My growth spurt should be anytime now.
That’s what I told myself to preserve my ego.
It’s really distressing being so small, when in my past life I was rather tall.
I’ve grown up a bit in the last couple of years, but my height just barely hovers around 5 feet or so.
Well, that’s an estimation I had to get myself, of course. The measurements used in this world aren’t quite those from my old world. Countries in the Azurian influence seem to use a system that is close to the metric system in theory, but the exact dimensions are still off, and living in this remote village I don’t really have access to the required education.
So I approximate using my knowledge of the imperial system.
Well it’s fine. I’m sure I’m not THAT small for a 14 year-old.
Look, I’ve grown two inches in the last few years! Almost...
…
Well, since reincarnating into this life, everything has mostly gone smoothly. There are the occasional hiccups, but nothing’s really killed my endless cheer yet.
Things have been rather peaceful in Ohen Village, with some interesting stuff thrown in here any there.
Yenna has a little brother now. It was inevitable considering the family needed an heir, and Yenna wouldn’t do. I wasn’t surprised to find out that they’ve been trying for several years, but it’s surprising it took so long.
Anyways, his name is Forno, named after one of the moons. Specifically, it’s the moon that takes the longest to finish its cycle. Not sure if that was intentional or not.
On that note, I say “Yenna’s brother”, because I no longer live in that household.
I’ll be honest, I wasn’t too terribly attached to the house. While I care for my adoptive mother greatly, our relationship seems rather awkward looking at it from the outside. She basically provided me with shelter and food, and left me to my own devices. That was a great help to me, but that’s hardly how you take care of children, and I think she was too hesitant to really form a serious relationship with what is essentially a demi-god.
My adoptive father was similar, being reluctant to interact with me in any way.
There were times I thought he may have been up to something nefarious, but it all seemed to be nothing to worry about in the end.
At the start, he seemed to fear me as some sort of omen, but as I developed into a feminine figure, I think he came to the conclusion that male Fox Spirits just happen to also look like women, so people writing stories could never tell.
Sentra seems to reject this notion. I’ll get to that later though.
That said, I’ve also left because I’m something of a hinderance.
They won’t say that about me, sure, but by my age I should already begin learning about whatever profession I intend to take on.
Not that they expect me to take on any such job. As far as humans are concerned, Fox Spirits are free-spirited beings that do as they like.
My situation is weird, and the difficulty is probably reinforced by the fact I maintained my memories in this life.
My surroundings don’t quite know what Fox Spirits even do. And neither do I. Well, I could just do as they expect, and laze about...
If I was simply born into this world without even the slightest memory of my old self, then it’s likely I would have merely chosen to bask in the praise and worship of my surroundings.
—At least that’s what I would try to do for a few years, until the influx of emotions built up to the point that I couldn’t handle it, and decided to live outside the village, or in the worst case scenario, potentially kill them all to end the screams, only to learn even that doesn’t help.
After all, the so-called “Divine Heart” is a dreadful trait of Kitsune.
Sentra explained the details to me a few years ago.
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“It’s a bond. A chain that ties the souls of others to yourself,” She explained. “A few other races have a Divine Heart as well, but the conditions and effects vary.”
It seemed simple enough to grasp.
It explained the strange feelings that poured into me from other people, and how I could grasp the location of all of my friends and acquaintances.
However…
“Have you ever wondered why Fox Spirits tend to be loners?” She asked me 3 years ago.
“Is it cause you’re shy?”
I honestly didn’t know the answer. It occurred to me there should be a reason, and I figured it was something like just being a natural recluse. But then, I never had such tendencies, did I?
In fact, bizarrely enough my reclusive nature from my past life seems to have been replaced by my very playful and active nature in this life.
It seems to be some brain chemistry at work, but it wouldn’t explain why Kitsune are always alone, away from any civilization.
On top of that, I’m pretty sure Foxes were pack animals, yet I’ve never heard of Fox spirits forming any sort of communities, and Sentra says that she has only ever met a handful of other Kitsune.
“It’s because of the Divine Heart. We have no control over it, and it often becomes unbearable to ignore the emotions in people,” She said, as she looked down at her fidgeting fingers.
“The conditions that bind others to us is vague, and done without our own consent.”
—Imagine experiencing both the excitement and glee from a crazed murderer, and the terror from their victim.
—And if you try to punish the murderer, you can even feel his own fear, and pain.
That’s quite the scary draw back.
However, there was a question I felt didn’t need to be asked.
—Can’t you just shut out the voices?
If she could, it wouldn’t be a problem. I can ignore all but the most desperate cries, or listen in on more happy ones to lighten my mood.
But she couldn’t, right?
And going by what she’s said, it doesn’t seem other Kitsune can either.
So then, what makes me special?
After all, I should have been flooded with various emotions by now, and yet I’ve only really become aware of this strange ability when the anxiety of the whole village reached a peak.
Once I realized they exist, I became able to peek at specific bonds, and see the conditions of individuals.
But it seems that’s a bit abnormal.
Not so much that I could isolate specific bonds, but the fact that I could block out others.
Is it a result of my reincarnation? I’ve theorized this before, but my rebirth has had quite a few side-effects.
Or maybe it has to do with my gender? After all, there is no known instance of a male Kitsune before me. Something like a difference in hormones or genetics could have subdued the emotions I perceive through my ability.
Well, to prove either of these, I would need more people who reincarnated as Kitsune.
Well, I could probably prove, or at least gather evidence for the first one, if I find reincarnators who have mental abilities that act different from those of their race.
Unfortunately, identifying reincarnators is close to impossible. I was lucky with Aniel, as he happened to speak the same language, and share at least one hobby that he was ingrained enough in, to understand a reference.
What if Aniel didn’t speak English?
What if he didn’t watch anime?
What if he wasn’t from the same Earth as myself?
Well, someone will come along eventually. Fox Spirits are a long-lived race, after all.
Putting that aside, Sentra also explained one last crucial detail
—”The requirement for Fox Spirits to obtain more tails, is to pass a certain threshold of bonds through your Divine Heart.”
By some sheer coincidence, Sentra’s submission to me formed the final bond I required to trigger my second tail’s manifestation.
But I suppose that would explain why Fox Spirits are not completely hidden from the world.
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“So how are the shrubs doing?” I asked, checking up on my adorable little pet.
“They’re doing well. This batch over here looks ready, so I’m harvesting the leaves.”
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—I realized that the best way to take care of plants, was to have someone with plant-related abilities care for them.
It seems that Sentra’s plant magic has various utility, and even grants her an innate understanding of most plant-life. Of course, things like fungi and algae seem to be outside of her reach, as they aren’t really plants.
So I had her cultivate those plants I found for use as tea.
With how obedient she has become, she quickly accepted the task, and I’m on my way towards mass-producing them.
I’ve questioned why I would bother with something like a business endeavor, but you know—even so-called Spirits need money.
That said, the village seems to have taken a liking to the “tea” I’ve introduced, and I’ve also reached out to the other nearby villages.
Well, Ohen village is pretty remote, so the nearest villages take quite a while to reach.
So when I say I “reached out” to them, I actually mean that I sent Sentra to be my representative.
What? Two days of walking is far, and even using my time-stop ability, I’ll tire myself out by the end. Sentra can use her powers as a mode of transportation, by carrying herself across the forest. I’m allowed to use my followers for convenience, aren’t I?
Actually, when it comes to Sentra, it took several weeks to reteach her how to walk, and fight again—it’s not like you spend two months in a vegetative and can just get up without issue.
In that time, I didn’t waste a single moment conditioning her to obey me. I was her only support in that time, and the only person she was made to acknowledge. Of course, I also let Yenna glomp her a few times, to let her know that she is even below Yenna. A sort of loose hierarchy with no real meaning.
She has become docile and obedient enough to trust with quite a few things. In fact, I even gave her a test to measure her loyalty, and she seems willing to protect my life.
On top of that, it doesn’t seem that she reads my mind, unless I explicitly order her to.
Our bond at least allows me to see hints at what her thoughts might relate to, so I’ve some confidence in this. It’s not at the level of being able to read her mind, but it’s adequate for seeing through a person’s acting.
—So this is Stockholm Syndrome huh?
A complete dependence on your captor.
To the point that you identify with them, and form a bond with them.
Even if I didn’t violate her physically, you could equate this to a more personal violation of her being.
Scary stuff.
That said, she’s unstable.
Figures. I did “break her” with a very horrifying trauma.
She already had issue with being left alone, but now she’s absolutely terrified of being alone, and sometimes he seems to freak out in the dark.
She might easily break at some point in the future if we become separated for any significant amount of time. I can send her off to a nearby village, because she has the capability to go to and from, in a few hours with the help of her plants.
However, she’s unable to sleep alone, and becomes anxious when either me or Yenna aren’t around for long.
It’s another part of the reason I decided to move out, as her building anxiety and fear would even prevent me from sleeping.
Given enough time, I think she’ll recover some confidence as she heals, and I’m fine with her gaining some independence.
As long as she remains beside me, anyways.
“Hmm, after this, go practice with Yenna,” I ordered her, as I pet her head. She didn’t answer immediately, instead calmly accepting my petting, with lowered ears.
But after a short pause, she nodded her head, “I’ll be done soon,” she said.
“Great. Princess Aire sent a letter. We’re going to be a bit busy soon,” I said, patting her on the back, as I got up and walked away.
After Princess Aire met with her father, she began sending me messages—Aniel developed a method to send me mail extremely quickly.
The exact details are.. complicated yet simple. It hurts my head thinking about it though.
It’s basically some coordinated launch of an envelop, guided by magic. The fact something like that could be created without GPS or an accurate map just hurts my head thinking about the math involved.
The contents of the latest letter is a different kind of complicated.
Basically, Lein is receiving significant push back from the nation known as Arnne. It’s a nation from further west, that’s decided to crush Lein, and is rallying up the nations that are discontent with Lein’s occupation.
Of course, this is hardly a black and white scenario. Countries aren’t inherently evil and their rulers are often just trying to obtain as many benefits as possible—whether for themselves or their people.
The Spirit Lein has a significant force behind him, being a creature with the power to tame any beast. Many of those beasts are monster which had once infested the country he lives in, and now he operates them as an army.
Arnne was able to repel Lein’s quick Dragon Rider assault, and has decided to retaliate.
Many of the Kingdoms unhappy with Lein’s occupation have decided to join forces for the moment, but it’s likely that the end result will come out with Arnne merely replacing Lein, so as a result there are also a number of Kingdoms that have decided not to cooperate—the end result is the same no matter which nation wins.
Objectively speaking, I can’t see an issue with merely being someone else’s vassal, but I suppose neither of these two super nations care about the people in the countries they are about to fight over.
It reminds me of how the superpowers in my old world fought over smaller countries, rarely caring about the people within them.
Of course, here the issue is much worse, with the limited means of communication. Even if Arnne or Lein cared about the people they are stepping over, it’s not as though they can hear their voices from so far away.
Ultimately, whichever Empire comes out on top, the rulers of the smaller Kingdoms gain little benefit, and many will even be replaced.
Putting all that into consideration, the Royal Family of Senilea does not plan to submit to either force.
Of course not. They have Aniel on their side, and with that, the potential to become another super-power.
Well, looking at the current situation, I can’t tell if I would get along with Aire’s father, or if I would want to punch him in the face.
I personally don’t give a shit about politics or the squabbles countries are having.
But I guess it was all my decision to cooperate, so why not?
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Author Notes:
So I realized I wasn't going to write anything, if I didn't have a due date. Giving myself lax due dates has never been a good idea, and I think I'm more productive under pressure.
So here I am with Chapter 26, to push me along in my writing. I'll post Chapter 27 Tuesday, and from there we'll see if I can continue my daily chapters.
So last chapter, a lot of people made suggestions about Toya's second tail. I probably should have said that I already had something in mind, but I will say that many of the ideas were interesting, and almost made me reconsider. But for now, I'm keeping the second tail's ability a secret, until we get to that point in the story. The ability may surprise you, but I feel you'll agree that it's fitting for Toya.
On another note, I decided to get a donation button for this story, because I'm a greedy degenerate.
I'm using Patreon, because why not? So if you have money to waste on a degenerate like myself, become a Patron by clicking the button below. For every $2, I will post 0 extra chapters!
Or don't. I'll survive either way (though I'll probably cry myself to sleep every night as a result)
So as always, Feedback and Suggestions are appreciated and encouraged!
If you like, or even hate this story, please leave a review to let me know how much I suck.