Tour Guide

Kyoto, midnight. In a remote area of Kyoto, within a hidden Secret Realm, deep inside a gloomy, withered forest, a small Western-style house stood amidst the Shoki drifting through the woods.

On the balcony of the house, a woman with jet-black hair, black clothing, and pale skin sat behind a low table, sipping coffee. Standing before her was a strange, gaunt old man with a skeletal frame, a deformed skull, a large single eye on his forehead, and a white beard, leaning on a cane.

"Minamoto Gorozaemon, I heard the Onmora-gaki's mission failed?" After taking a sip of coffee, the black-clad woman spoke slowly. Minamoto Gorozaemon nodded heavily in response.

"Yes, my apologies, Lady Hagoromo Gitsune. The Onmora-gaki's failure this time was quite absolute. Not only did it fail to crash the plane into Inari Honsha, it even allowed for a successful landing," he said, his tone filled with clear disdain, as if he utterly looked down upon his avian colleague. Listening to Minamoto Gorozaemon's words, Hagoromo Gitsune's expression did not change much. She continued to sip her coffee quietly before responding slowly.

"So it landed in Heian-kyo? That is truly a pity."

"Indeed, it is a great pity. Even if it couldn't hit the main shrine, if that fellow had just crashed the plane, the death of over a hundred people would have caused quite a stir. Our yokai could have used that incident as a catalyst, using the internet and our powers to stir up public opinion among the foolish humans. Having them protest against Inari during the Inari Festival would have been excellent. At the very least, it would have forced Inari to divert a significant amount of energy to handle it, making our subsequent actions much more convenient," Minamoto Gorozaemon continued, sighing at Hagoromo Gitsune's words. Clearly, even he hadn't expected the Onmora-gaki to fail so spectacularly at its minimum objective. It was absurd that after such a commotion, not a single person on that plane had died.

"It is indeed a pity, but since it has already failed, there is nothing to be done. What I am more concerned about now is whether that Onmora-gaki, having fallen into their hands, will leak any information." Hagoromo Gitsune looked at Minamoto Gorozaemon and spoke slowly, to which he immediately responded.

"Rest assured, Lady Hagoromo Gitsune. We were prepared for this. The Onmora-gaki was merely an outstanding member of the organization's outer circle. He never had access to any core intelligence in his life. We only ever had one-way contact with him. Even if Inari uses spirit communication for interrogation and pries out every experience of his life, they will never know our plans... Hehe."

Minamoto Gorozaemon chuckled, and Hagoromo Gitsune nodded slightly after hearing this.

"You acted quite cautiously. It is worth praising."

"Hehe, Lady Hagoromo Gitsune, you flatter me. When facing a gargantuan entity like Inari, caution is only natural," Minamoto Gorozaemon responded respectfully, while Hagoromo Gitsune remarked with deep feeling.

"Yes, Inari is too large. Much larger than it was four hundred years ago—large beyond imagination, large to the point that it is almost impossible to challenge it head-on. Any existence that tries to clash directly with it will only meet one end." As she spoke, Hagoromo Gitsune placed her empty coffee cup back onto the saucer and continued.

"However, precisely because Inari is so large, it bears too many responsibilities. In many ways, it has more than even the human government. So many responsibilities are equal to so many burdens. For those of us who are weak but hidden in the darkness, these burdens are our best opportunities."

While speaking, Hagoromo Gitsune picked up a remote control from the table and lightly pressed a button toward an old television in the room. The TV flickered through static before showing an image. What appeared on the screen was a map of the entire Kyoto metropolitan area—a map of a massive modern city that had expanded dozens of times since a millennium ago. On this map, countless red dots were marked.

From north to south, from east to west, the dense cluster of crimson dots spanned nearly the entire city. There was one every certain distance. A rough look suggested hundreds of these dots throughout the city.

"'With more responsibilities come more burdens,' is that it? Hehe... Lady Hagoromo Gitsune, what you said makes perfect sense." Looking at the dense red dots on the map, Minamoto Gorozaemon continued to chuckle.

"The more they try to control, the more trouble they naturally have. We don't need to engage in any direct confrontation with Inari at all. We only need to target their weaknesses. The order they desire, we shall bring chaos to."

"Hehe, I truly look forward to it. At the peak of the Inari Festival, just what kind of dazzling fireworks will this entire city burst into?"

Listening to Minamoto Gorozaemon's words, Hagoromo Gitsune remained silent. She turned her head to look at the dark, deep night sky and poured another cup of hot coffee into her empty cup.

"Seimei, everything is for you." Sipping her coffee again and looking at the hundreds of red dots across Kyoto on the TV, Hagoromo Gitsune murmured once more.

For a city so deeply influenced by Inari, the Inari Festival could be considered the most important festival of the year. Over a millennium of development, Inari's influence had grown stronger and stronger. What was once merely a shrine festival had now become a major holiday and a key cultural symbol of Kyoto. Every year at this time, the Kyoto city government joins forces with Inari to host numerous activities, attracting many domestic and international tourists. The Inari Festival, which lasts nearly a week, is the liveliest time of year for this ancient capital.

Fushimi, at the foot of Mount Inari.

If one were to ask where the liveliest place was during the first few days of the Inari Festival, it would naturally be the Inari Grand Shrine at the base of the mountain. The shrine's scale was immense, with its construction area alone covering over thirty hectares. It contained thousands of various buildings and halls, making it larger than many castles from the Sengoku era. Its grand, palace-like scale made it arguably the largest shrine in all of Japan. However, even with such a massive shrine, it was still packed with people on the day of the festival. On the plaza leading to the high Haiden, countless crowds gathered, forming several long queues. Everyone was waiting to offer incense and pay their respects.

"There are really so many people! You can't even see the end, and there are so many lines!"

Standing beneath a massive vermilion and white tower gate guarded by two stone fox statues, Hayakawa Rin, dressed in a fresh and elegant kimono, couldn't help but sigh loudly as she looked at the dense crowd and the long queues ahead.

"I've never seen anything like this—a Haiden this big with dozens of saisen-bako, and people lining up in several parallel queues to pray. With this many people and so many wishes, can Inari Okami really hear them all? If I go pray now, can she actually hear me?" Rin continued, sounding somewhat worried. From beside her came another voice.

"Hmph, of course she can't hear them all. How could anyone listen to so many prayers?"

Standing beside Rin, also dressed in a pale yellow kimono with a rice-ear pattern and wearing wooden clogs—a perfect festival outfit—Miketsu responded while gnawing on a chicken leg she had bought from a street stall. Hearing this, Rin replied somewhat indignantly.

"You shouldn't say that, Inaba. Inari Okami is a great deity, so she must have immense divine powers. Even with so many people praying, she can surely hear them clearly. Otherwise, how could she be a god?"

"Being able to hear and being willing to listen are two different things. With so many people and so many noisy, disorganized, and trivial prayers, anyone would definitely go crazy after listening for even a short while. Honestly, if it were me... even if these prayers were reduced by ninety percent, I wouldn't want to listen to them." As if triggered by some memory, Miketsu took a fierce bite of her chicken leg and spoke bluntly to Rin.

"...Does that mean even if I go pray, Inari Okami won't hear me? But... but I heard others say that paying respects at Inari Grand Shrine is the most important part of the Inari Festival. Without it, the festival would lose its most vital meaning. For the sake of the holiday, I still want to go pray." Discouraged by Miketsu, Rin spoke weakly. Miketsu let out a sigh of relief upon hearing this and spoke slowly.

"For the sake of the so-called sense of ceremony? That's understandable. Paying respects is fine, but I know a better spot. If you want to pray to Inari Okami, you can do it there instantly. If you wait in line at this shrine at the foot of the mountain, you'll probably have to wait for an hour." Miketsu spoke slowly to Rin, whose eyes brightened at her words.

"Huh? Inaba, do you really know another place to pray?"

"Of course I do. This is my home, after all. It's only natural that I know many places you foreign tourists don't. However, we're in no rush to run over there right now. We can just enjoy ourselves and make our way there slowly." Looking at Rin, Miketsu spoke quite nonchalantly. Rin nodded immediately after hearing this.

"Mhm! We're here for sightseeing anyway, so Inaba, lead the way! Let's play our way to the place you mentioned~"

"Sure, then follow me. First, we have to go up the mountain. Um, wait a second while I find where the path up is..."

While speaking, Miketsu, who was returning home for the first time in a thousand years, began to seriously think about which path to take up the mountain. For a moment, she actually couldn't find the way at all.

'This is bad. The changes are too great. Before, the Fushimi market was right at the foot of the mountain. Where did this massive shrine come from? Now I have no idea which path leads up...'

Looking at the surging crowds and the massive, complex, and unfamiliar shrine before her, Miketsu thought to herself. She hadn't expected that she would actually lose her way at her own doorstep.

'It can't be helped. Who told those fellows to build the shrine at the foot of the mountain so large? Still, if word got out that Uka-no-Kami got lost at Inari Grand Shrine, surely no one would believe it.'

"Hey, Inaba, aren't we going? What are we waiting here for?" Rin asked Miketsu again at that moment, making Miketsu scratch her head helplessly.

"Uh... I haven't been back in a long time, so I was just thinking about the path. Alright, follow me now!"

Just as Miketsu was about to use her powers to start a serendipitous navigation, Rin suddenly looked at the tall vermilion tower gate beside them and spoke with some excitement.

"Wow, this tower gate is really magnificent! Inaba, does this gate have any special history or origin?" Rin asked her "tour guide" Miketsu. Upon being asked, Miketsu couldn't help but be stunned.

'You're asking me about the origin of this tower gate? How would I know? This was clearly built after the shrine at the foot of the mountain was finished! It didn't exist when I left, so how should I know its history!'

Miketsu complained in her heart and immediately felt even more troubled. While she could use serendipitous navigation to find the way, introducing things was truly beyond her. She could talk about the history of things that existed a thousand years ago, but she really didn't know anything about things built afterward.

'This tower gate looks like its material has some years on it, but what is its origin?'

"Wait, Inaba, do you not know either? It seems even if it's your home, you don't know everything about Kyoto..." Seeing Miketsu's reaction, Rin spoke with a thoughtful nod. Upon hearing this, Miketsu, feeling her pride at stake, immediately spoke up.

"Wait a moment, I just forgot for a second. Rin, wait while I think..." While speaking, Miketsu slowly paced over to the stone fox guarding the tower gate. While pretending to look at the gate and think, she secretly tapped the stone fox beside her and whispered in the language of the divine realm.

"Where did this broken thing come from? What's its history? Tell me quickly!"

With that light tap from Miketsu, the stone fox gatekeeper—part of Inari Honsha's self-defense system that had been dormant for a hundred years—was forcibly awakened. Feeling the powerful pressure emanating from the divine realm beside it, it shuddered. Under the profound power of their contract, it hurriedly answered Miketsu in the language of the divine realm. Miketsu nodded repeatedly as she listened.

"I see. Hmm, alright, I know now. You can go back to sleep~" Stroking the stone fox's head, Miketsu responded in the same divine language. Then, under the stone fox's cold-sweat-covered but unexpressable gaze, she walked toward Rin.

"Ah, I've remembered. This tower gate was donated by the first man to unify the land in the Azuchi-Momoyama period, the Taiko, Hideyoshi. He used Fushimi as his base to build Fushimi Castle, and to pray for the protection of the nearby Inari Okami, he offered a vast amount of treasure to Inari Grand Shrine and even donated this massive tower gate. It's quite famous because Toyotomi Hideyoshi donated it."

Miketsu smilingly shared the knowledge she had just acquired with Rin, whose eyes sparkled after hearing it.

"Oh, so Hideyoshi donated it! No wonder so many people come here to take pictures. Hmm, Inaba is indeed an old Kyoto local, you know so much!" Rin praised Miketsu, and Miketsu couldn't help but smile proudly.

"Of course. And I even know some unknown secrets about this place."

"Secrets? What kind of secrets?"

"Hmm, these are secrets ordinary people don't know, but it doesn't matter if I tell you today. Let's walk while I tell you. Rin, you know that Toyotomi Hideyoshi went from being a commoner to becoming the Kanpaku?"

"Yeah, the history books taught us that."

"Actually, Hideyoshi had even greater ambitions after becoming the Kanpaku. He thought about going even further and becoming the actual reigning Emperor of this country. He wanted to abolish the powerless Emperor and establish himself as the new one!"

"Eh? Did Hideyoshi ever think that?" Rin asked in shock. "But the history books say the Yamato Mythology claims that if one does not have the blood of the gods, how can they become the new Emperor?"

"So to solve this problem, Hideyoshi went to Inari, which at the time had even more widespread faith than Amaterasu Omikami. He wanted Inari to support him in becoming the new Emperor!"

"The new Emperor? There was such a thing!"

"Yes. After all, if Inari completely broke away from the Yamato Mythology and then established some kind of relationship with Uka-no-Kami, with Inari's religious support, it might have actually been possible to become the new Emperor."

In this way, Miketsu shared secret history from centuries ago while slowly leading Rin deeper into Inari Grand Shrine. Meanwhile, beneath the tall vermilion tower gate, a man's malicious gaze from under his hat brim fixed onto the dense crowd praying in the plaza ahead. Within his wide trench coat, several red cylindrical objects were tightly wrapped around his waist.

"Hmph." With a cold snort, the man, clutching a detonator in his pocket, slowly paced toward the dense crowd.