Once she had walked far enough that Furukawa Hiroshi and the others could no longer see her, the girl wearing the smiling fox mask finally stopped.
She raised a hand and lightly patted her chest, then stuck out her tongue a little.
To be honest… she had been a bit nervous just now.
She had the faint feeling that Furukawa Hiroshi might say something.
Even though she had never experienced such things before, she could vaguely sense what it might be about.
He was a very good person.
But she simply didn't have those kinds of feelings.
If he really had said something… she honestly wouldn't have known how to respond.
Luckily, he didn't.
"That was close… that was close…"
Makomo let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Now her thoughts drifted elsewhere.
If he really did invite her to that dinner with Kyojuro, should she go?
To be honest… she was a little curious about the famous Flame Hashira.
…
"Captain, I'm telling you—when we invite Miss Makomo to that dinner with Lord Kyojuro, that'll be the perfect chance…"
One of the swordsmen leaned close to Furukawa Hiroshi, enthusiastically offering advice.
"Yeah, and if Lord Kyojuro helps say a few good things for you," another swordsman added before the first one could finish, "your chances would be even better. I'm sure Lord Kyojuro would be happy to help."
"Captain? Captain?"
But Furukawa Hiroshi didn't seem to hear a word they were saying.
His eyes were fixed on something in the distance.
The swordsmen followed his gaze in confusion.
Halfway up the mountainside, a young girl with a flower basket in hand was quietly picking flowers.
In the middle of winter, flowers that could still bloom were extremely rare.
Practically nonexistent.
"That's strange," one swordsman muttered. "Picking flowers deep in the mountains in the middle of winter?"
"She's just a kid too," another added. "And there's no adult with her. Isn't she afraid of running into danger?"
By now, Furukawa Hiroshi's hand had already moved to rest on the hilt of his Nichirin Sword.
His voice was hoarse with excitement.
"I've seen that girl before."
The other swordsmen immediately turned toward him.
"She's the girl who was with that demon that night."
Furukawa Hiroshi spoke through clenched teeth.
For a moment, everyone froze.
Then realization dawned.
Excitement erupted across their faces.
They had already believed the demon had escaped them—that the hunt had ended in failure.
Yet now, fate had handed them a new lead.
"Follow her quietly," Furukawa Hiroshi said, gently stroking the blade at his side. A faint bloodthirst gleamed in his eyes.
"Let's see where this child goes."
"Got it."
One of the swordsmen replied in a low voice, filled with hatred.
"We have to kill that demon. I want to cut his head off myself."
"I'll cut off his limbs."
"I'm going to poke his eyes out with my blade."
…
The winter wind howled through the mountains.
Its icy breath brushed against Kanao's face, making her instinctively tuck her head down.
Originally, Uncle hadn't wanted her to come out.
But she wanted to pick flowers.
Even though he didn't seem very happy about it, he hadn't stopped her in the end.
"Even if I can't find the flowers Uncle wants right now… I should still pick some."
"Maybe I can find a pretty one to give him."
The girl stood on tiptoe, looking around.
Everything was covered in white.
In the dead of winter, almost no flowers bloomed at all.
Finding even a single one was incredibly difficult.
"I have to find one." The girl clenched her small fists, quietly cheering herself on.
"So she really is looking for flowers…" one of the hidden swordsmen murmured, watching her closely.
"Captain," another swordsman whispered, turning toward Furukawa Hiroshi, "if this girl really stays with that demon… why hasn't the demon eaten her?"
"She's probably just stored food."
Furukawa Hiroshi lowered his eyes and spoke calmly.
"Don't let her notice us. That child has likely been bewitched by the demon."
"Yeah…" another swordsman sighed. "Some demons are very good at pretending."
"And sometimes," another added coldly, "their relatives stubbornly refuse to accept the truth."
"They still believe in the demon."
"In the end, though, they all meet the same fate—"
"Getting eaten."
"Creatures like demons," the swordsman continued with icy contempt, "are cruel and vicious."
Furukawa Hiroshi narrowed his eyes.
"These demons… these disgusting things…"
"They should be completely erased from this world."
"Captain, that girl is moving further ahead," one of the swordsmen whispered.
"Follow her."
Furukawa Hiroshi lowered his body and quietly pursued her along with the others.
...
"Right now it's winter… after winter comes spring… and when spring ends and summer
Kanao walked through the snow with a flower basket in her hands, counting the days on her fingers.
When that day finally came, she would pick the flower immediately and give it to Uncle.
He would definitely be very happy.
Just imagining the look on his face made the corners of the girl's lips curl upward. She lightly hopped onto a rock and stood on her toes, looking around.
Then suddenly—
Her pink-violet eyes trembled slightly.
Those people…
They were the same people who had chased Uncle that night. The ones who forced him to keep running.
They had found him.
Kanao jumped down from the rock and quickly started walking in another direction.
"Captain… do you think we've been discovered?" one of the swordsmen whispered, glancing at Furukawa Hiroshi.
"It's just a child," Furukawa replied coldly. "Do you think she could notice us?"
But when he lifted his eyes to watch the girl, he saw her suddenly throw away the flower basket in her hands and break into a run.
At the same time, she shouted at the top of her lungs—
"Uncle, run!"
Her childish voice echoed clearly through the mountains.
Not far ahead of her… was a cliff.
"Damn it—catch her!" Furukawa Hiroshi barked.
The swordsman closest to her burst out of the snow and sprinted forward. In the blink of an eye, he tackled the girl to the ground.
Holding the struggling child tightly, he dragged her back while cursing.
"Damn brat! She was trying to jump off the cliff. I have no idea what she was thinking—she almost made it over the edge."
"Where is the demon?" Furukawa Hiroshi asked coldly, staring down at the girl who was still struggling.
Kanao pressed her lips together and said nothing.
Furukawa frowned deeply.
"Don't let the demon fool you. Demons are cruel creatures. No matter how nicely they treat you, they're only keeping you as food for later."
Kanao remained silent.
"Damn it. Do I need to beat the answer out of you?" one of the swordsmen growled as he stepped forward. "Stupid kid. We're trying to save you. Don't be foolish."
Still, Kanao said nothing.
The swordsman raised his hand without hesitation.
But the girl simply looked up at him calmly.
"Forget it."
Furukawa Hiroshi shook his head and stopped his companion.
Then he pointed toward the mountains on the left.
"The demon is that way, right?"
Kanao immediately nodded.
"Good."
Furukawa turned without hesitation.
"Let's go right."
The group of swordsmen moved in the opposite direction.
The moment she saw this, Kanao began struggling violently.
"Captain! I found footprints!" one of the swordsmen suddenly called out not long after.
He had crouched down in the snow.
"Good… good… good!"
Furukawa hurried over, then glanced at the girl's feet.
"They match this child's footprints. Follow them."
"Uncle… run!"
Unable to break free, Kanao could only shout again.
Her anxious, childish voice echoed repeatedly through the mountains.
But after only two cries, a swordsman struck her with a chop to the neck, knocking her unconscious.
Following the footprints, they advanced deeper into the mountains.
Soon, the trail ended in front of a cave.
Furukawa Hiroshi gripped the hilt of his Nichirin Sword and narrowed his eyes at the dark entrance.
From the bright snow outside, he looked into the shadowy depths within.
There—faintly—he could make out a silhouette.
And a pair of crimson eyes.
The owner of those eyes stood quietly in the darkness, watching them.
Furukawa Hiroshi slowly bared his teeth in a cruel grin as he tightened his grip on his sword.
"Demon… I've finally found you."
His smile widened, cold and merciless.
"This time—let's see where you run."