Beyond the Werefox Whistle
Written by Uehashi Nahoko
Illustrated by Yumiko Shirai
Part 4: Breaking the Curse
Chapter 4: The Power of the Curse
As the High King approached the receiving hall, all of the assembled nobles hid their faces and looked down. The ceiling was high and the walls were low on three sides; the room resembled a skittering crab as the High King entered and the nobles scrambled toward the walls.
Koharumaru folded his face into his knees, sweating profusely from nervousness. He looked at the woven rice mat with flower petals crushed into it on the floor and didn’t dare lift his face.
The cherry trees were starting to bloom. A few blossoms blew in through the hall’s windows, but Koharumaru didn’t notice.
The High King’s footsteps echoed and his clothes rustled in the silence of the hall. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.
“Raise your heads,” the High King said in a clear voice.
Koharumaru did. The High King sat cross-legged on a large cushion before a folding screen painted with the image of a free-spirited young woman on a spring green background. Sunlight shone on the High King’s shoulders. The High King sat above everyone. Koharumaru thought that he looked sad and tired. There were dark circles under the High King’s eyes.
The High King was much shorter than Koharumaru had imagined him to be, but keen intelligence showed in his eyes and in the way he observed everyone around him.
The High King smiled, then said, “As you can see, the cherry blossoms are blooming early this year—perhaps earlier than any other year. I thank you all for contributing to this land’s prosperity, this spring and every spring to follow after.” He shifted his gaze to Harumochi and Koharumaru. “And here we have a fine young warrior who will serve our land far after I am gone. This is a joyous occasion, everyone.”
Koharumaru sat up straighter as he felt the eyes of everyone in the hall fall on him.
Lord Harumochi had a good reputation as an honest man, but he’d been unlucky with all his family problems. His elder son had died under mysterious circumstances. Koharumaru might be next. There was not a single lord or lady in the hall who didn’t know of the enmity between the Yuuji family and the Yuki family. The tension in the hall was palpable.
Lord Moritada sat in the hall, of course, but his face betrayed no emotion. The High King did not so much as glance in his direction.
“Lord Harumochi, you have been most assiduous in protecting your family,” the High King said. “I myself had no idea that this young man was still among the living. I am delighted to see Koharumaru here today, alive and well.” He gave his full attention to Harumochi. “It is difficult to forgive a deception like this. For many years, Lord Harumochi, we have all believed that Koharumaru was dead. However, you have already lost one son. I can understand wanting to keep the other safe. I have decided to legitimize him as per your wishes, Lord Harumochi, so that he may inherit your lands after you. Let us begin the ceremony.” He clapped his hands.
There were a few low murmurs of surprise around the hall. The voices soon fell silent.
“Yuuji no Koharumaru,” the High King said. “It has been a long ten years since I last saw you.”
Koharumaru felt tears welling in his eyes and looked down. It had been such a long time since he’d been locked inside Morikage Estate. Ten years was indeed a long time, but it had felt even longer to Koharumaru. He had acted out more frequently as the years had passed. He felt like he’d been trapped in a cage. There’d been times when breaking everything around him was the only way he could feel even a little bit better. He’d lived under a gloomy cloud and spent most of his days depressed and miserable.
On Koharumaru’s fourteenth birthday, Dairou had come to him and told him about the curse put on him by Yuki’s sorcerers. Koharumaru had finally understood why his father had locked him away at Morikage Estate. But knowing the reason why didn’t really change anything. Koharumaru had told Dairou that he didn’t care if got killed or eaten by a spirit fox; all he wanted was to be free to go outside. There was no purpose to his life when he had no freedom.
“Your father wishes you to focus on your martial arts training,” Dairou had told him. “You may become skillful enough to repel a spirit fox’s attacks. Until you can demonstrate your ability to defend yourself adequately, your father will not permit you to go beyond the bounds of this estate.”
Koharumaru had thought that was cruel. It took years—decades—to become a master of the sword like Tsuneyuki. He couldn’t bear the thought of spending another decade at Morikage Estate.
When he’d been at his lowest point, Koharumaru’s guardian deity had come to him and told him of the trials to come.
Where is my guardian deity now? Koharumaru asked himself as he sat in the High King’s receiving hall. His guardian deity had made so many promises to him. It seemed like those promises were true. He was about to become his father’s heir in the eyes of the entire noble court, and then he would be free.
Koharumaru couldn’t hear the voice of his guardian deity anymore.
The High King raised his hand. “I give my blessing to Yuuji no Koharumaru.”
Some of the nobles sitting to the right and behind the High King rose. There was a low table in front of the High King’s cushion that the nobles lifted up. They placed the table in front of Koharumaru. The table held a box lined with purple velvet. Inside the box was a short sword with an exquisite mother-of-pearl hilt.
“Lift the hilt of the sword against your forehead,” the High King said to Koharumaru. “When you inherit your father’s lands, you will be responsible for protecting them as well as yourself. Swear that you will protect your territory and that of the crown with your life, Koharumaru.”
The sorcerer Kuna held his breath as Koharumaru reached for the sword. He knew that Koharumaru could no longer hear the voice of the cursed insect buzzing in his ear, and this worried him. However, this ceremony was something Koharumaru himself wanted. The curse might still be active even with the insect gone.
Kuna would only have to worry if Koharumaru acted in a way that was inconsistent with the curse. He watched and waited. If Koharumaru broke or resisted the original curse, Kuna could always curse him again. He stared intently at Koharumaru’s hands.
Koharumaru’s hands and mouth trembled as he lifted the sword. Guardian deity, Koharumaru thought, where are you now?
He hesitated. This was the part of his guardian deity’s plan that he was most uncertain about. What if Sayo was right, and there had never been a guardian deity? What it all of this was just part of Koharumaru’s curse?
No. Koharumaru couldn’t doubt himself or his guardian deity now. He set the short sword down in its velvet-lined box, then drew his own ceremonial sword in a swift motion. He spun to face Lord Moritada of Yuki.
“And now,” Koharumaru shouted to the hall, “I shall avenge my mother!”
***
Lord Moritada was ready for Koharumaru’s attack. He rose from his seat and drew his sword. One of Lord Moritada’s retainers also drew his blade to protect his lord.
As Koharumaru advanced on Moritada, a figure in black stepped between them. The figure tripped Koharumaru, sending him flying backward. There was a bright flash of light, and then Koharumaru was down: unconscious on the ground with a shallow wound across his stomach.
“Koharumaru!” Harumochi cried out and tried to reach his son, but the figure in black blocked his way. He took a closer look at the figure and gasped. “You! How dare you attack my son!”
The figure in black removed the mast over their features, revealing Dairou. Dairou’s sword had blood in it, but it wasn’t raised against Harumochi. “Lord Harumochi, calm yourself,” Dairou said. “Your son has gone mad.”
“So this was your plan all along, you accursed spirit fox!” Harumochi yelled. He slashed out at Dairou (actually Nobi in disguise) with his own weapon. Dairou jumped over the blade, then jumped back.
Harumochi attacked again and again in a frenzy.
Sayo screamed, but her mouth was covered by Tamao’s hand before any sound could come out.
“Don’t move,” Tamao said in Sayo’s ear. “If you move now, then Nobi saving you before will all be for nothing.”
One of Harumochi’s strikes slit the false Dairou from shoulder to hip in a diagonal line. Dairou stumbled and collapsed to the floor.
Dairou’s body twisted. He turned toward Moritada and gasped, “Master,” before transforming into a spirit fox. He was covered in blood.
There was pandemonium in the hall. Harumochi pitched his voice to carry, saying, “Did you hear that, Lord Moritada? This spirit fox names you his master!”
Harumochi lifted Nobi by the throat and threw him hard against the wall.
“What are you implying?” Moritada asked, glaring. “I have nothing to do with this! That spirit fox tells nothing but lies!” He collected Nobi’s unmoving body from the floor and tossed him out a window.
Nobi trembled on the white sand outside the hall for a moment, and then he vanished completely.
Nobi… Sayo shook off Tamao and dashed out of the hall.
Nobi wasn’t outside anymore. His blood stained the white sand where he’d vanished. Sayo rubbed her forehead against the bloody sand, feeling like her heart was about to break.
No one noticed Sayo. Everyone was too focused on the fight between Moritada and Harumochi.
Is Nobi dead? Sayo asked herself. No. He ran. He ran away so that he wouldn’t die. He’s in the world between worlds. She breathed deep and slow. There was a bright white flash, and then she, too, vanished.
***
Sayo’s disappearance garnered some attention. The High King’s guards were now in the receiving hall and just outside it, trying to calm the situation.
“Was that girl a spirit fox as well?” one of the entertainers asked. “Just how many are there?”
Kuna stood behind Moritada. He was deep in thought. Why was Nobi here and not Kageya? he thought. His plan had been going perfectly until now. If Nobi hadn’t jumped between Moritada and Koharumaru, Kuna’s grand design would be complete.
There was a contingency in place for Kageya to kill Koharumaru discreetly if Koharumaru had managed to harm Moritada, but Kuna had given no orders to interfere with the start of the battle.
Why did Nobi call Moritada his master? That makes no sense.
Now Kuna’s plan was in tatters. The sorcerer’s brow furrowed.
The High King stood and ordered everyone to calm themselves as guards moved through the crowd. One of the guards told Harumochi that Koharumaru’s wound was not serious. The boy would be fine.
“Return to your personal chambers and residences,” the High King commanded. “I shall pass judgment on Lords Harumochi and Moritada later.”
Kuna frowned to himself. Nobi had fled to the world between worlds, and an unknown sorceress had followed him. Or perhaps the sorceress was not so unknown. Kuna rubbed his chin as the workings of a new plan came into focus for him.
***
Harumochi and Koharumaru were placed under house arrest after the disturbance in the hall. Koharumaru was awake; the wound that Nobi had inflicted on him was shallow and no longer bleeding. The wound still hurt, though. Koharumaru sat up in bed and groaned with his hands braced over his bandages.
“The medicines should start working soon,” Harumochi said, placing a cool hand on his son’s sweaty forehead. “You’ll be all right.”
Koharumaru opened his eyes and looked up at his father. His father had never touched his face before. As his sweat cooled, his father’s palm felt warmer. Koharumaru found himself missing moments like this: moments of parental care that were entirely absent from his past.
He had failed to defeat Moritada, and he hadn’t awakened from the dream that his guardian deity had told him he was in. He had been cursed by his father’s enemies. Sayo had told him the truth.
“It wasn’t a dream,” Koharumaru muttered to himself. “It was that cursed insect all along. I would never have listened to it if it hadn’t told me that I would never have to return to Morikage Estate. And now…”
Harumochi ruffled his hair. “Don’t worry so much,” Harumochi said. “It’s all over now.”
Koharumaru wasn’t worried. He was angry. How dare a sorcerer take advantage of him like that! He clutched the edge of his mattress with one hand and squeezed, grinding his teeth. He worked himself up so much that he vomited into a pail that was hastily brought in by a palace servant.
Koharumaru wept in frustration and rage.
Harumochi watched over Koharumaru with a troubled expression. It was clear to him that Moritada had attempted, very successfully, to manipulate his son. Like his son, Harumochi was also angry. The backs of his eyes felt hot.
As Koharumaru’s sobs became pained instead of angered, a different emotion welled up in Harumochi. There had been so much suffering and death. His son was suffering so much. How long could this go on? Forever? He remembered the days of his early childhood when his father had been overwhelmed by his own greed.
All of this had started with Harumochi’s father. How could one man be responsible for so much evil? Why did innocent people suffer for the crimes of others?
Harumochi remembered Hanano taking his hand gently in hers and saying, “Hatred doesn’t change the past. There is no way to undo what was done. The only thing that can change is the future.”
If things continued as they were, then Koharumaru was doomed to repeat Harumochi’s life.
Harumochi wiped his eyes. He was weeping like a little child. He looked over at Koharumaru and did not look away for a long time.
***
As the sun set that evening, Koharumaru and Harumochi were summoned before the High King again. They weren’t led to the receiving hall this time, but a smaller room with three doors that was crawling with guards. The atmosphere of this audience was oppressive.
Moritada and his two sons were already waiting in the small hall when Koharumaru and Harumochi arrived.
The High King entered the hall, flanked by more guards. Everyone bowed, and then the High King sat in the place of honor at the front of the room. “Raise your heads,” the High King said.
Harumochi looked up at the High King. His face was stern and pale.
It was possible that Harumochi would be stripped of his lands and title. The High King would have to make some kind of example of him, if only to prevent further violence in his castle in the future.
“Drawing a blade in my presence is a serious crime,” the High King said. He spoke quietly, but everyone heard him. “I am within my rights to confiscate all of your lands and properties. You have always been loyal to me, Lord Harumochi. What has changed?”
Harumochi sighed and lowered his head, awaiting his punishment.
“The Yuuji family and the Yuki family shall both be detained,” the High King said in a strident tone. “War threatens us. I expect you to provide supplies and soldiers. Nothing more.”
Moritada looked up in surprise. Being detained meant that he and Harumochi could not fight on the battlefield. They would send their own men to be governed by others, and those others would get all of the glory and rewards. Detention meant that Harumochi and Moritada would have to bear the costs of war without any of the accolades or benefits.
The High King is just this kind of ruler, Harumochi thought. Stripping him and Moritada of their lands provided no benefit to the High King. There was a strong possibility of revolt if he were to do such a thing. By retaining Harumochi and Moritada as lords but restricting their advancement and calling on them to pay for a costly war, he could punish them and benefit himself at the same time.
“High King, may I be granted permission to speak?” Moritada asked. He was given permission. “Lord Koharumaru went insane. We all saw it with out own eyes. All of this happened because he attacked me in your hall. Why should the Yuki family be punished for this?”
“Be silent, Lord Moritada,” the High King said. “Do you believe me a fool? The spirit fox named you as his master. Everyone witnessed this.”
Moritada sheepishly looked away.
“This feud between your families has gone on too long,” the High King said. “You are covetous of wealth and power. Now I will ensure that you have nothing. Yuki and Yuuji will both have nothing, and there will be no reason for fighting or petty jealousy any longer.”
Moritada’s shoulders slumped. It would be easy for the High King to take both his and Harumochi’s lands, and he hadn’t. But the threat was there.
“I have noticed this foolishness,” the High King said. “Aye, noticed, and I have tried to mediate. I know that the sorcerers serving Lord Moritada are more powerful than those serving Lord Harumochi. So I will also even the scales in this way. I command Lord Moritada to give over his second son, Suketada, to Lord Harumochi. Lord Suketada will become Harumochi’s adopted son.”
Moritada looked like he’d just swallowed a lemon whole. Suketada sat to his left, his face an expressionless mask. Suketada was trying not to show his shock and surprise, but his hands were trembling slightly. Suketada was still young and full of promise. Moritada didn’t want to hand him over to his mortal enemy.
Koharumaru felt sorry for Suketada in that moment. Like him, Suketada was a pawn to be traded or locked up and released as his father saw fit.
Harumochi glanced between Suketada and Koharumaru. Suketada was just a boy. Just like his own son. It wasn’t fair for him to suffer because of Moritada. “High King, may I speak?” he asked.
The High King nodded.
“I believe I know of a different way to end this feud between our families,” Harumochi said.
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