Under the nervous gazes of everyone, a short, stocky, and disgusting man appeared from the mountain forest, dressed in mountaineering gear and carrying a backpack almost as big as himself.
Seeing that the person who arrived was a man, Yura Keikain and Iori, who had been secretly preparing for a fight, immediately relaxed.
"Oh!! That's Professor Kahara!"
While everyone was wondering why some strange, dirty old man would appear here, Seiji Kiyotsugu's eyes lit up, and he waved to greet the man.
That man was none other than Professor Kahara, the yokai doctor who had invited Kiyotsugu and his group to Mount Nejireme!
"Hehehe, I didn't expect you to find the Merumaru shrine so quickly. I planned to come earlier and wait for you."
Professor Kahara scratched his head and spoke with a wide smile, but although he was a living person, his toothy smile resembled that of a puppet.
"No, no, it's an honor to meet Professor Kahara! How could we ever make you wait for us!"
Seiji Kiyotsugu took two steps forward and excitedly grabbed Professor Kahara's hand.
"Um, why is the Merumaru shrine here?"
Just as the two of them were about to exchange a few more pleasantries, Yu Nakana's voice inappropriately interjected in the conversation.
Hearing the voice, Professor Kahara peeked over Seiji Kiyotsugu in front of him, and his gaze fell on Yu Nakana.
The moment he saw Yu Nakana, a light flashed in Professor Kahara's eyes, and his smile widened even further.
"Merumaru, ha… He is, after all, the main character of the yokai legend of this mountain."
"Come with me."
Kahara said this, ignoring the confused and flustered group, and turned to lead the way.
Guided by Kahara, the group passed through the mountain forest. After an unknown amount of time, the sky began to take on a pale yellow hue, and they finally reached the end of the stone steps, arriving at a spacious clearing.
As soon as they entered the clearing, everyone's eyes were immediately drawn to its unusual decorations. Huge trees, rising to the clouds, were wrapped in numerous red shimenawa ropes, clearly sealing something.
On the clearing itself, several enormous, sharp beast claws were randomly stuck into the ground.
Standing next to those claws, Kane Ienaga's face went pale as she spoke:
"What is this?!"
"These are yokai claws."
Professor Kahara said this with a smile, without any fear or surprise.
"Claws, claws?!!"
Receiving the answer, the group's faces were filled with shock. These claws were at least a head taller than them! And now they were being told that these were just yokai claws?!
"This mountain is indeed inhabited by yokai. There's no need to make such a fuss just because of some broken claws."
Noticing everyone's emotions, Professor Kahara cast a contemptuous glance. No sooner had he finished speaking than Seiji Kiyotsugu's extremely excited words rang out:
"There really are yokai on this mountain! This is amazing!"
"What if we really encounter yokai?"
Unlike Kiyotsugu's anticipation, Kane Ienaga murmured anxiously. With claws that size, they probably wouldn't even be enough to poke a tooth.
"The main character of the yokai legend of this mountain, Meromaru… that's it."
Professor Kahara observed everyone's reactions, nodded in satisfaction, and then raised his hand and pointed to the higher parts of the mountain forest ahead of them.
Climbing to higher ground, a colossal statue of a monster with the head of an ox and the body of a mountain spider appeared before the group.
Professor Kahara pushed his glasses up and interrupted the group's shock:
"Actually, in the past, Mount Nejireme had another name — Twisted Eye Mountain! Since rumors circulated about yokai that ate passersby, to reduce the impact, during the development of the tourist area, it was renamed Mount Nejireme."
Hearing the name Twisted Eye Mountain, Yu Nakano sharply narrowed his eyes. Iori, beside him, also leaned in and quietly whispered in his ear:
"Young master…"
"Yes, I know."
Yu Nakano nodded in a heavy tone.
The yokai widely mentioned to be hiding on this mountain was none other than an executive member of the Nura Group — Gyuki!
"It's late. I'll take you to the inn."
Hearing Yu Nakana's whisper, Professor Kahara spread a strange smile and, saying this, turned to lead the way.
Unnoticed by everyone, under the setting sun, Professor Kahara's body surprisingly revealed thin, long threads extending upward and disappearing into the dense treetops.
Within those treetops, an unusually dressed figure, with an ox skull on its head, controlled those fine threads and smiled at Yu Nakana.
…
"This place is too dangerous! Should we just go back?"
"Yes! With claws that big, that yokai will eat people!"
"It looks really dangerous, Kiyotsugu, maybe we should descend the mountain…"
On the way to the inn, Maki Saori, Torii Natsumi, and Shimajiro gathered around Seiji Kiyotsugu, trying to give up.
Now they were certain there were yokai on this mountain, after all, with claws of that size! One touch could pierce a person!
"Hey, Keikain, are there really yokai on this mountain?"
"I'm not sure, but this mountain is definitely not simple."
Kana Ienaga, on the other hand, spoke anxiously to Yura Keikain. Her pale face clearly showed her fear.
Meanwhile, Yu Nakano and Iori were lost in thought.
"The Gyuki Group is a strong combat unit within the Nura Group, and aside from their leader, members of the Gyuki Group rarely return to Ukiyoe Town. What if they don't recognize the Young Master and accidentally harm him…"
Iori thought to herself, quietly glancing at Yu Nakana.
Yu Nakano also knew in his heart that, as someone who only wanted to be human, he was greatly hated among yokai like Gyuki. If he stayed here, the yokai from the Gyuki Group could very easily target the people around him.
With the precedent of the Kyūso Clan, Yu Nakano could not, or rather, did not dare, to stay here any longer.
"Kiyotsugu, Torii, and the others are right, it's too dangerous here, we should leave as soon as possible!"
Finding Kiyotsugu, who was surrounded by Torii Natsumi and the others, Yu Nakano advised.
"Exactly! Let's quickly go back!"
Hearing that someone was on her side, Maki Saori didn't hesitate, agreed, and pulled Yu Nakana, wanting to descend the mountain.
"Wait!"
"Even if we descend the mountain now, there's no bus back. Professor Kahara has reserved a luxury inn there."
"When we arrive at the inn, we'll be welcomed by open hot springs and luxurious kaiseki cuisine!"
"Of course, the expenses will be covered by my Kiyotsugu family!"
After this flurry of words, Maki Saori and Torii Natsumi, who had just shouted that they wanted to leave, hesitated.
They really wanted to leave, but it was getting dark and there was no more transport back. In such a remote place, it would definitely be dangerous for the two girls to leave the group, and besides… open hot springs and kaiseki cuisine…
"No, no matter what, it's better to go back!"
Seeing everyone hesitate, Yu Nakano quickly spoke. Just as he finished, Professor Kahara's eerie voice sounded:
"Hahahaha, no matter what, Gyuki is just a legend, there's no need to be so afraid. Besides, the inn has measures against yokai, it's very safe. Why not stay a few more days?"
"No, this…"
Yu Nakano wanted to say something more, but Kiyotsugu suddenly threw his arm over his shoulder:
"Don't say anything more, Yu! Let's go to the inn now. At worst, we can return tomorrow!"
With that, Seiji Kiyotsugu, regardless of Yu Nakana's reaction, pulled Yu Nakana and went ahead.
The rest of the group behind them looked at each other and finally decided to follow.
The yokai doctor, Professor Kahara, however, walked completely at the back, looking ominously at the group, wondering who knows what.
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