On the border between Musashi and Kai stood an ordinary village. Beyond it rose Mount Aomori, and on the mountain stood a shrine, the Aoki Shrine. Thanks to the shrine and its shrine maidens, there were almost no monsters nearby. Even the mountain air was a little fresher than elsewhere.
Lush forest surrounded the Aoki Shrine. Whenever the shrine maidens went out, they passed through the woods.
It was a happy little wild boar living in that forest.
In spring, the earth warmed and was no longer hard as ice. It could live on acorns left over from winter and roll happily among the budding trees. In summer and autumn, it ran all over the mountain in the pleasant weather. When it grew too hot, it splashed and bathed in the mud beside a pool. Summer was also mating season. It would find a large tree it liked and rub against it over and over, leaving its scent. That way, any passing sow would know there was a male boar here. In autumn, the berries ripened, giving the little boar more sources of food. Whenever it spotted a patch of berry bushes, it would hop happily on the spot, then rush over and lose itself in the delicious berries. Before long, however, bitter winter would arrive. It would find a grove of oaks on a sunny slope, lie on the thick fallen leaves, and bask comfortably in the warm winter sunshine. With the plentiful acorns among the oak leaves to sustain it, it passed the cold, lonely winter longing for spring. Then another year of warmth and blossoms would begin.
That should have been the pattern of its life: birth, age, sickness, and death, until it lay upon the earth, was buried beneath leaves and dust, and became nourishment for the forest.
Yet that was not its fate after all.
It was destined to give itself to a certain human.
In the forest, the little boar's nimble hooves bounced through the thick grass. Then it saw that radiant human.
She was a woman dressed in a white robe and red hakama, a human known as a shrine maiden.
She had come into the forest with the other shrine maidens to gather wild vegetables and medicinal herbs. Whenever she discovered a new herb, a beautiful smile blossomed on her gentle face.
The little boar heard its heart pounding loudly, thump, thump.
It looked at its hooves, smeared with damp earth, and the blades of grass stuck to the tip of its snout from rooting in the soil. A deep sense of inferiority filled its heart. Yet whenever it saw that shrine maiden, it became so happy that it forgot everything else.
It secretly watched her. It saw her gently apply herbs to an injured bird and release it into the air. It saw her tenderly stroke a great tree and wished those slender, beautiful hands might one day stroke it the same way. It heard the other shrine maidens call her Ryoko. What a beautiful name! Just like her. Only that name could be worthy of her!
The little boar repeated her name over and over in its heart, as though doing so could bring it a little closer to her, and then closer still.
Though it was only a little wild boar, it was one of the rare boars in the forest blessed with intelligence. It warned every animal in the forest not to hurt or disturb her. Whenever small animals approached the area around her, it would run ahead and howl at them threateningly. It ventured onto sheer cliffs and into poisonous swamps teeming with venomous snakes to find precious herbs, then left them where Ryoko would pass.
Ryoko seemed to have noticed.
As it lay in the dense, low bushes as usual, secretly watching over Ryoko with a happiness only it understood, she walked toward its hiding place. Its whole body stiffened as it watched her draw closer and closer. At last, it turned, kicked up its hooves, and fled. As it glanced back, it saw the shrine maiden waving to it from afar.
Its dark bristles hid the blush on its face.
For the first time, the little boar ran ten laps around the mountain in excitement.
Yet the next day, and the third day... Ryoko never came back to the mountain.
It knew that humans usually lived at the foot of the mountain. Shrine maidens were different. They lived in a wooden building in the mountains that they called a shrine.
Risking discovery and capture by humans, it waited anxiously outside the shrine for her to appear. It ventured into the most dangerous cave, braving swarms of bloodsucking bats. Even its thick hide and fur could not withstand their attacks, but it endured the pain and snatched the most precious mountain lingzhi from the bat cave. It silently resolved that as soon as Ryoko came out, it would give the mountain lingzhi to her.
Its wounds throbbed faintly. A single bite of the mountain lingzhi would heal them, but it could not bear to take one. It wanted to give Ryoko the mountain lingzhi in perfect condition.
Yet humans came and went. Ryoko was not among them.
Torrential rain poured down on its body. Its thick fur became soaked and stuck to its unhealed wounds, causing unbearable pain. It could have gone to find medicinal herbs and returned once its wounds had healed, but it refused to leave this place, even for a moment.
At last, one day, its wounds healed.
But the mountain lingzhi it had carefully placed before it had already rotted.
It lay on the ground, dejectedly staring at the precious mountain lingzhi, now devoid of any medicinal power. It felt as though its healed wounds had begun to hurt again.
It wanted so, so badly to see Ryoko one more time.
So, so badly...
The little boar's body convulsed without cease, wracked by the pain of a forced awakening. Chaotic demonic power surged through its body before finally settling down. It became a human like Ryoko, with long arms and legs.
It walked into the shrine.
In human form.
Every step was agony.
With power it had yet to become familiar with, it fought the shrine's instinctive defenses against evil spirits and monsters.
Following her familiar scent, it walked without hesitation toward Ryoko's quarters.
Through the open window, it joyfully spotted its beloved shrine maiden lying on her bedding, but her expression was full of despair and pain.
Before it could approach and ask her, Have you been well lately? Why haven't you come to the forest anymore?
The shrine maiden ended her own life.
In that frozen instant, its heart seemed to stop beating too.
All it could see was the blood pouring from Ryoko's chest, staining her white robe red, staining her snow-white bedding red...
It rushed over heedlessly. The dying Ryoko opened her eyes wide and seemed to recognize it. At last, she smiled as she had when they first met, its reflection caught in her dark eyes. With the last of her strength, Ryoko gently stroked its face. Her palm was cool and tender, just as it had imagined. Ryoko smiled in contentment. Lying in its arms, she peacefully closed her eyes.
It held Ryoko tightly, unwilling to let go, and finally forced her soul to stay.
Using a monster's innate power to beguile the human heart, it exploited Ryoko's resentment and pain to forge a pact with her.
Ryoko was buried.
Braving the danger, it secretly killed the nobleman who had violated her and his accomplices in the town.
The shrine maidens seemed to have noticed, and they actually sealed Ryoko away.
It raged, seethed, and howled.
It took on the nobleman's appearance and invited other nobles to the shrine for their amusement.
The shrine maidens dared not defy them. It used these humans to make the shrine maidens experience Ryoko's suffering.
It could not control the shrine maidens, but it could control humans.
With the humans' unwitting help, it gradually invaded the shrine maidens' anguished, shattered hearts.
The shrine maidens fell into corruption.
Just as it was savoring the sight of the shrine maidens suffering, powerless to resist, a spellcaster and a shrine maiden arrived from elsewhere.
Its demonic power had been forcibly awakened, leaving it some way behind ordinary monsters, and its abilities leaned more toward beguiling hearts than fighting.
Outmatched, it fled, dimly sensing that everything seemed about to end.
Using its familiarity with the forest, it ambushed the spellcaster and shrine maiden pursuing it. The shrine maiden was still young, but it saw a reflection of Ryoko in her. Both were beautiful, powerful shrine maidens, kind and compassionate. Just not toward it.
It fought with all the strength it could muster, but was defeated at last.
At that moment, it saw Ryoko break free of the seal and heard her softly say, "It's all right. You've done enough. Thank you."
With the tears a monster could shed only once in its lifetime at the corners of its eyes, it apologized to Ryoko in its heart. I'm sorry. I forced you to stay and made you suffer so much. If I could, if there were another life...