I Was Nearly Killed by My Fellow A-Rank Party, but Now I Fed a Nine-Tailed Fox Deep in the Dungeon. ~ “My Master, I Shall Never Leave Your Side for All Eternity,” the Legendary Monsters Said While Doting on Me. Before I Knew It, I Had Become the World’s Strongest Lord of the Demon Realm~ - Chapter 24 & 25

Trying to Recruit the Youkai “Nekomata”!

“…………”

It was night, in one room of the inn in Looseworth.

There was this guild receptionist lady sitting all proper on her knees in front of Tamamo, sweat just pouring down her face.

“Relax, Nekomata.”

“Ah, yeah… um, as a human, I go by ‘Mike’.”

“Got it, Mike. Thanks for coming over.”

I set some tea down in front of Mike.

“You’re working at the guild this late, huh?”

“Ah… you don’t gotta be so polite. Actually, I kinda prefer chatting all casual myself.”

“So Mike sis is usually, like, putting on that cat act, right?”

Suzu said that next to me, and it was kinda clever.

“But seriously, are you really a youkai? I ain’t feeling any youki from you?”

“Alright, then I’ll switch back to my youkai form.”

Yukime said that, and Mike popped out her ears and that split cat tail.

“Whoa~! So cute~!”

Suzu’s eyes lit up just looking at Mike like that.

“So… um, what does the legendary great youkai, the nine-tailed fox lady, want with a low-level one like me…?”

Yeah, so we’d been waiting till Mike’s shift ended at night.

‘Cause Tamamo suggested she wanted to talk to her.

And Tamamo was just sitting there in front of Mike, smiling all graceful-like.

“Mike, we need your help. Come with us.”

“Tamamo, that’s way too sudden.”

“Better to get to the point quick, right?”

“Yay! We’re getting another buddy!”

Suzu was all excited and innocent about it, but Mike just kinda hesitantly asked,

“Uh, depends on what it is… but like, what exactly do you need help with?”

“We’re gathering folks to take down Ryomen Sukuna.”

“–Sorry, but I’ll have to pass.”

Mike bowed her head right away.

“Why’s that? You’re strong, so why not ditch the receptionist gig and just fight?”

Tamamo calling her “strong” must mean it’s a big deal.

But Mike just shook her head.

“Nah, I’m pretty normal weak, y’know. No idea what you’re mixing up.”

“Nine-tails lady, I’m with you on this. I ain’t sensing much youki power from her either.”

Yukime pointed at her, looking a bit annoyed.

Probably bummed ’cause Tamamo’s hyping her up more than Yukime herself.

“Yeah, she’s an odd one. Her rank and youkai skills are low… but her straight-up fighting power’s high. Even I remembered her face from the big war.”

“…So that’s why you clocked me even with my youki all bottled up, huh.”

Mike muttered that and let out a sigh.

Tamamo explained a bit about the old days.

“Way back, there was this huge youkai war. She was on Nurarihyon’s side, but she held off the great youkai ‘Shuten-douji’ all by herself.”

“That was just luck. I legit thought I was gonna die.”

“So that ‘Shuten-douji’ guy’s that strong?”

“Hmm, yeah… remember that little earthquake just now?”

“Uh? Yeah, it shook a bit…”

“That was probably Shuten-douji way off somewhere, drunk and smashing the ground.”

“…Huh?”

“Shuten-douji’s the big boss of the oni, got this ridiculous youki.”

Mike shook her head again.

“And even that Shuten-douji won’t mess with Ryomen Sukuna. Fighting him? That’s straight-up suicide.”

“Hmm, tons of folks would happily die for me, though.”

“Tamamo, you just drop scary stuff like it’s nothing… classic world-toppling beauty.”

“I could die for you!”

Yukime tried to show off, but Mike just stared at her all grossed out.

“Can’t you, like, come with us anyway?”

“I’m… not much of a youkai, y’know, and I value my chill life more. Blending in with humans gets me food, baths, beds, all that.”

“Is that so? But you don’t exactly look super happy.”

“…………”

Mike’s face looked totally wiped out, her eyes darting around.

–Grrrrrowl.

Right then, her stomach let out this big hungry rumble.

“Anyway, how ’bout we grab some food? Mike, wanna join if you’re up for it?”

Bossing Around a Legendary Great Youkai

My suggestion made Mike’s eyes go all wide.

“You sure? Uh, anyway, you can just call me Mike straight-up.”

“Yeah. Cooking’s like my hobby, y’know.”

“I know, I saw you chowing down on that yummy stuff at the guild.”

I pulled out ingredients from the Infinite Storage Pouch.

“Alright then, Tamamo. The usual favor?”

“Got it.”

“–Huh?”

I held the frying pan over the fire Tamamo lit on her tail.

Seeing that, Mike looked totally shocked.

“Hey, you! Using a great youkai like a kitchen tool!? A-and of all people, the nine-tails lady!?”

“Ah, crap, is this still not cool?”

“It’s fine, Kuon. Use me however it’s handy for you.”

Mike just stared at me warming the frying pan over Tamamo’s fire like she couldn’t believe her eyes.

While I checked out Mike’s vibe, I thought about what to make.

(Mike, those dark circles under your eyes are brutal… and after getting worked to death this late, then dragged here by Tamamo for some crazy ask… least I can do is hook you up with some good eats to make it better.)

I grabbed a deep frying pan and got to work quick.

First, to build flavor, I added a bit of oil and stir-fried some finely chopped forest mushrooms, plus turnips and daikon for that sweetness.

It went sizzle, and this toasty smell started rising up.

Next, I tossed in some warm rice. I mixed it gentle but fast so the grains soaked up the oil.

Then I added the kombu and bonito flake dashi combo–this time, I boiled in heads and bones from those freshwater fish I caught in the dungeon river before, to give it a seafood twist.

It started bubbling, steam rising, and this rich aroma filled the whole room.

“Done! ‘Hearty Seafood Dashi Okayu’.”

I plated it up, then crumbled in some dried ayu at the end.

Mike’s stomach growled even louder looking at the food.

“O-oh man, looks delish…! But it’s steamin’ hot.”

“Yeah? Sensitive tongue, huh… Yukime, could you cool it down to eating temp for her?”

“Fine, whatever.”

Yukime said that and used her cold air to tweak the okayu so it wouldn’t burn.

“Go on, dig in.”

“O-okay, itadakimasu…”

Mike took one bite and just started bawlin’, tears rolling down her cheeks as she dropped the spoon.

Kinda like Suzu’s reaction back then.

“The mushy mushrooms and sweet root veggies, the salty kick from the dried ayu harmony, and that deep seafood dashi’s gentle savoriness… it all just warms up your totally beat heart bit by bit…!”

Mike picked up the spoon and kept eating the okayu through her sobs.

“Wh-what kinda thing did you feed me…! It’s so good! Like, really good…! Compared to this, the guild food’s total garbage…!”

“Ahaha… glad you’re that stoked about it.”

“Nobody’s ever nice to me… the only thing that’s nice is this okayu…”

She must be stuck at some super toxic job.

I was starting to think Mike should really quit that guild gig.