Chapter 59
Chapter 59
4. The God of the Calling Tide
From the moment we left the house, the roar of crashing waves echoed around us.
No, it was the villagers' voices.
Just like at the place with the stones and pillars, the village was raising its voice all over.
"The Ueto family has died out, I'm so sad!"
"We're sad too!"
"That family did so much for the village!"
From behind fences and from the shadows of utility poles, villagers shouted in unison, eyes wide and lips trembling.
The three of us were being led along the forest path by Kirima's parents.
My thoughts were about to be swept away by the maddening noise, but I had to keep my head straight.
Ueto is dead. I glanced at Kirima, who walked silently beside me with a stiff expression.
He must be in shock, but he's probably forcing himself forward out of a sense of duty.
Right, there's a bigger problem now.
Reizei, at the back of the group, spoke.
"Um, did I do something wrong?"
Kirima's parents kept walking silently. The villagers' voices echoed like crows.
When we reached the top of the forest path slope, I raised my voice.
I could hear Kirima groan too.
"No way..."
Reizei muttered with a contorted expression.
Four pillars illuminated by the bonfire gleamed as if painted with blood. The names inscribed on each were "Kirima", "Masu", "Esato", and "Reizei".
"What the hell is this, some kind of prank...?"
I realized my voice was shaking. The villagers stopped shouting and all turned to look at Reizei.
Kirima's father, a stocky and muscular man, turned to face us.
"That's how it is, Reizei-san."
"What do you mean, that's how it is..."
Kirima exhaled through clenched teeth. His mother gave a strained smile as if to calm him.
"Order is order, you know?"
The couple burst into laughter.
Kirima's eyes widened and he punched his father. The man's body flew and crashed into a pillar.
The impact shook the forest, and as murmurs rose, the villagers began to move. Like a swarm of insects, they surrounded us with a sense of unity.
I didn't feel like we could break through this many. But we had no choice.
While I clenched my fists, Reizei quietly asked,
"So I'm to be the next Ouzu-sama, right? Is it really okay for an outsider to take on such a big role?"
Kirima's mother darted her gaze between her fallen husband and Reizei.
"Yes, well, it's what the god decided."
The villagers all nodded in unison. Reizei sighed and nodded.
"In that case, it can't be helped."
No way. Kirima stood there stunned.
The villagers relaxed slightly and took a step back. Kirima's father stood up, rubbing his cheek.
"Glad you're someone who understands. You should learn from her, Renjirou."
His embarrassed smile, trying to cover up the shame of a public family fight, was disturbingly abnormal.
"Well then, we have to get ready right away. Actually, the previous Ouzu-sama passed away at the same time as Ueto's daughter. Ah, how sad!"
Following Kirima's mother, the villagers pretended to cry again.
Taking advantage of the commotion, I approached Reizei.
"What the hell are you thinking!"
"I don't intend to become a sacrifice either. We can't escape like this. It's smarter to accept it for now. Besides, it's a chance to find out what the God of the Calling Tide really is."
She's insane too. Reizei called me and Kirima over.
"Luckily, Kirima-san is from one of the four great families. He should be involved in the ritual. Wait for the right moment and do something."
"Do something, you say..."
Kirima wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and nodded as if steeling himself.
The villagers were calling for Reizei. She whispered to us and headed toward them.
Kirima lowered his voice.
"Uyuu, there's a secret path from the beach to the cave. Wait there."
The villagers' shadows stretched by the bonfire squirmed. Esato was watching us with clouded eyes.
The night sea writhed like the belly of a giant black dragon.
Listening to the sound of waves crashing against the rocky shore, I headed for the cave Kirima had told me about.
The coast ended midway, and I had to cross rocks floating between the waves. Two whirlpools lined up like the eyes of a monster.
One misstep and you'd be swallowed up.
The sand stuck to the soles of my sneakers soaked up water and felt as heavy as lead. Holding my breath, I moved across the rocks.
I arrived at the rocky area that looked like a shark's jaw from the boat. Sure enough, there was a hollowed-out space beyond the rocks, and the cave seemed to continue.
Violent wave spray hit like buckshot. Damn it.
As I rubbed my chilled arms, I heard footsteps from deep within the cave.
I held my breath and watched. In the darkness, several people were carrying something like a plank. The top of the plank was bulging.
The moment I imagined a corpse on a stretcher, the darkness lit up.
It wasn't that a light had been turned on. Human figures in white garments suddenly filled the cave.
All of them stood still, dazed. They didn't seem human.
Unlike the villagers, they were so pale it was as if they hadn't seen sunlight in decades. Some had pressure sores or lacerations, others had red, blistered skin likely from the salt. Some were missing arms or noses, others had crushed eyes.
The image of the God of Vestiges flashed through my mind, like drowned corpses. So that's why Kirima turned pale back then.
But unlike that god, these white figures all wore vacant smiles.
I nearly fell into the sea and hastily grabbed onto a rock protrusion. I couldn't go forward or back.
"Damn it, not yet...?"
As I cursed, the sound of bells mingled with the crashing waves.
I could also hear singing.
High tide, low tide. When the tide rises, the path disappears. When the tide recedes, it appears. The tide is the fourth tail. It comes when called.
It was the same song I'd heard on the boat. But this time, it wasn't a child's voice. It was the villagers'.
I craned my neck to look at the beach.
Red flames dotted the black coast, rising and falling like flowers swaying in the waves.
The villagers must be shaking the bonfires.
I had to get into the cave soon.
When I finally peeked inside, the figures had vanished.
The color of flames crept along the cave walls like a tongue.
Footsteps, bells, and singing echoed, then stopped.
It seemed the villagers had hung torches on the walls. With a sizzle, the cave was lit up.
The villagers' feet were reflected in the tide pool on the ground. At their center stood Reizei, now dressed in white garments—the same outfit as the figures I'd seen.
I looked around for Kirima. At the front of the villagers, he stood beside Esato.
Kirima's mother's voice echoed.
"It's a little cold, but you'll be fine. We'll pull you up right away."
I saw an old sacred rope floating in the tide pool. When I stared, I noticed rusted stakes driven into the ground at regular intervals.
Hearing the word "pull up" and seeing Reizei surrounded like a criminal filled me with a terrible suspicion.
Tie someone to that rope and throw them into the sea. Let them get caught in the whirlpool, spun around, nearly drown, and then have the villagers pull them back up.
But why would they do such a thing?
The villagers began tying the sacred rope to the ground stakes.
I quietly stepped forward.
Suddenly, I realized Kirima and I hadn't decided on any signal. That guy's always sloppy about that stuff. I had no idea when to jump in.
I strained my ears and heard a faint voice.
"Kirima, you're up to something stupid again, aren't you?"
Esato was whispering something to the Kirima beside him.
"Enough with the mischief. You snuck into the cave during my younger brother's turn too. What were you planning to do if the god appeared?"
They say the Esato family produced the previous Ouzu-sama. Is he talking about his younger brother?
Kirima's face was illuminated by the reflection of the bonfire.
"I can't live like you."
Thunder roared through the cave. The villagers who had been clinging to the sacred rope panicked.
I thought the God of the Calling Tide had appeared, but it wasn't.
"Nobody move!"
At some point, Kirima had drawn a gun and pointed it toward the sky. Stone fragments and seawater rained down from the cave ceiling.
Stifling the urge to laugh, I dashed through the cave all at once.
"You bastards!"
Before Kirima's father could summon the villagers, I drove my knee into his gut with the momentum of my sprint. He flew back with impact. Second time today.
"What a disaster!"
I barreled through the ones surrounding Reizei in her kimono. Kirima used the gun to keep the villagers rushing in from the back at bay.
"What kind of signal was that, Kirima-san?!"
Kirima lifted the corner of his lips in a smirk.
Reizei looked terrified.
She hadn't been scared when she was captured.
There was one more person making the same face. Esato was staring at the sea behind us, pale.
At that moment, a roaring howl drowned out all five senses. My mind went blank.
I remembered what Reizei had whispered to me.
—It's not that there are too few legends. I'm sure the God of the Calling Tide is something humans aren't meant to perceive.