Aomori opened his eyes to find himself standing before a dilapidated, weather-beaten shrine. On either side of the worship hall's entrance stood two fox statues, serving as the divine messengers.
It was a brilliant day; the sun shone brightly, birds sang, and flowers bloomed. Massive trees towered around the site, while mountains rolled away into the distance. This was an abandoned shrine hidden deep within the wilderness.
After a cursory glance at his surroundings, he looked down at his own body and noticed something odd. Though it felt real to the touch, Aomori could see a strange, illusory quality to his form.
"Illusory? What's wrong with my body? Is this another 'not-human' series?"
Ding!
[Dungeon Quest Initiated:]
[Main Quest 1/3: Noragami]
[Quest Summary: Having accidentally become a "stray god," your immediate priority is to make people remember your name and gather as many followers as possible.]
[1) Gain 100 followers within 30 days. ☆]
[2) Gain 100 followers within 20 days. ☆☆]
[3) Gain 100 followers within 10 days. ☆☆☆]
[Main Quest 2/3: Forming Ties]
[Quest Summary: Ties between gods and humans aren't always beautiful, but they are inevitably unforgettable experiences.]
[1) Form ties with 10 people of destiny before the dungeon ends. ☆]
[2) Form ties with 20 people of destiny before the dungeon ends. ☆☆]
[3) Form ties with 30 people of destiny before the dungeon ends. ☆☆☆]
[Main Quest 3/3: ??? (Hidden Quest, content revealed after dungeon completion)]
[Quest Summary: ???]
[1) ??? ☆]
[2) ??? ☆☆]
[3) ??? ☆☆☆]
"Hm? I really turned into a god this time?"
In the last dungeon, Aomori had only called himself a god as a joke; he hadn't expected to actually become one now. This felt like a "behind-the-scenes" manipulation by the system.
"Noragami? Is this the world of Noragami?"
"Noragami" referred to stray gods, so Aomori wasn't sure if the system was making a pun or dropping a hint.
"Whatever, I'll figure it out soon enough."
Just as he spoke, a great gust of wind blew, swirling fallen leaves into the sky. A massive, golden-glowing entity erupted from the ground in the clearing before the shrine. It looked like a cross between a bull and a sheep, standing on all fours. Beside it stood two small children in miko outfits. They had fox ears, but their faces were identical to the large entity in the center—ghastly and bizarre.
The children's mouths moved, emitting strange noises, while the large one jabbered a string of sounds. Aomori couldn't understand a word. However, based on the emotions they projected, he could guess the general meaning.
"You're saying this is your territory and I should leave? So you're gods too? Nice to meet you." Aomori smiled. "But I'm afraid this place will be mine very soon."
The three entities froze for a second before roaring at him in unison, looking quite offended. Aomori found it perfectly natural to be angry when someone tried to steal your property. Expressing his understanding, he drew Ryuko and gave a casual wave of his hand.
Shing!
A purple flash vanished in an instant. In that split second, Aomori had swung his blade countless times, slicing the large entity and the two small ones into tiny fragments. Golden dust scattered across the ground.
"After months of hard practice, I finally have some of that Atomic Slash flair."
Satisfied, he stood still with his sword, waiting for them to regenerate. In his perception, the energy within the pieces of the three he had just cut down had diminished significantly but had not vanished completely.
"It seems gods aren't that easy to kill. But it's time you showed your true faces."
From the first moment he saw them, Aomori knew the golden light was just a mask. Inside lay something far more sinister.
As his voice fell, the two children were the first to revive. Their faces were filled with terror as they backed away, having lost any will to fight. They clearly understood that Aomori's strength was beyond their league.
The large one revived soon after. This time, it shed its disguise. The seemingly holy golden light was replaced by a thick, black miasma. Its hair was disheveled, and its pointed face transformed into that of a woman, except this face had a pair of bulging, bell-like eyes and a mouth that split open all the way to the ears. It was an exceptionally horrifying sight.
Its body now stood on two massive legs, its abdomen covered in numerous human arms with bells hanging between them. Two bone-spiked tails sprouted from its back. Simply put, it was the kind of creature that would cause a person's Sanity to plummet.
Even with his resilient spirit, Aomori couldn't help but look disgusted. "I knew the 'Eight Million Gods' was a bit of an exaggeration, but I never expected something like this could actually be called a god." [1]
Even if it were a god, it would be an evil one. He didn't want to look at it for another second. Once it finished forming, Aomori swung his sword again. This time, he infused it with holy energy. Wherever the blade passed, the evil melted away like snow under a hot sun. Without even a whimper, the evil god was annihilated by the sword light.
However, the evil god still wasn't dead. It revived again in less than two minutes, looking much more withered. Realizing it couldn't win, it retracted all its hostility and crawled on the ground, kowtowing to Aomori for mercy.
Unfortunately, Aomori treated slaying monsters like eating a meal. He was already cold-hearted and remained unmoved.
"This hard to kill?" He frowned at the evil god, wondering if he should use Kidō to finish it off. Suddenly, he remembered he had a sword technique that could perceive an enemy's weakness. As Aomori channeled his energy according to that technique, his aura shifted, and a layer of gold appeared over his purple pupils.
In his vision, the evil god was no longer a mass of pitch black. Instead, a sliver of golden light was encased within the dense darkness. The golden light flickered, almost completely fused with the darkness, its boundaries blurred.
Aomori wanted to see that golden light more clearly, and he instinctively activated Mind's Eye. This time, not only the golden light but the very points where it connected with the darkness were exposed in minute detail.
Following his intuition, Aomori raised Ryuko and slashed along those connection points.
Pop, pop, pop...
The sound of snapping cords echoed in his mind. The black miasma on the kneeling evil god surged and began to dissipate. Within the black fog, the silhouette of a woman was faintly visible, surrounded by endless resentment and bells. The woman's lips moved as if saying, "Save me!"
Unmoved, Aomori waved his hand, releasing a massive wave of holy light that dissolved the black miasma and the woman completely.
Once the miasma cleared, the evil god was gone, leaving behind a small golden figure.
"Is this a fox?" Aomori picked it up by the scruff of its neck. Upon closer inspection, he confirmed it was a small fox. It was only the size of his palm, with a small bell tied around its neck, two tails, and its eyes tightly shut. Its breath was faint.
"Do you know what happened here?" Aomori placed the fox in his palm, healing it with holy light as he looked toward one of the children.
Since the evil god had perished, the two children's appearances had changed drastically. The golden light vanished, and their bodies stretched and grew into two human women. One looked dazed, but the other, the one Aomori addressed, had eyes filled with life.
At Aomori's question, the woman snapped out of it, bowed to him, and said respectfully, "Thank you, Kami-sama, for releasing me from the mountain god's bondage."
"Mountain god? That thing just now was a mountain god?"
The woman nodded, then shook her head. "It was, and yet it wasn't. Oh, I haven't introduced myself. How rude of me." She bowed again. "My name is Oka Towako. I used to be an exorcist."
Her face was wrinkled; she appeared to be a woman in her fifties. "I don't know the specifics, but you can check the enshrined objects inside the shrine. I'd love to help answer your questions, but it seems I'm out of time."
As she spoke, small sparks of flame ignited on her body.
"It's fine. It wasn't that important anyway," Aomori said with a wave of his hand.
"Thank you for your magnanimity." With a smile, Oka Towako slowly faded away. Simultaneously, the other child vanished with her. They were spirits who had died long ago, bound to the evil god's side by some means. Once the evil god died, she could no longer maintain her form. It was unknown if they finally went to reincarnation.
Recalling her final words, Aomori walked into the shrine and saw the object enshrined in the center. It was a skull, but it had already shattered into fragments.
Connecting the dots, Aomori could guess what had happened to the mountain god. No doubt, some ugly humans had sacrificed a woman to the mountain god to avert disaster, only for the god to be corrupted into a monster by the woman's resentment.
"How ironic."
Finding a spot outside, Aomori buried the skull in the earth. Then, he used telekinesis to bundle up the leaves and dust inside the shrine and toss them out. He fashioned a small clay figure that looked exactly like himself and placed it on the altar, then wrote "Aosora, God of Justice" on a wooden board.
With that, the shrine officially changed ownership. He was now the deity enshrined here.
"Using my actual appearance might not be quite right." Looking at the clay figure, it didn't feel right. After some thought, he added a fox mask to the clay figure's face. He then used holy energy to create an identical fox mask for himself. He put it on, covering half his face, leaving only his eyes and lips visible. His tracksuit felt out of place, so he swapped it for a white trench coat.
Aomori nodded in satisfaction at his new look. However, looking back at the crumbling shrine, he felt a weight of pressure. This place was deserted. How was he supposed to gain followers? Should he just go down the mountain and hijack a popular shrine?
As he pondered, Aomori sensed human auras. He was surprised. "People actually come to this dump?"
Two people arrived, both girls around fifteen or sixteen years old. One had short orange hair and was quite well-endowed for her age. She wore a short orange skirt and black tights, looking very cute. In contrast, the other girl with long black hair was more plain. She looked like the quiet, well-behaved type, but her most striking feature was her golden-yellow eyes.
Furthermore, an evil spirit-like creature emitting black miasma was following them.
"So they came here to get rid of an evil spirit. But this duo feels strangely familiar." Aomori hid inside the shrine, quietly observing the two girls who might become his first and second followers while searching his memory.
Passing the torii gate and the two messenger statues, they reached the front of the hall and rang the large bell.
"An offering... 5 yen should be enough, right?"
"Yeah."
5 yen? Was he getting the Yato treatment? He should be worth at least 100 yen. Aomori pouted inwardly as he saw the orange-haired girl drop a 5-yen coin, while the long-haired girl dropped 500 yen.
"Oh?" Aomori took a second look at the girl with the long black hair, finding her quite endearing. After clapping their hands twice, the two closed their eyes in prayer.
Miraculously, Aomori could hear their silent thoughts.
The orange-haired girl prayed: Please let me eat lots and lots of delicious food. The long-haired girl prayed: I beg of you, do something about that horrible thing following Hana. Please save her. I'll do anything. Please make the curse leave Hana. And please, save me too.
Hearing these words, a long-buried memory woke from its slumber.
"So it's her. Miko, the 'Girl Who Can See Them'."
Recognizing her, Aomori smiled. He instantly appeared behind her, leaned down, and whispered in her ear, "Will you really do anything?"
Eh?! Miko was shocked, but her long-term training in keeping a straight face meant her expression didn't change a bit. Pretending to casually glance sideways, she saw Aomori standing behind her. Her breathing quickened.
A man in white, surrounded by white light, wearing a fox mask, and holding a small fox in his arms. His gentle voice and striking appearance were immediately likable.
Is he a god? He must be. Can I trust him? He's not an evil spirit in disguise, is he?
After some thought, Miko decided to play it safe and pretend she couldn't see him.
"Miko, Miko, what are you spacing out for?" Hana waved her hand in front of her.
"Ah, sorry. I was just wondering if the prayer would come true."
"Hey, Miko, what did you wish for?"
Miko froze again because she saw the white-clad man, who was likely a god, walk around to the front. He reached out a finger and touched her chin. Her chin was tilted up by an irresistible force, forcing Miko to lock eyes with him. Once again, she heard his magnetic voice.
"Miko, I know you can see me. You know... ignoring a god is a grave offense, don't you?"
He can touch me! He really is a god! And I've already offended him! Miko's heart was in turmoil. Her overwhelming nervousness and fear caused her hands to grip her skirt tightly. Tears welled up in her eyes, looking as if she were about to cry.
"Heh." Looking at the tearful Miko, Aomori smiled with satisfaction. His mood improved significantly. Truly, a girl like Miko looked best when she was on the verge of tears, that pitiful look added quite a bit to her charm.
Withdrawing his finger, Aomori placed his hand on her head and ruffled her hair. "Remember your promise. From this day forward, you shall have the protection of a god."
With that, he turned toward the evil spirit, extended his palm, and spoke: "Light!"
A blinding, endless radiance erupted from his palm. The evil spirit was engulfed by the light and melted away like snow. Seeing this, Miko's mouth fell open in shock.
[1] In Shinto, Japan is said to have 八百万の神 (yaoyorozu no kami) — "eight million gods." It's a way to express that spirits inhabit everything in nature: rivers, rocks, trees, even unusual objects. The "eight million" is symbolic for infinite/diverse deities, not a literal number.