Kitsune's Curse, Lady Fox's Curse, or even simply Akari's Curse, is a curse cast by Akari Oborodzuka on Ryou Shishikusa's bloodline as a result of her being killed by the latter.
The curse causes those who are affected to experience "strange habits of eating people" and a strong drive for cannibalism and violence while earning advantages such as peak physical strength.
Appearances[]
- 鬼蜘蛛ト狐ノ獅子ト (Onigumo to Kitsune no Shishi to/The Spider and the Kitsune-like Lion) [Mentioned]
- 狐の嫁入り (Kitsune no Yomeiri/The Fox's Wedding)
- 鬼美影演舞狂-狐ノ嫁入リ- (Kimikage Enbukyou -Kitsune no Yomeiri-/The Beautiful Shadow of the Demon's Frenzied Dance Performance -The Fox's Wedding-)
- 明鏡鬼童 (Meikyou Oni Warabe/The Demon Child in the Clear Mirror)
- 鬼火 (Onibi/Will-o'-the-Wisp)
Background[]
Onigumo to Kitsune no Shishi to[]
"I won't die. But I'll have you all take responsibility."
The curse was first mentioned by Akari indirectly after being kidnapped with the aid of the Onigumo Clan and handed out to the Shishikusas.
A bag was put on Akari's head to prevent her from using her powers, and when the time of the performance came with the Daimyo's presence with the bag removed, the executioner who was assigned on stage was then killed by Akari.
In an instant, Akari turned to Ryou and Tomonari, killing the Daimyo that was in front of them. It is noted that those killed under Akari seem to suffer before they fully die.
Tomonari decided to go investigate on stage with his head put down, but Ryou, wanting to take revenge for her uncle, got on stage. Ignoring her husband's warning while holding a demonic blade in hand.
After Ryou stabbed Akari in the abdomen, Ryou felt pity as she looked into Akari's face and noticed that her eyes had turned brown, which made Ryou realize that she was mimicking her daughter, and her sympathy disappeared.
Before her death, Akari warned Ryou one last time, telling her that she wouldn't die and that she would have them all take responsibility and pay for what they did to her, possibly referring to the curse.
Kitsune no Yomeiri[]
"Now, whom I shall devour next?"
Mai was kidnapped by Akari's brother, Kanishiro, and forced to eat human flesh, which seemed to trigger Akari's curse as she started to ask for more.
The cook of the Shishikusa household has been found dead in one of Mai's wardrobes, having deep wounds on her body that looked like she had been eaten alongside some blood stains, and when her parents confronted her about it, she confessed and ate them as well.
No matter how strong the bond is between the character that was cursed and other people, when the ones enchanted feel a strong urge to devour someone, they will eat anyone, even their loved ones.
Meikyou Oni Warabe[]
"And when she joyfully consumes them, she can smile again tommorow."
The two main characters that show up in this song are Kaori and her mother. Kaori was Ryou's niece, and she was affected by the Kitsune's curse until, with the help of Shikyou, she somehow got rid of it.
Onibi[]
"I still trusted you, whether you sold me or not."
This song takes place 100 years after Akari got killed by Ryou, which made Akari curse her in return.
For an unknown reason, the curse finally wore off, which resulted in making the doll owner free from cannibalism, which angered The Onibi at the end of the song.
Characteristics[]
Causes[]
The curse's main drive comes from Akari herself, possibly due to the powers she inherited from Tsukuyomi, being her incarnate.
However, one of the conditions of the curse seems to be a blood relation, as Akari mentions in the song, Onigumo to Kitsune no Shishi to, that they better make it "genetic" or she will murder them all, which concludes that for someone to be influenced by the curse, they must have Ryou's blood or else they won't be affected.
The curse also seems to require a "push," as Mai didn't experience any symptoms of the curse until she was kidnapped by Kanishiro and forced to eat human flesh, which then seemed to have awakened the curse from there.
Symptoms[]
The first symptom of the curse is primarily red eyes, much like a corpse, as described by Ryou. This seems to be a trait inherited from Akari herself.
The red eyes signal that the curse is at work, which then makes the cursed suffer from "loss of consciousness," as they lose sense of reality, become unaware of their own surroundings, and feel like their body is acting on its own accord, such as making strange noises, like "Kakakakaka."
What follows is a strong drive for violence and possibly hunger. When the cursed express this, they will most likely devour whoever is in front of them without them being able to fight back, as the cursed will feel a sudden surge of physical strength and be able to overpower their victim.
Not to mention that those cursed suffer from a "frenzied" state, which is a state of the cursed constantly devouring those around them, possibly causing genocide.
Treatment[]
There is currently no known treatment for the curse, but it has been mentioned by Masa that the curse will wear off after the 100th generation. The reason why is unknown, although Kaori somehow broke the curse with the help of Shikyou's powers.
Bearers[]
Theories[]
- It's possible that Akari was able to cast the curse with the help of Shikyou, as she is almost always associated with death, and her main role is causing death to grant herself immortality.
- A theory states that the curse's effect is not cannibalism and is instead granting Akari the ability to order those who are affected. Proof of this is that right before devouring her parents, Mai states: "I... know these people. I'm sure of it... Well, whatever. I'll leave the rest to you."
- There is another theory that the curse's effect is making those affected act on urges they can normally suppress (cannibalism, murder, kidnapping, etc.), which might explain the reason why the doll owner tortured ??? Instead of killing her instantly.
- There is a possibility that once the curse was cast, it can never be undone, hence explaining why Akari didn't remove it for the sake of Mai.
Trivia[]
- The curse was first mentioned directly in the song "Onigumo to Kitsune no Shishi to," but it was never mentioned again.
- Even though Ryou is cursed, she has not shown any symptoms of the curse, but it's possible that she has not lived long enough to experience it.
- Ryou, Mai, and Kaori don't seem to be aware of the fact that they are affected by the curse, but it's possible that the Doll Owner knows about it.