The Fox Spirit Legends of Jirisan

The Hidden World behind Jirisan is home to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠yokai.

There's Mangtae Grandfather, the sack-carrying old man who devours bad children. There's the talking, singing tree known as Janghwa Hyeonyo. There's the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠vengeful spirit Mongdal Ghost, born from an unjust death. There are the human-faced birds called inmyeonjo and the beast-headed humans known as chuin. And then...

There's the white-haired fox yokai with multiple tails.

I stared at the mirror in the cramped studio apartment bathroom, my reflection looking back with tired eyes. The face staring at me wasn't mine. Or rather, it was mine now, but it sure as hell wasn't the one I'd been born with.

Long silver-white hair cascaded down my back like fresh snow. My features were sharp yet delicate, almost unnaturally beautiful. And behind me, swaying lazily like they had a mind of their own, were nine luxurious fox tails glowing with a soft, ethereal light.

"...This has to be a fucking joke."

My voice came out soft and melodic, completely at odds with the crude words. Even my own ears twitched at the sound. Actual fox ears. Fluffy white things poking out from my hair, twitching every time I got annoyed.

I'd gone to bed last night as a completely normal, slightly overworked twenty-eight-year-old Korean man named Kim Ji-hoon. I'd fallen asleep watching a dumb variety show, complaining about my dead-end job and the mountain of credit card debt. Normal stuff.

Then I woke up like this.

A nine-tailed fox spirit. A gumiho. The kind that shows up in old folktales and eats people's livers or whatever. Except I didn't feel like eating anyone's liver. I mostly felt like throwing up.

"System?" I muttered, half-hoping this was some kind of isekai situation. "Status window? Anything?"

"Miho? That's the best you could come up with? At least make it sound cool like 'Baek Mi-ho' or something!"

The system didn't respond. Typical.

I poked at one of my tails. It felt... weirdly sensitive. Like touching a really important body part. I yanked my hand back immediately, face burning. Great. My own tails were basically erogenous zones now. This day kept getting better.

A memory that wasn't mine suddenly flashed through my head. A snowy mountain peak. Blood on white fur. A woman with nine tails laughing bitterly as she faced down what looked like an entire army of cultivators. The image burned itself into my brain before vanishing just as quickly.

"...Okay, so reincarnation with memories. Or possession. Or some cosmic prank. Whatever."

I looked at the calendar on my phone. It was still the same date. Same year. The world outside my window looked exactly like modern Seoul. Cars honking, people rushing to work, the faint smell of street food vendors setting up for the morning rush. Nothing seemed particularly supernatural.

Except for the fact that I was apparently a legendary yokai now living in a one-room apartment in Sillim-dong with three months of overdue rent.

My phone buzzed. A text from my boss—no, from Miho's boss—asking why I hadn't shown up for my part-time job at the convenience store yet. The contact name read "Slave Driver Park."

I sighed, the sound coming out like a soft fox yip. Even my sighs were cute now. This was going to take some getting used to.

Another flash of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠memory. This time it was clearer. A massive mountain that pierced the clouds. Jirisan. And behind it, a whole other world. A place where yokai like Mangtae Grandfather and Janghwa Hyeonyo lived away from human eyes. The Hidden World.

And I... I had been one of its most powerful residents. Until something went horribly wrong.

The memory cut off abruptly, like someone had slammed a door on it. My head throbbed.

"Fine. Keep your secrets for now," I muttered, rubbing my temples. My ears flattened against my head in irritation. I caught the motion in the mirror and groaned. "I look like a rejected anime character."

I needed to figure this out. How to hide the tails. How to hide the ears. How to not accidentally seduce people with fox charm or whatever the hell nine-tailed foxes were supposed to do. Most importantly, how to not get caught by the Yokai Hunter Department that I somehow knew existed in this world.

Because apparently my new instincts came with a very clear warning:

The last line sent a chill down my spine. My tails bristled, puffing up like an angry cat's.

"Never go back? Buddy, I don't even know how to get there in the first place."

But even as I said it, I could feel it. A pull. Like the mountain itself was calling to me across the city. Like something important was waiting for me there. Something that had been left unfinished.

I shook my head hard enough to make my ears flop. No. Absolutely not. I was going to live a quiet life, pay off this body's debts, maybe get a nicer apartment, and definitely not get involved in any supernatural bullshit.

Easy plan. Simple plan.

What could possibly go wrong?

My phone buzzed again. This time it was a news alert.

I stared at the headline. Then at my reflection. Then at my very obvious, very fluffy nine tails that were currently knocking over a cup of instant ramen from last night.

"...I'm screwed, aren't I?"

One of my tails waved cheerfully, as if agreeing with me.

Welcome to my new life as a fox spirit in modern Korea. May the gods have mercy on my soul. Or at least on my poor, overworked tails.