The house was quiet on Christmas Eve. In the living room, the Christmas Spider was busy working its humble magic. Tinsel Transmutation. It spun webs of gold and silver across the pine branches, blessing the family with luck for the coming year.
The front door unlocked silently. A beautiful woman in a white hanbok stepped inside. She didn't have a key. She didn't need one.
It was a Kumiho, the Nine-Tailed Fox of Korea. She wasn't here for presents. She was here for the livers of the sleeping family. Seductive Nine-Tailed Guise.
The Christmas Spider sensed the malice. It dropped a sticky golden thread, landing on the intruder’s nose. Yuletide Luck Weave. It tried to bind the demon with goodwill.
No Joy
The Kumiho went cross-eyed, looking at the spider. Then she smiled, revealing rows of needle-sharp teeth.
"You are annoying," she whispered.
Her eyes flashed bronze. Yeowoo-Gu Seul Sorcery.
She didn't swat the spider. She exhaled a puff of fox-fire. The blue flame caught the dry pine needles of the tree.
In seconds, the Christmas tree was a torch. The golden webs melted. The Christmas Spider curled up and vanished in the heat. The Kumiho stepped over the burning ashes, ignoring the smoke alarm, and headed up the stairs to start her feast.