Chapter 258
Chapter 258
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 258
Chapter Title: Chapter 12 - Picking Up a Human
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Meeting that boy happened purely by chance.
While cultivating in the mountains, absorbing natural essence as usual. When I briefly came down to the mortal world for some business.
In that short span of time, I ran into him in a back alley teeming with the sort of thugs I'd normally ignore without a second glance.
-Tremble tremble..
"Ah.. uh..."
A child who didn't even look ten yet.
Orphans getting dumped in back alleys wasn't exactly rare, so nothing special about it. But that day, for some reason, I felt like watching him a little longer.
His head was bowed low, so his face wasn't visible, but judging from his clothes and the state of his body, he'd clearly suffered some serious injury.
No obvious external wounds, so probably internal damage.
A spark of curiosity struck me, so I focused demonic power in my eyes to peer into his core—and I saw something I'd never witnessed in all my long years.
'How the hell can a human body be this wrecked?'
His dantian at the body's center was completely shattered, and the process of spreading its energy throughout had torn up all his meridians. Thanks to that, not just his internal energy but even his innate essence was on the verge of leaking out.
That alone would be bad enough.
'And what the hell happened to his soul to make it like this..'
Taboo sorcery that manipulates souls, or maybe something post-mortem—but a living human's soul shouldn't have issues like this. Yet here it was, right in front of me.
Pulled out halfway by force? Or another soul jammed in against its will?
His soul, which should fit perfectly within the frame of his body, was overflowing and misaligned like a bad puzzle.
Even one of those problems would be a miracle to survive, let alone both body and soul being busted up like this...
"Ah.. ugh...."
'...No, actually.'
In that state, he wasn't really alive, even if he was still breathing.
I had no idea how he'd clung on this long, but at best, he'd last four days before returning to dust.
Far past what natural recovery could handle—three stages worse, at least.
'What to do with this one.'
I could help if I wanted, but there wasn't any real reason to.
Even for me, saving someone this far gone would take serious time and effort. And it wasn't like he could pay the price.
In human gold terms, hundreds of thousands of nyang wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Expecting that from an abandoned alley orphan would be the real insanity.
'Hmm..'
-Tap tap
I tapped my fan against my arm, lost in thought for a moment.
Anyway, I'd already cast spells around me so no one would notice my presence properly.
About as long as it takes to brew a cup of tea passed.
'Come to think of it, I have less than twenty years left on this earth.'
Complete a thousand years of cultivation and ascend to the heavens, become a god.
But as a fox spirit at my core, even if I ascended, those prideful gods would treat me predictably.
'Better rack up some good karma beforehand.'
The gods obsess over that stuff—good deeds, virtue, whatever you call it. Stockpiling some now would make things smoother later.
I hadn't done much evil, but I hadn't done much good either.
'A kid this uniquely messed up probably has some ties to those heavenly gods. Age looks about right, too.'
Whatever landed him in this alley, he checked all the boxes.
Pick up a guy who'd be dead without me, nurse him until he can survive on his own, send him back into the world. That counts as good karma, right?
Decision made—no need to drag it out.
"Hey, kid. Care to look this way for a moment?"
"...?"
At the sound of my voice calling him, he grimaced through the pain of his internal injuries and lifted his head.
True to someone who'd tumbled through the alley, his face was smudged with dirt here and there—but even so, his looks stood out as anything but ordinary.
'If he grows up right, he'll break plenty of hearts someday.'
By then, I'd have set him loose and be prepping my own ascension, so none of my business.
"You know your body's condition well enough. Even if you scrape by somehow, you won't last past the next full moon."
"..."
"Come with me?"
-Swish
I extended my hand, and he stared at it with those lightless eyes.
I wasn't planning to force him along just to save him.
Whatever his story, if he'd ended up this bad, he'd been through something big.
Not weird if he'd lost the will to live and just wanted to die here.
No interest in the hassle of saving someone hell-bent on dying.
"Can't make you the best in the world or put all the Central Plains under your feet. But I won't let you starve."
Just healing and dumping him would waste the effort, so I'd teach him a few decent skills too.
At least enough he won't go hungry.
Anything more depends on him.
"..."
He stared at me for a long while with those dead eyes, then slowly, painstakingly raised his hand to place it on mine.
-Thud
"Whoa there."
But that was his last bit of strength—he couldn't even grip, just collapsed. I caught him quick, kept him from hitting the ground.
'Tch. Does he even know who he's following so casually?'
He was already at death's door anyway, but tailing a stranger's still dangerous.
Lucky it was me—if a bad yokai, could've eaten him on the spot.
"What a high-maintenance little brat."
-Pat pat
I brushed off the dirt smudges roughly, then hoisted him onto my back.
'Skinny as a rail for a boy. What good's he even gonna be.'
Feeling his emaciated frame through my senses, I sighed inwardly again.
Looks like the next ten years or so will be a real pain.
"...Hah..!"
"Awake, are you? Then come here and grab hold for a sec."
After bringing him back to my mountain dwelling.
While I was pulling out bedding for the still-sleeping boy, he woke up.
It was late night anyway—about time to sleep.
"...?? Wha...?"
Still groggy, he looked around in confusion, then fixed his gaze on me.
Slightly parted lips, faintly flushed cheeks—by now, it was a reaction I'd seen so often it bored me.
That's why I use spells when heading to the mortal world. But I'd dropped them now, so no helping it.
Without ears or tail visible, I looked like an absolute beauty by human standards. Even in his state, a guy's gonna react.
"Stare all you want, but it's late—get ready for bed. Proper treatment starts tomorrow morning."
"...Pardon?"
"Memory still fuzzy? You said you'd come with me."
"...Ah?"
Still out of it, he blanked for a long moment.
"...Ah!"
Then his face lit up like realization dawned.
"You've barely strung words together since waking. You can't talk or what?"
"N-No..?"
"Good, not mute. Would've been trouble if we couldn't communicate."
Even amid the confusion, he looked indignant at the sudden insult, tried to sit up—
-Freeze
"Aghh.."
—but the pain won, and he slumped back down.
"Tsk tsk. What'd you think you'd do, moving like that in your condition? Good thing I washed you beforehand since you couldn't manage alone."
"...Wait. What did you just say.."
My words snapped him alert—he started patting himself down.
"Ah.. ah...?"
"Why the shock? Can't just toss a dirt-rolled alley kid straight into bed. Don't worry—I wasn't starving enough to get interested in a little pup like you.."
"Little?! I'm a full-grown adult with ID!"
-Shriek!
His yell nearly made my tail pop out, but I tucked it behind me smoothly.
And something even more shocking than the shout.
"...Adult?"
"I-I might look like this, but I even went to university.."
"Hmm.."
No clue what he's on about.
Never heard words like that in all my years, so what the hell was he trying to say?
"Whatever. Under ten or over thirty, you're a kid to me. Human lifespans are all the same anyway."
"Y-You don't look that old either.."
"Quiet. Don't go prying a lady's age already."
-Thwack!
"Ow!"
I lightly smacked his head with my fan.
"Tch. While you yap, I've finished setting up the bedding. If you've got breath for talk, get to sleep."
"...There's only one set of bedding."
"...Right."
hadn't thought of that.
Lived alone my whole life—no reason to prep two.
"...Well, no helping it. We'll share the one."
"What?!"
"Can't leave you on the cold floor, and I'm not sleeping there myself. So together it is. It's big enough—plenty of room for a squirt like you."
"??? ?????"
Face beet red, he hugged himself like he was warding me off, embarrassed and wary.
"Don't get ideas. You think I'd crave a body like yours?"
"..."
"Imagine what you want, but know your place. Sure, you're pretty for a human, but a long way from my tastes."
I might look human-like, live human-like, but at core, I'm a yokai.
Our views on the world, on life—they're worlds apart. As if I'd stoop to humans out of boredom.
'If I lusted after you, I'd swear off ascension to be your bride.'
Not that it'd happen, so no need for oaths.
"Got it? Then lie down already. You might not know, but sleep's calling me."
"Ugh.."
I grabbed him, forced him down, covered us both. He gave some weak twitch—protest or not?—but stayed put, no attempt to escape.
Good or bad, didn't matter; he wasn't bolting. So I closed my eyes for a bit—
-Tap
'Hm...?'
Something nudged my body, pulling me from sweet drowsiness.
Half-lidded, I checked: he'd fallen asleep, arm awkwardly stretched my way.
Bed's narrow—must be uncomfortable.
"Sigh."
'High-maintenance from day one. How's this gonna work long-term?'
What a hassle of a brat, I thought, tugging his arm to pull him into my arms.
Too cramped? Just snuggle—why the hesitation?
'At least I washed him good. Smells nice.'
This how it feels keeping a pet?
Never got humans who did it for fun, but now I kinda do.
'...Warm, too.'
Usually just cold blankets. But holding a living thing? That body heat felt surprisingly good.
Still seemed like a chore ahead.
But... maybe kinda fun, too.