Chapter 58: Thus, I-

Part 1

MC's POV

Watching how the young woman who appeared easily disposed of that man, and despite her show of power, did not cause damage to her surroundings made me think that even if I had gotten Tamamo's strength, I would've needed a long time to properly wield it. That said, it gives me quite shock, how someone as happy-go-lucky as Sera-tan can control her power when she fights... My respect for her has gone up a bit, despite her... Eh, usual way of acting, she must've trained a lot to use her strength properly.

Shaking my head, I glanced back and noticed that not everyone was paying attention to the new arrival. A sight I can't say I had seen before, Yasaka-san was openly scowling at Kasen-san, the same could be said of Kasen-san who had a rarely annoyed expression on her face. Honestly, I felt like sparks were flying as they glared at each other, and my instincts were screaming at me to run as far as I could and hide inside the best box I could find. However, I noticed a certain detail as I paid close attention to Kasen-san. I must clarify that I was only staring at her chest because my eyes happened to wander there, not because there happened to be a small ripped part that showed her skin. I am not a pervert- well, I am, but it is truly because it was a coincidence, no, wait, last time she did not wear such a bold garment, is it because she came to fight, she wore her battle underwear? That sounds about right, umu. Nonetheless, I not only noticed that she was wearing some red underwear, but her breathing was in disarray. She seemed to be playing it cool, but she must be having trouble breathing.

Against my best interest, I got closer to her. Shirone-chan was hanging around her and had a worried expression, Kuroka-chan seemed to glance at Yasaka-san with some hostility but she snorted and came my way when she noticed me. Yasaka-san and Kasen-san also saw me and their expressions changed. Yasaka-san eased her look, but the most impressive was Kasen-san who flashed me a composed smile, like her earlier look was a lie.

"(My, oh, my. How scary, women are deceitful creatures by nature, hubby. That is why you should stick close to the beautiful and always sincere Tamamo...)" Tamamo's voice reached my ears.

I wanted to pretend that her nonsense was not heard, but when everyone turned to look at me with their heads tilted, I could only let out a small sigh. That said, I have to give some points to Kuroka-chan who nimbly walked my way and stuck to my body like a koala without changing expressions. This girl is a big shot.

Deciding that ignoring everything and not prying is the answer to survive a day more was the best choice, I walked and pressed my hand on Kasen-san's... back, yes, back, you pervert.

Yasaka-san's glare was ignited again when I did that but I turned a blind eye to that, Kasen-san seemed to be getting weaker and that was my priority. Thus, I used senjutsu to treat her. Her Ki was in disarray and it was getting worse so I used mine to fix it, that said, it was a temporary measure. She seemed to have an issue regarding the way her body operated that put her into this state, but I don't have the time to fully understand and treat her here, yet, I could feel a connection between her body and a wooden box nearby, but before I used my ability to peer into the contents, Kasen-san turned my head her way and with admonishing eyes, she shook her head. She looked rather charming from up close but I could not stay admiring her beauty from up close anymore.

"(Tsk, she is a shrewd one. Hubby, I know that you are close to the age when you enter mating seasons, but please hold yourself back. That green-haired one is looking at us, perhaps it is because of me, or maybe she fell for your outstanding looks. I believe that it might be the latter but...)" Tamamo-san's voice was heard in a whisper.

"No, no, no. I have a regular face so you can rule out your belief. Besides, it has to be you whom she is looking for, you are the main character in this incident." I retorted. "That said, she is not the only one glaring our way, that guy... I think he was a Kishin, he is looking like he is on cloud nine. The sheer amount of animosity he directs our way makes me wonder what did you do to anger him that much."

"(Kuh, Tamamo is shocked that you think I did such a thing. I am an innocent fox!)" Tamamo-san sadly spoke.

"Ah, about that...? You see, I think it might be because of me too, hahaha." Kasen-san smiled.

Ok, I certainly did not expect that.

"It is indeed that woman whom the emissaries from the Underworld are looking for. Tamamo-san's aside, that woman is a sinner that never received proper punishment for her actions." Yasaka-san spoke in a cold tone of voice. "Kasen, I do not know what kind of tricks you used to deceive Nora-kun, but I will not accept you dragging him with you."

Yup, things are about to get ugly.

Before I was able to comment or even ask, someone refuted in a spirited tone.

"Kasen-nya is not bad-nya! Don't say that-nya!" Kuroka-chan spoke. "You are the bad one-nya! When Nora-nya needed you, you did not help him-nya. Bad-nya!"

I was surprised once again, Kuroka-chan was not the type to get this angry. She was just your silly girl who would smile back at me whenever I smiled at her. However, while she would show her jealousy toward Yasaka-san, she would never disrespect her or be angry for a reason other than when her sweets were stolen. This outburst was something new for me and I could not carelessly reprimand her for speaking her mind. Even if it was Yasaka-san, I can't meddle without knowing the full story.

"...!" Yasaka-san bit her lips.

Noticing her lack of response and the way she guiltily looked away when I directed my eyes at her... Well, putting the pieces I heard so far together, I can guess how things went. Nonetheless, I can only pat Kuroka-chan's head to calm her down. I had mixed feelings about this, but we were slowly being surrounded by the other parties here.

I found it hilarious how the exorcist held their noses high while looking down on us when I saved their asses, but I expected as much. I will be able to sleep with a clean conscious tonight so that was all that matters. Besides, Kuroka-chan and Shirone-chan didn't witness that many dead people so they won't be as traumatized.

"You there, don't you know who that is?"

I turned back to see that Kishin glaring at me. Of course, I was well aware of whom he was referring but I was feeling playful and mischievous today. I felt the complex emotions of Kasen-san from the connection of our Ki so my mind gave me the right answer.

"Look man, how could I not know who this cutie is? This is none other than Kuroka-chan, nicknamed soft paws Kuroka, she is loyal, affectionate, and likes to nap curled on your lap." I picked up Kuroka-chan and showed her off. "However, she is not for the likes of you, she is my Kittie."

I snorted and hugged Kuroka-chan. The catgirl had no idea how to react but my praise made her happy judging from the way that smile was creeping on her face. However, she was not the only one unsure how to react. The Kishin guy was probably expecting me to say I did not know Kasen-san and start his speech, but he now looked at a loss. I was not looking at the self-proclaimed hermit in question, but from her movements and sounds, she was holding back her laughter. Yasaka-san had facepalmed with a wry smile and the guilty look was no more.

Gradually, I saw the veins about to pop out from the Kishin's face, and I wondered if I could deal with enemies by raising their blood pleasure high enough, but I doubted I could infuriate someone in one go... or maybe I could?

"You dumb creature! I am speaking about the pink-haired Oni you have your hands on!"

Oi oi, you make it sound way too misleading. It is not like I am doing something lewd to her.

"You pervert, I am just treating a patient! I don't have that kind of thoughts!" I refuted in indignation.

Not so slow on the uptake, he got enraged more.

"Who is saying something about laying your hands on her as a man and a woman!? Regardless, We are speaking about the same person, stop dragging this and hand her over. While I am not exactly thrilled, the exorcists here will agree with me that she should be judged by our people. There is no way she can run away because one of the ten kings of hell is with us!"

Pointing his finger at me, he mumbled.

I could several exorcists that exuded quite the presence, but more than the pressure from their strength... it was more from their bearing. I recognized the old foggy that tried to kill Akeno-tan, but not the others. That said, going by their color theme and how they are placed in the center of their people, they are easy to identify, those clan headmen. Well, Suzaku was among the Himejimas, and her worried expression that almost said that she would jump in to help me warmed my heart... and the blush on her face was a sight to behold.

"Heh, you say some funny things." I stood up in front of Kasen-san. "Running? Why would we run? You saw how much havoc I broke just now... Aren't you afraid I do the same but against you?"

"Hmph, you are under Yasaka, are you not? If my boss orders her, she has to obey. If she orders you, you have to obey, let us save the unnecessary trouble and time by following what I said."

His words sounded arrogant, but his 'boss' only glanced for a moment this way with furrowed eyebrows and her interest shifted to the damage I cause and finally to the remains of the Sesshou Seki (killing stone). I sweated slightly. She wouldn't charge me for the repairs, would she?

"Fumu, I see where you coming from." I nodded. "Yasaka-san, you want to follow his biding?"

 

Just to make sure he was not pulling a Nora- I mean, bullshitting me, I asked my beloved one. However, she answers by glaring hatefully at Kasen-san and nodding at me.

"(Tsk, that is a wrong move, young one. You are against Nora-kun here.)" Tamamo-san directed those words at the other kitsune.

Since a while ago, her words have been heard by everyone else, it seemed that being in the magatama allowed her to do it or she simply desired it so. Nonetheless, the point was that Yasaka-san heard it and facepalmed herself when she saw me smiling.

"Please, be a good kid..." Yasaka-san muttered under her breath.

"Say there, do you happen to seek something else?" I smiled.

"You can't fool my eyes, that thing on your neck... The nine-tailed fox is residing there. I am not sure how she is hiding her aura, but I have been keeping a close eye on you. That voice coming from the necklace..."

Hearing him speak, I nodded with a wide smile. I felt creeped out to have been observed so closely by the guy, but it was to be expected after my dazzling display. Yasaka-san was already covering her face with both hands.

"Don't wanna." I showed the brightest smile I could before extending my hand in front of me. "<Aport>"

My chant was like a command, it summoned a couple of things, one was close by but the other one had been left behind. My sword and the mirror responded and were both summoned before me.

I let the sword fall and get stuck on the ground, the place it fell sunk, and spiderwebs spread all around for a long distance. After I loaded with Ki back then, I did not take it back so the weight was left intact, although I could lift it with almost no problem, feeling it only slightly heavy.

"Pray tell, if I decided to ignore her words, how did you plan to make me do what you wanted? I am a whimsical cat, and above all, I can be quite rebellious when someone tells me not to do something." I laughed.

I was pretty much bluffing here, but I was not going to let Kasen-san go with them, even if Yasaka-san told me. As long she was not my enemy, no, precisely because she is not my enemy, and because she is my ally, I will not abandon her.

That said, I am royally screwed here. I doubt Yasaka-san will attack me, and if she does, she will be gentle. However, she will not attack me like I want to. Cough, cough, I need to focus. The point is that I will struggle to escape, but I think I can use a couple of tricks to do so. From here on-

"(Kuh, I can already imagine it, a life on the run, cat, and fox living the day as they escape, facing hardships every day will strengthen their bonds and then- kya! Tamamo can hardly wait!)" Tamamo-san's nonsense was only heard by me.

Oi, technically, Kasen-san would be with us, and if you can make it so no one else heard us, you should've done it before so they do not discover you.

"(Tsk, I forgot about her.)" Tamamo-san complained.

Oi! I will be on the run to not hand her over.

My words from before were unexpected so it took the man a moment to react. He probably thought that I would not deny his request so he glared at his subordinates and a few of them wanted to get closer.

Nonetheless, lighting sparks flashed in front of them before an angry-looking Raikou-san glared at him. Behind her, I saw an Ei-san and Musashi-san ready to attack too.

"Musashi-san!" I called out happily.

For some strange reason she had fainted before, but I was truly glad she was standing once again.

However, she looked at me shyly for some strange reason. Odd, could it be something on my face that is making her ashamed of herself? Could it be that I become ugly as I grow up? My face paled and I looked at Kuroka-chan.

"Am I that ugly?" I asked in distress.

"Nya? Nora-nya is a bit too dashing that is troublesome-nya." Kuroka-chan replied.

Her honest answer made me blush slightly, it must be because she is kind, no doubt about it.

While I was having my internal crisis, Raikou-san had walked to my side and her sister followed suit, Musashi-san would glance my way worriedly from time to time but then she shook her head and put on a fearless smile as she glared at the guys tried to reach this place before.

"You were trying to bully my child?" Raikou-san spoke in an angry tone of voice.

No, no, I am not your child. Please look at yourself in the mirror, there is no way that you and I have any resembling features. Let us not point out our hair or eye color, just our races make it obvious we are not. Look, poor Suzaku is looking at you and me with her head tilted.

"Don't interfere! You, people, do as you please only because your actions have been of help to Japan's order. Otherwise, Shiki-sama would've dealt with you personally."

"Huh? I would've?" I tilted my head in confusion. "Was I that of a big shot without remembering about it? Could it be that I have a second personality that I was never aware of and that personality is an overpowered existence capable of erasing countries on a whim? I knew I had unlimited potential in petting but to think I had such a secret as well..."

"(The only talent I see is the talent of speaking nonsense, hubby.)" Tamamo-san's retort was spoken loudly and I noticed that some of my allies agreed to it with a nod of their heads.

Hearing my nonsense changed the targets of the man, from Raikou-san to me.

"What are you talking about? I am speaking about Shiki-sama, not you!"

"Eh, dude. I am Shiki." I looked at him like he was a fool.

Momentarily speechless, he angrily glared at me.

"I am speaking of Shiki Eiki-sama! One of ten great kings of the underworld."

Oh...

"I wonder if we're are related." I mumbled confusedly.

"There is no way you can be related to her, she is-"

"As a matter of fact, we do have a certain connection."

Interrupting the man, the young woman from before calmly intruded into the conversation and as she walked this way, people made a way to let her pass. It looked like they feared and respected her, but at the same time it felt somewhat lonesome and I almost felt like her eyes reflected such a thing as she sighed after arriving closer.

"Nomura, has there been any casualty?" The young woman with green hair asked. "What about injured ones?"

The Kishin guy, named Nomura apparently, replied at once.

"Shiki-sama! Only a couple of our people fell in battle, and there are some injured but since we found out that Kasen is here, it is a priority to-"

"Have you finished treating the injured? What about handling the casualties?" The young woman, Shiki-sama, asked back.

"N-No, as I was saying, Kasen is-"

"Instead of rejoicing for surviving and preventing more casualties, you are recklessly picking a fight with another strong being, not to mention, trying to engage in hostile activity against the person who just saved you. It seems you need a good scolding when we go back." Shiki-sama sighed.

What is this feeling? That lady, she is reasonable... Oh, god, I want to cry. That said, this could be tricky. She looks like someone with a good head on her shoulders so I doubted that I could infuriate her and let her drop her guard. She had an impasse look as she scanned our group, although there was, for a brief moment, a glint in her eyes when she first looked at us.

"Kasen, I can tell that you have changed." Shiki-sama commented. "Your sins have been lessened considerably. I guess that other than repenting in hell, that can change people this much. Following his words, I accepted his proposal and let you go after you decided to put behind your past."

With a good-natured smile on her face, the lady talked to Kasen-san.

Didn't expect them to be acquaintances, although the way she spoke did not make it sound like they were friends though, maybe they were foes in the past.

"Haha, I still have a long way to go..." Kasen-san replied.

"Indeed. You cause so much destruction and chaos before so you have a lot to repent, but the life of a hermit has been good to you. That said, I can't approve of you using the contents of the box." Shiki-sama reprimanded.

"...I was prepared to face the consequences." Kasen-san muttered in a somber tone.

With a wry smile, Shiki-sama sighed.

"If you go rampant, who do think will have to stop you? As you are now, it will only consume you and turn you into that again." Shiki-sama muttered. "You will be wasting hundreds of years of life in solitude as punishment and will be adding new sins onto you for breaking your oath."

"Urgh... Yeah, yeah, I know. It is just..." Kasen-san found it hard to retort.

Shaking her head, Shiki-sama raised her index finger and shook it left and right.

"No excuses, remember all the trouble that happened because he wanted you to start a new life." Shiki-sama continued. "To begin with, Kasen, you need to be more aware of..."

...

...

...

I was impressed, it has been ten minutes and the lady with green hair kept talking nonstop. I could not feel any sort of malice and she was honestly scolding Kasen-san for her own good so I saw no need to intervene. I felt bad for her, but from what I heard, Kasen-san planned to do something irreversible to help me. I was happy that she appreciated our friendship this much, but I didn't want her to sacrifice anything for me.

The air around here got less edgy thanks to the calm manner that which Shiki-sama has been dealing with everything. She sent that Kishin guy to treat his people so he was not bothering us with his glare from up close, although from the distance his eyes keep darting this way.

A peaceful solution sounds nice and all, but I somehow felt disappointed. I wanted to pound some heads, but I guess nothing goes your way in life.

The exorcist side also began dealing with their injured ones after Shiki-sama suggested it, and while she did not order it, the exorcists complied at once. It seemed that she was such a big shot that even without ordering someone, they would do as she asked.

Raikou-san, Ei-san, and Musashi-san did not move away though, they did not relax their nerves and glared at anyone that tried to get close to me... Yasaka-san included. It seemed that they judged her to be a treat to me... and I can't blame them since she is sending me some really unfriendly looks for a while now. My earlier words made her angry, like reaaally angry. Thankfully, or not, we sleep in different places or I would be sleeping on the couch today.

Using my time wisely, I treated Raikou-san and the rest, and I found somewhat burdensome the moved eyes Raikou-san directed at me after I did so. Her low mutters about me 'finally accepting mommy' made me unsure of what to say, and I am trained to retort to different situations no matter what.

In that manner, another about half an hour went by.

...

...

...

"...and that is why I think you need to be more self-aware of your actions. You are now a hermit so if you don't plan to live a secluded life to meditate, you should do hermit things, to go preaching the teachings is a good way to do what you must do." Shiki-sama mumbled. "I find commendable the fact that you have never stopped meditating regardless of the time you have been living alone. You have learned quite a bit of self-discipline and it is something to be proud about..."

Just when I feared that Shiki-sama would continue talking, the Kishin guy seemed to not be able to hold it back anymore.

"Shiki-sama! We must take the chance that she is weakened to take her with us."

Rudely stepping forward, that guy seemed dead set on catching Kasen-san, although he shrunk back when she glared at him. The funny thing is how he saw Shiki-sama and got the guts to step forward again.

"Hmmm, you seem to be mistaking something here." Shiki-sama commented in a reproachful tone. "I did not come here to catch any criminal. That is not my job, for that, I have the shinigamis."

"Could it be..!? You plan to punish her right here?"

The Kishin asked, half amazed and half-filled with expectations.

Raising the rod she carried, Shiki-sama slammed it on the head of Kishin. It seemed like a casual movement, but the Kishin held his head in pain like it was unbearable.

"The fact that you can feel that much pain shows how much your inner desires are taking over. While I can admit that your efforts to earn forgiveness for your race are commendable, rushing to get results will not be positive for the karma of your people. As you are now, you are more of a target of judgment than Kasen." Shiki-sama muttered. "Besides... she will be leaving soon and you cannot stop her."

Just when I think she was referring to me, a gust of wind that would've raised many skirts, but for some reason, it did not, came. Dragging countless leaves, it robbed everyone of their ability to see momentarily. Many people panicked, except Kasen-san, Yasaka-san, and Shiki-sama.

After the torrent of leaves was gone, a lonely figure stood between our group and Shiki-sama and the rest. Not only did the people following the Kishin look scared and fearful, but the youkais reacted in different ways, however, they mostly showed a positive reaction.

"Yo!" Forest Wraith, who raised his hand and waved nonchalantly, strode this way.

I looked at him with a blaming expression, if he came to help, he is late... no, wait, he is crazy strong so I might not have to fight bitterly to escape. Gosh, I could even sit back and relax as I watch him deal with it. No, hang on a second. This is the bastard that beat me up so bad that I bet Kaa-san wouldn't have recognized me if she saw me that day. Is he here to cause trouble? I only pulled the middle finger at the torii while inwardly cursing every time I visited Kasen-san... he wouldn't hold a grudge, would he?

Tilting her head, Shiki-sama furrowed her eyebrows as she stared at Forest Wraith.

"...who are you? You are not Forest Wraith." Shiki-sama showed a cautious look.

At her words, the Kishin guy and his people looked somewhat relieved. Her words also made Forest Wraith stop and look at her, and I could almost imagine the expression this guy had under his mask. Kasen-san seemed to have done the same, along with Yasaka-san who was shaking her head left and right, like pleading with him to not say anything.

"Miss, I must admit that you have a very sophisticated way of flirting and trying to find out guys' names, I would honestly take my hat off for you if I had any." Forest Wraith spoke with no shame in his tone.

"(Hubby, I feel like that person has an uncanny resemblance to you.)" Tamamo-san's voice reached my ears.

BS!

I am unique, there is no way he and I have anything in common.

I saw a vein about to pop out from Shiki-sama's forehead and I noticed that she gripped tighter her rod. She put on a gentle smile but the corner of her lips was twitching.

Just when I thought that Forest Wraith would be beaten senseless, I saw him extend his hand to Shiki-sama.

"Don't even think about it, if you dare to even use one finger to harm me..." Forest Wraith spoke in a grim tone.

I swallowed my saliva when I heard the seriousness in his voice, could it be that he will use some crazy technique? That would be cool, although I would rather if he did not fight one of Emma from hell. Fighting for your life and escaping is one thing, but provoking her will be a death sentence. Is that guy so confident in beating her? I might have to revise my opinion of-

"You will kill me effortlessly so please hold onto your anger and let me do my stuff." Forest Wraith commented before nonchalantly walking our way again.

Eh?

"That way of talking, you are that shikigami." Shiki-sama spoke in realization, her eyes darted left and right before she just shook her head after looking at the forest area.

Wait a minute! What about the epic fight? Hey, Forest Wraith, go back there and start fighting or I will have Kasen-san bully you. I know you are scared of her, Kasen-san herself told me that if you ever bullied me again, I should tell her to beat you up.

"Hahaha, yes! It is nice to see you again, Eiki-sama!" Forest Wraith laughed.

After arriving in our direction, he patted his chest and did a mock salute.

"I have come to pick you up." Forest Wraith said to a sighing Kasen-san.

I wonder why, it kind of bothered me so I got in his way, shielding Kasen-san behind me.

"Ohhhh! Isn't this good for you?" Forest Wraith chuckled.

His words were directed at the pink-haired self-proclaimed hermit behind me, and for some unknown reason, her face had a pleasing smile that looked a bit smug, such a smile was directed at Yasaka-san who gritted her teeth, then when Kasen-san faced me she gave a sweet smile. That was unnecessarily attractive and I could only part my face when Yasaka-san glared at me.

"Wait! Shiki-sama! If he is not Forest Wraith, then we do not have to fear him. We can take him down-"

The Kishin guy, who was adamant about catching Kasen-san, tried to walk this way with the intention to stop Forest Wraith, and while I was not entirely convinced if the guy could actually beat the black-clothed shikigami, I was itching to smack this guy since a while ago. However, before I could step up and teach him up close some manners or before Shiki-sama who was probably going to scold him could say anything, something made the guy stop in his tracks.

Like they had been there since the beginning, flowers of all sizes and colors had suddenly appeared, they did not look out of place, even though I was certain that they were not there a second ago, the thorny stems of these plants had formed a wall in front of the Kishin guy, however, that wouldn't have made him stop in his tracks. That guy wouldn't have minded stepping on those flowers at all, but he was frozen in place because not only flowers were stopping his path in the form of a wall, but some had grown surrounding him and those pointy and sharp thorns were threatening to pierce his body if he dared to move forward.

"Sigh, I know that I should've stopped him, but is it really necessary to put him in such a state? Forest Wraith, or so I will call you since you are using that suit, I think you said before that I could kill you effortlessly..." Shiki-sama muttered.

"Yes, I did say so, but what of it?" Forest Wraith asked. "I have no strength since my master is not supplying me any of his energy after he let me roam by myself."

"I did not expect you to bring her with you." Shiki-sama frowned. "She has a very important job to do, yet you dragged that druid with you here."

At those words, Forest Wraith shrugged his shoulders.

"I would rather not mess up taking Kasen with me so I could only go all out." Forest Wraith commented. "Yacchan will not try to save Kasen, the boy would not be able to face that guy if he were to use one of those reaaaaally dangerous weapons he is hiding, so I can't mess up. Besides, you were planning to lecture her for the rest of the day and she is about to face the conveniences of fighting. Seriously, you never change. I know that your good nature makes you lecture others about doing the right thing so they don't go to hell, but I think that doing it for several days in a row is too much."

His words caused Shiki-sama to look away when I thought he was bluffing. I wanted to confirm that with Kasen-san but her condition began worsening all of sudden. I was about to continue to treat her but before I could, Forest Wraith grabbed my hand and shook his head.

"This is slightly different from what you think." Forest Wraith commented.

Whistling softly, he gave some kind of signal to someone else and the flowers freed the Kishin guy and soon, a gust of wind enveloped the area, bringing numerous leaves that blocked out view. This time, I used my ability and at the last minute, I saw a green-haired figure I found familiar picking up Kasen-san's belongings. She was the lady I saw before at Kasen-san's place but I could not even say anything since she only looked at me and gave a small smile before vanishing.

A second later, they were all gone, the lady, Forest Wraith and Kasen-san.

"That was unnecessarily cool, I think I should go and visit him soon. I will be a sandbag, but after that, I can act cool whenever I leave someplace." I nodded.

"(Hubby, you are already the coolest!)" Tamamo-san's praise felt ticklish due to the sincerity in the tone.

"Nora-nya is the coolest even without it!" Kuroka-chan, who kept rubbing her face on my chest until now, spoke in a bright tone.

The white Kittie did not feel like talking so she gave me a thumbs up.

Yes, they are precious.

...

...

...

The situation did not change that much, there was a clear division between the camps. However, I felt the stares from many on me since a while ago. I could attribute it to many reasons, such as the fact that Tamamo-san made herself known by speaking so they are looking at me warily, or they could be fearful of me due to the battle before. There is a chance that since I am friends with Kasen-san, they are directing eyes full of hostility my way. However, among all of those, the type of stares I received the most was looks filled with envy and jealousy.

"How about here? Does it hurt? No? That is good, mommy was scared that you were wounded before but it seems you are not injured. I am truly glad." Raikou-san said after finally stopping her inch by inch, carefully and slow search for any injury on my body.

This lady, does she not have any shame? No, I think she does not. I was tempted to push her away when she began sexually harassing me from a certain point of view, however, her eyes were filled with concern that went beyond someone who met me today. There had to be a story about it so I obediently let her do as she pleased. I could only blame the naive me at that time. It was only after repeatedly telling her to not take off my hakama because it would be shameful that she left me off the hook, because when she said that she would check if I was ok... this crazy lady almost ripped off my haori in one go. Causing some damage to certain people, such as Musashi who for some reason blushed to the point I thought she would pass out again, or Suzaku who got weak on her legs... but still found the strength to sneakily take photos of me, and I would very pleased to forget when Shirone-chan did the same while making something about 'mission accomplished, but I guess that seeing a blushing Kuroka-chan and Yasaka-san was not bad. For some reason, Amagi-san looked away during that ordeal so I came to the conclusion that she had to be a closet pervert. Yet, the craziest thing was the pair of sisters who were also affected. I mean, Ei-san was a strange person and I understood it after meeting her, but Raikou-san... why is your breathing getting rougher? And you spent too much time touching me, I am certain that in many places you could easily see that I was not hurt at all. There was no need for such a detailed touch.

I briefly wondered if I made a mistake back then, but some things can't be unsaid.

"Did you guys finish your little show? Shiki-sama came here for a reason, and that was for the nine-tailed calamity that escaped."

The Kishin guy got the guts to speak while Shiki-sama called out for Amagi-san for a moment. I happened to overhear something about rituals to conceive using the essence from the stone, and now that it was broken, it seemed to be quite the prickle. Ok, I technically did not hear such a detailed explanation here but happened to read one of Kaa-san's books in secret years ago. That is how I got relieved to know that Yasaka-san did not have a husband and used such a method to have the little furball.

"Are you ignoring me!?"

The angry voice of the Kishin guy was annoying so I stopped thinking in the meantime.

"Listen, I don't see a reason to accept the way you talk about Tamamo-san. She is just your lovely nine-tailed fox, she won't harm anyone like you expect her to do." I exclaimed.

"(Hubby! ❤️❤️❤️)" Tamamo-san sounded like she would pound on me.

I ignored it.

This time, there was no reply from the Kishin guy, but rather, the exorcist camp.

"That is impossible! As soon as she escaped, her presence alone was enough to give us the chill, and her transformation was proof that she was ready to face us."

"That is right. Besides, you cannot trust what she says. Even if she appeared here, we humans will bear her grudges."

"She wanted to hide so we did not expect her to be alive so she could recover peacefully."

"Thankfully, we are people with experience in exterminating youkais so we saw through her disguise."

"Hand her over, that cunning fox must be exterminated."

"This is a good chance, once the calamity is exterminated, the gods will surely be pleased!"

I tightened my fists while holding back my rage. These fuckers are saying whatever they please without holding anything back. I wanted nothing more than to go and smack those old fools that grew a pair after the Kishin guy expressed the possible approval of Shiki-sama towards the capture and extermination of the poor Tamamo-san.

It seemed that their words and hostility directed my way tickled the wrong place in Raikou-san and the rest since they were about to enter into fighting mode.

I felt slightly disappointed when Yasaka-san turned her head away with furrowed eyebrows, is she looking for something? Shiki-sama was doing the same.

"My child here is under our protection, if you try anything funny, I will be more than happy to slash you." Raikou-san spoke.

"Are you speaking about that elusive and shady organization of yours? I am aware that you have been working in the shadows for Japan's peace, but there is something wrong with the way you do things. It is possible to recall your group now, but once you finish your mission, our memories get messed up somehow. For people who do things like that, it is hard to show our trust."

An old guy coming from one of the five great clans, judging from the color theme of his hakama, began speaking.

"Although we are grateful, we would like to know where your true alignment lies. Are you the allies of humans, or youkais?"

An old lady started uttering, making several old foggies nods in agreement.

"The sweet maker- I mean, this child is indeed under our protection, and a little while ago. Our leader has given us the order to protect the nine-tailed fox." Ei-san answered in place of Raikou-san who found their nonsense a lost cause. "As for our alignment. You seem to have a mistaken idea that we are meant to obey you or follow your orders. So far we have kept a certain level of diplomatic relations to allow an easier time when dealing with troubles, however, we are by no means afraid of confrontation. It is simply the way our leader wants to proceed since she is not the type to seek unnecessary chaos."

Using a clear tone, that left no way to be misinterpreted, the young woman who shamelessly plans to make me fulfill her dreams to eat sweets every day (stated by her), explained her standing, or rather, their organization's.

"You!!!"

One of the numerous old guys pointed at Ei-san in rage.

"Our patron gods will not stay silent!"

"Letting you, an unknown force move around unchecked is too dangerous!"

Just then, when I thought the nonsense will keep going, I curiously tilted my head. I turned my eyes in one direction since I felt a pair of eyes on me. There was no hostility so I did not take it to heart since many of those stares were directed at me from behind my back, the youkai camp. However, I saw nothing in that direction. Before I activated my ability though, there was a ripple in the space coming from that direction and a few figures were suddenly visible.

I was blinded for a moment, quite literally since a hard-to-see direct light poured toward us and I covered the smaller ones' eyes so their pretty eyes were safe.

"That is an interesting choice of words from someone who has never listened to our voice."

A female voice full of majesty and dignity was heard from the direction of the light.

Soon enough, the light had diminished greatly and I was able to see again, to see the gapping expression of multiple people.

Walking slowly, and dressed in expensive garments, three figures came our way. Yes, not standing in the middle, not towards Shiki-sama who had taken a distant position with her head bowed in respect, nor towards the people that would supposedly worship them. No, no, no. They came in my goddamned direction.

Thanks to that, I could see the guy who turned pale before, smirking in my direction. However, his smirk disappeared when they stood with their backs facing my way like they were protecting me. Judging from the respectful vow that Yasaka-san was giving them and the way the exorcists were doing the same, I could find a few plausible possibilities that I did not want to accept due to their craziness.

"(It is almost like you are a trouble magnet, hubby.)" Tamamo-san's voice did nothing to stop me from facepalming myself.

"A-Ama-Amaterasu-sama!?"

The Kishin guy knelt right on his spot and the exorcists followed, then the youkais except for Yasaka-san and Amagi-san who only kept their heads bowed.

I stayed where I was, and the catgirls felt somewhat intimidated by the aura that those three people were giving off so they hid behind my back. Raikou-san and the rest only proceeded to vow their way in a respectful action before shearing their weapons, although Musashi-san seemed nervous since her hands shook and failed to do it on her first try.

She looked unusually cute since she was flustered but I could not focus on that since the recurrent death seeker spoke.

"How rude of you! Don't you know how to pay respect!? You are in the presence of the 3 patron gods! Amaterasu-Oumikami-sama, Susanoo-no-Mikoto-sama, and Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto-sama!"

Thank you for your wonderful introduction, but I guessed that without you telling me. There is a crazy pendant on my chest making a fuss, and the mirror tied to my waist is not losing in rowdiness.

Nonetheless, I could not really see then since there was this ridiculous light covering their features and I could only make out their shapes.

Absurd, I must say. It is the universal rule that light-chan can only be used to cover a girl when she looks ecchi to deprive the spectators of seeing R18+ content, especially in an ecchi world such as this one. If they cover their body like that, doesn't that mean they look obscene!?

"(Hubby, I dare to say that my feelings for you are bigger than the sea, but let me honestly ask you this, are you wrong in the head? That said, do not get Tamamo-chan wrong, she still loves you!)" Tamamo-san's words were strange as always.

"I wonder, if you are so sure about what your patron gods want of you, please allow me to hear it, speak without any shame or fear, I am just curious... so I most likely won't get angry."

The middle figure, the one that spoke before said. It was a female voice that was pleasant to the ears somehow. How to explain it? Rather than the voice itself, it was a majesty hidden in it that made it sound that good. Nonetheless, no matter how good it sounded, for the person who was asked that it did not sound that enjoyable. If someone who was not that religious could guess the identity of these people before their names were said, those bunch of bullies (exorcists) could do it faster than me. The guy looked absolutely terrified and he looked like a heart attack was imminent. However, I seemed to underestimate that guy's guts and wits.

"N-No, I would n-not dare to say I know about the will of the gods..."

Despite stuttering, he managed to come up with a reply. That said, it was more of a lie than anything.

"Ehhhh, is that so?"

The figure who previously asked nodded and the lack of anger in the voice made the old guy sigh in relief, but somehow I could feel it, and while I was not directly looking at her, I could almost imagine a fake smile plastered on her lips.

"Who would have thought that humans would fall so low that they would shamelessly lie to us."

A cold tone of voice that would make you doubt what kind of goddess she is, reached not only that man but everyone present, causing everyone to pale in fright.

There is one thing that cannot be forgotten here, no matter how you look at it, besides he(?), she was the most terrifying existence I had met so far. Not only she was a god, but among the Shinto Gods, she could be said to be the ruler of them all, the one with the highest standing, Amaterasu, the sun goddess. Her words or even a simple whim of her could spell trouble to regular humans who are innately weaker than other races, and the impact to receive the rage of their very symbols of belief would be a huge shock. However, I noticed that a few of the exorcists had had leeway regarding what just happened, and instead of being subjected to a fearful or dejected mood, they looked oddly composed, although they were still making a good by acting like they were just like the others.

"Before any of you try to deceive us, I will tell one small detail that you should take into account if you want to weave another lie. Not long after Eiki arrived, we did the same but hid our presence due to a certain curiosity I had. I wished that humans had changed, but it seemed that it was wish bound to not be fulfilled." Amaterasu-sama muttered in a bitter tone.

Honestly, I give a crap about those bunch of guys. However, I am not very happy when my dear friend Suzaku is among the people she is disappointed with. 

"(Hubby, I am sure I do not need to tell you but you are no match for even one of their hairs. If I had my full strength, perhaps we could put up a fight, but I have been robbed of most of my tails and that weakened me greatly. In fact, I am feeling a little sluggish and might soon fall into a deep sleep.)" Tamamo-san warned. "(I wanted nothing but snuggle in your embrace after you took me into our new home as you carried me in princess carry, but I guess my poor little dream won't happen.)"

I was beginning to see that half of what this dummy one said could be called sheer nonsense and could be omitted, but I did not dislike her ways of making me calm down. I had unknowingly begun to get angry for Suzaku who looked like a bullied child with her downhearted expression, so the silly fox tried to distract me to avoid the possibility of me launching an attack or speaking without thinking.

"D-did you come here because of...?"

Another gutsy death seeker old guy seemed to think that his time to cross over to the other side was ripe so he spoke.

"I came here to look for the one who escaped the Sesshou Seki (Killing Stone)." Amaterasu-sama muttered still in her cold tone of voice.

I immediately raised my guard after hearing that, I might not make it out of this one if she came looking for Tamamo-san. However, I will not hand her over.

"(Hubby❤️)" Tamamo-san's lovestruck voice made me feel strange.

Hey now, behave yourself. I will become a roasted cat for picking a fight with Amaterasu-sama so at least take this seriously.

"As expected of the great Amaterasu-sama, you came to the aid of your people, to kill the calamity fox-"

Those words were cut short when Amaterasu-sama released a killing intent so dense I felt I would be crushed if it was directed at me. However, despite not being the one who received the full brunt of it, I felt like Shishou was chasing after me after I called her thighs Shishou again. It was strange because she said she was not angry.

Putting aside one of my recurring nightmares, the man's consciousness was cut and he collapsed on the spot. If he was unlucky, his heart might stop due to fear and if he was lucky, his body shut down his consciousness to protect his mind. Nevertheless, what happened scared shitless a few guys who wanted to suck up Amaterasu-sama by praising her for being here to kill Tamamo-san. Although they probably did not expect that she would flip up like that.

"Again with your groundless assumptions. Why do you assume she is a calamity!?" Amaterasu-sama spoke in anger although I could feel some pain in her tone. "Have you never considered her to be a blessing to you, humans!?"

Her words were met with silence, and it was obvious that no one would retort to her words. Although if you could read minds, you would easily hear many people expressing their discomfort and disagreement with Amaterasu-sama's statement.

"Even without hearing you say it, I can tell what you are thinking. However, I can't help but feel disappointed. Do you know the origin of Tamamo-no-Mae?" Amaterasu-sama asked.

Noticing that she stayed silent and did not the intention to speak unless her inquiry was answered, the exorcists began sweating coldly without knowing what to do. I wanted to laugh at Suou, the bastard who wanted to kill Akeno-tan, but Suzaku looked uncomfortable as well so I felt conflicted.

"So much for your claims that she is evil and a calamity huh. If that is what you believe, why don't you give me a clear explanation as to why that is the case? You can't because you don't know. You have been blindly following that notion for generations without any idea that Tamamo-no-Mae was my child." Amaterasu-sama said.

I saw a few people pass out when the bomb was dropped. I just furrowed my eyebrows since some things did not fit.

"(What!? You are telling me that I wasn't born out of all the fluffiness of the world taking humanoid shape!? How could that be? The always fluffy and cheerful Tamamo-chan could only exist because of that setting, and that is what I always believed. A child of a miracle, the ultimate fluffiness in flesh!") Tamamo-san's nonsense made me laugh a little.

No, no, the only miracle here is your train of thought, you dummy, besides-

"If we are talking about fluffiness and softness, there is no way these ears or tails of mine will lose..." I proudly said, which earned me a few strange looks since I spoke aloud and some people heard me.

Nonetheless, I did not mind.

Putting aside all the nonsense that Tamamo-san said, I wonder how she is really taking the news.

"(Well, using an explanation that you will find easy to understand... It is like an orphan that always wanted to meet his parents as a kid grew up to have her hope crushed and when she was old enough to not be bothered, then all of sudden, her long lost parents appear before her and say they were looking for her all the time, but the orphan was tired of it since she spent so much time and energy trying to find them but she failed.)" Tamamo-san muttered.

I will pay your head while I heard about your life when we get home. Even if I already saw it all, letting you speak about it will be good for you.

"(Thanks...)" Tamamo-san's meek reply spoke a lot about her bitter feelings.

"H-How can that be?"

"It is impossible...! All these years we have-"

"Yes, you have been holding a festival that would help to mitigate her malice and anger. That is correct, and I allowed it for only one reason. If I destroyed the stone while she was filled with grudges, she would become what you called her, a monster that can't be reasoned with. That way, she would never be able to have a new life. Thus I gave humans the way to hold the festival." Amaterasu-sama said.

While she spoke to the exorcists, I felt like she glanced my way, or rather, the pendant on my neck. Was she trying to excuse herself? To explain to Tamamo-san her actions?

"T-Then we did nothing wrong?"

"Our actions have been in accordance with Amaterasu-sama's will!"

"You are irremediable. Do you think I am not aware of how you tried to harm that child as soon as the seal broke?" Amaterasu-sama angrily muttered.

"H-How did your esteemed k-know...?"

"The emissaries from hell are my subordinates, I just had to ask them about it." Shiki-sama timely offered an explanation.

This was not looking good for those fools, but for some reason, I did not see people like Suou intervening, nor anyone with equal standing. Since he was the clan head of the Himejimas, I could rough make out who were the clan heads of the other clans, but while they reacted to Amaterasu-sama's revelations, they have not spoken so far in their defense. It somewhat irked me that the old fool was not trying to say anything and that caused Suzaku to suffer from Amaterasu-sama's anger, but while I was not exactly smart, even I could roughly picture their goal this time.

"Your actions have greatly disappointed me, and your way to handle them left much to be desired. You lack the ability to properly think." Amaterasu-sama shook her head. "I feel like the blessing from our kind has been a gift that made you all think it was ok to do as you pleased. I have even heard that many exorcists have been exterminating innocent youkais..."

While I am in favor of youkais, and I am aware that were discriminated by many exorcists in general. I have heard (eavesdropped) Yasaka-san speaking about a group of youkais who were going around causing chaos and trying to stick close to what the legends described us to be. In other words, they were preying on humans so it was not only the exorcists' fault. Not like I planned to stand up for them unless they tried to cause trouble for Suzaku.

You are reading story Highschool DxD: A new opportunity at novel35.com

That said, the fact that Amaterasu-sama took the youkais' sides so easily makes me wonder if she favors the youkais because she originally likes supernatural creatures or if the influence of the nine-tailed foxes that have been ruling over them for years has something to do. In that regard, if they used the essence of Tamamo-san as a method to procreate, that would mean... that Tamamo-san and Yasaka-san are related!? Mother and daughter no less.

"(That is right hubby, which is why you can't choose that bigger breasted fox since she is my child, that would mean that she will be your child too since we are married!!!)" Tamamo-san spoke.

Rolling my eyes, I choose to ignore most of what she said. I wouldn't mind even if she were. First of all, I am not married to Tamamo-san, and secondly... it is not like this would be the first time I would be eating a mother and her daughter. Ahem. Not like I would be eating Tamamo-san though. Oh, but older ladies and widows are very attractive so that makes Yasaka-san more attractive since she is a single mother.

"(Kuh, my plan backfired!!!)" Tamamo-san complained.

"Excuse me, Amaterasu-sama. If you would be so kind to listen to my words, I would be most thankful."

A familiar aged voice suddenly chipped in.

Heh, finally that old guy stepped in huh.

Suou Himejima, you better don't screw up.

"Oh? You must be the clan head of the Himejima Clan, I have seen you going into my temples before." Amaterasu-sama said.

"I am most grateful for Amaterasu-sama to remember my name, however, my status pales in comparison to yours so it is not worth mentioning. That said, I would like to shamelessly intervene in the conversation. However, I find this place unfitting for someone of your status to be. If you desire, we could change locations to a more comfortable place." Suou spoke.

Oh my, so he does know how to speak respectfully. I heard that he never did that to Rias-chan or Barakiel. Well, if he did not do it here, the sun goddess will fly into a rage, I guess.

Part 2

3rd POV

Watching how the chaos in the festival was taken care of, Hanezu Himejima shook his head.

"This was a total failure." Hanezu muttered to himself. "Did you come here to mock me, witch?"

Looking back, Hanezu who was alone on top of a building kilometers away from the festival, talked to someone who was not there a second ago.

There stood an elderly foreign woman in her sixties dressed in violet robes and a witch hat and an upright posture. She wore a pair of earrings and multiple rings on her fingers. Her name was Augusta and she was a magician from the Wizards of Oz.

"Heh, no need to glare at me like that. Your failure has nothing to do with me, you failed on your so that caused the overall failure of our plan. Although our failure was almost cemented the moment we were unable to secure the four fiends." Augusta spoke.

"So you did come here to mock me. Nonetheless, I can't say anything back. Among the four forces who joined hands for this project, our side was the one who made the most mistakes and failed to do our part. However, we were the ones who suffered the most casualties as well." Hanezu sighed.

"Hehe, no need to blame yourself completely. I wouldn't have thought in a million chance that even they would fail, all because of a simple youkai." Augusta smirked.

Shaking his head, Hanezu recalled their countless losses and wondered if there was anything that could be done at this point. The four fiends were under the protection of the fallen angels so it would be hard to reach them any time soon. His forces were reduced greatly and their funds had almost been used after repeated failures. His state could be described with a simple phrase, 'at ropes end', and that was a positive way to see it. Their second choice was even harder to get at the moment, even if he risked his life, he would not be able to survive the attacks from chief gods. Rather than being reckless, it was plain suicide.

"By the way, I don't think it is all lost..." Augusta commented.

Hearing that, Hanezu lifted his head and glanced her way. He was certain that what she will tell him would put him in danger, but he could not allow the sacrifices his comrades made to be in vain, even if he had to do whatever it took, he had to make pay the five clans.

--------------------------------------------------

MC's POV

So, after changing locations to one of the temple halls that somehow held well and look in one piece, the related parties sat in groups. Most of the unnecessary people were removed and sent to deal with the aftermath of the supposedly attacked festival. Although my ability caught no perpetrators, I felt like they read the mood after the fights and the descent of the dangerously powerful Emma and Gods. However, there was probably a lot of chaos and they were the type to hide such a commotion so there was much work to do.

That itself is ok, I have no issue with that.

The unnecessary old bastards that kept blabbering and digging their graves were not taken to the temple. It seemed that the clan heads feared that they will cause them trouble while they talk, although I just felt that since they performed their part, they were cast aside to avoid messing up with the real conversation. It was just me, but I felt like they were going to become scapegoats of some kind.

Once again, I have no issues with that. It is an internal issue of the five clans so that is their problem.

The fact that the extra clans were not asked to be part of this made me wonder if they even tried to not exclude them but since they by themselves were relieved to be free of the meeting did not leave me with much retort material. Thus that left only some people of the five clans, Shiki-sama, Yasaka-san, and Amagi-san... Of course, the sun goddess herself had to be in the meeting as well.

So far, I must admit that is the proper line-up... Except, yes, except the fact that a certain cat was told to follow along by Amaterasu-sama in person. At that moment, I expected the five clans to raise a complaint, but Suou just nodded to my surprise and the other clan heads'.

I just wanted to take my cats home and go to sleep, I finally undid my transformation since it seemed that no fight will occur, at least not with swords. However, I was now sitting practically, no, I was in the goddamned middle of the hall, with Amaterasu-sama in front of me. The five clan people took the right side of the hall while Yasaka-san, Amagi-san, and Shiki-sama took the left side, and for some strange reason, Raikou-san, Ei-san, and Musashi-san were sitting in a few steps behind me in seiza like some kind of retainers. Oh, I can't forget the two cats on my left and right. They looked like they were having fun.

No good, even I can't think of a witty comment to do here.

I need someone who has common sense cut out above the rest... Ah!

Looking at Amagi-san for help, I made sure to plead with her pitifully with my eyes and ask with hand signs for her help. After tilting her head unnecessarily cutely, she nodded like she understood and patted her ample chest to reassure me that everything was ok and she would deal with it.

As expected of the woman I considered to have actual common sense in this crazy world.

However, my happiness was short-lived since that dumb fox only dragged Yasaka-san without permission and put her beside the black cat to my right and she sat beside the white cat to my left. Such a thing caused Kuroka-chan to hiss at the bewildered Yasaka-san and Raikou-san almost did the same, I received her jealous stare for some reason... along with Suzaku's.

Please, control yourself you two.

Covering my face with both hands, I avoided the appraising looks from the rest of the five clan heads. After Suou whispered something in their ears, they have been paying attention to me and kept speaking in hushed tones this and that. I get you for this later, Suou, and you too, other bastard, how the heck am I, a womanizer!?

The conversation that followed did not require the youkais side to speak. The old foggies, current clan heads were rather eloquent when they spoke so they changed the angry tone that Amaterasu-sama to a neutral one. They assumed the blame and promised to deliver proper punishment to the rude ones before.

The way I saw it, they just made a bunch of empty promises and pushed all the blame towards the old fools from before. After they deal with them, who knows how seriously they will follow their punishment. I was pretty inclined to yell BS aloud, but since it would trouble Suzaku, I stayed quiet.

...

...

...

Once again, how the heck did it come to this?

"You have my deepest gratitude, it was only thanks to you that Tamamo is still standing here." Amaterasu-sama spoke with gratitude in her voice.

I was not sure how to take that since I never expected to receive such words from the chief god, but I could see from everyone's expression that her actions were beyond the expected. Why beyond? She gave me a full bow my way.

BS.

BS, I tell you.

Aren't you the greatest authority among the gods here? How can you do that? The only good thing about this was that I saw certain nine-tailed foxes flustered and Suou fainted.

Nonetheless, some of the clan heads did not seem to receive it that well since I am being looked at like I stole their family heirloom or something like that. Among envy and jealousy, I am not sure why so much hostility from the actions Amaterasu-sama took.

Oh, gosh, she is not raising her head. Yasaka-san's eyes are urging me to say something or she will deliver heavenly punishment to my tails.

"Ahem, Amaterasu-sama. I don't deserve your kind words. Please sit, do not lower your head for this matter." I respectfully said. "I just did what I felt was right, and that was standing up for Tama-chan, I mean, Tamamo-san. The rest was just me going with the flow."

"(Tee hee, you called me Tama-chan at least.) Tamamo-san's voice came up.

"No, you certainly stood up and even failed to stop most of the people from attacking her, but you shielded her. Not only that, you fought for her sake, and that is not just going with the flow. Even then, you also tried to protect everyone." Amaterasu-sama praised. "As expected from someone like you, I can tell why you were chosen."

Her words made me feel ticklish, but above all, I tilted my head in confusion. Chosen? Wait... could it be!? 

"Eh? Did I win the lottery again? Man, this will be the third time! I knew it, black cats are symbols of luck." I nodded.

The first time it happened I could not believe it, but for it to happen a third time. I just bought a few numbers that one time I went around the market but to think I would stumble upon a winning ticket again.

"...lottery? What in the world...?" Amaterasu-sama sounded confused.

Eh? It was not about the lottery?

"Nora-kun, please. Could you act more seriously? She did not mean that, but I think she meant the thing hanging on your neck." Yasaka-san muttered in an exasperated tone.

Amagi-san only giggled in response.

Glad you found my blunder amusing.

"Did I even mention a lottery...?" Amaterasu-sama muttered absentmindedly. "Does he want that as a reward? Is it that how people nowadays ask for their rewards...?"

Aren't you gullible?

"Ahem, let us forget what I said earlier, I made a mistake." Amaterasu changed the topic. "I was talking about the magatama hanging on your neck. Do you know its identity of it?"

"A slightly suspicious stone that I acquired through extremely suspicious means..." I replied.

Amaterasu-sama paused like she could not believe my reply, and Yasaka-san glared at me with murderous intent.

"No, umm, what are you saying? You really do not know?" Amaterasu-sama inquired.

Shaking my head, I let her do the talking. I would embarrass myself to death if I called it Yasakani no Magatama and this godamned stone happened to be something else.

"(You are just enjoying how you throw my 'mother' out of the loop.)" Tamamo-san unjustly accused me.

I won't affirm or deny that.

I am a sadist at heart and be happy with the information I just provided.

"(You are aware that if any of those exorcists tried to pull that stunt, she would've been raging already?)" Tamamo-san asked.

I have confidence in my charm on single mothers. Besides, I am curious about the relation that youkais share with gods, given that gods lend their power to the exorcists and that causes casualties among our kin so I was doing a trial and run to check how much nonsense can I get away with. Not to mention, I was hoping to get a connection of some sort with either Amaterasu-sama or Shiki-sama.

"(You sound like a scummy guy hitting on your wife's mother, but my Tamamo senses tell me you have something else in mind. Hmmm... Oya? Could it be that? That Emma... Hubby, are you...?)" Tamamo-san voice sounded complicated.

Even if revival is impossible for now, I want these silly catgirls to be able to meet their mother. The book in Zekram's place explained that it was possible to summon the souls of the deceased, but it is a temporary summon unless I master the skills completely. It will take years before I am capable to master and be capable of snatching souls from hell or heaven so now that the opportunity presented here, I will use it. Although, I was thinking of several ideas that getting Amaterasu-sama's help will be great.

"(Hubby truly deserves to owe the Yasakani no Magatama.)" Tamamo-san's voice sounded half-happy and half-envious.

Oh, shush.

"Etto? Are you listening to me?" Amaterasu-sama's voice pulled me out of my musings.

"My apologies, I was saddened because I lost my lottery ticket and it seemed that one was a winning one." I sighed.

"No, could you forget about the lottery ticket? I was talking about the quality that made it possible for you to become the real owner of the Yasakani no Magatama on your neck." Amaterasu-sama commented.

"I think I know the reason." I nodded.

Contrary to the curious expression that Amaterasu-sama showed, the ones who knew me covered their faces with both hands. Even Yasaka-san who most likely wanted me to stop the most immediate took some stomachache pills and sighed in defeat, probably aware that I cannot be stopped.

"So you know that the quality that defines the true wielder of the magatama is-" "A pair of fluffy cat ears and tails." "Yes, a pair of fluffy cat ears and tails, that is so far, no one has been truly chosen by the jewel before, they lacked the fluffiness... Eh?"

The back and forth between Amaterasu-sama and me left her with her head tilted and confused.

"Wait, that is not what the magatama takes into account!" Amaterasu-sama reproached me, however, I did not feel any hostility.

Who was it!? I heard a snicker in amusement from the direction of two other figures accompanying Amaterasu-sama.

"Well, if you are quite finished with joking around Amaterasu-sama, let us focus on the real topic." I shrugged my shoulders and inwardly wiped my sweat from my forehead.

That was nerve breaking. It went well, but I was not 100% that she would not flip out. Thankfully, she only exudes an aura I am familiar with. After all, there are many times that the black cat does the same, getting sulky.

"I heard about it, the quality must be benevolence. However, I think the jewel must be malfunctioning since there is no way I have that quality. Fluffy? Always. Benevolent? What is that, can I eat it?" I mumbled.

It is honestly baffling how the magatama got attached to me. There are many others with better qualities than me, yet it is hanging on my neck.

"Fufu, there is no mistake. The magatama knows how to pick its wielder. I have a connection with it so I know that there is no mistake. You are the most fitting person to wield it."

Among the two figures, a soft and gentle female voice reached me.

Hmmm? The Yasakani no Magatama, if my memory does not fail me, should be linked to Tsukuyomi-sama. Just like the mirror that Tamamo-san has is linked to Amaterasu-sama and the sword is related to Susanoo who is steadily drinking liquor since a while ago.

I wanted to shout BS to that goddess, but I won't probably be able to convince anyone otherwise. After all, my acquaintances are nodding sagely. I will have to pile up bad deeds to let them understand that I am scummy.

"If I might ask, what does it matter if I am chosen by it? Unlike the Ame no Murakumo, there won't be a time I would be forced to become an emperor." I inquired.

Shaking her head, Amaterasu continued speaking.

"It is not a matter of having responsibilities such as those, you are just proven that you are fit to keep the magatama and are indeed the rightful owner of it. I'm the past, there have been many people capable of harnessing its power but they lacked qualifications so it has always been our job to send forces to recover it before they are used for chaos." Amaterasu-sama added. "They were originally given to a man who became the first emperor to prove our acknowledgment of his rule, and in a way, to prove that we were backing the emperor."

Acknowledgment, huh.

"Wait, there are currently two sacred treasures here and the last one was stolen. Does that mean that you do not acknowledge the current royal family?" I asked.

"No, besides the first emperor and a few generations later of his offsprings, there had not been that many suitable rulers that were acknowledged. One of the worst ones was the one that sealed my daughter. At that time, I deliver divine punishment to him. There were not good harvests and famine ran rampant, after that, I sent a revelation to some of my believers that his actions had angered me and to quell it, he should be taken care of." Amaterasu-sama muttered like it was not her business.

Her words caused everyone in the room to coldly sweat and cast a fearful look at the goddess who muttered such a thing in a light tone.

For some reason, I did not find her actions surprising and I even approved them. It might be because I am lacking a few screws, but as someone who saw what the silly fox went through, I think that the emperor deserved such. How far would've I gone if my loved ones were the ones who suffered? I can't honestly say. However, I am certain that benevolence is not something you would use to describe it. It is one reason why I think I do not fit the qualifications for the jewel hanging on my neck.

"I see..." I nodded. "However, even if you did that. Tamamo-san won't just happily accept you."

"(Hubby...)" Tamamo-san sounded touched.

"She and I now share a special bond, I acknowledge her as my equal and she does the same. You could call her my bestie, so I can't just happily nod and give her to you. She suffered pain beyond anything you can understand. Suddenly appearing..." I dragged my words. "You are not trying to take her with you, are you?"

"You! How dare you speak to Amaterasu-sama that way!?"

"Such an insolence!"

"Please, Amaterasu-sama, allow me to punish him in your place!"

"I wonder if I can sneakily pat those tails..."

Angry shouts mixed with a weird desire were thrown at me.

"Silence!" I angrily yelled. "This has nothing to do with you, stop trying unsightly trying to curry favors with the sun goddess. This is a family issue!"

"(Hubby ❤️❤️❤️ Have you finally...!?)" Tamamo-san's voice sounded on cloud nine.

"I consider Tamamo-san as my little sister now so I will protect her at all cost!" I muttered.

"(*Coughs blood* Kuh, stop, please!)" Tamamo-san received some damage.

"Pfft."

Oi! I heard more than one person holding their laugh, step out! Wait, Yasaka-san? Why are you turning your head away from me? Amagi-san, please look at me, don't use that fan to cover your face. Kuroka-chan, Shirone-chan, your clueless expression somehow hurts me.

Amaterasu-sama froze. When I stopped retorting to the rude ones laughing at me, I saw her unmoving, sitting in a pose just like she was trying to say something. Behind her, the figure of Susanoo-sama was coughing because she got caught between laughing and drinking, so she was choking, while Tsukuyomi-sama used both hands to cover her mouth.

Did I say anything funny?

"(Hubby, in all my life... I have never heard such nonsense. I am such a beautiful and graceful maiden, filled with overflowing charm and with an exquisite personality that is full of love for you. However, you just friend-zoned me.)" Tamamo-san said. "(That said, did you know that even if you are pushing me away, you made my heart beat faster for you? Kuh, you are such a sinful man, you have done a good job in capturing my heart, hubby!)"

No good, Tama-chan broke.

...

...

...

Five minutes after Amaterasu-sama finally rebooted, I got a warning from Shiki-sama to please act more seriously since Amaterasu-sama can't handle sudden situations outside the norm that well. I considered her words as a double-faced warning since she clearly laughed at me too, but since she did have a point I could not say anything back.

I was asked to hand over the magatama which I denied at once, but Amaterasu-sama promised to not take away my fox so I accepted.

"Your body is breaking down. Even then, you don't want to come with me?" Amaterasu-sama spoke.

Her eyes were glued to the jewel that seemed to be telepathically speaking with her. Judging from the way it initially tried to escape the goddess' hands, I would say that Tamamo-san did her best to not talk to the goddess, but the strength of a god can't be underestimated.

The thing she mentioned, made me bite my lips. While staying inside the jewel will stop her body from breaking down, Tamamo-san was literally robbed of her tails, it was not something so simple as ripping them off, but her life force and strength were drained so her body was bound to suffer. I am not sure how she sneakily entered the magatama, or how you even put a body inside, but thanks to it, she survived. However, I am not sure how to fix her body. To begin with, she was already somewhat beat up so her body was unstable from the beginning. Channeling ki might be helpful for her, but the question is how much. We could also use elixirs of all kinds to help her, phenex tears, ambrosia, and the like, but those are just some of the possible ways to do it.

My biggest issue is about what kind of being was that. If his method to drain had other effects, I am not sure, but-

No good, I am not sure how to proceed. I think I will have to lock myself in some libraries to look for more info. This reminds me that Skadi-sama boasted of having a great collection of books when she tried to lure me to be her personal ice cream maker, I mean, disciple. Wait, Shishou should have one too unless that muscle-head teacher of mine disposed of them after reading them because they took too much space and made sparing difficult.

"*Sigh* Why is it that you only called me mother when I agreed to your request?" Amaterasu-sama muttered with a defeated expression.

Nodding with a tired look, Amaterasu-sam began doing some sort of ritual out of the blue. I tried to hastily stand up to help Tamamo-san but Yasaka-san stopped me.

"Amaterasu-sama means no harm, I think she is trying to help Tamamo-sama." Yasaka-san muttered.

Wait, why is there more respect in your tone when you mention the silly fox than when you talk about Amaterasu-sama?

Perhaps noticing my confused expression, and hoping to distract me so I don't interfere with the goddess, Amagi-san tapped my shoulder and got unnecessarily close to me, enough for her voice to tickle my ears and her warm breath make my heart skip a beat. Heck, her breasts are crushing the white cat.

"Yacchan is a die-hard fan of Tamamo-sama. She is her idol since she was little, and her stories have always been something she liked to hear. When she was twelve, she made me make a plushie of Tamamo-sama." Amagi-san giggled. "Her strength and majesty are known to all the fox-kin so she is many people's idol. At least, with youkais..."

Oh my lord, that sounded like some black history I would love to hear more about.

That said, I was not sure how to break it down to the strangely excited fox ones.

Certainly, Tamamo-san has a beauty that can be said to make kingdoms collapse. That much, I will admit. Her charm stat is high.

She has a witty nature and intelligence that many would be envious of. One of the reasons why the emperor took notice of her and she hardly show off her abilities back then.

She was taught manners since she entered the palace so she can be classy and act with dignity if it was required.

The problem is-

"Nora-nya, the fox lady multiplied-nya! I wanna do that too-nya!" Kuroka-chan, who stopped hissing at Yasaka-san, sounded excited.

"Multiples Onee-samas? Chaos..." Shirone-chan, who just escaped the heavyweight placed on top of her, muttered in terror.

Two Kurokas-chan? Chaos indeed. Although having two clingy lovable catgirls like her sounds heartwarming, I would enjoy spoiling them a lot.

While I was distracted, Amaterasu-sama finished her spell and Tamamo-san multiplied, or rather, her physical body was separated from her spirit. At least, that is what it looked like.

Her physical body floated for a moment before Amaterasu-sama chanted and it was enveloped in a transparent sphere. The sphere shrunk until it could be hold in one hand. On the other hand (no pun intended, for real... no, seriously!), the spiritual body of Tamamo-san floated in the air briefly before landing softly on her bare feet. Her eyes were closed and her figure looked graceful, she stood there, perhaps feeling her new form.

It reminded me of the ghost lady I met in the lands of shadow, she was a spiritual entity but she could still touch things physically. That said, she told me that it is not that convenient. It requires practice or a certain level of strength for ghosts to affect the physical world and it drains them to do so for a long time. Although she was not affected at all, saying that she has been a ghost for a long time and she would not be troubled by it. That said, she explained to me that even though ethereal beings are not to be touched easily, there are people who can do so. She told me that those kinds of people can be either those with strong spiritual power or those using magic, even special objects can do things like that. I can still recall the shriek she gave off as soon as I showed my kasha and blue flames. It seemed that those were ultra dangerous for them, just like the holy element for devils.

"How is it? Do you think it is acceptable? If not, I would be happy to take you with me and we could heal you." Amaterasu-sama called out.

The person, fox, she spoke to, just stood there and shook her head, taking a deep breath.

No one else said anything, the exorcists seemed still wary of her but wouldn't dare to openly show it off. While the ones behind me were unexpectedly relaxed about it, Raikou-san's gaze was on me so it seemed that she was ignoring her surroundings, Ei-san kept muttering the names of sweets she planned to ask me, and Musashi-san... that gal got guts to doze off sitting in seiza before Amaterasu-sama. The youkai ones were looking in awe at Tamamo-san like she was some sort of holy being.

Yeah, this is not going to end well for those who have high expectations.

"I was originally drained of strength so I feel exhausted, but I think I can manage this way. I am truly grateful for your kind offer but I will have to refuse. I have already plans for the future." Tamamo-san muttered with her eyes closed and extending a hand towards Amaterasu-sama.

Groaning, or perhaps pouting sadly (hard to say with that strange light covering her face), Amaterasu-sama handed over the magatama she held to Tamamo-san. The kitsune nodded and respectfully bowed to the goddess and began walking my way with slow steps. Not only Yasaka-san reacted by grabbing the sleeve of my haori while she tried to stop from frolicking in her place, but Amagi-san as well. The catgirls looked nervous since there was a strange majestuous air exuded from Tamamo-san, but I patted them to calm them down.

It happened when Tamamo-san was two steps away from me, she opened her eyes and her eyes wandered around lightly before she focused on me. I could feel the grip on my haori getting tighter when Tamamo-san looked at the foxes, but that did not bother me. My eyes locked with the pink-haired kitsune and I unconsciously chuckled, and the kitsune suddenly changed. Her grateful air disappeared like it was a lie when her pupils seemed like they became heart-shaped.

"Hubby!" Tamamo-san shouted.

Without holding herself back, she jumped on me. Thankfully, I managed to release myself from the hold I had been subjected to because Tamamo-san collided head first on my chest and pushed me backward for a bit. I swear to whoever you want, but I did not plan to crash onto the sleeping Musashi-san.

The position became awkward, Musashi-san lay below, and I came on top of her with my head resting in heaven and Tamamo-san on top of me, frolicking as she rubbed her head on my chest.

So much for having trouble for being ethereal.

Please, stop that strangely creepy laugh... and don't take in my aroma, I am sweaty.

...

...

...

The embarrassed Musashi-san looked cute, but she did not dare to move until I did so. The burning jealous gaze of Suzaku and Raikou-san was burdensome but nothing happened, thankfully. Tamamo-san behaved herself when I told her to let me take my previous position and before the bigger cat could complain, Tamamo-san took both the bigger cat and the smaller cat in a tight hug, rubbing her cheeks with theirs.

I did not miss my chance and pulled my camera, taking a picture of the girls, and... the stunned foxes. They were frozen in place and were not moving. The shock probably was more than they could handle. Nonetheless, I saved the images since it was a rare event.

Wait, not only the foxes are frozen, but everyone else. The most composed ones could be said to be the other figures accompanying Amaterasu-sama, like Susanoo-sama who was cracking on the ground.

"Hahahaha! No, my insides, my insides! She always bragged that her child was so graceful and composed, ahahaha!"

"Fufu, don't laugh too much. She will get mad at you later."

And Tsukuyomi-sama who could not stop herself from giggling. That said, Shiki-sama had a faint smile that I happened to capture on camera, and I thankfully did not have a flash to avoid being detected and suffering her wrath.

...

...

...

The rebooting of the frozen ones took long enough to remind me of a certain OS that my old computer had. Still, the serious air from before was all gone now that I had to take turns patting two jealous catgirls and a fox one who burned with competitiveness for affection, although I could tell that she was hiding her exhaustion.

"*Cough* Then I will take her body and we will try to fix it as fast as possible, in the meantime, she will be staying inside the magatama. Do you have a question?" Amaterasu-sama asked.

"Will there any exorcists trying to kill her?" I said.

"I will make sure that no one will try to do it, but I will not lie to you by saying that no one will try any underhanded methods or use pawns." Amaterasu-sama muttered in a bitter tone. "The current state of five families is quite stable since they maintain a strict order in their ranks since they were instructed to do so since ancient times. However, the emerging families or those outside them are another matter. In that regard, I will have to ask you to proceed with caution if you ever find yourself in their territory."

Nodding at that, I was at least relieved that no one will pull anything obvious on me. I also felt somewhat happy that I will not have to fight Suzaku since it would be quite obvious that she is from the five clans.

"In addition, from what I heard from my daughter,  you have an interesting plan. I would like to hear it in more detail." Amaterasu-sama said.

"If it is possible, I would like to speak in private with you first. There are some parts that do not concern the present parties." I muttered.

Since Tamamo-san spilled the beans, I should take my chances. As silly as she is, she must've considered my chances before speaking. So I will confirm first the details she spoke to Amaterasu-sama in private, I am not sure how detailed was her explanation to the goddess after all.

"I would also like to talk to Shiki-sama if possible." I said.

Tilting her head, Shiki-sama pointed at herself in surprise. However, after seeing Amaterasu-sama nod, she accepted easily.

"In respect to my daughter's wish, I will listen. However, that is the only thing I will promise." Amaterasu-sama reminded me.

----------------------------------------

3rd Person POV

With slow and heavy steps, Forest Wraith helped Kasen to walk to her room.

"Damn, you are heavy. Did you gain weight lately?" Forest Wraith lightly complained.

"Haaaaah, if, haaaaah, I had the strength, huh, I would, urgh, send you flying, haaaaah, bastard." Kasen scolded with difficulty.

Her breath sounded laborious and she had trouble keeping her eyes open.

"Please go easy on me, I broke the rules master set for me, I am about to disappear." Forest Wraith muttered.

"...sorry, haaaaah, because of me..." Kasen said.

"As a shikigami, I can be summoned again after I disappear, but nothing can replace a real person like you. Master would be angry at me for letting you die so I had to step in." Forest Wraith wryly spoke.

Arriving at the room in question, he laid down the woman with some difficulty.

"I will put the box back into the barrier and put a seal on it again. It should prevent it from taking advantage of you in your weakened state. Jeez, even though I told you that letting you fight will arouse your instincts and cause your body to go berserk. You might've taken a huge portion out but your race will always show up. Resisting the destructive urges while you still can't maintain full control of yourself is bound to cause troubles." Forest Wraith scolded. "After I put the seal, I will be unsummoned. Master will sense that the barrier lacks me, and might wake up. However, there is not a guarantee that it will occur soon. If you are about to lose sight of yourself, go destroy some rock or fight that annoying flower woman. Master will not mind if you destroy this place but refrain from going to the Urakyoto. Ok?"

After saying his piece, the shikigami left without waiting for any sort of response.

Alone in the room, Kasen chuckled at the fact the shikigami had left her in her futon, in a comfortable position. She thought that it was not honest when it was angry, a trait that is shared with a certain someone.

"Hopefully... nothing bad will happen." Kasen sighed. "That sounded like a terrible flag, I better try to sleep. Haaaaah, if I relax my mind... I will not get the urges. Haaaaah, urgh, it is really embarrassing that after all this time, I can't overcome my past..."

Shaking her head, Kasen tried to empty her mind. Even now, she wanted to have her weapon in hand and decimate Nora's enemies, but thoughtless slaughter will not make anyone happy. She will only create more enemies and her sins will continue to grow. The Emma had said it, she had made progress, so she just had to continue doing it until her sins were forgiven so she could once again walk freely.

Part 3

MC's POV

After I left with the goddess and the Emma, we spent talking for a long time, enough to say, I could not get all the information I wanted but many of my ideas were given a green light since they did not go against any tradition or rule.

Well, what I mostly wanted was for my own benefit, but using certain loopholes, I could make the life easier for those excluded by the extra families. Through the events of Slash Dog, you can learn how dangerous some of those cast away by the five clans can be and how much damage they can cause. I did not express the events to the two, but I hinted at the possibility. The two were smart enough and having lived for such a long time, they probably figured out the rest based on experience. Thus, I got an ok in my quest of recruiting people. This way, I could acquire manpower and avoid stray exorcists causing trouble, instead, making them help out maintaining order. That said, it would not be as easy as it sounded. I had to convince them first. I had good chances with people like Sona-chan's future queen, whom I plan to let her join that girl from an early age, since she faced heavy bullying and the like for her ability, but those that have set their minds to get revenge will not be easy. On the bright side, I could make people like Tobio and the rest free of problems due to their sacred gears as long as they do not get ideas of going to the evil side.

All considered I think I did a good job.

By the time we went back to the rest, the afternoon had mostly gone by. The catgirls were curled up in Tamamo-san's lap, and from the look on their faces, the fox girl managed to win them over. That made me very happy and brought a smile to my face. The worried gaze of Raikou-san and Suzaku greeted me too so I nodded at them to reassure them. Yasaka-san and Amagi-san had a distant look, so I only prayed in my heart that Tamamo-san's real personality did not shock them that much.

"I have made you wait for a long time, however, I will have to trouble you to give me more of your time." Amaterasu-sama declared as soon as she stepped into the room.

Shiki-sama followed behind in a contemplative mood that did not leave her after the conversation we had, and she was probably considering my request.

I walked closer to Tamamo-san who gently cuddled the catgirls and I noticed that she looked translucent.

"Tamamo-san, you..." I called out.

She shook her head and smiled.

"I played a bit too much with them. Sorry, I wanted to spend some time with you as well, but I was curious about your light. I have certainly seen it, these two are truly important to you to the point it makes me a bit jealous." Tamamo-san chuckled. "The smaller one got more attached than the old one, she is not releasing the magatama you left here at all."

Wryly smiling, I gently helped Tamamo-san by taking her place as the girls' pillow. Using my thighs, I let them rest.

"Don't be like that, you and I share a special relationship after all that." I muttered. "They would be jealous if they knew that you came to know more about me than they do."

Chuckling at my words, Tamamo-san gently caressed my face.

"I see, then this beautiful fox girl will not be that jealous." Tamamo-san smiled. "I feel a little tired so I will go on ahead, I will probably slumber for some time since I am not used to this form yet, but don't get lonely, ok~?"

Playfully winking at me, the fox girl entered the magatama.

That girl is a toughie, she still had the energy to flirt at the end.

"Yasaka-san." I called out.

"Eh? Ah! Nora-kun, welcome back. Was there anything wrong?" Yasaka-san snapped out of her musings.

Poor Yasaka-san, the shock was that great.

"Could you take these two back to Urakyoto? I am not sure how long will these talks take so I want them to go to bed since they must be tired. Today was a long day filled with many events after all." I smiled wryly.

"Jeez, you are unbelievable, using the leader of the western youkais as your convenient teleportation shuttle." Yasaka-san complained.

"I can't do it myself and there is no other person who can take them home." I shrugged my shoulders.

Wait, there are some of her subordinates loitering outside this place so they could be an option.

"You should also go home, you had it rougher than anyone else." Yasaka-san muttered in a worried tone.

"I am tougher than what I look, besides, there are many things that need to be finished here. The finer details are not done yet so I have to stay." I said.

Honestly, I wanted to nap but I can hold on with my ki keeping my body awake. This is a precious chance I will not get again and it could make things easier for many people I know, Yasaka-san being one of those people. She won't get headaches for dealing with exorcists that much now so it is worth putting in the effort. Besides, I can recover my ki faster now, although I can't be completely sure of the reason. My ki pool will be filled at max soon after absorbing the surrounding ki after we settled here for the talks.

"*Sigh* I will drop them at your place and come back for you." Yasaka-san declared. "You are such a handful, I know that you want to help me but it saddens me that you push yourself this hard. Saya-chan will beat me up if she finds out that you are forcing this much for my sake, you know?"

It is scary because it could actually happen, during their spars, there was this one time Kaa-san was jealous because I spent more time with Yasaka-san than with her, and... well... things got destroyed, my fist garden was flattened so even though the spar came to a draw, I was the one who lost.

Chuckling at her words, I winked playfully at her.

"I guess this makes it our secret then." I said.

"Excuse me, I know that you guys want to flirt, but it is painful for me to watch." Amagi-san muttered. "Yacchan, please hold back until he is old enough, ok?"

Her words caused Yasaka-san to blush.

"Jeez, don't tease me. It is not like that!" Yasaka-san grabbed the catgirls and teleported away in a flash.

I was left stunned by her reaction and looked fearfully at Amagi-san. This lady was too amazing, she made Yasaka-san blush in seconds.

"Sensei..." I could not help but mutter. "Teach me the way to tease Yasaka-san more effectively."

I ignored the looks of 'what is that kid saying' that I got from the bystander and pleaded.

"If I do that, you will tease Yacchan when you have the chance... Hmmm, it will trouble her..." Amagi-san tilted her head. "Alright!"

I was given thumbs up.

Hehehe.

--------------------------------------------------------

3rd Person POV

"The cultist have provided with some information before, before considering Tamamo no Mae, we did consider the youkai leaders as a creature to seal in sacred gears, however, they preferred Tamamo due to her strength. Now, she is much weaker." Augusta spoke.

"So you want to target the youkai leaders now?" Hanezu inquired.

"Oh, I wouldn't dare. Yasaka defenses will take too much time to crack down before we can use her for the experiment and the bottle-headed youkai is hard to even spot. The rest are even more troublesome so I say that we stick to the plan." Augusta said.

Frowning his eyebrows, Hanezu was not sure what she meant.

"She will be taken by Amaterasu-sama so we can't get her." Hanezu muttered.

"Oh dear, I would not be so sure. For whatever reason, she wants to remind at the side of that cat. Thus, we still have a chance." Augusta said.

"What do you mean? No, how do you know? Eavesdropping is nearly impossible with the chief gods there." Hanezu reasoned.

Shaking her head, Augusta pulled out an old-fashioned cellphone.

"It is quite funny how those people do not have a bottom line when it comes to certain matters. They want to get rid of the nine-tailed fox so badly that they resorted to giving me some information to accomplish that goal." Augusta laughed. "She is on her way to Urakyoto, we do have a chance."

"Urakyoto is under the jurisdiction of Yasaka, you told me that she is a troublesome one." Hanezu muttered.

"That is why it is so interesting, they just told me she is in the temple, after leaving for Urakyoto for a moment, she came back. Our target is in a magatama and it is held by a little girl. Easy target." Augusta spoke.

Not fully convinced, Hanezu expressed his worries.

"Entering that place uninvited is not easy, not to mention, our forces will clash with the ones there, they might not be enough." Hanezu said.

"The cultist once had an aspirant to join their rank and he left them with some interesting info about a backdoor that none else but him knew, it is quite reliable the information since he was the disciple of an important youkai that went missing years ago." Augusta smiled maliciously. "Besides, if you think we are lacking in people, there is not much of an issue. As a Longinus user, my might should not be underestimated and my disciple also has a sacred gear. Not to mention... Satanael expressed his support by sending various of his people, the Abby's Team."

Widening his eyes, Hanezu did not expect that Satanael would go that far. Those were his students and while he did not protect them as a teacher would, he did place importance on them as an experimental subject so he only used them when he was certain that they will be able to come back in one piece.

Watching the malicious smile on Augusta's face, Hanezu hesitated briefly, however, he was already cornered and desperate so he had no other choice. All for revenge.

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