The Strange Adventures of Hearn the Believer

As if trying to hide everything about herself, Shinju turned to the side while she was dozing off, facing the bookshelf and leaving Aoko with a small but stubborn back view.

I was called an idiot by a kid ten years younger than me.

Normally, even if the other person was a child, Aoko would have retaliated without hesitation.

But there was a deeper meaning in what he just said, so much so that the word "idiot" seemed to become a soft murmur of empathy.

"Little Xinnv doesn't actually have any friends, right?"

""

"In that case!"

"Aoko-neechan, you're so annoying!"

So annoying!

I initially thought she was just an arrogant woman with no discernment.

I never expected it to turn out to be such a pathetic idiot.

A fool who doesn't know what giving up is.

An idiot who stubbornly charges forward even when he's right in front of a cliff.

Why do people who still have the chance to live in the sunlight choose to plunge into the abyss because they refuse to admit defeat?

He could lie dormant in the abyss with a clear conscience because he had nothing left but hatred.

Letting her die here would be too easy for her. Someone like her should be thrown back into her original environment to continue to suffer until one day she pulls back from the brink, re-examines herself, liberates herself, unloads all her burdens, and then lives a carefree life. That is the ending she deserves.

Turn a blind eye, scare her a little more, and then quietly open a back door to let her go.

In his world/ocean, in his revenge script, there is no room for such a simple guy/good person who is like his own reflection.

For novice adventurers who accidentally stumble into the hidden boss room of the EX level.

The Demon King's mercy ends here.

"I'm going to sleep for a while. If you want to rest, you can find a place to take a nap, but please don't leave this area."

"Is Little Nobunaga trying to sleep in such a dangerous place?"

"Silly sister, didn't I tell you that the Philosophy Zone is 'safe'? — I'll tell you a secret, there's actually a giant monster living here, and all the monsters are afraid to come near. If you're still feeling uneasy, Aoko-neechan, put this on and go pick out a book from the bookshelf to read. I'm going to sleep."

A fluffy cat ear headband materialized beside Aoko, and the color was thoughtfully chosen to be her favorite cyan.

As for the books on the bookshelf.

During her time in the philosophy section, out of curiosity, Aoko had already taken out quite a few books from the shelves.

However, no matter which book you pull out, when you open the pages, you'll find that it records the same story.

A fairy tale about the Black Forest.

A soft, snoring sound drifted from a corner of the sofa; it seemed that Xiaoxin had truly drifted off to sleep.

After her initial attempts to probe failed, Aoko, out of curiosity and to pass the time, opened the fairy tale book.

Long, long ago, in a warm and lush forest lived three happy birds.

The birds don't have names, but the animals in the forest call them "big birds," "tall birds," and "little birds."

Many animals live in this forest, but they never quarrel or fight. They all live happily and freely together. The birds hope that the forest will always be harmonious and peaceful, and they also hope that more animals will come to play in the forest.

On a sunny afternoon, a stranger visited this tranquil forest. He was a traveler, a pioneer, a prophet. But beyond that, he was nothing. The stranger wanted to enter the forest, but the birds found him suspicious and refused to let him in. The stranger grew angry and, before leaving, threw down a sentence at the birds:

"Soon, disaster will befall this forest. It will be tainted by evil and sin, filled with bloody and terrifying battles, until a horrific monster devours everything! The sun, moon, and stars will never shine upon you again, and the forest will never regain its former harmony!"

Upon hearing this prophecy, the birds were deeply distressed. What if, as he said, the forest was filled with strife and terrifying monsters appeared?

So the birds decided to become guardians of the forest. They loved the forest and wanted to protect the animals and maintain a peaceful daily life.

A large bird with many eyes watches over the forest, searching for intruders. Its eyes can see very, very far, even things we cannot see. But someone said, "What if the monster appears at night when we are all asleep?" The bird was very worried, so it burned all its feathers to make a lamp that never goes out. Now, the animals in the forest are under the bird's watchful eye day and night.

To maintain peace in the forest, the Tallbird judged the sins of the animals, its scales able to weigh any evil with absolute impartiality. But someone asked, "What if the scales don't tip to either side?" The Tallbird was worried, so it made the scales tip only to one side, so that the judgment would be accurate no matter who was judged.

The little bird decided to punish the animals that had made mistakes with its beak. But someone said, "Your beak is too small, no one will feel the pain!" The little bird was very worried, so it tore open its beak and turned it into a gaping maw that could devour any animal.

Terrifying rumors began to circulate outside the forest, and no animal wanted to go into the forest anymore.

"Whoever enters that forest will meet a tragic end!"

"No one is free there; the big bird is always watching the animals in the forest!"

Takatori's scales are completely unfair!

"The bird's punishment is terrible!"

The birds are angry. We've been working so hard to protect the forest, so why are they spreading such rumors?

Fewer and fewer animals are coming to play in the forest, and everyone is venting their discontent, with fights breaking out everywhere. The birds are working even harder to restore peace to the forest.

"Alas, this forest is too vast; the three of us alone cannot protect it!"

"But besides us, there's no one else who can protect the forest!"

"If we combine our strengths, we might become even more powerful!"

The day that the great bird's eyes, capable of seeing hundreds of miles away, the tall bird's ability to judge any sin, and the small bird's enormous jaws, capable of devouring all animals, combined, disaster struck the forest. Upon seeing the bird, the animals cried out in terror, and the entire forest descended into chaos.

Amidst the cacophony of cries and terrified screams, someone shouted:

"It's that monster! There's a terrifying monster in the dark forest!"

A monster? Where? The three birds—now one—looked around searching for the monster, but to no avail. This bird began to wander through the forest, searching for any trace of the monster. If the monster appeared in the forest, a terrible disaster would ensue!

But there was nothing left there—no animals, no sun or moon, no monsters. Only that bird, and that dark forest...

From that time on, the dark and cold nights have continued forever.

There are rumors that a terrifying monster lives in that uninhabited forest.

Chapter 137 The Cyan Hero (Part 8)

Pull the fairy tales from the shelf, flip through them, and then put them back in their place.

This process is repeated nearly a hundred times.

This was the only activity Aozaki Aoko engaged in after dinner.

Aoko wandered through the philosophy section, randomly selecting a book from the twisted, dark forest-like bookshelves and turning to any page.

Regardless of thickness, appearance, origin from any branch in the Black Forest, or any fallen leaf in the Black Forest.

Every single dark book tells the same story.

A fairy tale about the Black Forest, a fairy tale about three birds.

To eradicate the evil and sins rooted deep in the forest, the great bird sheds its feathers/flesh and blood to oversee the entire realm; the tall bird abandons justice/righteousness to judge all living beings; the little bird severs its own destiny/future and transforms into a demon.

Originally from the same source, they eventually became one trinity. The former guardian transformed into a terrifying monster that devoured everything. Nothing remained—no animals, no stars, no sun or moon, only that bird and that scorching, dark forest/starry sky.

Aoko walked deep into the Black Forest, and in a corner, she opened a completely different yet strangely familiar black-bound book. A bookmark fell from between the pages, ending this seemingly aimless and futile journey through the forest.

It was a tattered note, revealing the marks of time in the dim fluorescent light. Dried bloodstains dotted the paper with dark red stars, and if you got closer, you could smell the lingering stench of blood.

Aoko picked up the note and, in the dim light, carefully examined the handwriting on it:

Hello to the person who switched shifts with me, the person who happened to come to the Black Forest, or the new person who will see this note in the future.

Please be sure to follow the instructions on the note during your work hours. This is my accumulated work experience that helps me maintain safety and mental stability.

I don't want to lose any more colleagues, nor do I want to experience any more inexplicable things.

I believe you don't want that either.

After reading this advice, just pretend you didn't see it and go about your business.

Always remember the color of your clothes. It can be any color—orange, blue, black. Don't change the color of your clothes. Maintaining a firm belief in yourself is very important.

It detects that you are hesitant, fearful, and indecisive in your perception of the outside world.

Go to the dog cafe, go to the dog cafe, go to the dog cafe! The employees at the dog cafe are trustworthy; the dog cafe is the only place they can't set foot in.

Believe in Golden Retrievers. Golden Retrievers bite those who can be saved, Golden Retrievers bite those who cannot be saved. The existence of Golden Retrievers is the key to suppressing "it". The barking of Golden Retrievers is the alarm bell to drive "it" away. The barking of Golden Retrievers is a lament for the dead.

It cries when it's stopped, and laughs when it succeeds. Don't worry about what it is; just stay away from it as soon as you spot it.

Food that appears on shelves anywhere out of the ordinary is a test. Don't look at the labels or what others call it. Ignore it, and if necessary, buy and eat it as ordinary food. Don't let "it" know that you've noticed "it."

It prefers dim, golden light, especially at night; it dislikes open spaces and prefers to rest in bright, spacious rooms.

Thank you to all the staff in orange uniforms; remember that they all died protecting everyone.

People who wear cat parts are messengers who attract "it," so ignore them!

Cats eat people, shadows eat people, birds eat people, and even the glowing sea eats people!

A shadow is something close to one's own outline, connected to the soles of one's feet, a dark phenomenon; everything else is not a shadow.

The shadow's appearance has changed, indicating that it is being watched by "it." Remember, there are no golden eyes in the shadow.

The crooked handwriting came to an abrupt end, leaving only a streak of scarlet blood that had soaked through the note.

On the back of the note was a simple sketch, which was the hand-drawn map of the underwater labyrinth that Qingzi had been searching for.

Aoko put down the note, looked up, and realized that she had found herself in a dark corner of the Black Forest.

The further away from the center of the museum area, the dimmer the ominous dark golden lights become, and the areas without light are completely pitch black.

Beyond the ominous light, the inky shadows twisted unnaturally, flowing like a river in the darkness, accompanied by viscous auditory hallucinations and faintly shimmering golden light.

Everything seemed to be urging the visitors here, urging the lost children in the Black Forest to return as soon as possible to that forest clearing illuminated by the unclean golden stars.

Aoko pondered for a moment, then a tiny wisp of blue flame ignited between her fingers, turning the blood-stained note into ashes.

Then, following the direction she had come from, she embarked on her return journey, step by step, from the depths of the dark, sunless forest back to the clearing in the woods.

In a clearing in the woods, there is a soft sofa whose color scheme and style are similar to the bookshelf.

In a corner of the sofa, the child was still fast asleep.

Aoko stepped forward, squatted down, and gazed at the peaceful sleeping face up close.

With each breath of the boy, the dark golden lights illuminating the entire Black Forest seemed to come alive, echoing his breath and gradually shifting between light and shadow.

Then, Aoko closed her eyes, thought, and weighed her options.

She was in pain, wavered, and restless as she tossed her dark hair.

Finally, a decision was made.

When she opened her eyes, there was no longer any confusion in her pale blue eyes, only the color of enlightenment.

Aoko reached out and mischievously pinched the child's delicate face one last time, watching him furrow his brows and show a pained expression in his sleep.

Even so, she still felt that she hadn't had enough.

However, it's already time.

Aoko picked up the original fairy tale book from the sofa, took out a pen from her bag, carefully wrote a passage on the title page, and then gently placed the book next to the boy.

After doing all this, she picked up the light blue, playful cat ear headband from the sofa and put it on her head without any hesitation or reservation.

Then, Aoko followed the path she had come from, heading far away from this peaceful, dark forest that changed light and shadow like the breath of life, with a dim golden glow.

Red Oni, Mountain Spider, Tengu, Gyūki, Kappa, Flying Head Slash, Bone Woman, Zashiki-warashi, Jorogumo

Aoko walked alone through the deep, labyrinthine corridors.

The walls were still the same warm yellow, and the carpet was still the same brownish-red.

What's different is that there are all sorts of demons and ghosts coming and going, some dressed in orange, some with names and some without.

The number of people in the corridor has reached a level that was previously unimaginable.

When Aoko pushed open the philosophy building door from the inside, the whole world seemed to stand still.

The densely packed crowd in the corridor outside the museum area, seemingly preparing for something, yet also seemingly unprepared, paused for a moment, but quickly returned to normal in a silent understanding, as if they hadn't seen anything at all.

Aoko's heart skipped a beat. When she pushed open the door and was confronted with a corridor full of strange and grotesque figures, she was so frightened that she almost cried. She almost couldn't resist her survival instinct and ran back to the peaceful and tranquil Black Forest.

However, what happened next stopped her instinct to escape when she realized that all the demons were ignoring her.

Out of caution and to verify her intentions, Aoko slapped a bull demon standing nearby before closing the gate to the Black Forest.

The latter, of course, did not react at all.