After Duergsini’s Avatar (1)

Fsssssssss.

The yaksha’s body turned to ash and dissipated.

“Haah…haah…haah…”

I panted heavily, gazing numbly at my hand.

…What was that power I had used?

Not spirit energy.

Certainly not yoki either.

If I had to describe that power, it was one that had indisputably transcended the shackles.

“…”

What nonsense was I spouting?

I didn’t even properly understand what these ‘shackles’ were, yet I dared call it a ‘power that had transcended the shackles’?

It was probably just a special ability only multi-tailed fox yokai like myself could wield.

Ah.

If I could converse with Lord Beast again, I should ask her about the true nature of this power.

Swish.

Swish, swish, swish.

I experimentally raked my claws through the air, but could not replicate that same ‘free’ trajectory from before.

“…What are you doing?”

“Miho, are you hurt anywhere?”

Seeing me flailing my arms randomly, Ho-jun sighed while Yi Haneul expressed concern.

I smiled awkwardly.

“Just, you know, trying something out…”

“Mihooooooah!”

“Oof.”

Wham.

Yi Haneul suddenly rushed over and embraced me so tightly it nearly broke my spine, then started bawling as she buried her face in my bosom.

“I, I thought something had happened to you…”

Was this that heart-pounding height difference people talked about?

There was about a head’s difference between my eight-tailed form and Yi Haneul’s height.

…Damp.

Prying Yi Haneul off, I told her:

“Even if something did happen, I could easily heal any wound just by recovering my spirit energy, you know.”

“But your spirit energy was sealed!”

“Well, yes, but… things turned out fine in the end, didn’t they? By the way, did you see the hole in my abdomen earlier? I think a baseball could have fit through it…”

“You stupid, idiotic, blockheaded mutt!!”

…Why was she suddenly getting angry?

I glanced at Ho-jun, but he simply shrugged, offering no advice.

Yi Haneul continued:

“Don’t you get it yet?”

“…Get what?”

“Miho, you’re not alone in protecting humans anymore.”

“Ah…”

“If we hadn’t been here, you’d be dead.”

“…”

I didn’t deny it, for it was the truth.

“So you can rely on us sometimes too, you dummy.”

“…Understood. Thank you, Lord Yi Haneul.”

Lord Beast had accomplished everything through her own solitary strength.

But I was not Lord Beast, nor was I alone like her.

Yi Haneul was here.

Ho-jun was here.

The Yokai Extermination Office was here.

People were here.

As Duergsini said, I was an existence with clear weaknesses.

Following Yi Haneul’s words, I felt it was alright to occasionally rely on others to cover those weaknesses.

“Sniff…sniff…”

…Alright, enough crying already.

You’re getting me soaked, not just damp.

…

…

…

To collect data, yokai extermination sites had to be preserved in their original state.

Yi Haneul immediately contacted her master directly.

[Are you injured at all, Yi Haneul?!]

…came the voice through the receiver.

“I’m alright, Master. Miho saved me… no, this time I saved Miho. Heheheh. Master, I’ve grown tremendously stronger, you know? At this level, I could probably hold my own against you in a duel to some extent…”

[Don’t spout such nonsense, you fool! W, wait there, I’m dispatching people right now!]

In any case, we decided to await the arrival of the dedicated team handling the incident scene.

It would be quite troublesome if reporters swarmed the site before them, tampering with evidence.

While waiting, we began conversing – there was much to discuss.

First was Ho-jun.

“What took you so long to show up?”

“A hero must make a dramatic entrance, as is tradition.”

“Dramatic, schmamtic, if you’d been any later, I would have been done for!”

“…So you’re openly admitting you rely on us now.”

“You said I could rely on you all sometimes.”

“That was Lord Yi Haneul who said that, not me.”

“…Incorrigible bastard.”

“Can it, you lewd mutt.”

His smart mouth hadn’t changed.

So…

“Did you take over the Ritual Arts Association?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“Don’t tell me you beat up all the elders to take over…”

“Of course not. I actively utilized your existence to persuade the elders and ascended to the effective leadership role.”

“My…existence?”

“Yes. When I reported that my pet had impressively exterminated even an incarnated yokai, they were overjoyed.”

“…Thanks a lot, really.”

That damned ‘pet’ treatment again.

This battle allowed me to see a different side of Ho-jun.

He was an even more formidable ritualist than I had imagined.

I never thought Ho-jun’s ritual arts could work against a goblin… no, against a goblin so powerful even Lord of the Mountain would be wary.

Perhaps if Ho-jun and I had joined forces against that goblin from the start, even without spirit energy, we could have severed at least five of its arms.

“By the way, you…”

“Yeah?”

“…Why are you sitting in that dog-like pose?”

“Ah, this?”

As Ho-jun pointed out, I was currently sitting with both arms on the ground in the posture of a pet dog obediently awaiting treats from its owner.

Why had I assumed this pose?

“It’s comfortable.”

“…I jokingly told you to act like a pet, and you really became one? And what’s with that body of yours?”

“What about my body?”

When I questioned him, Ho-jun prodded my chest and rear as he spoke:

“What’s with those plump lumps of flesh? They’ve grown bigger than your head.”

“I grew another tail, that’s why.”

“I have eyes too, you know. But geez… I never expected you to bloat up like a fat pig.”

“My body evolved to make seducing targets easier. Not that I plan to actually use it, of course.”

When I casually acknowledged my current bodily state, Ho-jun looked slightly flustered as he said:

“…You’ve changed a bit in personality while I couldn’t see you.”

“Yeah. I decided to accept it.”

“Accept what?”

“Myself.”

“…What nonsense is this?”

“Woof woof, rrff rff rff!”

“…”

“That’s what nonsense sounds like.”

“Sigh You’ve gone completely mad… The end times are upon us.”

Not mad – my name was Miho, Miho.

I had heard about Ho-jun’s circumstances, so next was Yi Haneul.

No…

“Lord Yi Haneul, what was that power you used…?”

What kind of power could crack the yaksha’s spiral with such might?

Though it pained me to admit it objectively, Yi Haneul was on the weaker side among Martial Force artists.

She was someone with trauma, after all.

No matter how talented, neglecting training led to falling behind.

Until she met me, Yi Haneul had been a wayward soul unable to find her own path.

Fortunately, her ability to wield the goblin staff covered her relative lack of power to some extent.

However, the power Yi Haneul had used earlier was neither Martial Force arts nor a goblin’s power.

Ho-jun chimed in from the side:

“I’m quite curious about this too. What was that preposterous power?”

In response to our queries, Yi Haneul laughed:

“Heh…heheh, heheheh.”

“Ahahahaha! You saw it, didn’t you, Miho? You saw it too, Ho-jun? I told you, it’s an over-the-top insane power!”

Yi Haneul’s tone grew more energetic as she continued:

“That Black Tiger too, you know? If I had used just this power, I could have taken him down in one shot, bam, right?”

“Alright, we get it, so what exactly is the nature of that power?”

“I don’t know either.”

“…Huh?”

“I said I don’t know. I just happened to awaken to it while training.”

“Th, that’s it?”

“Yup, that’s it!”

…What kind of anticlimactic answer was that?

After pondering something silently for a moment, Yi Haneul spoke up again:

“Ah, come to think of it, there are a couple of notable points about it.”

“Which are?”

“First, this power was influenced by you, Miho!”

“…Me?”

Caught off guard by Yi Haneul’s completely unexpected words, I asked in confusion:

“What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said. We’ve been together for months now, Miho. During that time, I was unconsciously influenced a lot by you. So I tried modifying my training methods based on your fighting style, and well, one day, bam! This light suddenly manifested.”

“That doesn’t sound like an easy feat.”

“It wasn’t easy. But who am I? If the Ritual Arts Association has Ho-jun, the Martial Force artists have Yi Haneul!”

“…Ah, I see.”

“I’m not lying! People really evaluated me that way when I became a nationally certified Martial Force artist, you know!”

I shot Ho-jun a skeptical look, and he nodded in affirmation.

…Well, if he said so, it must be true.

So…

“And the second point?”

“The second is… umm… errr…”

“Why are you acting like that?”

“No, it’s just… if others hear this, they’ll definitely call me a lunatic.”

“It’s fine, just say it.”

“Alright. Don’t be surprised when you hear it.”

What Yi Haneul said next left me dumbfounded:

“There’s no set training method.”

“I don’t understand the activation principle either.”

“It’s just…”

“A power that manifests when I feel like the freest being in the world…”

I was speechless.

“…Lord Yi Haneul, it seems hanging around Miho has made you start spouting dog nonsense too.”

“Th, that’s why I told you not to be surprised… Huh? Miho?”

Freedom was an idea that endlessly spread and evolved through those around me.

Yi Haneul had been influenced by my freedom.

There was no other way to explain her mysterious power.

…Perhaps I could spread this freedom to Ho-jun as well.

To Daepo.

To Lord of the Mountain.

Freedom was the ideology goblins despised most.

If freedom spread far and wide, Duergsini would absolutely loathe it.

I couldn’t be the only one making Duergsini eat humble pie.

Now it was my turn to make Duergsini eat some as well.