Why can't humans do it too?

She really looked like she was about to cry.

He didn't know Su'er, but he knew Kazami Yuuka! Or rather, who in the entire Izumo Kingdom's yokai circle didn't know this crazy female yokai?! Those who were dissatisfied with her fame were mostly lying in the ground, and next year, many lush flowers might even grow on their graves. Of course, it's more likely that flowers are already growing on their graves, growing right after they died.

What kind of simple character could be able to chat so amiably with such a ferocious demon? He could figure it out even with his ass, let alone the way that hand appeared right in front of him, shifting between reality and illusion. With his limited experience, he simply couldn't understand why his perfectly good necklace had suddenly turned into a semi-transparent phantom—and this semi-transparent soul! How terrifying!

"Hello? Hello? Hello?" Suer waved his hand in front of the trembling monster but got no response. He could only shake it helplessly.

"Ah, ah! No problem!" The little demon answered decisively, making a decision without even a moment's thought: "It's yours!!"

All he wants now is to pack up and go home as soon as possible.

“…No need,” Su Er said with dead fish eyes, “Anyway, I’ll take this one and that wild-looking pendant from before. What do you want?”

There is no such thing as currency for exchange. This market for humans and monsters is still a very primitive yet very reliable barter system. Even if the two items are not equal, as long as both parties feel they are not at a loss, the transaction can be completed.

Do you crave power?

Before Suer could finish speaking in a seductive tone, the little demon burst into tears, pushed aside the other people and demons in the market, and ran away as fast as she could, crying loudly as she ran, without even taking the remaining items from her stall.

"..."

There was a certain urge to vent, and the little demon's loud complaints had attracted the attention of other people and demons. Under the gazes of those looking over, Suer simply couldn't bring himself to forcibly pull the little demon over.

"Pfft... It's alright, don't worry about it." Seeing Suer in such an embarrassing situation made Kazami Yuuka feel happy. She chuckled and said, "I remember him, the little demon who always sets up a stall in front of my shop. Just leave his things with me for now, and I'll return them to him later. Would you like to come inside and sit down for a while? After all, it's not very convenient to do anything with so many eyes on you."

“…That will be troublesome,” Suer sighed and agreed, glancing at the eyes that were pretending to be doing serious work but were actually constantly glancing in his direction.

It didn't take long to tidy up the items left behind by the timid monster. Suer and Xinke were already sitting in Kazami Yuuka's shop, surrounded by various flowers, enjoying the natural atmosphere while drinking hot tea.

"So those armies have returned?" Sul suddenly asked, squinting and inhaling the lingering fragrance in his nose. He was referring to the armies that had been sent on expeditions to Yamato.

I wonder if those armies that originally intended to completely wipe out the Yamato Kingdom fell apart after losing their commander, but I don't think it came to that. I just don't know if they eventually continued to advance until they achieved their goal.

"Ah, you're back," Kazami Yuuka, who had anticipated Suer's question, nodded and replied while leaning back in her chair, "They fled back in a complete mess. It's said that they originally planned to wipe out Yamato and then return from the west, spreading their benevolence and showing off their power, while also attracting those humans living in the wild who worship barbarians to Izumo. However, in the end, they only completed the first half of this plan."

There are indeed humans living in areas outside of Yamato and Izumo, and in quite large numbers. These places are not uncivilized wildernesses, but these wild humans mainly rely on faith or worship of native gods and monsters for protection, and are usually not taken seriously.

If we were to get to the bottom of it, those earth spiders who worship Sul should also be included in this category.

"So you killed Takeminakata?" Kazami Yuuka suddenly put down her teacup and asked Suer abruptly.

“Ah, yes, that’s right, I did it,” Su’er admitted directly, without any intention of lying. “What? Is there a problem? I can see that nothing major has happened in Yun Kingdom, right? Neither the monsters nor the humans have been affected.”

“What problem could there be? It’s just a god,” Kazami Yuuka said with a scornful smile. “When those yokai who escaped were spreading the word that a platinum-blonde man killed Takeminakata, I knew it must be you. There were all sorts of rumors, and you could even hear some interesting stories if you went outside and asked around.”

"For example, that platinum-blonde man has sixteen enormous heads, seven big and nine small, and when he opens his mouth he can spew poison, fire, water, and stuff like that... There's also the rumor that you scared Takeminakata to death with just one roar... Pfft, hahaha."

Amidst Xin Ke's loud laughter and Su Er's increasingly bizarre expression, Kazami Yuuka started counting on her fingers, and finally burst into laughter herself. Su Er's face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

Where did all those heads come from? And what's with that roar that scared me to death? Is he Zhang Fei?

He underestimated these yokai who usually lacked entertainment. Such a novel and cool thing would be a topic of great discussion even among yokai and gods. Not to mention that those yokai and gods who had lost their commanders would naturally exaggerate his existence as the killer of Takeminakata a hundredfold in order to cover up their incompetence. It would be best if it sounded so terrifying that even Amaterasu would have to bow down to him.

Only in this way could they avoid being punished by the Great God for the fact that their commander-in-chief was killed in the army and then left in a carefree manner, without even seeing the appearance of the killer. Only in this way could they cover up their incompetence and weakness—even though the enemy was indeed too powerful.

In short, under this deliberate and permissive spread of misinformation, Su'er has evolved into a monster with strength comparable to Yamata no Orochi and an appearance even uglier than Yamata no Orochi. Under this trend, the name of Takeminakata as the God of War was established, and he truly became the God of War worshipped in Izumo Province.

Upon learning of this, Su'er clicked his tongue, unsure of how to comment—wasn't it a bit too much to chase after them and smash their temple?

...Are we going to smash it?

Chapter Sixty-Two: No Difference Between Humans and Gods

Let's just bear with it for now and talk about it when we happen to pass by someday. Takemikado's crime shouldn't warrant making him make a special trip.

"So all the humans from Yamato were brought to Izumo?" Su'er thought for a moment and said, "What about the oni?"

"There are no humans left in Yamato. In fact, to prevent them from encountering you again on their way back, they had the yokai reveal their true forms and carry the humans back. The yokai who were frightened by you didn't object at all," Kazami Yuuka said with a smile, probably thinking of that comical scene. "As for those oni, you'll see them when you walk into the inner city. Those guys are now honored guests of the gods of Izumo."

"They're just going to abandon the underground city they've built over hundreds of years?" Su'er thought of that magnificent underground world, where the demon race's centuries of management had created a prosperity unlike anything on the surface.

"Haha, their city? Perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a cage. After being imprisoned for hundreds of years, those demons didn't seem to have any regrets when they left that city... They were full of fighting spirit towards the outside world~", Kazami Yuuka said with satisfaction, cracking her fists.

Without a doubt, the demons who had just arrived on the surface must have had a conflict with this female demon, and judging from Kazami Yuuka's appearance, she might have even gone to test the demons' fighting strength.

The fact that Amaterasu appeared on the battlefield without hesitation and attacked Tamamo-no-Mae, who should have belonged to Yamato, shows that the Oni clan must have reached an agreement with Izumo. It's as if they want to completely sever their ties with Yamato. The part of their bloodline that originated from Amaterasu has become the part they hate the most but cannot get rid of.

However, it is understandable.

"The sights I've seen along the way made me think life in Izumo was very peaceful. After all, a place where everyone is in a state of panic could never produce such a bustling market. But now it seems to be getting even more lively," Su'er remarked.

The addition of the Oni clan was like throwing two catfish into a pond in Izumo Province, instantly enlivening the ecosystem.

"Isn't it good to have some excitement?" Kazami Yuuka couldn't help but look expectant, having already envisioned the future scene. "And thanks to everything you've done before, the entire Izumo Kingdom has been quite turbulent lately~"

"Me?" Suer asked, pointing to himself in confusion.

“That’s right. After all, the sword that has been hanging over Izumo for so long has disappeared. Okuninushi no longer has to worry about the Yamato clan of Amaterasu invading his territory or driving him and his descendants to deserted islands... You should know what this means, right?” Kazami Yuuka smiled wickedly, the green-haired banshee yearning for scenes of slaughter and carnage.

“It means… the gods are going to war with the monsters,” Xin Ke, who was sitting on the table with her legs crossed, also showed the same smile. For her, this world might finally have a familiar feel to it, and wouldn’t be so boring.

And Suer naturally knew what Kazami Yuuka meant—a country ruled by gods and yokai is not as appealing as a country ruled by gods, is it?

Whether it's a case of "the cunning rabbit dies and the hunting dog is cooked" or "the donkey is discarded after it has served its purpose," now that the Yamato Kingdom has disappeared, the Izumo Kingdom has lost its original reason for inviting yokai to enter and live together. Both the gods and some shrewd yokai are well aware of this. From this perspective, the fact that the oni clan joined the Izumo Kingdom at this critical juncture becomes even more intriguing.

"They have such magical titles as gods and monsters, but what they do is no different from what humans do..." Suer sighed and said, "Well, it's not surprising."

"Humans?" Having never possessed advanced precognitive abilities, Kazami Yuuka wondered why those weaklings had suddenly been involved. She shook her head and asked, "Never mind. So, what is the purpose of your sudden visit to Izumo?"

Suer and Xinke exchanged a glance, not saying anything about being just tourists. After a moment of thought, Xinke asked, "Do you know anything about the moon in the sky? Or... how can we get up there?"

Sul had already tried and proven that simply flying upwards indefinitely on the way to Izumo was not feasible. The moon remained in Sul and Xinke's eyes, but no matter how long they rose, the distance did not change. Apart from having a real feeling of flying into the Milky Way, there was no other feedback.

Even though Suer tried repeatedly to establish contact and communicate with this world, it was to no avail. For this world, the sun and the moon were simply existing in the same way, so no matter how hard Suer tried, he could not do anything beyond the limits of the world.

The closer Suer got to the Milky Way, the more he felt a sense of being confined and isolated. The world seemed like a tiny bubble covered with a plastic film called the frozen Milky Way.

"And what about Tsukuyomi, the younger brother of Amaterasu, the god who represents the moon?" Without telling Kazami Yuuka about her and Xin Ke's attempt, Su Er continued to ask, "Why can't we find his presence among either the yokai or the gods, even though Amaterasu and Susanoo, who were born with him, are so active?"

"Younger brother? Shouldn't it be a younger sister?" Kazami Yuuka asked in surprise, then shook her head to deny it, "No, that god has never shown himself, so it's still uncertain whether he's male or female. Why would you suddenly want to go to the moon?"

“It’s less about wanting to go to the moon and more about wanting to go to Takamagahara,” Su Er rubbed his temples. “According to the information we got from Tamamo-no-Mae, to reach Takamagahara, which has been closed for hundreds of years, we must travel upstream along the frozen Milky Way, but…”

However, the magatama given by the fox, which was said to be related to traveling against the Milky Way and reaching Takamagahara, turned black. Even as it flew infinitely towards the starry sky, it did not change much, only trembling slightly when it faced the moon.

The fox seemed to be telling Suer something in this subtle way... something she was inconvenient, dared not, or was unable to do.

It wasn't exactly exploitation. On one hand, Sue himself was curious, and on the other hand, as he approached that galaxy, he saw a possibility—a possibility of being able to call Jibril back.

Chapter Sixty-Three: Life in Izumo

To be honest, the more Suer learned about this world, the more he doubted whether it was still the island myth he had vaguely heard about. There were just too many strange things. Putting aside the ignorant gods and monsters in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni, both Takamagahara and Yomi no Kōjun exuded a strange atmosphere.

First, Amaterasu's grandson turned into that disgusting monster in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni. You have to know that at the beginning, the Milky Way was not completely solidified, and Amaterasu's grandson suffered a life-threatening curse, but no help flowed out of Takamagahara. The gods above seemed to know nothing.

What's even stranger is that although the gods and yokai in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni know that it was Oyamatsumi-no-Kami who cast the curse on Amaterasu's grandson and his descendants, no matter how hard Suer searches, he can never find Oyamatsumi-no-Kami. This powerful god, whose strength is enough to cast a curse on Amaterasu's bloodline, seems to have never existed, leaving no trace in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni.

Putting aside these messy events from hundreds of years ago, just looking at the recent events, the scene of that big fox being stabbed to death on the spot by the Kusanagi sword she trusted is still vivid in her mind. The disbelief, relief, or resentment that Tamamo-no-Mae felt before her death were not fake. In fact, the monster she has now completely transformed into is still running on the ground.

All those people and events related to the Amaterasu lineage met tragic ends, shrouded in mystery. This left Su Er, despite his immense power, constantly uneasy—he was terrified that Takamagahara might be up to something in the shadows, and what if it affected him?

He didn't want to be stuck at home one day and suddenly suffer an undeserved disaster. Whether things were good or bad, it was better to keep his fate in his own hands.

“I understand,” Kazami Yuuka said, not knowing what Su Er had said after he fell silent. But she wisely didn’t want to pry. She just nodded and continued, “If you want to know any secrets from the Great God of the Ninja Kingdom, you’re going to be disappointed.”

"?"

"Although this god who founded Izumo is a descendant of Susanoo, he was actually just married to Susanoo's daughter. Whether it was passing Susanoo's test or defeating his brother to successfully establish the country, he couldn't have done it without his wife's help... Perhaps the only thing worth praising is his personality?" Kazami Yuuka was indeed mocking. "Gentle? Kind? Indecisive? But it was precisely because of this personality that he won Princess Suseiri's love."

"...What kind of Japanese-style gentle male protagonist story?" Su Er couldn't help but complain. He didn't expect to hear such a Japanese-style plot in such a primitive time. He then said sullenly, "But it doesn't matter. Being gentle and kind shouldn't be something to be criticized for."

“I understand what you mean, but from this perspective, shouldn’t this great god have the courage to make the decision to eliminate monsters at this time?” Suer couldn’t help but wonder.

“Of course not now. The lifespan of both gods and monsters is very long… though it probably won’t be too long,” Yuuka Kazami said, taking a sip of tea.

“…Thank you,” Suer sighed again.

If we were to apply this situation to a game, he would be in a state where he has an important item but the quest chain is broken, and he can't even find a way to get it back. The downside of the real world not being a game is once again evident.

Agreeing with Kazami Yuuka's assessment, Suer also didn't think that the Great God of the Nippon would know the secret of the frozen Milky Way, nor would he know how to get to the moon. After all, if he really knew, he probably wouldn't have had his son forced to his death in front of him when Amaterasu sent people down to the mortal world to fight for the right to rule. He could have taken his family and some people and gone to live on the moon.

It was a complete humiliation for the entire Izumo Kingdom. Such a shameful and undeniable event could be known to anyone in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni with even a little bit of inside information. Fortunately, this humiliation was finally cleansed up not long ago... even if the Ōkuninushi once again paid the price of one of his sons.

Suer didn't care about the changing attitudes of the Izumo Kingdom's high-ranking officials. When the search for clues on how to get to the moon came to a standstill, he simply settled down in Izumo Kingdom with Xinke. Only when he really got to this point did he realize that all talk of seclusion was a lie. Just like when he refused Xinke's offer to stay and live in that abandoned forest elf city, even though he talked about grand principles, Suer knew that he still liked this lively atmosphere.

With the help of Kazami Yuuka, he obtained an empty low house next to her flower shop. Even with the door closed at night, he could still smell the fragrance of flowers coming from next door. The entire Izumo Castle was also unexpectedly clean. Every day, a special yokai would come to collect the excrement of humans and animals. When he first saw it, it shocked Suer for a moment.

Every morning, you can hear the shouts of humans and monsters on the street outside. Aside from being a bit noisy at first, it doesn't bother you. You quickly get used to the noise. Su'er likes this feeling. It has a more lived-in feel than the bamboo house and doesn't feel cold and lonely.

Instead of opening a shop like Kazami Yuuka, Suer and Xinke mostly lived here, spending their days locked up studying the black magatama. When night fell, they would soar into the sky to the place closest to the Milky Way.

I've tried infusing spiritual energy into it, and I've also tried more mystical methods like infecting it with positive emotions. But unfortunately, the biggest reaction over the past few months has been when I fly to the edge of the Milky Way with this string of magatama and face the full moon. The magatama vibrates so much that it almost slips out of my hand. But unfortunately, that's the biggest change.

There were no doors or bridges, and Su Er felt as if everything in the Reed Plains was inside an eggshell, while the sun and moon were outside. Those inside couldn't get out, and those outside couldn't get in.

“…Why don’t we go find that fox?” After another unsuccessful attempt to weave a spell, Xin Ke frantically grabbed her hair and said, “Even if she turns black now, she’s still Tamamo-no-Mae, right? She must know what she gave away.”

"That fallen Tamamo-no-Mae? Ashihara no Nakatsukuni is so big, it would be hard to find her, wouldn't it?" The lack of progress in the research made Su Er a little numb. "Besides, even if we find her, we might not be able to tell her."

"Then beat her until she says it!" Xin Ke said fiercely, slamming her hand on the table.

Suer couldn't make a move against the jade-like fox, but he could handle the fox that had been filled with an unknown black aura and turned pure black. Just by looking at its style of slaughtering everyone it was born, he knew that the fox was definitely not a kind creature.