Chapter 209: Chapter 208: The Fox part 4

Whilst Kyubi slept, she woke up every hour like clockwork with a new excuse to not bother going back to sleep, which Ginrei firmly rejected each time.

An hour before she intended Kyubi to awaken, she prepared several packed lunches for her first day and some breakfast to start it, which proved both difficult and very easy to convince her to eat.

Ginrei was all too happy to use what would become the basis of the very unique parenting style Kyubi required. A simple phrase that robbed her of all resistance in an instant and without question. “Lord Tsukuyomi would be terribly disappointed.”

It hadn’t escaped Ginrei’s attention that she was employing a most underhanded tactic, one that brazenly crossed the line between parenting and manipulating, but luckily manipulation was not something that fox-spirits shied away from.

When she was entirely ready, Ginrei opened a portal to the realm Obelix called home, then she led her through it by the hand.

The realm they found themselves in was entirely bizarre, both solid and liquid at the same time, every wall, floor and ceiling void of any colour and yet the furnishings were completely material in nature.

The contrast between Nothingness and Thingness was jarring and Kyubi described it by saying “for lack of a better word, I find it slightly unsettling”, a response which made Ginrei chuckle until she stopped dead and bowed her head.

Kyubi felt Ginrei’s tension through the increasingly firm grip and she could certainly feel an uncomfortable presence herself, but to her it was an ugly power that deserved no respect simply because of its magnitude.

“Oooo! Foxes! Master Obelix said there woul-”

“Manners, Illerion. One should introduce themselves first and make conversation second…”

“Ugh, sorry, Sir. Allow me t-”

“…And the student should remain quiet until their teacher has spoken.” Illerion growled briefly, then bowed to her mentor and made a gesture of stitching her mouth closed.

“Master Obelix, it is a pleasure to meet you in person. My name is, Ginrei and this is my daughter, Kyubi.”

“A pleasure indeed, Lady Ginrei, Lady Kyubi…” Obelix moved closer and crossed his left arm across his back and his right across his stomach before bowing. “…I am Master Obelix, I will be your mentor until I have nothing left to teach you, I hope you are a quicker study than Lady Illerion.”

“Please teach me all I need to serve my master, nothing else matters.”

“What would you consider inconsequential knowledge? What knowledge do I have to impart that would be of no use to your lord?”

“I don’t know, I’m not the mentor. If all the knowledge you have will prove useful to him, then by all means teach it all. Forgive me if I came across as conceited, but I was just trying to save you from wasting effort, not imply anything in particular.”

“Single-minded indeed. I was opposed to assisting a mortal creature, but I’m glad that Ishtar asked my father to speak on your behalf, I think you will be an interesting student…” He looked back towards Illerion. “…I have grown rather bored of this one’s reluctance to apply herself. Illerion, come and greet yourself properly.”

The girl was audibly grinding her teeth in anger as she approached, her true nature held back by some unknown force. “Greetings, Lady Ginrei and Lady Kyubi, I am Lady Illerion, the Chaos-Elf. I am also known by the name Illerion of the three thousand flayed ones, but I’d rather not use titles.”

“A pleasure, how are the others of the Elven pantheon?”

“Unfortunately, I am not permitted to see, hear or even smell. I only have leave to know things that require my direct attention, my parents have decided I needed to learn before I live.”

“Apologies, I was unaware. I hope Lord Serran and Lady Elthuwane are in good health and remain that way regardless and please take good care of my daughter.”

“I appreciate the trust and hope I can honour your request.”

With that, Obelix led Ginrei to one side so that he could learn how to properly care for his new student.

It proved a boring venture for Illerion as Kyubi bowed and apologised, then explained that the only one she had any wish to know was her lord. Kyubi wasn’t aware, but that was the most disappointed that Illerion had ever been.

Elves typically hated the fox-spirits and their fickle whimsy, but for Illerion it was a heartbreaking disappointment to find the one that didn’t possess the traits her kind was known for.

“What!? No! You’re supposed to call me sexy, or play tricks on me, or encourage me to play tricks on Obelix, or help me play tricks on him. What kind of fox isn’t interested in tricks, jokes and chaos!?”

“Illerion.” Obelix’s voice had become strangely garbled, as though he was speaking through a puddle, but Kyubi suddenly felt an ounce of kinship with somebody and hugged her.

“I’m sorry, I had my heart broken by my lord, so I know how it feels. I was taught that Elves don’t like us because of those things you mentioned, I’m sorry I can’t be a source of chaos to make you feel better, but if it helps I can at least understand how you feel being different to the rest of your kind.”

Illerion pushed her away, then hesitated but shook it off quickly. “I don’t need empathy, or pity…” She turned and walked away, issuing a challenge as she went. “…I’ll turn you into a proper fox before Obelix makes you a boring scholar.”

“And I’ll help you find some peace while you fa-”

The mood changed in an instant, the “unsettling” presence she had been exuding, suddenly became entirely malevolent as Illerion’s head snapped back, the sound of her neck breaking and the sight of her maddened eyes made Kyubi’s skin crawl.

It was made worse when the almost indiscernible presence Obelix emitted responded in kind. As it did, the place they stood in bubbled and churned before swallowing Illerion whole.

“I expected as much and will calm her, but I would suggest you consider her temperament carefully before you speak to her. I’m not saying whether it was wrong or right, but it was most certainly wrong where she was concerned, your first lesson is that all things are simply matters of perspective.”

“I understand, Sir.”

“She isn’t wrong, you are weird for a fox…” The comment came as Ginrei moved in to fuss over Kyubi before heading off. “…Do our lord proud little fox.”

“Always, thank you Mother.” The farewell caught Ginrei off-guard and pulled on her heartstrings considerably, but she just opened a portal and left, leaving Kyubi and Obelix alone.

They started the day’s lessons and Kyubi was immediately engaged and learned at a rate that left her teacher speechless, though he found the argument that he had to go through every two hours to convince her to eat, tiresome.

The room they were in contained nothing but a board he could write on to explain certain ideas or concepts and a table each for Kyubi and Illerion though one had sat unused up to then as Illerion had remained in “time-out” as Obelix called it.

When Kyubi had finished her third meal and was complaining about having to eat so much, Obelix used the chance to reintroduce Illerion who appeared looking utterly bored.

“Lady Illerion, I have a proposition for you…” Obelix started, carefully weighing the impact of his every word. “…I propose you corrupt this young fox.”

Illerion blinked in surprise, then turned her head to Kyubi and back again, she didn’t know what he was trying to achieve but she did know that he couldn’t abide unruly children and disciplined them strictly.

“What trick are you playing, Sir? Whenever I’m naughty I get in trouble, but now you want me to make her misbehave?” Illerion took her seat as she asked the question, still trying to figure out his motive.

“Simply put, she is an exemplary student, but every two hours I have had the same argument about her meals and I would rather they had a bit of variety.”

“It’s not my fault I’m being forced to eat such a ridiculous amount.”

“Actually, it is. You chose to starve yourself for a thousand years, regardless of reason, it was indescribably stupid to so.”

“Sir, I’m not an idiot, you’re planning something.”

“Yes, I am. One’s nature, divinity and lifestyle are inexorably linked. If she is to be an attendant for Lord Tsukuyomi, then she must continue to eat and rest, but also stop holding back her nature.”

“What even are these divinity channels and why is it so important?”

“Divinity channels are the veins through which divine power circulates your body, they absorb and process ambient divinity, which is required to even do something as simple as take your true form.”

“My true form?”

“You, Kyubi, are currently stuck in your human form. Changing into your fox form would likely kill you without sufficient divinity to keep you alive. Luckily, you are so out of tune with your fox nature, that you couldn’t transform if you wanted to.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep