The Fox and the Humans
The decisive reason why Miho, once a yokai, was able to capture the hearts of the people at the Jirisan Yokai Extermination Office was simple: she had saved their lives. Although she was a yokai—an enemy of humanity—the irony was that a yokai had been the one to spare their lives. That alone allowed her to naturally blend into their world. The fact that her stunning beauty boosted their favorability was just a bonus.
So then. Could a 'fox yokai' named Miho ever form relationships with humans without first building that kind of bond? Hmm. No matter how beautiful her face or how perfect her figure, it would be impossible unless she used charm magic. That was simply how relationships between humans and yokai worked.
However, 'fox spiritual beast' Miho was different from 'fox yokai' Miho. She could capture people's hearts with absurd ease. Of course, she had been the greatest contributor in resolving the recent Namsan goblin incident, so it wasn't strange that humans felt favorable toward her. But the reason everyone gathered in this conference room looked at her with such warm eyes wasn't because of her achievements.
It was simply because she was a spiritual beast.
Spiritual beasts naturally radiate a sacred aura that draws goodwill from people. It was like how adults instinctively want to protect a child, or how seeing something cute makes your heart flutter. A completely natural, instinctive reaction.
Of course, there was still some distance. No matter how much of a spiritual beast she was, she wasn't human in appearance. There were limits to the common ground a spiritual beast and humans could share.
Yet somehow, after only about an hour since she'd entered the conference room, people had grown completely comfortable with her. The biggest reason was her vast knowledge. Her understanding wasn't all that different from a human's. Her way of thinking was shockingly similar to theirs too. The fact that she even knew internet memes left the people in the room utterly stunned. If it weren't for the fox ears and tails, they would have sworn they were talking to another human.
She had a human heart.
Just as people were starting to see her as one of their own, the Minister of the Yokai Hunter Department, Baek Nam-hoon, pulled a dog treat from his pocket and offered it to her.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Huff huff huff huff.
Swish swish swish.
She wagged her tails vigorously from side to side, drooling as she chewed the treat. Everyone who saw it thought the same thing.
Ah. She's definitely not human.
She's not human... she's just a dog.
Since ancient times, dogs had been humanity's friends. For some reason, she suddenly felt even more familiar to them.
As they watched Miho wagging her tails, the people in the conference room gradually opened their hearts to her.
One of the female force masters called out to her.
"Miho, give me paw! Paw!"
"Paw? Why? Here you go."
"Kyaaaaah! She's so well-trained! Ha-neul, I'm so jealous I could die!"
...It seemed their hearts were opening in a slightly twisted direction, but still. The important thing was that they were opening their hearts at all.
Soon everyone in the conference room was taking turns building rapport with Miho. It was a scene that felt rather inappropriate for what was supposed to be a serious meeting.
Even Hojun snuck into the crowd and gave her an order.
"Hey, roll over and show your belly."
"Get lost, you perverted bastard."
"...Why am I the only one you treat like shit?"
Miho was especially sharp only toward him.
The original purpose of this meeting had been to 'devise countermeasures against powerful yokai.' But the objective had shifted slightly. The threat had expanded from 'powerful yokai' to 'powerful yokai and goblins,' and 'deciding Miho the spiritual beast's future treatment' had also become one of the meeting's key agenda items.
Of course, no one was suggesting they drive her away. Over the course of the last four incidents, Miho had more than proven her worth to humanity. An alliance between Miho and the humans had essentially already been formed.
In fact, the humans currently had an absolute need for Miho's help. Powerful yokai of level two or higher were one thing, but they had no means whatsoever to fight goblins right now.
Until the Taoist masters learned 'goblin-extermination Taoist arts,' and until the force masters scoured the ancient texts left behind by the King of Yuldo Kingdom for ways to oppose goblins, there was no telling how much time it would take.
The real issue was how to utilize Miho.
The ideal method would be to call on her for help every time a goblin or powerful yokai appeared. But she wasn't some kind of machine or extermination tool. Asking that much of a single sentient being felt excessive. Even the force masters and Taoist masters whose job was yokai extermination didn't push themselves that hard.
Besides, everyone had already built a bond with her. They couldn't make unreasonable demands.
Just as Baek Nam-hoon and everyone else fell into deep thought, Miho—who had been crunching on her dog treat—suddenly raised her hand.
"You can just call me whenever something happens. Don't worry about it."
It was proven today. Movies are all fake.
In most films and dramas, government officials are portrayed as cold-blooded, ruthless monsters. That was all complete bullshit.
Why are these people so nice?
I had even considered the worst-case scenario where they would dissect my body and turn me into a lab rat. Not that I had any intention of just handing myself over with a cheerful 'Here you go, take my corpse!' if that happened. Still, I thought they'd at least treat me like a dog.
Instead of using me, they're tiptoeing around me, making requests in these hesitant little voices. In that case... well, I feel pretty good about it.
Whether they order me around or not, I was planning to hunt down every goblin and yokai that appears from now on anyway. I can help them with an even lighter heart now.
The meeting was slowly drawing to a close. The conclusion was simple: they would focus on training.
The Taoist masters would hole up in the Taoist Association for a while to master goblin-related Taoist arts. Hojun—the self-proclaimed... no, the universally acknowledged unparalleled genius—could learn goblin-countering Taoist arts in less than two weeks. The other Taoist masters, however, would need to devote at least two months to it.
The force masters decided to study the ancient texts to learn the methods the King of Yuldo Kingdom had left behind for fighting goblins. How long that would take was anyone's guess. It could be a month. Or two months. Maybe even longer.
So what would happen if a goblin or powerful yokai appeared while the force masters and Taoist masters were unavailable? The answer was simple. I would exterminate it.
To be more precise, the final decision was that three people would move together: me, along with Lee Ha-neul and Hojun, who could at least put up some resistance against goblins.
It was a bit of a burden, but knowing I'd have Ha-neul and Hojun with me made it feel a little lighter.
My personal situation had also been one of the meeting's main topics. The conclusion there was simple too. They would release detailed information about spiritual beasts to the press, along with my own information.
It was a somewhat risky decision since there was no telling how people would react to me, but Baek Nam-hoon had chosen to push forward anyway. The water had already been spilled, after all. And the one responsible for spilling it was obviously me.
Over the past few days, I'd been photographed hundreds of times while wandering around Seoul. Photos of me walking on all fours. Photos of me sniffing around. Photos of me happily munching on delicious food with a big grin. The internet had already tentatively concluded that 'the mysterious helper is actually a fox yokai.'
On top of that, the people I'd treated on Namsan had given interviews everywhere. Fortunately, it seemed the 'word magic' had been lifted after the goblin died, because they all spoke kindly of me.
The official announcement hadn't come out yet, but my identity was already as good as exposed. So since things had come to this, they had no choice but to correct the record and announce to the press that I was not a 'yokai' but a 'spiritual beast.'
"...Are you sure you're okay with this?" Baek Nam-hoon asked.
I answered simply.
"It's fine. I'm just going to hole up in Jirisan and live there anyway."
"Understood. Then I'll summarize the meeting's conclusions once more."
As I half-listened to Baek Nam-hoon's words, I suddenly felt strangely happy sitting here face-to-face with humans, talking with them. Just two years ago, I'd thought I'd never be able to show myself in the human world again.
I made up my mind once more.
I'll crush the goblins. I'll crush all the yokai aiming for fake ascension. I'll protect the humans.
'Fox Friend of Humanity Miho protects the citizens once again...'
Kyah. Just thinking about a news headline like that already fills me with excitement.
In a good mood, I chewed up the rest of the dog treat I'd left behind.
"Grrrrrrrrr."
"...Therefore, in order to develop countermeasures against the entity known as goblins..."
"Grr, grrrrrr, grr."
"...We will officially recognize Miho as a member of the Yokai Hunter Department, while keeping the fact that she can transform into a yokai a secret..."
"Whine. Whiiiine."
"..."
Why is everyone staring at me?
Whatever. What are you gonna do about it?