The Formless Shadow, Folklore of the Doppelganger Yokai – Afterwards (1)

Whoosh.

Whoosh.

I swung the goblin’s club several times.

Due to the sudden increase in breast weight, it was quite uncomfortable swinging the club, but more importantly –

No ‘thud thwack’ sound occurred.

Why wasn’t there any sound?

Was it not an innate ability of the goblin’s club itself, but the goblin entity’s own unique ability?

In other words,

Could that shadow I exterminated be a yokai capable of mimicking even the stolen form’s abilities?

…The more I thought about it, the more perilous that situation seemed.

Had I not awoken from the brink of death as a blonde delinquent, this place would have become my grave.

And that unconscious delinquent Spell Master would have joined me in that grave as well.

“Unngghh…”

Ah,

Conveniently timed, Ho Joon was waking up.

Looking around, he soon noticed me and said:

“Did you catch it?”

“Yes, I caught it.”

“…I see.”

Dusting off his clothes as he stood, Ho Joon then gazed intently at me,

Nodding as if realizing something before speaking:

“Your tails increased, from six to seven.”

“Yes, well…”

“And your breasts got bigger too.”

“They didn’t.”

For now, I shrugged it off.

Though they did indeed grow bigger as he said,

They didn’t expand that dramatically, right?

“Don’t deny it, they got ridiculously bigger.”

“…”

Nevermind.

I suppose they did grow quite a bit more than I realized.

“At least I-cup by now…”

“Shut it, you.”

It was information I didn’t really need to know.

His gaze was becoming rather burdensome, making me consider reverting to my three-tailed petite form to avoid yogi detection, but I remained still.

Yes,

In this seven-tailed state, I did not emanate any yogi.

…Just what had happened to my body that gaining an extra tail gave me this mysterious Spirit Power ability and made my breasts fuller?

Still,

I did not know what kind of yokai I was.

Ho Joon then proceeded to make lewd remarks about my more voluptuous figure, but

Anyone could tell

He was forcing himself to speak in order to suppress negative emotions.

It was a pitiful sight.

Eventually, he bowed deeply to me and said:

“Thank you.”

“No, well…”

I felt awkward.

As I never dreamed the ever-jesting Ho Joon would sincerely express such gratitude to me.

“Are you injured at all? Do you need treatment?”

“I’m fine. Just… an unsightly faint, that’s all. Anyway, what is that?”

“Ah, this?”

I had no intention of hiding information from him, so I told the truth:

“It seems to be a goblin’s club.”

I explained the yokai’s true nature,

How I was able to exterminate it,

And the abilities used by the goblin-formed yokai.

After listening intently, Ho Joon spoke:

“Goblins… were actual living beings?”

“You didn’t have a general idea?”

“No, it was clearly no ordinary yokai.”

“For the record, this club is mine. Since I caught it.”

“…Right. You caught it. I couldn’t do anything.”

Hey now,

Why so negative?

With a despondent expression, he continued:

“In the end, I was just deadweight. Utterly useless.”

“The opponent was too strong.”

“No, it was my lack of training. Being called Woosa Uchi’s reincarnation… was an honor far too lofty for me.”

Deep in thought, he then clenched his fist and resumed speaking:

“I will study goblins. I’ll scour all the Taoist Society’s books if I must.”

Startled by his words, I responded:

“The, the Taoist Society has information on goblins?”

“Yes. I just never bothered reading it since it didn’t seem necessary.”

“…”

“But it seems I may need that knowledge going forward.”

An unexpected harvest.

No,

Not a harvest –

A golden opportunity.

I had saved his life, so I was owed a favor.

Perhaps I could make a reasonable request?

I bluntly told him:

“Could you take me to the Taoist Society?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“…”

An immediate rejection.

“You can’t even fathom how stubborn those old Taoists are. You want me to vouch for a fox like you in front of those inflexible elders?”

“…”

“Don’t get the wrong idea, fox. No matter how much you flaunt those fine breasts, I won’t be swayed.”

“I, I didn’t flaunt anything, you asshole!”

“You did. I saw it.”

I didn’t, you bastard.

“Well, either way.”

“…?”

“I can at least make a proposal.”

“R, really?”

“Yes. Those elders aren’t completely inflexible, so while it may take time for them to accept it… they will likely come around eventually.”

“…”

“What’s with that dissatisfied look?”

“I’m not dissatisfied, I just don’t understand. I’m a yokai, while you’re human.”

I hadn’t expected him to accept my proposal either.

He was human.

I was a fox yokai.

We were incompatible beings who could not truly coexist, or so I thought…

“Here you go with that drivel again. Can’t shed that beast and animal mentality, can you?”

“Pardon?”

“What makes you think you’re a yokai?”

Oh.

He pointed at me and said:

“You’re not a yokai, but a spiritual beast.”

“?”

Huh?

---

The fox yokai,

No,

The spiritual beast had departed.

As is typical of esteemed personages who only move after an incident occurs,

Numerous humans would soon descend upon this place.

If that spiritual beast named Miho remained here, it would become troublesome for both her and Ho Joon.

Naturally, Ho Joon opted to omit any mention of the fox spiritual beast.

Just in case it caused problems later, he had secretly used magic to tamper with all nearby CCTVs from the moment he first encountered her.

So there was no need to worry about being found out.

‘…Who could have imagined she was a spiritual beast.’

A spiritual beast.

He had read about them in the Taoist Society’s ancient books.

Spiritual beasts were beings that were yokai, yet not yokai.

Unlike yokai, they were benevolent towards humans and

Emanated a wondrous aura rather than a malicious yogi.

In a sense, spiritual beasts were even rarer than ‘goblins’, with scant information in the Society’s books.

One certainty was that

In the era when the King of Yuldo and the Taoist Woosa Uchi joined forces to subdue goblins,

There was a spiritual beast that assisted the King of Yuldo –

A spiritual beast in the form of a tiger,

Named San-gun.

---

Reminiscing about my beloved home and homeland

As I headed towards Jiri Mountain, I fell deep in thought:

A spiritual beast.

On what basis did Ho Joon call me that?

There was not a shred of doubt in his eyes, so he did not seem to be lying.

…Certainly,

If I used Spirit Power instead of yogi, I could no longer be called a yokai.

I contemplated why I had evolved from a yokai into a spiritual beast, but

No matter how much I racked my brain, I could not discern the reason.

Confusion, utter confusion.

Who was I?

Where was this?

Ah, we were in the sky.

Ho Joon had summoned this Geunduun cloud to transport us to Jiri Mountain.

Since taking a train while lugging this massive goblin club seemed ill-advised, I asked him to summon something like a Geunduun instead.

And he actually did.

…Whatever, I’m too drained to care.

I’ll ponder my bodily condition later.

It seems I overdid it, as I’m exhausted right now.

What I desperately need is rest,

A refreshing sprinkler,

Chewable dog treats,

Dog food to fill my belly,

And the female office staff plus Lee Ha-neul to pet my head.

Ah,

I want to lie on my back in the office’s grassy field.

---

#Yokai Extermination Report

[The Tiger Yokai of Jangsan (萇山) in Busan]

Yokai’s Initial Reported Name: The Tiger of Jangsan

Revised: The Formless Shadow

Revised Again: The Doppelganger Yokai of the Taejashingi

Grade: Immeasurable, Yogi Undetectable

Revised: Immeasurable, Estimated Minimum Grade 2 National Calamity-Level Yokai

Engaged Forces Roster:

[Nationally Certified Martial Artists]

Park Na-rae: Deceased

Lee Jung-hyuk: Deceased

Geum Sung: Severely Injured, Currently Recovering

[Taoist Society Spell Master]

Myeong Jung: Deceased

Ho Joon: Survived, Uninjured

[Jangsan Yokai Extermination Office]

53 Personnel, All Casualties

[10th Corps Direct Command, 588th Yokai Sci-Tech Special Forces Battalion]

243 Personnel, All Casualties

Extermination Process:

1. 1. Jangsan Yokai Extermination Office Combat Personnel, 53

      1st Engagement.

      Director Survived.

      52 Casualties.

 

1. 1. Jangsan Yokai Extermination Office Director

      3 Nationally Certified Martial Artists (Park Na-rae, Lee Jung-hyuk, Geum Sung)

      1 Taoist Society Spell Master (Myeong Jung)

      10th Corps 588th Special Forces Battalion, Commander Lt. Colonel Oh Seok-jung + 5 Officers, 10 NCOs, 227 Enlisted

      2nd Engagement.

      Martial Artist Geum Sung Survived.

      247 Casualties.

 

1. 1. 1 Taoist Society Spell Master (Ho Joon)

      3rd Engagement.

      ‘The Formless Shadow’ Exterminated, Ho Joon Survived.

      Circumstances suggest an [Unknown Assistant] was involved, though Ho Joon denies this.

Impact:

Jangsan Yokai Extermination Office, Crippled Functionality, Under Reconstruction

Nationally Certified Martial Artists, 3 Casualties, Unrecoverable Loss

Taoist Society Spell Masters, 1 Casualty, Unrecoverable Loss

Numerous Civilian Casualties

Social Unrest, Increased Danger Level and Avoidance of Busan

Failed Media Control, Media Focused on [Unknown Assistant]

Rampant Speculation on [Unknown Assistant], Uncontrollable

Follow-Up Measures:

Strengthen Nationally Certified Martial Artist Forces

Close Cooperation With Taoist Society Necessary, Military Reinforcements and…

…

…

…