Chapter 76: Protection
The next evening, inside the Yae family's residence.
The delicate girl was still lying in bed in her room, but today her sister no longer came to make medicine and soup for her.
——Father had already told her in the morning what was going to happen next, and she agreed.
She had no choice; the ritual always required a sacrifice, and if she didn't become the sacrifice, then her sister would be the sacrifice.
Her sister would definitely become an excellent miko in the future, so if there is to be a sacrifice, let her do it.
Despite her young age, Rin was ready.
As long as her sister can survive, it doesn't matter what happens to her...
That's what she told herself.
But…
At this moment, a kitten squeezed open the tightly closed door to allow it to pass through, and then a small white figure appeared in the house.
"Meow~"
"Ah, little Shiro..."
Yae Rin habitually called the kitten over.
As usual, it came to her side obediently and then jumped into her arms.
The girl felt the familiar touch, and her confused heart calmed down a little. She forced a smile and said to her animal friend:
"I'm sorry, little Shiro, I won't be able to play with you anymore..."
Her voice gradually became lost, and at the end, there was a hint of sobbing.
How could a young girl have such a strong heart? In this lonely environment, she finally confided her true feelings to the kitten in her arms:
"I really want to go see the cherry blossoms with my sister..."
She longed for the day when she could recover from her illness. At that time, she would be able to walk under the blue sky with her sister and enjoy life like other healthy people her age.
However, this wish was no longer possible.
At this moment, footsteps were heard outside Yae Rin's room.
Judging from the density, there were probably quite a few people coming.
They pushed open the wooden door of the room and poured in.
The light from the setting sun barely cast some light into the house, but it made the figures of the villagers appear even darker.
They were holding all kinds of farm tools and kitchen utensils, including shovels and kitchen knives, and it was obvious that they had come with bad intentions.
The crowd surrounded Yae Rin, looking at the sacrifice in front of them that would be offered to the gods tonight with all kinds of eyes.
This time, there was no trace of pity in their eyes. Instead, they looked as if they were appreciating a piece of art, admiring the gift that would be offered to the gods tonight.
The young girl was stared at by these strange eyes and could only curl up in the corner in fear, her face even paler than usual.
Even though her father, the Lord, had told her her fate in detail and she had indeed accepted it, when these people really arrived, the girl still couldn't help feeling scared.
She recognized all the people who came to her house and could easily call out their names, but now, the looks they gave her were so strange and unfamiliar that she couldn't help but feel fear.
Her thin body kept shaking. She held the kitten tightly in her arms. It was her only support now.
Because a similar incident had happened before, in order to prevent the sacrificial girl from escaping or being taken away by her relatives and friends, every year before the ceremony begins, the villagers would go to the sacrifice's home in a troupe.
Afterward, they used a kitchen knife to cut the tendons in their wrists and legs, making them lose all ability to move, in order to ensure that they would not and could not escape again.
Outside Yae Village are towering mountains, and it is impossible to escape with a disabled person with broken limbs.
Apparently, they came to Yae's house and to Rin's room at this moment, intending to do the same thing to this weak girl.
As villagers, they were able to enter the residence of the Yae family, the village chief and lord of the clan, without any hindrance, naturally because they had already obtained the tacit consent of the head of the family.
The ceremony will begin soon, and if they want to disable Yae Rin's ability to move, now is the time.
One of the villagers stepped forward and gradually approached Yae Rin, who was curled up in the corner and trembling.
At this moment, the kitten in the girl's arms meowed softly.
"...little Shiro?"
The girl subconsciously looked at the kitten in her arms.
It looked at her with its sparkling eyes and then licked her wrist gently.
As if to say, leave everything to me.
Then, it broke free from the girl's restraints, jumped out of the girl's arms, and blocked the crowd with its thin body.
It bared its teeth, and all the hair on its back stood up, as if it was protecting the girl.
They came here before the ceremony started in order to protect the girl who was about to be sacrificed.
Although it had to wait until the ceremony began, it didn't mean it wouldn't plan to do anything.
Did it have to watch Yae Rin have her tendons cut alive in front of this group of scum, falling helplessly in a pool of blood?
Even if the Yae Rin in front of it was just an illusion, Kirataka could not let this tragedy happen again before its eyes.
Moreover, if they wanted to solve the problem of Yae Sakura and the Herrscher of Corruption, Yae Sakura herself was also a very important character.
"…Where did the cat come from?"
"Get it away!"
Faced with the kitten, which had a simple and cute appearance and looked completely harmless, the villagers did not show any fear and did not take it seriously.
The one walking in front had already swung the shovel in his hand and hit the wild cat directly, intending to kill it immediately.
The force was so great that if it hit an ordinary wild cat, it would probably take its life in an instant.
Unfortunately, the wild cat's wailing and struggling did not happen as he had expected. For some reason, the shovel stopped in mid-air, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not move any further, as if something in the air forcibly stopped his attack.
Then, a dazzling light burst out from under the shovel.
——This is a light that people of this era have never seen up close. In the past, they had only seen it in the sky... lightning.
The lethal amount of electric current flowed along the shovel into the body of the villager closest to Yae Rin. The next second, without even the chance to wail in pain, he fell straight to the ground, his body becoming stiff.
Out of consideration for the girl behind him who had never seen blood, he did not make her death too tragic, such as making his bloody and unrecognizable.
The kitten with blue lightning glowed, landed in front of Yae Rin, and gently stretched out a paw. An arc of electric current spread out, surrounding the girl behind it, and then extended upwards to form a complete electromagnetic barrier.
The cat's eyes scanned the people in front of it with a cold gaze. They looked harmless, but after the first victim appeared, the remaining villagers were too afraid to step forward.
——No one wants to be the next victim.
Whoever Kirataka's eyes fell on would involuntarily take a step back.
A large group of people were frightened by a kitten and dared not move forward.
"Little... Shiro?"
The cherry-haired girl behind it called out its name in disbelief.
"…"
Kirataka thought about it and finally turned around and said:
"Don't worry, I will protect you."
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