With a thud, she was thrown to the ground, the impact jolting her awake.
“Ugh,” she groaned.
She hurriedly sat up and looked around. The walls were made of grass, and the ceiling was partially caved in. She recognized it as a deserted house, a chise.
Moonlight streamed through a hole in the roof.
As Emariya turned around, a large black shadow loomed before her. Her eyes widened.
“Help! Big sister! Kanga!”
She cried out as she backed away, arms raised.
The black shadow shook its shoulders and let out a twisted laugh.
“It’s useless. No one’s coming. It’s impossible to find this place.”
The voice was raspy, as if the throat were damaged. Emariya glared at the shadow.
“Who are you? What do you want with me?”
The shadow stepped into the moonlight. The face, with a squashed nose and a bushy beard, was twisted in a lewd smile.
“Heh heh, even though you’re a kid, you look pretty good. Let’s have some fun before I strangle you.”
He moved forward.
“Stay away! Someone help! Kanga!”
The shadow snorted and laughed again.
“Don’t you get it yet? I’m Sutemaru the Hunter, but people also call me ‘Ghost Sutemaru.’ I’m great at erasing my presence. When I disappear, my prey doesn’t know I’m there. You didn’t notice me approach, did you?”
Sutemaru bared his yellow teeth in a grin.
“I brought you here while ‘disappeared,’ so no one could follow me. Now then…”
Sutemaru quickly lunged at Emariya, pinning her shoulders to the floor with strong hands, making it hard to breathe.
“What are you doing? Stop! No!”
She resisted by shaking her head, but his arms didn’t budge. His foul breath blew in her face.
His rough hands spread her collar and he bit into her white neck.
“No! Stop! Ah!”
The moment his ugly, dark head covered her neck, Sutemaru’s body flew away, as if something had yanked him off.
He floated in mid-air.
“Wha—whoa!”
Sutemaru, still in the position of pouncing on Emariya, spun in the air and, with a trailing scream, flew to the opposite wall, crashing through the grass wall and tumbling outside.
A large black shadow stomped after him and went outside. Sutemaru, unable to comprehend what had happened, was grabbed by the neck and lifted into the air again.
A thick, black arm raised Sutemaru high like a cat caught by the scruff.
“Ugh—augh—”
“I was told not to kill you, but no one said I couldn’t break every bone in your body.”
The black shadow twisted its mouth into a grin.
“Kanga!”
Emariya’s face lit up.
“Emariya!”
Irika, peeking through the broken wall, ran over.
“Big sister!”
Emariya hugged her tightly.
“I was worried when you suddenly disappeared! I called Kanga and the others immediately. They found you in no time.”
Irika patted Emariya’s head while she hugged her.
“Kanga, don’t rough him up too much. We need to get information.”
Demba approached and glanced at Emariya as he spoke.
“Maybe just a bit more.”
Kanga grinned and slammed the suspended Sutemaru to the floor. He groaned and vomited bile.
Kanga’s foot kicked Sutemaru’s belly. His body lifted momentarily and then flopped back down.
Coughing, Sutemaru tried to crawl away from Kanga’s grip. His bloodshot eyes looked at the black men as if they were monsters.
“How did you find me… I had erased my presence…ugh!”
Kanga grabbed Sutemaru’s collar and twisted it up.
“Do you know how many days we spend hunting in the African wilderness, tracking prey that barely leaves a trace? Your trail reeked.”
Kanga threw Sutemaru’s head to the ground like a discarded rag. Lacking the will to escape, Sutemaru lay still.
Demba approached and lifted Sutemaru’s chin with a pointed stick.
“Now, tell us. You’re not from around here, are you?”
Sutemaru, dazed for a moment, snapped back to attention when the stick poked his neck. He nodded repeatedly.
“We’re hunters from Mutsu Province, gathered by the merchant Kitamiya in Matsumae. We were hired for money.”
“For money?”
“Yeah. We heard it was more lucrative than hunting.”
“Did this Kitamiya tell you to kill us?”
Sutemaru shook his head.
“Kitamiya only gathered us. At the mouth of the Ishikari River, we spoke directly with two men dressed like Ainu. I don’t know their names, but one had red hair.”
Irika gasped behind them, covering her mouth with her left hand.
“Red… hair? No way, Samaykachi?”
Demba glanced at Irika.
“You know him?”
Irika frowned deeply.
“Just a bit. He’s the leader of the ‘Anti-Elder Faction.’ I’m starting to understand. I’ll explain later.”
She shot a sideways glance at Sutemaru.
“How many of you are there?”
Demba leaned closer to Sutemaru, who slightly pulled back.
“Ten.”
“How many did we take down?”
He looked at Kanga.
Kanga looked up, counting on his fingers.
“Five, six maybe. One or two escaped.”
“Assuming six, and two escaped, that makes eight. Counting him, that’s nine. So, one or two are left.”
Sutemaru’s eyes widened, his mouth twisting.
“Heh heh, there’s still one more. ‘Monkey Hikokyu.’”
“Who?”
Sutemaru laughed with a twisted face.
“Hikokyu is different from regular hunters like us. He’s a ‘man hunter,’ a ‘demon’ who’s been hunting people his whole life. Compared to him, we’re like saints. Everyone who enters the mountains is his prey. No one survives once he targets them. You’ll all die too. Heh, heh.”
Demba hit Sutemaru’s head from the side with the stick, making a dull sound. Sutemaru shrieked and fell silent.
Demba stood up.
“I suppose we shouldn’t stay here long.”