Please to Kitsune-sama!

Chapter 149 : Kitsune-sama Meets the Maids

“…And that is what happened.”

“Ahaha! That really doesn’t sound like your kind of thing, Inari.”

“Aye, I do know Akai restrains herself from saying such things most of the time, though.”

After finishing a round of updates and planning with Akai, Inari visited the Servant Uniform Workshop in Akihabara. She often received help from Eri, one of the maids working there, and whenever she stopped by, the whole workshop welcomed her warmly. Thus, Inari always brought along some kind of gift when she visited.

“I am not ignorant of the power singing and dancing can bring. There is kagura, after all.”

Back when her village still lived, such rituals were performed at the shrine. Over time they faded away, but Inari remembered how lively they were—faces bright with joy. She thought perhaps the root of why song and dance uplifted hearts lay in such traditions.

“Well, we sing and dance too, but the way we market ourselves is different from you, Inari.”

“Market… huh.”

“In the end, our goal is that when people hear words like ‘servant,’ ‘maid,’ or ‘butler,’ their first association will be us.”

“A most grand ambition, indeed…”

True enough, song and dance were effective tools. A song imprinted the voice, a dance imprinted the image. Together, they left people remembering the person clearly—like how the word “Namahage,” from Akita’s tradition, instantly summoned a common image and voice in everyone’s mind.

“I think it’s similar to carrying an ofuda, honestly. That’s how it is for the people who want these things.”

“Mm?”

“They say listening to an awakener sing makes them feel protected. Or that songs from powerful awakener can actually activate mana… though that’s more urban legend than fact. No proof, of course.”

“Urban… legend?”

“Oh—you don’t know the term?”

“Nay, I do not.”

Urban legends. Said to have been plentiful in the old days—“mysterious tales” set in modern society. Monsters in the sewers, stations that don’t exist, human-faced dogs, incidents one must not speak of… Some frightening, others like charms—“wishes granted,” “success in exams.”

“Ahh, I see. Like this: walk counterclockwise around a telephone pole three times at dusk, and sometimes you’ll be taken to Yomi, the land of the dead?”

“…That’s terrifying! I’ve never heard that one!”

“No need to fret. I watched often enough, and never once was a child actually taken.”

“…Even once would be far too many!”

“Ha ha ha!”

Whatever their origin, Inari now understood what “urban legend” meant. And it seemed that belief in “the power of song” was one such tale, persisting in new forms even in the modern world.

“Oh, that reminds me, there’s even a dungeon like that.”

“Oh?”

“An urban-legend-themed dungeon. Quite unusual, so when it first appeared it was a hot topic. It’s in Kawaguchi City, Saitama.”

The Saitama Dungeon No. 4, located in Kawaguchi.

“Wait, Kawaguchi… but isn’t that where the Dungeon No. 3 is—Oi, Atsuage, I did not summon thee!”

At the sound of the word “dungeon,” Atsuage popped out of her clothes, only to be shoved back inside. Inari recalled the Saitama Dungeon No. 3. Why were there two dungeons so close together, when even Tokyo’s were far apart?

“I thought the same, but apparently it’s in a place called Nishikawaguchi.”

“Hmm. Unlikely, yet not impossible, I suppose.”

Two fixed dungeons in one city must have been unnerving for the locals, Inari thought. Yet, people endured—humans were strong like that. Still, this particular dungeon was said to be urban-legend themed.

“The first mobs are human-faced dogs. The very first party inside panicked, saying the horror was not what they expected.”

“Human-faced dogs, eh…”

Certainly, such creatures would be unsettling. Inari thought the Tokyo dungeons had felt foreign, otherworldly—Western, almost. But Saitama’s dungeons—one a toy dungeon, the other urban legends—felt utterly different. Perhaps each dungeon type varied more widely than she realized. Shizuoka Dungeon No. 1, with its rocky mountains, was unlike any in Tokyo too.

“Dungeons… such mysteries they are.”

“You’re interested in those mysteries, Inari?”

“Hmm? Aye, somewhat.”

“They say one of the Top Rankers, the ‘Professor,’ is trying to research them. Or maybe not. Ahaha—urban legend again!”

“…Hmm.”

Yes—Rank 2, the Professor, Inari recalled.

“By the way, Inari, you made it into the rankings, didn’t you?”

“Aye.”

“Which means… congratulations on making the list!”

“We’ve even prepared matcha cake to celebrate!”

“The tea is the expensive kind.”

“O-oh. My thanks to thee.”

“If you’re too full, we have takeaway boxes ready!”

The maids bustled out joyfully, as if celebrating their own success.

Earlier that day, Akai and the FoxPhone staff had also celebrated with cake and gifts, but Inari kept her expression neutral. She accepted the maids’ hospitality, letting them fuss over her with all their cheer.

////////////////////////////////////

Translator’s Notes:

The ritual is meant to scare children into good behavior and ward off misfortune. Despite their frightening appearance, they are considered protective figures—similar to a mix of Santa Claus and a demon.

Kagura (神楽) literally means “god-entertainment”. A traditional Shinto ritual performance of music and dance, dedicated to the kami (deities). Its purpose is to honor and entertain the gods, invite their presence, and bring blessings to the community. Often performed at shrines during festivals, with dancers in traditional costumes, masks, and sometimes carrying fans or bells.