The stabbing pain of icy air flooding his lungs, accompanied by the violent rise and fall of his heartbeat, felt as though it were about to tear his chest apart.
Kotoha ran barefoot through the mountain forest blanketed in snow and dead branches. The soles of her feet were already torn open and bloody, yet she felt none of the pain at all.
Fear was like a giant hand gripping her throat, driving her forward in an unending sprint.
In her arms, Inosuke struggled to open his eyes. What greeted him was a blur of darkness—shadows of trees swaying violently.
I transmigrated.
And worse—
I transmigrated to the worst possible moment.
As someone who knew the plot inside and out, Inosuke instantly understood their situation.
This was the very night his mother died in the original story.
Kotoha had fled the Eternal Paradise Faith, and more importantly, she had seen the cult leader—revered as a living Bodhisattva—Doma, calmly and relishfully devouring the corpse of a believer inside the main hall.
Faith shattered. Lies exposed.
She was fleeing from that demon who wore human skin—yet had always treated her with such gentleness.
"Kotoha-chaaaan~~~"
A sweet, tender voice tinged with helpless regret sounded behind her, clinging like a parasite to bone.
"Why are you running? We were chatting so happily just a moment ago."
Kotoha's entire body stiffened. Her legs gave way as she reached the end of her escape.
Ahead was a cliff.
Below—raging rapids.
There was nowhere left to run.
In despair, Kotoha turned around, her back pressed against the cliff as she clutched Inosuke tightly to her chest.
From the shadows of the forest, Doma strolled out.
He still wore that expression of boundless compassion. The golden iron fan in his hand swayed gently. Only the smile at the corner of his lips—gleaming under the moonlight—now felt chilling to the bone.
It was no different from the indulgent fondness he usually showed.
"I clearly liked you so much."
Doma tilted his head slightly. In those rainbow-glass-like eyes flickered confusion and puzzlement.
"Because Kotoha-chan sings so beautifully, and you're so pure, I originally planned to let you live all the way to old age.
"But why did you have to see me while I was eating?
"Even if you saw it, why did you have to look at me like I was some kind of monster?
"Can you really not accept all of me—the real me?"
Doma sighed. The fan snapped shut and pointed straight at Kotoha, his tone turning cold and merciless.
"Since you're unwilling to accept my salvation, and unwilling to stay by my side… then there's nothing to be done."
Kotoha's body trembled violently as tears burst from her eyes.
As a mother, she wasn't afraid of death—but she couldn't let Inosuke die.
She glanced at the bottomless cliff.
If she threw him down—into the river—there might still be a slim chance of survival.
But if Doma caught him… there would truly be nothing left, not even bones.
She suddenly lifted the swaddled bundle, about to throw it.
Inosuke's mind screamed in alarm.
Don't throw me!
According to the original story, that throw would let him live—but he would grow up as a boar's child, while his mother would be eaten by Doma.
I have to save myself. I have to change her mind—now!
At that moment, a cold, mechanical voice exploded in his mind.
[Ding! God-Tier Villain Cultivation System activated!]
[Current situation: Doma's identity has been exposed. Killing intent detected. Please make your choice.]
[Option A: Follow the original plot. Be thrown off the cliff. Mother dies. Reward: Beast Instinct.]
[Option B: Acknowledge the enemy as your father. Exploit Doma's psychological blind spot and convince him you are the same kind. Reward: Ice Spirit Physique.]
There was no hesitation.
Only by making Doma believe they hadn't fled out of fear could they survive.
That meant acknowledging him—no, even worshipping him.
Just as Kotoha loosened her grip, Inosuke let out a shocking cry.
But it wasn't a cry of fear.
It was filled with grievance—like a child who had finally seen a beloved relative.
He used all his strength to wrench his tiny hands free from the swaddling cloth. Instead of reaching for his mother, he stretched them straight toward Doma.
"Pa… pa! Hug!"
Kotoha froze, her movements stalling.
Doma froze as well.
He stared at the infant hanging at the edge of the cliff, half of his body already over empty space.
That baby was struggling to lean forward. Those emerald-green eyes held no fear at all—only a reflection of Doma's own blood-stained, deathly pale face.
Inosuke stared straight at him.
This is the face that eats people.
But I have to show that I'm not afraid of this face.
That I even… like this face.
Inosuke curled his lips upward, revealing a toothless, dazzling smile.
He waved his tiny hands, as if asking to be held.
Then, the earth-shattering word burst from his mouth:
"Da… Daddy!"
The wind stopped.
Only the roar of water far below echoed in the air.
Kotoha's mind went completely blank.
And for the first time, Doma's emotionless eyes trembled violently.
"Daddy?"
He pointed at himself, his voice full of disbelief.
"He's… calling me?"
Inosuke gave them no time to think.
Taking advantage of Kotoha's daze, he kicked hard with his legs, actually causing the swaddling cloth to slip from her hands.
But he didn't fall off the cliff.
Instead, he used the momentum to fling himself straight at Doma!
It was a gamble—a wager that this Upper Rank Two would catch him.
Doma instinctively reached out.
What landed in his arms was something soft… warm… alive.
Inosuke fell perfectly into Doma's embrace. His tiny hands clutched tightly at the front of Doma's robes, his saliva-smeared cheek pressed against the demon's icy clothes.
There were still stains of fresh blood on them.
Inosuke didn't mind at all. He even nuzzled closer, letting out a satisfied giggle.
"Look at this…" Doma murmured, lowering his head to stare at the warm, squirming baby in his arms.
This infant was lying against the chest where he had just finished eating a human.
No crying. No screaming.
Instead, he was smiling so happily.
He even called him father.
An unprecedented, eerie sense of fulfillment filled the hollow emptiness inside Doma's heart.
"Kotoha-chan~"
Doma lifted his head. A fanatical excitement burned in his eyes.
"You've misunderstood one thing.
"You thought I was a monster, so you ran away with the child. But look—this child knows that I am a god.
"He didn't see what you witnessed as something terrifying. He accepted all of me.
"In fact—he thinks this is exactly what a father should be like."
Doma laughed.
This time, the smile was no longer just a mask. It was a twisted pleasure born from a perfectly sealed loop of deranged logic.
"Since this child has recognized me as his father, then why were you running?
"We're clearly a loving family, aren't we?"
He walked up to Kotoha and extended a hand from above—not in a threatening gesture, but an inviting one.
"Get up, Kotoha. For the sake of such a clever child, I'll forgive you.
"After all, a woman capable of giving birth to a child like this… is a very precious treasure too."
A cool sensation surged through Inosuke's body—the Ice Spirit Physique granted by the system was taking effect.
Doma's embrace no longer felt like an ice cellar. Instead, it felt like hugging an air conditioner in the height of summer.
Comfortable, Inosuke yawned. His small hand grabbed a lock of Doma's hair as he closed his eyes.
If you're acting, you have to act it all the way through.
That sense of absolute security in his father's arms completely shattered the last trace of doubt in Doma's mind.
"So adorable…
So much like Kotoha-chan…"
Cradling the sleeping baby, Doma turned and walked back toward the Eternal Paradise Faith.
"Come on, Kotoha.
"Let's go home."
Kotoha stared at that retreating figure, at her son—safe and sound in his arms.
Though fear still lingered in her heart, she knew one thing.
They had survived.