Published: January 24, 2026
After a while, Shion and Luna wore expressions of contentment.
“Ha... that was the best...”
“Yeah... that’s definitely addictive...”
At their feet—or rather, floating in midair—Sakuramochi hung his head weakly, breathing heavily.
“Why do I have to go through this...”
Oliver shrugged his shoulders with a bitter smile.
“...That was misfortune.”
“To think the day would come when a human would sympathize with me...”
Sakuramochi muttered in a faint voice, his eyes distant.
In the slightly calmer atmosphere, I posed the question again.
“...So, what exactly is this guy?”
Fuuka answered without hesitation.
“He’s the manifested consciousness that dwelled within White Sakura. He started appearing after forming a cooperative relationship with me. This being can be said to be the very essence of demonic energy. That’s why he can answer Orun’s earlier question.”
“I see...”
I nodded seriously and shifted my gaze to Sakuramochi.
“Then, let me ask again. What exactly is demonic energy?”
“Huh? Why do I have to answer that?”
The fox immediately turned his face away, muttering sullenly.
At that moment, Fuuka’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Sakuramochi. Don’t be so mean.”
Though her voice was soft, an undeniable intensity seeped through.
The fox’s shoulders twitched, and after a moment of silence, he sighed quietly.
“Tch... Fine. I guess I have to explain, huh? ...Damn, lecturing humans like this—I've really hit rock bottom.”
Sakuramochi sniffed discontentedly, adjusted his posture while floating in the air, his ears and tail gently swaying. His voice was now rational and intelligent, quite unlike his earlier pitiful state.
“So, about demonic energy?”
“Yeah. Go ahead.”
Sakuramochi let out a sigh and began.
“First, demonic energy is a power born from ‘negative emotions’ dwelling within living beings. Anger, hatred, jealousy, fear—these dark emotions are far more intense than qi, which nourishes ‘positive emotions’. Like fire engulfing wood, it swells, to the point that it can transform even the being itself into a monster.”
The fox swayed gracefully in midair, locking his sharp eyes on me.
“And humans abandoned that power (....). The reason is simple: it was too strong. Too many people lost control and destroyed themselves and their comrades. Over thousands of years, a mechanism to suppress demonic energy was etched into their genes. In other words, humans dismissed demonic energy as a power ‘they can’t handle’.”
There was a sarcastic tone in his last words.
“However, only humans gave it up. Other creatures still possess it. Sometimes, some get consumed by it and become monsters. Humans call those beings ‘yokai,’ and certain clans like the Shinonome family have long been exorcising them.”
“Yokai... I know of their existence from historical texts, but I’ve never actually seen one. Are they that rare?”
“They are certainly rare, but the reason you haven’t seen one is different.”
“Different reason?”
“This entire world is designed so yokai can’t be born. That’s all there is to it.”
“The world... so it’s the principles of techniques suppressing demonic energy in other animals as well.”
“Exactly. ...Anyway, I got sidetracked. So, demonic energy is opposed to qi, but fundamentally they share the same root—‘the power flowing within living beings’.”
I frowned at Sakuramochi’s words.
“So, ancient humans could use both qi and demonic energy. But over time, by abandoning demonic energy, they lost even the ability to manipulate qi?”
“You’re perceptive.”
The fox lightly swayed his pale cherry blossom-colored tail and said matter-of-factly:
“Suppressing demonic energy also dulled the circulation of qi. That’s why humans forgot how to manipulate their ‘inner power’ and became clever creatures relying on intellect.”
“But, the texts mention that during the era of fairy tales, people started to use qi again. Why was that?”
I asked, and the fox drifted in midair, narrowing his eyes.