The Tiger Folklore of Jangsan (萇山) in Busan (6)

Upon awakening my instincts as a fox yokai, I found myself unwittingly walking on all fours while sniffing.

Foxes are quadrupeds that walk on four legs, not bipeds.

So it was only natural that I started quadrupedal walking.

Though a rather uncivilized method of crawling around on all fours until I caught the scent of blood,

For now, this was the only way for me to track the Jangsan tiger yokai.

And Ho Joon, aware of this fact, silently followed behind me.

“Sniff sniff, sniff sniff sniff.”

“Puff, whew.”

“Sniff sniff sniff.”

“Puff, phew.”

Of course,

While smoking cigarettes nonstop.

…The smell was distracting my focus.

“Hey.”

“What.”

“Could you please put out that cigarette?”

“No way.”

“Grrrrr…”

“It’s none of your business whether I smoke or not.”

“The foul cigarette smell is stinging my nose, of course it’s my business. And this is a non-smoking area, you lunatic smoking by the traffic lights?”

“Here I am. Since there’s no one around, what does it matter? Come to think of it, I’m more human than you yokai…”

“Uh uh uh, that’s a red light!”

“That’s why I said it doesn’t matter.”

He was an utter derelict without a shred of regard for the law.

Was this really a Spell Master?

His character was so different from my impression of Spell Masters that my illusions were shattered.

Around an hour into sniffing and tracking, with no progress made, his patience seemed to reach its limit.

He lit another cigarette and spoke:

“This isn’t working. Hey, ugly fox yokai.”

“Sniff sniff… What, what did you say? Say it again, you bastard!”

“Shut up and listen. How far can you track scents, radius-wise?”

“…”

I pondered his serious question for a moment before answering obediently:

“I’m not sure.”

“Figured as much. Whether you have that ability or not, just… wait here a sec. Keep sniffing.”

After speaking, he

Instantly vanished from my sight.

…What was that?

A speed invisible to the naked eye.

Was he stronger than I thought?

In any case, I focused on the scent as he had instructed, and

Detected a faint smell of cigarettes in the distance.

I didn’t know the exact distance, but it was certainly very far away.

…When did he fly that far?

Shortly after, the scent faded, only for a faint whiff of cigarette smoke to be detected from an even farther distance.

Eventually, the scent disappeared altogether.

This seemed to be my limit.

Woosh!

He then reappeared right before my eyes and said:

“How many times could you detect the scent?”

“Up to the second time.”

“10 kilometers.”

“…You flew that far just now?”

Ignoring my words, he began muttering to himself:

“With Busan’s total area being 770 square kilometers, tracking by scent on foot like this would… take forever.”

I feel bad for Lee Ha-neul, but

This person

Seems incomparably stronger than her.

After his mumblings, he spoke again:

“Would using your yogi increase your range?”

“…”

“Enough with this damn cosplay nonsense. We no longer have time to waste.”

All playfulness had left his tone.

Derelict as he may have been,

He was a Spell Master with a proper sense of duty.

Since I agreed we had no time, I told him honestly:

“…Perhaps.”

“Perhaps? Meaning you’re not certain?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’ve never actually tried it before. …Should I give it a shot now?”

“No. If you’re not certain, it’s best not to try at all. Carelessly using yogi will only cause more confusion.”

Unexpectedly level-headed.

So then,

What should we do?

As uncouth as this method was, what better option was there?

“I’ve decided.”

“Decided what?”

“We’re flying.”

“Huh? Flying, what do you… Woah, damn it!”

I couldn’t finish my words.

He had suddenly grabbed me by the waist,

And we began rising into the air.

…

…

…

“Heh…”

The feeling of soaring through the sky was so delightful, words could not describe it.

Though I was dangling ridiculously from his arms,

I could humbly accept such trivialities

When the act of soaring was so delightful.

Swish swish.

Swish swish.

Swish swish.

“…Could you stop swishing your tails? You’re obstructing my view.”

“Ah, my apologies.”

Swish swish.

Swish swish.

“…”

“I, I can’t really control it consciously… Ahaha…”

Just as one sweats when hot

Or bleeds when injured,

Swishing my tails merrily when feeling good was a natural bodily reaction.

It was something I couldn’t help.

“Focus on the scent. If you don’t focus, then wham.”

“…Wham?”

What,

He would drop me?

Not like I would die from this height anyway.

“I’ll grab your tail and go flying off without you.”

“…”

“Why the surprise? Ah, is your tail an erogenous zone or something? Come to think of it, I recall seeing it in an adult comic. Fox-tailed lusty female characters usually have their tails as erogenous zones…”

“No, you lunatic…”

Dear me,

He was a handful.

In any case, per his words, I focused on the scent.

If the Jangsan tiger yokai was nearby, I would definitely be able to track the unmistakable scent of blood.

After flying around for a few minutes:

Sniff.

Sniff sniff.

“…I’ve found it, the scent of blood.”

“Where?”

“Over there, in the direction of that church’s cross.”

The scent of blood.

An intensely thick, pungent scent of blood that could make one’s nose bleed.

As the scent of blood grew closer, I gradually became able to discern the pheromone scent of the blood-drenched yokai as well.

Of course,

Females had a female scent, while males had a male scent.

Humans had an extremely underdeveloped sense of smell, making pheromones hard to detect, but foxes were different.

“It’s a male yokai for now.”

“I see. And its appearance? Is it a tiger?”

“I’m not sure about that. I’ve never smelled a tiger before.”

“Actually, this is a different matter, but how old are you?”

“Two years old.”

“This crazy shit, I never thought I was a pedo all this time…”

“Wait a moment.”

Sniff.

Sniff sniff.

The pheromone scent

Had changed.

“…Female?”

“You said it was male just now.”

“It changed to female. No… it changed again. Male… no, female…”

What in the world was going on?

While I didn’t understand the situation,

Something seemed amiss, so I said:

“…Let’s hurry.”

“Agreed.”

---

The execution method for the ‘bait operation’ proposed by the Jangsan Yokai Extermination Office’s director was simple.

Analyzing the ‘Jangsan tiger’ yokai’s behavior pattern, it would appear in densely populated areas, devour humans, and then suddenly vanish without a trace.

Since tracking it was impossible,

The opposite approach of laying a trap to lure it was inevitable.

Those mobilized for the bait operation were all personnel from the Jangsan Yokai Extermination Office.

Of course,

The director himself was included among those who volunteered as bait.

He was not the cowardly sort to selfishly flee alone.

Since it was an inhumane operation he had proposed,

He resolved to take responsibility himself.

Of course, volunteering as bait did not mean they had resigned themselves to death.

With three Martial Artists and one Spell Master,

Plus a whole army regiment’s firepower,

The backup force was more than sufficient.

No matter how formidable a Grade 2 yokai, it could not withstand the combined might of three Martial Artists and one Spell Master.

As they took combat stances in the city center to lure the Jangsan tiger,

[Everyone, fall back!]

“Director…?”

From somewhere,

The director’s voice rang out.

It was an odd occurrence,

As the director was clearly present here.

The direction of the voice came from inside that building.

Grasping the situation, the director shouted to his combat personnel:

“Don’t be deceived, it’s the yokai’s ability!”

A newly discovered fact:

That Jangsan tiger could definitely mimic human voices.

With a speed too fast for the eyes to track,

Coupled with voice mimicry talents

And a tiger’s appearance –

It was indeed a formidable Grade 2 yokai.

“It’s emerged, right now!”

Though its exact location was still unknown,

It was certainly nearby, so

The director quickly radioed the Martial Artists and Spell Master.

He would have preferred more time before calling them, but without the Martial Artists and Spell Master joining, they would only meet their demise.

As much as this was a bait operation, he did not wish to sacrifice his subordinates’ lives.

One minute before the Martial Artists, Spell Master, and military forces arrived,

He had to endure for one minute.

His role as bait.

“Everyone, do not be deceived by the yokai! Cover your ears!”

“Di, Director…!”

“What!”

“A, a child… there’s a child!”

At his subordinate’s words, the director urgently looked up at the 2nd floor of the building he was pointing to.

There was indeed a girl who appeared around 10 years old, but she did not seem like a yokai no matter how he looked.

To protect the young girl, the director rushed towards her.

“I’ll go alone! The rest of you, stand by!”

“Yes, understood!”

Upon reaching the 2nd floor

And finding the young girl, the director approached her closely to carry her.

Poof!

That was

The director’s last memory.

The final sight the director beheld before his death was:

The young girl’s face

Transforming into an exact replica of the director’s own face.

It was no mere tiger yokai.

A doppelganger…