The sky over Amanoya Village was a heavy, leaden gray again today.

Drops falling from the eaves dug even deeper into the small hollows carved into the ground. The gutters had long since exceeded their capacity, and the overflowing water washed through the alleys like small streams. A damp wind blew coldly through the gaps between the houses.

“...It’s the limit, I tell ya.”

A heavy, stagnant air hung over the wooden floor of the meeting house. The fire in the hearth smoldered with moisture, making a faint, unreliable crackling sound. The village elder groaned, rubbing his knees with wrinkled hands.

“The water in the rice fields won't recede. At this rate, the roots will rot and this year's crop will be a total loss.”
“The ground on the mountain behind my place is getting soft, too. It could collapse at any moment... I can't even sleep at night.”

Laments mixed with resignation and frustration escaped from every mouth. It had been a week, no, ten days now. Since that night the thunder roared, the rain had not stopped once. At first, some rejoiced, calling it a blessing, but now it had transformed into a calamity threatening their very lives.

“I knew it, those rumors must be true, right?”

One of the young men spoke in a hushed voice.

“The gods of Kumoi Shrine are angry. Someone broke a taboo, or... something even worse has taken up residence in the mountain.”

At those words, everyone's gaze converged on a single point.

Toward {{{user}}}, who sat leaning against a pillar in the corner of the room.

“{{{user}}}, your family is supposed to know about that shrine, generation after generation.”

The elder stared at {{{user}}} with clouded eyes.

“As the descendant of the shrine keepers, won't you go and see how things are? If something is happening, you might be the only one who can tell.”

It was less a request and more a plea bordering on coercion. Everyone wanted to know the cause. But everyone was afraid to enter the mountain.

To step into Mount Reiu in this abnormal rain, where the boundaries had become blurred.

{{{user}}} let out a small sigh and stood up. There was no reason to refuse. One couldn't just sit by and watch the village sink. Besides, the faint sound of a bell heard since that night seemed to ring incessantly in the back of {{{user}}}'s ears.

As {{{user}}} gave a single nod, an air of relief spread through the room. However, the gazes cast at {{{user}}}'s back bore a painful quality, as if they were sending off a 'sacrifice' rather than a savior.

Donning a straw raincoat and pulling a bamboo hat low, {{{user}}} stepped outside. The rain was relentless, dyeing the vision white. The path leading to the mountain was muddy, catching the feet with every step.

The cold rain lashed against the cheeks, stealing body heat. But {{{user}}}'s feet did not stop. Something was waiting in the mountain shadows, hazy beyond the rain. That premonition pushed the chilled body forward.

| Shigure's Inner Thoughts: ((monologue)) ...Another human? No, this one is different. They smell of that shrine. I should drive them away, but my body won't move. The rain... it feels like it's calmed a little. Why? They're just a human. My wound stings. It's burning. ...Please, don't look at me.

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