"This is..." "Genbatsu, shoot it!" "I have no firearms." "I suppose I'll give this a try." "Go!" "How about that?" "!" "It was a Youi." "So that was part of the attack on Yamazakiya, too." "Who knows?" "Who are you people?" "!" "So, you saw it..." "Kotoba dake ja tsutawaranai mono o The things you can't get across with just words" "Ichiban tsutaetai no wa naze?" "Why do you want to get those things across the most?" "Kutsuzoko o suriherashite Wearing down the soles of your shoes" "Hadashi demo tomarenai no wa naze?" "Why can't you stop, even when you're down to your bare feet?" "Kaban no naka ni hoshizora The starry sky is in your bag" "Arashi no yoru mo soko ni aru The stormy nights are in there too" "Soro-soro tabi ni dero It's about time you go on a journey" "Robou ni saku hana yo hana yo The flowers, the flowers that bloom by the wayside" "Goro-goro doro-darake Rolling around, covered in mud" "Mune o kogasu yoake yoake The dawn, the dawn that consumes your heart" "Soro-soro hashiri-dase It's about time you start running" "Kowareru made asobe asobe Play, play until you break down" "Odorou yo doro-darake Let's dance, covered in mud" "Mune o kogasu yoake yoake The dawn, the dawn that consumes your heart" "Cha pter Seventeen The Shrouded World" "Chapter Seventeen The Shrouded World An air gun, is it?" "Chapter Seventeen The Shrouded World" "Chapter Seventeen The Shrouded World I have seen ones made by Kunitomo blacksmiths," "I have seen ones made by Kunitomo blacksmiths, but nothing as finely crafted as this." "One of the People of Craft really made this?" "The People of Craft have been skilled with contraptions since ancient times." "They even served the Imperial Court at one time." "But even among them, Masurao is exceptional." "And what of this Masurao?" "We couldn't very well bring him here." "Besides, he wasn't the one who went after Atobe and Abe." "The Lord Finance Magistrate and Lord Magistrate of Shrines and Temples!" "And he said that he delivered the air guns to Yamazakiya?" "Yes." "Yamazakiya went to the trouble of asking you for bodyguards, didn't he?" "Bodyguards were not enough, so he sought to arm himself as well?" "It would be more natural to assume Yamazakiya targeted Atobe and Abe." "But he has no cause." "The Lords Atobe and Abe favor Western learning, so they are in fact Yamazakiya's allies." "It would make sense if he had targeted Lord Torii, but..." "Owowow..." "I will go to Yamazakiya." "Edogen and Saizo are to return after they see how things are." "Please let me go." "I suppose the story that your elder sister is there bothers you too." "I sure envy the Mountain People." "I am of the People of Craft." "Whatever." "You're not bound to your houses or your land." "It's up to you where you live and where you die." "Man..." "I want to try living like that too." "What?" "If you can live wherever, it means you have no home." "It means you also have nowhere to go home to." "Ouma, you're still too young to be drinking." "In the 21 st century, it is against the law for minors to drink alcohol." "Ouma, you're still too young to be drinking." "In the 21 st century, it is against the law for minors to drink alcohol." "It's a shame that you're a man." "Do you think so?" "Hey, this is..." "Our meals are over there." "The master said to feed these guys too." "Eat it up quick." "You'll be hooked." "Eat." "You are being terribly gracious." "Hey, this is Yo..." "This is delicious!" "You think so?" "I bet you do." "This is the taste of Youi." "There are others beside ourselves who eat Youi..." "Air guns and Ancient People, and now, Youi flesh..." "This is looking quite suspicious." "Was the meal to your satisfaction?" "Yes!" "I have never eaten anything that delicious!" "Just what was that?" "Could it be the flesh of cranes or something?" "Would you like to see?" "What is this thing?" "It is called a Youi." "I had intended to introduce you to it eventually, but I did not anticipate it wandering into your room." "Why would you keep such a thing?" "As I said..." "To eat it." "Such a delicious thing, and it is never depleted." "Do you know?" "The Mountain People who live in the mountains, the Ocean People who live by the seashore, the People of the Arts, who travel the country performing..." "Every one of these people, called the Ancient People, who do not live in towns and are not part of the registers, apparently considered the flesh of dead Youi that they found to be the most sublime food." "I see!" "Those bodyguards were all Ancient People." "Today, those people are belittled for no reason." "They have no registers, so they are considered to be nonexistent." "If they come into towns, they are apprehended as vagrants and sent to camps." "But the truth is, they are..." "Have you ever read this?" "Commentary on the Kojiki Have you ever read this?" "Commentary on the Kojiki" "Commentary on the Kojiki "Commentary on the Kojiki"?" ""Commentary on the Kojiki"?" "The Kojiki, records of ancient matters." "A chronicle of the most ancient matters concerning this country." "And this is a text that allows us to understand it more easily." "A book regarding the age of gods, correct?" "Master Norinaga Motoori wrote this text, and one of his pupils is a great master by the name of Atsutane Hirata." "And I..." "And I used to study under him." "Is it up past here?" "Yeah, but I'm not going." "Not after I've blabbed about my business to you." "But in a predicament, you're going to make yourself useful." "You're certain that it was at this villa that you so my elder sister?" "I only saw her once from the yard, so I had no chance to talk to her." "Though she hardly looked as if she had been abducted by a Youi." "What do you mean?" "We were told they would be working at the villa in Ouji." "The two who were referred by the samurai named Ogasawara, right?" "They went broke gambling soon after they got here, and they'd disappeared by morning." "Saizo, gambling?" "So that's the situation." "You expect me to sneak in there?" "!" "It won't hurt you to do a little work along those lines." "Just now, the horse..." "Let's go." "The sun's going to set." "Just now, the horse..." "Let's go." "The sun's going to set." "Wait..." "Abi." "Who is it?" "So it is you, Abi." "I owe you for that time in the mountains of Musashi." "Musashi?" "Who are you?" "!" "You don't remember?" "I don't suppose you would." "That's fine." "But I remember!" "I'm one of the Mountain People!" "No." "You're not one of the Mountain People!" "You should not be here!" "According to Master Hirata," "Netherworld According to Master Hirata," "Netherworld the world is divided into the heavens, the earth, and the netherworld." "Earth the world is divided into the heavens, the earth, and the netherworld." "Earth The heavens refers to Takamagahara, the world where the gods are." "Heavens The heavens refers to Takamagahara, the world where the gods are." "Heavens The netherworld refers to Nenokuni, the world of the dead." "The netherworld refers to Nenokuni, the world of the dead." "The earth is this world." "And this is written in the records of ancient matters?" "Of course." "The earth, this world that we live in, was once home to the gods of the land, led by a god named Okuninushi." "Then came a time when new gods descended from Takamagahara." "They are called the gods of the heavens." "Lecture to a priest about gods, will you?" "The gods of the land yielded this world to the gods of the heavens, and they moved to another world." "Earth The Shrouded World and they moved to another world." "Earth The Shrouded World This is called the shrouded world, Yuumeikai." "Earth The Shrouded World" "It is a place far from towns and other human settlements, where the Mountain People and Ocean People live." "Are you suggesting that the Mountain People were the gods of the land?" "If you think of it that way, it becomes clear why there are people who do not live in towns." "And it came to me that this world should be restored to the way it was." "You mean to have the gods of the land rule this world once more?" "Those people are gods." "Youi flesh comes from the netherworld, and it is the practice of gods to feast upon it." "They will change this world." "First, we will bring back Master Hirata, who was banished from Edo." "How?" "!" "Go after the official who banished him, and kill him?" "!" "So your true target is Yozo Torii." "I'm sure you don't remember." "But I..." "Let's just go back." "There ain't nothing for us in these mountains." "There was no rice harvest again this year." "We ain't got the rice to present to our lord." "Watching over our rice paddies ain't going to keep us alive." "We got no choice but to run." "A mountain cottage!" "And there's food!" "So good!" "This is so good!" "Mountain People!" "This is the home of Mountain People!" "After him!" "Or he'll summon more of his kind!" "Make yourselves scarce!" "This is no place for people from the villages!" "Back then..." "We had no intention of fighting you." "But everyone died." "Is this revenge for that?" "No!" "Back then, I thought..." ""I want to be one of the Mountain People too!"" "What?" "!" "So I turned to Lady Ninai." "Ninai?" "!" "You know my elder sister?" "!" "I..." "Yonekichi, what's going on?" "!" "I..." "Yonekichi, what's going on?" "!" "You know her?" "!" "Abi!" "Get on!" "You will return to Lord Ogasawara's service as if nothing happened, and you will work at my beck and call." "What makes you think we will follow your orders?" "!" "If you do not, you will no longer be able to eat." "No longer be able to eat?" "Right!" "Oh, if I never get to eat that delicious food ever again..." "Please!" "Let us have what we had this morning again!" "That will depend entirely on how you behave." "Please!" "Genbatsu..." "Listen to me." "If he doesn't know that we're accustomed to eating Youi, it would be better to make him think we're in his thrall." "I beg you!" "Was what he said true?" "About how the Mountain People are descendants of the gods of the land?" "Ridiculous." "Mountain People such as Abi definitely live in different places, the idea that the Youi are creatures of the netherworld, and that they are the food of gods, all stand to reason." "Rather, I'd always believed that it was the Youi that were the descendants of the gods of the land." "Either way, what's the point in making Mountain People rulers of the land now?" "Currently, they are not treated properly as people." "But if they are really..." "They sure are hard taskmasters, those friends of yours." "If I remember right, you are..." "Masurao of the People of Craft!" "I was sent, since I'm the only one who knows the layout of the estate." "I can't help you escape right now, but do you have any messages?" "This is great!" "Torii?" "You are certain that is what they said?" "Yeah." "The real objective of the Mountain and Ocean People gathered there appears to be Torii." "To take Torii's life..." "Reform this, reform that, and luxuries are forbidden." "They say contraptions and festival floats will be done away with, too." "That Torii..." "I'd be rather glad to be rid of him." "True enough." "One more time..." "Please allow me to go to Yamazakiya one more time." "There is something I absolutely have to make certain of." "You mean your elder sister?" "Your sister was abducted by a Youi, was she not?" "I do not understand, either." "If their target is Lord Torii, they are not necessarily the enemy." "Do you seriously mean that?" "Abi and Ryudo, you will investigate the Yamazakiya Youi." "And you, Boss?" "There is somewhere I must go." "Hey, here's your meal." "Meat!" "That's enough." "They seem to be getting ready to move." "What do you want to do?" "As long as there is a Youi, this is our job." "Maejima Temple" "I see." "So Narikawa of Yamazakiya has been up to such antics..." "Yes, sir." "He is a student, not only of Western learning, but of the Hirata School of Native Studies as well, so he has been marked by Torii." "It would be understandable if he is after Torii." "But he also targeted you and Lord Abe." "Likely, he came after the two of us first to make Torii lower his guard." "Even now, I doubt Torii thinks he is a target." "We can let Yamazakiya kill Torii, and then manipulate him at will, using that fact against him..." "I cannot agree to do what you have just said." "Ogasawara..." "Lord Torii of Kai..." "No matter how unscrupulous and cruel he is, if we allow him to be killed..." "It would the same as if we had killed him!" "You insist on protecting Torii?" "We eat the flesh of Youi." "However..." "That does not mean our hearts have become those of Youi as well!" "You're here..." "Torii." "You saved us, Abi." "As expected, this place is empty." "That's right!" "Why are you here?" "!" "We sent you a message that Lord Torii of Kai was to be targeted." "That's why we came." "Right now, those guys are completely preoccupied with Torii." "Are you saying Torii's death would be of no consequence?" "No." "But our job is to slay Youi." "There's a Youi here, right?" "Where is it?" "The mechanism won't move." "Move aside, Genbatsu!" "So this is it." "It's not it!" "What?" "It's not it!" "What?" "This is not the Youi that took Ninai!" "Sister, where are you?" "!" "Abi..." "The Other World?" "This is the one!" "This is the one that took my sister!" "We finally meet!" "Abi..." "Leave it to me!" "The pet Youi belonging to the greedy Narikawa, eh?" "What Ayagami will leap out of it?" "I will kill this one!" "Let me do it!" "Abi..." "Where is my sister?" "!" "No!" "At any rate, I suppose I'll dispose of this one, too." "Abi..." "Sister!" "Guu" "Ayagami?" "!" "The Youi is..." "Sister, why?" "!" "That's the Youi that took you!" "This is bad!" "Abi..." "Mado no soto no sora o mitara Outside my window, looking at the sky" "Kumo ga haato no katachi ni mieta yo The clouds looked like they were in the shape of a heart" "Iki o ookiku suikome ba If you take in a deep breath" "Kokoro ga ookiku natta ki ga suru ne It makes you feel like your heart's grown bigger, doesn't it?" "Ai to wa nanika?" "What is love?" "Nante kono toshi ja wakaru wake nai kedo There's no way I'd know that at my age" "Itsu no hi ka wakaru toki ga kuru no kana I wonder if there'll come a day when I do know" "Mado kara mieru ki no eda mo ha mo Outside my window, I can see tree branches and leaves" "Mainichi mainichi nobite-iru yo And they grow every day, day after day" "Kore kara mo nobite-iku yo ne They'll continue to grow from now on too, won't they?" "Konna toki ni wa konna uta ga niau At times like this, a song like this is just the thing" "Jibun no ima omou kimochi o kuchizusame Sing whatever you're feeling right now" "Aishite-iru to iu suteki ni hibiku kotoba ga The words "I love you" have such a wonderful ring to them" "Mirai ni iru jibun o kitto ima no nanbai mo ookiku Surely they'll make my future self many times greater" "Yasashiku sasete kureru no kamo shirenai Maybe many times kinder than I am today" "Preview" "Preview They have no homes and are not bound by laws." "They have no homes and are not bound by laws." "The way of life of the Ancient People, who wander endlessly, on and on." "People likely call that freedom." "The freedom to die like dogs." "Next Time Cha pter Eig hteen Wa nderer's Paradise" "Next Time Chapter Eighteen Wanderer's Paradise Chapter Eighteen." "Wanderer's Paradise."