Fox Sister

The pungent smell of medicinal herbs stung my nose. The scent of roughly crushed plants only made the pain of my wounds feel sharper, each breath a reminder of the injuries I couldn’t ignore. Every time the woman’s hands touched me, waves of throbbing pain coursed through my body. I tried to grit my teeth and endure it, but involuntary groans escaped my lips.

“Just a little longer,” she said in a gruff voice that betrayed none of her gentle touch. Her fingers worked with surprising delicacy, carefully tending to my wounds as if handling something fragile.

The cool sensation of ointment on my skin dulled the ache slightly, offering a fleeting reprieve from the agony. Summoning the courage to speak, I asked cautiously, “Who… who are you?”

She paused mid-motion, hesitating for a moment before exhaling deeply. “I am… the last shaman of this village, from a lineage tasked with guarding the shrine.” Her tone was calm, yet beneath it lay an ocean of sorrow she could not conceal.

As she set down the jar of ointment, her gaze drifted toward nothingness, lost in memories too painful to bear. “He came…” she began, her voice lowering ominously. “…sacrificed the villagers to break the seal using dark sorcery… and took it away.”

Her voice trembled, betraying both anger and despair. Clenching her fists tightly, she whispered through gritted teeth, “This village… is nothing more than a fading memory now.”

The weight of her words hung heavy in the air. After a pause filled with unspoken questions, I dared to ask again, “Who is this ‘he’ you speak of?”

She turned her cold stare upon me, though there was unmistakable fear lurking in her eyes. “A Taoist priest… one who wields horrifying black magic.” Her voice shook with dread. “Cloaked in darkness, his wide-brimmed hat adorned with cursed talismans…”

Her description painted a chilling image, her trembling voice bringing the terror back vividly. “Just looking at him sent shivers down my spine…”

Her gaze faltered, haunted by past nightmares. “Our family stood against him… but the betrayal of the villagers… they all…”

Tears streamed silently down her cheeks, her expression frozen in grief. She stared blankly ahead, unable even to wipe away the tears. “To think humans would dare try to control something so forbidden…”

She looked skyward, her voice laced with regret. “How foolish… and this is the result.”

“The thing that was sealed away… it’s no mere yokai,” she continued, her tone eerily calm despite the despair seeping through. “Those two monsters were merely abominations born from its power.”

Her hollow eyes carried the emptiness of someone who’d lost everything. “With sweet promises, he deceived them all… eternal prosperity in exchange for breaking the seal… fools, every last one…”

Her bitter resentment hung heavy in the air, silencing any further questions I might have had.

“…I warned them… pleaded with them… but no one listened,” she choked out, her voice trembling with suppressed emotion. “…all for greed!”

Her anguished cry echoed in the small room, raw with anguish and resignation.

Her pain resonated deeply within me, reminding me of when I’d tried to reveal my sister’s true nature to our father, only to be dismissed as a liar.

“…You must have suffered greatly,” I murmured softly, understanding her pain all too well. Her sharp gaze softened momentarily, her defenses cracking slightly.

The loneliness of being betrayed by those she trusted, of being ignored while speaking the truth – I knew that pain intimately.

With a weary sigh, she lowered her head, then slowly undid her robes to reveal a gaping wound in her chest. “As you can see, my life ended long ago.”

“I merely begged the spirit guides for time to seal this place before departing for the afterlife,” she explained quietly. “I plan to burn myself along with this village as my final act.”

“If you’re able…” she said earnestly, “please travel to Mujingsa Temple in Hosoo. There you’ll find an old monk named Kang-ryeong. Tell him… tell him the seals are breaking.”

The gravity of her request settled heavily between us. After a moment, I nodded silently in agreement.

She finished wrapping my wounds and rose to her feet. The sliver of moonlight cast faint shadows across the empty streets as she stepped out of the tavern.

When I reached the village outskirts, I felt an odd presence behind me. Turning back, I watched as the entire village shimmered like a mirage before dissolving into thin air, leaving only lush greenery where it once stood.

“Welcome back, Master,” I addressed my teacher, my voice hoarse from exhaustion. His piercing gaze immediately zeroed in on my battered state, especially the injury to my side.

“You don’t look so good,” he observed with characteristic levity, though worry clouded his features.

“I’m fine,” I replied, though my body protested otherwise with every movement. Still, I refused to show weakness before him.

We sat in tense silence until the sound of a wine bottle meeting the wooden table broke the stillness.

“I’m sorry…” he spoke softly, guilt evident in his tone. “…perhaps I pushed you too hard.”

With a gesture, he indicated I should sit opposite him, offering me a cup of wine. As we drank together under the wan light of the quarter moon, I recounted my encounter.

His brow furrowed deeper with each detail, especially when I mentioned the cursed fragment. “The cursed… fragment…”

His voice caught in his throat. “You mean to say it really exists?” He gripped my shoulders urgently. “Are you hurt anywhere else? Any strange energies lingering?”

His examination was unusually serious, his hands trembling slightly. Only after checking my pulse did he seem to relax somewhat.

“This isn’t ordinary,” he declared gravely. “Someone attempting to break that seal… we must stop them before greater calamity strikes.”

Clad in a thick coat, he prepared to depart immediately. “We leave for Hosoo at once. Rest will have to wait.”

Though his words were firm, his touch remained warm as he placed the coat over my shoulders. “Sorry to push you so soon after your return.”

Understanding the urgency, I nodded resolutely.