Sword Art Online Crossover: They're all close friends, how did I become a player?

Chapter 180 The Origin of Hozuki

"So, before Lord Hozuki, there was someone who served as an assistant to King Enma."

Tang Gua's words sparked a curious discussion among the other prison guards who were searching for information.

"Really? I really didn't know that!" A jailer exclaimed, his eyes wide with surprise.

“After all, the history of that world is very long,” another jailer remarked.

"Speaking of which, how was Lord Hozuki born?"

Listening to the other jailers' conversation, Tang Gua couldn't help but become curious about the origins of Lord Hozuki, so he asked the jailers who were discussing it.

When asked, the jailer scratched his head, looking somewhat uncertain: "Well, there are many ways in which ghosts are born. Some are born from resentment, while others are formed from the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. As for Lord Hozuki's origins, I'm afraid only he himself knows."

"So, do you think Lord Hozuki had a childhood?"

Eggplant suddenly interjected, and the question made everyone fall into deep thought. They really couldn't imagine what Hozuki-sama looked like when he was a child.

"I don't think it would be strange if Lord Hozuki were a demon born from dark matter."

Tang Gua's eyes sparkled with a light of fantasy, as if he could already see Lord Hozuki slowly emerging from the endless darkness.

Since there are doubts, we must resolve them. Naturally clueless Eggplant once again performed steadily. After they finished organizing the data, Eggplant pulled Tang Gua over to Ghost Lamp and Yu Bai, who were still there because they had some things to finish up. Eggplant then gave them a face-to-face big punch.

Ask him directly!

I have to say, when it comes to courage, it has to be my Eggplant Bro.

"How is that possible?" Upon hearing Eggplant's description, Hozuki retorted expressionlessly. He really didn't understand why Tang Gua would think of his birth in this way. Was this really how Tang Gua saw him?

"I was born a human being, after all."

"When a person is born..."

How could it sound so unreal coming from Lord Hozuki's mouth?

Tang Gua muttered to himself, an expression of disbelief on his face. Although he didn't finish his sentence, his expression fully conveyed what he was thinking.

"No, I was indeed born of humans, and that was a very, very long time ago. It was back in the present world, even when the Yamata no Orochi still exists."

As he said this, Hozuki inadvertently glanced at Yu Bai, who was standing to the side listening intently.

"From a small village deep in the mountains..."

Then Hozuki slowly began to tell everyone how he was sacrificed by the villagers because of the long drought, how his resentment after death attracted the ghost fire that was wandering nearby and merged with him, and how he finally became a ghost and was guided by the Kodama into the afterlife, which was not yet hell.

"I met Hozuki once before, before I became king... Hozuki was so young then, and he already knew to ask me for a fixed-salary position and performance bonuses. He was such a clever kid."

As King Enma listened to Hozuki's story, he couldn't help but show a look of reminiscence and began to recount the scene when he first met Hozuki.

While everyone was engrossed in listening to King Yama's words, Yu Bai quietly reached out and grasped the hand of Hozuki, who was standing next to him. When Hozuki turned to look at him, Yu Bai gave him a warm smile.

Although Hozuki had calmly and casually explained why he had become a demon, Yu Bai felt a pang of heartache after hearing it.

He felt sorry for the suffering and hardship Hozuki had endured and wanted to comfort him in his own way.

Hozuki lived long before the Heian period, and Yu Bai could imagine the feudal superstitions people had back then, after all, it was an era where people could sacrifice living people to pray for rain.

Furthermore, since King Enma said that when he met Hozuki, Hozuki was just a child, it's clear that Hozuki didn't have a good life while he was alive. That's why Yu Bai is holding Hozuki's hand now, trying to comfort him.

"Ok?"

Noticing that Yu Bai was holding his hand, Hozuki turned his head and saw the smile on the silver-haired god's face and the heartache in his eyes, which made him let out a soft chuckle: "Heh~"

Then, Hozuki's gaze returned to the eloquent King Enma, but his attention did not completely leave Yu Bai. The hand that Yu Bai was holding quietly turned over, the large palm tightly enveloping Yu Bai's slender and well-defined fingers, and then gently squeezed it again.

"...After that, Sakura underwent some significant changes, and I, the one who proposed it, became the king, responsible for collecting everyone's opinions. It was also around that time that I met Hozuki again, who had returned from studying the judicial system in China." King Enma's words fell slowly, like dust gently drifting away.

At this moment, Tang Gua took out the scroll he had seen before from his pocket, opened it, and held it up in front of King Enma, Hozuki, and Yu Bai. Pointing to the place where Hozuki's name was recorded, he said, "By the way, back then, Lord Hozuki, you were his assistant, right? Look, it's recorded here."

Despite being watched by everyone, Hozuki remained unfazed and continued to hold Yu Bai's hand tightly, even tightening his grip.

He said calmly, "If I had been appointed as the assistant from the beginning, the compilation of Hell would be much more rigorous now. But I am the second one. The first assistant was the former Queen of the Underworld: Izanami Mikoto."

……

Tanggua and Eggplant: How was Lord Hozuki born?

Hozuki: of life.

Tanggua and eggplant: I don't believe it.

Hozuki: That's life! I used to be a human.

Yu Bai: Holding hands quietly~

Ghost Lantern: Reverse grip.