She gave her body a quick rinse, abandoning her original plan of relaxing in a nice, long bath.
After all, the events of today carried too much information. She was afraid she might fall asleep in the tub and drown in a rather stupid manner.
Stepping out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around her damp hair, the hot water had slightly loosened her tense nerves. Miss Lin had the illusion that she could finally get some proper rest.
She placed the cooled oden into the microwave and set it for one minute.
Standing in front of the microwave, she stared blankly as the turntable spun round and round, the broth in the glass bowl swaying gently with the motion.
Amidst the microwave's dull hum, Miss Lin roughly recalled the strange events of the day: the girl who could see—Miko, the possibly real Wailing Spirits, and that bizarre pink-haired fox.
"Konkon~ Are you thinking about me?" A sickly sweet voice suddenly sounded by her ear, carrying a playful lilt as if someone were whispering right against it.
"Ah, yes..." Miss Lin responded instinctively, then immediately clapped a hand over her mouth, her pupils contracting sharply.
The room was clearly empty except for herself.
A cold sweat instantly broke out on her back. Miss Lin forced herself to stay calm, pretending to casually shuffle towards the kitchen counter.
Her fingertips subtly trailed across the countertop until they finally closed around the handle of the cleaver. The cold touch helped steady her racing heart a little.
"Show yourself!" She suddenly spun around, gripping the handle with both hands in a defensive stance.
With a noticeable tremor in her voice, she began reciting the Twenty-Four True Words that gave her a sense of security: "Prosperity, Democracy, Civility..."
The room was terrifyingly quiet. Only the fridge's low hum, her own ragged breathing, and her muttered recitation intertwined.
Her grip on the knife was starting to go slightly numb. The voice did not return.
But she could feel a persistent gaze fixed upon her—a gaze as sly as a fox's, like invisible down brushing against her exposed neck, stirring up an unbearable itch and fine tremors.
Quickly reviewing everything that had happened today, wondering if she had brought something unusual back, Miss Lin's eyes swept rapidly across the room: the steaming oden, the scattered clothes, finally locking onto the tabletop—
That forgotten little stone was now emitting an eerie pink glow.
"That's bad..."
Biting her lower lip, she slowly backed away, her hand holding the knife slick with fine sweat. The halo on the stone's surface pulsed, flickering like a breath.
"Shall we sit and have a chat~" The stone suddenly emitted that sickly sweet voice again.
Miss Lin did not loosen her grip on the cleaver. Assuming an awkward posture that allowed for a quick escape, she slowly pulled out a chair and sat down.
If the other party hadn't shown a willingness to talk and she hadn't sensed any immediate malice, she, a firm believer in the principle that "running away is shameful but useful," would have already prepared for a strategic retreat.
"So what exactly are you? A ghost attached to a stone? Or a stone that's cultivated into a spirit?"
"How rude~" The originally cloying, artificially high-pitched voice suddenly gained a touch of majesty.
"This humble one is not to be compared to those wandering ghosts or mountain spirits. To be precise, a child like you should address me as 'ancestor.'"
It must be understood that Miss Lin was currently in a state of extreme tension.
And when fear exceeds a certain threshold, people often exhibit two extreme reactions—either becoming paralyzed with terror, losing control of their body, or...
"Who the hell are you calling 'ancestor'!?" A furious, snarling Miss Lin swung the cleaver with a whoosh, embedding its blade deep into the tabletop right beside the stone.
"I'd rather go down with you!"
The glow on the stone's surface suddenly froze. The room was left with only Miss Lin's heavy panting.
After a long moment, the voice finally drifted out again:
"Young people these days... so hot-tempered... Alright, alright, so sensitive. Honestly."
Wisp after wisp of pink mist, dreamlike and ethereal, drifted out from the stone's tiny cracks. They silently twined and coiled in mid-air, as if with conscious intent, slowly coalescing into a form.
The mist finally took shape into a graceful figure—
Like a goddess stepping out of the Age of Gods, her appearance instantly transformed the atmosphere of the entire room. The mottled wall paint took on the warm luster of sandalwood, the cheap flooring revealed the distinctive grain of a shrine's wooden corridor, and even the air became imbued with the crisp scent of incense sticks. It was as if this shabby rented room had, in this moment, become a side hall of a shrine.
She lounged lazily in the empty air, clad in a magnificent juni-hitoe of blue and black adorned with golden patterns.
Her collar had slipped casually off her shoulder, revealing a vast expanse of skin as pure and bright as new snow, yet carrying an aura of divinity that forbade defilement.
Her slender legs were faintly visible amidst the hem of her robe embroidered with gold thread, gleaming with an ivory-like luster under the moonlight filtering through the window.
Most striking was the ancient gilded mirror in her hand. The patterns of mythical beasts along its rim flickered amidst the pink mist. The lotus-wrapped handle twirled lightly between her long, slender fingers, the mirror's surface flowing with watery, radiant light.
When she raised her eyes, golden pupils lit up within the lingering mist—a gaze that held both the slyness of a fox and the majesty of one who had witnessed ages pass.
Pink hair cascaded like a waterfall, fox ears peeking out from within gently twitching.
She casually tucked a stray lock behind her ear, the golden bells on her crown emitting a clear, crisp sound: "Now, can we speak properly?"
The mirror's surface rippled with her words, reflecting Miss Lin's image.
Miss Lin stared dumbfounded at the fox lady floating in mid-air, finally slumping back into her chair as if all strength had left her.
Incredulously covering her eyes with the back of her hand, she let out a groan of despair: "Ah... even Tamamo-no-Mae has shown up... Do I live in some branch timeline of Fate? Don't tell me we're going to have an Incineration of Humanity... How am I supposed to play this... Where's Fujimaru Ritsuka? Someone save me."
The fox spirit she called "Tamamo-no-Mae" drifted around Miss Lin with keen interest, the tips of her pink hair brushing against the girl's cheek.
Those golden eyes were full of amusement as they examined this girl who had been furious and snarling just moments ago, now seemingly burned out.
"Even if it's not the Incineration, I can't win a Holy Grail War either..." Miss Lin continued to mutter, tilting her head back with utter resignation. "I don't look like I have Magic Circuits at all... Maybe I should just surrender..."
Tamamo-no-Mae suddenly extended a slender, jade-like finger and poked Miss Lin's soft cheek.
Just as the girl was complaining, "What kind of web novel trope is this, having mobile game plotlines appear in real life?" the icy fingertips suddenly pinched both her cheeks—
"Mmmph... Gwah!" Miss Lin's Make complaints instantly turned into an embarrassing squawk.
The fox spirit looked contentedly at the distorted face under her hand, then lightly tapped Miss Lin's forehead with the mirror's handle: "Who said this is your so-called Type-Moon universe?" Her tone ended with a mischievous upward lilt, very much like a fox who had pulled off a prank. "This humble one merely took on the image of 'Tamamo-no-Mae' from your mind. My, my, but why pink hair? Children these days have such vivid imaginations."
Tamamo elegantly straightened her posture in mid-air, her gilded eyes looking directly at the still-dazed Miss Lin: "However, this humble one truly is Japan's great youkai—the White-Faced, Golden-Furred Nine-Tailed Fox." Her voice suddenly took on a teasing note. "And also the demon consort who brought chaos to the Shang dynasty court—Daji. So I really am your ancestor, you know."
Just as Miss Lin was still reeling from the shock, the fox spirit suddenly changed the subject: "Ah, and also that Huayang Furen who caused trouble in the palace..." She wrinkled her nose in distaste. "But the image in your mind related to India (Kama from FGO) is truly indecent, even this humble one feels embarrassed..."
As she spoke, she even used her sleeve to partially cover her face. "What on earth are children watching all day these days..."
The fox spirit, dignified and sacred just moments ago, had in the blink of an eye turned into a nagging parent.
She floated right in front of Miss Lin and lightly poked the girl's forehead with her index finger.
Finally jolted back to reality by the poke, Miss Lin's brain processor rebooted, and she fired off a rapid barrage of questions.
"So you're really that ancient nine-tailed fox? Did all those gods and buddhas from back then really exist?"
"Why are you here? I thought the killing stone was in Tochigi Prefecture?"
"And why did you come to me? Do I have something special? My birth chart? My blood? Or something else related to the occult?"
Finally, Miss Lin swallowed nervously. Though phrased as a question, she said it with certainty:
"So, ghosts and spirits do exist, right?"
Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Not good!... You just said 'the image in my mind'... can you read minds?!"
Her face instantly turned ashen, as if her browser history had been made public. Her tone already sounded like she was dead as she waved a hand dismissively, offering her last words as if it didn't matter:
"Ahaha, if you're going to eat me, feel free. But please make it quick. I'm still a bit afraid of pain."
AI Model: gemini-3.0-flash
Tamamo-no-Mae giggled, covering her mouth with her wide sleeve, which rippled with her movement. "Don't worry~ I wouldn't have the heart to eat such a cute child."
She floated gracefully to the coffee table. "Alright, alright, I'll answer your questions one by one. Don't be in such a hurry~"
Suddenly leaning close to Ms. Lin's ear, her breath, scented with cherry blossoms, brushed lightly against her. "As for those little thoughts of yours..."
She winked mischievously. "You just like big sisters, don't you? Compared to those princes and generals in my memories, a pure-hearted child like you is much more endearing~ There, there." As she spoke, she reached out and ruffled Ms. Lin's hair.
Ms. Lin, who had never experienced ASMR before, felt a jolt from the breath against her ear. Just as she was about to spring from her seat, Tamamo-no-Mae, who had floated behind her, pressed down on her shoulders and forced her back into the chair.
The fox demon affectionately wrapped her arms around Ms. Lin's neck from behind, her exquisite chin resting lightly on her shoulder.
"First question~"
Tamamo-no-Mae toyed with a lock of Ms. Lin's long hair, her voice carrying a hint of laziness. "Strictly speaking, I am not that true Nine-Tailed Great Demon. Tamamo-no-Mae did indeed perish at Nasuno and turned into the killing stone..."
A faint spiritual light flickered at her fingertips, tracing the outline of a stone in the air. "And I am a being born from that killing stone. Though I am not the original, I have inherited all her memories and abilities. And since the killing stone was what Tamamo-no-Mae transformed into, I am closer to a Nine-Tailed Fox Demon than a stone demon."
Tamamo-no-Mae leaned close to Ms. Lin's flushing earlobe. "In terms you can understand... like a dual-type Pokémon?"
Tamamo-no-Mae gently shook the gilded ancient mirror in her hand, its surface shimmering like ripples of light.
"Second question~"
Her voice suddenly took on a touch of ancient weariness. "Those gods did indeed exist. Whether it was the ancient gods of Huaxia, the Eight Million Gods, or the gods of Olympus..."
Her fox ears drooped slightly. "That era when gods walked the earth... it was quite terrifying for a fox back then~"
The image of an ancient city-state appeared in the mirror. "During the rise of city-states in the Bronze Age, as humans began to build walled cities, the power of the nature gods began to wane."
The scene shifted to a Greek temple. "When Greek philosophers began using 'Logos' to explain the world, the divine power of the Olympian gods began to fall into disorder."
The mirror showed the scene of Plato's Academy.
"As for our old home..." Her fox ears twitched slightly.
"The ritual reforms of the Zhou Dynasty were the most thorough—they integrated the sacrificial system into the patriarchal system. Using the political wisdom of 'Matching Heaven with Virtue,' they took the specific gods of the sun and moon, the spirits of the mountains and rivers..."
The Taotie patterns appearing in the mirror gradually transformed into abstract cloud and thunder patterns. "...and converted them all into symbols serving the civilization of ritual and music."
The gilded ancient mirror suddenly showed images of chime bells. "Those fierce ancient gods who once required blood sacrifices were thus domesticated into decorative patterns on bronze bells and tripods."
Tamamo-no-Mae's voice carried a hint of sentimentality. "By the time of the Spring and Autumn period, even the 'Heavenly Way' had become a mere concept for the Hundred Schools of Thought to debate... Luckily, I, Tamamo, had already fled by then, though I didn't live much longer after that..."
Her fingertip lightly tapped the mirror's surface, and the image changed to a burning temple. "After that... in the first century AD, due to the expansion of the Abrahamic religions—monotheism..."
Her voice grew low. "Many once-glorious pantheons either fell into a deep sleep or dissipated entirely."
"Until the Enlightenment, when Newton used his three laws to explain the movement of celestial bodies, that residual divine power finally..." Tamamo-no-Mae made a gesture of vanishing.
Ms. Lin suddenly interrupted urgently, "Then why are there still ghosts and monsters?"
"Hehe~" Tamamo-no-Mae's eyes lit up, and she suddenly transformed into pink smoke.
When she reappeared, she was wearing a form-fitting teacher's outfit, her long legs in black stockings elegantly crossed beneath a short skirt. "That's a good question~"
She produced a pointer from nowhere and tapped on a floating blackboard. "In the past, every pantheon had institutions or gods to manage the dead. The Underworld, Hades, Helheim... or those who held authority like Mictlantecuhtli, Oya, Sidutapa, and so on."
The pointer swept across several glowing names. "But when the gods departed—" She suddenly leaned close to Ms. Lin.
"Do you think a flock of sheep that has lost its shepherd will just disappear on its own?"
Countless wandering shadows appeared in the mirror. Tamamo-no-Mae's tail gently wrapped around Ms. Lin's wrist.
"Do you understand now? Wailing Spirits still exist..." Her golden pupils contracted slightly. "And there are simply no gods left to contain them."
"What about faith then! In the novels I read, don't gods of faith appear?" Ms. Lin asked urgently. After all, the idea of gods vanishing while spirits remained was truly hair-raising.
"The power of faith can indeed sustain a god~" She tapped her finger, and a limited-edition Demon Slayer collaboration omamori flashed in the mirror. "But the piety of modern people..." The scene switched to a video of an influencer performing an otaku dance in front of a shrine. "...has all turned into 'engagement codes' for traffic, you know?"
Her fox tail snatched up Ms. Lin's phone. The lock screen happened to be a VTB with a shrine maiden persona.
The ancient mirror reflected a cluster of satellites in low Earth orbit. "In this era..." Tamamo-no-Mae's voice became ethereal.
"Humans can even land on the stars. Will they still worship gods with heartfelt piety?" Her gilded eyes seemed to look through the ceiling toward the universe.
Tamamo-no-Mae lowered her head close to Ms. Lin's ear, her breath carrying the weight of a thousand years of history. "No one believes anymore that they can see a god just by looking up."
"Oh, right!" She suddenly pressed her hands together, her desolate expression instantly switching to a playful one as her fox ears perked up with a'shuck'.
"As for why I'm here~" Her finger tapped the mirror, showing a photo of the killing stone that had cracked open on a certain day in 2022.
"As you can see, I, Tamamo... recently... cracked a little."
"If I stayed out in that wilderness as a tourist attraction, I really would have faded away~" She waved her hand exaggeratedly. "So I had to attach myself to this fragment and suggest to a little kid on a trip to pick me up and bring me back to Tokyo."
"I intended to slowly influence that family to send me to an Inari Shrine..." Her tail wagged triumphantly.
"Even though the gods have vanished, some ancient shrines themselves still possess power. And since I am the White-Faced, Golden-Furred Nine-Tailed Fox after all, by using the connection between Inari Shrines and foxes, I might not reclaim my fame as a Great Demon, but living a carefree life wouldn't be a problem."
"As for how I met you... remember seeing me in the park?"
She puffed out her cheeks and put her hands on her hips. "I hadn't even had the chance to bind with anyone yet! That brat actually dropped me in the bushes of the park! Of course, having learned my lesson, I, Tamamo, have already bound myself to you. Don't even think about throwing me away."
There it was! The heavy girl speech!
"After that, Tamamo smelled a very fragrant scent of fried tofu, and since I hadn't eaten fried tofu in so long... hehe."
Tamamo-no-Mae laughed awkwardly. She suddenly made a fox sign with her hands against her cheeks, her tail fluffing up into a big ball. Using a high-pitched, cutesy voice, she said, "Kon~ kon~ please forgive me, Tamamo~"
"As for why I'm following you~ It's because Tamamo really likes the way you look." Tamamo-no-Mae gave a thumbs-up, a completely mismatched, lewd smile appearing on her cute face.
"Plus, it's been a long time since I've seen anyone from my old home. I felt a bit nostalgic..." She suddenly made a big 'X' with her arms in front of her chest. "Although I saw many while I was a tourist attraction in Tochigi Prefecture, those tour groups holding little flags don't count!"
"Alright, alright, I, Tamamo, have pretty much answered all your questions." Tamamo-no-Mae drawled, pushing Ms. Lin toward the bed like she was herding a chick. "The questions are all answered. Don't you have classes tomorrow morning?"
Seeing Ms. Lin lie down but still staring at her with wide eyes, Tamamo-no-Mae sat on the edge of the bed, acting like a gentle wife.
She gently smoothed the stray hairs on Ms. Lin's forehead with her fingertips and began to hum an ancient lullaby.
"Hehe~ Do you need Mama Tamamo to sing a lullaby to coax you to sleep? My, what a spoiled child you are~" The end of her sentence carried the characteristic sweetness of a fox.
Ms. Lin wrinkled her nose in distaste but obediently closed her eyes.
The sense of security from having someone to sleep beside for the first time in the six months since she left home allowed her to gradually relax under the Nine-Tailed Fox's gentle touch.
Just as her consciousness was about to drift into dreamland, she vaguely thought—before she closed her eyes, Tamamo-no-Mae's gaze seemed to have suddenly turned toward a dark corner of the room. But that fleeting concern quickly dissipated into deep sleep.