On the windswept plain, metal and bricks rise from the ground, stacked on top of each other, transforming into iron and boron benches, and forming a small, ordinary platform.
Kisaragi Station was constructed and appeared in Kamui, the place where Ainu mythology originated.
"It can really be summoned."
Kamiyagawa took the Kisaragi train key, looked at the platform that appeared next to Kamiya, and nodded with satisfaction.
With Ruyue Station here, it will be very convenient for you to let your subordinates and foreign aid enter this map.
"Abba, Abba."
The little old man walked around in a circle and returned to his master's side.
"Did you find anything?" Kamiya asked him.
"Abba!"
The scout seemed to sense that there was an area worth exploring in the distance, but he was not sure what kind of place it was.
"Okay, let's go take a look."
Kamiya nodded and told the little old man to clear the way.
…
The master and the servant walked for a while on the white snowfield.
"It's so cold here."
Kamiya wrapped the Jinhaori around him.
The temperature in the Kamui wilderness is very low, and the cold wind is blowing against my face mixed with snow flakes.
Kamiya raised his head and narrowed his pupils slightly.
It was extremely dark here, with almost no light visible.
Even with the vision bonus provided by the [Autumn Hair Cutting] skill, you can see clearly in the dark, but in the wind and snow, if there is no little old man to lead the way, it is impossible to distinguish the direction.
"A little weird."
Kamiya looked away from the sky and called out Inugami.
Inujiro's tall body slowly stood up from Kamiyagawa's side, his body's karma fire rising, sparks igniting, dispelling the severe cold.
After getting used to the meticulous, extremely gentle and comfortable heating provided by Rihebo at home, comparing it to Gouzi's, it is inevitable that it will feel a bit rough.
However, in this environment, it would be nice to have a heating source.
Kamiya raised his hand and patted the dog's hard head.
The three masters and servants continued to move forward.
"Abba!"
At this time, the little old man in front ran back all the way, making a lot of noise. He seemed to have discovered something again.
There was a dead tree not far ahead. It was dark, with forked branches pointing messily upward.
Under the reminder of the little old man, and through the extraordinary vision provided by the [Autumn Hair Cutting] technique, Kamiya saw a bird falling on a dead branch from a distance.
The whole body is covered with snowflakes, but under the white snow, you can see the shiny black feathers.
"What is that, a crow? It's such a big one."
The bird that looked like a crow looked almost as big as an eagle.
Standing quietly on the dead tree, his two eyes emitted golden light, staring at the Valley of Gods from a distance, motionless.
"Ouch——"
On the edge of the Valley of Gods, the Inugami stood in front of his master, his knotted muscles trembling, his nose exhaling a rotten breath, his tusks bared in protest, and a pair of red pupils stared back at the big bird unceremoniously.
This is the first "living thing" I saw after entering Kamui.
But the little old man did not run away immediately, indicating that the big crow did not show any hostility or aggression for the time being.
Kamiyagawa patted the Inugami's head again to tell it to calm down, and at the same time asked the little old man to step back behind him, holding the handle of the sword on his waist with his left hand, and called the Inugami to walk towards the dead tree where the crow was perched.
Buzz——
Before I took two steps, my phone vibrated.
[The foreign visit catalog has been updated. ]
[Ghost story name: Karasu Tengu Kamui]
[Grade: C grade]
[Status: In the world of ghost stories]
[Interview progress: 50%]
Karatengu is also called Crow Tengu.
A type of Tengu, it is named after its sharp beak and jet-black wings like a crow.
Karasu Tengu, also known as "Little Tengu", can fly. In common ghost stories, he wears Yamabushi costumes like the Big Tengu. Moreover, it is said that Karasu Tengu is good at using weapons. In the legendary story of Minamoto Yoshitsune, there is a scene where the Karasu Tengu from Mount Kurama taught Minamoto Yoshitsune swordsmanship.
"Is that a tengu?"
Moreover, the word "Kamui" is included in the name, indicating that the Karasu Tengu is a god-like existence in Ainu legend.
But if it is only C-level, it should be a low-level "god".
The Ainu believe in "animism", and it is normal for ordinary spirits to be regarded as "kamui".
"Is there a Tengu in Ainu mythology? No, it shouldn't be in mythology. It should be more derived from folk tales."
Kamiyagawa recalled the information collected last night.
He remembered that where the Ainu people lived, that is, in the area north of Hokkaido, there seemed to be a folk legend of "kappa".
The kappas in Hokkaido are called "Mingshu Nana", and in Ainu language they are also called "Mingshu Nana Kamui".
The appearance is similar to that of kappas from all over Honshu. Their skin is purple or red, their feet are shaped like birds or sickles, and they are also bald, but there is no water on the top of their heads.
The difference between Mingchu Shichi and Honshu Kappa is that the kappa in Honshu stories can confuse and tease people, but Mingchu Shichi can protect people and is a kind of water god.
"The Ainu people of Hokkaido have been influenced by Japanese culture for a long time. Some similar ghost stories appear in folk ghost stories. It seems quite normal. Kappas have them. It shouldn't be surprising to have Karasu Tengu."
Kamiyagawa thought like this and continued walking towards the Karasutengu in the distance.
But not quite close yet.
"Wow--"
The tengu in the form of a crow cried out, flapping its wings and rising from the dead tree, shaking off the white snow on its body.
Because the snow flakes were shaken away, Kamiya noticed at this time that the Karasou Tengu was not pure black.
Its facial feathers seem to be originally white.
The clear distinction between black and white on the body is like a white mask covering the face of a big crow.
Karastengu landed far away on the ground and continued to stare at Kamiya River.
Then try to get closer.
The Karasou Tengu was still the same. Before formal contact, it flapped its wings and flew up, landing far away, always keeping a certain distance from Kamiya.
"It doesn't seem like it wants to communicate with me."
There was no other way, Kamiya gave up communicating with Karatengu for the time being.
Moreover, the shikigami were not called out to attack each other actively.
When he was active in the inner and outer world, he always maintained the code of conduct of "I will not offend others unless they offend me."
The Karasu Tengu has not shown any hostility yet, so there is no need to take action against it.
Since it tends to observe and look at itself from a distance, let it look at it first.
"If you're being nice, then so am I."
Kamiya said this to Wu Tengu, greeted his subordinates, and continued on his way.
Along the way, the big crow with black feathers and white face always kept a certain distance from him and followed him from a distance.
…
We marched in the wilderness for about half an hour.
Kamiyakawa saw a group of buildings from a distance, and there seemed to be a settlement in front of him.
This is where the little old man first noticed and wanted to bring his master.
"There are actually settlements, so this map is somewhat similar to Fu Sangxiang?"
Kamiyakawa continued to walk forward.
At this time, the Wutengu, which was far behind, flapped its wings violently and flew into the gathering area in front of the wind and snow.
"Is there some connection between that tengu and the settlement here?"
Kamiya guessed so.
He came to Kamui this time to search for "divine power". Since there is a settlement ahead, he might be able to get some clues related to "divine power".
outside the settlement.
Kamiya saw some strange sculptures here.
The stone human figures are very short, each sculpture is only about half a meter tall.
But looking at the shapes, there are old and young ones, and they are not statues of children.
Kamiyagawa stopped in front of the statue closest to him and raised his hand to brush off the fallen snow accumulated on it.
The stone statue in front of him had the appearance of an old man, and his movements seemed to be walking.
The details of the carving are very vivid and lifelike, and you can even see the wrinkles and fine lines on the old man's face.
In addition, the old man's ears are long and pointed.
Wind ears, or elf ears.
Other humanoid sculptures also have this same ear feature.
"Dwarves? No...these are the little Krobokuru?"
After all, Kamiyagawa had done his homework seriously.
In Ainu legend, there is a spirit monster named Kropokuru.
"Kropokuru" means "people who live under the grass" in the Ainu language.
They are said to be monsters, but in fact they are more like small humans. They are honest by nature and will not play tricks or harm others.
It is said that Kropokuru once lived in groups in the Ainu area. It is said that these little people taught tattooing to the Ainu people. In the real wilderness of Hokkaido, a plant called ghost root grows. Its leaves are so large that they can almost be used as an umbrella. Kropokulu likes to live under this plant. One ghost root plant can accommodate several little people.
This is also the origin of their name.
In short, Kropokuru is a kind of existence similar to Western goblins. In legend, it is also considered to be the real aboriginal people of Hokkaido before the Ainu moved to Hokkaido.
"These things don't look as simple as stone sculptures."
Kamiyagawa looked away from the sculptures around him and walked towards the settlement.
The houses in this small settlement are very short and dense, and most of them are deserted and collapsed. The few intact houses seem to be made of burned clay, and the tallest one is only more than two meters high.
"The little humans who once lived here couldn't be your distant relatives, right?"
Kamiyagawa asked the little old man.
The three masters and servants went deep into the settlement and saw more dwarf stone sculptures, most of which were covered with snow and turned into small snow packs.
"Wow - wow -"
When the masters and servants of Kamiya were exploring the settlement, the Karasutengu from before appeared again.
This time, it was hovering above Kamiya and others' heads and circling back and forth.
"Do you want to take me somewhere?"
Kamiya observed the movements of the Karastengu for a while, then raised his head and asked.
"Wow--!"
The Karastengu spinning in the sky flapped its wings and flew forward.
…
Somewhere in a small human settlement.
Dark, cold, windy and snowy.
There are also some small snowpacks standing on the snow here.
"Wow--"
The Karasu Tengu landed on one of the snowpacks and kept fluttering its wings.
The snow was swept away a little, revealing the little stone statue underneath.
This time the statue is of an old woman with coiled hair, but her face is covered with a primitive-looking shaman mask, mysterious and ferocious.
There are six eyes on the simple mask.
Kamiyagawa held the handle of the knife and stepped forward. The Karasu Tengu standing on top of the stone sculpture twisted its head, its golden pupils always staring at him.
"Is there anything special about this statue compared to others?"
Kamiya looked up and down at the old woman's stone sculpture.
Then, at a certain moment, he suddenly felt a faint breath coming from the stone sculpture.
He heard an old female voice coming from the stone sculpture: "Yawusikp."
The voice was a bit muffled, and it seemed to be in Ainu, so I didn't understand it.
"This thing is alive, at least it used to be alive."
Kamiya thought so.
But there were no big surprises.
Entering the village of villains, I saw a large number of stone sculptures of villains in the village, which were either buried in the snow or half exposed in the wind and snow.
The exposed stone figures are walking, standing, or sitting, all maintaining a peaceful posture of their daily routine.
Such a scene makes people wonder whether the Kropokuru who once lived in this settlement suffered some unknown accident and were all petrified in an instant, so they were left with what they saw before them. kind of scene.
After finishing his sentence, the old woman's stone statue made another sound.
But this time, the language was not in Ainu.
Although the tone and accent were a bit strange, Kamiya could barely understand him.
She said: "The sun...is gone...we...need the sun."
"Wow!"
After the old stone-carved woman finished speaking these words, the Black Tengu above her head screamed shrilly, flapped its wings, soared into the sky, and disappeared into the wind and snow.
Only a group of foreign visitors were left behind.
Kamiya raised his eyes to see if the shaman-like stone sculpture had anything else to say.
But at this moment, there seemed to be a faint aura of ghost stories stirring in the entire settlement.
There are sounds coming from the stone sculptures covered with snow, or half-covered, layer by layer, overlapping together.
His voice was swallowed by the cold howling wind and snow, and he whimpered.
The stone people seemed to be speaking in Ainu language, which Kamiya couldn't understand originally, but at this moment, he seemed to be able to understand the strong emotions contained in the words.
The Kropokuru are saying: "Help...us..."
Kamiyakawa pressed the knife and looked around, and a word hummed.
But the abnormal sound just now stopped after just a moment.
The Kropokulu stone statues fell completely silent, and each of them stood motionless in the snow.
This is normal. Stones cannot speak.
In the dark sky above Kamui, wind and snow covered the sky, the cold wind howled, and the sky was dark.
…
Kamiyagawa took Inugami and the little old man to spend time exploring the entire gathering place, but found nothing else.
The stone statues never spoke again.
You can only temporarily exit the map and return to reality.
But before leaving, he moved the Kisaragi Station, which was originally standing on the snow-field sacred coffin, outside the Kropokulu gathering point.
This way, when you enter [Lost Kamui] next time, you can take the train directly, saving you the trouble of traveling.
Living room at home.
While Kamiyagawa drank the milky coffee brewed by Hannya, he reviewed the results of his first exploration of Kamui.
"The Kropokurudu in a village were petrified and turned into statues. The reason is currently unknown."
"The word 'Yawsikpu' mentioned at the beginning of the shaman stone sculpture seems to be a spider-like god in Ainu mythology. It has a name and a surname, and it is also recorded in the mythological system. Maybe it can be regarded as a divine power."
"If we can get in touch with Yausikop, maybe the mission will be accomplished."
"The shaman said they need the sun... There seems to be no sun in the land of Lost Kamui? But since the shaman said that, it means that Kamui originally had the sun, right? The petrification of the Krobokuru, Maybe it has something to do with the lack of the sun.”
But...if that's the case, where has Kamui's original sun gone?
(End of chapter)
