Yamiyo no Hotaru

Chapter 89

　Winter in Northen region can be very harsh. In some areas, city roads are completely unusable, and many villages are left isolated until spring.

　Nevertheless, this also creates a ripe opportunity for merchants. Not every village could store enough food for the coming winter, and even in wealthy villages and towns, logistics are disrupted due to the lack of stored food before winter, so merchants visiting at such a time were welcomed because of the rarity of such a visit.

　That being said, even though it is an opportunity, successful and established merchants are often reluctant to visit because of the fear of bandits and youkai. Therefore, the majority of individuals in this line of work are young traveling merchants who are willing to take risks and sometimes reap great rewards.

　"Well, there are definitely more losers than winners," said an army soldier who discovered the tragedy at the scene of a devastated carriage and a dead horse with bloody marks in the snow.

　Starting from Sakui Station, which was crowded with 15 soldiers, 10 horses, 2 government officials, and 2 miscellaneous people, the three army soldiers who were patrolling on horseback through the heavy snowfall on the city streets found the scene around noon that day.

　"It's terrible. Is it bandits?" asked one soldier with concern etched on his face.

　"No, look inside the carriage. There's a pile of goods left. Bandits wouldn't have done this," said the other soldier in a confident tone.

　Through the city streets, bandits usually robbed travelers and merchants during winter when there was a shortage of food. Witnesses were usually killed and buried in the snow to cover up the crime and to buy time.

　"Damn, a monster, huh?" exclaimed the first soldier in disbelief, his voice laced with fear and shock.

　"And look. There are drag marks. They must've gone pretty wild this time," observed the other soldier, his words conveying a hint of respect for the strength of the creature.

　"It goes all the way to the bottom of the mountain. That's probably where they were... my condolences," said the third soldier solemnly, his voice reflecting the gravity of the situation.

　The three army soldiers cowered their shoulders and sighed at the few footprints left on the snowy plain. Youkai were cruel and heartless. They rejoice in human fear, and if they have to eat, they prefer to eat while the victim is still alive. It is easy to imagine the horrific end of the victims.

　"The question is, how big is it? If it's just a few small fry, we can do it ourselves. If it's a big one or a swarm, we'll need reinforcements. Or maybe an expert..."

　With that, the patrol leader announced it and took out something from his pocket.

　It was paper, a curse tool officially standardized and adopted by the imperial court for army and law enforcement agencies.

　It was a kind of litmus paper called the "Color-Floating Identity Paper Symbol (Iro Ukami sadame kami Fu (色浮見定紙符))". It was used to investigate who or what was there based on the residual energy left at the scene. The paper turns yellow if it detects spiritual energy, black if it detects youkai power, and red if it detects a curse. The intensity of the color change increases with the target's youkai power. However, the paper won't react at all if the culprit is a wild animal such as a bear or a wolf. It's been said that the paper can't withstand divine energy and ignites if it senses it. However, this is a rare occurrence.