CHAPTER 301: TENGU VALLEY

 

「The danger zone ‘Tengu Valley’. An estimated SS-rank-over monster—’the Great Tengu’—rules it, and the tengu tribe has made it their territory.」

Kunimitsu’s words came out heavy, like a warning carved into stone.

That alone told me just how much of a threat the tengu were to the people of this land.

「Tengu, huh… what kind of monster are they?」

「They speak human language, and they’ve got forms you could almost call demi-human.

But their true nature is something that ain’t human—monsters, through and through.

Step into their territory, and you could get killed on the spot.」

He paused, then continued.

「The one who governs them is the Great Tengu… named Tenkei. Don’t know who gave him that name, but he’s the kind of bastard who truly intends to ‘judge’ others, just like it sounds.」

The instant I heard it, something deep in my chest gave a faint creak.

Heaven’s punishment—a judge, huh.

「I’ll wait here. All I can do is forge blades, after all.」

Kunimitsu said it plainly.

「Whether you can get Bukō or not depends on you lot. If you bring it back, I’ll forge you the finest sword there is.」

There had never been a road to run down. Not from the start.

I couldn’t even picture myself swinging any blade other than Shiranuemaru.

「Got it.」

「Don’t die, you idiot.」

That was all he said before turning his back on us.

◇　　◇　　◇　　◇

Half a day on foot from Jinri Town, we reached what had to be the entrance to Tengu Valley.

The air felt stagnant—clinging, wrong—like it was trying to stop my feet from moving forward.

No wind passed through. Everything around us just… hung there, as if we stood on the border of an invisible barrier.

「…you noticed too, right?」

Kinu murmured.

Yurai didn’t speak, but she gave a sharp snff and tensed—clearly on guard.

A few seconds later, the wind died completely, and the sounds we’d been hearing vanished.

There was a presence—living things were there—but no cries. No calls.

「Yeah. We’re being watched.」

The moment I said it—

The air split.

A sharp sensation grazed my neck. I jerked back half a step on instinct, and compressed wind carved through the space where I’d just been standing.

「Intruder. Beyond this point lies ‘Tengu Valley.’ State your reason for entering.」

The voice came from above.

A shadow dropped—and with the wind, it landed on the ground.

A crow half-mask covered its mouth.

On its back—one black wing.

In both hands, steel fans. It raised them in a quiet stance.

「Enter… and you forfeit your life.」

A piercing gaze pinned me in place.

Human speech. Intelligence.

And pressure that was very, very real.

I get that this is a tengu… but is it really a monster?

Then again, strictly speaking, Kinu and I were monsters too. If I thought about it that way, maybe in Bukyo they just classified the tengu as ‘monsters,’ and they were something close to what we were.

「I’m here to mine Bukō.」

I didn’t bother hiding it.

「You’ve got a vein you’re guarding. It’s in there, right?」

A beat of silence.

The one-winged tengu opened its steel fan.

「…I see. Then I cannot allow you to pass.」

The next instant, the wind sprang.

It ran across the rock walls on both sides—up, sideways, back again—moving like it owned every inch of the canyon.

Fast. …But not so fast I couldn’t track it.

It snapped its steel fans open and shut, and the wind turned into blades—striking from above, from the side, from angles that forced me to keep moving.

It moved far too well for something with only one wing.

…It’s using the terrain well.

Kicking off the wall, riding the airflow, manipulating the wind with the fan—

It was compensating for that missing wing with technique.

It probably used to have a full pair. The way it moved carried a kind of learned habit—something acquired after the fact.

Sharp, clean motion.

But—

It’s not trying to kill me.

It wasn’t even aiming at Kinu or Yurai behind me.

And the attacks coming at me… they kept slipping, just slightly, like they were deliberately avoiding vital spots.

It didn’t feel like arrogance. More like it wanted to drive me off with warnings and pressure alone.

「I thought tengu killed intruders on sight?」

I asked while closing the distance with 【Sky Dance】.

The tengu’s eyes widened as it jumped back—and for a split second, it choked on its words.

「…Because it’s the rule.」

This one isn’t good at hiding things.

Even without Kinu’s ability to read people, I could tell it was shaken.

「Sounds like your clan’s rules and what you actually think aren’t the same.」

When I said that, it snapped its steel fan and widened the gap again.

「An individual’s thoughts… are not permitted.」

It denied it.

But the tone sounded like it was saying it to itself more than to me.

Then a low, long howl of wind echoed from deeper in the valley.

The tengu reacted, letting out a small breath.

「If you go any farther… next time, it won’t be me you’re dealing with.」

It lowered its fans, relaxed its stance, and turned away—then spoke again without looking back.

「If you still intend to proceed… then show your resolve.」

「My resolve’s been set for a while now. …Hey. What’s your name?」

「Magarasu.」

Leaving only that behind, it vanished as if it melted into the wind.

Silence returned to the canyon.

「That guy… feels like he’s carrying something.」

「Mhm. I could see the conflict. And the way he resisted, too…」

「Resisted, huh…」

At the base of his lone wing, the missing side wasn’t a cleanly sliced wound—it looked more like it had been torn off.

—A missing wing.

—A position chained by rules.

Tenkei, the Great Tengu… and Magarasu, the one-wing.

Either way, we aren’t getting Bukō unless we beat the Great Tengu into submission.

Then what I have to do doesn’t change.