Pathway to Japanese Literature

Discover Japan's stories—across time, across language.

Snow DemonAuthor: Unno Juza

Original Title	雪魔
Author	海野十三
Genre	Detective & Mystery
Author Type	Male Author
Summary	In a remote Japanese village buried under relentless snow, young Hikota reunites with his friend Gosuke during winter break, only to uncover a chilling secret. Gosuke’s older brother, Ichizō, has vanished while conducting clandestine experiments on Aokami Mountain—a place shrouded in terrifying legends of a vengeful Demon God. Defying warnings, the boys brave blizzards and avalanches to deliver supplies, discovering eerie footprints, ghostly apparitions, and evidence of Ichizō’s desperate struggle against unseen forces. Their journey leads them to a snowbound cave where cryptic journal entries reveal encounters with inhuman creatures lurking beneath the earth. As storms rage and ancient curses seem to awaken, Hikota and Gosuke confront blood-stained mysteries that blur science and myth. But the mountain guards its secrets fiercely, leaving them to wonder: Was Ichizō’s research a noble pursuit or a reckless awakening of something primordial? With every step deeper into the frozen wilderness, the line between legend and reality fractures—and escape may come too late.