鬼灯
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| 白天的千年老树 |
夏日，白昼最长的季节。平安时代的京都，人们都不好夜间活动，一般上日落之前就会归家。大家都紧闭窗门，安然进入梦乡，然而事情就发生在倒楣的不幸的夜歸人身上。
他，只不过是个潦倒的绘者，没准是拖欠房租了被人家赶了出来。身上散发出强烈的酒味，连湯帷子也显得陈旧破烂，左摇右摆地走在无人的街道。边走边咒骂了几句后，突然失去平衡，跌跌撞撞地踢倒了什么东西。幸亏手快地一把抓住，才发现是猫神社旁挂着的一个小灯笼。
就在他还来不及反应之时，耳边传来一阵悦耳的铃声，而眼前呈现了一副让他难以置信的画面。阴暗的街道上顿时华灯初上，原本空无一人，这时候出现许多奇形怪状的妖魔鬼怪。大家都提着相同的灯笼像是庙会的行列一般，帶著狰狞的面孔，走在大路上。
他的身体开始不听使唤，自主地站了起来。双手紧紧地握着灯笼，双脚开始向前移动，让他混入了妖怪们的队形中。想发出声音但是无法颤抖喉咙，双唇也紧闭着。
漫长的游行，已经不知道自己走了多久，走了多远。停下脚步后，他看见妖怪们停在一个巨大的树桩前，大家似乎在等待着什么。当月亮移动树桩正上方时，树桩缓缓地长出了新芽。新芽在瞬间成长，不断地往上生长，直到叶子都遮盖了月亮。
妖怪们纷纷的将手上的灯笼挂在树枝上，巨树顿时成为黑夜中最明亮的发光体。当他把手上的灯笼挂上去之时，耳边再度传来清脆的铃声。
回过神来，他，独自站在神社中，千年老树前。妖怪什么的，都犹如烟般的，消失得无影无踪。
This
tale takes place one summer’s night, during the Feast of Ghouls. The lighted
lamps, were the Ghouls only way of telling direction.
Ghost Light
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| Giant Tree With Hanging Lantern |
Summer
is the month in which days are the longest. At the time, Kyoto was enjoying
peace. The people did not fancy night-time activities, usually returning home
before the sun set. People would lock up their doors and turn in before dusk.
However, this unlucky tale happened to an unfortunate soul who happened to
return late.
This
man was all but an artist down on his luck, kicked out for not paying his rent
on time. His clothes were all worn out and he reeked of alcohols. Visibly
drunk, he struggled walking in a straight line, cursing as he swayed around
walking. He had barely finished one sentence when he lost balance and fell flat
on his face, knocking something over in the process. Luckily, he managed to
catch it mid-fall. Upon inspection, it was a lantern that was hung beside the
Cat God’s altar.
Before
he could even make sense of this revelation, a bright ringing sound caught his
ear, and before his eyes something utterly shocking happened. The dark alley
that lay before him was suddenly lit up with lights. The once empty alley was
now full of hideous creatures of all shapes and sizes, each of them carrying a
lantern of their own, just like the lanterns in the temple.
It was
then that he started losing control of his body. He stood up, but it wasn’t
himself who was responsible for the action. His hands gripped the lantern very
tightly, his legs started walking forward, towards the crowd of hideous beasts.
He felt like screaming, but his throat would not obey; his mouth glued shut.
He
walked with the beasts for quite a while, not really knowing how far he had
walked and for how long. When he finally did stop walking, he looked around to
see the other beasts had mirrored his action as well, all in front of a giant
tree. He could feel they were all anticipating for something big to conjure
itself.
When
the full moon hung directly above the tree, a little shoot started sprouting
from the big tree. The shoot grew at an exponential rate, reaching maturity in
minutes. It reached gigantic proportions until its leaves completely blocked
out the moonlight.
The
creatures around him started hanging their lanterns on this new tree, turning
it into the brightest object for miles around. He followed suit and hung the
lantern, hearing another bell ringing in his ear once it was done.
When he
finally came back to his senses, he looked around to see the creatures around
him disappear in smoke, not be seen again. He stood alone in front of the giant
tree, confused and in awe of what exactly had happened.
