After hearing what Shinkuji had to say, Futakuchi-onna initially thought she was being wildly unrealistic.
But the moment her eyes fell upon the purple crystals in Shinkuji's hand, she froze—completely unable to look away.
The translucent violet shards shimmered with an eerie glow, and as a yokai, she could feel it instinctively—
Those crystals possessed a fatal, irresistible allure.
There was no doubt about it. What Shinkuji had taken out were Demonic Energy Crystals—and not the low-grade kind distributed to lesser yokai.
As one of Ren Kuroda's earliest followers—and one of his most trusted retainers—the crystals in Shinkuji's possession were among the highest-grade ones Ren had.
He had only given them to her the day before. Originally, she intended to use them to break through her SS-class bottleneck.
But now, in this desperate situation, she had no choice but to hand them over to Futakuchi-onna.
Even if she used them herself and managed to reach the SSS tier, Shinkuji knew it wouldn't buy her much time against the God of Candlelight.
Their compatibility was simply too poor.
Against a being like that—one who was practically her natural enemy—her odds were abysmal.
By contrast, if Futakuchi-onna could grow stronger, she might be able to stall the enemy longer.
"…Something this valuable… you're really giving it to me? Don't regret it later."
Holding the crystal, Futakuchi-onna looked seriously at Shinkuji, who was still forming spheres of demonic energy and firing them relentlessly toward the God of Candlelight.
"Stop wasting time. I'm doing this so we all survive. No matter how valuable something is, it's meaningless if you're dead."
Hearing that, Futakuchi-onna hesitated no longer.
She threw all the crystals into her mouth at once.
For most yokai, swallowing that much condensed demonic energy in one go would cause their bodies to rupture.
But for Futakuchi-onna, it was a different story.
Her innate ability was devouring.
Her digestive power was monstrous—she could consume anything.
A torrent of violent, surging demonic energy flooded through her body.
Her nearly depleted reserves were instantly replenished, like parched earth finally receiving a torrential downpour.
Not only was her power restored to its peak, but it surged beyond it—bursting outward in visible waves.
In just a few fleeting moments—
She broke through.
And not just from S+ to SS−.
She leapt an entire tier, directly into the SS class.
Even more shocking to her was the absence of any backlash.
Normally, forcibly boosting one's power like this came with severe side effects.
But right now, aside from the overwhelming surge of strength, her body felt… perfectly stable.
"…What did you just do?"
The God of Candlelight, who had been observing the battlefield, naturally noticed the sudden change.
Her expression shifted, a flicker of surprise crossing her face.
"There's no 'fear' here for you to draw on… yet you've broken through? And across an entire tier?"
Yokai grew stronger by feeding on human fear.
Gods advanced through human faith.
Neither was something that could be achieved instantly—especially not without a large human presence nearby.
And yet, Futakuchi-onna had just done exactly that.
It made no sense.
Now elevated to SS-class, Futakuchi-onna immediately took the front line, replacing Shinkuji and engaging the God of Candlelight in direct combat.
Shinkuji's threads couldn't bind the god—every strand burned away the moment it touched her.
But that didn't mean Shinkuji was out of options.
She shifted roles—becoming a support.
Her threads shot outward, latching onto nearby trees and massive stones, manipulating them like puppets.
With a violent wrench, boulders weighing dozens of tons were ripped from the ground and hurled toward the God of Candlelight.
Now that these gods had descended into the physical world, they possessed tangible forms.
Such attacks might not kill them—but causing damage was still possible.
The God of Candlelight had just incinerated Futakuchi-onna's energy projectiles and was about to press the attack—
when she noticed the massive stones crashing down from above.
"…Tch. How annoying."
With clear irritation, she vanished in a flash, effortlessly evading the assault.
Then—
her expression darkened.
Her patience had run out.
"Candlelight Guides All Living Beings."
Frustrated at being unable to quickly defeat the two, the God of Candlelight unleashed a special technique—like a petulant child throwing a tantrum.
In an instant—
Futakuchi-onna found herself swallowed by darkness.
Pitch black.
She couldn't see anything.
She couldn't sense Shinkuji.
She couldn't feel Ayami.
It was as if she had been completely isolated from the world.
Then—
a tiny flame flickered in the distance.
Small.
Fragile.
Yet it was the only light in that suffocating void.
It illuminated a small space, pushing back the darkness just enough to offer warmth… and an illusion of safety.
Without realizing it, Futakuchi-onna began to move.
Step by step, her body walked toward the flame.
As if guided by an unseen voice—
Follow the light.
Only by following the candlelight can you escape the darkness.
It will lead you home.
Her eyes grew unfocused.
Her expression turned vacant.
And yet her steps remained steady—drawing ever closer to the flame.
What she didn't notice—
was that as she approached, her demonic energy was being consumed like fuel.
Burning.
Her kimono ignited, disintegrating in an instant.
Her pale skin blistered and charred, blackened patches spreading across her body.
And still—
she felt nothing.
No pain.
No fear.
Only the compulsion to reach the light.
Just as her hands were about to touch the flame—
A strand of spider silk shot through the darkness, wrapping tightly around her waist.
In the next instant, she was yanked backward.
"Hey! What the hell were you doing?! Why were you walking straight into her flames?!"
Shinkuji's voice cut through the haze.
Dragged back to safety, Futakuchi-onna blinked—and her consciousness snapped back.
And then—
the pain hit.
A searing, unbearable agony spread through her body.
Only now did she realize just how badly she had been burned.
Moments ago, her mind had been completely numbed.
Now, with clarity restored, the torment came crashing in all at once.