Why can't humans do it too?

Yes, after living in the modern world for less than a month, Xin Ke, this forest elf from another world, has already become proficient in using the internet, mobile phones, and computers—products of the information age—and has mastered the skill of ordering things online.

Generally, she would read her favorite books when she got home and rested, and even the magical research experiments she had always wanted to do became less frequent.

Chapter 101 The Monster's Garden

223 countries, 223 cultures, and even further subdivided, each country and each region has its own unique characteristics. The amount of books and knowledge in the real world is far greater than what Suer could barely recall in the previous world. They are complete and systematic, as lush and abundant as the branches of a large tree, intertwined with each other.

Shinko absorbs knowledge like a sponge, finding joy in it and never getting bored. Whether it's science and technology or literature and art, Sen Sei has thoroughly appreciated everything from the past.

[Sur?]

A sudden tightness gripped her heart, and Xin Ke asked aloud.

"Ah, it's okay. I'll ask the shopkeeper for leave later, and we'll follow the monster when it leaves," Su Er shook his head and stopped overthinking, making his decision.

Oh? You just got a raise and you're already taking time off? That seems a bit inappropriate.

Suer: "..."

It seems to be true?

But he's not actually working, is he?

isn't it?

...isn’t it?

'Then I'll go after get off work... I've already marked it anyway,' Sue changed her mind.

[Heh~]

Xin Ke chuckled softly, seemingly laughing about something, while Su Er pretended not to hear.

Although I've used this phrase countless times in elementary school essays, time really flies when you're busy. At least by the time Su Er finally stretched, Kizaki Mayumi had already come out to announce that it was time to go home.

"Let's go. Be careful on your way back, don't get scammed again."

"You're so nagging. You should be careful yourself."

As always, he said goodbye to Sadao Maou and watched his new friend slowly walk towards the station. Then, Sue closed his eyes and sensed the mark he had made... He found it.

He turned a corner and walked into the gap between the buildings, and in the next instant, Su Er disappeared from the spot.

He had a premonition that tonight would be the most interesting night of his life since he came to this era.

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Where there are tall buildings, there will naturally be attics and courtyards.

It's hard to imagine that such antique buildings would exist in a city where land is so valuable, but considering the nature of those wealthy people, Suer suddenly wasn't surprised.

The white walls were covered with a little yellow dust. Even though it had been repaired many times, Suer could tell that this was not a pretentious imitation of an ancient building, but a real ancient building with hundreds of years of history. And the 'young master' he had marked seemed to be in this courtyard.

It's not a protected tourist building that can be visited by visitors, but a place where people actually live as if they were their own homes.

From this perspective, the title "young master" for that monster was indeed accurate; it certainly had the air of a young master from a wealthy family, though it seemed a bit shy.

Suer raised his hand to knock on the gate, but just before he was about to knock, he pulled his hand back and flipped over the wall.

"That's strange. These monsters were right here, so why didn't we notice them before?"

Suer was puzzled. Just by climbing over one wall, he could sense dozens of demonic auras inside. There was no doubt that this was the lair of the demons, or at least a very important one. But with so many demons, it seemed that they were not usually imprisoned and confined in this courtyard. That meant that they would go out and roam outside... If that was the case, why didn't he find anything when he checked it out after he first arrived in this era?

“They must have used some kind of magic to conceal their existence, right? In the terminology of this country, it should be called a barrier. That’s why you didn’t notice them outside the wall just now,” Xin Ke guessed, tapping the courtyard wall behind her. “And didn’t you notice? These monsters are a bit strange compared to the ones we’ve seen before.”

"Strange?" Suer asked, somewhat bewildered.

Although Xin Ke asked in a questioning tone, "Didn't you notice?", she was actually tacitly acknowledging that Su Er had discovered those subtle clues, except that Su Er... well, he really hadn't noticed.

"You mean more human? More humane?" A man was racking his brains trying to guess, attempting to appear as clever as possible.

Then it was seen through at a glance.

"...What are these so-called monsters?" Xin Ke rolled her eyes in annoyance. Although she was asking a question, it was a rhetorical question. "When the heavens go against the seasons, disasters occur; when the earth goes against things, monsters appear. In other words, things that do not conform to the laws of nature and go against the laws of nature are monsters—but these guys are not like that."

She's starting to use literary language!

Sul cried out in his heart!

They're even using language from across the sea to show off!

Rather than saying she became smarter when she was the only god, it would be more accurate to say that she cheated by taking advantage of her omniscient and omnipotent authority. Now that she has lost that authority, Suer has been brought back to her original form. Xin Ke naturally knew this. No matter what, this forest elf firmly believed that there was only one genius in the world as smart as her, so she continued to speak.

“I have studied your abilities very thoroughly. In the end, it’s just about acting within the framework of the world. But these monsters are different from the monsters we’ve seen before,” Xin Ke paused and said, “They no longer fight against the laws of nature to survive. Instead, they submit to nature and regard themselves as part of nature.”

“I think I understand now,” Suer finally understood what Xinke meant. “No wonder I scanned things that I couldn’t see before in the past in the way I used to investigate strange objects. Is it because they have become part of this world? Just like the wind and rain.”

“It’s uncertain whether it evolved or degenerated into this form over a long period of time, or whether it’s a completely special type of monster. We need to collect samples to figure out the specifics,” Xin Ke said, already drifting towards the inner courtyard, gesturing for Su Er to follow her. “Anyway, it’ll be like before. You have to collect materials for me.”

With Xin Ke's reminder, Su Er also noticed the blind spot. After comparing the demonic aura that was almost scattered throughout the courtyard with the demonic aura of the silly monsters that had broken into the bamboo house and the monsters from Izumo in his memory, Su Er finally discovered the subtle differences between their demonic auras.

If I had to give a simple description, the demonic energy of the monsters in this modern society is softer, like half-melted butter. When you press your finger into it, it won't leave a dent like the demonic energy in my memory, but will instead cover and submerge it.

Chapter 102 Humanization

Not only that, these demonic energies were even intertwined with each other, like particles tangled together, almost merging into a new kind of demonic energy—isn't that a bit too soft?

Sur was quite surprised.

They were completely different from the monsters that Suer remembered. Those monsters were strange just by sitting there; their very existence was a resistance to the laws of nature.

Times have changed, and Suer clearly recognized this.

Perhaps during the long period of time he traversed, the monsters evolved or changed themselves in order to survive, resulting in their current appearance, or perhaps they were simply new species of monsters adapted to this era.

As they strolled through the courtyard, the monsters were unaware of Su'er and Xinke's presence. They looked around curiously, much like tourists visiting a scenic spot.

Just as I had guessed about the monster's lair when I was still at the gate, this courtyard was filled with monsters of all sizes. Some were so small that they were barely taller than Su'er's calves as they ran across the wooden corridor carrying a bowl of rice. Their heads were simply bundles of grass wrapped around something, with only one huge eyeball that was black with a white pupil, and they wore a small orange cloth shirt.

It was so large that it was basically a bird-man with a black bird's head and two small wings on its back, with a string of prayer beads around its neck. This reminded Suer of one of the most famous yokai in Japan—the Great Tengu? Or was it just called Tengu?

"Hey!! Natto! Don't run around in the hallway with your bowl in your arms!"

"Hahahahaha!"

In front of Suer and Xinke, a woman hurriedly pulled open the shoji door and leaned out, shouting. The Natto she was talking about was undoubtedly the little monster who had just run past Suer with a bowl in his arms. At this moment, he laughed loudly without turning his head as he shouted, and in the blink of an eye, he ran around the corner of the house and disappeared.

"Human?" Suer raised an eyebrow in surprise. This woman, who was suddenly dressed in a traditional kimono, did not possess any demonic aura, yet she was calmly and naturally in the lair of the demons, showing no signs of discomfort. She could even fiercely rebuke the demons... Well, although this fierceness was not intimidating at all and could not scare anyone, it made her seem cute.

"Oops, I fell down."

Stating the facts without emotion, the woman who had rushed out while holding onto the shoji door with one hand fell down in the corridor because she turned too sharply. Then came a great commotion as a group of monsters swarmed out of the house, challenging the limits of Suer and Xinke's perception in terms of appearance, while comforting and helping the human woman with gentle words that did not match their appearance.

Not long after, the little monster named Natto, who had just run away with a bowl, was caught by a monster that rushed out of the house and was scolded... Although it was called a scolding, the human woman stopped her from saying anything harsh. In the end, she just nodded the head of the Natto monster, who was kneeling on the ground with a heavy face (or rather, a face), and that was the end of it.

The sight of this loving family made Su'er feel a warm glow in his eyes. He could only frown, put his hands behind his back, and walk around the laughing and talking monsters like an old man, heading further into the house.

The building is quaint and charming. Even though some rooms still have modern appliances when you open them, it doesn't spoil the unique charm of this building that has been passed down from ancient times to the present. You can also hear the rhythmic sound of bamboo hitting stones from a distance. It doesn't sound noisy, but rather makes people feel more at ease.

At the end of the corridor surrounded by bamboo grove sat two tall men, who were undoubtedly also demons, but there were no unusual limbs or characteristics on their bodies. One wore a straw hat and monk's robes, while the other wore a black monk's robe and had a string of prayer beads made of skulls around his neck.

They were drinking, and the noise from the chaotic scene of the monsters on the other side still sounded quite loud to them, but they seemed oblivious, continuing to sip their wine with a carefree air, as if enjoying their monster life.

"...What's the difference between them and humans?"

After pausing for a moment beside the two drinking monsters, Suer continued walking, suddenly speaking up in confusion.

Yes, these monsters do look very much like monsters. They have red faces, fangs, and long wings. They can even detach their heads from their necks and hide them under their arms. Their hair can be longer than their bodies. But what else is there?

Opening their eyes, they replaced the forms of those monsters with those of ordinary humans. Their subconscious reactions and actions were no different from those of ordinary humans; they cared for each other, were friendly, and played around...

These emotions are not faked; each one comes from the heart.

Perhaps, apart from their appearance, only the visual spectacle they create when they use their abilities, such as wind, fire, thunder, and lightning, can prove their identity—but how is that any different from superpowers?

Some humans possess superpowers—that's the conclusion Sue made.

The monsters in this courtyard were completely different from the ones in Suer's memory; they were all...too weak.

After much thought, Suer realized that only these words could accurately describe the situation.

Compared to beasts like Yukari Yakumo and Yuuka Kazami, these youkai are like tigers that have shed their claws and teeth, posing no threat whatsoever. Is this the price they have paid for continuing to exist?

Even someone who knows nothing about yokai can tell the difference between the two. When they get close to Yakumo Yukari and Kazami Yuuka, or even the little yokai who set up stalls in front of the gate of Izumo Castle, they can clearly feel the hairs on their bodies standing on end. Regardless of the strength of their power, those yokai are like flames of desire burning, the flames of ambition.

But the monsters in this courtyard... it seems like they're considered successful if they can just survive.

“A monster that has fallen to this level, it wouldn’t be wrong to call it human, would it?” Xin Ke shrugged, undoubtedly agreeing with Su Er’s words. “Given the long lifespan of monsters, we might be able to find a monster here that has lived long enough. That would answer many questions.”

“Ah, indeed, what has happened over the years... I’d rather hear the myths passed down among these monsters than the myths in the library,” Suer sighed deeply.

We've arrived at the main house of this courtyard.

Chapter 103 The Old Monster

On the day he first arrived in this era, Suer spent a lot of time in the library reading books related to mythology, from Izanagi to Amaterasu to Izumo and Yamato in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni. However, the era that Suer had personally experienced was only mentioned in a few scattered words in the books, and the books skipped over the era of human rule in less than two or three lines.

To be honest, Suer wasn't surprised at all when he saw these records. After all, it's all too common for myths passed down from generation to generation to be interrupted or even distorted according to the will of those in power.

For example, thousands of years ago, Liu Bang, the founder of the Han Dynasty, was lying in the old Qin Dynasty palace with his subordinates when he was driven back to Guanzhong by Xiang Yu. He asked about the gods worshipped by the Qin Dynasty. His subordinates replied that the Qin Dynasty worshipped the four Heavenly Emperors of the four directions: blue, white, red, and yellow. Then Liu Bang slapped his forehead and said that he remembered there was also a fifth emperor, namely the Black Emperor. In fact, everyone knows what level of education Liu Bang has, but he built a temple to worship the Black Emperor.

After Bangge established the country, the Black Emperor's status rose even higher, and China thus gained another god. However, we will not go into details about these matters here.