Chapter 13: This Concubine is Hagoromo Gitsune!
Pushing open the door, Hikigaya stepped into a world of darkness. A Campione doesn't actually care much about lighting, but that didn't stop him from noting the room's atmosphere. If the hallway was merely dim, this room was pitch black. Yet, in the middle of this void, Hikigaya saw a silhouette.
It was an alluring young girl clad in black. She had long black hair and skin as white as jade—smooth, lustrous, and moist. Her lips were naturally red without the need for rouge. Following the line of her slender neck downward, there was a perfect curve and a waist so supple it seemed a single hand could encircle it. Her long, well-proportioned legs were encased in black silk stockings, and her beautiful feet rested on the floor, radiating a silent, bewitching charm.
Her dark pupils were filled with coldness, and as the corners of her small mouth curled slightly, she seemed to be mocking the myriad forms of all living beings.
She was completely different from Tamamo-no-Mae. Strictly speaking, Tamamo was not a fox demon but a Fox Immortal; when Tamamo manifested, humans would feel positive emotions like affection or pity. But the girl before him radiated seductiveness from her very bones, tempting out the most primitive and darkest desires of the human heart.
She was the darkness itself. She was undoubtedly the Lord of Pandemonium this time.
As Hikigaya entered the room, the girl performed an ancient etiquette toward him with impeccable grace. It wasn't the humble attitude of a servant meeting a master, but rather a posture of showing respect to a stronger being. Regardless, she was effectively immortal anyway.
"This Concubine is Hagoromo Gitsune."
Hikigaya stared at the monster calling herself Hagoromo Gitsune for a good while. Then, he spoke: "You've already died once."
This monster had indeed died. The strange thing was that while even a Heretic God would normally have to return to myth in such a state, this monster had continued to survive in a different way. She was almost exactly like the Hagoromo Gitsune from the Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan series he had seen.
However, the Nurarihyon of this world was not a monster known for martial prowess. Although he held the title "Lord of All Yokai," it was only because he could preside over justice when disputes or quarrels arose between monsters. He was a creature naturally cunning, skilled in deception and bluffing.
"Yes, This Concubine was once killed by humans." The former fox demon's smile was cold, but as her red lips parted slightly, a strange aura that naturally enticed the opposite sex diffused out. She seemed born with the ability to tug at a man's nerves.
This caused Hikigaya's previously certain thoughts to waver slightly, so he asked further: "Do you eat living livers?"
"Humans killed This Concubine to take my fur. Since that is so, what is wrong with This Concubine eating their livers to transform them into magical power?" Hagoromo Gitsune said calmly.
"Have you eaten recently? Someone nearby?" Hikigaya frowned. Anyone who still considered themselves human couldn't stand the sight of a man-eating freak. To humans, ripping out someone's liver and eating it was the same as cannibalism.
"Unless they are of great evil, great wisdom, or great magical power, what use would it be for This Concubine to eat them?"
'Hoh, she's a picky eater.'
"Ignore the first category, but you aren't allowed to eat the latter two," Hikigaya said, then felt something was a bit off. Are there no evil people among the wise or the sorcerers? Actually, there were plenty of perverted creeps among Japanese sorcerers.
"This Concubine agrees. Then, the Rakshasa King did not come today to exterminate This Concubine?" Hagoromo Gitsune asked.
"Depends on the situation. For now, I don't feel it's particularly necessary." Hikigaya remembered the servants in the mansion. "I'm taking the humans in this house away. If they stay any longer, they'll turn into vegetables."
Hagoromo Gitsune nodded, though she felt it might be inconvenient to have no one to serve her. But it wasn't a big problem. These people were just mortals; as time passed, they wouldn't be able to serve her anymore anyway.
In Hagoromo Gitsune's eyes, monsters and humans were much the same. She didn't harm those who served her because she viewed them as her own people, much like the yokai who followed her; it was just that these people were weaker, so their roles were different.
She didn't eat human livers because she had to, but because she had been killed by humans before becoming a reincarnating yokai—simply so they could have her fur as a decoration. It was revenge. Otherwise, wouldn't it be easier to just devour other monsters?
Monsters can increase their own power by devouring each other, and there are many ways to do it—some eat souls, some eat flesh, and some directly swallow the other's demonic power. This was much more effective than a human liver.
However, there is a "celebrity effect" among monsters. Ever since Hagoromo Gitsune became a reincarnating yokai, her sheer power led other monsters to naturally emulate her, believing that eating living human livers was a high-class way to level up. Thus, the "Living Liver Theory" of the monster world was born. In reality, eating livestock wouldn't be much different; at most, you'd just have to eat a few more.
"Then let's talk business. Are you the 'Lord of Pandemonium' the Kansai Branch mentioned?" Hikigaya found a stool in the room and sat down.
A small monster shaped like a little girl clutching a skull jumped out in a panic from where Hikigaya pulled the chair. With a face terrified to death, she sprinted on her short legs to hide behind Hagoromo Gitsune.
"It is This Concubine. This Concubine intends to destroy the seals of Kyoto and give birth to my child once more." Hagoromo Gitsune glanced at the little monster; her expression was cold, but she didn't drive her away.
"The Path of the Monkey?"
"No. Seals specifically laid out by Onmyoji in the past to deal with This Concubine."
"One more question. What is the meaning of giving birth for your kind?"
"It has no meaning for other monsters. But this is a promise This Concubine made to my child. No matter what pain I endure, This Concubine will surely give birth to him again." Hagoromo Gitsune was very serious, without a hint of a joke on her face.
Hikigaya used the Eye of Horus to observe her.
'Holy crap, she's telling the truth!'
This fox wasn't thinking about grand schemes at all. She just wanted to have her baby, and nothing else mattered. As for the other monsters, they were likely like the "Living Liver Theory"—the nature of the act itself had been completely distorted by them.
The monster before Hikigaya had the primary job of an expectant mother; "Lord of Pandemonium" was purely a side hustle.
"And after the birth? What do you plan to do?" Hikigaya asked curiously.
"This Concubine does not know. This Concubine only wants to give birth to the child." At this moment, Hagoromo Gitsune's eyes shone brilliantly, yet seemed misted over, filled with tenderness. "This Concubine misses him dearly and wants to hold him close."
It was confirmed. The one she wanted to birth was definitely her biological son.
Hikigaya decided he wanted to see the ending. He really wanted to see if the one born would actually be Abe no Seimei.
After all, he was a huge fan of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan back in the day!
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