A Ghoul is full of hatred and is wretched, and to unleash its wickedness upon living beings, it made a deal with the Ghoul deity named Zilgurat.
Zilgurat then gave it a shot at possessing anyone or anything it found to be its best vessel.
Simply put, a Ghoul is a spirit that is unable to rest peacefully and is residing inside a human body.
Exorcists are Ghouls' mortal enemies. They have the ability to cast off evil spirits from their vessels. Although an exorcist can be diplomatic, they prefer the more insolent way of cleansing the entirety of the Ghouls.
The monks, on the other hand, have a different way of extraction.
In Floette's case, she can't remember the identity of the vessel she possesses or when and why she possessed the poor girl. And as the liar she is, I hardly believe her.
"She could be a princess," Kooki and I played a guessing game about what the real identity of Floette's vessel might be. "Or maybe she's a highly competitive scholar," Kooki guessed. "Scholars wander a lot in the woods to sharpen their wit. Probably that's where the unresting spirit spotted her."
"It's hard to guess since there are many possible reasons we can think of," I said with a slight pout.
"Whoever this vessel is, she's still leading a good life with her," Rosenth chimed in. "Unresting spirits won't choose a miserable vessel; they want those who have an almost perfect life."
If only the Diamond Oyster would give me a preview about what happened, then I wouldn't be suspecting her.
We sought comfort in one of the houses we found habitable in the village. Rosenth built a fire to help warm us up. She even prepared porridge made from leftover rice, vegetables, and mountain roots, and though frazzled, I can't calm down.
"It's been a restless day for us four. You must rest, Kintsugi," said Rosenth before she stood up and took out a torch. "For the meantime, I'll be patrolling outside to look out for Ghouls."
We made an agreement that we'll be exchanging shifts on patrolling. First, it's Rosenth, followed by Kooki, Floette, and I, then another rotation.
I lay down on the hardwood floor and grabbed the two fragments of Diamond Oyster I had hidden in my underwear's pocket. It may smell a bit off, but as of now, I don't have any safer containment for the fragments apart from my underwear.
The fragments shine bright like a candlelight, and it looks like I'm the only one who can see its glow.
Because of the Diamond Oyster, my summer has become more thrilling.
I wonder what my best friend Warchaic is doing right now.
If he's not gaming indoors, he'll be engaging in an outdoor activity like parkour. He must be having the best summer of his life.
I've been in Meadowglaze for days, and I still don't have any leads or hints about the whereabouts of Grandpa Kaeron.
It could be that Mezoid is holding him captive in a far-flung area.
Since I couldn't sleep, I got up and decided to go outside.
I saw Rosenth watching the night sky.
"What do you think happened to the people in this village?" I ask her.
"No dead bodies can be seen or smelled in this area, and there's only one possibility I can think of - the people were being held as hostages or slaves by this Ghoul."
My ears twitch at the sound of cautious footsteps, and Floette notices it too; someone is sneaking into one of the houses.
We caught a barefoot little girl in fur clothing who is severely undernourished but feisty.
She's trying to get away from Floette's grasp. And because she's hurting, I commanded Floette to release her.
"She won't hurt you anymore," I said to the little girl as I sat in front of her. She's hugging her knees and is still afraid to face us.
"We're good people," Rosenth said in a way that would build trust, but when the girl diverted her gaze to Floette, she was again in hysterics.
"She's a Ghoul!" the girl retorted. "Cream-skinned and innocent-looking people like her are the real monsters! They took everybody in this village, including my father!"
I tried to be thoughtful and calm with her as much as possible.
"If there are good and bad people, then so are Ghouls," I explained. "Floette may have been bad in the past, but she's been changing her ways."
"You mean she's not fully converted into a good person and can be evil whenever she wants to?"
Man, this kid is putting me through a pressure test.
"I mean all of us have bad sides, right? And just like you and me, Floette prefers to let out the goodness in her, right, Floette?"
I gave Floette an authoritative look. At first, she raised an eyebrow, but later on, she understood me and nodded non-condescendingly to the girl.
When we gained the little girl's trust, she began to introduce herself.
Megumi is one of the residents of Hanggul Village who were kidnapped and forced to labor in a zicron mine under the ruthless supervision of a Ghoul named Mandar.
Zicron is a purple metallic element that occurs naturally in its pure form and can be used in coins and jewelry, similar to gold. Zicron appears to be the most valuable natural element in this world.
Based on her story, Mandar is a good-looking fella who knocked on their door to ask for water. In return for their hospitality, he gathered all the villagers and announced that because of their kindness, they would be rewarded with a good life in a paradise.
Due to her mellow persona, the people were convinced, as if they were bedazzled. And when they arrived at the said paradise, that's when they knew what his real intention was.
"Mandar can easily make women fall in love, but can turn into a man-eating arthropod when jilted or provoked. And he has already eaten more or less ten villagers."
Megumi got the chance to escape the site and decided to raid the deceased chieftain's house, which also served as an exorcist's house in the village.
Megumi didn't go for his money, but for his exorcism tools like the sacred oils, incense, and paper scrolls.
As for Megumi, her current brainpower and physique aren't suitable for exorcising. She needs rigorous training to be an effective exorcist.
"Mandar also has his minions who are as vicious and blinded as the value of zicron," Megumi added in a wary tone.
"What a bunch of despicable men. I didn't even flinch at your narration," said Floette, as if she could take down Mandar and his men with one swipe of her claw. "Show me the way to where I can slay this Ghoul."
"Sounding so overconfident, I put all my trust in you. Save our village," Megumi made Floette promise to never take back her words.
"If your trust is convertible to money, how much would it be?"
"Having been tormented countless times by a person we thought was trustworthy, my trust has become priceless."
"I think I saw myself in you; overconfident."
•••
The Zicron mine is located in the heart of a lush forest not far from Hanggul Village. As we hid behind a boulder, we witnessed how Mandar's minions, in full masks, cruelly forced the ordinary villagers to overwork.
Men were designated for excavation and hauling.
Women were assigned to offer entertainment or convenience to the resting guards.
The elders were assigned to the kitchen.
The children were tasked with removing the excess dirt on the zicron.
Meanwhile, the sick were left to suffer in a corner.
"It's the middle of the night, yet these people are still hustling and suffering. This is too much," said Rosenth, clinching her fists.
Floette jumped out from her hiding spot and confidently called out the mine guards, which made them form a platoon formation.
I wanted to stop her because it's best to first strategize our game plan, but she already showed herself to the enemies and we're busted, and I guess this will be another impromptu battle.
The villagers felt a glimmer of hope as they saw us, and I can see that they're grateful to Megumi, but when a balletic man in purple-plated armor slobbered in a bamboo hut, all their hopes were gone and replaced by tremor.
His demeanor is amiable, as if he's harmless, but he's truly evil. And he has a diamond fragment on his forehead.
"You must be Mandar," said Floette in an overweening tone. "You can put up a gentle facade, but from afar, I can still smell the stench odor you're emitting. Furthermore, critters love feasting on decaying grubs like your heart."
"I know you. You're the infamous Floette of Infernogia, sister of sabertoothed Flarynx," Mandar spoke gently. "Don't get too cocky with me; your only accomplishment is getting hold of the Diamond Oyster and letting it break into fragments. You're just like me, and you've sided with these worthless mortals? Ha, pure irony."
"I used to believe that mortals were born to be of no use, but it turns out that when they die, they become fertilizers for plants and a treat for worms, so they're not worthless after all."
Floette showed her sharp claws, and when she was about to attack Mandar, his minions blockaded her.
However, they can't match Floette's strength, and instead, they were knocked down.
The surprising part is that when the masks were taken off, his minions were fine-looking ladies.
"I won't let you hurt the future father of my child!" one of Mandar's minions angrily said to Floette.
"He's going to be a great patriarch in the family we're going to build, and you're ruining our dream. How could you!" another minion angrily added.
"Hey, wake up!" Floette responded. "Haven't you realized that he's not just two-timing but he's playing you all? He's making fools of all you minions. Do you think he loves you? All he ever loves is himself!"
Floette had had enough of their nonsense.
Rosenth, together with Kooki, fought off the other lady minions who were trying to restrain the redressing villagers.
Rosenth just wanted to knock down the enemies because they're just under hypnosis, while Kooki wanted to electrocute the ladies so that they'll come out of their senses.
And here I am, aiming my arrow towards Mandar.
He saw me, but he simply grinned at me, then smoothly walked away from the chaos. He thought no one noticed his disappearance, but I did follow his tracks.
When we arrived at a secluded place where it's only us two, he stopped traipsing and faced me.
"So, you are the Fragment Collector, aren't you?" he said to me. "We ghouls execrate the existence of exorcists. But there's something about you that redoubles our abomination of the subsistence of mortals. You've put yourself in the wrong place, and I'm going to devour you and the diamond fragments you've hidden under your masculine core."