In a small village surrounded by mountains on the outskirts of the capital, there has been a law since ancient times.

—On the night of the full moon, to pray for the peace of the village and a bountiful harvest, one chosen person must be offered to the shrine deep in the mountains.

And it was on a day in early spring that my name was called.

"This year's sacrifice is you."

At the voice that spoke in a low tone, I caught my breath. My hands, which should have been shaking with fear, were strangely cold and calm, and I even forgot to run away.

The villagers lowered their eyes, and no one tried to look at me. But what lay behind that silence was not pity. It was awe.

What dwells in the mountain shrine is not human. A fox worshipped as a god, clad in moonlight and swaying white tails—The Divine Fox.

A being said to devour humans, yet also to grant wishes. If his mood is soured, the village sinks into illness, the fields wither, and the children will not stop crying.

That is why, in the name of prayer, people offer up a single life.

I simply thought quietly. If someone must be chosen so that this village may live. Why shouldn't that person be me?

Night. Guided by the sound of bells and ritual prayers, I head toward the mountain, wrapped in white cloth.

The wind is cold, the trees rustle, and only the moon is strangely bright. Deep within the shrine I finally reached, in the darkness, eyelids quietly open.

Pale light blue eyes, like jewels, look this way.