The waves roll gently. The sunset is coming.
Time has passed considerably. Investigating the incident, collecting evidence, and discussing the matter took quite a while. The sun that hung high in the sky illuminating everything has now hidden half of itself, and so now it's the dim light of the evening sunset.
"Young-hee!"
Opening the hospital room door, you find Young-hee sitting on the bed with a blank smile. The orange light from the window casts shadows on half of her face.
"Ah... Princess, you came back...? The Divine Spirit is here too..."
"......"
"...Yes, Young-hee. I came back because I have something to ask you."
"I see..."
Young-hee seems to ponder this for a moment, then looks at Miho and says:
"But why do you look so scared? Today is a happy day."
You feel a sense of danger from her unnaturally calm demeanor. Then it hits you. Miho is still in stealth mode, so Young-hee shouldn't be able to see her.
Yet her eyes are staring directly at Miho's spirit form.
Something is creeping. A dangerous energy is creeping along Young-hee's body. It's darker than the sunset, blacker than night. You warn:
"...I sense magic, ominous magic. Miho."
"...So it's come to this."
On your way here, you and Miho had formed a terrifying hypothesis. Perhaps Young-hee had been "possessed" by something malevolent.
Among the artifacts Miho kept, some were dangerous. If something that had been dormant inside them had awakened due to some incident... it would have influenced Young-hee.
With a soft "poof" sound.
Miho left her spirit state and descended into her human form. Her white fox ears were tense and folded back. She spoke:
"Why did you do it?"
"Do what...?"
"The trap. Why did you do it? Don't try to deny it. Why did you do such a thing to the village, and why did you harm your own leg?!"
"Don't be so cold... Don't act like that when you already know... hehe."
Young-hee laughed with a tearful expression. The sunset light reached its peak redness. Now that sunlight seemed to be spraying bright red blood across the sky.
"I heard everything. That Divine Spirit Miho is going to die soon. That she's going to leave me and go somewhere... No, you can't. You can't leave like that, Divine Spirit. My parents come home late every day because they're busy, and they're always too tired to talk to me."
"Y-Young-hee..."
"So I was thinking about how to make the Divine Spirit live longer, and I found it in a book. I read it. The best offering is a human sacrifice. So I stole traps and set them up. And then, my leg—"
Flinch. Miho looked down at her leg and trembled. Recalling when she herself had been caught in a trap and severely injured her leg, she closed her eyes tightly at the memory of that pain.
Now Miho understood. The spiritual energy supplied to her that morning had been paid for with Young-hee's leg. It was a shabby power gained through a child's suffering.
Miho bit her lip so hard it bled. But her heart hurt a hundred times more than her lip. This should never have happened.
A dying god being offered a child's leg—
It's a sad story.
But if that had been all. This story could have ended with a lecture to never do such a thing again. However, there was more to this incident.
"Then, Young-hee. Why did you harm the others?"
"I thought of an even better method...!"
Jingle. Jingle.
Bell sounds ring out. Something floats up from under Young-hee's blanket. Tools. Strange and mysterious tools that had been stored in the shrine.
Those tools emitted an eerie spiritual energy.
-It's been a while, Lady Miho!
"You all...?!"
Miho was shocked. She knew Young-hee had stolen the tools, but she didn't know they had become yokai. Since when...?
-My, how the mighty have fallen. You didn't even notice our machinations. How weak you've become.
-You haven't used us for so long. We missed you. We missed you so much we became yokai. Please return to your former glory.
-Lady Miho. Let's play together again! Use us again!
"They told me! They're really, really kind and knowledgeable. They said if I do as they say, I can live with the Divine Spirit forever. Hehe... if only the Divine Spirit becomes a "yokai"!"
"So you're trying to turn me into a yokai?!"
Young-hee nodded with a smile. Jingle. Jingle. The artifacts began to orbit around her, as if singing.
But that joy was short-lived. Young-hee's face hardened when she saw Miho's expression. The divine spirit's face clearly showed her refusal.
"I don't want that. I will never become a yokai."
"Why, why not... I finally, finally found a way."
"It shouldn't be done, Young-hee. You're a smart child, so you already know! You shouldn't try to achieve things this way! Come to your senses. You're not yourself right now, you're being bewitched by yokai!"
The sun is setting—
Since ancient times, daytime has been for humans, and night for yokai. This darkening sky with the vanishing sunset is now yokai hunting grounds, and in Young-hee's bewitched eyes, a red energy begins to swirl.
Pop. Her lips protrude outward.
"It was my wish. It was my wish! You said divine spirits grant children's wishes... This is my lifelong wish, so I don't need any more wishes, I just want you to stay by my side—!!"
The prelude to violence.
As a graduate of the Academy, Princess Baek-ryeom made an experienced judgment. An attack was coming, in some form. The immediate action needed was to evacuate!
"Miho, relax your body!"
"What... kyaang?!"
You kicked Miho, but gently. More specifically, you pushed her with your foot. It's a useful technique for "emergency evacuation" of allies in disaster situations.
The fox spirit floated and rolled across the floor, and in that spot—boom!
An invisible strike from the "Telekinetic Prayer Beads" was fired. The hospital room's tile floor dented as if a bowling ball had been dropped on it.
You must fight. The battle has already begun.
===============================================================
-Come back. Come back Lady Miho! Return to the old days!
"Give me information, Miho! About those tools, about Young-hee's condition, everything!"
"She can turn invisible, use invisible force, teleport, and even create clones! And if possible, we need to stop her before night falls! Yokai get stronger at night!"
"—Haaah!"
With Young-hee's shout, various objects in the room—flowerpots, drawers—were swept up to attack you. You stepped on a flying drawer, using it as a foothold to accelerate and leap to Miho's side.
Then, with Miho tucked under your arm, you throw yourself out the window.
"Hup."
Whoosh.
Using magic to land lightly, you look up with a defensive stance. You managed all this reflexively, without much thought.
Not because you're a combat genius. It's simply ingrained in your body.
No matter how much you led a faction at the Academy, no matter how much less you suffered compared to students who played solo, the title of Academy graduate was not a light one.
Especially with the title "Mad Magician Generation" attached to it.
For someone like you who has navigated tentacle labyrinths, a girl wrapped in artifacts is hardly a daunting battlefield. Whether you can overcome this crisis is another matter.
"Her presence disappeared... Invisible! She's invisible! We don't know where the attack will come from! Maybe from the left...?"
"The grass on the ground moved. It's from the right!"
Thud-! Whoosh-!
As you immediately throw yourself aside, the earth where you just stood caves in and scatters. You roll on the ground and steady your breathing.
The simplest magic of condensing, aligning, and firing mana from within your body. Magic Missile.
Ping—!
A mana bullet shoots from your outstretched hand. Young-hee is startled and holds out one of the artifacts orbiting her—a doll—to block the mana bullet.
-I just wanted to be used again...
Bang. The "Clone Doll" explodes.
"...Sorcery. The Princess used sorcery. Did the Divine Spirit teach you that...? Even though you never taught me such things?!"
"You misunderstand, Young-hee. I knew it all along. And this isn't sorcery, it's magic—"
"Liar—!!"
Young-hee shouted with fury—then disappeared using the "Invisibility Cloak" and "Teleportation Shoes." A drop of sweat runs down your cheek.
This aspect.
This aspect indirectly revealed Young-hee's excellence. Being a child, you thought she would attack in a straight line when angry. But she suppressed her emotions—wary of the unprecedented power of magic—and began to fight in the most cunning way.
This puts you at a disadvantage. You gnaw at your thumbnail like a princess.
"...Ah, if only I had my original body!"
Princess Baek-ryeom's skill level is early 3-star. She's a rear-line fighter who covers for her lack of combat sense with abundant mana reserves built up from consuming various elixirs. If you were in your true form, this battle would have ended in 5 seconds—
But you are Princess Kim, and this world has sparse mana. The only way you can produce and use mana is through the technique of "Ascension Manifest."
That's why you used "Magic Missile." Simply because you lack mana. Even when you focus and produce mana, only a handful comes out.
Yes, you were unskilled at Ascension Manifest. You knew the method, but for some reason, you couldn't make it efficient. Until now, you didn't know why.
Now you have a vague idea.
"It's because I lack... substance..."
A center.
Emotions without a center simply evaporate. Momentary anger, momentary joy, momentary laughter cannot burn for long. Just as an ember remains an ember and fades away.
Simply repeating "be angry, be angry" is not enough. You need something to act as fuel.
"Young-hee, let's talk!"
You shouted loudly to locate the invisible Young-hee. Soon, her voice came from all directions, making it difficult to determine her position.
"What is there to talk about? Yes, Princess... you just threw something strange at me. Why? I'm just trying to save the Divine Spirit... Do you dislike the Divine Spirit?"
"I don't... dislike her. That's not it. She herself doesn't want it, right? You know, there's something in this world called conviction. And convictions should be—"
"Lies. Lies, lies! Empty lies! You're just trying to figure out my position while making up excuses...! It shows on your face, Princess. You're making a face that says you're not sure yourself—!!"
"...!!"
You inhaled sharply. Yes, in truth, you don't really understand the word conviction.
Many people around you live with their own convictions, but you've been living like duckweed, drifting along without any such conviction.
"Get a grip, girl! Here she comes!"
"Eep...?!"
Bababababa-
The bushes all bent in one direction with a strange sound. As if a large, invisible snake was crawling on the ground. While you were frozen, Miho took action.
"Fox Burrow!"
Shook-!
The ground seemed to cave in, and suddenly you and Miho emerged from a dirt mound far away. You spat out the soil that had entered your mouth and said:
"Are you allowed to use your power?!"
"No! I think I just lost about 5cm in height!"
"...Young-hee's condition seems to be getting worse too. Her power has increased, and the malevolence in her voice..."
"I told you yokai get stronger at night, didn't I? Young-hee's corruption is accelerating!"
Then you need to end this quickly.
But you lack the combat intelligence to create a master plan, powerful ascension abilities, or the charisma and eloquence to calm Young-hee. All you have is the technique of "Ascension Manifest." That's it.
Vaguely.
Very vaguely, you've come to understand something. You carefully gather the fragments of thought you hadn't dared touch for fear they might scatter. The substance. About something in the center of your heart.
You've lived swept up in expectations. You've lived to meet those expectations. But if asked whether you made the expectations themselves your goal, it's ambiguous. If you had, you would have been striving for perfect test scores even in this rural world.
You still didn't know what to place at that center, but you...
......
No, I.
I thought I should place something there.
I thought there should be a compass in this empty space in my heart. So I thought. The reason I'm fighting here.
Naturally, it's because I think it's what I should do.
It's not to respond to Fox Spirit Miho's desire to save Young-hee. Nor is it to deny the expectations Young-hee has for Miho. So, I...
My center.
My true heart.
It's...
"You annoying little brat—!!"
"...W-what?!"
Bratty kids get smacked. That is my true heart.
===============================================================
Shuuuuu-
Mana surges throughout your body. Still insufficient in quantity, but this should be enough. You've gathered enough to use your family's secret magic.
The alias of the Rose Ducal Family. Baek-ryeom (ç¾æ), meaning "gathering a hundred pieces of information."
That's why she—knew how to use tracking magic for information gathering.
"Like the hundred-day flower blooming in the garden, 'White Rose Selection'!"
Rustle-!
With a mana wave like rose petals scattering, your senses lock onto the invisible Young-hee's position. You pour all your mana into your feet and kick off the ground. Whoosh-!!
"Uh, uwah...?!"
Seeing you approaching at high speed, Young-hee tries to escape with the "Teleportation Shoes," but that's why you had loaded a "Magic Missile" in your hand.
Bang-!
-I wanted to play with Lady Miho again-!
You fire the magic bullet to destroy the artifact. And the repulsive field from the incoming "Telekinetic Prayer Beads"...
Thud-!
"Ugh!"
You take the hit and fly away.
Despite your impressive momentum, you were hit by Young-hee's counterattack and sent flying, rolling across the ground. Young-hee's tense expression relaxes, showing signs of relief.
But.
"...Do you know, Young-hee, that at night—yokai powers get stronger!"
"...?!"
Because of that momentary relief, Young-hee forgot about Miho who had been on your shoulders. And now the fox spirit is—right above Young-hee's head.
"As the divine spirit commands, all sacred tools shall now obey my orders, Emergency Decree!"
Jingle, jingle-!!
The artifacts surrounding Young-hee shake as if screaming. Then soon, they stop working and fall to the ground.
And toward the completely disarmed Young-hee's crown—
Smack!
"Oww...!"
"You little girl!"
The battle ended with Miho's karate chop to Young-hee's head.
......
It's completely dark now.
The tools have been confiscated, and the malevolent energy that had infected Young-hee has disappeared. Having stopped it before it escalated, the wounds left by this commotion will gradually heal.
But something still remained. The emotional knot. Young-hee's wish that triggered this incident still remained unresolved.
Looking up at the sky, Young-hee said with a tearful expression:
"...Is it not possible?"
"...In this world, where there are meetings, there are also partings. I'm sorry. I cannot grant your wish."
"Uu, uuu... uwaaaaah!"
It was a commotion under the moonlight.
===============================================================
No matter how possessed she was, a sin is still a sin. Under Fox Spirit Miho's guidance, Young-hee wandered around the village to help those she had injured.
Sometimes she directly tended to the injured, or picked up trash lying around the village. It's work to accumulate merit, even if it can't erase her sins.
Those evil artifacts were moved to a more secure and harder-to-find corner where children couldn't reach them. They probably won't see sunlight for a very long time.
And you.
You were sitting on a chair in front of the stationery store, munching on ice cream. Along with the fox spirit who had a popsicle in her mouth.
"How much time do you have left?"
Though your question was abrupt, Miho understood immediately.
"About 3 more months, I reckon."
"You've worn down so much without doing anything?"
"Worn down! Talking about me like I'm some object... though I'm not human... Anyway. I used quite a bit to purify Young-hee."
"Ah. That's right. That wouldn't disappear so easily, as if washed away."
There's a bitter taste. Even though you're eating sweet ice cream.
But this is the way of life she chose. So you have to accept it. You built walls in your mind with various thoughts. Like how she's a fox who has lived for over 100 years, so this is a good age to die. Or how it's fine if she can die happily.
This is just a fantasy... yes.
Since it's just a fantasy, don't get emotionally attached.
No, that's not it. These aren't things you need to think about yet. There are still 3 months left. That means you can make many memories during that time.
So. You promised tomorrow.
"Then, see you tomorrow."
"Ah. See you tomorrow."
After exchanging brief greetings. You parted ways.
===============================================================
[Static noise—]
Chirp chirp. The sound of birds chirping.
After finishing your day as Princess Baek-ryeom, you connect to this world again. Cheerful bird sounds welcome you. It's not awkward. You get up rustling and naturally prepare for your daily routine.
Wash, dress, eat, depart.
You naturally go to school. Then, your best friend Young-hee is in the seat next to you. You sit down and ask Young-hee:
"Hi Young-hee. Did you finish your morning volunteer work?"
"...Huh?"
"With Miho. I heard you've been picking up trash lately."
Then Young-hee blinks. And without a hint of humor. She says something very strange and frightening to you.
Namely—
"...Who's Miho?"