“That’s… not bad.”
“Hmm. Sending a destroyer to showcase our armed force… not bad at all.”
“Moreover, Korea won’t be able to respond to our sending of a destroyer. If that’s the case…”
The reaction from the politicians was quite favorable.
What is a destroyer?
A vessel of Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force, akin to their pride.
With the display of military might by sending a destroyer, they could remind everyone that Japan’s armed force is still alive and send a stern warning to Korea.
Furthermore, sending it to Takeshima was an excellent idea.
Takeshima is the island where Korea and Japan are embroiled in a territorial dispute.
Since both claim it as their territory, there shouldn’t be any major issues dispatching a destroyer there under the pretext of patrol and training.
Unlike entering the territorial waters of the Republic of Korea, which is a clear violation, this has a certain ambiguity.
Additionally, there was another point I liked.
“Ha ha. Wasn’t that the flag of the Maritime Self-Defense Force?”
“Oh, Korea will be quite pleased to see it.”
That is because the flag of the Maritime Self-Defense Force is reminiscent of the glorious Rising Sun Flag of the Japanese Empire.
If they see it, the Republic of Korea will probably have a fit of joy.
And the citizens witnessing that reaction would find immense satisfaction.
A satisfaction deep enough that they wouldn’t be able to shift their focus back to politics.
“Then let’s send the destroyer.”
“Ah, it would be great to send an older one. Something that’s about to retire.”
“Indeed. If we send a relatively new one, it might be interpreted as a strong will for war. Haha, this is an unexpected insight. Impressive. You’ve been in diplomacy for so long that you’ve picked up on such details very well.”
“Haha, you flatter me.”
Thus, a significant decision affecting the destiny of the nation was made at a famous ryokan.
With the intoxication blended through the toasting of cups.
However, what awaited behind that intoxication… only a very few people would know.
Indeed, only a very select few.
And, unfortunately, none among them belonged to that small group.
*
Not too long ago.
A puppet group had occupied the northern part of the Korean Peninsula.
They called themselves the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and wielded power, brandishing swords against the Republic of Korea.
But sadly, they fell due to some incident, and the entire country turned into wasteland.
And now.
On that ruined land, a living person set foot.
A trash island formed at the confluence of the Colonel River and the sea.
There, stood a person draped in rags.
“Rajah bayah chora bayah agni bayah udaka bayah.”
In the north, now a ghost den, not a single soul remained.
There stood Park Jinseong.
With the foundation created by the trash that flowed in, and with ghosts piling it up, there was finally a place to stand on, the trash island, where he danced amidst the stench. In one hand, he held a bell, and in the other was a crude sword that looked to be sharpened from a metal plate.
He danced like a madman, spinning around as trash caught on the sword and filth splattered on his body, moving with abandon as if it mattered not at all.
He wore nothing under his rags, with crimson lines drawn on him—perhaps with beast’s blood. The pattern looked like a talisman from folk beliefs or a mark used in esoteric traditions. Alternatively, it could seem like a mandala drawn by someone engrossed in Buddhism.
“Durbiksha bayah asani bayah akara mrityu bayah.”
Do you feel it?
The emptiness in his head, with flames sprouting all over his body taking shape, as if the bones are made of fire, his senses becoming weightless like clouds drifting by. Words engraved in his unconscious flow from his mouth, and his eyes, glazed over, draw mandalas in the blurry boundary between reality and spirit.
The sensation of ecstasy leads him to witness what shouldn’t be seen and hear what shouldn’t be heard.
“Dharani bhumi kampa bayah ulka pata bayah. Raja danda bayah naga bayah vidyut bayah….”
Whispers of stars can be heard.
The star of sudden death rushes through the darkness, making sounds.
The star of misfortune drags along the fates of people, whispering as it rolls like a wheel, coloring darkness with its black light and the starlight shatters, spreading out as nightmares. Sounds that do not make a sound are heard, the darkness harboring darkness spreading in all directions and melding into the world.
The patter of footsteps carries calamity in one step, malice in two, and hatred in three, moving without direction, scattering about, creating order from chaos, and drawn along by nameless misfortunes, advancing forward, leaving traces behind.
Sound.
That sound truly brings joy.
“Suparna bayah aksa grahah rakshasa grahah. Preta grahah pisacha bhuta grahah. Kumbhanda grahah putana grahah kata putana grahah. Skanda grahah apa smara grahah undada grahah. Chaya grahah hrdaya grahah jataharinam. Garba hari nam rudhira hari nam mamasa hari nam….”
Do you hear it?
The whisper of that star.
The sound that the Great Evil Stars, tangled in the darkness, radiate while chanting evil?
Awakening nightmares in those wrapped in night, forcing them to reflect on the paths they’ve walked, weighing their footsteps down and binding them to all that has passed?
There are stars up there.
Stars that bring frightful nightmares.
Dragging remnants, bringing death, and sewing unwelcome misfortune.
More painful than poison, sharper than a sword, fiercer than fire, and more destructive than water, whispering unseen calamities into sound!
O star.
O wicked star.
Counting them one by one, the total is 84,000.
“Meda hari nam matta hari nam ojas hari nya jivita hari nam. Vata vasa hari nam banta hari nam asutya hari nya chitta hari nya. Tesham sarvesham sarva graham vidyam cheda yami. Kira yami pari brahzhaka kritam vidya cheda yami. Kira yami dakini kritam vidyam cheda yami….”
By the guidance of the wicked star, disaster approaches.
The thief’s blade glimmers as it nears, and wildfires will arise. The waters will churn, spewing forth spirits, and poison will spread, bringing suffering to people. Weapons will tear through flesh, and enemies will rise up. The nation will become chaotic, food will run short, and people will approach being beasts. Those who should not die will perish, and meteors will squirm like insects, leaving trails behind.
“Kira yami maha pasupataya rudra kritam. Vidyam cheda yami kira yami narayana kritam. Vidyam cheda yami kira yami tatva garudese kritam. Vidyam cheda yami kira yami maha kara. Matar gana kritam vidyam cheda yami kira yami….”
The punishment will fall as they claim to bring peace to the nation, and from that harsh punishment, those who squirm like serpents will take their gains. People will be hunted like prey by eagles soaring above, and all kinds of spirits will roam freely.
Yacha will provoke fights, and the Rakshasa will harm people. The hungry will gnaw at the food of others and the spirits emerging from the waters will drag people away. Evil spirits will enchant and possess individuals, manipulating them to their will. They will turn them into friends, spreading madness and shrouding the nation in shadows.
O spirits, O spirits, gnawing on humans to the point of accumulating resentment, compelling hunger.
Spirits that suck blood and marrow, splitting open bellies to devour children. Spirits that tear flesh, crush bones, burn fat, and sweetly sip the essence like soma. They consume breaths, mimicking the act of living, rolling about in what others have vomited, soiling what is filthy, and breaking hearts to lick and devour them, picking apart human lives like candy, the spirits of calamity.
Here lies the sound of invocation cloaked in the guise of mantra.
Just as the mantra spread across the world under the Bodhi tree long ago, the sound echoes beneath the dead tree.
Come forth when you hear the sound.
Come here to the sound of the stars mixed with the chant.
Stirred together with the incantations of outsiders, mingled with practitioners’ curses, infused with the forgotten meanings of ancient mysteries.
“…Kira yami rakshamam bhagavan itam mamasya.”
Let the spirits hear the incantation and come here.
