The Strange Adventures of Hearn the Believer

You can never expect tomorrow.

He was a demon who habitually relied on scents to etch memories, and on that day, he smelled for the first time that scent that disgusted him—a scent of destiny, sacrifice, and compensation.

He wandered alone on the coast, contemplating his future.

He knew that the evil shadow would come and take Him away sooner or later, but He did not know how to face the destined suffering—a fate that had been etched into His being even before His birth.

Just when He was most confused and fearful, a stranger in blue appeared.

It was a late winter evening, on Christmas Eve, and it was a very cold day.

She was a red-haired woman, acting suspiciously, but she was a very nice person.

And, very [strong].

He tried everything but couldn't escape the woman's clutches. Before he could run himself to death, she grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.

Then, the strange woman, panting, showed Him His spoils—a high heel that had broken off.

"You're really good at running, kid. Not only do you run, but every time I'm about to catch you, you randomly disappear and then reappear in another place. Is this ability called mistification? Are you a vampire?"

He was certainly not a vampire; it was just that after coming into contact with the shadow that had taken away his family, his own existence began to become unstable.

Later, He learned that it was because the ability to communicate with spatial realms hidden in His bloodline had been awakened, which was also the reason why the shadow did not take Him away directly—it was a sign of His disappearance. With the revival of the demon blood, He was destined to disappear from the human world and go to the “countryside” that destiny had guided Him to, to the last mysterious and hidden place in the present world.

After losing the escape attempt to that strange red-haired woman,

His first label for her was—this woman is very strong.

After being forced to spend several days together, and after confirming that this woman was not like the one who had taken away His mother's shadow, and that she would not harm Him,

His second label for her was—this woman is very good.

Strong and weak, good and bad—that was pretty much all this young demon could comprehend.

The strange woman claimed that she was just "passing by" and saw him strolling on the beach. She thought he was a lost child. Although it was troublesome, so troublesome that she wanted to simply ignore him, she couldn't help but ask him. As a result, she ended up losing a high heel.

he.

An unfamiliar form of address.

So that's how it is; she mistook Him for a human's cub.

So that's why I felt sympathy or felt guilty for not being able to ignore it.

Although he looked back on that incident many years later, he knew that the red-haired lady had also lied when they first met. He knew that she was not just passing by by chance, nor was it a chance encounter, nor was she feeling sympathy or unease.

But at that moment, He undoubtedly felt the joy of being cared for by a "good person" and the disappointment of being deceived by a "good person."

So that's how it is. The opposite of the strange woman who is both strong and good must be Him, who is both weak and bad...

Ouch, ouch, ouch... Qingzi, don't pinch my waist, I'll change my mind right away!

……

……

cough cough...

So that's how it is. In contrast to the strong, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister, there is the weak and wicked one.

During the six days they spent together, the gentle, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister taught him a magic trick that allowed him to launch magic bullets with a "BiuBiuBiu" sound, and also showed him the "Shadow Beyond Time and Space," which he couldn't understand at all but which greatly shocked him.

This upgraded the first label He attached to the gentle, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister—[Strong]—to [Very Strong], and finally evolved into [Super Strong]!

During the six days they spent together, the gentle, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister told him a story about how she started out as a novice and failed miserably, but then worked hard to catch up and eventually surpassed her troublesome older sister, sending her flying to the stars with a single punch.

During the six days they spent together, the gentle, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister instilled in him a lot of positive energy, such as the importance of standing tall, being upright, facing one's life with dignity, and never being negligent or escapist.

On the morning of the seventh day, the gentle, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister did not appear; she disappeared.

Because of the [Shadow Beyond Time and Space] from a few days ago, He relentlessly searched every crevice in the rocks on that shore, opened every seashell, and examined every conch, but ultimately found no trace of her hiding place. It wasn't until after sunset that He returned home.

So that's how it is. That gentle, kind, beautiful, and intelligent older sister has already left.

He came to this conclusion.

So, what has He gained in the past six days?

A magic trick that can launch magic bullets with a "BiuBiuBiu" sound.

The insights gained from the overly mysterious [Shadow Beyond Time and Space].

Following the concepts of "good and bad," we will explore the understanding of "escape and confrontation," and the understanding of "honesty."

And, a friend who has left, His first friend in life, a person worthy of His respect.

On the seventh day, He wept from beginning to end.

……

Not long after, less than a week later, He finally disappeared from the world completely, vanishing into the hidden corner He was destined to go.

It was the end of December 1992, when He had just entered his sixth year of life.

Soon after that, He found His insane relative in that rural corner. Soon after, He was imprisoned at the bottom of a lake because of His own mediocrity. Soon after, His only relative passed away.

At the age of seven, He was imprisoned at the bottom of the lake and "suffered a beating for a year." Fortunately, He did not die. During the beating, He began to learn to communicate with that unknown, pale silver puddle, to rely on that pale silver sea to heal His wounds, to eat through the sea, and to use the sea to turn all the demons that tormented Him into His puppets.

Before doing these things, He was extremely conflicted and hesitant, but ultimately decided to break His promise to His first friend—to be an upright and honest person.

Before breaking the promise, He tried hard to swallow the consequences of breaking His word, but the consequences were so bitter that He wept bitterly in prison, and after swallowing it completely, all His feelings for His first friend turned into guilt.

……

At the age of eight, He feigned conversion, only to later repent. He revealed His extraordinary nature, becoming docile and obedient, to the point of amnesia, leading everyone to believe that the mediocre remnant had been completely consumed, and that He was now the very rough jade they had coveted for millennia, the jade that, once sculpted, would surely be able to communicate with the supreme principle—the Origin—across the universe.

As for how He did it, that was the reason He felt guilty towards His first "friend," the second reason besides breaking the agreement.

Pure weakness will not earn the world's pity, while self-disciplined strength will be admired.

Are people truly praising the self-discipline of the strong?

No, they were just glad that the strong had lost their minds and had extinguished their own sharpness, and that the strong hadn't wantonly whipped their trembling spines.

They are simply afraid of the strong.

After He swallowed all the demons coming and going in the lake-bottom prison into the sea of ​​time, they were transformed into puppets that walked through the prison;

When those demons that tormented Him were filled with fear of the unknown, even stepping into prison filled them with dread;

In the seventh year after his birth, He finally tasted for the first time the sweet flavor of "fear," which the demons depended on for survival.

I see……

Because of its weakness, it has fallen to this state.

Because of its strength, it can do whatever it wants.

So this is how demons survive.

Now that He has entered the thicket of thorns, in order to extricate Him from it, He must transform from weak to strong.

External strength is readily available; one only needs to seize it. Once a living being is swallowed into the Sea of ​​Time, everything it possesses belongs to Him.

His inner strength, however, was carefully considered. It wasn't that there were many options; in fact, there was only one option to choose from beginning to end.

To call it deliberation is nothing more than hesitation and guilt.

To survive, and to harden one's heart as hard as iron.

While in prison, He began to write about the heart of His only friend.

That was the first "power" He had ever seen in His life, and the only "power" He understood at that time.

The demon, who had wasted six years in the human world without a heart or self, finally began to do what all monsters born without blood, tears, feelings, or righteousness must do when he was imprisoned at the age of seven.

He began to sketch the outline of the only friend in His memory, profile her personality, simulate her thoughts, and speculate on her nature. Using her mental landscape as a base, He began to draw His own "demon heart."

……

So that's how it is; emotions are such an inconvenient thing.

So that's how it is; relying solely on rational action can lead to such high efficiency.

So that's how it is. When faced with a dilemma that troubles one's conscience, or when faced with a choice between what is known to be "good" and "bad," but forced by circumstances to choose the "bad" option, one can calmly deal with the situation and seize the maximum benefit by using reason to suppress emotion.

It turns out that His first friend was terrifyingly powerful.

Although He already knew of her “power”, He was still shocked by her extraordinary talent after she began to “draw the heart”.

They're born to be the main character!

No wonder even though he only started learning halfway, he was able to punch his older sister, who had been studying demonic arts since childhood, and send her flying to the stars!

Aozaki Aoko, Her... Superman...

No, it's no longer just about being a superhuman. If there hadn't been no camera at the beach, if it weren't for the need to avoid revealing any trace of His mysterious encounters before entering the countryside...

He had already set up an incense burner and altar in his bedroom and offered incense to His [God] every day at the appointed time!

He was so impressed by the strength of the woman named Aozaki Aoko, and while feeling guilty, he also deeply admired that strength and longed for that dashing, wind-like figure.

In the days to come, the Demon King will hold a grand banquet for his guests atop the tower, where he will reveal his true nature to the demons for the first time.

It was a ritual that was almost a customary tradition, simply because the demons to which He belonged all possessed certain colors.

When that familiar green light burned silently in his palm like a flame.

Externally, He received thunderous applause, and all of the Demon King's old friends expressed their blessings to Him, whether true or false. From that moment on, He officially obtained the orthodox legal lineage of the Demon King.

Within, His heart was as still as water. When that blue flame ignited, He showed no surprise whatsoever, but calmly accepted the fact with remarkable composure.

It's not "How could this be?" or "So that's how it is," but rather "Indeed, that's how it is."

During the banquet, a powerful demon, fueled by alcohol, went mad and asked if He wanted to take this opportunity to bid farewell to His human name and embrace the demon world.

The name of the demon world naturally comes from the color in His hand, this [blue].

He secretly observed the Demon King's expression on the throne. He saw that she was still smiling and laughing without saying a word, and showed no anger towards the jeers. The meaning behind her words was obvious.

He knew that the time for a choice had come. At this point, He was already half an actor. How could an actor hesitate to change his name and surname? He readily agreed, recognized the thief as his "father," and changed his surname and name from then on.

From then on, he had a second surname, which was Yakumo.

However, He did not collude with those demons who ran dye houses; He simply took the character "青" (qing, meaning green) based on its color alone.

He already felt guilty towards his friend, so how could he be so shameless as to use her name?

A compassionate fool, or a ruthless sage?

He remembered the question she had asked him at the beach.

Now it seems the Demon King wants Him to be a ruthless and heartless sage?

How could He so easily grant the Demon King's wish?

So He specially chose a single word that evokes womanly compassion as His name, which is 【怜】 (Pity).

Ha, neither a compassionate fool nor a heartless sage, but neither. One day, He will live a unique and free life like that sister. So how can He be trapped in the dilemma of others?

Therefore, He gave the unreasonable answer of choosing neither option, and amidst the sighs and ridicule of the guests, He painted an immature and half-baked disguise for His own "role".

Ha... He really owes that sister he met by chance on the beach a lot of kindness.

When He finally achieves His revenge and leaves this hidden place, He will surely bring His family with him—if He does have any then, though it's highly unlikely He will. Who would fall in love on the road to revenge? Do they want to die fast enough or suffer enough?

...In short, after he has settled his scores and settled his scores, if he is still alive, he will definitely seek out his "divine being" and his first friend in life, perform the three kowtows and nine bows, serve her tea, and respectfully call her "Master".

If everything continues to develop in that natural way...

……

In the late summer of the year when he was nine, a funeral broke out at the house of the shrine maiden he frequented. The previous shrine maiden, whom he knew well, passed away, and the little crybaby she had adopted before her death took over. The little crybaby and he got along fairly well. The two were close in age and often went to the forest together in the summer to catch rhinoceros beetles. Whenever they encountered a high place that they couldn't reach, he would always stand below and act as a ladder.

He was a promising young man with a bright future, or to put it simply, the most hopeful young man in the whole village.

For the purpose of training and development, His guardian, His enemy—the Demon King—made Him witness the calamity from beginning to end.

He personally experienced the calamity from behind the curtain, and two years later, he once again experienced the pain of separation from loved ones, one of the eight sufferings of human existence; and from outside the curtain, he saw clearly the entanglements of interests and the great rights and wrongs behind the calamity, and knew that the witch was destined to die.

He was powerless, therefore he did nothing.

At the funeral, which was all ceremony and no ceremony, the little crybaby cried her heart out. He held her frail shoulders, remained silent, and watched until the funeral ended. Once again, he relied on the rationality gained from "Painting Heart" to suppress his budding emotions and became a merciless passerby.

If that's the case, why is He still so resentful?

Only then did He realize that there is no such thing as reason extinguishing emotion; it's just that one swallows the bitter pill alone in private and forces a smile in public, keeping the bitterness to oneself.