9. He was simply a superman.
“What are you doing? Stop right now!” Emiko’s voice rang out with authority, and Sai Jou Nagi frowned deeply.
“Why? Why are you doing this to me?” The girl was both frightened and shocked.
The gang leader twisted his motorcycle’s handlebars, and the five bikes circled around her.
“Because you’re basically a little monster. We have to deal with you before you grow into a big one.”
“That’s right. The ‘Witch’ only appeared because of you. Get out of this village!”
The girl called Sayuki shouted in protest, “I didn’t! The ‘Witch’ hasn’t done anything wrong. I just want to get along with everyone. Why are you treating me like this?”
Her weak defense drew loud laughter from the five gang members. “Why? She actually asks why. Do we care about something like that?”
“Stop it this instant!” At that moment, the bespectacled village chief approached. “Are you causing trouble again? Haven’t you seen the Victory Squad have arrived?”
After being scolded, the gang members turned their bikes away and left. Before they departed, they taunted Sayuki one last time: “Haha, the Victory Squad is here. That ‘Witch’ will be wiped out by them. Let’s see who’s got your back then.”
Hearing this, Sayuki glanced at the four members of the Victory Squad, pursed her lips, and ran off into the thick white snow.
“Village chief, what was that just now…” Sai Jou Nagi stepped forward, frowning.
“Those street racers? They call themselves the ‘Satan Gang.’ They’re always gathering to make trouble, bullying their way around. When outsiders come to visit, they extort and scare them.”
“They race their bikes at night, making noise and screeching, keeping us all awake. The villagers curse whenever they hear their name.”
Kishida asked, “Did they say that girl is a little monster?”
The village chief replied, “They bully Sayuki because she’s an orphan. No one stands up for her.”
He sighed softly and began to recount Sayuki’s past.
“That was fifteen years ago, on a night when the snow was falling thick. A mother and daughter appeared from nowhere.”
“The mother succumbed to hunger and cold, but the baby in her arms was unharmed.”
“Because of that, the villagers say she’s the daughter of the Snow Woman.”
Yamanaka said, “So that’s why she’s always bullied?”
The chief continued, “An old charcoal burner took her in, but he passed away two years ago. The girl is cute and beautiful, but everyone says she’s the ‘Witch’s’ daughter, so no one likes her.”
Emiko glanced toward the direction Sayuki had gone. “How has this child managed to survive?”
Her own father had disappeared three years ago, so Emiko could sympathize with the girl’s feelings.
Kishida was more concerned about the immediate threat. “So, what exactly is the ‘Witch’?”
The village chief admitted, “I’m no expert, but since the ‘Witch’ appeared, tourists have dropped sharply, and even the mountain rescue team dares not come. For the village’s future, it has to be dealt with.”
***
Emiko stayed behind to continue gathering information.
“Vice-captain, someone said that when the ‘Witch’ appeared, they saw the girl Sayuki shouting at it, ‘Don’t use violence, go back to the mountains,’ and then it disappeared.”
Sai Jou Nagi replied, “Could be coincidence. Keep gathering intel.”
The other three sledded along the trail, following the map provided by the village chief, heading toward the valley where the ‘Witch’ was rumored to have left footprints.
But half an hour later, they realized something was wrong.
Yamanaka pulled out the map. “Why do we seem to be getting farther away from the valley marked on the map?”
Kishida said, “Someone’s tampered with the signs? There’s no magnetic fog here; let’s use satellite positioning instead.”
Suddenly, Sai Jou Nagi spun around sharply. “Who’s there?”
A little girl in a red padded jacket was hiding behind a withered tree, peeking at them. It was Sayuki.
“Was it you? Do you even know who we are?” Yamanaka immediately recognized her as the culprit who had misled them and lunged forward to grab her.
Sayuki shouted, “You people are terrible! You destroy monsters without knowing right from wrong!”
Upon hearing this, the corner of Sai Jou Nagi’s eye twitched.
“Terrible people?” Yamanaka said, “What are you talking about? The Victory Squad fights monsters to protect human peace!”
“You’re lying! You came to kill the ‘Witch,’ but it hasn’t done anything bad!” The girl raised her hand and sprinkled snow into Yamanaka’s face before running off into the distance.
Yamanaka wiped the snow from his mask and scowled, “Damn!”
He was angry but restrained himself; after all, he had to keep his cool even when dealing with the boastful Ki Akira, let alone a child.
At that moment, their PDI communicators buzzed. Emiko’s voice came through: “Ki Akira’s emergency locator has been activated. The rescue team is already en route.”
Yamanaka, boiling with frustration, sneered, “If he has a locator, why does he still need a rescue team? He talks big but can’t deliver. I want to ask if he actually saw the monster in the mountains.”
Sai Jou Nagi said, “The priority is dealing with the ‘Witch.’ Let’s use satellite positioning again to find the valley.”
After taking a long detour, they reached the correct location. They searched thoroughly but only found the monster’s footprints — no sign of the creature itself.
Emiko called again, “Latest update: The two missing university students used their locator to call for help. They say they encountered the monster in the mountains!”
“Huh?” Yamanaka was stunned, frozen in place. Kishida looked as if he had seen a ghost.
***
With no results from the search, the three returned to the village. The rescue helicopter had brought the two students to Snow Village so the Victory Squad could question them face-to-face.
One of the students, who had met Ki Akira, described him as confident and courageous, treating the fifty-meter monster like a dog, buying time for their escape.
Emiko listened in disbelief. “That impressive?”
“Turns out there really is a monster. That guy guessed right,” Kishida said, feeling somewhat ashamed.
Yamanaka lowered his head, unconsciously scraping his heel against the ground.
His earlier words had been a pointed jab, implying Ki Akira feared real danger and insisted on lingering in the foggy mountain chasing an imaginary monster.
Now, not only was the monster confirmed, but Ki Akira had faced it head-on... Has he always been this brave?
Watching the news in the command room, Captain Moroboshi felt reassured. Despite Ki Akira’s aloofness, he had remained steadfast in crisis, proving his resolve right.
Only Sai Jou Nagi frowned. “Going alone into the deep mountains to hold off the monster? That’s courting death.”
The student said, “Not really. He can jump three meters high; the monster can’t hit him, but he can strike the monster. He’s like a superhero!”
Kishida thought to himself, “Jump three meters? That’s beyond the world high jump record. Why not just say he can fly? Even praising your savior can’t be this exaggerated.”
He asked, “So, what does the monster actually look like?”
“Pointed head, two claw-like hands, walks on two legs like a human, body looks like stacked tires.”
Another student disagreed, “No, what kind of eyesight do you have? The monster’s head is round and flat; its body is smooth, and it doesn’t have claws on its hands.”
“Maybe the problem’s you. Even with the fog, you shouldn’t see it that differently!”
The two students immediately argued, leaving the Victory Squad members with complicated expressions.
Sai Jou Nagi said, “They’re probably so mentally stressed they’re hallucinating.”
Kishida asked, “Then is their information even reliable?”
Yamanaka, who had been downcast moments ago, regained his composure.
“No wonder Ki Akira found them. Seems like dreamers attract each other.”
“People can’t jump three meters high, and the monster’s head can’t be both round and pointed.”
At that moment, the helicopter pilot spoke up:
“Um, may I say something?”
“When I was rescuing them, I heard a loud commotion from the other side of the mountain—terrifying roars. There really must be a monster.”
Yamanaka fell silent once again.