"Uncle, Uncle! Look over there—! That building is so tall! Kyoto doesn't have anything like that!"
"And over there—see it? Why are so many people gathered with signs? Are they holding some kind of festival?"
"Hey, hey, Uncle, can we go join the festival too?!"
Inside the maglev train, the small fox girl Kuzunoha clung tightly to one of Ren Kuroda's arms, her entire body practically hanging off him as she stared out the window at the rapidly retreating scenery. Every few seconds, she would gasp in excitement, tugging at him to look at one thing after another.
That's right—this was the "favor" Yasaka, the supreme commander of Kyoto's yokai, had asked of Ren.
She wanted him to take her daughter Kuzunoha along on his trip.
According to Yasaka, Kuzunoha had grown up almost entirely within Kyoto. As the "princess" of the yokai world, she had always been surrounded and protected, treated like a treasured jewel.
But that wouldn't do.
One day, Kuzunoha would inherit Yasaka's responsibilities and bear the burden of protecting both the humans and yokai of Kyoto.
If she remained naive, sheltered, and clueless about the dangers of the outside world, she would never be able to fulfill that role.
Yasaka had long wanted her daughter to gain some real-world experience.
But she simply couldn't bring herself to send Kuzunoha out alone.
She herself was tied down by countless responsibilities and couldn't leave Kyoto at will. And the outside world was filled with dangerous beings—ordinary yokai subordinates simply weren't strong enough to guarantee Kuzunoha's safety.
So while the idea had always been there, it had never been put into action.
Until now.
Now, Yasaka had gained a sworn "elder brother" whose strength was off the charts—and who just so happened to be heading out on business.
Bringing along a small "tagalong" shouldn't be a problem, right?
—
"Kuzunoha, I've told you so many times already—stop calling me 'Uncle,'" Ren said with a tired sigh. "If we're talking about actual age, I'm not that much older than you…"
Ever since they left Kyoto, Ren had lost count of how many times he had tried to correct her.
And every single time, she would nod obediently and promise to fix it…
Only to go right back to calling him "Uncle" a few minutes later.
"But Ren-sama is Mother's sworn older brother," Kuzunoha replied matter-of-factly. "That makes you my uncle, doesn't it? I didn't get it wrong, did I?"
"And anyway, that's not important! Let's go to the festival!"
Ren let out another sigh, completely giving up on correcting her at this point, and followed her gaze toward the scene she was pointing at.
"That's not a festival," he said. "Looks more like some kind of fan meet-and-greet for a celebrity. Those people holding signs are probably hardcore fans."
Kuzunoha blinked, then tilted her head with a mischievous smile.
"Wow, Uncle—you were sealed away for so long, but you're surprisingly up-to-date with modern society. I thought you wouldn't know stuff like that."
Ren shot her an annoyed look.
"Give me a break. You do know things like smartphones and computers exist now, right? If you want to learn something, it doesn't take long."
Watching the sly grin on the blonde girl's face, Ren immediately realized—
He'd been played.
Kuzunoha might have grown up in Kyoto, but that didn't mean she was cut off from society. There was no way she didn't know that wasn't a festival.
Calling it one had probably been her excuse to go check it out—or maybe she just wanted to mess with him as a bit of payback.
After all, when Yasaka had first made her request, Ren had rejected it without hesitation.
Bringing along a little tagalong would not only limit his movements…
It would seriously interfere with his ability to flirt.
After being turned down, Yasaka had initially planned to drop the matter.
But when Kuzunoha found out she had a chance to leave Kyoto and explore the outside world, there was no way she was going to let that opportunity slip by.
Crying, making a scene, threatening all sorts of dramatic antics—she went through the full repertoire.
In the end, Yasaka had no choice but to approach Ren again.
And faced with a teary-eyed little fox girl…
Ren's resolve crumbled.
—
Kuoh Private Academy.
This was the location Yasaka's intelligence had pointed them toward.
For ordinary people, it might have been a well-kept secret—but for yokai who lived in the human world, it was common knowledge that the true power behind Kuoh Academy was the devil faction from the Underworld.
Of course, while devils did exist within the academy, the majority of its population was still made up of ordinary students.
This served two purposes.
One was to conceal their identities.
The other…
Was business.
That's right—even devils, despite their long lifespans and power far beyond that of humans, still needed to work.
After the great war between the three factions, their leaders had come to a realization:
Whether angels, fallen angels, or devils—if they wanted to continue existing, humanity was indispensable.
That was also why they had agreed not to run wild in the human world.
If too many humans died, it would directly impact the survival of all three factions.
As for the devils' "business"—
It involved distributing flyers containing magic circles, offering to grant human wishes in exchange for payment.
But these "wishes" weren't like the stereotypical devil contracts one might imagine.
The devils in this world seemed… surprisingly principled.
Or perhaps it was just the devils affiliated with Kuoh Academy who operated under stricter rules.
They didn't demand souls or lifespans as payment.
Correspondingly, there were clear limits to the wishes they would grant.
Requests like cursing someone or taking a life were strictly off the table.
Instead, their services included things like playing games with clients, chatting, or even helping with homework.
"…How is this even 'devil work'? This is basically just cheap part-time labor," Kuzunoha complained after reading the flyer.
Her mother had always told her how terrifying the Three Factions were—how devastating the war had been, how dangerous the Demon Kings were.
But now…
To Kuzunoha, the devils didn't seem all that impressive.
If anything, they looked like they were doing worse than Kyoto's yokai.
To be honest, Ren couldn't disagree.
"These are supposed to be devils?" he muttered. "They've got more integrity than most humans…"
Still, whether all devils were like this—or if it was just those around Kuoh Academy—was something he couldn't judge yet, since he hadn't made direct contact.
According to Yasaka's intel, the devils here were likely faculty and students of Kuoh Academy.
If he wanted to interact with them without causing a disturbance, the best approach was obvious—
Blend in.
After making a call back to Kyoto and asking Yasaka for help, Ren received two express-delivery envelopes the very next day.
Inside were detailed identity documents.
Kuzunoha was now registered as a transfer student from a Kyoto elementary school.
And Ren…
Was listed as a trainee teacher from a high school in Kyoto—someone who had studied abroad in China, a highly knowledgeable, top-tier academic returnee.
"…What is this supposed to be?" Ren stared at the documents, his expression twitching.
"Wasn't the plan to just get me a transfer student identity? What's with this 'overseas-returned genius teacher' setting?"
"I'm a terrible student, damn it. What am I supposed to do when I get exposed?"
..
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