When I excused one guy from the group, the others started raising their hands as well, appealing their innocence with voices full of grievance.
However, it was truly, truly unfortunate that among the lot down there, not a single one was actually innocent.
At least they aren't going wild, probably because they know the gap in power.
I was planning on just wiping them all out at once if even one more of them acted up.
I watched them chatter away loud enough to make my ears ring, then I picked my ear with my pinky.
Only then did they realize I had no intention of listening, and one by one, they began to shut their mouths.
"Now, it took you all a full 13 minutes to shut up."
―13 minutes…? ―What does he mean, 13 minutes…? ―Judging by the way he talks, it sounds like some sort of time….
Ah, right. These guys don't have clocks yet, so they wouldn't know what I'm talking about.
I forgot.
Well, there's no need to explain it to them.
Even if I did, they wouldn't understand the concept of a 24-hour day.
"Whatever, forget the time. Since you've all been barking so loudly since earlier, I'll let you speak one at a time. The person I point to can tell me why they're so 'wrongly accused.' You understand that much, right?"
I've really gone soft, haven't I?
Normally, I would have just smashed their heads in regardless of their grievances.
While I was thinking that, one guy shot his hand up into the air.
He was a man who looked like he'd seen his share of blood, with a large scar cutting diagonally across his face.
"Alright, you. What's your grievance?"
"I am innocent!"
"…I'm asking why you think you're wrongly accused."
"While I was receiving guests at a tea house, a manslayer approached and drew his blade! I declared my name for the sake of a samurai's honor, but the bastard swung his sword without a word…! I only cut him down to survive!!"
The man gritted his teeth and bowed his head, wearing an expression of pure, unadulterated injustice.
"Right. What's your name?"
"Toyama! I have no surname!"
A samurai with no surname, huh….
Hmm….
"You probably didn't fall to Hell just because of that. Did you happen to perform any Tameshigiri?"
Tameshigiri (Test Cutting).
You draw a new blade, so you have to cut something to see how well it performs.
Sure, the idea of testing a new sword isn't bad in itself.
If you're cutting bamboo straw or straw dolls, that is.
"Wh-what…! How did you…!"
"You slaughtered random people just because you got a new sword, and now you're 'wrongly accused'? Is that really the end of your sob story?"
Then die for now.
"Wa—"
Splat!
The man's head exploded with the sound of a large watermelon being smashed to pieces.
"Next."
I returned to my spot before the blood could splash on me and surveyed the crowd. But everyone was just looking at each other, and no one dared to step forward.
"Nobody? I'll count to ten, so raise your hand if you think you're innocent."
I gave them a chance, but no one raised their hand.
It was only natural. Out of all the people gathered here, none of them were truly innocent—except for that Shiba descendant behind me.
So, excluding the one guy I'd set aside, I smashed the skulls of all the other sinners.
I didn't break them for no reason; I did it so they could start paying for their sins.
A few resisted, but most died before they could even perceive it. Those who gritted their teeth and fought back were divided into three parts—head, chest, and stomach—without exception.
It took exactly 10 seconds to shatter the skulls of all 320 people, excluding Shiba Hozuki.
"Now then, shall we pick up where we left off?"
I spoke while dusting off my hands, but Hozuki didn't offer a single word in response.
What's with this guy? Why is he in a daze?
I waved my hand in front of his face, and only then did he snap back to his senses. He flinched and looked at me.
His eyes were trembling, he was swallowing hard, and his heart was beating irregularly.
"Don't worry. If you're truly sinless, you won't end up like them."
"Ah…."
"Or what, is this your first time seeing corpses?"
"…It is not my first time seeing them. However, it is my first time seeing such a gruesome sight."
"You sure have some guts to say that in front of the guy who caused it."
"Because it is their karma…. It is simply unfortunate."
As Hozuki spoke, an emotion called pity flickered across his face.
Pity? While looking at humans who fell to Hell for killing, raping women, committing fraud, or exploiting and tormenting their subordinates?
For a moment, I thought I'd misread him, but this crazy bastard genuinely felt sorry for the sinners.
If that was an act, it was incredible, but the fact that it was sincere was even more remarkable.
What is he, Jesus?
Even the Monkey Spanner of Nazareth, Jesus, would have beaten these guys… especially the ones who messed with money, into thin slices of meat with a whip.
That made it even harder to understand.
This was something beyond just being kind or good.
"Just what kind of guy are you to end up in Hell?"
"I do not understand it myself."
I watched Hozuki shake his head for a moment, then let out a deep sigh.
"Follow me for now. It seems we have a lot to talk about."
"Is it alright to leave them like this? No matter how great their sins, preparing the bodies…."
"It doesn't matter if you leave them. Anyway…. With their level, they'll come back to life in about 10 minutes."
"10 minutes…?"
This guy doesn't know about time either, huh.
I shook my head and explained again.
"It means they'll come back to life after about one 'ikkaku' (fifteen minutes). Maybe even faster. Or what, you want me to bury them in the ground?"
It would be a literal live burial, but they deserve it.
None of those who go around killing people are in their right mind.
"I will follow you."
"Good. It's a boring walk, so tell me your story on the way."
Hozuki fell silent for a moment, thinking deeply, and then began to speak as he followed a few paces behind me.
"Um…. I do not know where to start, so I will introduce myself first. I was the direct descendant of the Shiba family, one of the Five Great Noble Houses. I was a person who would have naturally sat in the position of Clan Head given time."
Five Great Noble Houses. Direct descendant.
It was a position that would receive absolute support, at least within his family.
Considering he said he would have naturally become the head given time, he probably wasn't killed fighting for succession.
Then, there was only one thing left.
"You must have died from a disease."
When I cut to the point, Hozuki's eyes went wide, and he gave a bitter smile.
"You seem to know everything."
"Not everything, only what I know. So, what was the disease? Your heart?"
"Yes. I had a bad heart since birth. I used every medicine, ritual, and spell that was said to be good for the heart, but it only worsened day by day, never showing signs of recovery."
I figured as much.
Then, was his heart beating weirdly earlier not because of nerves, but because that's just how it was?
"I see. For someone with that condition, you seem to have a lot of Spiritual Power."
"Haha. Perhaps the heavens granted me a consolation; for as poor as my heart was, my Spiritual Power was immense. It is thanks to that power that I am able to move like this."
"So without Spiritual Power, you wouldn't even be able to budge."
"The physicians all said the same thing with one voice. That with a body like mine, I should have been dead long ago if not for my Spiritual Power…."
He looks bitter.
Well, I suppose anyone would feel that way….
"What was it like before you could control your Spiritual Power?"
"I lay in my sickbed every day, drenched in cold sweat. I was in a state where it wouldn't have been strange if I died at any moment."
But there's no point in pitying him now that he's already dead.
I smacked my lips at the bitter thought and asked,
"Is that why you were so calm even when you heard you'd fallen to Hell?"
"Yes. The time when I trembled in fear of death has long since passed."
Hozuki, who had been speaking calmly, suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"What is it?"
"I think I know why I fell to Hell."
Curious about what he was going to say, I folded my arms. Hozuki bit his lip and bowed his head.
His atmosphere was completely different from those dead guys over there. It wasn't about claiming innocence, but about accepting one's sins and atoning….
―I am finally repenting for my mistakes….
It was the same kind of vibe Kagaya had after about 50 years.
"Confucian principles dictate 'Affinities between Father and Son'; for a child to violate the Five Relationships and die before his father and mother… how could that be anything but a lack of filial piety? Is it not only right for a child who committed such an act to fall to Hell…?"
"Wow…."
I felt my head spin. I wiped my face and let out a long sigh.
Seriously, what am I supposed to do with this hopelessly good-natured bastard?
After sighing repeatedly while wiping my face, I grabbed Hozuki by both shoulders.
"Don't worry. You have no sins."
"But…."
"Think about it. Out of all those people swarming up there, how many do you think died before their parents? Whether by disease, hunger, or some other reason. Those who died like that would form a mountain."
"…."
"Unless you committed suicide just to drive a stake through your parents' hearts, it's not your fault."
He's already suffered from being sick, and he fell to Hell just because he died before his parents due to that illness?
If that were true, I'd break out of Hell right now and tear the Three Worlds apart.
"It is not your fault."
"…Sob. Thank you, thank you…. Truly, thank… you."
Hozuki must have been genuinely relieved, he wept thick, heavy tears as he thanked me over and over.
…I think it's almost time for me to go back up from Hell.
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