[Part 1/4]
The demon (oni) had said that when Botan tried to infiltrate as a shikigami. It was boring. She wouldn't get involved. And then she left. Botan had thought it was just a clever way for the snake to intervene... but...
"So... could it be?"
Botan is shocked and stunned as she considers this possibility. She glares at the snake. Could it be... that the demon's (oni) words predicted this!?
'Hee hee hee. It's just a matter of experience, right? Or maybe it's a cunning tactic. Oh well.'
"Damn it!! I hate it!!"
Botan feels like she's biting a bitter pill as she imagines the triumphant smiles of the snake and the demon, who is probably wandering and playing sowhere. She feels like she's been played like a toy in the palm of their hands. It's infuriating. Really, really infuriating!! It's like we've all been toyed with!!
'(＾▽＾) Little sister! At a ti like this, make sure to take your calcium and iron supplents!!'
"Wait, are you misunderstanding sothing?"
The succubus girl, in a near-scream, calls out the white spider sister's advice, which is both off the mark and right on target, as she reigns over the bear's palm...
* * *
"Hehehe. What a strange coincidence! It seems the human world is much smaller than we think."
At the sa ti that the commotion was unfolding in the town's inn street and the bookstore in the Outer Area, a noble-looking woman with an umbrella was laughing in the crowd.
Tap, tap, tap, she walked gracefully, twirling her umbrella playfully, and smiled as if she saw sothing very funny. Her beautiful face twisted like a fierce carnivorous beast... and then, recalling that thought, her mocking smile turned into a wry grin, and she sang sweetly like a maiden.
"Ah, my dear siblings, how pitiful, our fated paths, where are they now... don't you think?"
Rembering the sister of soone she bumped into earlier, she reflected on the distant past and sang. She did it calmly, as if it were soone else's story. She joked around as if enjoying a play.
No, for her, it was fine if everything felt like soone else's business. She had already settled her obligations in the past. It was proven that everything balanced out. The answers she was worried about were finally revealed. Therefore, she had no more responsibilities to bear...
"...What are you singing so carefree about? Using your sister as an excuse to co back, huh?"
A blue demon, who had joined her without her noticing, teased her. Holding various skewers in both hands, he casually ate and skillfully pulled the cork from the gourd hanging around his neck, taking a swig. He let out a loud, boozy breath and grinned.
"Pretty sharp, aren't you? To carve mories into the flesh you feed on, that's a thod only possible this ti."
Embedding mories into hrt own dead flesh, becoming one with the predator's flesh, transcending ti. By borrowing high-quality and abundant "spiritual energy" from the host connected to the Great Spiritual Veins, the seed sprouts.
It cos back to life. Normally, this would be a thod with very low certainty. But knowing the future made this trick possible. Truly, a cunning youkai. She made good use of the opportunity.
"How outrageous. Everything is for family, and my concerns were correct..."
Thinking of the foolish yet lovable state of his younger sisters, especially the one she cared for the most, she sighed deeply... What a hassle. She had accepted that she would have to hide, and after carefully educating her, this was the result. Even in such an unstable and pitiful state, she was convinced it was the right choice.
...That man, how could he treat that spider, which could be called his heart, like that? Leaving his lifeline in soone else's hands, just like the demands from the snowy mountains before, does he enjoy dying?
"Kehehe. Well, that's one of his charms, isn't it? ...So? What will you do? Go directly to that ghost about how to handle your sisters?"
"Are you joking? Just let show my face now. Who knows how much I'll be toyed with in my head?"
In fact, the black fox had sensed that the good-for-nothing had subtly guided her beloved youngest sister to cause a ruckus in the city. It was quite sothing that as soon as she died, they didn't hold back at all. Was it a wasteful spirit, perhaps?
"So?"
"Can I stay for a bit? It seems like a fun mix of a snake and a succubus... adding one more fox now wouldn't hurt, right? After all, we're from the sa hotown?"
"Do you think they'll let you in?"
"If they didn't intend to, we wouldn't have reached this 'conclusion,' would we?"
The fox's words were indeed sharp.
Once upon a ti, a fox casually shared so nonsense with a demon. It was an indirect way of guiding thoughts about a delicate plan set in the distant past. That was the setup... I see, the white fox's self-made performance must have been quite boring. It was natural not to intervene, and even that was an action the black fox had anticipated, leading to a path that was followed without question. Such behavior is the cleverness that demons (oni) dislike. It was almost an insult to the pride of demons...
'Did you trap ?'
'Of course not. I offered it sincerely, with good intentions, and presented it to you, didn't I?'
In the busy street, the demon (oni) and the fox faced each other. They looked at one another, both smiling widely while exuding a murderous intent.
'...'
'...'
Amidst the noise of the crowd, a silence flowed only between the two. It wouldn't be surprising if a violent scene erupted at any mont, engulfing the unsuspecting bystanders.
The silence continued endlessly. It went on and on, and... everything that begins must co to an end.
'...Hahaha!'
The demon laughed heartily, holding its belly.
'Haha! Hahahaha! Hahahahaha! Haah!! ...Well, retroactive application of the law is forbidden! So, I'll let this one slide!'
Wiping tears from her eyes, the demon showed her fangs and declared to the fox.
'After all, it's just a trivial matter from the past. We should enjoy the present, right? A backward life is boring. Don't you think?'
'Hehe. I completely agree.'
'Hahahahaha! Right? Right? Being gloomy doesn't suit us!!'
The demon, pretending to be carefree and lively, arrogantly wielded her own law to pass judgnt, while the fox lightly accepted it. It was a deception and a farce. It was truly ridiculous.
The fox knew. If it was this demon, it would overlook the sche if presented in this way. She would dislike having painful mories dug up. She would likely brush it off and let it go. And the demon sensed that too. Aware of it, she played along. Escaping reality was the demon's specialty. Even if she harbored a sinister intent inside, she showed no signs of it. Not yet, it was not that ti...
'Well then, since we're here, how about we have a welco party together?'
'I'd love to say that's a great idea, but do you have any money? Unfortunately, I'm broke.'
'Don't worry. I have this.'
'What's that... a wooden card?'
The demon displayed a luxurious card, painted black with lacquer and adorned with gold leaf and red designs. It probably had so kind of curse embedded in it.
'What is that?'
'Black card.'
'Black card?'
'Yep. Black card!'
The demon spoke proudly, saying that showing this card would cover all paynts at a certain rchant's store. There were other perks too, but... well, the demon wasn't really paying attention to those details.
'The important thing is that if you show this, you can eat and drink at affiliated restaurants, bars, and tea houses without paying! Hehehe, isn't that amazing?'
This wooden card was a post-paynt system started mainly for wealthy rchants, proposed by the daughter of the wealthy Tachibana family... It was still in the trial phase, but so appreciated not having to carry large sums of money all the ti. In fact, this card was borrowed from that Tachibana daughter.
'Is it like a handprint, like a credit system? In daily life, I guess this is fine. But... how did you manage to borrow it? If they find out, it seems like it would be imdiately stopped, right? Are you okay?'
'No, no, I got this.'
'...That's quite reckless.'
The fox still knew nothing, but this was a peace offering from the noble lady to the demon. She knew that with just a whim, the demon could easily kill her, and the wooden tag had the aspect of an offering to the demon. It was a tribute to plead for survival.
...But that was just the surface reason. If soone usually spends money recklessly, a little change in the amount paid wouldn't be a big deal. The noble lady had prepared 3 more black wooden tags for the paynt contract addressed to her beloved man.
If anything, she was eagerly waiting for the mont to present the tags while bowing down naked with a collar, but the man himself didn't know, and neither did the demon or the fox care.
'Well then, let's go!! Hahaha! Let's have a blast and drink like crazy today!!'
Laughing loudly, the demon started walking toward the tea house. The fox let out a mixed sigh of exasperation and admiration at how things had changed since ancient tis, or perhaps how the demon had beco like a different person. That said, there was no way to miss out on a free al, so naturally, the fox followed behind.
...And then, the fox stopped once more and turned around. She looked in the direction where her beloved sister was likely to be. As if rembering, she began to weave words.
'Longing for you, dreaming lightly, without getting drunk... in a dream that won't wake, I have seen it all. Hehe, then it's my turn to indulge in this world. Until I get bored and tired, let's enjoy ourselves to the fullest. Don't you think so, Shiraki?'
Sending words filled with sadism, expectation, and love, it played a song of curses that resonated. Then, the black fox gracefully resud its steps.
That beautiful figure, standing tall, soon found herself buried in a sea of people, along with the demon, and before long, they vanished like dew...
Fanart:
A Halloween costu of the Princess Hina. She has an innocent expression, but her outfit is quite revealing: Link
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