Heian-kyo at dusk, the Oma-ga-toki. The human realm began to fall silent, while the demon realm became active. At this intersection of realms, the probability of ordinary humans 'seeing ghosts' greatly increased. However, the current situation in Heian-kyo had made everyone accustomed to such occurrences.
In Choyo-machi, bright lanterns suspended over the streets were lit, and along the Kamo River banks, various strange Yokai figures gradually appeared in an endless stream. The time of day belonging to the Yokai was now arriving.
Inside the Cat Izakaya hall, many Yokai were already enjoying their early tea. Around one table, numerous small Yokai gathered, looking up at the tabletop where the Yokai youth, Nura Rihyon, sat on a stool.
“Let me tell you, on the moon, there are countless buildings, tall white buildings! Their height is incomparable to any earthly structure; even ten Cat Izakayas stacked together wouldn’t reach the height of a single building on the moon! Besides tall buildings, there are also celestial maidens on the moon, strong celestial maidens wielding swords! The people there use fire- and light-spitting staffs as weapons. Those weapons are incredibly powerful; one strike is more potent than an ordinary yokai general’s attack. I’ve had several close calls under those staffs!”
Sitting on the table, Nura Rihyon animatedly recounted tales of the moon to his audience. The surrounding small Yokai listened intently, captivated by the unheard-of things Nura Rihyon described, occasionally gasping in amazement.
In contrast, many stronger Yokai in the Cat Izakaya were sipping their tea and sake, casting sidelong glances at the scene. Their expressions varied: some were stifling laughter, some were coldly indifferent, and others were whispering and chuckling softly. These Yokai shared one common trait: they almost entirely disbelieved Nura Rihyon’s grand boasts, viewing it all as a joke. However, out of respect for Nura Rihyon’s usual prestige in Choyo-machi, no one dared to laugh out loud.
“On the moon, there are also Rabbit Yokai, so many Rabbit Yokai! These Rabbit Yokai were originally used as laborers by the moon people, but eventually, with my efforts and those of a moon celestial maiden, they rose in rebellion. In the end, a great Rabbit King suddenly emerged from beneath the moon’s surface and instantly destroyed the moon people’s city. He probably saw us helping the rabbits, so he didn’t attack us. After that, the Rabbit King flew into the sky and vanished. I don’t know where he went, maybe to Earth.”
Nura Rihyon continued his focused explanation, his words eliciting gasps of astonishment from the small Yokai below. More Yokai around them covered their mouths, trying not to burst into laughter… Yet, despite their efforts, a wave of unrestrained laughter still echoed through the hall.
“Hahahaha! Hahaha! No… I can’t take it anymore! Nura Rihyon, the lies you’re spinning are too hilarious. Even a Rabbit King has appeared. Are you trying to fool children?”
Laughter reverberated freely through the surrounding space. The Yokai looked over to see a Tanuki at a nearby table, clutching his stomach and slapping the table, seemingly unable to hold back any longer.
“Tamamura… you scoundrel… I’m not lying this time! I really did go to the moon. If you don’t believe me, ask the Owl General. He was the one who sent me to the moon with a moon celestial maiden to carry out a mission!” Nura Rihyon retorted indignantly, looking at the wildly laughing Tanuki.
“The Owl General? Don’t use the General as an excuse. I wouldn’t bother seeking out the General for such a trivial matter. Anyone with a bit of common sense can see that a Yokai couldn’t possibly go to the moon so easily, not even a Yokai Lord could. And what’s this about moon celestial maidens… super-tall buildings… staffs as powerful as a yokai general… oh, and the most outrageous one, the Rabbit King… I doubt anyone but children would believe your stories, right, everyone?” As soon as the Tanuki finished speaking, he glanced around, and instantly, countless Yokai who had been suppressing their laughter could no longer hold back, erupting into a collective roar of amusement.
A large group of Yokai clutched their bellies, laughing heartily at Nura Rihyon. The atmosphere in the Cat Izakaya instantly became lively and joyful. In the midst of the quiet laughter, the Yokai youth, Nura Rihyon, flushed red and began to loudly protest.
“Everything I said is true! The moon is exactly like that, if you don’t believe me…”
Before Nura Rihyon could finish, he felt a whoosh behind him. He quickly spun around, reaching out to deftly catch a pair of chopsticks that had been flying straight at him.
“Ugh… that was close. Who was that!” Nura Rihyon looked in the direction the chopsticks had come from, seeing the Cat Shop Owner, the cat yokai proprietress, standing with her hands on her hips and an unpleasant expression.
“Storytellers, take your tall tales elsewhere! What kind of decorum is this, sitting on my table!”
“Hey, hey… I’m not telling tall tales. Why don’t you believe me either, proprietress!”
“I’d be damned if I believed you! Get down from there, you’re ruining my business!” The Cat Shop Owner said, throwing another bone. The bone didn’t hit Nura Rihyon directly but struck the leg of the table he was sitting on. The table flipped, and Nura Rihyon, who had been preparing to defend himself, was caught off guard and tumbled to the ground as the table overturned. Seeing this, all the Yokai in the shop burst into laughter again, and the Cat Izakaya was filled with joyous air.
Amidst the laughter from all sides, Nura Rihyon slowly stood up, looking at the surrounding crowd and indignantly saying,
“Just you wait… you guys… one day I’ll prove to you that everything I said is true!”
…
In a secluded corner of the Cat Izakaya, Miketsu, disguised as a small Yokai, ate her meal while watching Nura Rihyon from afar. After eating her fill, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy for him. If she were the Owl General right now, she might help him prove his story, but alas, she wasn’t…
Perhaps she could delay proving it for a few days, anyway. Nura Rihyon usually had a habit of boasting and telling tall tales, so letting him experience the lesson of ‘the boy who cried wolf’ for a few days wouldn’t hurt.
Lost in thought, Miketsu took another sip of tea, then began to observe her surroundings.
These past few days, Miketsu had been carefully observing the impact of the Lunar War on Earth. She found that the Earth was almost completely unaffected by the war. Aside from the unusual celestial phenomena during the Orbital Defense Battle, neither humans nor Yokai had noticed what had truly happened in the sky. Because at the end of the war, Miketsu, in her ancient god form, severed the karmic obstruction of the Moon Feather Princess, the beings on Earth now had no memory of the Moon Feather Princess’s descent. They had even forgotten that an eternal night had occurred.
And this… should also apply to the Modern Gods. When Miketsu displayed her ancient god form, the only conscious beings present were the White-robed Daoist Light Orb God and Suwako. Apart from them, the other Chief Gods had their avatars destroyed by Chang’e. Coupled with the previous round of causality stasis and Causality Severing, it was impossible for the other Modern Gods to know that Miketsu’s true form was an Ancient God.
That was why Takemikazuchi-no-Kami could come directly looking for her; Takamagahara only knew that the seal on the Inari Okami’s godhead was gone, and that she had fully awakened…
Lost in thought, Miketsu slowly walked out of the joyful Cat Izakaya. As she passed a table, she heard a serious discussion, different from the cheerful atmosphere in the shop.
“Have you heard? Things are a bit unsettled out at sea recently…”
“Ah… I know. Mysterious sea fog appears out of nowhere, and human shipwrecks have increased. They say some Yokai who went out to hunt haven’t returned.”
“Yes… I wonder what’s happening…”
Listening to these discussions, Miketsu glanced at the scene at the table. She saw several Kappa and other water Yokai gathered, discussing the matter.
‘The sea, huh…’
Keeping the inadvertently acquired information in mind, Miketsu exited the Cat Izakaya. Just as she stepped onto the street, a sudden clap of thunder boomed in the sky.
“Boom!!”
Miketsu looked up, seeing thick, dark clouds beginning to gather across the twilight sky…
“It’s here…”
Looking at the dark clouds in the sky, Miketsu murmured.
Rate on N.U.
