They exited the store, and Akitsu noticed that the snow increased every night, which made Jinta feel uneasy. Jinta and Akitsu were on their way to Sedana‘s restaurant. Akitsu felt very sleepy and told Jinta he hadn’t slept well because of the noisy neighbors next to Jinta’s place, describing them as annoying.
When they entered Sedana‘s restaurant, two men were trying to attack Ofie, but Jinta arrived just in time. Ofie cried out to Jinta for help. One of the bad guys asked, “Who is this Jinta?” Then Jinta asked, “Is this just drunken boisterousness or something else?” Akitsu thought it was something else. One of the men spoke rudely to Jinta, but Akitsu warned him since he was older, which angered the thug. He almost attacked Jinta, but Jinta punched him, knocking him down. The other man also attacked, but Jinta defeated him as well. Jinta humbly said he had been lenient with them. Ofie felt relieved.
Then the two men stood up again, which amazed Akitsu. As they approached to attack again, Akitsu showed something from his pocket, making the men believe Jinta was afraid. He ran, and they chased after him, surprising everyone. Jinta asked Akitsu what he had done. Akitsu explained it was an Atsuka Moami created from matching Ohama seashells—an illusion that only specific people could see. He asked Jinta what he thought of it. When Jinta asked what he had shown them, Akitsu said it was better not to know.
Ofie thanked both Jinta and Akitsu, but Akitsu modestly denied doing anything. He ordered a bowl of tempura soba for Ofie, and Jinta wanted the same. Then Natsu arrived and told Jinta that her father had almost fired Zenji, so he had been working hard since morning. Jinta asked if Zenji had shown any strange behavior. Natsu replied that he hadn’t, but he had drunk excessively the night before. She sensed Jinta was worried but reassured him everything was fine.
She also said she was going to buy a bottle of sake to please her father, but Jinta advised her not to, which surprised her. Jinta asked if her father had been drinking Frozen Snow sake before, mentioning no one knew its origin. He told her to have her father drink something else and warned her to be careful on her way home, saying the situation was unstable. Natsu felt like he was acting like her father but still thanked him for the concern and left.
Later that night, Jinta and Akitsu went to the bridge to meet the courtesan. Jinta told her that Akitsu was just a traveling companion, surprising Akitsu at how he diminished his importance. The courtesan didn’t mind and said she had looked into the matter Jinta had asked about. She didn’t know where Frozen Snow was brewed or how it arrived in Ido, but she found that a wholesale distribution store in Kurame supplied the entire region.
She reminded Jinta about Mizukia, the liquor store where he had dealt with a demon in the warehouse. Some customers had asked about the sake’s origin, but the owner didn’t care and claimed it came from a sacred spring. The courtesan informed Jinta that the owner was out restocking and wouldn’t be back until tomorrow evening. She suggested Jinta visit then. He thanked her and gave her money.
She then told him a blonde beauty had been coming and going from Mizukia, which surprised Jinta. She added that Frozen Snow might be foreign sake. Jinta immediately denied this and almost attacked the courtesan, scaring her. He apologized. When she asked if he knew the blonde woman, he didn’t respond.
Back at Jinta’s house, noise from the neighboring house continued, waking Akitsu. Suddenly, they heard a loud crash and ran to check it out. They found destruction and saw a demon emerging. The father had turned into a demon and killed his daughter, angering Jinta. The demon attacked both of them, but they dodged it. Jinta punched and injured the demon, then knocked it down again until it turned into white smoke. Akitsu encouraged Jinta, saying that’s what was expected of him.
Inside the man’s house, they found a large stash of sake. Akitsu suggested they question the liquor store owner.
Then we moved to Natsu’s father’s house. Natsu asked him about Zenji, wondering if he was still angry. Her father admitted he was disappointed but respected Zenji and acknowledged that he was still young. As long as he worked hard and lived diligently, nothing in the world was truly unforgivable. He said it was up to Zenji to make amends and that most people don’t understand the dangers of their actions until it’s too late. When they do, fear overwhelms them.
When Natsu asked if her father had ever been through such regret, he explained that young people should live sincerely, even if they later regret things. When they fall, they should have a place to return to. He told Natsu to live her life how she wanted.
Because her father believed there was nothing in this world that couldn’t be undone, Natsu gently asked him not to drink too much. But her father smiled and said he wanted to get drunk with her. Natsu then showed him a souvenir she had brought—it was a refreshing drink called Frozen Snow. Her father said he would try it later.
Meanwhile, we shifted to the blonde woman, Suzu, who was trying to seduce a man into drinking a dangerous sake that turns people into demons. She told him that the sake corrupts the soul. The man was terrified, but she went on, explaining that it implants evil and malice into people. No matter how much they try to hide it or pretend otherwise, their inner darkness can’t be suppressed.
The man nervously asked Suzu what she wanted from him. She told him all he had to do was stir up emotions—jealousy, lust, pride—and that she gathers all those evil thoughts, drawing them into a corner of the heart. From there, she awakens the true nature hidden behind a calm, composed face, corrupting it. That corruption turns into a cold, defiled hatred that spreads like snow—white and pure on the surface, but filled with malevolence. She then chillingly asked, “When everyone is tainted with hatred, will it even be noticed?”
We then moved to the Frozen Snow store. The store owner was thrilled about the large quantity of sake he had, confident it would make him the number one merchant in Ido. Just then, Jinta arrived. The shopkeeper greeted him, recognizing him from two years ago when Jinta had saved him from a demon in the warehouse. He thanked Jinta but said he couldn’t just barge in.
Jinta explained he was looking for a sake called Frozen Snow. The store owner confirmed that he had just received a new batch. At that moment, Akitsu appeared, surprising the owner. All the sake was indeed stored in that place.
Jinta stepped forward, intimidating the shopkeeper and causing him to fall to the ground. The man nervously offered some sake, but Jinta demanded to know its origin. The shopkeeper refused, saying his livelihood depended on it. In response, Jinta unsheathed his sword, terrifying the man into answering.
We then moved to Natsu‘s house. Her father asked if she wanted some sake. She hesitated, but he poured her a cup anyway. She drank it but didn’t like the taste. Then he asked her to pour a cup for him. When he tasted it, he found it delicious.
Back at the shop, Jinta told the owner that there had been increasing cases of violence after people drank this sake. Everyone involved had consumed Frozen Snow, and Jinta was convinced it wasn’t normal alcohol. He again pressed the man for the source.
This time, the store owner confessed. He said it came from a spring on Mount Oyama in Sagami. He claimed to have only filled a few bottles. Jinta, sensing the man’s fatalism, accused him of having a death wish. The man pleaded, swearing he was telling the truth and begging Jinta to believe him.
As Jinta asked more questions, a blonde woman—likely Suzu—appeared and said the sake was meant to corrupt people. Jinta was shocked, recalling that the shopkeeper had mentioned a blonde woman. She warned him that continued consumption would lead to total corruption, that everyone who overindulged had lost their minds. She added that there was nothing inherently wrong with alcohol—it was the intent behind it that mattered. But since the man was selling it anyway, Jinta concluded that he was just another piece of scum.
Akitsu agreed, saying the man was useless—just a greedy merchant. Still, at least they now knew the source of the chaos: Frozen Snow. He suggested they destroy the sake first, then head to Mount Oyama, which terrified the store owner. The man began shouting at them, but Jinta, consumed with rage, attacked him without hesitation.
Grabbing him by the neck, Jinta nearly choked the man to death. He demanded to know everything about the blonde woman, clearly on the edge of losing control.
However, Jinta was suddenly punched by Akitsu, who yelled at him to let the man go. Akitsu winced from the pain in his own hand due to Jinta‘s overwhelming strength and warned him that the man was nearly dead. He asked if Jinta had gotten any useful information about the blonde woman. Jinta replied that he hadn’t. Akitsu said he wouldn’t force the man to speak, but if Jinta ended up killing him, then Akitsu would be forced to kill Jinta in turn.
Realizing Akitsu was right, Jinta calmed down and was grateful he had been stopped. Akitsu was touched when Jinta thanked him after the punch.
Then, in a panic, the shopkeeper drank the sake—terrified that they were about to take it away from him. Akitsu warned him not to drink it so recklessly, but the man was desperate. Jinta tried to caution him about overindulgence, warning that once crossed, there was no way back.
Suddenly, the shopkeeper began to change. His body started transforming, his appearance becoming monstrous. Jinta and Akitsu quickly fled the store, suspecting an explosion might follow.
Outside, Jinta reflected grimly that hatred lies dormant in everyone’s heart, and that this cursed sake amplifies that hatred—consuming people and turning them into demons. He realized that Frozen Snow sake was designed with one purpose: to create demons.
As expected, a demon emerged from the shop. Jinta prepared to fight. He struck the demon, but his punches had no effect. He hit it again, but still no damage. Then, the beast retaliated, sending Jinta flying with a heavy blow.
Akitsu, observing Jinta‘s lack of proper technique, thought that Jinta‘s fighting style was unrefined. The demon resembled a puffed-up bird—its movements awkward, its next attack easy to read. Still, it needed to be handled carefully.
Jinta struck again and again, but nothing worked. He launched more attacks, all ineffective. Akitsu then joined in, using his strength to distract the demon with multiple hits, buying Jinta time to find an opening. But Jinta still couldn’t land a solid blow. He narrowly dodged a deadly strike.
Akitsu realized the shopkeeper had truly turned into a powerful demon, and this power wasn’t accidental. Jinta began to suspect that everything—this sake, the spring on Mount Oyama—was a trap from the beginning. He wondered if it was all artificially created, and worse, if that woman was the one behind it.
As the demon locked into combat with Akitsu’s magical weapon, Akitsu pondered: who was this mysterious woman with the power to create such destruction?
Jinta, meanwhile, thought about his sister, Suzun. A deep, painful doubt crept into him. Could she be behind this?
Sensing Jinta‘s distress, Akitsu asked why he was so upset. Jinta told him there was no time—Natsu‘s father had been drinking Frozen Snow almost every night. Akitsu immediately understood the danger and urged Jinta to go and save them while he handled the demon.
Jinta hesitated, not wanting to leave Akitsu behind, but Akitsu firmly told him not to underestimate his own power. He assured Jinta he wasn’t weak enough to worry a demon and told him to hurry. Moved, Jinta thanked him and ran off.
Then, Akitsu activated his magic. He conjured a gigantic warrior, a spectral fighter stronger than any demon, and sent it charging into battle. The demon turned its attention to the massive figure and roared, engaging in a new, intense battle.
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