Village Takeover

In Livia's room, I was doing one-hand push-ups off the ground. On top of my back was Livia, who functioned as an added weight to make my exercise more challenging. After taking over that village and getting my body back, I've been testing my body for hours.

It's been more than a few hours since I started, and physical exhaustion began appearing. It seemed that testing my physical limits went well.

"Okay, Master! That's number ten-thousand on the right side. Super impressive! As expected of Master!" Livia jumps off my back and congratulates me.

She is wearing a big smile and a blush. I swear I could even see pink hearts in her emerald eyes.

After helping me train, her instinct to have a 'reward' must be hyperactive. Unfortunately for Livia, I didn't want to waste time on her today for that. I'm on a grind that requires focus.

"Alright, thanks, Livia. Now get lost; I need to check something by myself." I say to her, pushing her out of the room. Livia listened, but stuck her tongue out before closing the door on my face.

The wind from the door closing felt so refreshing against my face.

...

Oh, man! I missed having an entire body. Plus, I've got an exquisite physique that I never tried out thoroughly inside the blindfold. Twenty thousand one-arm push-ups in a row were something no one on Earth could ever accomplish!

Mwahaha! Even with the swordsman of today's era, I can still win against most. Only a few First Grade Jujutsu Sorcerers can make me sweat.

It's a good thing that most Jujutsu Sorcerers are training in seclusion within their clans. I couldn't survive long if they had upstanding citizens becoming sorcerers randomly. This world was really perfect for me because of that.

The best part was that I could eat as much as I want without worrying about the consequences. Each human could easily last me ten days, since I don't feel hungry anymore as a cursed spirit.

I just love the freaking taste! With Himari delivering a human every few days, I can savor the tenderness without worrying about the law. I mean who can easily organize a force to stop me and my army of almost three hundred Followers and five hundred contracted zombies?

Now my plan was to take over the surrounding villages. Although they were very small and only had around two hundred people each, they would help me against bigger villages. Those bigger villages could then help me with small clans, until the cycle leads me to having control over a region.

That was the plan for increasing my cursed energy, Followers, and influence.

Pretty good plan, right? I know, I know. No need to say it. I'm a genius. Thank you. Don't forget to leave a tip.

...

I walked over the bed and picked up something under the pillow. It was a small cloth sack which felt a bit heavy. I opened it and smiled, seeing fifty of my fingers.

Surrounding the village I live in, Mori Village, currently there are eleven other villages that are ruled by the Sugawara Clan. I've already taken over three of those eleven villages. All together, I have Mori, Kage, Bei Kona, and Kuchibue Village.

Each village even has a symbol based on the Chinese zodiacs. This made me very suspicious, since the Sugawara's secret group were the Zodiacs. But I confirmed that they were safe and no more Zodiacs were in Sugawara territory.

Funnily enough, Mori Village's zodiac sign is the monkey. Reminds me of that old pal I used to have.

Focusing back on my thoughts, I realize the bag of fingers were still in my hands. I drop the fingers into my shadow on the ground. They plummet into the void without a sound.

Then, I gave an order to the shadow, "I need you to go to Mushi Village and force feed one hundred people a part of those fifty pinkies. If you find a Jujutsu Sorcerer, make sure to capture them with a Divine Dog Shikigami. Can you do that, Yasha?"

Six red eyes appear from my shadow and answer, "Of course, my lord. Consider it done. But what should I do with the other villagers that I can't feed fingers?"

Although I would rather be there to make a Contract with them, I felt it was more important to use this the perfect chance to test Yasha's abilities. It will be a waste, but...

"Kill all the extra humans you aren't able to feed fingers." I answer to the shadow.

The eyes slowly jumped out from the ground and left the room. I guess that means he understood the assignment. Good luck, Yasha! Gabimaru and Sagiru are counting on you! Best wishes!

...

Ah, they grow up so fast, don't they? I guess this means I won't have a bodyguard around.

This meant I was going to be vulnerable without Yasha's protection, but that didn't matter too much.

Once he feeds those people, I can finally grab more Followers!

[Cult: Yama's Court, Level: 2, Marks: 100, Followers: 246, Faith: 4586]

It was expensive, but a hundred more Followers meant a hundred more Faith daily. It was an easy decision to invest it in that small nearby village. I can also consider this the perfect chance to test Yasha's abilities.

Besides, I was going to go on my own village-hunting mission. Doku Village is my target.

I've been informed that a member of the Fujiwara Clan's secret group, the Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad, was spotted in that village. He was undercover, most likely scouting the Sugawara's state of affairs.

Since all villages are not too far from the main headquarters of the Sugawara Clan, that guy was trying to sneak a peek without anyone inside noticing. Too bad I have sent a few Followers as spies for each village.

Once I get rid of that spy, the villages won't have to worry about Fujiwara people for some time. Even if I that spy is not directly hurting me, it's a pain in the ass which can bring more sorcerers into my territory. The Sugawara Clan should really thank me for doing god's work. Oh wait, I am. Literally.

Ah, today is such a nice day. I can't wait to visit that place. I walk out of the house and get dressed in some new clothing. Then I began my journey to Doku Village.

...

As I made my way to the village on foot, I noticed something beautiful.

[Cult: Yama's Court, Level: 2, Marks: 74, Followers: 272, Faith: 4586]

This meant that Yasha has already begun. Looks like I needed to hurry...

Just as I was about to start running, I looked up and saw the sign of Doku Village's symbol, the snake.

Making my way in, I was looking for a man with green hair. To my surprise it didn't take long, as he was meditating right in the center of the small village. The more noticeable detail I felt in this village was its emptiness and smell. It was like this entire place was blanketed in perfume.

"Finally." The man stood up with his eyes still closed. Quickly, I realized the perfume smell was very strong around his body.

Obviously, it was the spy which I was told about.

Since no one was around and there was not rush, I asked him, "What happened to everyone? Oh right! I'm Sagiri, who are you?"

With a calm smile, he answered, "My name is Etsu. I don't have a family, but I was sent by the Fujiwara to lure you to me. With how famous you have become Sagiri-san, the leader has grown considerably interest. I've even heard that you were supposedly a part of an experiment to suppress Sugawara no Kaneyori."

So he baited me here by letting my Followers report his presence... Okay, but why?

Etsu coughed to gather my attention, "I have been waiting a few days to meet you in person. I was getting worried Sagiri-san wasn't coming. Since that isn't the case anymore, my friends won't need to visit you. It will just be some one on one time."

Something was off about this guy. His mannerism is weird and his hair was long, but there was something more. Is it just the smell?

"Sagiri-san, after a thorough inspection, we have to thank you for suppressing the Sugawara's ace for so long and making him into a criminal recently. It has helped our Master in making the Sugawara's look evil despite being so weak. Truly, we couldn't have done it alone." With his eyes still closed, Estu grinned from ear to ear with sharp teeth.

I've dealt with someone who plotted against me in the past and lost a lot. While I do have a Summoning Contract with a few people, they take a full minute. This time I'm not even taking a small risk. I will use all my resources after what happened last time with Dragon. No more joking around.

- 5 Faith

"Livia, start the summoning ceremony. Prepare to summon me to you in a private area." I send a message to Livia, not knowing if she can make it within a minute. It all depends on my connection speed to give orders and the time it takes to make me appear using a sacrifice from Livia's side.

- 5 Faith

I gave another order in my head, "Yasha, quickly come to Doku Village. Forget about the civilians in Mushi Village and come quickly!"

No point in risking things when I have a strong bodyguard a few hours away. I can only hope that Yasha will use his Ten Shadows to come at a faster speed.

Either way, I used all methods to get me out of the situation of fighting this lunatic. His cursed energy levels are higher than I thought, probably above a First Grade Sorcerer, so I can't run away.

"Hahaha! What happened? Speechless? How about you beg and I'll spar-"

With a punch to the face, Etsu was knocked backwards. All he could see was my fist full of dark green energy surrounding it.

"Urgh! B-Bastard! Who attacks someone mid-sentence?" Etsu touches his bleeding nose, courtesy of me.

While he was talking, I decided to buy time of my own, "I have a question you still didn't answer. What happened to the villagers?"

"Heh, them? I might as well tell you. My innate technique is called 'Arthropleura.' It's a shikigami summon which feeds on people. Just one bite and the person evaporates from the venom." Behind Etsu, a giant millipede the length of a tree appeared. It had hundreds of legs and a massive shell covering its body.

This guy probably told me his technique before using it because of a binding vow which makes him stronger temporarily as he reveals more information to an enemy. It's something very common among Jujutsu Sorcerers, even Gojo Satoru had one. It's too bad I didn't know how to make a binding vow yet...

I raised my fists and asked, "Hey man, people are gonna think I killed like two hundred villagers for no reason. Why even do this?"

He seemed to be growing impatient with my words. I think Sorcerers that kill people professionally would catch on to someone buying time. Still, I had to talk as much as possible.

"Isn't it obvious! Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad want you dead without witnesses. Now, enough talking. Go, Arthropleura!" Etsu screamed and ordered his shikigami to rush at me.

While it was big, the speed was even more terrifying. I instantly saw a flash come towards me and squeeze me. It held me in a position where its entire body wrapped around me. I felt a squeezing which broke my bones. It didn't release me either, so I couldn't repair my broken bones with cursed energy.

My body felt like jelly and I couldn't focus my mind to summon cursed energy. That's when I saw the creature's head appear, dripping saliva on my face. It burnt my skin, but the worst part was it seemed to by laughing at me.

Etsu asked me, "By the way, my subordinate should have already killed your slave girl. She was in a dozen reports for attacking the surrounding villages. She was also one of our targets which assisted you in your attacks. Tell me, how does it feel being cornered?"

Ugh, so Livia is dead? No wonder. The minute has already passed and nothing happened. I've run out of options...

"Sagiri-san. I expected you to be a Special Grade Cursed Spirit based on the report we discovered. It seemed that you are just some average First Grade. What a total waste of my time... Arthropleura, end him." Etsu pressed his pinky and thumb together, causing Arthropleura to crush me even more.

The air from my lungs left, but since they weren't necessary to live, I survived.

But I wasn't safe, as the millipede brought its teeth to my head. More saliva burnt my face until my vision was blurry.

Was this the end? In that split second my surroundings froze. It felt like I was injected with a bottle of adrenaline.

Everything around me slowed down until it felt like time stopped. I couldn't move, but my thinking seemed to be much clearer.

...

Right now, I had two options. I could wait for Yasha to save me within the next couple seconds, or do something which I only planned on doing if my life was 100% about to end.

I am not some protagonist, far from it actually. If karma was real, I would be on the lowest end of the spectrum for good karma. Nothing suggested that I had plot armor or some chance to have anyone save me from getting my head bit off in a couple seconds.

As much as I hated to admit it, this seemed like the only way to survive...

- 5 Faith

With a sigh, time returns to normal as I give my order, "Yasha, run away from Doku Village and enter a Hybrid Transformation Contract with me now."

As the millipede drew closer, I heard a chomping sound.

After that, everything went dark.

...

???

Arthropleura bit down on Sagiri-san. After fulfilling its purpose, Arthropleura dematerialized to prevent cursed energy from being used.

Noticing no corpse, I was alarmed. Then I remembered that despite looking human, Sagiri-san was a curse, which usually don't leave a corpse for more than a minute.

This mission won't reward many contribution points sadly.

Despite entering the Special Grade rank, I still cannot become the leader of the squad. However, I swear one day I will.

Hmmm, I guess I should return to the clan. But first, I will go kill that Sugawara successor.

What was her name? Togoe? Tohore? I'll just find out later when I arrive. That place does have many powerful tools just waiting for me to take after Kiyotomo died. Hahaha!