The Beginning of Shadows
What do humans fear the most? Is it being lost? Losing money? The dark? Losing everything? No, it's death.
Morinaka Village
Deep in the forest, for decades, the village of Morinaka lived in complete isolation from the outside world. Its residents had never seen cities, nor even heard the sound of wheels... until that day.
When the sky was dark, the village was filled with blood. Torn bodies were scattered everywhere—on the ground, on top of collapsed roofs. Most of the wooden houses had been destroyed.
The green grass that once covered the ground was stained with the color of coagulated blood, and the smell of rotting flesh spread through the air.
The village had been attacked by bandits. No one survived... not a child... not an elder.
One of the bandits sat atop a villager's corpse. His face was pale, his body thin, and dark circles surrounded his eyes. He looked at the corpses in disgust and said angrily, "Seriously, why was this village so poor? Even its people looked weird." Then he sighed and added, "In the end, we shouldn't have attacked an isolated village."
One of his companions, who was pulling his sword out of a corpse, replied, "In the end, it's a village outside the empire. It's always at risk of being attacked by them at any moment."
While wiping his sword, he noticed that one of the corpses had a wide smile—so terrifying that his expression changed in seconds.
The bandit collapsed to his knees first, then fell to the ground. His hands trembled until he dropped his sword. Cold sweat dripped onto his face. His pupils dilated. His mind refused to believe what he saw.
A tall, strong man appeared before him, with messy brown hair and black eyes. He shouted angrily, swinging his sword: "How long will you keep babbling?"
It became clear that he was the bandits' leader. He wore tattered clothes no different from his comrades, his outfit soaked with the blood of the villagers. His sword was massive, the size of an arm. He looked up at the sky, a calm expression on his face, and said in a low voice, "Alright, it seems night has fallen. We'll camp near this village—we don't know if they'll attack us."
One of the bandits mocked him: "Do you actually believe that myth, or are you afraid of the samurai?"
The leader, veins visible and anger spreading across his face from his follower's mockery, replied: "If you're that confident, then you'll take the night watch. If by morning you're raven food, we'll know they're real. But if you live, mock as much as you want."
The bandit smirked and said, "Fine, I accept your challenge. But if I'm right, you must accept my request."
– "And what is your request?"
The bandit stared into the leader's eyes and said, "That I challenge you to a duel."
– "Fine, I accept your offer."
The bandit smiled slyly and added, "I hope you mean it and don't run away." He looked at his blood-covered hands, stained with a strange deep red darker than normal human blood, then raised his eyes to the dark trees and blood-soaked grass, and walked away.
At Midnight
The bandits camped near the ruined village. Fog covered the area, making it impossible to see—even nearby trees were hard to distinguish. At the same time, the bandit was both happy and anxious. His feelings were mixed. Even though he might become the bandits' leader, there was still a chance he'd become dog food. This equation froze him; he couldn't express how he felt. His fingers trembled as he thought to himself, "Is he telling the truth? Is he really not afraid of the samurai?" Then he calmed down and said after brushing off his fear, "No, he must be lying."
As he pondered, the sound of a twig snapping rang out. The bandit froze in fear, then muttered as cold sweat dripped onto the ground, "It must be... I must be tired from lack of sleep... I'm just imagining things." But the sound grew louder. Tree branches started shaking, as if someone was moving among them. The bandit panicked and said in a trembling voice, "Seems I wasn't imagining after all." His eyes darted around until he spotted a samurai's shadow. His fear intensified, and his eyes widened as the shadow approached. He began running toward the camp, thinking to himself while cold sweat drenched the ground and his trembling body barely moved, "I have to warn them."
But before he could reach them, he felt something sharp. That was the last thing he ever felt—his body was sliced in half. His upper body fell to the ground first, his eyes still open in a look of shock and fear. His lower body landed a few feet away. His blood splattered across the trees as the shadow moved toward the bandits' camp. His final words, gasped through unbearable pain, were: "Looks like I ended up dog food... the leader was right."
Bandit Camp
Eight tents had been set up. The largest one belonged to the bandit leader. He was deep in thought about the village's residents, whose appearances were strange—some corpses didn't even resemble humans, almost as if they were yokai. But if they truly were yokai, they would've been killed instantly and eaten for dinner.
Sound of quick footsteps
The tent flap opened, and one of the bandits rushed in, breathing heavily, and shouted: "You need to see what's happening outside right now!"
The bandit leader immediately drew his massive sword and stepped outside—only to freeze in place at what he saw. The camp was filled with dismembered bodies of his men. Blood covered everything. In front of him stood a samurai. His face was hidden, but he wore a ronin hat and a black kimono. A katana sheath was strapped to his back. His face remained obscured by the hat, but his silver hair was visible. In shock, the leader turned to his companion—only to find him reduced to chunks of meat. The stench was unbearable due to the sheer number of corpses. Realizing he couldn't escape, the leader decided to attack the unmoving samurai. He charged with his massive sword—but before he could reach him, he fell to the ground. Not his body—his head. Then the rest of his body followed, and the place was soaked in the blood of the bandits, slain by the samurai.
That samurai was Akayama.
Akayama's full form appeared. His eyes glowed red. He smiled and looked at the corpses without a hint of emotion, then turned his gaze to the village, which began fading like a mirage.
– "Seems this wasn't an ordinary village. That explains why I came here. So, was this village cursed? If their death was inevitable—either by my hand or the yokai's..."
After the village completely vanished, Akayama continued:
– "This world was filled with creatures that resembled humans—and others that didn't resemble them at all. They were yokai, born from the fusion of many souls into terrifying beings. Some hunted humans, while others were peaceful. But their existence had negative effects on this world. Once, there was balance between humans and beasts. But when the yokai came, a war erupted between the three—humans, beasts, and yokai. A war that destroyed many kingdoms and empires. A war that changed history. No one truly won. Only three empires remained, while the rest became curses, overtaken by yokai and spirits. Yokai differed from beasts—most yokai embodied human fears, while others were born for revenge. That's why the samurai existed in the empire of Kagutsuchi."
Akayama smiled, looking toward the sky:
– "This world is truly strange. Humans thought the rulers were on their side—but they were wrong. The truth is that the rulers caused all of this. This world is void of life... and I must end it."