Tobias scrambles to his feet, eyes widening. "Don't! Don't try to deal with those things, don't bargain with them. Don't give them what they want, but don't challenge them directly. I'm telling you, Ryoji. Just don't deal with those things. Stay away from them."

He swallows hard, trying to retreat back into his Horror's senses to keep from feeling fear. "They're bad news. And they don't care about human lives. They're stronger than you are, and if you draw attention to yourself around them, if you make yourself interesting, you're going to die."