"

With her sad expression and pleading eyes, both my mother and I couldn't say anything.

"Shirona... yeah, we should get along."

"We're not fighting, you know? We're just worried about each other... I'm sorry for making you anxious, okay?"

I comforted my little sister, and my mother reassured her. Looking up at us, Shirona nodded with teary eyes. Then, I said.

"...Mother, I'm going to stay home tomorrow."

"...Is that okay?"

"Just for tomorrow. ...At that time, Shirona also did her best. I have to play with her as a thank you, right?"

"Really, brother!?"

Shirona's face lit up with a smile at my words. She was overflowing with joy, surprised as if she couldn't believe it, and then looked at our mother. Both my mother and I understood the words she longed to hear.

"...Alright then. How about the three of us play together tomorrow?"

"Yes! Yes!!"

With a resigned acceptance, my mother gave the best response Shirona could have hoped for. Her eyes sparkled as she eagerly accepted our suggestion. She was filled with boundless joy, and it seemed pitiable. For this girl, her entire world was complete with just the three of us as a family.

(Even so...)

I couldn’t give her friends or teach her about the world outside. Even so, there was nothing I could do, so I had to at least fulfill this little white-haired sister's desires. It was my duty as family, as her brother.

"Hehe, I'm so excited!"

Shirona’s smile was full of excitement. When I patted her head, she wriggled with even more joy. Her tail wagged furiously, and her youthful beauty melted into a blissful expression.

"...Yeah. I'm looking forward to it, too."

As I continued to pat her head, I responded to my sister's words, as if seeking atonement....

It was two days later when the bodies of five men from the village, killed in the mountains, were discovered....

* * *

"What the hell is going on? This is..."

"This is worse than ground meat."

"Wasn't the youkai supposed to be exterminated? How could this happen..."

The men of the village whispered to each other as they looked down at the gruesome remains of their comrades. The corpse eaten by the mouth-splitting bear the other day was horrific, but what they saw now was no less horrifying.

"His upper body is blown off. Those bits of flesh... are they his?"

A hunter glanced at the dark red stains clinging to the tree trunk, his expression grim as he pondered the situation.

"Five people, maybe? From what I can see, they can't even put up a fight. The monster is not little youkai or anything. This is bad."

The middle-aged lumberjack groaned. Even if they were just villagers, they could surround a small youkai and beat it to death with farming tools. At least, unless something really unusual happened, it shouldn't be possible to be killed like this so easily.

"Or maybe..."

The hunter muttered quietly. I couldn't catch the second half of what he said from far away.

"What do you think is the right thing to do?"

The supervising official asked the bodyguards, looking troubled. If you count the victims from the other day, that's 7 people. Seven working-age men in a village of 150. Losing that many in just a few days would definitely hurt the village's operations. And there was no guarantee that this would be the end of the casualties.

"With this level of damage, I can't say we can handle it ourselves."

"So, do we need reinforcements?"

The lumberjack frowned. Reinforcements... maybe from the government, exorcists, or samurai. Either way, they would need help. And it was unclear if help would actually come. Especially since the country were short on exorcists manpower due to the big chaos. They would probably prioritize bigger issues and put off requests from such a small village.

"Anyway, we need to consult with the village head."

The middle-aged lumberjack looked up at the sky. It seemed he was sighing about how this year was a bad year.

It was a bad day for me too. I had finally come to work, but it seemed like they had paid out wages yesterday, and at this rate, it was certain we would be disbanding this time. No pay, just a waste of time. This would mean my temporary income would end up being 0. My sister is growing and needs food; I can't take this...

"Disband! Disband!! The duty crew will handle the bodies!! The rest of you, get home to your wives before you get killed!"

As I was feeling gloomy, the middle-aged lumberjack made his announcement. The unlucky ones assigned to deal with the body complained, while the rest hurried home, grumbling. Nobody wanted to be affected by secondary damage.

"Hey. Wait."

Just as I was about to head home, I was suddenly called out. Turning around, I saw the hunter with a difficult expression.

"Um... what is it?"

I braced myself, thinking he might demand compensation for the spear I broke the other day.

"I'm not going to say something cheap like that. ...So, how's your body feeling?"

"My body?"

I frowned at the hunter's strange question.

"During the inspection of that monster the other day. That outfit you wore that got torn, it was yours, right? There were slash marks on it. Is everything okay?"

Ah, I see.

"It's probably just a thin scratch. It's already healed. Look, right here."

I lifted my shirt to show my back. There were only faint scars left.

"...I see. As long as you're safe, that's all that matters. Since it's just the two of you living together, if something happens to you, your household would fall apart, wouldn't it?"

"Well, I suppose..."

Although I think it's weird that the person who left me stuck here with a dead body before is lecturing me... I understand what he's trying to say.

I was the one earning most of the income for the Miko family. If I were to become useless or die, my mother and sister... just thinking about the future made me feel even more depressed.

"You took care of a fox that was supposed to die in the wild. Shouldn't you be filial to your parents?"

"Of course, that's why I'm working today... although it didn't go well."

I glanced at the villagers leaving after the meeting. Honestly, I just wanted this to be over quickly.

"...Yeah. We should wrap this up soon."

The hunter muttered calmly. He fell silent and looked around.

"...?"

"...It's fine now. Go."

I tilted my head in confusion as I watched the hunter walk away, his back turned to me. But... in the end, I didn't want to stay here any longer, so I hurriedly made my way home.

Maybe this was the turning point of fate, but at that moment, I couldn't foresee it...