#master innkeeper

But when I was young, I had no idea what he meant.

“I don’t want to be eaten! I like to eat! And Aoi doesn’t want to leave grandpa!”

“Yes, that’s right. Even grandpa doesn’t want to leave you and he doesn’t want you to be taken away from him…. Aoi, be careful, especially with ōni.”

“Ōni?  Aoi has never seen an ōni.”

“They look almost like people, so it may be hard to tell.”

“Are they a person?”

“No! They are not people – incompatible with humans,” he denied, shaking his head strongly.

“Diabolic, cold-hearted. They want to get what they want at any cost, and won’t be satisfied unless they get their way. So, Aoi… don’t let the ōni get to you.”

My grandfather always, always told me to be careful of ōni.

The ōni have….(2)

The sensation of falling ended with a thud.

“Ouch!”

I let out a yelp when I landed hard on my lower back. I fell down in a heap on the spot. When I opened my eyes, I saw a ceiling that I did not recognize. It was painted with horrifying and yet glittering pictures of dancing ayakashi. It made me feel nervous inside.

I was somehow in a very strange hall. I didn’t know why. It was so very cold. I began to notice that my body was terribly wet from my journey through the darkness.

“Aoi,” a low, calm and disgustingly clear voice called.

I looked into the face of an ayakashi wearing an ōni mask. It was the same ayakashi I had met at the shrine and had given the bento box to.

“You’re the masked ayakashi from this morning! What is this,” I screamed in surprise as I sat up, clutching my waist.

I glanced around, scanning the room with just my eyes. It was a tatami room, dimly lit, and had a strange air about it. However, I could tell that it was a gorgeous and luxurious space. I began to realize that the deformed figures sitting quietly on the sides of the room, like figurines, were all ayakashi. They all wore kimonos and different masks. I couldn’t see their expressions, but I could tell they were watching me closely. Their gazes felt like murderous knives against my skin.

It felt like some indescribable force made me its prey. A dismal, disgusting feeling quietly overcame me.

I was surrounded by ayakashi. My blood ran cold. It didn’t matter that I was used to seeing ayakashi, it had never been like this before. I didn’t know this place and there wasn’t anyone on my side. I felt the chill of fear crawling up my spine.

I regained my composure and once again turned my attention to the ayakashi in the ōni mask. This ayakashi was the only one I thought I could talk to.

“What—?”

He suddenly bent down in front of me and slowly removed the mask. My eyes widened. His true face was the same face of the man from my grandfather’s black and white photograph. A pale face without a human-like flaw. Sharp, cool eyes. Dark hair and breathtakingly cold features.

His slitted eyes narrowed and filled with a gracious smile. As the initial shock wore off, I realized that he had a pair of sharply pointed horns and his eyes were red.

He wasn’t human. I knew. This… this was an ōni.

“How are you feeling, my bride?”

“Huh? Wha–?”

At the ōni’s words, I scurried to check both sides of me, but there was no one else.

“I’m asking you how you’re feeling, my bride.”

“Are… are you asking me that?”

“That’s right. Aoi, you are. You are my bride.”

“... Honestly, I don’t know what you mean, plus, it doesn’t make me feel good,” I answer straightly.

The ōni in front of me just nodded with a putrid smile on his face. Bride? What is he saying….

As beautiful as he was, it was still an ōni that grandfather told me to be vigilant against. So suspicious.

I was freezing and it was getting worse.

Oh… I was soaking wet. My dress was transparent and clung to my body. My stockings were ripped. My hair clung to my face and I had no doubt my makeup was ruined – running all over my face.

Normally, I’d be embarrassed. But right then I couldn’t afford the luxury of worrying about it. Perhaps it was because of the mysterious situation, but I felt no shame. For some reason, even just for a moment, I felt like I was on the brink of waking up from this nightmare….

“Master, with all due respect, would it not be better if it wasn’t a human girl,” asked an ayakashi with a hyottoko(3) mask with disgust to the black-haired ōni. The azuki bean(4) colored hair that peeked out from behind the mask drove home that he wasn’t human.

“She is not worthy of you, Master. Such a dirty little girl,” with those words, the ayakashi, who had been still like figurines, all began whispering amongst themselves at once. I could hear everything they were muttering about me:

“How very true.”

“His granddaughter….”

“Ugly.”

“No good.”

“Poor.”

And so on and everything in between while hiding behind their masks and fans. Such terrible things to say….

But it didn’t matter. The need to somehow get away from this place was at the forefront of my mind. This was an ayakashi den. My usual nerves against ayakashi were nothing compared to that moment. These ayakashi were no weaklings. Even I, as a human, could tell just from looking at them.

They looked like they’d eat me up in an instant if I gave them the slightest chance.

Have to run away. Have to run away.

I could see the porch through the closed shoji(5). I found my moment and said to myself, “Now!”

I ran, trying to escape like a rabbit from a snare.

“Oh, that little girl!”

I heard the thundering sound of several ayakashi getting up at the same time. I only caught a quick glimpse of the ōni raising his arms to control the other ayakashi out of the corner of my eye. I didn’t hesitate to push through the gap of the shoji screen to get out onto the porch.

There wasn’t a shadow of a railing, so I assumed it was an unenclosed porch. Normally, you’d just be able to step off that edge and be fine. That was what I assumed anyways.

That expectation was readily betrayed.

I was startled by the strange scene before me. I stared at the scene just below my feet as I just barely stopped in time. “Huh!?”

It was a world I had never seen before. The wooden porch where I stood was far above the ground. It was the top floor of the building and the ground was so far down. Rows and rows of eaves were lit by lanterns as far as the eye could see. It wasn’t Japan that was for sure. The main street below was busy. And even from where I stood, I could tell that the people coming and going were ayakashi.

Flags and red lanterns were hung everywhere with “Ōni Gate” written all over them. The buildings were not modern buildings nor apartments, but were rather like old Japanese warehouses, or like the traditional old townscapes found in Kyoto. The unlacquered buildings to my right reminded me of ancient China. Further in the distance, there was a large temple with a number of tall buildings that resembled five-story pagodas.

While they all resembled something from the real world, there was something off about all of them. They were unstable, misshapen, and almost familiar. The streets were like a labyrinth, existing in complex forms. There was certainly an air that I had never felt before. This world was very, very crowded.

“....”

I stared, unable to blink. I spotted a Japanese-style boat in the sky passing overhead. But it wasn’t nearly as surprising as it could have been, all things considering.

I don’t know. I don’t know this world.

The very word “otherworld”(6) popped into my mind.

A cold wind roared up from below, ruffling my hair. It made my legs weak and fell down into a heap on the spot.

“Where on earth is this…?”

“This is Kakuriyo, Aoi,” whispered the black-haired ōni as he pulled back my arm, asking my question.

“... Kakuriyo….”

I’d heard that name somewhere before.

“It’s dangerous. Let’s go inside.”

“What’s Kakuriyo,” I asked, still staring into the night of this strange, new world.

I didn’t understand. Why was I in such a place?

Despite my own confusion, the black-haired ōni calmly answered, “Kakuriyo is where ayakashi live. The world of humans is called Utsushiyo(7). Kakuriyo and Utsushiyo are two sides of the same coin and are connected in various places. Some are similar, some are completely different…. And this is Tenjin-ya, an inn for ayakashi in Kakuriyo.”

“Tenjin-ya….”

Finally, it hit me. I recognized the name from the black and white photo that I found when I was cleaning out my grandfather’s belongings. He was in front of this inn, taking a picture of himself with the ayakashi.

I slowly turned around and looked up at the dark-haired ‘man’ in front of me. I knew he had horns on his head. I knew he wasn’t human by any means, and looking up into those cold red eyes, I was horrified. A chill ran through my body.

“What are you?”

“I am the Master Innkeeper of Tenjin-ya. Most simply call me Master. I’m also known as ‘Ōnigami’(8).

“... Are you really an ōni?”

“If I may be so bold, I am also the ōni who will be your husband.”

The male ōni in front of me looked at me with amusement. I shook my head repeatedly, wanting to deny it.

“A husband? How can an ōni be a husband to a human?”

“Yes, I am an ōni, but I did make a promise to Shirou, so there is nothing I can do about it.”

Shirou…. At the mention of my grandfather’s name, I froze. Oh, no, I thought. Just because my grandfather was involved, I knew that anything was possible, no matter how unreasonable or unintelligible.

“I’ll explain it to you. Aoi, your grandfather is certainly Shirou.”

“Unfortunately, you’re not wrong.”

When I replied, the ayakashi present seemed flabbergasted. The ōni, too, smiled (almost in a grimace), squinting his eyes.

“I’ve known Shirou for a long time as well. We have a lot of history.”

“History…?”

“Yes. Shirou was a unique person who could come and go as he pleased between Kakuriyo and Utsushiyo. He was a man with a very strong spiritual power, and he was a free man who liked to do as he pleased. One day, he showed up at Tenjin-ya on a whim and for three days and three nights, he ate and drank as much as he liked, indulging in all manner of extravagance. He accumulated so much debt that he couldn’t even pay. But in the end, he still tried to escape.”

“....”

I was convinced, unfortunately; the story was not impossible. I turned pale. Oh, grandpa, what an idiotic thing to do to an ayakashi….

“But this is also a business. I caught Shirou and asked him if he wanted to pay me back, work here for the rest of his life, or be eaten by me? He shook his head and said to me, ‘What do you think?’”

He tugged on my arm, bringing me in closer. I shook my head. I didn’t want to think about it.

“‘I can’t stay in one place because I love my freedom. I can’t be eaten. I have no money…. Oh, yes, if I can’t pay my debts before I die, I will give you, Ōnigami, my granddaughter as your wife.’ That’s what he said. It’s outrageous, isn’t it? He was an incredible man, Shirou. He really was a vile son of a bitch, even compared to ayakashi.”

“....”

“In short, Aoi, you’re his collateral,” he mercilessly concludes.

I started to feel dizzy. However, I took a moment to compose myself.

“Are you sure it’s me? Couldn’t it be a mistake? You know, Grandpa has so many granddaughters that it’s a bit of a surprise that it’s me.”

“Oh, yes, of course I am. Because you are the only granddaughter of Shirou who can see ayakashi. If you were not able to see ayakashi, you would not be able to visit Kakuriyo in the first place,” he said in a very matter of fact way.

As much as it irked me, I found his words strangely persuasive.

“I’m going to make it clear once again, Aoi. You and I have a marriage contract. The time has come, you must marry me.”

“... Marry….”

The ōni glanced over to a smaller spirit, a koshō(9) perhaps, who was standing off to the side. The koshō took out a piece of paper and presented it to me.

“This is the pledge. It is binding until the promise has been fulfilled.”

On the fine piece of paper, it was written:

I, Tsubaki Shirou, am in debt to the Master Innkeeper of Tenjin-ya. If I cannot repay my debt, I will give my granddaughter, who has the highest spiritual energy, to the Master Innkeeper as a wife. I swear to you.

— Tsubaki Shirou

It was an honest and pathetic letter. And the writing was definitely my grandfather’s. At the bottom of it was my grandfather’s thumbprint, solidifying the pledge. I knew I couldn’t escape.

I thought about what marriage was: It was when two people decide to become husband and wife, to become a family.

But with someone you’ve never met before? Impossible.

No, never mind never having met him before, he was an ayakashi, not a human. And he’s the ōni that grandpa told me to be most careful of.

My head hurt. I couldn’t stop shaking. Was it from fear, or from still being cold and wet, I didn’t know. Perhaps it was my anger at my grandfather.

Grandpa… Grandpa… how could you do something so stupid….?

I felt an unspeakable dismay and despair that my grandfather, whom I loved so much, had so easily used his own granddaughter as collateral. My thoughts and emotions were going around and around inside me.

The ōni saw me trembling in anguish and he put his sleeve over his mouth to hold back his laughter. Ugh, as expected of an ōni. Ōni…. A damn ōni. I was sure that he was amused by my misery.

The ōni once again pulled me up by my arm, forcing me to stand. He then took me back to the room where the rest of the ayakashi remained. His nails bit into my skin slightly, leaving a small tingle of pain. For some reason, I felt a twinge.

“Come now, let’s get ready for the wedding preparations. You shouldn’t be dressed like that. We’ll have you take a hot bath and a change of clothes.”

“No!” I refused. The ayakashi around me started to stir again. But I had to refuse.

“I will never be an ōni bride!”

“... Never?”

“Absolutely never!”

“....”

He didn’t say anything, as if he was waiting for me to say more. He looked down, mouth tight as he listened – I was relentless.

“I don’t care about the debt, I don’t consent to it! Now, please, return me to my original world.”

“No, I can’t do that.”

The ōni looked at me and sighed. He lowered his voice and said, “This is Kakuriyo. To open the entrance between worlds, you have to pay the toll. How can you pay the toll when you’re deep in your grandfather’s debt?”

“Don’t be ridiculous! You brought me here, didn’t you? Then you should at least pay the toll for me to go back to my world! This is kidnapping!”

I shook off his hand that held me and roughly jabbed my finger at him. I said it. I said it.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw an ayakashi shaking in rage, muttering, “How dare you!”

“You fool! You’re just a filthy little human girl who can’t even repay her grandfather’s huge debt! You’re so naive to think you’re in the Master’s good graces! Even the mere mention of you being Shirou’s granddaughter is unforgivable!”

The man with azuki-colored hair and the hyottoko mask, who had been criticizing me for some time, came rushing towards me, shouting, “We will eat you down to the bone!”

“Manager!”

The crowd cried, “Do it!”

Something white and thread-like surrounded me suddenly. My legs were entangled in the sticky white thread, pulled together until I found myself landing once again on the ground, letting out a yelp. Oh, how my bottom hurt.

No, it wasn’t the time to be thinking about such things. This ayakashi was a tsuchigumo(10). If you get caught in its web, it will eat you down to the marrow.

However, the ayakashi was subdued when the ōni said, “Wait, Tsuchigumo. Don’t be so careless.”

“Master is too lenient! Let me hurt this little girl, she will listen to you!”

The ōni nodded in agreement for some reason, listening to what the ayakashi in the hyottoko mask had to say. What was he agreeing to? The ōni had an unnerving, devilish smile on his face. “Are the three Noppera-bō(11) sisters here?”

The ōni snapped his fingers and the sliding door on the side opened. Three female, middle aged Noppera-bō stood there, neatly waiting. The ōni gave them the instructions, “I think I’ll let my bride-to-be have a taste of her own medicine. Prepare the ‘Punishment of Hell’ course.”

“Huh?”

“Now, take her away. Don’t stop, even if she hates it.”

While stunned, the Noppera-bō maids carried me out of the room without any difficulty. Huh? What?

I never thought I’d be punished. Was it like corporal punishment? They were going to hurt me? Is this the end? If that’s the case, it would have been better to have been eaten and only in pain just for a moment.

“This is the hot water torture,” said the smallest of the Noppera-bō maids in a gracious voice, despite the fact that she had no mouth. She wore an apron that read, ‘Matsu(12).’

Before I knew it, I had been stripped of clothes and I found myself being soaked in sparkling, red, warm water. Honestly, it felt wonderful. Its warmth seeped into my freezing body.

“This is the skinning torture,” said the Noppera-bō maid wearing an apron that said ‘Take’ as she began to scrub down my body. They didn’t let me do anything. After scrubbing my skin, they massaged some sort of lotion into my skin. My skin was so shiny and plump.

“This is the binding torture,” said the largest maid who wore an apron with ‘Ume’ on it as she dressed me in a light indigo yukata and tied a yellow obi around me. It was beautiful with a rindou pattern (a geometric six-point star in overlapping hexagons), but when the obi was fastened, I felt overwhelmed with melancholy.

“This is the final torture.”

The three Noppera-bō sisters, Matsu, Take, and Ume, each gave me a makeover. Matsu dried my hair. My black hair became smoother and shinier. She even massaged my shoulders. Take put makeup on me, powdering my face and painting my lips with a vibrant rouge. Ume took my hands and painted my nails. She also massaged cream into my hands, helping with the roughness that had developed from all the cooking I had done.

“The ‘Punishment of Hell’ is complete.”

“Huh? No, this wasn’t a punishment, wasn’t it? This was a luxurious hot springs experience at the inn.”

“But it’s a punishment, right?”

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

When I tried to get any answers, the three of them would just shrug their shoulders, dodging my questions. It didn’t help that they were expressionless and I couldn’t figure out what they were feeling.

“The Master is waiting for you.”

Then they took me somewhere else.

“Don’t marry such a pathetic and lowly human, Master! If a human becomes the Mistress, us employees will not be happy and it will become a source of strife for Tenjin-ya. Our inn stands at the foot of the Ōni Gate. Tenjin-ya’s struggles will become Kakuriyo’s struggles!”

“Even if I marry her, I won’t make her Mistress right away.”

“Then she is even more useless!”

I heard all this from the other side of the paper sliding door as the Noppera-bō sisters escorted me. From the sound of the voice, it was the tsuchigumo from earlier who was making an enemy out of me.

“I’m sorry for being so useless.”

The sliding door opened with a slight rattle as I opened it. Behind the sliding door were three ayakashi. One was the ōni, ‘Master,’ the other was the tsuchigumo with the hyottoko mask. The final one was an ayakashi wearing a white fox mask, who was nowhere to be seen earlier. The three of them froze as they stared at us, perhaps they hadn’t noticed us coming in.

“What sort of punishment was that? That was just using the ōnsen, it warmed me up and made me feel better,” I muttered to myself, now that I had a chance to warm up and calm down my nerves, as I made my way over to the ōni.

“Well, well, Aoi? My bride looks lovely in our yukata. You look radiant.”

“Thanks to you. It’s a nice place to stay and the service is wonderful.”

“Have you learned your lesson?”

“You expect that to convince me to be your bride?”

“If you were to become my bride, you’d get unlimited access to those services here at the inn.”

“I’m not playing this game with you. Just send me home.”

The tsuchigumo shouted at me, “Shut up and be quiet!”

I glared back at the tsuchigumo, I knew it would have been better for me to keep quiet, but I continued, “It’s natural! I’m only 20 years old, still a college student. I’ve never thought of marriage. Let alone to an ayakashi – I’m not going to be made a fool of!”

“Calm down, calm down. Settle down.”

“Tch…”

The ōni admonished me as if I were a child. I felt a chill at his tone. He was completely cold towards me. An ayakashi indeed.

“We’ll use the back room so we can speak privately.”

Perhaps unable to see the anguished expression on my face, the ōni slid open the door with a plum blossom motif, located at the end of the hall. It seemed to lead to a hidden room.

“Can I get you anything,” asked the ayakashi with the bushy tail and white fox mask.

Perhaps he was a kitsune(13)? I couldn’t help but stare at him.

“Prepare a bed for her in the Camellia Room. My bride must be tired.”

“As you wish.”

The fox-masked ayakashi quickly left. The tsuchigumo with the hyottoko mask stared at me. It felt as if he wanted to say something to me.

I looked into the hidden room. It was a small room with a tea kettle on a hearth in the center. The ōni sat down beside it and beckoned me as I stood idly by the sliding door.

“Come. Sit wherever you’d like, my bride.”

I finally entered the small tatami room and sat down, wary. The moment I sat down, the sliding door to the room was slammed shut and I heard the tsuchigumo make a noise of disapproval.

“Would you like some tea, my bride?”

The ōni mixed the contents of the tea kettle with a ladle and continued to prepare it before filling a cup and handing it to me. I took it and drank the matcha tea without much care. The tea was thick, but it was refreshing and had a nice aftertaste.

“Now that we’re settled, you want to ask me something, don’t you? I’m sure you’d feel intimidated in a place with so many of my employees.”

I clutched the teacup in my lap and asked him, point blank, “How… How much does Grandpa owe you?”

He let out a small growl, then stroked his chin, replying, “In Utsushiyo, it comes out to roughly, 100,000,000 yen(14).”

“One hundr— hahhhhhhhh…”

I started to feel dizzy again. Not even the tuition money grandfather had saved for me would be enough. Did he really intend for me to marry an ōni as collateral for his debt? If so, why was he saving up money for my education? It didn’t make sense, it was so contradictory.  I wanted to yell at my grandfather and ask him why. But that was no longer possible.

“I know it’s not your fault, but you do have to clean up Shirou’s mess. It’s not because he isn’t an ayakashi. Even in your world, you have to pay back the money you borrowed. I understand it’s quite common for daughters and granddaughters to sell themselves, isn’t it?”

“This is kind of starting to piss me off.”

“I suppose so.”

The ōni smiled cruelly, dropping his gaze as he held up his sleeve, mixing the water in the tea kettle.

I felt a rage start to bubble up in me. Why? I wasn’t sure. Was it the fact that my grandfather took the liberty of trying to make me collateral and an ōni bride? Was it that fact that despite this, I still loved my grandfather? Or was the source of my anger, this aloof, unreadable ōni?

“Do you really not want to be my wife so badly?”

“If anyone wanted to become the wife of an ōni that they just met, I’d think they were crazy.”

“....”

His eye twitched at my words and he looked up slightly at me. “I see….”

For a moment he seemed almost sad as he turned his gaze to the hot water in the tea kettle, mixing it absentmindedly.

It was strange. Why would such a powerful ōni want me as his wife?

“Do you want me to be your bride so badly?”

When I asked, he responded “Of course,” nodding with a dignity that came with age, despite his beautiful, youthful appearance.

“Why? It’s strange. You’re the owner of such a fine inn, aren’t you? You must have many to choose from to be your wife. Besides, the other ayakashi just now were so angry with you. They hate humans very much.”

“No, in fact, having a human bride raises an ayakashi’s status. You must have read the fairy tales about ayakashi spiriting away human girls and taking them as wives.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes, that’s right. However, as Kakuriyo tries to coexist with Utsushiyo, it has become legally difficult for ayakashi to spirit away girls and marry them as they please. To do so carelessly would bring conflict. It’s not something that’s common anymore. Unless of course you make a promise of marriage, like your grandfather did.”

Thoughts and questions filled my head, listening to him. I asked, “Are there laws for ayakashi?”

“That there are. We live by these rules. The Laws of Kakuriyo.”

He rummaged in his sleeve for a smoking pipe and then lit it with a green ōni flame. He puffed it once as he stared intently at me.

“You are also Shirou’s granddaughter. That alone makes you valuable to the ayakashi. Shirou was a sort of celebrity here in Kakuriyo.”

“That… makes me valuable?”

“You’ll find out eventually.”

He chuckled then added, “And we find human girls with high spiritual power to be very delicious. They’re precious because they are delicious. If they are precious, we cannot devour them. We come to hate them because we cannot bring ourselves to eat them. Yet, still, we can’t help but want to eat them because they are delicious. It’s a cycle of living hell. But there are those who say that it is the greatest pleasure. That is why loving a human is restricted.”

“What? That doesn’t make any sense. It’s such a contradiction.”

“No, there is no contradiction. Ayakashi get bored easily, so human girls are a source of great interest.”

Looking back on it, it did sound like something my grandfather once said.

As if an idea came to him, he asked, “Oh, would you like a sweet,” as he rummaged around in the cabinet behind him and took out something. It was a box full of sugar candy in the shape of cherry blossoms.

I couldn’t deny that I was hungry, so I picked one up and ate without hesitation. It wasn’t necessarily filling. The confection wasn’t too rich, but had a soothing flavor to it. I nibbled on it in silence. What was I going to do now….

I started to feel disappointed and angry with grandfather again. I loved him so much, yet I couldn’t help but feel this anger.

What should I do?

After a moment of hesitation, I turned my attention back to the ōni. I looked into his sharp, red eyes and asked, “Hey, can’t I just pay off my grandpa’s debt?”

“... What do you mean?”

“It means that if I pay off my grandfather’s debt, I don’t have to marry you.”

As soon as those words left my mouth, I could feel the atmosphere change. His expression became much more serious and calculating as he eyed me. “How do you propose to pay back this enormous debt?”

“Obviously, I’m going to work to earn money. Your employees clearly don’t want me marrying you. Perhaps, you should reconsider your stance on this as well.”

“....”

“It would be bad for both you and me if an ayakashi ends up eating me just because my presence provoked their wrath.”

I couldn’t help but gulp. His previously welcoming demeanor was replaced by a sort of cold animosity. A silence hung in the air.

I knew it. What was the saying? Anyone can make mistakes, but only an idiot persists in their error(15).

But this was the only way to do what was right.

“I see, I see…. Are you trying to play games with me, little girl?”

He tapped a little bit of the ash from his pipe into the hearth. That was the first time he called me a little girl. He rose from his knees and looked a little off-base and ill-mannered. I couldn’t figure out that tingling, murderous feeling coming over me.

“Very well then. But I am sure that you will find the work difficult. If you’re going to work, it will be at Tenjin-ya. But I will not protect you. You will simply be an employee of Tenjin-ya and not have the advantages of being my wife. I will treat you just as any other employee. You’ll have no right to complain if an ayakashi tries to eat you.”

“You’ve shown your true colors, ōni!”

“You wanted it,” he shushed me with a cold, hard tone.

He continued, “You will find your own position. But I’m sure you’ll find that task rather difficult. Most of the staff here loathe humans because of what Shirou did in the past.”

“....”

“Well, good luck, my dear.”

He looked down for a moment as he stood up and adjusted his cloak.

“I’ve already had a guest room prepared for you for today. You’ll sleep there today, but tomorrow onwards you’ll be sleeping in the room for the lowest-ranking employee. Well, that’s if you can find a job.”

“....”

“If you run away, I will eat you without question. But if you change your mind and decide to be my wife, I will gladly accept you.”

He left the room with a sardonic smile. It was like he was mocking me, letting me know that it was impossible for me to pay off this debt this way. He looked as if he was convinced I would give up soon and beg to become his wife.

It was frustrating, but in the end, he still had the advantage. “I’m so tired…” I muttered to myself after he left.

I left that small room and the three Noppera-bō sisters led me up several flights of stairs to my room. The sign on the door read Great Camellia, and it was certainly a grand room.

The room was on the top floor and was filled with fragrant incense. A futon was already laid, and for some reason the pillows were set up for two…. I kicked one of them far away.

I crawled under covers into the futon. As soon as I settled in, I burst into tears, biting my lower to try and stifle my cries.

It didn’t matter how hard I tried to keep myself strong, I still felt confused and scared. I just wanted to hide somewhere and cry. I felt so miserable. So alone. So anxious about what was going to come next. I didn’t know what to believe.

Above everything else, I was filled with anger towards my grandfather, who I thought was my only family. Could he have really only taken me in as a means of paying off a debt by having me become an ayakashi wife? I had no other relatives… and I could see ayakashi. I guess I really was just convenient for him….

Maybe, my grandfather didn’t love me. But still, I couldn’t bring myself to hate him.

He was truly a sly bastard.

After laying there, crying in the futon for a while, I started to get terribly hungry. I couldn’t sleep. I was utterly miserable.

I stood up unsteadily and looked out through the large, round glass window in the wall. In the dark, dark night, a red light flashed in the distance. It reminded me of the red flashing lights on the top of tall buildings found in my world. It felt like I was watching the nightscape in the city.

Somehow, the number of boats flying overhead had increased since earlier. They weren’t airships – blimps – but were more like traditional Japanese-style boats. They looked as if they might be carrying someone of great importance, a god of fortune perhaps, floating leisurely back and forth on invisible rivers in the sky.

It was bright and noisy, the town very much alive, even in the middle of the night….

I heard a thumping sound coming from the sliding door at the doorway of my room. I tensed at the sound and then slid open the sliding door.

When I opened the sliding door, I found a boy, about the age of 10, who, perhaps startled, let out an exclamation of surprise and fell backwards. He had a light blue foxfire by side, so even in the darkness, I could tell he had white fox ears and a tail.

“Oh my god, I thought I was imagining that.”

I was surprised. I thought one of the ayakashi had finally come to eat me.

The boy looked up at me. In front of him on the floor was a plate on a tray. On the plate were three pockets of inari sushi(16). My stomach rumbled.

“I thought you might be hungry, so I brought you some dinner. I didn’t tell the Master about this, but – oh! There’s no poison in it, so please eat without worry.”

He was whispering, as if he had come here on the sly. But he smiled sweetly and wagged his, what I now realized, multiple tails. His appearance held no small amount of reassurance.

I said, “Thank you. What’s your name?”

“My name is Ginji, the nine-tailed fox(17). I’m the Young Master here at Tenjin-ya.”

Ginji knelt down and bowed deeply.

“... You’re the Young Master? Isn’t that a very high position? Could you possibly be the son of that ōni?”

“No, no, it’s nothing like that. The Master has no sons.”

I’m sure it’s because I probably looked puzzled that he continued, “Tenjin-ya isn’t a hereditary business. So, the positions are given to the most qualified person. And while I may look like this, I’m actually about the same age as the Master.”

“No way.”

“It’s true.”

To be honest, the boy did have a calm demeanor that didn’t reflect his apparent age. And the more I thought about it, the more his voice seemed somewhat mature….

I remembered that in that room with ōni and the tsuchigumo, there was another ayakashi. It was an ayakashi wearing a fox mask. I asked, “Could it be… uh, Ginji-san, were you in the room earlier with the tsuchigumo?”

“Yes! You’re indeed Shirou’s grandchild.”

Ginji’s face lit up. He folded his arms into the sleeves of his kimono. “I use the art of transformation to take on nine different forms. I mostly use my adult male form here at the inn. But I do also use my child form often.”

“But why a child right now?”

“Isn’t it cute? I thought if I came in my usual form, it might scare you.”

My eyes widened when I realized what was going on as Ginji’s eyes smiled. “Perhaps you would have preferred it if I came as a woman? Well….”

There was a pop and Ginji disappeared into smoke. A moment later, a beautiful silver-haired woman in a white kimono emerged from the smoke. She was fair skinned, with her hair intricately tied, making her appear more feminine and sensuous than she already was. The fact that she had fox ears and several tails didn’t detract from her beauty.

“Oh! Lovely,” I exclaimed in admiration. I could help but reach out and touch her tail.

“Oh, please, you're embarrassing me.”

“I’m impressed, you really are a girl.”

Ginji blushed. The strangely shy Ginji was somewhat amusing. I looked around with a furtive glance then pulled Ginji into the room.

“I’d like to ask you a few questions while I eat if that’s alright.”

“Yes, yes, of course. I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”

Ginji was replaced by another puff of smoke and a silvery-white fox kit trotted out from the smoke and further into the room. He was so irresistibly adorable.

“Ah! So cute!”

“Do you want to pet? I’m very soft and fluffy!”

The fox kit he turned into trotted up to me and placed his paws on my lap. I scratched his chin and ran my fingers through the fur on his back and tails.

Even though he was an ayakashi like the ōni and the tsuchigumo, there was something reassuring about the fact that even as a fox, you could see his true face.

With my free hand, I picked up a pocket of inari sushi and bit into it. The sweet fried bean curd and the lightly sweet sticky rice really make the inari sushi. I love the simple type like this one, although I do also like the inari sushi made with five different ingredients.

It was delicious on an empty stomach.

As I ate, I asked him something that had been bothering me. “Hey, I was wondering why everyone was wearing masks earlier. It was weird.”

He thought for a moment. “Hmmm. I don’t always wear masks, but it’s typical here to hide one’s true face during important management meetings or when dealing with clients.”

“So that was a management meeting….”

That explanation didn’t feel satisfactory though.

“We can also be intimidating when wearing masks. No one can read our facial expressions and vice versa, so we can settle things quickly. For ayakashi, mystery and suspicion are essential.”

Mystery and suspicion….

I picked up another inari sushi pocket and ate it. I never thought I’d be eating inari sushi while talking to a fox kit.

“Hey, what’s that ōni – Master like?”

What sort of person – or rather – ayakashi was he? I couldn’t forget those cold, red eyes that glared into my soul.

“He is a fine ōni, the Master. He is cold-hearted and merciless, and yet he is also very generous.”

“Sounds a bit contradictory, doesn’t it….”

Is being cold-hearted and merciless really connected to deep pockets?

Ginji seemed to panic a bit as he hurriedly replied, “No, no, nothing like that. He’s a wonderful man, the Master. He is an ōni among ōni. He is the god of the ōni! He’s adored by the employees. And he’s even one of the Hachiyo!”

“Hachiyo?”

“At the center of Kakuriyo, there is a temple where the King of the Ayakashi resides. Surrounding the temple are eight important domains, each with a gate that leads to other realms. The rulers of each domain are known as Hachiyo. Master is the Hachiyo of the northeast. That’s where Tenjin-ya is. In short, the Master is a great man in Kakuriyo!”

“Hmmm.”

I didn’t think there would be so much bureaucracy in the world of ayakashi. Ginji seemed restless at my lack of response.

I asked, “If we’re in the northeast(18), then doesn’t that mean we’re at the Ōni Gate?”

“Yes, that’s right. Tenjin-ya is located at the mouth of the Ōni Gate. The gate is used by many ayakashi entering and leaving Kakuriyo for other worlds. The inn is a thriving business.”

It did seem that being at the foot of the Ōni Gate would make an inn prosperous. While picking and eating the last piece of inari sushi I asked Ginji, “What kind of inn is Tenjin-ya? What other ayakashi do I have to worry about?”

“If the Master is the head of Tenjin-ya, then I, the nine-tailed fox, am the Young Master. I mainly assist the Master and am in charge of the inn’s planning.”

“Hmmm.”

“And then there’s the General Manager. He’s the tsuchigumo. He’s also Head of Reception.”

“Oh, that bloodthirsty… bastard.”

As I stared off to who-knows-where, I thought about what happened with the General Manager. The thought of him wrapping me in spider webs and laughing under that mask sent a chill down my spin.

Ginji said, “I’m sorry. The tsuchigumo manager is a good man. He’s unfortunately still young and a bit hot-headed. He adores the Master, so I guess he can’t really accept the marriage between Master and Shirou’s granddaughter ....”

“Is… Grandpa really hated by ayakashi here?”

I kinda got that feeling earlier from the tsuchigumo, but I wanted Ginji to confirm it.

“Well…. He was a very powerful human. And he liked to have fun. Too much fun at times. Unfortunately, it was that part of him that led to his debt. He could be rather destructive when he was drunk.”

“What in the world did Grandpa do to half destroy this inn?”

“The damage to the reception area was particularly severe. A very valuable antique urn, which was practically a national treasure here in Kakuriyo, was shattered to pieces. The tsuchigumo resents that quite a bit. If I had to guess, I’d say 80% of the staff hate Shirou, while the other 20% worship him.”

“That, unfortunately, sounds very much like grandpa.”

Of course, he’d be hated by most of the world and adored by very, very few.

I didn’t know my grandfather’s entire history, but I had heard stories about him here and there. I understood his carefree, unrestrained ways, so I could imagine what he must have been like. Since he too could see ayakashi, it wasn’t surprising that he had many connections with them.

“The rest of the staff are…” he hesitated as he gathered his thoughts.

Ginji continued, “the first one, a one-eyed ayakashi is the Hostess of Tenjin-ya. The second one, a yuki-onna(19), is the Young Hostess. There is also the Mistress position, but it’s been vacant for a very long time. Our bookkeeper is a hakutaku(20) and our head chef is a daruma(21). We also have a raccoon ayakashi that is in charge of guest footwear, a kama-itachi(22) that works as our yard keeper. Our bath keepers are a great-kappa and nure-onna(23) for the men’s and women’s baths respectively.”

“Ahhh, so they’re all ayakashi.”

“Yes, that’s right. This is an inn for ayakashi, after all. There are many more attendants and maids. The three Noppera-bō sisters are also maids. There are also a lot of other servants. And menial laborers, like kobolds.”

I couldn’t picture all of the ayakashi Ginji described. But when I thought about all of the ayakashi gathered under that ōni, I realized that this place was really a world where all the spirits from the mountains and rivers thrived. And that I, as a human being, am truly insignificant.

I finished my inari sushi and sighed.

“I wonder if there’s any work I can do here.”

“Well, we’re always hiring those willing to work. However, you might want to reconsider becoming a maid.”

“Why? But that was my first choice!”

I thought that of course being a woman and working at the inn, it would make perfect sense for me to be a maid. Why wasn’t it a good idea for me to become a maid?

“The inn is a haven for maids. Many of them greatly admire the Master, especially the Young Hostess. So I don’t think she’ll hire you. Not to mention that she and many of the other maids will be jealous of you and see you as their enemy since you’re the Master’s prospective bride.”

“Oh….”

My skin started feeling clammy. Well, being a maid was out.

“Well, then, what about the kitchen? I’m a pretty good cook, despite how I may look. Well, I mean, I’m still learning, but I’m pretty decent at it. I’m sure I could be useful in the kitchen.”

“The kitchen would be extremely difficult. Women aren’t exactly allowed in the kitchen.”

“Oh… right.”

I had certainly heard stories about women being forbidden to work in the kitchens of old-fashioned family restaurants back home. I guess it shouldn’t have been surprising that that tradition existed in Kakuriyo as well.

I was running out of options and fast.

No. I couldn’t be discouraged. I may not have been able to work in the kitchen, but there were other jobs.

“I wish I had an open position for you. But unfortunately, I have my hands full with closing a business.”

“Closing a… business?”

Ginji answered vaguely, “Yes, well…” then he sank into a deep slump. I didn’t know why, but it seemed that even though he was the Young Master, Ginji had a lot of problems.

Off in the distance, I could still hear festive music. I looked out through the glass window I had left open earlier as a boat passed by over.

“It’s the middle of the night, and yet the world is so alive.”

“It’s the most active time of the night,” Ginji said. “The ayakashi cycle is the opposite of a human’s. We typically go to bed at dawn and wake up at noon to prepare for the nighttime business at the inn.”

“Wow. You stay up very late, don’t you?”

“Yes, indeed. Unfortunately, because it’s our peak hour, I should be getting back to work soon.”

Ginji stepped back and in a puff of smoke changed from being a fox kit, back to the form of a silver-haired boy again. Although he looked adorable, he certainly held himself straight and sophisticated.

“If you have any questions, please feel free to talk to me. I’ll be happy to help you.”

“Thank you. Thank you…. I didn’t think there was such a nice ayakashi like you.”

When I thanked him, he smiled and bowed, replying, “Thank you very much.”

Then he took the plate and silently left the room, leaving me with my thoughts.

“....”

I found myself, sitting in the middle of the room again. I just sat there for a while in my own silence. I could still hear the distant festival music. Through my window, gazing at the horizon where glamorous red lanterns bathed the flying ships in an ethereal light.

And I was here… all alone in my dark, lonely room.

(1) This is a flashback. Words like I/me (watashi, etc.) are difficult for little kids so they often refer to themselves by their first name instead.

(2) This sentence is incomplete and difficult to translate. This was the best I could come up with at this time.

(3) Hyottoko is a type of traditional Japanese mask. It typically takes the form of an asymmetrical comedic face. 

(4) Azuki beans are a soft bean typically used in desserts, they have a dark red-purple color.

(5) A shoji is a Japanese sliding door covered in rice paper.

(6) I chose to use “otherworld”, but for manga/anime people, it’s isekai.

(7) Lit. The Apparent Realm

(8) Lit. Ogre God

(9) Lit. “Page/Apprentice” A type of parasitic spirit with a snake-like body and a child-like face.

(10) Lit. “Earth-spider”

(11) Lit. “Faceless Monk” – spirits that take on the forms of humans but have no faces.

(12) I’m assuming these are their names, but they’re also the names of plants. Rather than names being written, it’s drawings of the plants, but I decided to treat their aprons as if they’re name tags. Matsu means ‘Pine Tree.’ Take means ‘Bamboo.’ Ume means ‘Plum.’

(13) A fox spirit, known for shape-shifting.

(14) 100,000,000 yen comes out to roughly $725,000 at the time of this translation.

(15) This is originally an idiom in Japanese that didn’t make sense when I directly translated it so I used a quote by Marcus Tullius Cicero.

(16) Inari sushi is sushi rice stuffed into fried soybean curd pockets. Can be just rice or have multiple fillings.

(17) I know I typically use the original Japanese names when naming ayakashi, but I found that using Kyūbi-no-kitsune (九尾の狐) was harder to work with when translating. 

(18) Northeast is considered the most unlucky direction and is considered the location of the Ōni Gate, a portal between realms.

(19) Lit. Snow Woman

(20) A japanese version of the Chinese Bái Zé, which is a wise ox like chimera, known to be white and have 100 eyes.

(21) Daruma are hollowed dolls that are based on Bodhidharma to bring success to a task.

(22) Lit. Sickle-weasel

(23) Lit. Wet Woman

Table of Contents

There may not be people, but there’s always… them.

I was aware of their presence, but I just looked forward and walked fast, ignoring them. They were wary of me. I could feel their chilling gaze on me, but I ignored them all the same.

I was starting my first day as a sophomore in college. With the tuition fees left by my grandfather, I had to study hard, get a job properly, and become a productive member of society.

They can’t be fooled.

As I quickly passed through the shopping district, I saw the torii gate of an old shrine across the road. The entrance to the shrine rested on the top of a hill. Long stone steps laid beyond the torii gate, lined on either side by cherry trees. They were in full bloom during this time of year. The vermillion torii gate at the top of the stone steps seemed more vivid than usual.

I was startled when I noticed someone sitting under the vermillion torii gate. The man was suspiciously dressed, wearing black clothes and an ōni(2) mask. “....”

The air was crisp in the early morning hours and yet something tense took my breath away. The moment I laid my eyes upon him combined with the irregular movement of the falling cherry petals filled me with a strange sense of foreboding. 

At first glance, he seemed human, but the longer I stood there, the less he seemed human. My brow harshly wrinkled when I realized it. 

Oh… he’s an ayakashi(3).

Ayakashi are not human beings like their name suggests. They’re generally referred to as yōkai. They are invisible to ordinary people, but their presence often causes strange phenomena, unsolvable cases, and evil.

But not all spirits are evil. They are capricious, moody, and very troublesome, but most of them live in the shadows of humanity. They try to avoid people as much as possible. However, modern Japan seems to be a very difficult place for them to survive. They have nothing to eat, they starve, and sometimes, out of desperation, they attack people to eat them. While there are those who attack humans for some perverse enjoyment, most do it to survive.

The easiest targets for them are the humans who can… see.

The masked ayakashi under the vermillion torii gate turned his gaze on me and blurted out, “I’m hungryyyyy…. I. Am. Hun. Gry.”

I raised an eyebrow. He didn’t come over to me nor asked anything of me. He just sat there, looking hungry and sad.

“I’m hungry,” he blurted out again. I couldn’t help but be curious, but still, I don’t reply to the mysterious ayakashi I’ve seen nor spoken to before. I couldn’t let him know that I could see him. I shouldn’t have stood still, so I hurriedly turned away to escape.

But I stopped. 

I threw my head back and groaned with frustration before I turned back. I went up the stone steps of the shrine and came up to the ayakashi dressed in a black kimono and hidden behind an ōni mask. He sat there seemingly without a care in the world. I was still a little hesitant, but I tightened my expression and offered the masked ayakashi a plain flat steel bento box.

“Hey, is this ok? This was going to be my lunch.”

The ayakashi got up and looked down at me.

“You’re hungry, right? ‘I’m hungry! I’m hungry!’ I can’t have you attacking people because you’re hungry.”

I stared at the emotionless mask of the ayakashi. He looked again at the bento box. He lifted a hand out from within the sleeve of his kimono. His hand was about the same size as a human man’s but with claw-like nails. 

I squeaked as his claws grazed the back of my hand as he reached for the bento box. It stung a little as he took it. He lifted the lid of the bento box. Cherry blossom petals slowly fell down onto the bento. 

It was a rather simple bento – half of it was white rice with two pieces of pickled radish. The main dish was plum flavored grilled ginger pork loin. Next to the pork loin was simmered lotus root, mustard spinach salad, fried shimeji and maitake mushroom with bonito flakes, and a rolled omelet with scallions.

“....”

For a while, the ayakashi stared at the contents of his lunch box before he shifted his mask slightly to expose his mouth. It seemed that perhaps he had the face of a young man under that mask.

Oh well… it’s not like ayakashi actually were they age that they seemed.

He picked up the chopsticks from the box and politely said, “Thank you for the food.”

The politeness didn’t seem like something an ayakashi would do. He picked up the simmered lotus root first.

I stared blankly at the ayakashi who was eating my food. I sighed in resignation to myself. Oh, I’m such an idiot. What can I say? I have a soft spot for hungry ayakashi….

“Oh, I have to go to university now. Just leave the bento box somewhere nearby. I’ll come back later to pick it up.”

When I turned to leave, he muttered in a calm voice, “It’s delicious, Aoi.”

His words surprised me – I stopped. I was honestly happy to hear that my food was delicious. However, not wanting to seem caught off guard by the first ayakashi I had ever dealt with, I replied brusquely, “Then don’t leave anything behind.”

I didn’t turn back around, instead, I ran down the stone steps and briskly walked towards the station. But wait. “How did he know my name?”

My light blue dress fluttered in the breeze as I stared suspiciously back at the trees surrounding the shrine on the hill. The small cherry blossoms that had fallen to my shoulders fluttered away as I turned around to head to school.

I encountered something strange.

The encounters with them are always sudden and inescapable. For those of us who can see, as I do, their activities are always in sight. Even in this modern world, ayakashi exist close to our daily lives.

“Well, well.”

There were some ayakashi living on the bank of the creek by the station. The little kappa(4) pointed at me and tried their best to climb up the bank. My grandfather called them ‘temari kappa’ because they were about the size of a temari(5) handball and looked like a cute little character mascot. They’re weak, harmless ayakashi who typically live in groups and use their adorable appearance to con food out of me.

“Aoi-shama(6) – pwease.”

Here they come. I said, “Wait a minute,” as the temari kappa scurried around, checking to see if there were any people around. The reason I go to university so early in the morning is because of these little guys.

I took a plastic container out of my bag. Inside of it were many small rice balls made from brown rice filled with chopped cucumbers and miso marinated chicken.

After all, kappa love cucumbers.

When I offered them the rice balls, a fierce battle began, as if I had tossed a piece of bread into a carp pond.

“Tank you very much! It’s very difficult for kappa to eat in this desolate realm.”

“The kappa have been fed by Aoi-shama!”

In an overwhelming display of mock patheticness, the temari kappa hugged their rice balls and rubbed their cheeks against my ankles. They’re cute but sometimes irritating. If only there was some kind of good fortune to be gained from investing in them. As I put the container away in my bag, I sent off the temari kappa that were still hanging around.

“Come on, come on, stop flirting and get your asses back in the river. If people see me talking to you guys, they’ll treat me as if I’m crazy since they can’t see you.”

There was one temari kappa with beady little eyes still stuck to my ankle. It put its little hand over its mouth and tilted its head back to look at me.

“I’m still not satisfied,” it complained. 

“I’ve been cutting corners lately,” lamented another kappa, igniting more to get on their feet to complain. I looked down at them with narrowed eyes, suppressing my boiling anger.

“What? You guys do know that I’m not that patient, right? If you have a problem with me, I’ll batter you up and fry you in oil. I’ll eat you as tempura!”

“You can’t eat kappa! We taste bad!”

“That’s a lie! Grandpa says you tastes like axolotl(7)!”

“AHHHHHHHHH! AHHHH! AHHHHHH!”

The kappa now paled when the specific taste was mentioned. With a click and a quiver of their beaks, they rolled back to the river banks.

“.... Damn those low-ranking kappa. So quick to get carried away.”

I mumbled my complaints as I brushed my hair away from my face. Despite complaining, I always bring food for the kappa. I wish they’d put up a sign that said, ‘Please don’t feed the kappa’ around here.

“Aoi-shan.”

“Hmmm? What’s wrong with you?”

A very small temari kappa, Chibi, remained at my feet – probably a child amongst the kappa.

Chibi sat down flat on his haunches and turned his round eyes towards me as he shared his sad wisdom about the world: “This world is a world where the weak get weaker and the strong get stronger.”

With their tendency for drama, perhaps, he had missed a meal.

“It can’t be helped.”

With another sigh, I took out a rice ball I was saving for myself from my bag and I gave it to him. Chibi sat up and flailed his arms and legs. “Tank you very much!”

“It was meant for me, but please eat it with care.”

Chibi responded with a little “Aye,” and ate with gusto. I bent down to watch him and poked his swollen cheek with my index finger. “Is it good?”

When asked, Chibi nodded a little and looked up at me with moist, round eyes. “Aoi-shan is a strange person: the only person who gives rice to ayakashi.”

“That’s because only a few people can see ayakashi.”

“Most of the people who can see us try to exorcize us.”

“If I had such a power, I would have done so too,” I answered.

Chibi just casually leaned back while he continued to eat. “Aoi-shan would never do such a thing. I know that.”

“....”

I snickered at the kappa and rose from my knees. I couldn’t afford to be too concerned about the kappa any longer. The sun was starting to rise further into the morning sky. People would be around soon. If anyone saw me talking to ‘nothing’ they’d be instantly creeped out.

Ever since I was a child, I could see ayakashi. Because of this peculiar constitution, I was a burden to my mother and was considered creepy by everyone else around me. It was my grandfather, Tsubaki Shirou, who rescued me from my lonely exile. 

My grandfather’s name was well known among the ayakashi. What’s more, he was not only hated by humans but also by ayakashi. I, too, have had many ayakashi troubles because of my grandfather. Whenever I’m in trouble with ayakashi, I’d serve food to the ayakashi. 

They are often hungry and when they’re starving, they eat people, preferably those who can see ayakashi. I am one of them, unfortunately.

In short, I’m an easy target in my own way. However, by handing over food first, I’ve been able to avoid being eaten by starving ayakashi. Regardless, I have my own reasons as to why I can’t leave a hungry ayakashi alone.

Before my grandfather took me in, a mysterious ayakashi saved my life. When I was a child, I found myself in a situation where I was suffering from starvation. There was a strange ayakashi that shared their food with me.

Hunger is painful. I can’t just sit back and watch, whether it’s a person or ayakashi. That’s why I can’t ignore a hungry ayakashi and give them something to eat.

Later that day…

Leaving the nearest station, I walked along the riverbank where the kappa lived and stopped at the shrine by the Uomachi shopping district. In the morning, I had given the ayakashi with the ōni mask a bento box. Did the masked ayakashi eat the bento box?

He was no longer there, but when I climbed the stone steps and looked down at the foot of the vermillion torii gate, I noticed not the steel bento box I had handed him that morning, but an old bento box wrapped in a mysterious patterned tenugui(8) cloth. It seems that it had been there for quite a while – plenty of cherry petals had piled up on top of it. There was a beautiful hairpin inserted into the knot of the cloth.

“Hey... did he give me this cloth and hairpin?”

Before I realized it, I found myself sitting down on those stone steps and pulled the hairpin from the knot of the tenugui. I held it up in the air. It wasn’t flashy, but it certainly was pretty: an underdeveloped camellia bud hairpin.

Was it made of glass? Or some kind of stone? The clear crimson was eye-catching. “Pretty….”

The shrine grounds were quiet and empty. I spun the hairpin, watching the colors shimmer and shift as sunlight filtered through the trees. A strong gust of wind blew through, rustling the trees. More cherry blossom petals fell mysteriously shifting the hues found in the camellia bud.

“Oh… I wonder if that masked ayakashi ate its lunch properly?”

I unwrapped the bento box from the cloth. I checked the contents of the lunch box and was impressed to see that it had also been thoroughly washed. “He’s unexpectedly serious ayakashi….”

This time, I unfolded the tenugui cloth and looked at it. The late afternoon sunlight filtering through the trees made the pattern stand out even more – the dark patterns standing out against the light cotton. I didn’t know what the pattern, which reminded me of crawling worms, meant.

Instantly, something was wrong. The long tenugui cloth moved on its own, as if it were alive, fluttering into the air and beginning an undulating dance before my eyes. The tenugui became long and taut, as if the four corners were being pulled, as if a large scroll was being pulled open right in front of me.

“Hu-huh?!”

I was too stunned to make a sound or even blink.

 As I kept my gaze on the tenugui, the earthworm pattern on the cloth, gathering at a single point, creating a huge black circle. Suddenly, the black circle engulfed the rest of the cloth and filled my vision with darkness, as if spewing ink from unknown depths.

It was so bright that afternoon, and yet, what was that darkness? As soon as the darkness completely filled my vision, I felt like I was falling, as if I had lost my footing.

It was silent. I felt a shock in my body as if I had been plunged into warm, dark water. The bubbles that surrounded my body tickled me. I felt helpless as I kept falling into the dark, warm water, deeper and deeper. I struggled to breathe.

Eventually, I saw a light in the distance. As I frantically reached for it, something grabbed my arm and pulled me up hard.

“Let’s go to Kakuriyo, my bride,” someone whispered in my ear.

It was familiar. It was the low voice of the ōni-masked ayakashi.

Footnotes:

(1) Uomachi is a district in the city of Kitakyushu, which is the northernmost city on Kyushu Island, which is the largest southern island of Japan.

(2) No direct translation but can be thought of as an ogre or demon.

(3) A collective name for yōkai (lit. strange apparition) that appear above water.

(4) A type of ayakashi. They’re basically water imps with a dish on the top of their heads that hold the water of life.

(5) Temari are small, intricate, colorfully designed handballs.

(6) The Temari Kappa talk in a cutesy lisp (read: kawaii) that I tried to replicate in their dialogue. Certain typos are intentional.

(7) I would like to note that the translation was ‘Wooper’ directly… like the pokemon.

(8) A cloth that is traditionally used as almost a bag.

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