[Part 3/4]
'Oh my. What's so funny? I'd love to know, you know? You can't keep all the fun to yourself, especially not a monkey like you, right?'
The fox cheerfully ordered to confess everything I knew. Her smile was cold and rciless. She then dug her toes into my side, cracking a few of my ribs like Pocky. I coughed up blood, and her face lit up with satisfaction, like a full moon. She acted like a superior, a ruler, a predator.
Beautiful yet terrifying. Truly, truly terrifying. and... that made it even more ridiculous.
"Ha! Well, that's... true, right? Ugh, you must have so idea... of your own fate. There's no way the clever fox doesn't understand it by now...!!?"
My pointed remark was a gamble for my life, but the punishnt for my arrogance never ca. In front of , the black fox narrowed her eyes, creating a serious atmosphere.
...Ah. I knew it. She understands, doesn't she?
'...My cute little step-sister. How will it end?'
She asked with a sharp tone, like an interrogation. Shiro trembled and then began to speak.
"I-I was injured by pursuers in... the barren land..."
'Injured?'
Shiro slowly and carefully ford her words, then fell silent. The black fox urged her to continue. Silence was not allowed.
"...I followed the fate and... you were devoured."
Shiro took a mont of silence to share the truth in a shaky voice. Her face tightened with fear as she finished. It might have seed weak, especially since she had once prepared for suicide. But Shiro was truly afraid and braced herself for her step-sister's reaction.
'...Hmm. So.'
A surprisingly light reaction. And then, the pressure of the footstep intensified, and I scread like an animal.
'So you were trying to make so kind of deal, with the avoidance of my death as a condition? Too bad, I can see that you had nothing to do with my death.'
She shrugged, mocking . With her toes, she skillfully manipulated and twisted her legs, forcing them into the gaps between my ribs. She was toying with . Screams and cries filled the air.
"Tomobe-san...!!"
'Nice lody. It's like a at instrunt, isn't it? Kouka would be delighted.'
"Please stop...!! Ane-sama!? Please stop, I beg of you...!!"
'Be quiet!'
Shiro rushed to stop the attack, but the black fox glared at her. That look was enough to blind Shiro, who was confused. She collapsed, looking around in panic, as if she had lost her vision. She turned and scread endlessly, but her voice didn't reach . Had she lost her ability to speak too? It seed like all her senses were gone. She was a lost lamb.
'...You've really fooled thoroughly. You, my step-sister, with the potential to grow nine tails, are truly pathetic. Where did future go wrong in your education?'
She held her cheek, sighing deeply as if in great distress. The disappointing state of her supposed talented being, and her own failure in raising her that way, seed to be giving her vertigo.
'Well then... what should I do with you?'
"Killing this body... will just send my soul back to the original ti, right?"
I declare triumphantly to the fox, who seems to be deep in thought. I feel bad for the owner of this body, but the worst-case scenario can be dealt with that way. If anything, the mont she kill or the princess, the 'end' will co...
'Oh, how naive. Even if killing you is hard, I can make you suffer as much as I want, you know? I could let you experience a living hell without dying, or stretch out the ti to the limit. The mind and body are one. Should I break your soul and send you back?'
"A hopeless case. as expected of a fox... such a dirty mindset!"
I can't help but admire the wicked suggestion that spills out so easily. And then... I start to point sothing out.
"Think about it... This technique is... sothing you teach to Shiro, right? Then, you should have been able to use it yourself. So... haha, why didn't you use it?"
'What are you trying to say?'
"It's a continuation of my suggestion...!"
Coughing up blood and gasping for breath, I demand further explanation. I hope she will go along with it...
'...Those are unpleasant eyes. It seems like breaking you will be tough. What do you want?'
Looking down at with a frown, the fox asks, seeming annoyed. Oh, is she interested?
"It's about balancing things out... Please alter the mories of that girl, your sister?"
That was a proposal to cleverly exploit the loophole in the technique...
* * *
In the true history, Shiro's past is a tragedy in a naless village on the outskirts. A small tragedy buried in the darkness of history.
...It was indeed, a very ordinary incident.
In the original story, villages often got destroyed, especially during Shiro's childhood. Half-youkai like her were killed too, and there were no records of it──only mories of those involved. So, Shiro's mories are the only proof of her past.
And personal mories aren't always reliable.
There are theories like Schrödinger's cat that say you can't know the answer to sothing until it's observed. Facts only exist through observation, which can change the event itself. This makes truth vague and unclear.
So, can't we think that the techniques we've used have already shaped official history? The history the white fox knows might not be the real truth.
'In other words, you want to manipulate mories so that my little step-sister misunderstands the official history?'
"Your understanding is quick... that helps...!!"
The arrogant black fox and the human being trampled upon shared a mont of understanding. But the black fox snorted dismissively.
'What advantage do I gain from such adjustnts? Rather, I think it would be more aningful to do as I please and alter my ridiculous fate, don't you think?'
Her own death. And the foolish little sister's upbringing. Those are certainly worth altering. Especially for the black fox, who exists in the past and not in the future. She will change everything now and alter the future. It will be a stepping stone for her salvation... but I deny that.
"That's why, I told you earlier, right? Why didn't you use the sa technique when you were dying? Why didn't you let your little step-sister use it?"
That's right. That's what's funny. They say youkai foxes should kill in one surprise attack, but it's not just about illusions; it's also about avoiding death through changing the past. That's why it doesn't make sense.
There was ti to let Shiro consu herself. So why didn't she use the sa technique during that ti? Was she weak? If so, then couldn't she have used her clumsy but strong little sister as a battery to help? The black fox should be able to do that.
Sothing feels off. It's unreasonable. Illogical... no, that's not it. It was probably reasonable and logical. Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense.
'...So, I was accepting my own death, right?'
"You did it calmly... you let yourself be devoured. You even seed satisfied. It's not impossible, right?"
Part of this is from Shiro and part from the original still images or lines... more like imagination. It's a kind of delusion. But it wasn't an impossible story.
'What's the reason? If I was accepting my own death, there must be so purpose, right?'
"Sorry, but... I don't know. It's all my imagination. Just a guess. But you should know yourself best. Right? What do you think?"
At my point, the fox falls silent. She rests her hand on her chin, thinking deeply. She looks troubled. and then...
'What exactly do you want to do?'
"I want you to make Shiro... recognize that her mother is dead."
'Isn't that sothing you could actually do by killing her?'
That was a cruel and sadistic remark, but I expected it. So I imdiately respond without hesitation.
"That's true. But... she's your sister, right? The sister you trained in the techniques and stayed with until the end? The sister you raised to be a softie?"
That was the truth. The black fox, who had many step-sisters, favored the white fox and could never kill her mother. It didn't make sense, even practically. I wasn't sure if she really spoiled her. She might see the The white fox's brain miso pudding as a secret treat, but it also seed like a weird way to tornt a creature.
"Anyway... If it's found out, I might get stabbed? Don't you think it's a pathetic end to be killed by a sister you trusted?"
'You're quite the silver-tongued devil, aren't you? Of course, a male monkey, you're an expert at talking your way around won.'
The black fox's comnts on my ideas were sarcastic and spiteful, full of facts. It was like a bad salesman trying to sell speculation as truth, built on a shaky foundation of sand.
However, the black fox also understood that she couldn't deny it. And... her heart's balance had already tipped.
'...Hmm. Well, that girl over there. Good for you? I'll let you go. Do your best to survive.'
The black fox spoke to the crouching woman, Ine or the lustful princess, with a cold laugh. Her tone hinted at the tough future ahead. Even if the woman survived here, the challenges she would face after being driven from her holand were endless. It was clear she would likely die sowhere soon, worn out and exhausted.
'So, if there's a possibility, that's good enough, is it? How irresponsible and hateful. I almost want to crush it.'
"Ggh... That's fine by !"
The sound of bones cracking echoed. The fox and I laughed at each other. Only the mother-princess had an indescribable expression, looking away. She couldn't say anything, just silently accepting her fate. Whose will was this, I wonder...?
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