Blood - Koori no Mamono no Monogatari
Title: Telling the Demon's Tale
Author: perseid
Spoilers: Mild ones. Nothing to make you want to bang your head over.
Apologies: A day late, my time. Hopefully not, yours.
Once upon a time, to the west of a village, there was a cave. Inside that cave was an ice-like demon who didn’t shed blood or tears. No one who entered that cave ever returned.
- Koori no Mamono no Monogatari, vol 1
The myth is of a demon that cannot cry or bleed. The truth is a story of a demon who learns to be more human than anyone else.
ICE
Koori no Mamono no Monogatari is a brilliant series that drew me in from the first chapter. Blood is a demon imprisoned in ice for sixty years, long enough for him to become a legend in the nearby village when ignorant humans who wander into the cave never return. Blood traps them with his long hair and frightens them to tears, hoping that one of them will cry the tear jewel that will grant him his wish of being freed. None of the humans thus far have been of any use, and all wound up being eaten.
This is a grim introduction to Blood. The legend is also partway explained in that Blood has never let himself be injured enough to bleed, implying that he is a fairly powerful demon in his own right.
But the notion is swiftly and comically turned on its head when Blood is stumped by the human boy Ishuca, who is excited that the demon does in fact exist. Bemused by Ishuca’s lack of fear, Blood is reduced to bumbling protests and denials, and in fits of ironic pique tells the boy off for acting so carelessly around a demon. From thereon, scattered throughout the series, Blood, for all his prowess and power, is comic putty in Ishuca’s hands.
Blood realises the real reason for Ishuca’s foray into the cave when the boy eventually reveals that he’s dying of a heart disease. Ishuca apologises for not being able to shed the tear jewel that Blood seeks, and tells him that at least he can eat him once he dies. When he falls away from Blood, unconscious, the demon instinctively tries to reach out to catch him.
And the ice cracks and breaks apart, freeing Blood at last.
But Ishuca’s heart has stopped, and when Blood realises that the boy is truly dead, he actually begins to cry.
Guess what kind of tear he sheds, and what he uses his wish for. Ishuca is surprised when he wakes up to find that he is still alive, while Blood privately agonises over the fact that he cried and that he actually helped a human.
Blood doesn’t understand why the ice broke so easily, though an earlier recollection hints at the reason. The priest who imprisoned Blood all those years ago left with the parting words that the demon would never be free of the ice because he didn’t know how to think of anyone else but himself.
This is the essence of Blood’s appeal; he is a demon, but his devotion and the sacrifices he’s willing to make for Ishuca says more about true humanity than anything demonstrated by the humans they encounter.
THE LIVING DIFFERENCE
The Grey Areas
Even if what you say is right; we deceive humans, eat them, we feed on flesh, we fool around, but if there appeared a good human willing to help a hopeless demon; and if that demon had a sincere wish, that that gentle person would never be harmed - would you people still laugh at us for doing such a stupid thing?
- Blood, vol 3
Blood is not indiscriminately evil, not the way that the general populace believe demons to be. But there is a long history of enmity between the demons and the priests, where the latter preach that all demons are evil and not to be trusted.
Serghi is one such priest who Blood and Ishuca encounter in their travels. But when Blood spares Serghi’s life, and the priest sees him protect Ishuca from being burnt by demon fire, Serghi begins to doubt his temple teachings, and is disturbed by his seeming lack of faith.
Ironically it is Blood who tells him to decide for himself, to not take things for granted. Blood acknowledges that even though he doesn’t like humans, he knows that not all humans are bad, that judging the whole on a minority is a shortsighted thing to do. And though it makes Serghi a little uneasy in that he had to have a demon teach him such a truth, it becomes a lesson he quickly takes to heart, and he eventually becomes a staunch ally and a loyal friend.
Blood’s acquaintance, the demon Wild, appears to be sympathetic towards Blood’s feelings for a human. And well he might be, when he is in the same boat himself. But with the increasing years Wild feels that he made a grave mistake in letting his human lover Rapunzel stay with him. He forces Blood into a tense confrontation after betraying him and Ishuca to the priests, telling him that if he loved Ishuca enough, he would let him go.
But Blood refuses to do so, and sees no reason why he cannot be happy with Ishuca. And despite Wild’s taunts, it is a measure of the hold Ishuca now has over him, when Blood cannot bring himself to kill Wild for his betrayal. Wild realises that Blood has changed much; and tells him that Ishuca has spoiled him.
Blood understands why Wild did what he did - he recognizes the sacrifices that Wild makes for Rapunzel, and in the aftermath, when Wild apologises to Blood, Blood tells him that he has no regrets, and that he will prove it to Wild by becoming happy with Ishuca.
Demon Breed
Demons as depicted in Koori are typically feared by the humans, who rely on the priests to drive them back. Blood is two hundred years old, and powerful even by demon standards. Before his imprisonment, he was also leader of the demons in the North. Blood was a symbol of authority and awe to them, and when he returned to the North, with Ishuca in tow, they were eager to welcome him back.
But Nei, the acting leader, quickly realises that Blood is no longer the demon he once was. He is bitterly disappointed that a demon as formidable as Blood would willingly tie himself to a human.
Nei’s feelings for Blood are a matter of some ambiguity. He is deeply attached to Blood, maybe almost to the point of obsession. Nei was captivated by Blood after he was defeated when they clashed in their first encounter; drawn to Blood’s power and charisma, Nei introduced him to the demons as their new leader.
But to be a demon is to be long-lived, and ennui is an ugly thing to contend with after so many hundred years. It was for this startling reason that Blood let himself be captured and imprisoned. It was then that Nei understood with painful clarity that the position of leader meant little to Blood, that the demons meant little to him.
Nei saw Blood’s attachment to Ishuca as a weakness, something that the old Blood would never have considered. But the old Blood was untouchable; cold, aloof and uncaring, the demons placed him on a high pedestal. I believe that Nei was content with that, because it meant that Blood favoured none of them in particular. In choosing to love a human, Blood had tarnished the image that Nei had cherished for so long, and a good part of Nei’s feelings is rooted in bitter jealousy.
The changes that Ishuca wrought in Blood’s life hence are very significant; Ishuca made all the difference to Blood between simply existing and living for something precious. He also proved to the demons, through the course of the series, that the love he had for Ishuca extended into care and concern for them. When Blood apologised to Nei for making them wait so long for his return, Nei realised that the old Blood would never have acted so gently with him, and the way that he is now is because of Ishuca.
Ties that Bind
Simply put, Koori is about Blood and Ishuca. Writing this essay was something of a challenge in that I had to somehow separate one from the other, which wasn’t easy since they are attached to and dependent on each other in fiercely intense and sometimes painfully desperate ways.
Ishuca is a little slow on the uptake in many aspects, and is painfully naïve. It can be amusing watching Blood sweatdrop over Ishuca’s latest bungle or fretting over his innocence in worldly matters. But Blood can deny Ishuca nothing, which makes for amusing moments.
Blood loves Ishuca with wholehearted devotion; there is no uncertainty in his feelings, and he doesn’t ask for anything in return. He is content that Ishuca has chosen to stay with him, and he doesn’t question Ishuca’s sincerity. It is a poignantly simple and almost pure relationship: Ishuca, who in his naïve way does not distinguish between humans and demons, and Blood, who in his commitment to Ishuca promises to not kill humans ever again.
But it is because of this intensity that they have the capacity to hurt each other so badly. Blood’s duty appears clear - he is occupied only with protecting Ishuca. So when he failed in that respect, he broke in very human ways.
In one ugly episode, when he is too weak to control his basic demonic nature, Blood hurts Ishuca badly enough to leave a pattern of scars running down his back, and he is shattered by the knowledge that he almost killed the person most important to him - it is the second time he cries, and the first heartbreaking time that Ishuca sees him do so. Blood is wretchedly reminded that no matter what, he is still a demon. But Ishuca willingly offered himself as food in hopes that it would help Blood overcome his basic needs, and he in turn is haunted by the fact that he had hurt Blood in the worst possible way.
Blood struggles to learn to forgive himself, and is afraid to touch Ishuca. He admires Ishuca’s courage and ability to forgive him. But sometimes courage and lack of fear are two different things; Ishuca doesn’t reveal how lonely Blood’s behaviour makes him feel. When Blood discovers that Ishuca had schooled himself long ago to not fear death when he was dying of an incurable heart disease, Blood thinks to himself that if he doesn’t protect Ishuca, no one else will.
This is a defining point in their relationship. Ishuca has suppressed the ability to feel fear, and Blood knows it is an unhealthy, dangerous trait that can ultimately break him. Consequently, he teaches Ishuca that it’s alright to feel afraid, because it brings him closer to becoming a whole person again.
Ishuca’s heavy dependence on Blood’s assurance that he will always be there is sorely tested when in the course of the series he realises that in making Blood promise never to kill again, there is nothing to stop the demon from being killed. And the fact that Ishuca is so weak in the face of all that guilt grieves Blood, because no matter how hard Ishuca tries, he is still only human and he cannot be as strong as he seems. Blood wants to spare Ishuca pain, but at the same time he doesn’t want Ishuca to lock his feelings away again. He is willing to shoulder both their burdens as much as he can, and does not begrudge Ishuca for it.
This is the bittersweet irony of Koori that captivates me; Blood teaching Ishuca to be wholly human again, and loving him through the really ugly, bitter parts of their adventure. The kind of love they share is not light romance fare but deeply intense, fraught with pain and grief, but also with ultimate peace and joy.
ETERNITY
Ishuca: The snow is so white it’s scary. When everything is snow white like this, doesn’t it feel like the world has ended, for just this one moment.
Blood: Ishuca, even then, at that time; if the world ends, in that moment, I will be by your side.
- Koori no Mamono no Monogatari, vol. 24
In the end, Blood in truth is not a difficult or complicated character to write about; he has no tragic past that returns to haunt him like a bad ghost of a rerun; he is not indecisive, or hysterical. It is Blood’s nature, confident and assured, unwavering in his convictions that make him so intriguing. More than anything else, it is his attachment to Ishuca that has shaped him into the person that he is.
Maybe it can be argued that because he is a demon, he is unable to understand the anxieties or the what-ifs that make up the complex constitution of a human psyche - it is human to naturally worry and doubt and to continually question ourselves. We are cautious beings who prefer to be safe than sorry.
But I would argue that Blood is more human than any of us can ever be, because to live for someone with so much faith and trust and love is a lesson is one that most of us find difficult to take to heart. Blood teaches us how we should live, in the face of fear and trial. In the end, the demon rumoured to not cry and bleed has done both, and has never regretted it.
Author: perseid
Spoilers: Mild ones. Nothing to make you want to bang your head over.
Apologies: A day late, my time. Hopefully not, yours.
Once upon a time, to the west of a village, there was a cave. Inside that cave was an ice-like demon who didn’t shed blood or tears. No one who entered that cave ever returned.
- Koori no Mamono no Monogatari, vol 1
The myth is of a demon that cannot cry or bleed. The truth is a story of a demon who learns to be more human than anyone else.
ICE
Koori no Mamono no Monogatari is a brilliant series that drew me in from the first chapter. Blood is a demon imprisoned in ice for sixty years, long enough for him to become a legend in the nearby village when ignorant humans who wander into the cave never return. Blood traps them with his long hair and frightens them to tears, hoping that one of them will cry the tear jewel that will grant him his wish of being freed. None of the humans thus far have been of any use, and all wound up being eaten.
This is a grim introduction to Blood. The legend is also partway explained in that Blood has never let himself be injured enough to bleed, implying that he is a fairly powerful demon in his own right.
But the notion is swiftly and comically turned on its head when Blood is stumped by the human boy Ishuca, who is excited that the demon does in fact exist. Bemused by Ishuca’s lack of fear, Blood is reduced to bumbling protests and denials, and in fits of ironic pique tells the boy off for acting so carelessly around a demon. From thereon, scattered throughout the series, Blood, for all his prowess and power, is comic putty in Ishuca’s hands.
Blood realises the real reason for Ishuca’s foray into the cave when the boy eventually reveals that he’s dying of a heart disease. Ishuca apologises for not being able to shed the tear jewel that Blood seeks, and tells him that at least he can eat him once he dies. When he falls away from Blood, unconscious, the demon instinctively tries to reach out to catch him.
And the ice cracks and breaks apart, freeing Blood at last.
But Ishuca’s heart has stopped, and when Blood realises that the boy is truly dead, he actually begins to cry.
Guess what kind of tear he sheds, and what he uses his wish for. Ishuca is surprised when he wakes up to find that he is still alive, while Blood privately agonises over the fact that he cried and that he actually helped a human.
Blood doesn’t understand why the ice broke so easily, though an earlier recollection hints at the reason. The priest who imprisoned Blood all those years ago left with the parting words that the demon would never be free of the ice because he didn’t know how to think of anyone else but himself.
This is the essence of Blood’s appeal; he is a demon, but his devotion and the sacrifices he’s willing to make for Ishuca says more about true humanity than anything demonstrated by the humans they encounter.
THE LIVING DIFFERENCE
The Grey Areas
Even if what you say is right; we deceive humans, eat them, we feed on flesh, we fool around, but if there appeared a good human willing to help a hopeless demon; and if that demon had a sincere wish, that that gentle person would never be harmed - would you people still laugh at us for doing such a stupid thing?
- Blood, vol 3
Blood is not indiscriminately evil, not the way that the general populace believe demons to be. But there is a long history of enmity between the demons and the priests, where the latter preach that all demons are evil and not to be trusted.
Serghi is one such priest who Blood and Ishuca encounter in their travels. But when Blood spares Serghi’s life, and the priest sees him protect Ishuca from being burnt by demon fire, Serghi begins to doubt his temple teachings, and is disturbed by his seeming lack of faith.
Ironically it is Blood who tells him to decide for himself, to not take things for granted. Blood acknowledges that even though he doesn’t like humans, he knows that not all humans are bad, that judging the whole on a minority is a shortsighted thing to do. And though it makes Serghi a little uneasy in that he had to have a demon teach him such a truth, it becomes a lesson he quickly takes to heart, and he eventually becomes a staunch ally and a loyal friend.
Blood’s acquaintance, the demon Wild, appears to be sympathetic towards Blood’s feelings for a human. And well he might be, when he is in the same boat himself. But with the increasing years Wild feels that he made a grave mistake in letting his human lover Rapunzel stay with him. He forces Blood into a tense confrontation after betraying him and Ishuca to the priests, telling him that if he loved Ishuca enough, he would let him go.
But Blood refuses to do so, and sees no reason why he cannot be happy with Ishuca. And despite Wild’s taunts, it is a measure of the hold Ishuca now has over him, when Blood cannot bring himself to kill Wild for his betrayal. Wild realises that Blood has changed much; and tells him that Ishuca has spoiled him.
Blood understands why Wild did what he did - he recognizes the sacrifices that Wild makes for Rapunzel, and in the aftermath, when Wild apologises to Blood, Blood tells him that he has no regrets, and that he will prove it to Wild by becoming happy with Ishuca.
Demon Breed
Demons as depicted in Koori are typically feared by the humans, who rely on the priests to drive them back. Blood is two hundred years old, and powerful even by demon standards. Before his imprisonment, he was also leader of the demons in the North. Blood was a symbol of authority and awe to them, and when he returned to the North, with Ishuca in tow, they were eager to welcome him back.
But Nei, the acting leader, quickly realises that Blood is no longer the demon he once was. He is bitterly disappointed that a demon as formidable as Blood would willingly tie himself to a human.
Nei’s feelings for Blood are a matter of some ambiguity. He is deeply attached to Blood, maybe almost to the point of obsession. Nei was captivated by Blood after he was defeated when they clashed in their first encounter; drawn to Blood’s power and charisma, Nei introduced him to the demons as their new leader.
But to be a demon is to be long-lived, and ennui is an ugly thing to contend with after so many hundred years. It was for this startling reason that Blood let himself be captured and imprisoned. It was then that Nei understood with painful clarity that the position of leader meant little to Blood, that the demons meant little to him.
Nei saw Blood’s attachment to Ishuca as a weakness, something that the old Blood would never have considered. But the old Blood was untouchable; cold, aloof and uncaring, the demons placed him on a high pedestal. I believe that Nei was content with that, because it meant that Blood favoured none of them in particular. In choosing to love a human, Blood had tarnished the image that Nei had cherished for so long, and a good part of Nei’s feelings is rooted in bitter jealousy.
The changes that Ishuca wrought in Blood’s life hence are very significant; Ishuca made all the difference to Blood between simply existing and living for something precious. He also proved to the demons, through the course of the series, that the love he had for Ishuca extended into care and concern for them. When Blood apologised to Nei for making them wait so long for his return, Nei realised that the old Blood would never have acted so gently with him, and the way that he is now is because of Ishuca.
Ties that Bind
Simply put, Koori is about Blood and Ishuca. Writing this essay was something of a challenge in that I had to somehow separate one from the other, which wasn’t easy since they are attached to and dependent on each other in fiercely intense and sometimes painfully desperate ways.
Ishuca is a little slow on the uptake in many aspects, and is painfully naïve. It can be amusing watching Blood sweatdrop over Ishuca’s latest bungle or fretting over his innocence in worldly matters. But Blood can deny Ishuca nothing, which makes for amusing moments.
Blood loves Ishuca with wholehearted devotion; there is no uncertainty in his feelings, and he doesn’t ask for anything in return. He is content that Ishuca has chosen to stay with him, and he doesn’t question Ishuca’s sincerity. It is a poignantly simple and almost pure relationship: Ishuca, who in his naïve way does not distinguish between humans and demons, and Blood, who in his commitment to Ishuca promises to not kill humans ever again.
But it is because of this intensity that they have the capacity to hurt each other so badly. Blood’s duty appears clear - he is occupied only with protecting Ishuca. So when he failed in that respect, he broke in very human ways.
In one ugly episode, when he is too weak to control his basic demonic nature, Blood hurts Ishuca badly enough to leave a pattern of scars running down his back, and he is shattered by the knowledge that he almost killed the person most important to him - it is the second time he cries, and the first heartbreaking time that Ishuca sees him do so. Blood is wretchedly reminded that no matter what, he is still a demon. But Ishuca willingly offered himself as food in hopes that it would help Blood overcome his basic needs, and he in turn is haunted by the fact that he had hurt Blood in the worst possible way.
Blood struggles to learn to forgive himself, and is afraid to touch Ishuca. He admires Ishuca’s courage and ability to forgive him. But sometimes courage and lack of fear are two different things; Ishuca doesn’t reveal how lonely Blood’s behaviour makes him feel. When Blood discovers that Ishuca had schooled himself long ago to not fear death when he was dying of an incurable heart disease, Blood thinks to himself that if he doesn’t protect Ishuca, no one else will.
This is a defining point in their relationship. Ishuca has suppressed the ability to feel fear, and Blood knows it is an unhealthy, dangerous trait that can ultimately break him. Consequently, he teaches Ishuca that it’s alright to feel afraid, because it brings him closer to becoming a whole person again.
Ishuca’s heavy dependence on Blood’s assurance that he will always be there is sorely tested when in the course of the series he realises that in making Blood promise never to kill again, there is nothing to stop the demon from being killed. And the fact that Ishuca is so weak in the face of all that guilt grieves Blood, because no matter how hard Ishuca tries, he is still only human and he cannot be as strong as he seems. Blood wants to spare Ishuca pain, but at the same time he doesn’t want Ishuca to lock his feelings away again. He is willing to shoulder both their burdens as much as he can, and does not begrudge Ishuca for it.
This is the bittersweet irony of Koori that captivates me; Blood teaching Ishuca to be wholly human again, and loving him through the really ugly, bitter parts of their adventure. The kind of love they share is not light romance fare but deeply intense, fraught with pain and grief, but also with ultimate peace and joy.
ETERNITY
Ishuca: The snow is so white it’s scary. When everything is snow white like this, doesn’t it feel like the world has ended, for just this one moment.
Blood: Ishuca, even then, at that time; if the world ends, in that moment, I will be by your side.
- Koori no Mamono no Monogatari, vol. 24
In the end, Blood in truth is not a difficult or complicated character to write about; he has no tragic past that returns to haunt him like a bad ghost of a rerun; he is not indecisive, or hysterical. It is Blood’s nature, confident and assured, unwavering in his convictions that make him so intriguing. More than anything else, it is his attachment to Ishuca that has shaped him into the person that he is.
Maybe it can be argued that because he is a demon, he is unable to understand the anxieties or the what-ifs that make up the complex constitution of a human psyche - it is human to naturally worry and doubt and to continually question ourselves. We are cautious beings who prefer to be safe than sorry.
But I would argue that Blood is more human than any of us can ever be, because to live for someone with so much faith and trust and love is a lesson is one that most of us find difficult to take to heart. Blood teaches us how we should live, in the face of fear and trial. In the end, the demon rumoured to not cry and bleed has done both, and has never regretted it.