Part 1

MC's POV

"Good grief, I told you, we can't make a tournament to choose the strongest cat!" I sighed.

Staring at Kuroka-chan who had a disappointed expression, I felt bad, but I hardened my heart and did not give in.

Typing the last characters of a novel in my room, I had been called out by Kuroka-chan. The cat girl who had out of nowhere proposed to something strange was even more pushy than usual.

"Nora-nya! The importance of it is not something you can just ignore-nya." Kuroka insisted.

"Humor me then, why is it so important?" Nora asked.

"Those cheeky ones are taking my nap spots-nya." Kuroka-chan fumed.

With her arms crossed, the silly one put on an angry expression.

For me, it was more like she was pouting. Our neighbors, the cat brigade, had come with the purpose of mating with me, a male nekoshou. They have rather behaved because Kuroka-chan had disciplined them when she met them, but it seems they have forgotten their gruesome (?) defeat.

"You can always find another place..." I sighed.

Allowing a tournament where people who can get too excited can participate seems like a disaster will happen.

"No-nya! It is a matter of principles-nya! As the ruler of the cats, we must make sure our orders are absolute-nya!" Kuroka-chan exclaimed.

"Wait for a moment." I opened the window of my room.

As luck would have it, some cat girls were loitering outside my window.

"Those cheeky ones-nya." Kuroka-chan seemed ready to attack.

"I am a little thirsty, could you guys get me some water?" I smiled.

Asking something absurd to the group who seemed to be getting ready to take a nap was something mean. However-

"On it!"

"You forgot the 'nya'"

"You also did it, you fool... nya."

The three cat girls mumbled odd things but they ran away like they had an extra pair of legs on them. Soon enough, my room received three guests who eagerly handed me glasses of water, along with some dried fish on a plate, watermelon on a tray, and some sort of cat toy.

"Thank you." I took their offerings.

Bashfully laughing, they left.

"I don't think they are doing something bad." I shrugged my shoulders. "They usually do what I ask them."

"Traitor-nya!" Kuroka-chan pointed at me.

No, why?

Shaking my head, I grabbed some dried fish and put it in Kuroka-chan's mouth.

Despite looking at me begrudgingly, her mouth was honestly munching on the fish.

"Well, they would not dare to bully you since I was extremely clear and stressed the minimum expectations I had with their behavior." I recalled when I met them.

It was a tale where friendship was formed amidst their competitive spirit given that they all had to face me as their foe.

Following my Shishou's advice, you can tell someone's intentions by clashing against them.

"I am supposed to be their leader-nya." Kuroka-chan sulked.

No, no, their leader is Magari.

"You can nap in my room-" I did not finish my words when Kuroka-chan had already laid a futon beside me.

Getting on the futon, she waved at me to join her.

"No, I still have job to do..." I smiled wryly.

Pouting at my answer she stood and angrily came towards me.

"I thought you wanted to sleep..." I mumbled.

"I wanted to cuddle with Nora-nya." Kuroka-chan changed into her cat form and jumped onto my lap.

I thought she would just nap like that like she does often, but changed back to her human form.

Sitting on my lap, she made the unnecessary gesture of grinding her cute ass on my lap more than necessary as she made herself comfortable. Her tails surrounded my waist and she reached for mine and wrapped her waist.

"If Nora-nya will not come to nap with me-nya, just like a good kitty-nya... I have no choice but to do this-nya." Kuroka-chan spoke in a righteous tone.

Rolling my eyes at her nonsense, I just hugged her.

"I believe you know the rules, from a certain point onwards, girls cannot sit on my lap." I said.

For the sake of my sanity and to keep a healthy relationship, I cannot allow girls who have 'grown up' too much to sit on my lap. Shirone-chan for example is technically allowed to sit in my lap as long as she keeps her Loli form. The shrewd one has been keeping the secret from everyone and if I did not have my ability, I would be worried sick given that I know that a Shirone-chan who did not repress her nekomata side will grow more, ahem, like Kuroka-chan. Her gang members are mostly safe for now, but I believe that soon, Charlotte will be banned for sitting in my lap given how much she has, ahem, grown.

"I am a VIP-nya." Kuroka-chan smugly proclaimed. "Rules are for the common folk."

Lightly chopping her head for playing around, I allowed her actions. We would usually get interrupted so cuddling with just the two of us was getting rarer. While I did not dislike having the lively atmosphere in the house, spending some bonding time with your loved ones like this was priceless.

"...how does it feel?" I asked.

Holding her hand, I noticed a certain symbol that would shine as soon as our hands brushed each other. It was given numerous names such as stigma or magic circle but it was simply proof of her contract with a familiar, they would usually be drawn on the ground on air at the moment of the invocation, however, we did some changes to how it usually works. They could be hidden or displayed at will, but given the uniqueness of this particular contract, it was no wonder why it reacted to me. It is quite interesting how doing this and that to the spell to store weapons in my body could help me to store even living beings using those. Well, the fairies had been the ones to do such a thing as well as Tamamo, however, given that Spiritualization is like a fusion of sorts and we became one, the spell was not impossible since the beginning. The only downside would be that a certain child who insists on getting 'stored' inside me.

"She is a good child so she does not give me trouble-nya." Kuroka-chan said.

Touching the back of her hand, she purposely revealed the tattoo-like stigma. It was proof that she contracted a familiar and was storing that child in there, or in some cases, it would work as a summoning catalyst. I also had the same stigma and that is because-

"I hope you take care of her." I smiled wryly.

"Hmhp, she is always asking for Nora-nya..." Kuroka-chan sulkily said. "...I guess it is because I should not have anything to do with her-nya."

"Don't say that. The contract was split and we both can summon her." I spoke. "The burden of an Elemental of her kind is too big for any of us to carry so we have no choice but to share it."

It is a bit of a white lie given that I am taking care of supplying that elemental child with ki. Regular spirits and fairies are usually the types to take the ki of ambiance and they do not absorb too much so using them is very convenient. Nonetheless, you can supply them with your own energy to raise their outputs. Elementals are a bit more tricky since they end up growing stronger and have more connection to their element, they are also harder to 'control'. The real issue here is that Kuroka-chan's strength is not exactly enough to correctly wield that child's powers. I am not really there either but those children (fairies) are usually obedient enough, the same happened with that Elemental who would just do whatever I asked. Such a fact, I learned later on, but at that time, I wanted Kuroka-chan to have a trump card of sorts so I suggested the cat to contract her... but it did not go well and I had to step in.

"Nora-nya, can you teach me that technique-nya?" Kuroka-chan suddenly asked with sparkles in her eyes.

"You mean... 'that' technique....?" I asked.

I felt surprised since I did not expect to hear that.

"Yes-nya!" Kuroka-chan nodded.

"Alright, since you are so interested in learning, I will teach you about... the 'Talk-no-jutsu'. The origins are really obscure, and what it was originally intended has been lost in history but- ouch." I rubbed my leg where Kuroka-chan had pinched me.

"Not that-nya!" Kuroka-chan got mad.

Why!?

"I want to use Spiritualization-nya! I want to try a new idea-nya, and become Super Kuroka-nya!" Kuroka-chan spoke in an excited tone.

Rolling my eyes, I expressed my disappointment due to her choice of the spell. Talk-no-jutsu is so useful, but no one seems to be interested in it.

"Let me guess, you want to fuse with that child?" I put my head above her shoulder.

Her hair smelled really nice. It seemed like putting my hand on making those kinds of products was a good idea since everyone liked them, although... I kind of miss her natural scent.

"Yes-nya! Super Kuroka-nya! I will be Kaijuu Kuroka-nya!" Kuroka-chan excitedly spoke.

"Yeah, not gonna happen." I sighed.

"Why-nya!?" Kuroka-chan seemed extremely shocked.

"With your current mentality, I doubt you will be able to take proper control. Tamamo always allows me to take command, but do never forget that the spell is similar to a possession, the host and the 'invader' struggle to control the body, and things will turn into a stalemate. The body will not move and your situation could get ugly." I explained to the shocked young lady. "That child is quite the scaredy cat, no pun intended, her mind will always be on high alert thus she will unconsciously refuse to allow anyone else to control the body she resides in. Worst case, she will take control and... well, not too much will change from her perspective."

A little discouraged, Kuroka-chan grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from my desk and began writing the line 'Nora-nya is a bully' in neat handwriting.

Smiling wryly, I took another pen and paper. I wrote in large kanji 'Kuroka-chan is pretty'. After the cat read it, she seemed to forgive me and drew a few hearts around my name. I did not want to lose so I did the same and that seemed to spur her competitive spirit since she added hearts whenever I did the same.

Our silly game continued for a while until Kuroka-chan stopped.

"...you won't teach me-nya?" Kuroka-chan asked again.

"I guess I have no choice." I sighed. "However, I will not allow you to try your luck with that child. Tamamo is the one you will practice with and only in my presence."

I would like to trust the fox and cat, but they can be quite chaotic when they hang out together. I am glad they get along nicely, but the bill I had to pay for their last outing together was too large.

"Always Tamamo-nya." Kuroka-chan sounded jealous.

"She says the same thing about you." I sighed.

Rubbing my head against her, Kuroka-chan did not complain again and copied my actions. My left hand went towards her hair and I gently caress it.

"It has grown beautifully." I honestly said.

After having her hair cut back then... this child was extremely depressed. I had my ways to make it long, but she refused and instead asked me to help her take care of it as it grew naturally.

"It is the proof-nya. Proof that Nora-nya never breaks his promises-nya." Kuroka-chan exclaimed. "You never considered it to be a pain-nya. You always cared for it-nya."

For me, it is more about making her happy so I would not cut corners.

"Nora-nya." Kuroka-chan suddenly asked. "When I told Sora-nya about what you have been doing, she told me that you were a huge fan of 'Princess Maker' and planned to eat your ultimate product."

That b*tch is so dead.

I will have to inform Yasaka-san that there will be one youkai less among the living.

"Ignore what she says. She is a pervert who has gone mad from her fetishes." I sighed.

Who the heck is raising a daughter using his own tastes? That woman is rude, I am not going to eat... the ultimate... product.

On second thought, I believe she is not wrong.

"...Nora-nya will not eat me-nya?" Kuroka-chan sounded disappointed. "...I guess I need to grow bolder-nya."

Before I replied, Kuroka-chan became possessed, and very slowly, she began to twist her hips. It was a little awkward since she lacked experience, but she was without a doubt trying to entice me.

I want to beat the part of me that reacted to that and considered letting this go on. I won't deny that my patience had limits and having been tempted by so many girls on daily basis was weakening my resolve.

My expression must've been a giveaway to my true thoughts because Kuroka-chan released her tail grip and grinding herself on me some more, she was not sitting sideway. She had a rather interesting smile that was her usual smug smile whenever she accomplished a victory against me, but there was something else, a truly pleased and lewd smile was directed at me.

"What is it-nya? Is there something wrong-nya?" Kuroka-chan 'curiously' asked.

Maintaining her smile, she put one hand around my waist to glue herself to me. Her face closed in and I could see my reflection in her eyes. Those pretty orbs of hers made me want to gaze at them all day and I knew I had to look away, but my eyes were attracted to something else. Her rosy lips seemed to have a very strong attractive force that grew stronger as they formed a grin.

I was already aware of it, but damn, I do love this silly cat girl.

"Nyahaha, I knew that Nora-nya would fall in my hands-nya." Kuroka-chan spoke. "As the Onee-san, Kuroka-nya will slowly... guide you-nya."

Sultrily blowing in my ear, she slowly put a hand on my chest and began to use her fingers to trace circles gently as they made their way down.

Honestly, I would've foolishly let her do a bit more but not go all the way, I still have that much self-control. However... she had to mutter that. As expected, Kuroka-nya will always be silly.

Who laughs like that when they try to set up the mood? Kuroka-chan, you dummy.

After inwardly complaining due to her lack of tact, I stopped her hands from going further down. I will only repeat it again once, yes, both hands. You would think only guys have an interest in the other gender's rear, but nope.

"Alright, it seems that Sora-san will have to teach you about tact. You did well, you almost got me there." I admitted.

I won't just crush her hopes... that often. I am not that mean.

The cat girl immediately pursed her lips sulkily.

"Why-nya?" Kuroka-chan asked. "Do you really not like me-nya?"

Understanding the implications that this question meant, I gave it some thought to how to answer.

"How could I not? Kuroka-chan presence warms my heart and just sticking close to you makes my day." I said.

Before she interrupted me, I placed a finger on her lips.

"I think you are pretty." I failed to express myself fully. "Just by looking at you, my heart beats nonstop. Those hazel-gold eyes are a dangerous weapon, if I don't divert my eyes and gaze at you for too long, I am afraid of being unable to escape... even if I am lucky enough, my eyes would surely land on those lovely rosy lips that just make want to have a taste of."

I could see how each word made the cat even more embarrassed, but she did not seem dissatisfied, rather, she looked eager for more as her eyes shined with expectations. Nonetheless, I am Nora, someone who will do as he pleases so I will be mischievous in my way of telling her the rest of my thoughts, and by no means has anything to do with the fact that I am embarrassed.

Leaning closer to her ears-

"We are still young, but once we have the appropriate ages..." I licked my lips. "I am going to eat you."

Her expectations were high and my words seemed to be lacking so whispered in her ears, things that would require censorship. I could feel her face heating up and somehow that only fueled my desire to tell her all the things I had in mind.

"My tongue will..." I lowered my head and licked the back of her neck.

Her whole body stiffened before trying to jump away, but I was not going to let her get away just yet.

Holding her place, my lips continued to whisper in a sweet tone as my hands began to slowly undress her. The cat girl who would chase me when her mating season came up to do this and that was unable to hold any longer. Part of her clothing was slipping off but she escaped for her dear life.

Giving me one last look as she passed the doorway, she looked extremely embarrassed.

"Nora-nya, I think that, uhm, we should take it easy-nya!" Kuroka-chan yelled. "Ecchi-nya!"

For someone who planned to do something consider a higher grade from 'ecchi', she has guts pointing fingers at me.

"Oh my, I guess Kuroka-chan is just a little innocent girl..." I spoke in a teasing tone. "Now that I think about it..."

Licking my lips slowly, I pointed at her.

"You tasted like a virgin!" I said.

"You are a virgin too-nya!!!" Kuroka-chan yelled and ran away.

"Hahahahaha." I could not help but laugh hard at that.

"Hubby is such a bully." Tamamo karate chopped my head.

The kitsune who appeared from the magatama looked at me like I was a troublesome child. I just smiled at her statement.

"You are just jealous." I stuck out my tongue at her.

"Muki!" Tamamo stamped her foot on the ground. "Oh, no, of course not. Tamamo would not be like that AT ALL!"

Expressing her frustration by stomping the innocent ground, I praised myself for making it sturdy but soft to the touch.

"Now you are angry with me, too bad, I was feeling like my lap was empty-" I did not finish my words before Tamamo had her head on my lap. "You change gears pretty fast huh."

Shrugging my shoulders, I began caressing her fluffy fox ears.

"Hmph." Tamamo only snorted in response.

"...thanks." I said.

"...hmm? I have not done anything worth- no, I guess having such a beautiful maiden like myself lying on your lap is already something to be thankful for, but Hubby does not need to feel pressured to express how happy you are by using words every time. That said, Tamamo would not mind if you cuddle her until she fell asleep next time." Tamamo proposed.

"You respected my time with the cat even though you had woken up a while ago." I muttered. "For me, that worth's not only one time, I could do it whenever you want."

"Jeez, hubby sure likes to use cheesy lines. Isn't it hot in here?" Tamamo began to fan her face.

It is nice to see her flustered about something so I planted a kiss on her forehead.

"You are hot, maybe that's why." I chuckled.

"Gaaah! Please don't say more lines like those!" Tamamo was deeply embarrassed. "Don't you feel any shame!?"

"Shame? What's that? Is it tasty?" I asked.

Covering her face with her hands for a second, Tamamo peeked at me from the gaps of her fingers.

"That aside, do you think you could lend her a hand? I am honestly afraid that she will try it when I am not looking so I would like to make it so that is you whom she seeks to do it outside my reach." I sighed.

"Very well, but only because Tamamocchi is the best! Remember that well." Tamamo nodded.

Now then, let's go and make some preparations before going through the next mission. I will be doing Serafall-san a favor, but my guts are telling me that it will take me longer to deal with it than I was originally told.

Diplomatic jobs can be interesting since I would sometimes get VIP treatment after visiting some factions, but just like that, I also get treated with animosity without apparent reason. Nonetheless, I have used my boundless luck to solve those problems.

Now then, how am I supposed to convince a dragon girl to let me pass into that place? Is my only choice hoodwinking her? No, I guess I should focus on not getting shot down by that child with a fighter jet complex. Having a normal conversation should be my goal.

...

...

...

"So, I will be taking my leave soon." I said.

After dropping by Yasaka-san's office, I began helping my beloved kitsune to take care of her paperwork and mentioned a certain detail.

Sitting on my left leg, the left side of my lap, Yasaka-san who was ready for a report about the profit of a festival that the Kamisato siblings invented, did not show much reaction, she just glanced at me and nodded. On the other hand, sitting on the other side of my lap, Kunou-chan reacted by dropping the damage report from a skirmish against exorcists.

"Eh? Nora-aniue. You are going to leave again?" Kunou-chan spoke in a sad tone of voice.

Putting on a pitiful expression, she even had tears gathered at the corner of her eyes.

"I give you 20 points from 100, I saw you use the drops to put on the fake tears." I sighed.

This child was naturally a prankster and became quite skilled at acting. It made me want to show off her skills for everyone to see how cute she is, but I only have a cursory understanding of the world of entertainment such as TV and the like. My plan to create idol units and TV shows has been going slowly since I only have focused on recruiting talented young ladies, but I have not purged- I mean, confirming if those in the business are worth keeping alive- I mean, if they have what it takes. My main concern is the uncanny rumors you can sometimes hear so it is a big no to expose my people to that. I have also plans to deal with the problems with the ones I bring from the slave market that require that I owe an entertaining company. Providing everything they need to recover and reincorporate in society is what I aim to accomplish and some of those children had careers in the entertainment world before disaster struck.

"Nora-aniue is harsh." Kunou-chan stuck out her tongue.

"You need to practice more." I shrugged my shoulders.

Patting her head afterward, I sulkily glared at Yasaka-san.

"Shouldn't you react when your beloved is going away?" I asked.

Glaring back at me, she stopped her work.

"You came here and grabbed Kunou and me. You put us both on your lap all of a sudden while you began browsing through my work like it was perfectly natural." Yasaka-san stated. "Are you sure you want me to react to everything you do? Can you see that pile in the corner of my office? I never imagined I would deal with so much paperwork from one person."

Now that the dam had been opened, she seemed ready to go on. I could not exactly brush off the topic this time given that I went too far.

"Sorry, it was because of my carelessness that I ended up like that." I said.

Now Tamamo never allows me to go out alone without the magatama, although I believe it is partly because she wants to always be at my side.

"No, no, no. About 95% of this pile is indeed about those days, but this one, this one right here is about yesterday." Yasaka-san pulled a file from the pile and opened it. "Why did you go to the zoo to teach the animals Kung Fu!?"

Seeing her surprised expression was rather nice since she always tried to look composed, I did not get to see it often, however, voicing that now will make her angry.

"Nora-aniue..." Kunou-chan gazed at me with a pair of judgemental eyes. "You promised to take me with you if you did that!"

"Sweetie, I don't think that is the issue here." Yasaka-san sent a perplexed look at her daughter.

"...Yasaka-san." I sighed. "You don't understand. They had a panda."

"That is hardly an answer!" Yasaka-san complained.

No, even if you say that. It is obvious that one would want to teach Kung Fu to pandas. Above all, this one was named Po. I had to.

"Not only that, you took a tigress, a monkey, a viper, a mantis, and a crane, just to do the same you did to the panda! They beat up the caretakers at the zoo! What did you teach them? In just one day, they are like another different type of creature." Yasaka-san exclaimed.

"Then I taught them well. They shall be known as the Furious Five, while the Panda will be called the Dragon Warrior!" I nodded proudly.

All that training paid off, I guess I shall continue the lessons at another time.

"Why!? He is a panda!" Yasaka-san facepalmed. "...wait a moment, if I recall correctly. You made a script for a movie that was not able to be filmed because you could not coordinate with the staff after Scathach-sama took you away for training."

Oh, yeah. That indeed happen.

"I wanted to see that movie." Kunou-chan ears were down.

I guess I will have to work everyone to death so she can see it tomorrow.

"(Cut it out, you dummy.)" Tamamo retorted. "(It is physically impossible.)"

You are the dummy. Limits are a thing we put upon ourselves, as long as we wish to improve, we can overcome any challenge. As long as I use my ki to enhance their abilities, add hundreds of shikigamis to aid them, and give them barely legal amounts of coffee, I believe I can make them finish the movie.

"(I am telling Amagi.)" Tamamo sighed.

Yosh, let's just use the regular route to make the movie.

"Yasaka-san, you are imagining things." I brushed off the topic.

"...then how about this." Yasaka-san pulled another file, far thicker than the previous one. "You brought another woman to the city. She lives exactly in front of you and while that is a little annoying, I have no issue with that. As long as my little girl gets a high hierarchy in the harem, I won't nitpick you about it. Amagi-nee-sama already told me to have a broad mind..."

Rubbing her head, Yasaka-san was clearly a victim of that other kitsune 'talk mode'.

"The issue lies with the fact that she immediately started a business... a Funeral Parlor." Yasaka-san pulled a familiar-looking ticket.

I had seen it before given that I helped that child to design it, but I won't mention that.

"Who gives coupons about paying one and getting two on funerary services!?" Yasaka-san exclaimed.

Yup, that child. She means well so I cannot really reprimand her.

"Yasaka-san, if you could let this slide and let me 'make' those problems disappear, I shall make you a house out of candy like in that children's book." I said.

"Jeez, Nora-kun, you should've said so. You already have many responsibilities in Urakyoto so it would certainly come in hand with enough authority." Yasaka-san came back to sit on my lap.

"Is this what they call... bribery?" Kunou-chan muttered in an uncertain tone.

Part 2

MC's POV

"Hellooooo! Paisen!" I spoke in a loud and cheerful tone.

Entering a certain library in high spirits, I was bathed in hellfire. The headquarters of the organization that Musashi was part of was pretty big, and to complement, the library was just as huge.

The heat was enough to burn my clothes and when the fire died down, I was left as a free man, if you get that meaning.

The beautiful librarian who usually greets me from her seat near the entrance covered her eyes shyly, but the gaps of her fingers were wide enough to peek at me.

Already used to this, I snapped my fingers and my clothing was changed immediately. It would normally take much longer but I practiced until I could use the spell chantlessly.

"Good day to you, my fair lady." I nodded.

Greeting the librarian in a befitting manner, I went towards my attacker.

"Paisen, aren't you cruel? Your handsome kouhai came to say hi with good intentions." I pulled out a handkerchief to wipe my fake tears.

"Handsome kouhai? You mean cheeky kouhai, don't you?"

Having her dark brown hair long braid and brown eyes, she wore a pair of thick glasses that greatly hid her beautiful appearance, or she might believe that. She has a lean figure and wearing a blue body suit beneath a black dress does not exactly hide her attributes, nonetheless, she likes to add a coat on top to hide herself from others. I have seen her without glasses and her hair down but I like my Paisen no matter how she looks, the problem is that if I voice that, I get burned. She is a beauty of amazing proportions, but I believe she must have a past since her usual reaction to praises is to scowl at you.

"Yu Paisen is not honest, where will you find a kouhai like me?" I asked.

The young woman who had been reading a book since I arrive and did not raise her head after attacking me finally raised her head and smirked.

"I guess you are accurate in that description." Yu-paisen said. "You are the only person who has dared to bother talking to me no matter how much I have tried to push you away."

"Even if you praise me like that, you won't get anything." I scratched the back of my head shyly.

Pulling a candy from my storage, I placed it on the table near Paisen.

"I am not praising you!" Yu-paisen complained. "You are always annoying me."

Placing another candy on the table, I took a seat in front of her.

"That aside, Paisen, can I have a word with you?" I asked.

"So you are just going to ignore me? Sure, go ahead and sit, I do not mind." Yu-paisen stood up with book in hand, although I saw her grab the candy.

It is a special type of candy that I used to hoodwink a bunch of fairies and it has many special properties and supernatural creatures were found of it so of course Paisen would like it, on the other hand, normal humans did not find anything special in it... the effect will still be there though.

"I have a rather difficult problem at hand." I offered more candies.

"Cut the crap and get to the point." Yu-paisen said.

"I wanna get inside the Fairy Land, I would like to have a word with their ruler about diplomacy." I spoke.

"Not going to happen, give it up, the barrier created around them is sustained by the Ley Lines. It might be a spell that was lost eons ago and it lacks many details, but it is not something your average person can hope to break." Yu-paisen explained. "You can also forget the idea of making a hole and slipping inside. Let's assume you can poke a hole, that barrier has seven layers surrounding it so I wouldn't trust that you are capable of using that cursed spears of yours fast enough before you are crushed inside the barrier when it repairs itself."

"(She is merciless.)" Tamamo commented.

She is aware that she is taking a bribe so Yu-paisen will not cut corners in her explanations. She is aware that owing me is not a good idea.

After all, I would do this and that if she owed me.

"(...it sounds wrong but you only want to ask for a lap pillow to see her scowling as she has shut up and fluf your ears with no other choice.)" Tamamo muttered. "(That habit of yours of troubling girls is not going to disappear, is it?)"

It is called teasing and if no one is harmed then there is no problemo.

"So you are saying it is a bad idea." I sighed.

A pity.

"I doubt someone as tough as you will die from being crushed by the barrier, however, it is designed to repel foreigner objects so it is bound to push you away." Yu-paisen said. "You could technically bypass that by making a bridge with your acquaintances who are able to make small holes in the barrier, but sacrificing your people is not something you would do."

Shrugging her shoulders at my glare, I loosened my expression after she added 'your only good quality'. I wanted to object that my ears are amazing but she refuses to pet them.

"It is a shame that it is a barrier that is always in movement. I recall that there is a special artifact capable of bypassing 'walls'. I believe you, who has an uncanny ability to meet women, must've met that wicked hermit already." Yu-paisen commented. "I believe that as long as you offer her good pay, she could rent you that artifact. Although I would not ask anything from that woman if I were you. Wicked hermits are not precisely good people and you are bound to be dragged into troublesome businesses if you get mixed up with her."

I have met her. A classical beautiful woman who has the looks that can trap men and make them do what she asks, as far as looks are concerned. She is a dangerous woman, and I came to learn of that detail through my very own and personal (self-proclaimed) hermit, Kasen-san. There seemed to be some story and I have almost bribed- convinced Kasen-san, through the use of underhanded- ahem, rightful means, to tell me the whole story.

"A certain Maou proposed me to just beat up every guard." I commented.

The magical girl has a thug-ish side to her.

"Are you stupid? Do you want to die? The amount of guards they have in their rank is no small and above all, the royal knights are on a different level, it has always been the case since that place was founded." Yu-paisen looked at me like I was an idiot.

"Aren't you rude?" I complained.

"...do I look like I care about manners or politeness?" Yu-paisen raised an eyebrow and spoke in a strong tone of voice.

"Nope, not at all. Paisen seems like she could beat up the Pope for no reason if that would align with your goals." I jested. "I imagine that you would just show up beat him for no reason and leave like you owed the place."

Suspiciously looking away, Yu-paisen used the book she was readying to cover her face completely.

"Oi." I retorted. "Even I am not as crazy to beat up the pope."

"A-N-Y-W-A-Y-S, you should look for a peaceful way to enter. I cannot offer you information about the current queen, but I can tell you that her mother was a terrifying woman. Merciless and cold-hearted, she had a basic policy of suppressing men. In fact, her actions were never noticed even by her own citizens. She would control the number of men and would keep it on the higher side to use them as soldiers." Yu-paisen explained. "Although her hatred for men would always cause them to die."

"Anything else...?" I asked.

I wonder if I can push this job back to Serafall-san.

"I believe you have met spirits and fairies, but what you are going to deal with is a bit different. Faes have many races within their ranks, they can have even vampiric traits so don't go any random kid drink your blood." Yu-paisen warned me. "Anyone with a thirst for blood will be able to sniff the scent of your blood if they are close enough. If they take even one sip, you might find yourself in trouble."

Saying that last piece of advice, Paisen just extended her hand toward me.

"No, I don't have any." I said.

"Huh?" Yu-paisen placed the book down and scowled. "You saying that after all the valuable information I shared with you out of the goodness of my heart, you will not give me any offerings?"

Preparing to flee, I found a delicate and soft hand placed on my shoulder.

"You think I am running a charity here...?" Yu-paisen narrowed her eyes.

Taking off her glasses, I saw how her eyes changed colors and turned a little reddish.

"No, no, you just said it was out of the goodness of your heart just now!?" I mumbled.

The grip was absurd and it did not match her lean figure.

"You are my kouhai, it is your job to follow the requests of your senpai!" Yu-paisen began cracking the knuckles of her free hand.

My Paisen is someone who is very beautiful, I have heard the staff here daydreaming about her 'ethereal beauty' aloud, however, for me, she is just a lonely person and... a thug.

...

...

...

"My poor tails..." I sniffed in one corner.

Sitting with my arms crossed around my knees, I looked at my tails being wrapped in bandages by the beautiful librarian.

"That ruthless woman, she did not have to squeeze them that hard. I honestly did not have any more candies..." I complained.

"...does it hurt that much?"

Finishing her job, the librarian gently rubbed my tail. My dirty mind found the way to twist that action but I buried those thoughts. It was hard to do though, she had quite the appearance after all, she was curvaceous with her large chest as the most prominent feature and her pale skin contrasting with her purple eyes and her incredibly long brown hair that was split into multiple long strands that curl rather unnaturally, although she kept a rather unique headband to fix it. Her outfit was a gothic-style dress that exposed little skin with a mainly black, blue, and purple theme. However, this woman would on rare occasions have a different outfit that... gentlemen would enjoy. One would not expect her to cosplay though.

"It is not a cosplay!"

The librarian complained in a flustered tone.

Trying to stand up, she managed to lose her balance over nothing and crashed onto me in a rather silly and clumsy display. Of course, as the gentleman I was, I would not allow her to get hurt so I swiftly stood up and held her so she would not fall into what people in the dance world would call a dip pose.

"Are you alright? Murasaki-san." I asked.

Flustered, her pale skin turned red, but we could not stay like that for too long.

"Murasaki, did someone borrow the second volume of- urgh, this is the first thing you do after getting beaten up?" Yu-paisen asked in an amazed tone. "You really can't be left alone, huh."

Looking at me with a gaze you would usually use on bugs, my dear Paisen dropped any business she had with the librarian.

"I better run as fast as I can from this place, I am afraid that if I stay any longer, between my kouhai's luck and Murasaki's clumsy spec, I would no doubt find myself entangled..." Yu-paisen sighed.

Awkwardly looking at Murasaki-san, I just adjusted our positions until we were both standing up. I was a little dissatisfied that I could not tease her, but I guess the time will come.

"So you still want to tease me!?" Murasaki-san, the librarian, complained.

Already used to her retorts of my thoughts, I did not dwell too deeply on her actions. I just looked at her and while giving her my most gentle and heartwarming smile, I-

"I will tease you two-fold next time, for me, teasing is an action I must do when a cute girl or beautiful woman is before me." I said.

"(Hubby certainly has guts for daring to say that same line back then in front of the Three Goddesses of Japan so I guess it is nothing much to say it in front of this lady.)" Tamamo retorted.

I knew you would retort sooner or later, you youkai!

"(Excuse me? I am a youkai, but you are one as well!)" Tamamo snorted.

Traitor, when I needed you just a few minutes back, you did not dare to appear. I got beaten up quite badly and was unable to fight back.

"(Hubby, as the husband, it is your place to protect your cute and sexy wife. If I had come out, we would both gotten beat up.)" Tamamo explained.

Oi, what happened to that line about not abandoning each other no matter the situation?

"(...Hubby, you have not signed the marriage papers.)" Tamamo used a serious tone.

This kitsune, I will fluff her until her fur gives static and she becomes an electric kitsune. I can't deny her words.

"Fufu, you two always get along so well." Murasaki-san giggled.

Deciding to ignore the implications of those words, I just looked at Murasaki-san begrudgingly.

"You also agree that it is only when there is a signed document that a man and a woman are husband and wife?" I asked. "I believe that since we share a deep bond, we are... ahem."

"Eh!? W-well, I think you are right?" Murasaki-san muttered. "If you and... I were to have that kind of bond, I would support you no matter what!"

Using a strong tone, the librarian took a second to finally notice what she said and her face turned a deep red and she pulled a book titled 'Diary' and used it to cover her face.

"(Tsk, I almost got him...)" Tamamo, the cunning fox, clicked her tongue.

Thanks to the machinations of a certain fox, I now felt embarrassed and Murasaki-san was one step away from being out of combat.

Of course, as the gentleman I was... I would not use this chance to get rid of my embarrassment by teasing Murasaki-san.

Certainly not, since that is not a gentlemanly behavior... although I am scum so-

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

3rd Person POV

"So he left huh." Yu Meiren looked around the library.

"Fufu, have you come back because you missed your kouhai?" Murasaki giggled.

"Jokes are meant to be funny." Yu snorted.

Narrowing her eyes a little, Murasaki glanced at something only she could see and did not say anything else.

"What? That smile of yours is annoying." Yu looked away.

"Would you consider lending a hand to Yukari?" Murasaki suddenly said.

"...fighting those people just for the sake of annihilating them is not my style." Yu scowled. "This is why I don't like human ways."

"I am no longer human, and I am asking not as an individual, but as the acting leader of this organization." Murasaki's tone was soft but firm.

"This is not what I was promised." Yu retorted.

The temperature of the library elevated and a regular person would have trouble breathing due to the heat.

"That is correct." Murasaki closed her eyes. "I always ask only when the situation requires your abilities to prevent the loss of our important people. However, it is always up to you whether to accept or not my request. That is how it has always been."

"So you should be aware of my answer, I don't-" Yu was about to shake her head when-

"I don't think you understand the importance of the events that will play out soon enough." Murasaki opened her eyes. "I will not enter into details since it is not your place to know. However, let me inform you that everything could very well end in less than two months."

Raising an eyebrow, Yu looked incredulously at Murasaki.

"The start 'this time' will be with the one who comes from afar. As soon as he arrives, death will loom and the Crawling Darkness will be following." Murasaki added.

"I see, so you plan to drag me to your war." Yu did not look pleased.

"...I understand your unwillingness to get involved." Murasaki said. "You have seen the ugliness of humanity and even among supernatural creatures, you have been either been persecuted or greedily sought after. You would certainly have no reasons to want to lend a hand. However, are you really going to ignore 'his' words?"

"What do you mean? 'He' is not here anymore. He has abandoned me, you, and this whole organization. I never got a single clue of his real identity so I was unable to find him even after hundreds of years... why would you claim something about me ignoring his words?" Yu spoke.

The heat grew in intensity and it seemed like the books would burst into flames at any second, but-

"Cut it out! If I wanted to be in a sauna, I would go to one!"

A white-haired young woman dressed in an elegant but thick dress appeared from between the bookshelves and waved her hand. Creatures made of ice, animals of all sizes began crawling out of her shadow and the room's temperature began lowering.

Clicking her tongue, Yu relaxed and the temperature returned to normal.

"Thank you, Anastasia." Murasaki smiled.

Nodding to Murasaki, Anastasia sent a nasty look at Yu as she stuck out her tongue. Turning around, she disappeared between the shelves again.

"...there she goes, to nap again or prepare pranks for any poor soul that visits the library unaware." Murasaki sighed. "She missed his visit due to her actions."

"You are the librarian, you should stop her from playing around." Yu retorted.

"As long as the books are not damaged..." Murasaki said. "I will not interfere."

After saying that, Murasaki pulled out an envelope and handed it to Yu.

"How did you get a letter from 'him'?" Yu read the words on the envelope and recognized the writer right away.

"He visited." Murasaki muttered.

Her mind stopped her body from acting and Yu decided to read the letter in the envelope before trying to interrogate Murasaki.

The letter was only two pages long and the small and neat kanji left space for the writer to convey a lot. However, Yu found that it was still lacking, nonetheless, she read it a couple of times until she was more or less satisfied.

"It annoys me that you kept this and only handed it to me until you needed my help, but I will not hold a grudge since I am in a good mood." Yu said. "Call me when you need to, and I will lend you a hand. Nonetheless, I would be mindful of not abusing that right to command me."

Leaving those words, Yu left with the letter in hand.

"...it all comes together." Murasaki sighed. "We can only prepare as much as we can..."

Part 3

MC's POV

Wings spread wide, I accelerated to avoid the pursuit of the attacker behind me.

In the middle of the ocean, I was flying all over the place after failing to have a conversation with the one guarding the Fae land. Her small stature would certainly make a lot of people underestimate her and would certainly and brutally suffer the consequences. However, I would say that even after not underestimating her, I was having a hard time keeping up with her. I will not use some boorish excuse about me being used to fighting on land than in the air, it was more that she was way better than me in aerial combat overall. Grayfia-san had done her best to teach a cat how to fly, but there was a limit to what a flying cat could do against a damn dragon. Not to mention, whenever I am fighting this child, there are a couple of issues bugging me that make my mind wander. First, I would say that her wings give a feeling of deja vu, but the one thing that bothers me more is whenever she stops attacking me and just stares at me, I would get this itchy feeling on my neck.

Twisting my body midair, I evaded a ray of light that passed just where I was a second ago. This was a small-scale breath and this child could shoot it at will, however, she was acting strange today. Normally, she would shoot barrage after barrage to bring me down yet she seems to be taking her sweet time in ending me.

"(Hubby, are you sure you want to do this?)" Tamamo asked in concern.

No way in hell I want, but a man gotta do what he gotta do. She has tried to catch me before so I am sure she might try it again.

"(Even though you made preparations, I can't help but feel that you are not going to have it easy.)" Tamamo added.

It never is.

Closing my wings to act as a shield, the breath hit me at point blank. Nonetheless, my crystal wings were tough. After being subjected to several surgical procedures when we found the body of the original murmur, I was unable to make Adjukas operate on me so I had to do a long and arduous process to find someone with the talent or skills to succeed. The woman I found had a clumsy side to her but her skills were the real deal so I hired her and her friend who happened to be my second-best choice. Thanks to that operation, I had greater control over Murmur's abilities as well as the possibility to repair my wings until a certain point after they receive damage, although I can't seem to fix the damage they originally had. That said, the reason lies with the spirit of Murmur that lies inside the wings. An ability not mentioned in the booklet I received, the ability to store souls is a rather unique skill.

"(Careful!)" Tamamo warned me.

Getting distracted caused me to miss how the dragon girl closed in and had put her hands on my shoulders after forcefully pushing away my wings. She had some sort of eye mask with a small cloth that covered her mouth, but perhaps it was because she was very close, I could easily see her opening her mouth wide and feel the insane amount of energy being gathered. I just had time to cover myself in Touki before a flash of light covered my vision and I received a full-powered breath and point-blank distance.

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

3rd Person POV

With smoke raising all over him, Nora helplessly began to fall after being hit by the breath. The attacker watched momentarily until she made sure he was not capable of reacting so she flew swiftly to catch him.

Once his figure was held by her, the dragon girl made a few gestures and a magic circle appeared in front of her. Soon, a portal that made you able to see a large castle from her position opened up and she entered the portal.

Unbeknown to her, Nora peeled one of his eyes open and glanced at the scenery after crossing before swiftly closing his eye.

Part 4

3rd Person POV

Date XX/XX/XXXX

All over the world, a mysterious phenomena occurred. It most places was so small that regular people did not even notice, but in some place it cause visible changes to the surrounding landscape.

...

...

...

 In a land that consisted mostly of prairies, the land split and a large mountain emerged. A nearby village spotted this change first and few brave souls dared to explore this change.

"Chief, should be really be wandering around here? This place just came out of nowhere..."

"If we come across some sort of treasure, we might be able to turn around our situation. We lucky we closer than 'them' so we can get a hold of anything valuable first."

"Chief, even if we find something... it is hopeless. They have people who are said to be descendant from distant heroes of our land and they have support from several villages... ours is going to be swallowed at the end."

Bitterness and unwillingness could be felt from the two people who had dared to explore the mountain's interior through the gaps they found.

"I will not accept that! Those fools do not respect our heritage! Gengis Khan was born here! Not in the mountains how they claim!"

"Chief... there is no evidence..."

"Nonsense, that knowledge has been passed down through mouth to mouth, it was hidden a long time so his enemies did not harm his childbirth location."

Sighing heavily, the one coming along with the chief only followed in silence. The same story had been heard hundreds of times and the chief would never change his mind.

After an unknown amount of time and when they were both drenched in sweat, they came across an humongous hall and door made of an unknown material but given to the similarity to the stone, they did not dwell about it, unbefitting the size of the hall and door, a small pedestal lied just before the door. The duo felt their hearts beat faster and curiosity led them to stand before the pedestal.

An unknown text was written on the pedestal with the last part being almost carved out and few characters barely discernible.

"What is this...?"

"An opportunity, that is what this is."

Despite being afraid, the chief extended his hand and placed in on the pedestal. The characters shone and they rearranged themselves. Once they did, a small message, with the carved out last part was there, however, this time, it was in language they understood, their own tongue.

"Here lies the great... A...L...T...E...R...A...?"

Barely holding his excitement, the chief almost got a heart attack when the door began to slowly opening.

The duo shared a look and they walked towards what was behind the door. A huge space, but their eyes were directed to a large figure lying down before them.

"Ha...hahaha...HAHAHA! THERE IS STILL HOPE! HAHAHAHA, WE STILL HAVE A WAY!"

Frowning slightly at the way the chief was laughing, the other man hid his thoughts after feeling the almost maniacal glee the chief was exuding. Whether he thought the chief was correct or not, the man knew that things were about to change.

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

3rd Person POV

Inside the Gremory Castle, there was a rather upbeat mood since the Maou, son of Venelana Gremory was visiting with his wife Cassandra and his 6 years old son. Sirzechs Lucifer was having a joyous reunion and was chatting with his mother and sister during dinner until he felt a chill running down his spine. The space around the middle of the table looked like it would explode and a huge amount of energy was gathering in that point. His reflexes worked his body to the limit and it seemed like time had stopped around him as he teleported every person inside the castle outside. The rest of the people only reacted as they found themselves in the courtyard, but their voices were unheard as the castle collapsed from the energy released. The ground which the castle stood in was split and it swallowed the debris it left behind.

"Is everyone alright?" Sirzechs looked around.

Confirming the safety of his family members, he sent a message using communication magic to Grayfia.

"...what happened?" Venelana asked.

Maintaining a composed sir, the lady of the house inspected the damage and did a head count. No one seemed hurt but they sure looked confused and shocked.

"I am not sure... I just felt something." Sirzechs furrowed his eyebrows.

His heartbeat had accelerated as he felt the imminent danger, but even now, it had not slowed down. Blood kept coursing through his body at an insane speed and his senses went haywire. It was at this point, when Venelana planned to give orders to the servants that they all heard it. The distant sound of chains.

"What?" Rias voiced out her confusion.

Every servant from the Gremory Household, people who have been working for over hundreds of years in the castle as well as Sirzechs and Venelana, they all had heard that sound before and they were aware what it meant.

From the castle, a figure emerged. Just by looking at that appearence, one would think a mad man had descended. Nonetheless, the reaction from the servants of the Gremory Household was one of relief.

"Is that...?"

"He might look scary but his deeds say otherwise..."

"...did he finally come to fullfil his promise to take me away and do me 'this' and 'that'?"

"I highly doubt he ever made that promise."

"The unsung hero, Nanashi!"

With chains hanging over his body, the figure that most people would mistake with a serial killer or imagine as a reaper could be seen slowly walking away from the destroyed castle. Holding a pair of guns with an unusual barrel size, 'Nanashi' came to a stop.

"Who are you?" Sirzechs asked in a sharp tone.

With those words as the mark, the air tensed considerably.

"I know very well the being know as Nanashi, and you are not him." Sirzechs shook his head.

Taking as step forward, he signaled his family members and servants to stand back.

"I don't want to fight."

The armed figure responded as such in a low tone. It was using a special spell and it would later be proved that the voice everyone heard sounded quite different.

"You appeared out of nowhere, destroyed the Gremory Castle and you want me to believe you came in peace? I would appreciate if you at least showed a bit of honesty while in that form." Sirzechs said. "From a while now, you have been unable to hide that horrendous smell... that stench, you reek of blood. To smell that bad and be unable to wash off the stench, the people you killed must've cursed you until they died and you must've lived a life without washing off your karma by performing good deeds. You might hide that stench using magic, but even that has a limit."

"I did not mean to startle anyone. The coordinates of my appearence were unavoidable so I cannot apologize enough... can you accept this and left me off the hook?"

Hanging on his waist, the figure had a dirty and bloodied pouch and from it, he pulled a large bag that he threw off towards Sirzechs. The contents spilled right away and several gold coins, diamonds and other expensive looking jewellery was spread on the floor. They all looked like they would fetch a high price in any market... if they were not covered in dirt and dried blood.

"Do you think I would simply nod?" Sirzechs asked.

"...I honestly do not want to face any Gremory. Please, just look away."

Sounding almost desperate, the figure pleaded.

For those who did not know the people or the circumstances, they would assume that Sirzechs was the evil one, however, the Maou was not being mean. He would rather let that figure flee or escape as far as he could before actually fighting it. Nonetheless, he had felt the unnerving aura surrounding it. It would little by little cause people to suffer from a number of debuffs such panic, paralysis and other status that world make it hard to fight. Not everyone would notice it at first, but as time went on, you would find yourself suffering from the debuffs. Such a thing was caused by the origin of that unnerving aura.

"...How are you related to the Evil God, Nyarlathotep?" Sirzechs inquired.

The figure visibly shook and the air got even more tense.

"...how do you know about Nyarlathotep?"

"I am asking the questions here. Are you on the side of the Good Nyarlathotep or the Bad Nyarlathotep?" Sirzechs asked.

"...there is not a Good Nyarlathotep."

"So you are an enemy..." Sirzechs sighed.

"Son, I have taken care of the bystanders while you were chatting, everyone but you and me remain in the vicinity." Venelana spoke.

Nodding in relief, Sirzechs turned towards the unwilling figure.

"...Venelana."

There was some longing in that voice and the figure looked at Venelana, nonetheless, Sirzechs stepped between the two.

"...I can't waste my time here. Sirzechs-san, you have decided to become an enemy."

After those words were said, the figure immediately raised its guns and fired.

The exchange was short and Venelana was barely able to make out half of the movements Sirzechs and the figure performed. The right side of the figure was blasted away, although the gun seemed to have been left intact a few meters away, the figure had lost part of its right torso, the arm and the leg. However, Sirzechs was not unharmed. The sound of bullets being shot came a beat later than the actual facts and Sirzechs had to cover his stomach as he coughed blood. Reflexively, Venelana covered for her child and that put a stop at the fight. The figure did not point at the woman and that gave Sirzechs an opening to attack again.

At a slower speed, Sirzechs shot a ray of destruction power from his hand and that leveled the ground leaving nothing on its path.

Clicking his tongue, Sirzechs held back a groan. The Gremory duo were able to heard the sounds of chains louder and from close distance.

"He escaped..." Sirzechs's eye sight blurred.

Just at this moment, Grayfia arrived with Okita and other members of Sirzechs' peerage. The strongest queen did not ask any questions and only went towards Sirzechs as she pulled a vial of Phenex Tears.

"He is still in the Gremory territory, with those wounds, someone would normally die... but I doubt it would be the case this time." Sirzechs grabbed the vial and applied it himself on the wound.

"Can you describe his appearence?" Grayfia asked.

Pulling another vial after noticing that the first one seemed ineffective, Grayfia saw Venelana pulling some of her own as well as she hastily applied them.

"...He looks like... Nanashi." Sirzechs bitterly said.

Her hands immediately crushed the vials in her hands and Grayfia looked at Sirzechs in a dumbfounded manner but soon her eyes took an unfriendly gleam, however, before she could voice out anything, Venelana spoke.

"...I saw it with my own eye as well. You can also ask Rias and the servants as well Cassandra." Venelana reproached. "You did not have to waste those precious vials."

After using a large amount of the vials, the wounds barely showed signs of healing.

Biting her lips, Grayfia pulled a different type of vial. The one thing that defined it was the big label that said 'Not for sale, sample only' written in neat kanji. Those who managed to read it had an immediate idea of its origin and their eyebrows twitched.

A little reluctant, Grayfia handed to Sirzechs who immediately used it. This time, the wound recovered in an instant.

"...you should be aware that wounds inflicted by Nanashi will not heal by convencional means or even with Phenex Tears." Sirzechs sighed.

"This was made using Senjutsu as the base, but I am afraid that I do not know the rest of the ingredients." Grayfia immediately shook her head when everyone looked at her. "I believe that only Rias-ojou-sama, Sona-sama and Serafall-sama hold one each. If you require more immediately, I can contact them. However, I am afraid that Nora-sama is the cat- the person, P-E-R-S-O-N, you need to find."

Correcting herself and making emphasis on that, Grayfia waited for Sirzechs' instructions.

"This must not get out. That one is certainly a fake... as for contacting Nora-kun, leave that to me personally. The rest of you, I give you permission to call upon your peerage members and abandon your current duties. Your priority will be hunting down the impostor of the Hero Nanashi."