The sun had set.
Darkness fell, plunging the earth into complete blackness. Only the waning crescent moon, gradually emerging from behind the heavy clouds, cast a faint, dim silvery glow over the land.
The night should have been silent, yet tonight it was especially lively.
At this moment, many people had gathered at the Eternal Paradise Faith. Almost every pair of eyes carried longing and fervor as they waited for that mysterious Founder.
In the eyes of the believers, he was almost like a god.
Kanae Kocho and Miho Arakaki had blended in among the crowd as newly joined followers, also waiting for the Founder's arrival. At this moment, both of them held their hands together, appearing fanatical at the thought of the god who was soon to descend.
The wait felt especially long and tormenting.
Kanae Kocho's current behavior was no different from that of the other believers. From beginning to end, she appeared just like them, filled with longing for the Founder who was about to arrive.
Tap, tap, tap…
Amid the expectations of the fanatical believers, a man wearing a red upper garment, draped in a black cloak, and wearing the hat that symbolized the Founder slowly walked over through the hazy night.
The believers immediately began shouting fanatically, their eyes burning with fervor.
A gentle smile rested on the man's face as he calmly looked upon the crowd of believers.
This was Kanae Kocho's first time seeing Doma. While silently observing him, she maintained the same fervent attitude toward the Founder as the other believers.
Surrounded by the crowd, Doma ascended the platform, then lazily sat down on the wooden cushion placed there. With a faint air of boredom, he looked at the people worshipping him and began listening to the believers speak of their desire to enter the world of ultimate bliss.
Every time he saw this scene, Doma could not help sighing with emotion. Humans truly were such regrettable beings. They were truly pitiful. They had no ability to live forever, yet they longed for immortality.
Their lives were clearly a complete mess, yet they always believed that by praying to a god and offering worship to a god, they could reach that world of ultimate bliss.
They even placed all their hopes upon him, longing for him to save them.
Doma himself also believed that he could save these people. And the method by which he saved them was to eat them completely, from blood to flesh, leaving nothing behind. In that way, they could attain eternal life together with him.
In that way, he could guide them to salvation.
This… was probably his only virtue.
At least, that was what he believed.
Doma lazily sat on the wooden cushion, listening as the believers came forward one after another, listening to the voices of their hearts.
Every believer had their own wish, their own longing. All of them hoped that he would grant them eternal life and lead them to the world of ultimate bliss.
But these people were truly hollow and absurd. Every time he clearly fulfilled their requests, they would instead begin to feel afraid. They would begin to fear him. They were only being eaten by him and becoming one with him. By merging with him, a demon, they would naturally become like him and obtain eternal life.
"I hope to remain by the Founder's side, to serve the Founder forever, until my life fades away."
A voice as warm as the spring sun sounded beside his ear. That pleasant voice made the somewhat languid Doma raise his head.
At some point, another believer had come forward and was kneeling before him.
She had beautiful purple eyes, long black hair, and two locks of bangs framing both sides of her face. Butterfly hair ornaments adorned each side of her hair, and her entire person carried a very gentle air.
This young woman's eyes were truly beautiful. When she looked at him, they did not contain the greed of others, the desire for him to lead them to immortality or guide them to the world of ultimate bliss.
She only wished to remain by his side forever.
"What is your name?"
Rarely, Doma asked a question.
"Kanae."
Kanae Kocho slightly lowered her head and replied softly.
The young woman's voice remained as warm as the spring sunlight.
That voice carried a gentle, soothing warmth that seemed to seep softly into one's heart. He really liked hearing such a voice; it brought a sense of delight to his inner self and made his mood feel incredibly comfortable and refreshed.
Who was the last woman who had given him this exact feeling?
With his excellent memory, Doma only needed a brief thought to recall: It was a woman named Kotoha Hashibira. She was also the first woman he had unusually chosen not to devour—he had wanted to wait until she passed away of natural causes.
That… seemed to have happened many years ago already.
Yet the memory of the scene remained vivid: A woman clutching a swaddled infant in her arms had run toward him, crying and pleading desperately for protection.
Her body was almost entirely covered in mud. The exposed skin was riddled with marks from beatings, her face was full of bruises, and one of her eyes had nearly been blinded.
Then, still hugging her child tightly, the woman continued sobbing as she kowtowed to him again and again in the muddy water.
"Please, Founder, save my child."
"Please, Founder, save us."
"Please…"
He had granted the woman's request. He took her in, and in his mercy, he dealt with the husband who had abused her, as well as the mother-in-law who had tormented her.
After bringing the woman back to the faith, letting her wash, and giving her clean clothes to change into, he discovered that she was actually very beautiful.
But beauty held no meaning for Doma. The only thing that made him feel this woman was different was her voice.
It truly sounded lovely.
"The Founder really is a very, very good person."
After being taken in, the woman liked saying this often. It was not only that her voice sounded pleasant; Doma could feel that there was a purity in it, something untainted by any desire. It was completely different from the voices of the other believers, which were always filled with all kinds of longing.
That day, he also learned the woman's name.
Kotoha Hashibira.
And just like this woman named Kanae today, she had said that she wished to stay by his side forever and serve him always.
After that, Kotoha Hashibira remained in the Eternal Paradise Faith.
As she recovered there, the scars on her body gradually faded, and Kotoha Hashibira's beautiful face became increasingly striking. That woman always liked holding her child beneath the sunlight, gently coaxing the child in her arms.
Every time Doma saw that scene, his mood would become somewhat pleasant.
Unfortunately, he could not bask in the sunlight himself. He could only watch everything from within the darkness.
Eventually, from Kotoha Hashibira's own mouth, he learned the child's name: Inosuke Hashibira—a boy who clearly inherited his mother's looks and would surely grow up to be very handsome.
Gradually, he entered a romantic relationship with Kotoha Hashibira.
Romantic relationships were something Doma actually engaged in quite often. He often played those childish games of love, constantly changing partners. But none of those relationships ever made him feel anything.
It was just like when he was still human. His mother discovered that his father had slept with many female believers, so she hacked his father to death, then killed herself in a state of near madness. At the time, the young Doma saw all of this, yet felt nothing in his heart. Not a single ripple stirred within him. He merely thought the smell of blood was foul, and that dealing with the aftermath would be very troublesome.
But with Kotoha Hashibira, he always felt a sense of comfort and ease in his heart.
...
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