Shiraishi Nagimitsu skipped breakfast today.
The reason: someone had approached the alert formation Fang Zuo left near Kawakita Saika.
As Fang Zuo kissed Shiraishi's forehead to leave,
"Yamete."
The strong-willed woman grabbed his hand, shaking her head with a pout.
Though she hadn't asked where he was going, and knew she shouldn't stop him...
She simply didn't want him to go.
Fang Zuo feigned anger, squeezing her ample chest forcefully.
Soft fullness spilled between his fingers.
Smack!
Another stinging red handprint bloomed on her pale buttock.
Only then did Shiraishi gasp softly, smiling brightly as she released his hand.
Her face, unadorned and exquisitely delicate, flushed deeply crimson.
She lay elegantly on her side, blowing him a kiss.
Fang Zuo shook his head with a wry smile.
This woman definitely had some... tendencies.
Why did she crave pain so much?
After casting a deep sleep charm on Shiraishi for a two-hour rest,
Fang Zuo channeled spiritual energy to arrive before Kawakita Saika's rented house.
Expanding his divine sense, his frown deepened.
No powerful demon aura as expected.
It was the landlord, here for rent.
A bald man in a vest went inside, emerging shortly after, cursing loudly.
Fang Zuo entered, stopping in the doorway to shake his head in dismay.
These three stunning women—all technically yōkai—
Acted nothing like monsters.
They'd endured the old mortal's tirade without a retort.
Now sat dejectedly, small faces etched with despair, nearly in tears.
"Onee-chan, what to do? We thought closing down meant coming to Fox-chan... but she has nowhere to live either," the younger catgirl sister said despondently, sitting cross-legged.
"Sumimasen," Kawakita Saika apologized, her fluffy white tail swishing anxiously beside her. "I'll go pull the rickshaw right now... earn enough quickly for the new rent."
"Ehh~ Fox-chan! The landlord raised it so much! And he wants half a year upfront! How can you earn that much?" The older sister sighed, resting her chin on her hand at the table. "Imitō and I should become Thief Cats after all."
"Ehh~ Thief Cat?" Kawakita Saika's eyes widened. "What profession is that? Profitable? I'll do it too!"
"You can earn ten whole strawberry cream cakes a day!" the younger sister declared, swallowing hard.
"It means being the third wheel, stealing other women's husbands," the older sister explained fiercely, showing her tiny fangs and making a grabbing motion.
"Ehh~ Sugoi na! You guys know such an impressive job?" Kawakita Saika's face shone with admiration. "Not like me, I can't even work a cash register... only pull carts."
"But... what do you do with the husband once you steal him? Can you... trade him for money?"
"Ehh~ Onee-chan! Fox-chan is right! Where do you exchange him?" The younger sister perked up, her pink ears twitching.
"Stop asking," the older sister mumbled, sinking her head onto the table in defeat. "I don't know either."
"Report!" The younger sister suddenly raised her hand. "I have an idea! Let's find the very poor Demon-sama! Force him to sign a contract with us! Then we'll always have food!"
"Ehh~ Imitō! That's... actually smart." The older sister's eyes lit up. "Demon-sama is so strong! He defeated Hōkibō-sama! Feeding a few of us shouldn't be a problem."
"But... he's still very poor, eh? Would we get enough?"
"Then we just eat a little less! Fox-chan, you should come too!"
"Me?" Kawakita Saika blinked, frowning slightly, hesitant.
She felt an inexplicable closeness to that man.
But didn't understand its source.
Because he called her "countryman"?
Or... because he touched her most private place?
Her cheeks warmed at the memory.
"Talking about me?" a calm voice asked.
"Ehh... Demon-sama! Sumimasen!" both catgirl sisters yelped in unison, faces flushing. "Oh no... he heard everything!"
Fang Zuo walked in, giving each pink cat ear a gentle flick.
The sisters clutched their ears, cheeks crimson, eyes shimmering, speechless.
Clearly, cats and foxes had different sensitive spots.
"You were thinking of me?" Fang Zuo sat down facing Kawakita Saika.
"Hi! Yes," she answered, looking up at his face. She nodded instinctively, then shook her head frantically. "Sumimasen... n-no... not really."
"Is that so?" Fang Zuo stroked his chin. "That disappoints me. I was quite looking forward to it."
"Ah! Really?" Kawakita Saika gasped, covering her mouth. She then hid her face, peeking through her fingers as she nodded. "Hi! I... I have. Thought of you. A little."
"No, no... a little more than a little!" She corrected herself earnestly, gesturing with her small hands.
Fang Zuo shook his head inwardly.
These three would count the money for whoever sold them off without a clue.
He scanned the dilapidated shack.
Barely better than four bare walls.
He stood and slid open a small cupboard door. Inside: a simple futon and a single pillow.
"You sleep here?"
"Hi. There were only two rooms. One for Kami... one for his parents," Kawakita Saika explained, her expression dimming at the mention of the family.
Hadn't she treated them well enough?
Why betray her?
"Why did you take them in?" Fang Zuo asked, curious. Her shy nature didn't seem the type to actively seek strangers on the street.
"They... said they needed my help," Kawakita Saika murmured, her tail drooping low.
Fang Zuo sighed.
Just the words 'need you', and she'd taken strangers home without question?
Had something gone wrong during the Ninth Soul's reincarnation?
Affecting her mind?
The foxes of Qingqiu were famously cunning tricksters capable of deceiving emperors out of their thrones.
Taking Kawakita Saika back would probably get them thrown out.
His eyes caught a colorful poster on the table.
He picked it up.
A strange bounty notice, printed with shadowy silhouettes.
Each shadow promised a massive reward for information.
An address was listed at the bottom.
At first glance, it looked like a quirky anime homage—a One Piece-esque bounty poster.
Kawakita Saika's indistinct outline was near the bottom.
While her features and body were mere shadow, her distinctive white fox tail was clearly depicted.
So this was why that family had sold her out.
Fang Zuo folded the poster and pocketed it.
"So... what's your plan?" he asked them.
"Demon-sama," the younger catgirl sister began timidly, one hand protectively over her pink ears, afraid he'd flick them again. "Are you married? Let us be your 'Thief Cats'! I want strawberry cream cake!"
"Baka!" the older sister hissed. "You said it! Now he'll know!"
"Ehh~ Onee-chan is so smart!"
"And you?" Fang Zuo turned to Kawakita Saika.
"I... I wouldn't know how to be a 'Thief Cat'. I'm very clumsy... can't do anything well." Her voice was barely a whisper. "I... I'll just pull the cart."
Fang Zuo couldn't help but shake his head again.
These three clearly shared half a brain cell between them.
Zero survival instinct, still fretting about rent.
If information about Kawakita Saika had been sold to that old Tengu, there was no guarantee it hadn't been sold to others.
Someone could trace them here any moment.
Even if the broker kept their silence professionally...
The old Tengu was dead.
Whether from intermediaries or Hōkibō's own faction, could the secret hold?
He laid this out bluntly.
The simple-minded trio froze, the implications sinking in.
The catgirl sisters especially trembled visibly.
"You're coming to my place," Fang Zuo stated, leaving no room for argument.
His hand swept decisively.
"I'm taking you all."
"Could... could I eat two... no, three strawberry cream cakes a day?" the younger sister ventured meekly, assuming a contract was imminent. "Demon-sama... my chest is big... if I don't eat cake, it might get small!"
She clearly thought this an excellent reason.
***
A Rolls-Royce Cullinan traveled towards the Diet building.
"What? The aura of the Fifth Heavenly Man, Hōkibō... vanished in Shinjuku?" Abe Na-akari frowned, phone to her ear. "The Sakura family stronghold was also in Shinjuku... Is it that man again?"