Chapter 69: Liberation is a Good Thing
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 69: Liberation is a Good Thing
“How many times do I have to tell you that shapeshifting is the most basic of basics for becoming a true yokai fox!”
“Rin doesn’t know about that! Rin likes being like this the best!”
“It’s not about what you like or don’t like!”
“I don’t know! Rin doesn’t know! I won’t do it, even if I die! Ahhhhhhh—”
Rin pressed her ears flat against her head, shutting her eyes tight. She swayed from side to side, letting out a continuous wail to block out Yuhwa’s voice.
“Mastah! Gwanny keeps telling Rin to transform! Do you wanna see it, Mastah?”
“I might.”
“Then I’ll do it!”
Rin’s resolve, which had seemed strong enough to defy death itself, flipped like a pancake at a single, thoughtless comment from Karami.
Yuhwa squeezed her eyes shut and craned her neck back, looking like she was about to have an aneurysm.
“Mastah, why is Gwanny so mad?”
“People tend to get sensitive over little things when they get old.”
Rin clicked her tongue in pity.
“Mastah, Rin won’t be like that when she grows up.”
“Enough chatter. Focus!”
“Okayy.”
That impudent little brat, Yuhwa fumed internally. She desperately wanted to flick Rin’s forehead enough times to build a tower of bumps, but the contract prevented her from even doing that, much to her frustration.
The lesson of the day was shapeshifting, a transformation magic similar to Polymorph. It was a skill that could enthrall others into offering up everything they owned, an essential art not just for yokai foxes, but for any yokai of beauty.
“The way my appearance becomes younger like this…”
Yuhwa’s form shifted, becoming as young as when Karami had first met her.
“…is also a form of shapeshifting.”
“Ooooh?”
“No matter how you grow in the future, Rin, you can maintain your current appearance if you wish.”
To live a life as long as eternity while preserving one’s beauty forever—it was a blessing anyone would desire. But to achieve that, she needed to take things one step at a time.
“May I ask a question?”
Karami, who had been leisurely sipping his tea while the two foxes trained, raised his hand.
“Go ahead.”
“Why does your way of speaking change, too?”
Yuhwa nodded. She had been wondering when he would ask. It was all within her expectations, so she answered without difficulty.
“Complete unity. When your appearance changes, your mannerisms must change to match. Otherwise, the shapeshifting’s effectiveness weakens drastically.”
“It’s not a hobby, is it?”
“It is not.”
“So it’s a character concept. Got it.”
Karami nodded as if he alone understood. Yuhwa decided to just ignore him; he wouldn’t listen anyway.
The shapeshifting Yuhwa was teaching Rin was difficult. Transforming one’s body into a completely different form from the start was extremely hard. Conversely, the closer the target form was to the caster’s spiritual and physical shape, the higher the success rate.
The Fox Clan were beastkin, a fifty-fifty mix of fox and human. This meant the easiest form for Rin to take was that of a fox.
Whoosh.
With a somersault in mid-air, Yuhwa instantly transformed into a pure white fox. She exuded a mystical aura, the kind that would make you feel bewitched and follow her unconsciously if you met her in the mountains.
“Give it a try. Picture the form you desire within your fox orb.”
Rin nodded, gripping her fox orb and concentrating. Her spiritual power flowed into the orb. Having absorbed the power, the orb emitted a light that enveloped Rin.
When the light faded, Rin’s silhouette was unchanged. The only difference was that her hands and feet were now covered in pink fur.
“Kyaaah! Rin’s become a furball!”
*
The day’s lesson was over. In short, after a few trials and errors, Rin had somehow managed to learn the basics of shapeshifting.
Now a cute baby fox, Rin had claimed a spot inside my clothes. She wriggled in my embrace before poking her head out.
“Mastah. It’s super warm in here.”
“Is that so?”
“Yup. And it smells a lot like you, Mastah. Hehehe.”
With that excuse, Rin showed no intention of moving an inch. I couldn’t bring myself to kick her out when she seemed so happy. I decided to consider it a reward for her hard work.
“Shall we stop by the cat café on the way?”
“Rin doesn’t like it there. Rin hates kitties.”
“Why?”
“The kitties are always cuddling Mastah and rubbing their scent on you. I don’t like it.”
I knew foxes were territorial animals. Was she wary of other animals’ scents? Her rubbing against me might be her way of marking me with her own scent.
The cat café was bringing in a decent amount of money, but it was ultimately a side business. If Rin disliked it, I should probably cut back.
“Alright. We’ll skip it today, then. Let’s go buy some meat that you like, Rin. And some skewers for Seira, too.”
“Yay!”
We stopped by the market and bought groceries for dinner.
On the way back home, Rin, exhausted, was fast asleep inside my clothes, leaving me to walk the quiet alleyways alone.
Seira’s house was located on the outskirts of the city. There were fewer people, the facilities were old, and the security was far from good. Seira was strong enough to protect herself, so it wasn’t a problem for her, but I wouldn’t recommend the outer districts to anyone else.
The reason I bring this up is that it means you can become a target anytime, anywhere.
“Well, well, look who it is. Isn’t it the owner of that famous new cat café?”
An unfamiliar voice echoed through the deserted alley.
A one-eyed hyena beastkin blocked my path, his back hunched and his gait sloppy as he strolled with his hands in his pockets.
I sensed movement behind me and turned to see more hyenas, who had appeared out of nowhere, snickering as they cut off my escape route.
Seira had told me that hyenas were one of the groups that caused trouble in the city, much like the street cat people, and that they were called Scavengers. She had warned me several times to be careful of them, saying that a human who wasn’t a beastkin was the perfect target.
“My, my, what’s a big-shot owner like you doing in a rundown place like this? With your hands full of tasty-looking things, too.”
“He’s a human, and he’s got a pink fox with him, boss. You think it’s easy for him to find a place? He’s got no choice but to come to a remote place like this.”
“Right, right. I almost forgot.”
The one-eyed hyena, addressed as ‘boss,’ clapped his hands and laughed crassly, as if he’d just realized something he should have known. Then, the laughter that had filled the alley slowly died down. The hyena’s eyes were still curved into crescents, but I didn’t get the feeling he was smiling.
“So, how’s business these days?”
“Well, it’s going alright.”
“Man, I’m so jealous. I was wondering where all my cat people friends went, thought maybe they’d eaten some rat poison and died, but then I hear they’re working at a café? You have no idea how surprised I was.”
“They’re all working very hard. I’m nothing but grateful.”
The hyena continued the conversation as if we were old friends.
“So, what do you say? Any thoughts on hiring us Scavengers?”
“Unfortunately, all the employee positions are filled.”
“Who said anything about being an employee? Everyone has a role that suits them.”
The hyena subtly revealed his true intentions. It was obvious why they had approached me.
“Let’s just get to the point. What is it you want to say?”
“Ahh, just like a business owner. So straightforward. I like that. We’ll protect your shop for you. I hear you’re having trouble with the dog tribe lately, right? We’ll chase all those mutts away for you. We don’t like them either.”
Hyenas may look like this, but they’re actually feliforms, more closely related to cats than dogs. His words themselves sounded plausible.
“And the price?”
“No more, no less. Just give us half your profits. See? That’s pretty conscientious of us. Right, boys?”
The hyenas started patting each other on the back, a disgusting display of self-praise.
Half the profits?
What a joke.
“For that kind of money, I’d hire trained guards. Why would I hire Scavengers?”
“Hmm, I’m trying to be nice here. A merchant’s life depends on being quick-witted, but you seem to be a little lacking in that department, owner. You don’t want to do business in this neighborhood?”
The hyena suddenly began to lick his claws.
The message was clear: know your place.
“I see. I was indeed lacking in tact.”
“Right? Good thing you realized it now.”
“I just forgot there was a job that would suit a hyena much better. My mistake.”
A perfect job for a hyena had just come to mind.
“You can be in charge of food waste disposal. I’ll provide meals, so I don’t think a separate salary will be necessary.”
“What did you say, you bastard?”
The hyena’s face, which had been twisted into an unfitting smile, instantly turned vicious.
He seemed to be trying to threaten me, but I didn’t find it particularly scary. He looked menacing, but his body was gaunt for his size. His frame, with its visible ribs, just looked pathetic.
“Sigh, but I don’t take male slaves. Are there any female hyenas around? If you could set me up with a female who can handle food waste at my shop, I’d be grateful. I’ll even pay you a small finder’s fee.”
The hyena’s shoulders heaved as he seethed with rage.
“This bastard must be completely insane. You think you’re hot stuff just because you’ve touched a little money? You think this is a human city? You think the city guard is going to do anything for you?”
The hyena glanced around.
“What’s this? You didn’t bring the pink fox with you this time? We couldn’t touch you for fear of catching her bad luck, but it looks like today’s our lucky day.”
Convinced the pink fox was absent, the corners of the hyena’s mouth split into a wide grin. He bared his rotten fangs threateningly and approached me.
In that touch-and-go situation, Rin poked her head out.
“Mastah, it stinks in here.”
“A-A pink fox?”
“Mastah, who are these spotty guys?”
“They’re bad people trying to steal Rin’s dinner.”
“Wha?! Who’s trying to take Rin’s food!”
Leaping from my embrace, Rin transformed into her beastkin form and landed on the ground in a superhero pose.
“Even Mastah won’t forgive someone who tries to take Rin’s food!”
Rin charged at the bewildered Scavengers.
A series of mournful screams echoed through the alley.
*
After easily dispatching the Scavengers, we returned home safely.
While Seira prepared dinner, I sat Rin, now back in her human form, on my lap.
Now’s the time.
Ever since I’d heard the shocking ‘common sense’ that liberating a slave was the same as abandoning them, I had been pondering this. I would eventually have to liberate Rin and leave Vestia, and I was worried about a future where she would hold that against me.
“Rin, being a slave is a bad thing.”
“A slave?”
So, I decided to brainwash Rin. No, that’s a poor choice of words. It’s too open to misunderstanding. What I’m doing is instilling proper common sense.
I would drill into Rin that being a slave is bad and being liberated is good. She was still young, a time before her sense of right and wrong was firmly established. I was teaching her normal, proper sense, so she wouldn’t end up like those bizarre beastkin.
“Right now, Rin is my slave. Slaves are of a lowly status, and people look down on them and bully them.”
“But Mastah doesn’t.”
“That’s because I’m a kind slave trader. The world isn’t full of people like me. It’s full of people like those hyenas from before.”
The comparison to the hyenas seemed to help Rin understand, as she nodded.
“On the other hand, liberation means becoming free from all that. It’s a very good thing.”
“Oh?”
“My goal is to liberate you, Rin, and set you free. Liberation isn’t abandonment; it’s freedom. Do you understand?”
“I understand perfectly!”
That’s what she always says when she doesn’t understand.
But that was fine. If I kept telling her, the idea that liberation was a good thing would eventually take root in a corner of her mind.
“So you can’t try to get revenge on me later, okay?”