Emiya Shirou doesn't want to work overtime

If he were to encounter one, he would prefer to stop the monsters before they kill people, rather than kill them after he discovers they are killing someone.

Those are all human lives!

Emiya clenched his fists tightly as he thought of this; he simply could not tolerate the existence of such a creature that could disregard human life.

"Let's just pick a direction and hopefully find some residents before we run out of food."

Watching the sun slowly rise, Emiya shouldered his bag and headed away along the river.

It is certainly safer to walk during the day than at night. He is not some kind of dark creature and will receive many blessings at night.

It's more accurate to say that humans receive many debuffs in the dark. For safety reasons, it's safer to leave during the day, which is also the habit of most people.

When you drive back to your hometown, do you choose to leave at 9 am and arrive at 2 pm, or leave at 9 pm and arrive at 2 am? This is a very obvious choice.

Following the river also makes it easier to find settlements.

Low wooden houses were scattered along both sides of the path. Emiya, who was walking along the river, had not walked for half a day when he saw a village that looked very simple.

The village is not directly surrounded by forests, because the river in this section is relatively gentle. It seems that the area around the village is filled with rice paddies that the villagers have cultivated themselves.

Emiya also saw many villagers working in the fields.

Seeing this, Emiya breathed a sigh of relief, but his heart was also filled with doubt.

Judging from the fact that he had only been in the village for half a day, the inn was not far from the village, and there were already many travelers inside.

Logically speaking, this hotel should be accepting guests quite frequently, but for some reason, he stayed at the hotel for five days in a row and didn't see a single person.

However, this thought only briefly crossed Emiya's mind before he gave up on it.

Even if we know why no one goes to the hotel, what difference does it make? Rather, if fewer people live in those deep mountains and forests, the chances of encountering such monsters would be even smaller.

Moreover, Emiya now needs to figure out where he is.

"Excuse me, do you know where Fuyuki City is?"

"What city? Say it again?"

The old man who was plowing the field seemed to have hearing problems. He squinted and stood in front of Emiya, asking him a question loudly.

Emiya was also intimidated by his strong muscles and couldn't help but back away.

"Excuse me, do you know where Fuyuki City is?"

Fuyuki City? I don't know it!

"If you walk this road and get to the town, someone there should know where Fuyuki City is."

The old man tapped his ear and answered Emiya's question loudly.

"Township?"

Emiya began to lose hope of ever returning to Fuyuki City.

Whether it's the lifestyle, language, or buildings of the people in this village.

Emiya was almost certain that he was not in his own time, but had returned to an earlier period in Japanese history.

It's important to know that modern mobile phones and televisions are practically essential in every household. To get information from the outside world or to contact others, mobile phones are absolutely necessary.

There wasn't a single trace of it in the village.

As for clothing, it goes without saying that the difference between modern people's clothes and those of people in ancient times is enormous.

At first, Emiya thought this was some secluded little village.

But according to the old man's answer...

It's obvious that this place is connected to the outside world, but if it were connected to the outside world, it wouldn't look so backward.

too weird.

“It’s getting late, and it’s not convenient for you to travel now. Why don’t you stay in the village and rest for the night before you leave?”

The old man, seeing Emiya deep in thought, assumed he was hesitating about going to town because it was getting dark.

Chapter Nine: Traveling at Night is Dangerous

Emiya did not answer immediately.

He was also hesitant about whether to travel at night.

It wasn't because he felt it was wrong to accept the old man's invitation.

If he encounters someone like him who has nowhere to live and needs a place to stay temporarily, Emiya will lend a helping hand without seeking anything in return.

This certainly doesn't mean that Emiya intends to stay at the old man's house for free. If he chooses to accept the old man's kindness, Emiya will of course pay for the accommodation. He hopes to help others unconditionally, rather than being helped unconditionally by others.

To be precise, Emiya can accept helping others unconditionally, but he cannot accept enjoying others' unconditional help; he must make his own contribution.

But these were not the main reasons Emiya was thinking.

Emiya is now thinking about the monster he encountered earlier.

Traveling at night like this, although it's unclear whether you'll encounter such monsters, is certainly more dangerous than during the day.

Are there any dangerous things that could happen if we travel at night?

Emiya decided to ask the locals. He had just arrived in this place and was unfamiliar with the area. He had his own judgment, but the information was severely lacking, so any judgment he made would be unreliable.

"It's mainly about wild animals and such. If you're asking about rumors—"

The old man thought for a moment, then his tone became somewhat somber, as if he were recalling something terrifying.

"If you wander outside at night, you'll get eaten by ghosts!"

The old man's voice suddenly became intense, and he pulled at the corners of his eyes and mouth with both hands, making a very comical face.

"Uncle, you really have a lot of energy!"

Emiya responded with an awkward but polite smile.

Have you ever seen a ghost?

"This is just to scare those ignorant kids who always want to run into the woods. There are no ghosts in the world. Those are all rumors. I've lived this long and have never seen a ghost."

The old man waved his hand, indicating that he did not believe in such rumors that frighten children at all.

Emiya nodded slightly upon hearing the old man's reply.

Although he was convinced that the creatures called ghosts truly existed, it was clear that most of the people living in this area had never actually seen one.

There are basically only a few possibilities then.

The first possibility is that Emiya was extremely lucky and happened to encounter a creature that is extremely rare to find in this world, much like the vampires on his side, who have basically disappeared completely.

The kind that's hard to find even if you're really looking for it.

The second possibility is that Japan in this era also had organizations or official bodies similar to magicians that regulated or concealed such supernatural powers. Ordinary people were unaware of his existence, just as they were unaware of magicians.

"Does this legendary man-eating demon have any weaknesses?"

Emiya circled his head.

"This is just a rumor to scare children; ghosts don't actually exist in the world."

The old man looked at Emiya with some doubt. Logically speaking, most people living here should know about the stories of demons and what their weaknesses are.

However, the old man didn't think too deeply about it, assuming that Emiya had simply forgotten the horror stories that had accompanied them throughout their childhood.

"First, sunlight; second, wisteria blossoms. These are the ghosts' weaknesses."

"Sunshine?"

Emiya suddenly remembered that when he woke up earlier, the sunlight had completely enveloped his body.

However, judging by the timeline, the ghost should have been able to kill him before the sunlight hit him.

"Alright, kid, do you have any more questions? If you do, come to my house and ask me. I'll let you in on a secret: I have a very beautiful granddaughter!"

The old man looked up and saw that the sky was gradually darkening. If he went back now, he should be able to have a hot dinner.

"Cough! Cough!"

Emiya was startled by the old man's sudden remark and began to cough violently.

"Hey, young people these days can't resist temptation. They get so excited just hearing how pretty my granddaughter is. If they actually saw her, they'd probably fall over on the spot."

"No, no need. I have urgent business in town, so I won't bother you any longer."

Emiya quickly waved his hand in refusal and retreated behind him.

"Hey, traveling at night is dangerous."

The old man quickly went up to try and stop Emiya.

"No, don't worry about me. At least I can protect myself at night."

When Emiya saw the old man trying to stop him, he panicked and quickly ran towards the town the old man had mentioned.

"Thank you!"

As he ran, he kept turning back to thank the old man.

"This kid!"

The old man sighed and left in the opposite direction.

He wasn't too worried. A road had been built between the village and the town. Although there were no lights, the overall safety was guaranteed, whether it was night or day. At least, they wouldn't be suddenly attacked by wild animals.

Furthermore, I haven't heard of anyone encountering any accidents while traveling to towns.

Although many of the people who went to town didn't reply much, most of the people in the village who went to town would only reply or return to the village many years later, which was basically no different from disappearing. So the old man didn't think too much about it and headed towards his home with peace of mind.

After jogging for a while, Emiya left the main area of ​​the village, but he could still see some houses built inside the woods.

It seems that many people prefer a quiet atmosphere, which is why their residences are relatively far from the village.

There's a reason why the inn is so far from the village. Judging from the clothes and bedding inside, the innkeeper must be a wealthy man, and a rather reclusive one at that.

"I don't know how far the town is from this village."

Emiya didn't ask any further questions. He only knew that the road led to the town, and in that situation, asking any more questions might actually lead him back to the old man's house.