Chapter 2
Three Days Before…..
Rin stepped off the train, stretching. She checked her watch.
10AM
Pulling a map from her backpack after setting her duffel bag down, she checked on her next steps. "Hm….I have the bus now." She refolded the map, tucking it away for safekeeping. Her eyes scanned the above signs for the bus terminal. Within a few minutes, she found buses lined up and boarded the one she needed. After paying the fare, she sat down and pulled her phone out. Her fingers flew across the keyboard.
Abe-San:
Hi! I just board the bus and I should be there within the hour. I'll text when I'm close.
She waited for a reply but only received a thumbs up on her message. Rin sighed. The old man not replying didn't surprise her. The young woman was lucky that he finally agreed to take her to the remote village. It only took six months of emailing back and forth. Then again, the old man was suspicious of anyone asking to visit such a remote village tucked away deep in Gifu. No one knew of this village. From what she heard, the number of inhabitants was somewhere around 30-50 people. The only way there was through word of mouth. The bus ride would take an hour and from what the old man said, it would be a 2 hour hike going through old trails and forestry. She packed light and only planned to stay for two days.
She flipped through her phone at the saved photos of the village. When she wasn't working, she loved exploring rural areas and visiting shrines. The greenery of the forest, the smell of nature, the wild animals roaming freely and rolling hills and mountains attracted her to hiking. Rin leaned her head back against the seat, looking at the window.
"WE'LL BE DEPARTING IN FIVE MINUTES!"
Rin looked at her watch again.
10:30AM
She turned her camera on and took a quick photo, uploading it to Instagram.
"Last selfie before I disappear into the mountains! Can't wait to see this place and share what I see!" She captioned the photo. She ended the caption with #ruralvillage #hiddenvillage #wishicouldliveinnature. She closed out the app, sitting the phone on her thigh, waiting.
Rin couldn't wait to get out of the city. As much as she loved city life and it having it perks, she always felt more at home tucked away in the mountains. Something about country living fascinated her. The way of life was harder, but there were fewer distractions. From what Abe-san explained, this village was so remote they had to carry in medical supplies. There would be absolutely no cell service at all. Truly, this would be rural living. Most of the places she visited still had some signal if she hiked to a high point. 'I guess I'll find out when I get there.'
She patted her backpack, feeling her camera. She was proud to say she was a bit of an amateur photographer. Hopefully, the weather cooperated. The last thing she wanted was rain and fog. Rural living was great for clearing the mind and easing tensions, but being so far off the beaten path also brought along fog. So many mornings she woke up to ready to take pictures of breath-taking sunrises and fog would block her view. She checked the weather before leaving and everything said sunny and cool.
Rin crossed her arms and got comfortable when the bus pulled away.
….
Rin huffed as she caught her breath. Abe-san had to be between 60-70 years old and blazing through this trail like nothing. He was smoking her. She rolled her neck, taking a moment to rest. They were an hour into their hike and, according to Abe-san, there was still another hour left.
"Giving up?" The old man called.
Rin narrowed her eyes at the thin man wearing a baseball cap and blue jacket.. She could see a faint smirk on his face. "No way!" She said with a thumbs up. She resumed her pace, heading towards him. Abe-san was teasing her. He turned around and dashed ahead.
"At least he's staying in my line of sight." Rin muttered to herself as the old man practically disappeared up ahead.
As she continued hiking, Rin looked around when she could. The actual trail was gone. Grass grew over the path. The path at some points was so narrow that she finally grabbed a fallen tree limb and started using it as a walking stick. It was also slippery. She slipped a few times but caught herself in time.
"Just a little more, Rin. You got this." She whispered.
…
"Do you have rain boots?"
Rin stopped, looking at Abe-san. "Yup! Packed them like you said."
"Good. We'll be crossing through streams."
"Ok, I can change real quick." Rin rushed to the nearest tree. She balanced herself while switching out her hiking boots. Tapping her foot, she smiled. "Ok, ready to go!"
Abe-san's weathered face smiled. His eyes lighting up in mirth. He gripped his walking stick tight walking ahead. "Try not to fall."
By this point, Rin's legs were sore. She knew they were pass two hours of hiking now, but she didn't want to ask how much longer. Abe-san told her this hike would be rough and asked her multiple times if she wanted to do this. She knew she had a stamina to do this so she would keep pushing. They had to be almost there by now.
"Steady yourself." Abe-san said.
Rin looked ahead to see a stream. It wasn't deep, but at least 50 feet wide. The old man was halfway across. Rin took cautious steps with her walking stick. She was halfway across when she heard something snap behind her. Turning around quickly, she found nothing. It was only the thick forest and greenery. All she heard now was the running water and the wind blowing. Her eyes scanned the forest, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Where did that snap come from? Her eyes looked up, observing the branches. Maybe a tree branch fell, but…that sound sounded more like something breaking in half.
Thump!
Rin jumped when she felt the ground vibrate. "What the hell?!" She gasped out. She was about to cross the stream to investigate when something pulled her. She let out an ear-piercing scream and came face to face with Abe-san. He quickly let go of her, stepping back, confused. Rin placed her hand over her heart. "Oh, my god….you scared me. I'm so sorry."
Abe-san slowly nodded. "Hurry, we're not far now."
Rin nodded, but cast one more look at the forest before turning to follow the old man. Abe-san watched her for a moment from the corner of his eye as he walked next to her.
"Abe-san, before you grabbed me, did you feel the ground…shake?"
Abe-san stayed in stride with her. "No, could be tree falling somewhere in the forest."
Rin nodded. That had to be it…. "Abe-san…there is no one else in these woods, right? It's just you and me?"
"Of course. Village is so remote, no one else knows about it. We're almost there. Hurry along." The old man picked up his pace but didn't stray too far ahead this time.
"Great, I can't wait! I'm starving after all this walking!" Rin said, finding renewed energy.
Abe-san smiled at the young woman and turned back to the path. He peeked into the forest beside them, nodding his head when he saw the subtle shift of a brown robe of a small figure disappearing behind a tree. The staff the small figure carried practically blended into the tree.
It would appear the vassal of the great demon god was on guard.
Maybe this was the woman they had been waiting for.
Tomorrow they found out.
~oOo~
The village I'm basing this on is real!
Thanks for reading!
