The Fox's Disguise
I let out a long, drawn-out yawn. "Huuuaaaaahhh." While lounging around, I crunched noisily on the all-ages kibble the director had bought me. The small-breed formula tasted awful. It seriously lacked flavor. The large-breed stuff was just... meh. Neither good nor bad, just bland. So yeah, all-ages was clearly the best.
Wait. Was this because of my awkward six-tail state? Maybe that's why the all-ages stuff tasted the most satisfying. If I popped out three tails, would the small-breed kibble suddenly seem amazing? I kind of wanted to test it.
But I'd only recently received yogi from that blue-flamed fox spirit, so I was still clumsy at controlling it. Once I got the hang of handling yogi, I'd switch back to three tails and give the puppy food a proper try.
Ah. Anyway.
It was about time to head home. I still needed to investigate that goblin horn, and I really wanted to mess with Depo a bit. I was even starting to miss the thick, inky scent unique to the Hidden World. Why was everything such a hassle?
I'd finally come to understand the feelings of a runaway teenager who didn't want to go back home. The Yokai Extermination Office on Jirisan was basically paradise for me. The staff treated me well. They tossed me snacks. They fed me three square meals a day, and there was even a bed. If this wasn't heaven, what was?
Of course, there were actual reasons I was staying at the office. If another yokai granted the qualification for Ascension showed up... Even if Lee Ha-neul was stationed here full-time, considering the overwhelming yogi that blue fox spirit had possessed... there was no way she could stand against something like that.
I had to help. These were people I'd grown attached to over time, whether I'd meant to or not. If they ended up dying at the hands of an ascended yokai, I'd be devastated. That's why I was toughing it out here instead of going home. It definitely wasn't because the food and kibble were delicious. Nope. Not at all.
"Lady Miho! Hello! Euhuhuhuhu... Euhehehehehe."
Ugh. Here they came again. My so-called fan club, led by the Grade 7 civil servant Kim Myung-ho, who followed me around everywhere like lost puppies. I wasn't some celebrity-obsessed yokai. They actually introduced themselves by saying, "We are the official members of Lady Miho's Number One Fan Club!" It was the only part of the Jirisan Yokai Extermination Office that I genuinely disliked.
People liked me way too much. Especially the guys. They kept latching onto me to the point it was annoying. ...I was starting to worry that one of them might actually confess to me soon. I wasn't exaggerating. They were that intense.
Wasn't there a good way to handle this? I didn't want to go home yet. I wanted to stick around a little longer. But if things kept going like this, I was going to lose my mind.
"..."
Oh! That's right! I just thought of a brilliant idea. Why hadn't I come up with this sooner? Sure, part of why they liked me was probably because I had some passive charm that attracted men. But the bigger reason was definitely my appearance.
With six tails out, I had an objectively breathtaking look. My chest was unnecessarily huge, too. Probably evolved that way to better drain male vitality. If my looks were what was drawing all the unwanted attention...
Then I just had to get rid of the looks.
"Lady Miho, if you have time, would you like to grab coffee with m—"
"I'm first! Wait your turn!"
"Senior, isn't this a bit much? I spoke first, so obviously I should—"
Release
Poooooof.
Thick clouds of white smoke billowed up inside the break room.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Whether they were coughing or not, I wore a victorious little smirk. Once the smoke finally cleared and they saw what I'd become, their faces fell into expressions of utter disappointment.
"What the...?"
"L-Lady Miho?"
"It's just a fox..."
Exactly. I should've just undone the Fox Magic - Transformation from the start.
After that, whenever I wandered around the Jirisan Yokai Extermination Office, I stayed in my true fox form. The effect was immediate and perfect. The guys who used to steal glances at my face and chest while blushing now just looked at me with mild regret, smacking their lips like they'd lost something tasty. I should've done this ages ago.
But there was one side effect I hadn't anticipated.
"So cuuuuuuuute!"
"Oh my gosh, look at this soft fur... How can it be this fluffy?"
"Miho! Paw! Give me your paw!"
Now the female employees were the ones obsessing over me.
This is the Jirisan Yokai Extermination Office.
One person was constantly rushing around the office carrying mountains of paperwork. She was the brand-new civil servant who'd just joined, Grade 9 Ye Ji-hye.
Ye Ji-hye was a beautiful woman who'd heard "You should become an idol or an actress when you grow up" so many times it practically echoed in her ears. And honestly, her looks really were that striking. So it was no secret that the moment she joined, several male employees had secretly developed crushes on her.
With beauty like that, she could've lived an easy life. So why on earth had she chosen a place like the Jirisan Yokai Extermination Office—one of the most notoriously difficult 3D jobs out there?
The reason was simple. Like Grade 7 Kim Myung-ho, she was a total yokai fanatic.
Ever since she was little, reading old books about yokai had been her hobby. That was why she'd joined the Jirisan Yokai Extermination Office—to see real yokai with her own eyes.
Unfortunately, unlike Kim Myung-ho, she wasn't some special talent who excelled at both combat and office work. Her shooting skills were absolutely abysmal.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Fifty-meter pistol range. One out of ten shots hit the target.
After witnessing that catastrophic result firsthand, the director had shaken his head and told her, "Ji-hye, it seems combat just isn't your thing."
"N-no! Director, I can really do it, I swear...!"
"Why are you so obsessed with combat? Is it for the promotion?"
"No, that's not it...!"
"Don't worry. You have a natural talent for administrative work, so you'll have no trouble advancing."
"D-Directooooor!"
"Get back to work."
Just as the director said, she really did have a gift for office duties. The day she would be sent out into the field would never come. Which meant she would never, ever get to see a real yokai with her own eyes for the rest of her life.
She'd joined this office chasing her dream, only to find out she could never actually see a yokai. It was the moment her dreams came crashing down.
But her dream would be fulfilled surprisingly quickly—and in the most satisfying way possible.
"Kkiing, kaeng, kaeng, kaeng!"
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
Right in front of her was a white fox with six tails, leaping playfully between the sprinklers.
It was Miho. In her real fox form, not her human one!
So cuuuuuuute...
Look at that fluffy tail wagging. Could she pet it? Would the fox get mad?
After hesitating for a moment, Ye Ji-hye steeled her resolve and walked straight toward me.
"Ahem. Hm-hmm!"
"Kkiing...?"
"Um, well, that is... so..."
Her mouth froze up the moment she faced a yokai for the first time in her life. But her hand moved on pure instinct, reaching into her pocket. She pulled something out and held it toward me.
"W-would you like to eat this...?"
"Kaeng!"
What she'd taken out of her pocket was dog gum.
The moment I saw the dog gum, my tail started spinning like helicopter blades. Hek hek hek hek hek hek. I even stuck my tongue out, drooling everywhere. Ye Ji-hye carefully offered me the treat.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunchcrunchcrunchcrunch.
As I started chewing the dog gum, Ye Ji-hye bravely reached out and began gently stroking my body.
So soooooft!
Luckily, I didn't resist. In fact, I seemed to be enjoying it. Encouraged by my reaction, she grew bolder and started carefully scratching behind my ears with her fingertips.
"Grrrrr, grrrrrrr..."
Ah. Pure bliss. Ye Ji-hye thought to herself that joining the Yokai Extermination Office had been the best decision of her life.
"Miho, please! I'm begging you!"
"No."
"I want to see you in your white fox form too!"
"I said no."
"That's so mean! Why are you only this strict with me?! Even Ji-hye, who just started, bragged that she got to pet you!"
"That was inside the office. This is outside."
There weren't any guys around anyway. There was no real reason for me to stay in my true form, so why had this woman been whining nonstop? She should just be grateful I'd granted her request at all.
"So what kind of training is it?"
"Stop changing the subject!"
"I just want to go watch TV and chew on some more dog gum."
"Ugh... S-sorry! So, um, the training is..."
It was training to release Power of Force. Apparently that mysterious power called Force could not only be stored in the hand but released as well. However, releasing it was extremely difficult. Since Lee Ha-neul was still inexperienced, there was a chance she might accidentally destroy all the precious trees across Jirisan if she messed up. That's why she'd asked for my help.
In other words...
"You want me to play fetch, right?"
"It's not fetch, it's... Wait, do you even know what baseball is, Miho?"
"I saw it on TV."
"You only ever watch animal shows. What was that program's name again? 'My Precious Puppy' or something?"
"...Let's just start already."
Why did she have to talk so much?