Deep within the forest, several men with shifty, unsavory faces—clearly the kind you wouldn't trust at a glance—were sprinting frantically through the underbrush, each carrying two large sacks over their shoulders.
In today's world, encountering yokai was no longer something unimaginable for ordinary people.
But what these human traffickers never expected was that, in such a remote wilderness, they would run into a yokai this powerful.
These days, most strong yokai had migrated toward cities and towns, where dense human populations could better satisfy their needs.
The ones that remained in sparsely populated areas were usually harmless—or too weak to pose any real threat to humans.
All of them were B-rank gene-enhanced soldiers. Under normal circumstances, even if they encountered a B-rank yokai, they would be able to fight it.
But the female yokai they had just faced… they couldn't even determine her exact strength.
One thing was certain—
She was at least A-rank. A terrifying existence far beyond them.
How did they know?
Because there had originally been five of them.
And in a single exchange, two of their companions had been torn clean in half.
Just when they thought they were as good as dead, a small figure suddenly appeared.
They didn't understand a word the little one was saying, but when they saw her step in and block that terrifying female yokai, the traffickers didn't hesitate.
They ran.
"Do you think that little runt got killed already? This forest's huge—if she went down in a few moves, we're screwed!"
"Isn't this all because of Third? What kind of garbage location did he pick?
Didn't he swear up and down this place was safe? Said there was just a hot spring inn nearby and not a single decent yokai around?
The goods we've got this time are top-tier—and the buyer's already lined up. If we mess this up, we're taking a massive loss!"
As they fled wildly through the forest, the men bickered and blamed each other.
Thanks to their enhanced bodies, their speed was nothing to scoff at.
And just as they realized that the Futakuchi-onna hadn't caught up to them—and they were about to escape—
A sudden rustling sound came from the dense forest ahead.
In the next instant, a massive spider leapt out in front of them.
Its enormous fangs clicked and writhed as it let out a chilling hiss, blocking their path.
And as the giant spider screeched, movement echoed from all around.
Under the traffickers' horrified gazes, more massive shapes began to crawl out from the shadows, surrounding them from every direction.
Thus began a banquet of blood.
Scenes of yokai hunting for flesh were the kind that could scar a person for life.
Fortunately, the kidnapped children—still sealed inside the sacks—didn't witness the gruesome spectacle firsthand.
But the piercing screams echoing from outside were more than enough to fill their hearts with terror.
They didn't know what was happening out there.
But from the sounds of it… those bad men had been attacked by monsters.
What would happen next?
They didn't know.
After all, yokai weren't known for being picky eaters.
If anything, children were considered one of their favorite delicacies.
Curled up inside the sacks, the children trembled in fear.
Faced with the looming shadow of death, all they could do was sob and cry helplessly.
Yet after several agonizing minutes of dread…
Everything suddenly went quiet.
When the sacks were finally untied and they were allowed to see the light of day again—
What greeted them wasn't a group of ferocious monsters.
But a group of kind-looking older brothers and sisters.
—
In the end, Ren Kuroda didn't kill the Candleflame Goddess.
One reason was that his mother, Amamiya Masami, believed the goddess was essentially just a child at heart. With a bit of proper guidance, she could still be set on the right path.
The other reason was that Ren wanted to extract more information about the gods from her.
After all, if they were destined to become enemies, then understanding their opponents was crucial.
Compared to how much the gods seemed to know about the lower world, Ren and the others knew almost nothing about them.
After learning that her so-called "devout followers" had been nothing more than a misunderstanding, the Candleflame Goddess was utterly devastated.
Her face turned ashen, like all the light had drained out of her.
But under the gentle comfort of Amamiya Masami's overwhelmingly maternal presence, she eventually regained some of her spirit.
Saved from death… and treated with such kindness…
Having been deceived shortly after descending into the lower world—and then thoroughly beaten—the Candleflame Goddess now sincerely believed that Amamiya Masami was the kindest person in existence.
And in order to preserve her own life, she had no choice but to compromise.
For the time being, she obediently became Ren's captive.
—
When Ren and the others returned to the hot spring inn, Yamato Miku—who had been waiting anxiously—was stunned the moment she saw the Candleflame Goddess.
As a capable exorcist, Yamato Miku could immediately sense that the aura emanating from the girl was fundamentally different from that of a yokai.
No normal human had a candle flame burning atop their head.
And if she wasn't a yokai…
Then she could only be a god.
Which meant—
Ren and the others had just casually gone out… and come back with a captured deity.
"Alright," Ren said, fixing his gaze on the Candleflame Goddess. "Start talking.
Among the gods, how strong is the strongest one?
How much longer will the barrier between the divine realm and the human world hold?
How many gods have already descended—and roughly how strong are they?
And most importantly… do gods have any common weaknesses?"
The questions came rapid-fire, one after another.
The Candleflame Goddess initially looked like she wanted to resist.
But the moment she saw Ren reach toward the candle flame on her head—as if he intended to snuff it out—
She immediately caved.
Without holding anything back, she began spilling everything she knew.
According to her, the divine realm was vast.
In the region she came from, the most powerful deities were the great gods Izanagi and Izanami.
Below them were high-ranking deities such as Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo.
Further down were the various major gods—like the gods of wind, thunder, and so on.
As for herself, the Candleflame Goddess served under Kagutsuchi, the God of Fire—who, in myth, was the very being whose birth led to Izanami's death and her descent into the underworld.
The gods themselves were divided into factions. They weren't united.
But when it came to one particular matter, their stance was surprisingly consistent.
No matter how fiercely they fought among themselves, those were conflicts between gods.
But if humanity were allowed to continue developing unchecked—
Before they could even settle their own disputes…
They would be forgotten.
Erased entirely from existence.