The Singing Tree's Scream

The singing tree, Janghwa Hyeonyo.

"I don't know!"

"...Really?"

I let my disappointment show at Depo's answer. As a squirrel yokai who'd lived for a very long time, Depo possessed such vast knowledge that there was almost nothing he didn't know. If even he had no idea, that left only two possibilities.

Either the book called the Prince's Divine Record wasn't actually that famous, or it was so obscure that not even Depo had heard of it. Whichever it was, the news wasn't exactly welcome.

When I visibly deflated, Depo waved his stubby little arms around and continued.

"But any yokai worth knowing would know it!"

"...If the name Sangun comes out of that tiny mouth of yours, I'm really going to show you what hot tastes like this time."

"S-Sangun would definitely know! You admit it yourself, Miho!"

Yeah, I do admit it. Was there any knowledge that ancient spiritual beast of several thousand years didn't possess? As far as I could tell, that tiger was closer to a god than a yokai. Why exactly such a powerful being ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠chose to hole up in this gloomy hidden world was still an unsolved mystery. Maybe he'd talked back to the Jade Emperor without knowing his place and got banished.

Anyway, asking Sangun was something I wanted to avoid at all costs. Sangun found me unpleasant. I didn't know why. Was it because of that nine-tailed fox named Dalki who'd thrown the world into chaos several thousand years ago? He wasn't openly hostile toward me, but he wasn't friendly either, so if possible, I didn't want to ask him. Besides, I doubted he'd even answer ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠if I did.

"Coward."

"What?"

"Coward! In this entire hidden world, you're the only one who's scared of Sangun, Miho! Cowardly vixen! Your body's grown and your chest got bigger, but your guts are still the same size!"

"...Depo, I think you've finally lost it."

A little irritated now, I started messing with him using fox magic—specifically foxfire. Sometimes a disobedient squirrel yokai needed proper discipline.

"Squeeeeaak! Squeeeeaak!"

"The one with swollen guts is you, not me. Can't you see this tail? Can't you feel all this overflowing yokai energy?"

"Th-that's why I'm asking! You've got so much yokai energy now, Miho, so why are you still scared of Sangun! Squeeeeaak!"

"Who said I was scared! I'm not scared, I'm not scared at all!"

...Okay, fine. I was scared. Just facing Sangun made my legs go weak, and every time he opened his mouth I felt like my mind would snap at any second. It was strange. The other yokai, including Depo, didn't seem to fear Sangun nearly as much. How they could look at that tiger's sacred aura and not be afraid was truly bizarre.

After playing with Depo for a while and eventually getting bored, I decided to go around the hidden world myself and gather information about the Prince's Divine Record from the yokai living there.

The first one I encountered was the giant tree with a face who loved to sing—Janghwa Hyeonyo.

I looked up at Janghwa Hyeonyo's branches that spread so wide they seemed to cover the entire sky and spoke.

"Hey, Tree Grandpa."

"No thanks, I don't need a song. There's something I want to ask..."

...

We weren't communicating. With Janghwa Hyeonyo, I had to play along with his rhythm before any real conversation could happen. I answered his question.

"Um... I don't know. Wouldn't a song with insane vocal power, a fire melody line that's both awesome and super trendy be a good one?"

...

"Ah... I see."

...

The very first verse already didn't sit well with me.

Clap clap clap clap clap.

When the song ended, I gave him a round of applause. Janghwa Hyeonyo was a yokai who loved singing to a suspicious degree, and he became even happier when you reacted to his songs. If it meant getting information about the Prince's Divine Record, flattering him a little was no big deal. Besides, his beautiful voice actually had the power to captivate both humans and yokai alike, so it was pleasant to listen to.

...Though it was a bit embarrassing that the protagonist of the song was me, of all people.

Anyway, judging from the lyrics of his song, even though he'd spent his entire life standing in one spot, he was a being who knew a great deal. Perhaps because his branches stretched so far, Janghwa Hyeonyo was the yokai who gathered information from all sorts of other yokai and even from birds. He might know something about the Prince's Divine Record.

I asked him directly.

"Tree Grandpa, have you by any chance heard of a book called the Prince's Divine Rec—"

I couldn't finish my sentence.

Rumble rumble rumble rumble.

Clatter, clatter, clatter, clatter.

The ground suddenly began to shake as if an earthquake had struck. The singing tree started letting out screams instead of songs. Janghwa Hyeonyo's face twisted into something grotesque, and then he began to shed tears of blood. Where his mouth had been, a bizarre spiral now sat, and that spiral was the source of the screams. The horrible sound slammed directly into my eardrums.

The tree began to dance. His sharp branches shot up toward the sky as if trying to touch the full moon, then split into countless smaller limbs that came crashing down toward the earth. Even while facing this bizarre sight, I somehow kept my sanity. It was probably ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thanks to the overwhelmingly powerful yokai energy I'd received from the blue fox that I could remain clear-headed.

Janghwa Hyeonyo's spiral began to spin clockwise and counterclockwise. From within the endlessly rotating spiral, a blood-curdling voice flowed out.

I instinctively understood. If I mentioned the Prince's Divine Record in front of him one more time, something truly terrifying would happen.

I instinctively understood. And then it was over.

The screaming tree had returned to being the singing tree in the blink of an eye. He continued speaking as if nothing had happened, casually offering to sing again.

"...I'll be going now."

I turned away from him. Something was wrong. Just mentioning the book called the Prince's Divine Record had elicited that kind of reaction. There was still so much in this world that I didn't know.

Even after witnessing that shocking scene, I wasn't discouraged at all. If anything, it ignited my fighting spirit. Now that things had come to this, I felt like I wouldn't be satisfied until I saw this Prince's Divine Record with my own eyes.

But I absolutely couldn't ask Sangun. If even the gentle yokai Janghwa Hyeonyo had reacted that strongly, then if I brought up the Prince's Divine Record to Sangun... I didn't know for sure, but he might just tear me apart on the spot. It might have been an exaggeration, but my instincts as a fox yokai were sounding every alarm bell they had. I must never, ever ask Sangun.

Still, it was also true that there weren't many other yokai I could ask. I'd probably need to speak with a yokai who'd lived for a very long time to get any meaningful answer.

"Haah..."

I let out a sigh. There was only one yokai that came to mind right now, but he was someone I really, really didn't want to deal with.

Couldn't be helped. I'd have to ask Mangtae Grandfather.