January 29, 2023
"Big brother Sizhu, have you ever eaten a magical creature?"
It was past midnight. Three hours had passed since Sizhu and Qing were attacked by the human-faced, human-limbed fish Witch. Finally, both their boats were moored on the riverbank.
Several other small boats from villagers were also moored near the wooden bridge, including Qing's father's boat.
Qing's father, his son, and Sizhu were getting ready to head to Qing's house.
Sizhu offered to help carry the day's catch—an entire large wooden bucket filled with flopping big fish.
Meanwhile, the father and son carried their fishing tools: nets, rods, spears, and an empty wooden bucket once used to hold bait. Only a few weakly wriggling worms remained inside.
"Hmm, master used to bring me meat from the forest. I never asked what it was, but whatever it was, anything master cooked always tasted delicious."
Sizhu was chatting with Qing as Qing's father led the way ahead, passing several dark, unlit houses.
"Master Sizhu must be as strong and cool as you, big brother Sizhu. Then why aren't you with him now?" Qing asked innocently. His clothes, once soaked, had dried during the journey.
"My master has... passed away. That's why I left that place."
Qing looked sorrowful. "I didn't know... I'm sorry."
Sizhu didn't pay much mind. He also wasn't entirely sure what he had felt when his master died. He didn't cry. He merely paused, then carried out his master's final instruction—to bury his body in front of their hut.
"By the way, what are those plates? I saw many dishes placed outside their houses." Sizhu asked curiously, noticing the plates set out in front of every villager's yard.
The plates held various raw fish, raw chicken, and fruits.
What's more, the meat was uncooked. Sizhu asked because his master had never done such a thing.
"Ah, that's because—"
"That's because this village is called the Cursed Village. Anyone who lives here and doesn't offer tribute every night... their home or someone in it will be cursed by *it*."
Qing's father was the one who answered. He trembled with fear as he spoke and quickened his pace, as if afraid something would soon emerge in the dead of night.
"Cursed village?" Sizhu turned to Qing.
"Yes, this village has a guardian. But if we don't give offerings every night to that guardian, someone from the house—or the house itself—will be killed."
"Killed? Why? Isn't there anyone who can fight that creature?" Sizhu asked in disbelief.
*If there really is a threat, wouldn't the villagers be able to at least gang up and defeat one dangerous creature? Or is it some powerful Witch that lives nearby?
Qing shook his head. "You might be really strong, big brother Sizhu, but that creature is fast and terrifying. Even strong Hunter Agents couldn't defeat it."
"Hunter Agents?"
Qing nodded once. "Yes, they're the ones who hunt Witches and magical creatures. After my mom was eaten by it—we had just moved to this village and didn't know the rules—Father send a mail to the city to ask Hunter Agents for help.
"Twelve star-two Hunters and one star-three Hunter were sent here. They searched for it all night. But the next morning..."
Qing paled, unable to continue. He remembered the tragic sight from that morning when he had just learned to walk.
"What happened?" Sizhu asked curiously. From the way Qing described it, this situation seemed complex and serious.
How strong is this creature, to the point that the whole village is called cursed?
"They died. Their heads were hung in the forest... and their guts were left dangling. There, it left a message."
"'Humans, send more of these people. I will slaughter every human in your village before you can even scream in fear.'"
Qing's father finished the story. Meanwhile, Qing was shivering beside Sizhu, almost dropping his belongings if Sizhu hadn't steadied him with a hand on his shoulder.
"I see... then why don't all of you leave this village?"
"We can't. Aside from the village being cursed by it, there are certain conditions that make people unwilling to leave.
"Our livestock thrives, fruits and crops are abundant. The fish in the river are huge. Also, there's something that keeps us from leaving—unless it's during a specific time. If we try to leave outside that time, it will curse that person the moment morning comes."
Sizhu became more puzzled.
What exactly is this village? And what is that creature?
"Besides, leaving at the permitted time is like committing suicide. The Forbidden Forest isn't far from here. Magical creatures like the ones we saw in the river... they're even more numerous out there.
"And there's a time limit for people who leave the village. Three days and three nights. If they don't return within that time, they'll die cursed by it, no matter where they are."
"Three days?"
Sizhu furrowed his brow. He truly couldn't comprehend what was happening in this village, or how its people had survived for years.
"We're here, big brother Sizhu. That's our house."
Qing pointed to a simple wooden house with a clay roof. A candle flickered inside for light.
Outside, a lantern glowed brightly—unlike other villagers' homes where lanterns were extinguished. A small porch was there. A plate of raw fish and fruits lay outside, along with a small bowl of blood.
Blood?
Sizhu hadn't looked closely at the other villagers' offerings before, but now he noticed the same scent in all of them.
This scent... it's human blood.
What exactly is happening in this village?
"Yaoyao is sleeping soundly. She did her task well."
Qing's father, after storing their fishing tools beside the house, kissed his daughter's forehead with affection.
"Big brother Sizhu, just put the bucket inside. We'll cook the fish in the morning."
Qing showed Sizhu the small kitchen, separated by a wooden partition from the main room, where Yaoyao was sound asleep.
The ceiling beams were thick and crisscrossed. If you looked up, you could see spiderwebs clinging to the clay roof.
Two wooden beams were shorter than the others and didn't connect to anything, just wedged between other crossing beams—neatly fitting the width of the main room.
Sizhu smelled something strange from the kitchen. When he approached the source, he nearly dropped the bucket of fish he was carrying.
"What... is this..."
A human head—and a bucket full of blood swarmed by flies. Not just a head, but hands and feet as well. Even entrails, if he looked closely.
"Ah, young man. You may go rest early. I still need to scale the fish we caught."
Qing's father's voice startled Sizhu. Sizhu's gaze sharpened, warily watching Qing's family.
"Ah, surprised, aren't you? That meat isn't from real humans. They're magical creatures shaped like humans. It happens to prefer that kind of meat, so the villagers hunt magical beasts that resemble humans."
"Magical creatures? But..." Sizhu tried to say that the scent was unmistakably real human blood—not tainted with any Witch or magical creature scent.
Did they... are they killing humans and offering them as tribute each night to that thing?
Sizhu's mouth hung open, no words coming out.
"Please rest, Master Sizhu. You've helped me and Qing a great deal. You must be exhausted."
Sizhu nodded, deciding to observe the situation further.
In the main room, a little girl was fast asleep on the wooden floor. Her brother Qing was beside her, hugging her. Rough cloth served as their blanket.
"By the way, there's one empty room besides mine. Master Sizhu can sleep there. It's meant to be the children's room, but they sleep in the main room instead." Qing's father smiled from the kitchen, hands bloodstained with fish blood, holding a knife.
Sizhu nodded again and stepped into the room Qing's father had pointed out.
"That creature... I sense something off in this village. What's truly going on here?"
Sizhu murmured while looking at the wide-open wooden window. The wind fluttered the worn curtain. He saw something dash past the window—lightning fast.
Seeing that, Sizhu rushed to the window but found nothing outside. Only the night wind.
"Just my imagination? I really need rest. I haven't slept since traveling the river last night. A few hours of sleep will restore my stamina."
The room wasn't too small. Sizhu sat on a wooden bed just big enough for an adult to lie on his back. After closing the wooden window, he lay down sideways, facing the wall.
Two cloth pillows rested on the bed. A small wooden cupboard was attached to the wall.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps above the window.
He began to close his eyes, resting on his side.
Ah, I forgot about the handless Witch and his black crocodile.
Sizhu opened his eyes at the thought, then closed them again.
"Let them be. That handless Witch can't do anything but wait atop his crocodile."
Not knowing that every offering plate in the village had been emptied. Not a single drop of blood remained. The handless Witch and the black crocodile were also gone by the end of that night.
***