It almost amused him seeing how these men responded to the death of one of their own. This truly was a village frozen in the past, cut off from the rest of the world, just as he had been told. A strange silence had fallen over the people and the village, and it wasnâ€™t long before they began to accuse the girl for the death of their fellow villager. They were afraid, and that amused him, but his amusement soon faded. As if their cruelty was not enough they made it even more evident that they wished for her death and made no hesitation to continue their taunts and jeers. He prepared to kill another one, but it wasnâ€™t long before they retreated, defeated, leaving the girlâ€¦ for now.<br/><br/>This girlâ€¦ they had branded her an Oni, a monster, but she certainly did not look like some bloodthirsty beast. As they say, the monster lies on the inside; the way they were ganging up on her and wanting her dead, well, they proved to be the monsters. But what if they were right? He watched from his hiding spot in the forest as she freed herself from the wire around her neck. As much as he wanted to help he was wary of her. He wasnâ€™t someone who jumped on the bandwagon despite being someone who often draws quick conclusions but if she was a monster then he had stepped into some deep shit. On the other hand, from what he saw she indeed was just trying to get away, to get free, not wanting anything to do with the villagers.<br/><br/>The monster was on the inside. They were the monsters, not her.<br/><br/>That being said, however, he could almost fit the bill. Whenever he was hired to kill someone he did it so mercilessly, again he gets a sense of satisfaction when he killed someone. However, just because he was a hitman doesnâ€™t mean he didnâ€™t have a heart. No, he was not like those villagers. He had to laugh at himself when he compared himself and his work to them, to the extent of their cruelty.<br/><br/>She spoke out to him but he remained where he was â€“her voice in this silence sounded loud, but that was probably because she couldnâ€™t see him. Or so he thought. The girl wondered who had sent him, asking if her father had been the one did so, as he would have expected. He briefly wondered if it could possibly been her father who sent that note; it would make sense that a father would want to rescue his daughter but then again he has seen some cruel and controlling fathers. His own father being one of them, it was the only thing he remembered about the man. She also essentially told him he should turn back, that he was wasting his time, and of course he thought otherwise. Failure was not an option.<br/><br/>â€œYou can either come with me orâ€¦ continue to allow them to spit on you,â€ he said in reply, his obvious Middle Eastern accent tainting his words, sounding very different from her native Japanese accent. He also kept in mind that this village was in the middle of nowhere practically and he assumed she was probably not use to outsiders. â€œThe decision is yours.â€<br/><br/>He wasnâ€™t expecting this to be easy â€“the obvious answer would be to go with him, but there was the possibility he could be dealing with a stubborn person. She might not come, or be reluctant to come, but he supposed that was to be expected. When someone knows only one thing all their life, you canâ€™t just storm in and free them. It was a lot like an abusive relationship or if someone has been homeless or lived in prisons a majority of their lives: they adapt and become use to their environment, convinced that this is how the world is. This is where they will be accepted, and you couldnâ€™t just â€˜rescueâ€™ them, oh no, because the psychological damage has already been done though rehabilitation was possible.<br/><br/>Perhaps it would be the same way with this girl and he would not doubt it.<br/><br/>He sure hoped not. He was going to get her out of hereâ€¦ whether these villagers liked it or not... Ah, but he could not force her to go with him, of course. If she simply refused he would have no choice but to walk away and face defeat.