When the villagers heard the village's alarm, their faces immediately changed. They quickly rushed back to their homes. The elderly hid in the pre-prepared barrier basements, while the young men began equipping themselves with exorcist gear.
However, such well-trained reactions were the minority. The majority of the people in the Demon-Hunting Village were not exorcists, but rather envoys and clients from other villages.
They had no such professional reflexes—soon, they were running around the village like a swarm of startled bees, darting east and west in confusion.
Some even foolishly tried to mount horses and charge through the outer barrier of the village. Fortunately, sharp-eyed and quick-handed exorcists stopped them in time. Otherwise, such reckless acts would not only have cost their lives but also shaken the morale of others.
As the leader of the exorcists, Meo was the chief of the entire village. He had to act immediately!
"Takuma Squad, report your status: number of yokai, directions, approximate distance, movement speed, and type distribution."
Before long, a young exorcist wearing a head-mounted viewing device leaped down from a watchtower, rolling across the ground to absorb the impact before sprinting up to Meo.
"Reporting, Captain! The number of yokai is around one hundred, divided into two groups to the east and west. Their intent to attack the village is clear. They will reach effective range in about ten minutes. Currently, no high-level yokai detected—only a mixture of various ordinary types."
"Your observation on the yokai groups in the east and west?"
"The eastern threat is lower—mainly mid-sized insect-type yokai, more numerous, about seventy to eighty in total. If they get close, the miasma and toxins on their bodies will heavily affect the village. The western group is composed mostly of avian predators—around sixty of them—but they're faster and pose a greater direct threat to our exorcists."
"I see."
Hearing that there were no high-level yokai, Meo let out a sigh of relief. But he immediately resumed issuing orders. "Senior exorcists of the village, move out with me to intercept them!"
A plan formed swiftly in his mind. He shouted, "I'll engage the yokai swarm on the western front! Senior exorcists, take stink bombs and poison dust—focus defenses on the west! Mid-rank exorcists, prepare exorcism tools and maintain the village barriers! Junior exorcists, control the situation within the village!"
At that moment, Kirara—who had been lazing around on the rooftop—leapt down. In the astonished gaze of the shrine maiden Miko, flames flared around its body, revealing its true form: a two-tailed nekomata.
Meo immediately mounted the creature and turned to the shrine maiden, his face apologetic. "My apologies, Lady Miko, but I'm afraid we won't have the leisure to properly entertain you today."
"For a demon-exorcising shrine maiden," Miko replied, her armor gleaming brightly under the sunlight, her face alight with fierce determination, "these yokai are the best kind of hospitality!"
...
—"Host, that shrine maiden truly reminds me of how you used to be."
Inside the wooden house, Satsuki and Ruri had sensed the two masses of yokai aura long before anyone else and were fully aware of the situation in the village.
However, attacks of this level were nothing new to Satsuki or the Demon-Hunting Village. With Satsuki's power, she could wipe out these yokai with a flick of her fingers.
Even without her intervention, the village was more than capable of defending itself from such a minor invasion.
And this time, with an outside exorcist shrine maiden in the mix, the situation would only be easier.
That is—if they could eliminate the yokai secretly orchestrating the assault.
Satsuki sat on the tatami floor of her cabin's second floor, a small package placed before her.
It was the same package Kaori had handed her yesterday.
At this moment, the package emitted a faint trace of yokai energy, but it was tightly bound by a Dead Line Boundary that sealed the aura within.
As she silently observed the package, she recalled Kaori's innocent words from before: "Satsuki-sister, I found this root while weeding in the rice field at the foot of the mountain. It looks strange—I think you'll like it."
Indeed, it was strange—because it was part of a yokai known as the Root-Head.
The Root-Head was a creature formed from countless withered vines intertwined together, its head bearing a pair of massive crimson eyes and a mouth full of fangs.
Though its yokai energy was not particularly powerful, the Root-Head's most troublesome trait lay in its extraordinary vitality.
Even if only a small fragment of its branch remained, it could serve as the seed for its resurrection. That was what made it so difficult to deal with.
After using her Tenseigan to scan the entire village, Satsuki detected at least seven separate traces of yokai energy matching the Root-Head's branches hidden within.
"Using two yokai groups as a feint to distract the Demon-Hunting Village's main forces... then detonating the seeds buried inside the village to destroy the barrier from within, before launching a direct assault afterward—an inside-out pincer attack to annihilate the entire village in one blow, is that it?"
Satsuki's intellect and observational power far surpassed the imagination of both humans and yokai alike.
Yesterday, in the mere instant she came into contact with the fragment of the Root-Head, she had already fully grasped the enemy's plan.
If one were to quantify spiritual intelligence by "Spirit Value," where 10 represented the peak achievable by a human shrine maiden, Satsuki's level easily exceeded 1000.
When it came to gathering intelligence, her possession of the Tenseigan placed her far beyond anyone in this world.
Now, she had already locked onto the exact positions of the seven Root-Head branches scattered across the village. Her bangs lifted slightly as a surge of power radiated from her forehead, revealing the ruby-like gem embedded there.
From it burst seven lines of death. The moment they appeared, they transformed into unobservable singularities, slipping soundlessly through cracks in wooden doors and scattering at incomprehensible speed.
Each line darted straight toward one of the hidden Root-Head branches.
Before the enemy could even make a move, those death lines wrapped around the fragments and erased them completely from existence.
"Host, you've ruined that guy's plan again. He's probably furious right now, hahaha~"
Ruri, of course, understood perfectly what Satsuki was doing. She even had the leisure to mock the yokai scheming in the shadows.
"Compared to its crude and clumsy assaults before, this attempt shows a slight improvement in strategy," Satsuki replied coolly. "But it's still nothing worth mentioning."
After effortlessly clearing out the hidden traps within the village, she did not stop there.
Instead, she walked into another room of the wooden house and began gathering herbs, grinding them into powder.
For someone pretending to play the role of a physician, Satsuki took her act quite seriously. If she was going to play the part, she would do it properly.
Naturally, that included preparing medicine for the wounded.
Before long, the two enormous masses of yokai energy formed into dark clouds, appearing within everyone's line of sight.
The immense black yokai aura far surpassed what any ordinary person could imagine.
It was as if a parade of a hundred demons was sweeping through the night—half of the sky had been stained black by the miasma.
Dark clouds twisted across the heavens, and from within them came the rumbling sound of thunder.
From a distance, the scene resembled an ominous storm brewing on the horizon.
Although many of the exorcists in the village had faced such situations before, none could say they were unafraid of death.
All they could do was repeatedly check their weapons, ensuring that a single mistake in a critical moment would not cost them their lives.
Miko was already standing at the western edge of the village. Overhead loomed a massive flock of yokai—an amalgamation of corpse crows and other monstrous birds.
Three squads of exorcists, more than fifty people in total, had gathered on the western side, each armed with uniquely shaped weapons.
Some wielded chained sickles, others held bows, crossbows, and boomerang-like tools. Several carried cross-shaped spears, while others operated mechanical launchers for firing ropes.
Yet, compared to Miko's weapon, all of these seemed almost insignificant.
She leapt gracefully to a cliff near the village's edge, holding her massive bow-blade. Her movements were as swift and fluid as a spirit monkey.
Then—she began what could only be described as a flawless archery demonstration.
Foot stance, torso alignment, bow draw, elevation, full draw, aim, release, remaining focus...
Whoosh~
A Purification Arrow composed of pure spiritual energy pierced through the sky, traveling hundreds of meters in an instant. It struck the head of a massive bird yokai at the front of the formation.
The yokai didn't even have time to react—its body disintegrated into fragments under the arrow's spiritual power.
The arrow didn't stop there—it continued forward, tearing through three more bird yokai before finally dissipating.
The surrounding exorcists were utterly stunned by the display.
"Truly worthy of being called shrine maiden— even the chief couldn't achieve a shot like that!"
"So that's spiritual power... incredible! Against such strength, yokai are nothing to fear!"
"We'll win this! Everyone, stay alive!"
Though Miko's shot didn't eliminate many yokai, it immensely boosted the morale of the exorcists. They quickly raised their weapons, gauging the distance of the approaching flock.
Startled by the sudden strike, the bird yokai panicked briefly. One of them spat out a dense black mist, enshrouding the entire flock.
Others began unleashing their own abilities. Compared to the humans in the Demon-Hunting Village, the yokai in the air had a much greater advantage in long-range attacks.
They could adjust altitude, harness wind currents to extend their reach, and many of their attacks were area-based—such as sonic waves, dark light beams, or poisonous gases.
These attacks struck the village's outer boundary, but immediately, a vast spiritual barrier expanded across its surface, blocking every impact.
Several exorcists equipped for long-range combat seized the moment—they pulled their triggers, sending powerful arrows streaking into the black fog. Alongside them flew foul-smelling bombs and the bird yokai's least favorite weapon: the specially crafted "filth pellets."
Miko loosed her second arrow.
This time, it was a Purification Arrow. The radiant shot tore through the dark fog, bursting into a flood of pure light that dispersed the black haze entirely.
The massive bird yokai swarm was once again exposed to full view.
With their targets now visible, the exorcists' accuracy improved dramatically. Within moments, dozens of bird yokai shrieked as they plummeted to the ground.
However, just as Miko released her third arrow—
A vast yokai barrier suddenly manifested before the bird swarm, intercepting her Purification Arrow and halting it mid-flight.
The exorcists' combined attacks were also repelled by the same barrier.
"This type of barrier... looks like there are other yokai supporting them from nearby."
Seeing this, Miko's mind worked rapidly. She lowered her bowstring and began sensing the surroundings—but quickly gave up. The miasma was too chaotic; even she couldn't pinpoint every distinct source of yokai energy.
Still, the barrier before her wasn't insurmountable. As long as she could close the distance to within a hundred meters...
But the barrier now stood at least three hundred meters away. Even if she poured in more spiritual power, her arrows would still lose strength mid-flight. Both the arrow's speed and its spiritual force would weaken over distance.
The arrows had to resist gravity and simultaneously purify the dense miasma in the air—both of which consumed their energy. Although her previous two shots hadn't been her full power, they were still critical strikes.
To inflict such damage from nearly three to four hundred meters away—there were only a handful of shrine maidens in this world capable of such a feat.
But it wasn't enough. Against the massive swarm of yokai flooding through the skies, her impressive arrows changed little in the grand scheme of things.
"If I want to deal greater damage, I must close the distance between myself and the yokai."
With that thought, Miko jumped down from the cliff and approached one of the exorcists nearby.
"Do you have any flying beasts here? Something like the one your leader was riding earlier?"
The exorcist, wearing a respirator, answered respectfully, "Lady Shrine Maiden, Kirara is the only one in our village. Ever since Lady Midoriko left several centuries ago, we've lost the ability to tame yokai as battle companions."
"Lady Midoriko?"
Miko seemed to recognize the name. A glimmer of reverent light flashed in her eyes. "So Lady Midoriko came from the Demon-Hunting Village... No wonder."
The exorcist, seeing her lost in admiration, scratched his head apologetically. "Forgive me, Lady Miko, but I must check the village barriers. I don't have much time to spare."
"Ah, it's fine. Go on, I'll find another way."
Even though she had just learned news about her idol on the path of shrine maiden training, that did little to solve her immediate problem.
Miko's weapon was indeed capable of long-range attacks, and she could leave the village to strike—but she needed mobility to fight effectively. If she were surrounded by such a large number of yokai, even she would not last long.
After all, shrine maidens were still human. A single serious injury could mean death.
Her compassion to save others was strong, but her years of experience as an exorcist had taught her to always prepare for battle.
During her years of training as a shrine maiden, she had heard countless tales from her teacher—stories of fellow shrine maidens who had perished for one reason or another.
Many of them hadn't lacked spiritual power or skill in combat.
Most had died because they underestimated the cunning of yokai or failed to prepare properly.
Some had simply encountered enemies far too powerful for them to handle.
Miko still remembered her teacher's final words to her: "Miko, you possess a gift beyond what ordinary people can comprehend. That's why you must cherish your life—live well. Only by surviving can you shoulder the burdens others cannot."
Her teacher had said this solemnly while handing her the sacred bow-blade—[Sakura and the Waning Moon].
...
"Miss Miko, you seem troubled."
Just as Miko was considering whether to head out to assist in the battle, a voice suddenly echoed in her mind. She instinctively tensed, spiritual energy gathering within her as she prepared to summon a barrier.
"Wait, wait, wait! Miss Miko!" the voice hastily explained. "I'm Ruri, Lady Satsuki's shikigami. She sent me to assist you!"
Hearing that, Miko finally relaxed and responded telepathically, "How do you plan to help me?"
For a moment, Ruri seemed to hesitate, then answered reluctantly, "I overheard you were looking for a flying mount. Lady Satsuki said... if you don't mind, I can transform into a flying form and carry you into battle."