taiki

Taiki is the Kirin of Tai but has not fully matured, making him a heina (an immature Kirin), and he is accompanied by Koki, a rare black Kirin. Similar to Youko, Shouryuu, and Enki, Taiki originates from Hourai as a taika and is thus known as Kaname Takasato. His nickname, Kouri, comes from an alternate pronunciation of "Takasato" and was bestowed upon him by Gyousou after Taiki selected him as the new King of Tai. After many years in Hourai, Taiki eventually returns to the Twelve Kingdoms to assume his role as the kirin of Tai. However, when Tai falls, both the King of Tai and Taiki vanish. Fifteen years before Youko Nakajima arrives in the Twelve Kingdoms, Taiki's ranka was carried over to Hourai by a shoku. He reappears on Mount Hou ten years after his disappearance, found by Enki. Taiki is then cared for and educated about his role as the kirin of Tai by his nyokai, Haku Sanshi. Initially, he cannot transform into his beast form due to prolonged human form. Eventually, he chooses Gyousou as king; despite initial uncertainty and fear, Taiki realizes this fear signifies recognition of the "aura of the ruler," essential for the chosen one to become a true king. Alongside Haku Sanshi, Taiki commands Gouran, a powerful toutetsu youma, as his shirei. Before disappearing, Taiki was close to Keiki and nicknamed "half-pint" by Enki. Post-disappearance, it's revealed that Taiki lives in Japan, attending high school. In the anime, he attends school with Youko, Yuka, and Asano, appearing frequently in volumes four and five, leaving an unresolved storyline where Rokuta continues searching for him in Japan. In the novels, Taiki's story continues. In A Shore in Twilight, Asen, one of Gyousou's men, stages a coup d'état, dissatisfied with the king's reforms. Gyousou is lured away, and Asen attacks Taiki, severing his horn just before Taiki flees to Hourai via a meishoku. This trauma erases Taiki's memory of his year in the Twelve Kingdoms, and he stays in Japan for six years. During this time, he begins losing his kirin nature and is slowly poisoned by meat from his family. Sanshi and Gouran start killing those close to Taiki, mistaking them for enemies, causing his human family to despise him, viewing him as a living curse. The final breakdown occurs when Sanshi and Gouran murder the abusive Takazatos while Taiki is away, showing they have lost their shirei nature and turned into wild youma. Taiki eventually remembers everything and is rescued by Risai and the kings and kirins of the Twelve Kingdoms. Upon return, Taiki and his shirei are so impure that other kirin cannot approach him, leading a goddess to cleanse them. Afterwards, Taiki, now without his kirin powers or shirei due to the loss of his horn, reunites with Risai, and they leave for Tai to save the kingdom. The novels conclude here, leaving Tai's fate unknown.