The Demonic Child

When student teacher Hirose returns to his alma mater for a few weeks, he notices strange events seem to be revolving around a student, Kaname Takasato. As Hirose soon learns, Takasato was said to have been “spirited away” and then mysteriously reappearing one year later without any memories of where he had been or what had happened to him.

While some students are fascinated with Takasato, others have taken to avoiding him, particularly as rumours emerge that bad things tend to happen to anyone who tries to upset Takasato. As Hirose tries to learn more about Takasato, he soon witnesses firsthand the strange occurrences surrounding Takasato as the consequences grow ever more severe and horrifying.

The author later worked certain events from this novel into the Twelve Kingdoms series. Chronologically this novel takes place after the fourth Twelve Kingdoms book, Skies of Dawn (風の万里 黎明の空; Kaze no Banri, Reimei no Sora) and some events are covered in book six (黄昏の岸 暁の天; Tasogare no Kishi, Akatsuki no Sora).