People in Xumi: I am really not the Dragon King

Chapter 477 "If you were willing to capture a certain pink-haired priest and let me take a fox fur scarf..."

"Phew, I'm angry, but not really angry."

"If it were 'her,' seeing this plate of fried tofu would make her forgive everything."

"But I don't need to eat anymore, and I can't eat much food, so please keep this and don't waste it."

His politeness was consistently top-notch, completely unlike that scoundrel.

As the central link in Inazuma's now fragmented network of connections, and one of the most important people in the hearts of Kage and Yae no Miko, the former Kitsune-no-miya connected everything about Inazuma solely through his own existence.

As a remnant that inherited "memory" and "longing," the shrine maiden before her inherited most of the memories, but her personality was quite different from that of the former fox spirit.

"."

"What's wrong? I don't remember you existing in my 'memory,' have I forgotten something?"

The thing he had been holding onto for hundreds of years, the "mission" of his filthy body to exist in this world, had now almost been declared a failure.

The sacred cherry blossom purification ritual, which was crucial to the Inazuma ley lines, was destroyed; Hanahara should have been furious.

But looking at the emotion on the person's face, and considering the name that was called out at the beginning, for some reason, she felt as if the other person had seen her before.

"."

"No, it's nothing. We haven't met before."

"If I had to say, it would probably just be that compared to a certain fox nowadays, Hana-san-san's personality seems exceptionally adorable."

".?"

"Wait, just a moment."

"I'm sorry, I don't recall having such a thing. I need some time."

First, she created a barrier that isolated her from others, then she gave them fried tofu as a gift, and then she described it as "cute."
Although the "Fox Abode Palace" in my memory might have been quite adept at handling this situation,
But after all, I only inherited the memories; I didn't have that adult's innate shrewdness.
Lin Feng: “.?”

What's going on? I just casually made a fuss about a pink-haired fox, and they've focused on the wrong thing?

Although Fox Maiden's personality is not as wicked as Yae no Miko's, she is still a fox after all, just a little gentler in her methods of bullying.

Even though he knew something about the shrine maiden in front of him and understood that she couldn't be directly regarded as Fox Maiden,
But now it seems that once she leaves the familiar situation that the other party has rehearsed many times, her reaction is not only unlike that of a fox, but even more immature and unfamiliar than that of a normal human.

"Phew, I'm sorry, my situation is very special, and I'm not able to think about these issues right now."

"Although I don't know which Onmyoji you belong to, you don't seem like a bad person. I hope you will let me leave."

After thinking for a long time, I could only solve the problem in a way that I myself found embarrassing.
Hana Sanri sighed softly to herself, lamenting that although she had memories, she was ultimately not that person herself.

"It's just the literal meaning, Miss Hana-san, don't overthink it. You've probably misunderstood something."

"However, I'm sorry, but for certain reasons, I cannot allow the filth accumulated within the Divine Cherry Blossom Valley over hundreds of years to be purified so easily. For me, who is destined to 'destroy' Inazuma, it will have a more important purpose later."

? ? !

Even out of the corner of his eye, he could see that the shrine maiden in front of him was visibly tense and unusually nervous.

He also planned to have her act in a play with him, not wanting Hana Sanri, who carried the memories of the Fox Palace, to simply disappear or leave.

Lin Feng shook his head and said bluntly:
"The situation is very complicated and cannot be explained clearly in a short time."

"But in any case, Miss Hanahara, you probably can't leave this land of Hanamisaka for the time being."

"Just consider me for now as a villain who imprisoned you."
But I can promise you that you will gradually understand the reasons for the current situation over time.

"Can't I leave? But I still need to."

The deadline for the Divine Cherry Blossom Great Purification is fast approaching, and upon hearing this news, the black-haired shrine maiden was visibly anxious.
But before she could speak, the young man standing by the table suddenly stretched out his hand in front of her and interrupted her:

"—Although my strength is not particularly outstanding, as long as I don't want to, Miss Hanahara, you have absolutely no chance of breaking through by force."

"Instead of wasting energy on something you can't do, why don't you take my advice?"

"What suggestion?"

After assessing the strength of the force maintaining the barrier, they ultimately had no choice but to give up.

If it were the worst outcome, she might be purified as filth today, but compared to the fear of disappearing, her heart was still filled with resentment.

"—Heh, it's simple. Since things have come to this, let's eat first."

"The fried tofu on the table is getting cold. It was made by the best chef with the best ingredients. It would be a waste if we didn't eat it soon."

"."

She paused, wanting to turn around but forcibly resisting; Hana Sanri's state was clearly struggling.

Before she could convince herself with the reason that "she can't eat it now," a voice as tempting as a devil reached the ears of the shrine maiden:

"--By the way, don't worry about not being able to taste it. Filth and souls are nothing new to me, and I have my own ways of dealing with them."

"Consider this a small compensation for imprisoning you; if you don't eat, you'll really have nothing left."

!!!

"."

"Phew, you're really up to no good. This feeling is just like... well, like a 'fox'."

"Would you like some? Hot, freshly made fried tofu, something we haven't had in ages?"

Lin Feng smiled and pressed for more information.

".want."

I thought about many things, such as "Why did they know she was filth?", "How could they do something as incredible as feeding filth?", and "How did they know I liked fried tofu?"
But looking at that smiling face that was clearly playing a prank, yet showed no malice whatsoever,

Although Hana Sanri was more puzzled than ever before, the aroma of fried tofu in the air ultimately left her with only one word. A moment later, at the square table woven from rattan.

The shrine maiden, now completely transformed after removing her mask, blinked in confusion.

The brilliant sunlight shone down, mingling with a few fallen cherry blossom petals.
The jet-black hair had turned into the snow-white color unique to Bai Chen's bloodline. Touching the extra "parts" on its body, the newly born white fox was flustered and somewhat unaccustomed to controlling the ears on its head and the tail behind its back.

"Incredible, why?"

"The Bai Chen bloodline passed down through generations of fox lords, with such clear memories, is capable of doing something like this."

It was just a plate of fried tofu, but the familiar deliciousness and the feeling of being alive were so moving that they brought tears to my eyes.
But after she came to her senses, she found that the changes that had occurred in her body in such a short period of time were beyond description, even if they were called "miracles".

"Bloodline is essentially a form of life. With another fox lady as a template, the difficulty of 'evolving' this bloodline isn't particularly high."

"Yes, white foxes are indeed more pleasing to the eye than pink foxes."
"For something in the plan, Miss Hanahara, please make do with this for now. I'll help you completely purify the Abyss's corruption later."

Born from memories, Hana Sanri's appearance beneath the mask is almost identical to that of Kosai-miya, except for a few dark lines from the abyss, which is why she always wears a fox mask.

Now that the missing Celestial Fox bloodline has been fully restored, the external influence of the Abyss has also largely disappeared.

Although it doesn't resemble a certain pink-haired fox at all, in fact, its appearance is almost exactly the same as that of Fox Palace.

Nodding in satisfaction with his craftsmanship, Lin Feng felt that his skills in sculpting not only props but also people were improving day by day.

"Hmm? Speaking of which, if Bai Chen's bloodline were to flow again, wouldn't there be a lot more foxes transformed from stone statues in Inazuma in the future?"

"If there are more foxes, then I can finally decide on the disguise I've been hesitating about for so long."

I thought of a little creature within me that's inconvenient to appear as a treasure-stealing weasel, but whose indecisiveness prevents it from deciding what animal to disguise itself as.
Facing the complex gaze of Hana Sanri, which held countless emotions, Lin Feng waved his hand, and another "white fox" with slightly strange behavior appeared beside him.

A moment later, at the house located on the edge of Hanamisaka, Lin Feng's residence.

Having finally calmed down and gradually gotten used to this body, Hua Sanli looked puzzled as she stared at the strange fox in front of her, which was ravenously eating dried fish.

"This is... an Earth Fox? Why does it feel a little off?"

It's not a fox, it just looks like one.

Essentially, it's using illusion magic to temporarily disguise oneself, which is far less jarring than turning into a bird.

We can't manipulate things at a deeper level; we can only blur the surface of our perception.

Although it still squeaks, at least Little White is no longer as conspicuous as a crow or sparrow that runs across the ground and kicks up a trail of dust.

"Whether you found me or brought me here, your situation is truly unpredictable."

With a slight sigh, in the blink of an eye, the original plan to complete its mission and disappear as filth was completely disrupted.

She shook her ears. Although she had plenty of knowledge about grooming her fur and tail to make them fluffy and soft, Hana Sanri never imagined that she would ever need to use that knowledge.

"Heh, the preliminary preparations are complete, and it's about time to tell you about the current situation in Inazuma and the purpose of bringing you back."

"Hmm, considering it might take a bit longer, would you like another plate of fried tofu?"

Upon discovering that the newborn white fox in front of him still habitually wanted to put on its mask,
Lin Feng shook his head and decided to use the old method.

".want."

I don't know why, but after turning into this state, even my craving for fried tofu seems to have increased significantly.
Feeling a sense of relief that things wouldn't get any worse, Hana Sanri hesitated for a moment before nodding honestly.

"Hundreds of years ago, a dark calamity swept through Inazuma. At that time, the gods were away and the number of monsters was unprecedented, making the situation extremely critical."

"Faced with the dark beast tide, Inazuma's forces were only able to resist the disaster with the shogunate samurai and yokai, a severely insufficient strength. At that time, the 'Kokusai-gu' not only set up barriers in various places, but also took on the arduous task of command."

"The struggle was exceptionally long, with both monsters and samurai suffering heavy casualties, and the monsters becoming increasingly powerful."

Finally, on the day of the "ending," facing unimaginable, pitch-black monsters, "Fox Temple" led the people of Inazuma Castle into the underground palace in the desolate sea.

By then, she had exhausted her power setting up the barrier. To lure away the demons and protect the people inside, she was ultimately swallowed up in the battle against the dark calamity.

"And in the very end, after the calamity that devoured her was slain,

The precious thoughts and memories that once belonged to the pure white fox have seeped into the earth, mixed with the black, filthy blood.

As the filth born from this memory, in order not to dishonor this memory that I am so proud of, I should have completely disappeared after purifying the pollution of the Divine Cherry Blossom.”

She briefly recounted some memories she could still recall. Although Hana Sanri wanted to appear somewhat sad, she found herself unable to do so after finishing a plate of fried tofu.

"—So, could you please help me complete the Divine Cherry Blossom Great Purification?"

"Although I cannot offer any matching compensation at present, and perhaps I have no right to commission this,"
But as the only compensation I receive, I will not refuse anything I can do.

She tried to appear serious, and her delicate face, with its upright white fox ears, even showed a hint of the holiness of a priestess.

After waiting so long for a suitable opportunity, he could only watch helplessly as the "chosen one" walked away before his eyes.

Although Hana Sanri still didn't know what the young man in front of her was,

Even from the two plates of fried tofu handed to her, she was certain that this person was not, as she had claimed, there to "disrupt" Inazuma.

"Compensation? Hmm, I think you'd better find out about Inazuma's current situation first."

"If you think that the gods are plagued by mental illness and deceived by people, that the shogunate is corrupt and colludes with foreign enemies, that the country's military is weak and internal strife is endless, none of these are as urgent as the problem of the Divine Cherry Blossom."

"If you can manage to grab that pink-haired priest and turn them into foxes so I can get two fox fur scarves, I might be able to help you resolve the Great Exorcism of the Divine Cherry Blossom as planned."

Very soon, a celebration will be held in Inazuma Castle to mark the partial success of the Eye Hunting Order.

Lei Yingdian, who has been meditating in a pure land, will soon find it hard to sit still.

After a few more days of preparation, once that reclusive girl comes out to work alongside the artificial intelligence-challenged individual, the real, and not a small-scale, Abyss invasion will begin.
And at the very end of this invasion, facing the film that had united the nation's strength and finally successfully overcome a disaster,
The "Fox Palace" in front of me, along with another old friend from a terrible movie, are the best candidates to break free from the "control of the abyss" and comfort a certain otaku girl.

(End of this chapter)