Amakane Island lay directly west of Narukami Island. The island sloped upward, surrounded by beaches on all sides, and was separated from the mainland by shallow waters. It was also an area under the Yashiro Commission's year-round jurisdiction, commonly used for holding Inazuma's festival celebrations. It was also the place where she and Ayaka had attended a festival before.
It was currently afternoon, and the sunlight remained bright overhead, lending the beach a fresh, vivid hue. As the Shogun walked along the shore with the soles of her shoes pressing into the sand, her gaze swept around from time to time, searching for the figure of someone she had never met before, but would most likely recognize with ease.
However, instead of finding the person she was looking for, she spotted three children. They seemed to be playing by the shore, or perhaps searching for something, looking extremely happy and eager.
"..."
She paid them little mind. Holding her oil-paper parasol, she continued forward at her usual pace, intending to pass the three without incident. However—perhaps because her figure and features were exceptionally beautiful, or perhaps because she carried a mysterious aura unlike that of an ordinary person—one of the boys happened to notice her as she passed.
"Big Sis!"
The boy called out to her.
"...?"
Her steps paused slightly. Turning around, she lowered her gaze toward the child, who did not even reach her waist.
"...What is it?"
She asked in confusion.
She could not imagine what a child could possibly want with her.
"Um... we're looking for the 'Great Mujina Youkai'!"
The boy named Matsuzaka spoke to her in a childish voice, his tone brimming with excitement.
Hearing the boy's words, the other two children looked over as well. Their eyes lit up when they saw her, and they hurried over to stand before her.
"Yeah, yeah! Big Sis, do you know where the 'Great Mujina Youkai' lives?"
The one speaking was a girl named Ayaka... Her voice was just as expectant as Matsuzaka's.
"Great Mujina... Youkai? What is that?"
She froze for a moment, her violet eyes blinking instinctively as she asked in puzzlement.
These children had suddenly stopped her and asked such a baffling question that she had no idea what they were talking about. What... was a Great Mujina Youkai?
Besides, why would children even know such a strange term?
"Eh? Big Sis, you've never heard of it? The Great Mujina Youkai."
Seeing her reaction, Matsuzaka opened his bright, crystalline eyes a little wider, his tone almost incredulous, as though this were something everyone knew about and he could not understand how she had never heard of it.
"Mm-hm!" ×2
The other two nodded along, equally surprised.
"I... have never heard of it. What is it?"
She simply answered honestly and asked again. After being drawn into the subject by the children, she had become somewhat curious about this "Great Mujina Youkai" they kept mentioning.
"It's a really powerful and really cunning youkai! It can change into all sorts of things, appears and disappears without a trace, and it loves tricking people!"
Matsuzaka excitedly answered, explaining the so-called "Great Mujina Youkai" to her.
"...Oh?"
Hearing this, she touched the parasol handle resting against her shoulder and casually twirled a strand of hair hanging beside her face, propping up her chin with growing interest.
"That's right! The 'Great Mujina Youkai' once stole and ate our family's rice, and another time it even kicked my dad into the river!"
The other boy, named Iwao, chimed in.
"...From your description, it sounds like the sort of creature that harms people, causes trouble, and disrupts the lives of ordinary citizens. Such an aberration ought to be eliminated as soon as possible. So why are you looking for it?"
She murmured thoughtfully with her chin propped up, then looked at the three children and asked in confusion.
"Because we finally have a way to drive it off!"
Ayaka answered proudly.
"..."
She narrowed her eyes.
"My dad said the 'Great Mujina Youkai' loves playing tricks on people who never go home or always come home late."
"Exactly! Once we drive away the 'Great Mujina Youkai,' we'll be able to go out and play whenever we want~!"
The two boys standing on either side of Ayane spoke one after the other, visibly excited.
"..."
Wait—
She seemed to have noticed something strange.
There was something suspicious about this "Great Mujina Youkai"...
But she was not entirely certain yet... It would be premature to draw a conclusion.
"You're being somewhat reckless. What if it's dangerous and hurts you? Besides, your parents would—"
Coming back to herself, she continued speaking.
"It won't... I told my dad today that the three of us were going to look for the 'Great Mujina Youkai,' and he didn't say anything?"
Iwao smiled.
"..."
She fell silent again.
So that's what this is... I understand now.
Since it was called the "Great Mujina Youkai," that implied it was supposedly some kind of youkai-like creature... Yet even the weakest youkai possessed strength ordinary humans would struggle to resist. Knowing that, no adult would possibly allow their own child to go off and put themselves in danger.
Since their parents had tacitly allowed it, that meant they knew the children would never find the thing. Or perhaps the "Great Mujina Youkai" simply did not exist at all. Most importantly, she herself had never heard of such a creature... and there was no mention of it in Ei's memories either.
In that case, there was a strong possibility that it was merely a lie fabricated by adults to fool children. Then—why would they lie?
"Maybe the 'Great Mujina Youkai' is really weak right now and can only hide somewhere to rest!"
Matsuzaka continued speculating.
"Yeah. Let's go home before the Great Mujina Youkai finds us, okay?"
Ayane agreed.
"Then let's hurry!"
The next moment, the children prepared to leave, but—
"Wait."
After thinking it over, she decided to stop them. If the adults had deceived them, then it would be better to tell these children the truth so they would not continue being fooled and run around recklessly until something dangerous happened.
Having made her decision, she spoke.
"What is it, Big Sis?"
The children looked at her.
"Haa... You don't need to do this. As for the 'Great Mujina Youkai,' I believe your parents are probably deceiving you."
She told them the truth.
"Eh?!" ×3
All three children were startled.
"Perhaps it doesn't exist at all... Even if it does, it exists only in folk tales. There's no need to waste your time searching for it, so you shouldn't run around recklessly. Be good... hurry home before your parents start wor—"
She crouched down until she was level with them, gently trying to persuade them. She had expected them to listen obediently, but instead—
"No!! The 'Great Mujina Youkai' definitely exists!"
Iwao firmly objected.
"No, it truly doesn't."
She patiently gave him a soothing smile.
"It definitely does!"
Ayane also protested unhappily, seemingly unwilling to accept her reassurance.
"..."
She froze slightly, her smile stiffening with awkwardness.
"That's right! Big Sis Yoimiya even prepared weapons for us! She's going to teach us how to blow up youkai!!"
Matsuzaka took out a small object resembling a firework and waved it in front of her.
"...?"
Big Sis... Yoimiya?
Her eyes flickered when she heard the familiar name. She had not expected to hear it from these children's mouths, much less discover that they were connected to her somehow.
"We told Big Sis Yoimiya the story about the 'Great Mujina Youkai,' and she told us not to be afraid and that we had to learn how to drive it away!"
Ayane continued.
"We waited forever! Big Sis Yoimiya finally said today was a great chance, so we came out to look for it!"
"Exactly! Big Sis Yoimiya always plays with us and tells us stories. She would never lie to us! Never!"
Iwao shouted at her in his childish voice.
"Haa... But it really is something made up. You just said yourself that she often tells you stories. How can something from a story be taken as real?"
She sighed, still standing firmly by her judgment.
From her own perspective, she felt that if this continued, these children would forever remain trapped in this strange web of lies and faulty logic. It would be better to correct them as early as possible.
"That's not true!"
As expected, the child immediately protested in dissatisfaction.
"Big Sis Yoimiya would never lie! You're the liar, Big Sis! You're a bad person~!"
"Exactly! Hmph, we're not playing with you anymore! Come on, let's go find Big Sis Yoimiya!"
Tap tap tap! ×3
And just like that, after pelting her with a chaotic round of "insults," the three children quickly ran away.
"..."
The corner of her mouth twitched slightly as she sighed inwardly. As the Electro Archon, this was the first time she had ever been called a bad person by three children. She could not decide whether the experience was fascinating or simply embarrassing.
It seems the kids hate me... Never mind... Judging from what they said, Miss Yoimiya should be somewhere nearby. I might as well go take a look.