Amaterasu was still struggling to fit into the party; a goddess like her traveling with gatekeeper witches and the Dungeon Dueller, a man – a man with an insatiable yet confident personality. As she looked up at Komorebi and Yuuhi, she found the profound devotion they showed Junichi. "What is the problem? I mean, I get that he's strong, but why are they so head over heels for him?" she thought to herself.
After reaching a clearing and crossing just past the borders of the trial ground, Junichi paused. "It's getting dark; we'll set up camp here tonight!" he announced. Junichi and Yuuhi patrolled a small circular perimeter and secured it with a barrier of magic. As they came back, Komorebi had already started a fire while Amaterasu was setting up the tents.
Earlier that evening, Junichi had hunted a wild boar while securing the perimeter; Komorebi had already skinned it and started to roast it for their dinner. As all of them sat down around the fire, the night grew into a profound silence with only the creaking of branches and the occasional crackling of the fire. Yuuhi was, as usual, clingy and pressed herself to Junichi's side while they started feasting.
"So how long until we reach Shinda Mountain?" Junichi asked, lifting his eyes from the boar and projecting them towards Amaterasu. She paused for a second to think and then answered him, "If we keep our pace like this, we should reach there by the end of this week. But I will again have to warn you that the valley is cursed and isn't a safe place."
Junichi's eyes lit up with a fire: "I love challenges, and especially when there's a fitting reward in the end. Btw, you mentioned a demi-demon princess named Marishka earlier. Do you know more about her?" As he moved, his elbow brushed against Yuuhi's breast, drawing a soft moan out of her, "Ah! Master–"
Amaterasu, clearly uncomfortable with Yuuhi's "expressiveness", adjusted her posture. She then looked back up at Junichi, while Komorebi excused herself to the bushes a fair distance outside their protective barrier. Amaterasu started,
"Marishka wasn't a demi-demon from the start. She was actually a human princess – the most beautiful princess in the kingdom of Asujia. People from far lands would come to catch a glimpse of her beauty, and some even tried their luck by competing to become a suitor. However, Marishka had already fallen in love with a tall and handsome man who belonged to a family of woodcutters. They used to meet each other in secret and spent time together, until the king found out one day"
Amaterasu took a pause and took a bite out of the boar. Junichi also took this time to fill his mouth with food while Yuuhi looked at Amaterasu and listened to the story tentatively, her hands still wrapped around Junichi's arms. Amaterasu continued,
"While everyone was expecting the king to retaliate and throw a tantrum at the discovery, it was quite the contrary. The king only saw his daughter's love and affection for the man and accepted their relationship. He married them both and gifted them a district at the outskirts of his kingdom to settle in. Both of them were really happy at first, to start their new life as husband and wife. However, one night, Marishka woke to the sound of a faint hum coming from their porch and found her husband missing behind her. When she reached the spot, she fell into utter shock. There he was, the man she loved so much and was married to, lathered in blood with his eyes glowing red as he was–"
Before Amaterasu could finish, a loud shriek tore through the air from where Komorebi went to take a piss. All three of them rushed to the spot when they found Komorebi, her clothes completely torn and on the floor, enraged with vines and a dark, shadowy figure standing in front of her. Before anyone could react, the shadowy figure turned his attention towards the group, and Amaterasu let out a frantic scream, "Lucius!"