Curse Returns: What did the human-shaped wishing machine do wrong this time?

Hida was not the destination of the "Nekki Suppression Team"; they were just passing through, and it was quite a coincidence that they encountered Alluka.

Since Sugawara no Michizane was demoted to Dazaifu and became one of the four great vengeful spirits after his death, the Sugawara family has not fared well. The family's group of sorcerers was squeezed out by their political rival, the Fujiwara no Hokuke, and was forced to perform exorcisms in the Higashiyama region of the five provinces and seven provinces.

And this kind of miscellaneous troops were cannon fodder among cannon fodder, sent to scout ahead for the family's elite.

Alluka was brought along purely because Captain Sugawara Kazuka felt sorry for her.

In this age of frequent natural disasters and curses, they live on the edge, and might die tomorrow. Every day they can live is a day more precious.

Alluka's family was hacked to pieces. The soldiers didn't know how the killer had done it, but that didn't stop them from finding something edible in the mansion.

Despite the cold weather, the food stored by the family did not spoil. Compared to the poor who could not afford to eat, having something to eat was already a blessing.

Alluka, dressed in the white robes and crimson hakama from the festival, followed behind the group.

After leaving the city, he realized that the outside world was actually like this.

The ragged refugees formed a long, winding line in the heavy snow, carrying their meager belongings and walking blankly toward the unknown distance.

The Sugawara family's procession was moving in the opposite direction to the disaster victims; the two straight lines were running in opposite directions through the snow.

That night, the snow seemed to pour down from the sky without end, and hunger and cold seeped into people's bones through their clothes.

Samurai and pedestrians trembled as they trudged into the deep snow, their exposed skin soon becoming dull and painful from the cold.

To rest their troops, Sugawara Kazuka led his men to a nearby abandoned Buddhist temple.

Because of the war, the monks in the temple had long since left. The brown wooden plaque lay buried in a thick layer of dust. The trees and rockery in the courtyard still vaguely resembled a dry landscape garden.

Unlike the tension on everyone else's faces, Alluka's pearl-like eyes curiously observed everything on the road.

In his view, all these things were so novel.

While the samurai were making a fire, he squatted under the lattice doors of the temple's main hall, poking at something with a dry twig.

"What are you doing?"

The voice that spoke was somewhat cold and aloof.

Alluka turned around upon hearing the sound.

Behind him stood a person whose face was obscured by clothing.

Meeting Alluka's curious gaze, the person removed the covering from their face.

Unlike the somewhat ferocious rattan armor, that face exposed to the darkness looked exceptionally delicate.

It was a boy who was about the same age as him.

He had short, silver-white hair that matched the color of the snow outside. Unlike most people, he had a patch of rose-red markings on the back of his head, making him look like a red plum blossom standing proudly in the snow.

"A little bird here has died."

Alluka blinked her deep blue eyes and pointed to the frozen bird on the ground.

This winter has been so cold that even people are struggling to survive such a natural disaster, let alone these innocent little animals.

"oh."

The white-haired boy glanced numbly at the frozen bird carcass on the ground. He had seen this many times on the way here, and he was too tired to put on a pitying expression.

"What's your name?"

Alluka tossed aside the branch in his hand, as if he had found a new toy, and turned his attention to his peers.

"plum."

The white-haired boy had rose-red eyes.

Her delicate face had an expression as cold as ice, but when asked, she still spoke of the name she had cherished in her heart for so long.