Canticle: Code Caligula

Chapter 29: That Long Summer Night, Part 5

Kokuana Forest, Ema — 7:50 pm. Mura blinked, slightly taken aback by the sight before his eyes. A child was crying, cowering in the bushes. She looked up at Mura with a tear-stained face and terror in her eyes.

"N-No! Get away!!!" the girl cried out. Her arms flailed about in front of her face, like a cornered animal.

With his instincts taking over, Mura closed the distance between himself and the small girl. He pressed his hand over her mouth, muffling the wails. He looked to his right, where the two Shitidama lay not more than a few meters away.

The impossibly thin one tilted its head upwards in response to the distressful cries. Its cranium was elongated and lacking flesh, along with the rest of its body. It was as if the creature's entire body consisted only of polished milk-white bone.

Mura shuffled into the bushes with the child, retracting his weapon.

"Don't worry, I'm your friend. I'm here to rescue you and the other girls," he whispered.

Talking in a soothing tone, the girl's struggles slowly stopped and a sense of calm glazed over her eyes. Still, he kept his hand over her mouth just in case she became scared from the alerted monster ahead.

The Shitidama craned its head again, causing a low creaking noise to escape from its porcelain joints. The beast's eye sockets were completely hollow, with blue flickering flames lit from within. The fiery eyes darted over to the patch of trees that hid the bush they occupied.

It let loose a groaning moan that reverberated out of its mouth. The sound was an ethereal, bone-chilling sensation that made Mura and the small child shudder. Above them, the leaves rustled briefly before something flew away.

—Was that the killer again?

Mura peeked upwards to spot an owl flying away from the tree, clearly spooked from the Shitidama. The monster saw the bird escape from the area as well and seemingly satisfied, lowered itself back to the ground and returned to its slumber.

Breathing a soft sigh of relief, Mura freed the girl from his grasp.

"Are you okay?" the demon said in a hushed voice.

The little girl nodded her head, causing the red ribbon in her hair to bob slightly.

"T-Those monsters fell asleep... the man who kidnapped me went out of the cave earlier, so I-I wanted to be brave and try to go home to my mommy and daddy..." she sniffled.

"It's great that she's alive and brave and all, but she almost got us killed right there." Lilith remarked within Mura's mind.

—I agree, she can't stay here. But if she's alive, it leaves hope for Tomoe and Junko.

"Listen, okay? You were very brave and I'm sure your mommy and daddy are waiting for you. But for now, I have to go into that cave and rescue the other girls in there, okay?"

The girl nodded and wiped her nose on her sleeve.

"What do you want me to do, mister?"

"I need you to stay here out of sight, okay? If anything bad happens, run away as fast as you can. Can you do that for me, kiddo?"

The little girl forced a smile, saluting Mura in an effort to seem more mature. He grinned in return and flashed a toothy smile.

"I'm a professional, you're in good hands."

Mura turned his attention to the flickering light bouncing off the cavernous walls. The entrance wasn't too far away, but with a Shitidama on either side he'd have to be careful. Going in guns blazing would only serve to endanger himself and the hostages. With stealth in mind, he could hopefully escort them all out with the enemy being none the wiser.