The biting cold wind sliced through the night as the three Tanzanies—Yul, Abrafo, and Michio—pressed into the unknown. The light from the orbs intensified to their left, drawing them closer to the source that both glowed and persistently hummed in the dark.
As they neared the pond area, the humming grew louder, a deep, resonant sound, and the flickering orbs became brilliant, defined lights. The three men crept forward, moving as quietly as possible, and took cover behind three separate trees. Cautiously, they poked their heads out. Their jaws dropped in collective shock: Five majestic, golden peacocks were surrounding the small, strange tree.
The peacocks performed a mesmerizing, ritualistic dance. They moved five steps left, five steps right, then five steps back from the tree, pausing to bow deeply. Next, they stepped five paces forward, turned, and shook their outstretched tails. The motion made a loud, rustling sound, like a deep drumbeat. As they shook, the tips of their tail feathers released bursts of brilliant light energy into the air around the shimmering green tree. They repeated the entire sequence as the humming continued.
"This might be something U-ri would want to see," Michio whispered in awe.
"I know, it's so magnificently beautiful," a voice hissed right behind Michio. Michio nearly screamed, but U-ri's hand clamped instantly over his mouth. "Shh!"
Yul looked past Abrafo and saw Hajime, hiding snugly by the tree next to his wolf-rider friend. Seeing Yul's eyes—furious and disappointed—Hajime knew he was in deep trouble.
Abrafo leaned toward Hajime. "You are going to get an earful from Yul after this," he whispered, barely suppressing a laugh.
Hajime whispered back, "I know. That's why I'm with you and not with Yul."
Abrafo scoffed, a mocking tone dripping from his voice. "Oh, so I'm your shield now, right? I guess when it comes between your husband and I, my friendship is worthless." He winked. "Don't blame him for using military rules on you."
Hajime jutted his chin out stubbornly. "If he dares, I will fly away with my eagle."
Once the dance concluded, the five golden peacocks flew, one by one, to the branches. They bit a golden berry from the tree and swallowed it whole. Then, the magnificent birds soared off, disappearing into the dark sky.
Abrafo turned to Hajime, teasing him with a wide grin. "I bet you ate the wrong berry before! No wonder you were in so much pain."
Michio looked down at his paper talisman, which still showed no reaction. "We're not dealing with any ghosts," he stated quietly. "My spell didn't detect anything. That humming must be some unexplained natural phenomenon."
Hajime abruptly scrambled to his feet and rushed out of the hiding spot.
"Hajime!" Yul shouted angrily, taking off immediately in pursuit.
With Hajime and Yul exposed, the others followed suit, emerging from behind the trees.
Yul grabbed Hajime's arm, his grip tight with frustrated worry. "You shouldn't be here!" he snapped.
Hajime, recognizing the sincerity beneath the anger, spoke calmly. "I understand. If you have anything to say or lecture me about, let's wait until we get back to the house."
Michio asked, "What are you going to do?"
Hajime's excitement grew. "I thought about it, and since it's not a ghost, it must be an enchanted place created by nature. I don't know about your culture, but according to the Chinese..."
Abrafo interrupted, confused. "The what?"
Hajime sighed, realizing his mistake. "The Chinese are people from China. Never mind, it doesn't matter." He quickly adjusted. "Anyway, they believe the peacock represents divinity, beauty, power, and status." He crouched, picking up a glistening golden feather from the ground. "I believe everything we heard wasn't a ghost, but a mesmerizing moment that only nature can explain."
Yul nodded, his anger fading into acceptance. "That's how it is in real life, too. That's the beauty of nature; there are things in the world we can never fully find answers to regarding phenomena created by it."
The five Tanzanies stood near the shining green tree. As the night wind rustled through its branches, the tree began to hum again, the sound created by the wind passing over its leaves.
Michio stuffed the useless talisman back into his robe. "Well, that solves our mysterious female hum."
U-ri spoke loudly, his voice echoing the magnitude of the discovery. "Could this place be an unknown place?"
Yul corrected him. "I don't think it was the place, but the tree."
"What is an unknown place?" Hajime asked.
U-ri explained, "In Tangzang, unexplained places are called unknown places. I've read about magical and mysterious spots. Sometimes they are harmless, but some are dangerous." He looked at the others. "But based on what we saw tonight, this place is safe. Like Yul said, it's the tree. Ever since that tree grew here, peacocks have been coming to perform their ritual dance, releasing energy to help the tree produce fruit, just like we water our crops."
Hajime looked from the tree to the feather in his hand. "It makes sense. Peacocks eat golden berries to keep their feathers golden."
U-ri smiled. "Exactly."
Michio grinned slyly. "Since the peacock ate that golden berry and its feathers stayed golden, let's try it! Maybe our hair will turn golden too!"
Abrafo, Michio, and U-ri instantly backed away toward Yul, leaving Hajime standing alone a few yards from the tree. Abrafo looked at Hajime and smirked. "Be our guest and take the first bite."
Hajime looked at the four men laughing behind him. "What a bunch of losers," he scoffed. He stepped forward, but Yul's hand shot out and grabbed his arm. "Well, I've already experienced death once, and I don't think this time will be any different!" Hajime yanked his arm forcefully out of Yul's grasp.
Hajime walked to the tree, picked a golden berry, and stuffed it into his mouth. He swallowed the rock-hard berry. Nothing happened. He experienced no pain, no burning sensation.
"Although the berry is as hard as rock, they have no taste and don't cause me any pain," Hajime said, turning to face his friends. Their laughter echoed in the night air, and his heart sank at the sight of their unrestrained mirth. "What?"
The four of them continued to laugh, pointing at him. Hajime's skin color and hair had turned a brilliant gold, the same dazzling hue as the peacocks. They didn't need to explain; their hysterical laughter spoke volumes.
Michio suppressed a laugh long enough to clear his throat. "You..." He pointed and burst into loud laughter again. "You should take a look at yourself!"
U-ri finally caught his breath and approached Hajime with an amused look. "Since the trees behind you are all glowing, why not go to the pond and look at your reflection?" He patted the golden Hajime lightly on the shoulder.
Hajime gave them a furious look and stomped toward the pond. As he bent down, he saw strands of golden hair fall from his shoulders. He grabbed a handful—his signature white hair was gone, replaced by metal-colored gold. When he finally looked into the pond, his reflection made his heart skip a beat.
He whirled around. "What's wrong with me?! Why am I like this?!" He was furious that his friends were still laughing. "I sacrificed myself for all of you to taste this berry, and now no one cares about my well-being! All four of you are laughing at my plight!"
Abrafo stopped laughing, a shrewd glint entering his eyes. "I know how to solve our financial problem!"
"How?" Michio asked, still giggling.
Abrafo pointed triumphantly at Hajime. "We are going to the village and exchange Hajime's hair for money!"
"I refuse!" Hajime yelled.
U-ri stepped in, serious now. "Remember, without money, we cannot continue our journey."
Hajime countered, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "How about each of us eats a golden berry and cuts off our own hair in exchange for money? I'm not the only one who knows how to use money!"
The four men hesitated, suddenly sober.
Abrafo voiced their shared fear. "What if we eat it, and instead of turning our bodies to gold like you, it kills us?"
"How do you know if you haven't tried it?" Hajime challenged. "I believe those peacocks were nothing special; they were just ordinary peacocks."
"Fine... I'll give it a try," U-ri conceded. He walked to the tree, picked a golden berry, and swallowed it. U-ri's color remained stubbornly the same. "I think it only works for Hajime because he's a mage. It doesn't work for ordinary people like us."
Hajime started to worry about how long the gold would last. He looked at the others. "You don't seem worried about me?"
Michio shook his head. "We aren't. You just switched to gold, and that's good for us because right now we don't have gold."
The four men returned to the house, where they sat around the small firepit. After Michio shaved Hajime's head—Hajime, now bald and golden, looked utterly bewildered—he collected all the long, heavy hair onto a piece of cloth.
"So, how do you sell Hajime's hair?" Michio asked, examining the pile.
"I don't know yet, but we'll figure it out," U-ri replied. He looked at the distressed mage. "Don't worry, your hair will grow back before long."
Hajime glared at him. "You'd better not mention my hair unless I throw all the coins, we earn from selling it into the well!"
"Alright... alright, we promise never to mention this," Abrafo said, biting back a smile. "Your bald secret is safe with us."
U-ri stood up. "Let's go to bed. Tomorrow I will think of a way to sell your hair."
Hajime, still too agitated to rest, volunteered. "Well, I can't sleep anyway, so I'll just keep watch. You all go to sleep."
Yul looked at him closely. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, you go to bed. I'm fine by myself."
Hajime watched the four men lie down. He looked at the long golden hair beside the firepit. He picked up a strand and realized his hair had hardened, feeling almost like soft iron to the touch. He smiled, an idea forming.
"I know what to do," Hajime whispered to himself. "No matter what world we live in, business usually runs smoothly because of women."
Recalling knowledge from his past life, Hajime started making simple hairpins from the tough, flexible gold strands.
"What are you doing?" Yul asked softly, sitting up and moving next to Hajime.
Hajime held up a delicate, completed item. "I'm making hairpins for you and U-ri to sell in the market tomorrow."
"Hairpins?" Yul looked puzzled. "What kind of hairpins do you make?"
Hajime turned to him, his golden face lit by the firelight. "Butterfly hairpin for beautiful lady," he said, practicing a salesman's pitch.
"Why are you talking like that?" Yul asked.
"I'm not talking to you," Hajime explained, picking up more hair. "I'm just teaching you how to sell these so we can have money. Repeat after me: 'This hairpin looks so beautiful on you.'" He gently took a finished hairpin and fastened it into Yul's tied hair. "'Wearing this hairpin in your hair makes you look extremely handsome.'"
Yul looked at the beautiful, earnest, golden mage next to him. "You think so?"
"Uh... uh..." Hajime stared into Yul's dark eyes, his practiced words forgotten, his face flushing gold beneath the golden skin. "I... I... I think so..." He quickly looked away, suddenly shy.
Yul picked up a strand of the unique hair. "Teach me how to make a hairpin."
Hajime turned back, smiling softly. "Okay. Let's start from the base. Just roll it up like this."
U-ri slowly opened his eyes from his resting spot, watching Yul and Hajime sitting close by the fire, teaching each other. He smiled, sighing happily to himself: Love is like a wildflower; it often appears in the most unlikely places. He closed his eyes, content.