Unreliable guardian, the Okuri-Inu

Hello, it's getting cooler. I'm Kamiyo. Now, how about you all?"Uncle Ibaiba"Are you familiar with this urban legend (or is it a suspicious person?)?

I heard this story from a friend who lives in Mie Prefecture, but Uncle Ibaiba is a tall, skinny man who wears black clothes and always has a fixed smile on his face.

Uncle Ibaiba's crimes are mainly committed in the evenings and at night, targeting elementary and junior high school students. He targets the time when the victim is going home from school and hides in a space that is very close to the house and difficult to see, such as the shadow of the entrance to the victim's house. He then appears at the moment when the unsuspecting victim is about to pass by."Bye-bye, bye-bye."He calls out and runs off.

He doesn't actually lay hands on children, but trespassing on someone else's residential property is a serious crime, and lurking in a relaxed space like the front gate of a house is extremely bad. He's a suspicious person that makes you shudder just thinking about him, but after causing a commotion in the neighborhood for about a week, he suddenly disappeared from the area.

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Even if we ignore occult elements such as suspicious people, kidnappers, and stray dogs, walking at night is still as dangerous today as it was in the past."Sending off dog"protects humans from such thingsSometimesThis yokai is called by different names in different regions, such as Okuri-Okami (a swarm of wolves) or Okuri-Itachi (a weasel), and has two fundamental characteristics.

The first is to accompany humans on their way home and protect them from other monsters and harmful animals..

The second is to bite and eat the human when he falls.

In short, "If you don't fall, they'll protect you, but if you do fall, they'll just eat you alive," which is a bit of an extreme choice, but maybe they have a split personality or something... Still, it's great that they behave in ways that are beyond human comprehension, as it shows us that they are vividly other-than-human.

Even though they are the same dog monsters,Inugamiwas a yokai whose scope of existence was limited to possessing the possessor or the bloodline of the family. However, the Okuri-Okami will possess any human walking along a mountain path. Therefore, if you are walking along a mountain path, there is basically no way to actively avoid encountering this yokai.

But don't worry.Even if you are possessed by a dog and it falls right in front of you, there is a way to save yourself.

After you fall, say things like, "I'm going to take a break," or "I'm tired," as if"I didn't fall, I just sat down to take a break."By creating an atmosphere like this, the Okuri-Inu"I see^^, if you didn't fall, I'll wait^^"She is tricked and continues to guard him. Easy, cute.

As you can see, this yokai is basically a beneficial one as long as you know how to deal with it.

Writing articles like this makes me feel 100 times more scared of people like Uncle Ibaiba than I am of monsters... Sorry for blaming everything on monsters... By the way, I don't think there are any men who send women home with evil intentions."Wolf on the Way"It is said that the word's origin comes from this monster.

In the sense of "If you show an opening, they'll attack you"The male Okuri-Okami and the monster Okuri-Okami are similar.I somehow found myself convinced.

(Image: Kyoka Hyakumonogatari)