After a night of struggle, she was surprised to find that she had not only regained most of her strength but even the nauseating thoughts had completely disappeared.
It seemed the alter ego of the Jade-Faced Golden-Haired Fox could no longer affect her; on the contrary, she had come to control it.
This was actually one of the underlying logics of Type-Moon.
It symbolized infinite possibilities and the conquering power of love!
"That's good, you won't disappear for that reason."
Felix said with relief.
"I don't want to leave you like this either~"
She hugged him tightly for a while, thinking there was still a long time before breakfast. Her tongue traced across her rosy lips as she leaned down to kiss him again.
"Mmm!"
Clearly, Tamamo-no-Mae wouldn't let go until she had her fill; she wanted to repay his kindness in full.
Before Felix could speak, Tammamo pressed herself against him, domineeringly repeating her previous actions, her blushing face full of joyful smiles.
Only the girl, who was still practicing her sword when she woke up in the morning, was unaware of what had happened in that room.
But Minamoto no Yorimitsu was still a little confused. Shouldn't Kagerin be up by now?
"Or is he just too tired?"
In the past, Minamoto no Yorimitsu would have asked him to come and train with her.
However, having to train with him so many times not only put her under a lot of pressure but also made it difficult to find new ideas.
Let him rest first.
Just wait, Rin. I will become stronger until the day I can completely protect you!
A tragedy like that of Ibuki-dōji will never happen again!
Regardless of what Minamoto no Yorimitsu was thinking now, her house had definitely been robbed.[1]
To take care of Felix, she didn't disturb him so he could get better rest.
After finishing breakfast, Minamoto no Yorimitsu picked up her sword and headed into the mountains to continue her demon-slaying mission.
...
"You almost got me killed!"
Felix patted the pleasantly smelly, sticky liquid off his body, glaring at the pink-furred fox who was still oblivious, chuckling softly with her head down.
"It's alright, she doesn't know anything about it. She's focused on getting stronger. Besides, didn't you feel quite happy just now?"
She was fine in the first half, but she really didn't have much energy left in the second half, and Felix handled almost everything.
"If you ignore my opinion and I don't stand up for myself, won't I just look like a weak and easily bullied little girl?"
"Waaaaah, that's not the right way to put it. It should be 'adult,' not 'little girl.'"
Tamamo-no-Mae looked in a certain direction meaningfully, then looked up and gave Felix a flirtatious wink.
If she hadn't been physically exhausted, she probably would have wanted to continue.
"A woman-devouring beast!"
"Hmph, as if, this wasn't your choice."
The fox started to act cute and affectionate.
"Still being stubborn?"
Such a commotion this morning! If Minamoto no Yorimitsu saw it, it would be terrible!
I am practicing swordsmanship.
What are you doing?
Does this thing count as sword practice?!
Felix pressed down on the soft and powerless Tamamo-no-Mae, placed his hand under her armpit, and instantly made Tamamo-no-Mae raise her hands high.
"My lord, I know I was wrong, please forgive me~"
When it came to pitiful eyes, no one could evoke a stronger protective instinct than Tamamo-no-Mae, this fox.
The soft-hearted Felix could only raise his hand fiercely and slap her buttocks before letting this wicked fox go.
"It won't happen again."
"Hii~"
There was not a trace of remorse in her beautiful golden eyes; she was clearly just going through the motions.
Once she recovered her strength, he would see what true cruelty was tonight.
Tamamo-no-Mae raised her limp, jade-like finger to her lips and smiled with pleasure at the boy's retreating figure.
Having expended too much energy, the fox could hardly do anything in the bathtub and could only use water magic...
It was still hot, properly made, and specifically for taking a bath.
As a supreme deity, it was perfectly normal for her to conjure up hot water all over the bathtub out of thin air.
After cleaning, it was noon.
As usual, Minamoto no Yorimitsu dragged a bag of magical materials home; it seemed she had a very fruitful day.
Unfortunately, Felix was not seen. He probably had something to do.
Wait a minute; I'll tell him some good news.
After three years of honing my skills, it's time to emerge from seclusion!
After putting her things away, Minamoto no Yorimitsu went straight to take a shower to wash away the odor from her body.
Then, with her father's katana, the "Doujigiri Yasutsuna," by her side, she would embark on the path to conquer Ibuki-dōji!
This time, I won't be as embarrassed as before!
Upon hearing that Minamoto no Yorimitsu had returned, Felix hurriedly put on his clothes. After tidying himself up with the help of his perfect wife, Tamamo-no-Mae, he rushed outside.
"Hmm, the more I look at this scene, the more I look like the villain~"
"But the person you don't cherish now will be cared for by someone else."
...
After asking around, Felix learned that she had gone to take a shower, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thankfully, she didn't run this way."
If things were the same as before, then a lot of things would be exposed!
As a samurai, Minamoto no Yorimitsu often saw herself as a man, which is why she bathed very quickly.
She appeared in Felix's field of vision in no time.
Before he could say anything, Minamoto no Yorimitsu's first words shocked Felix.
"I've made up my mind, Rin. Tomorrow we'll go and defeat Ibuki-dōji!"
"What?"
Who was Ibuki-dōji? She was only 10 years old. Even if she had inherited the power of the Ox-Headed Heavenly King, her young body would limit her ability to use it perfectly.
"I don't think she's really that strong, Rin. Trust me. After three years of hard training, I'm confident that I can defeat Ibuki-dōji. I won't have trouble even drawing my sword like before."
You're all eager to deliver it, aren't you?
Felix opened his mouth, then fell silent, realizing he had underestimated Minamoto no Yorimitsu's resentment towards Ibuki-dōji.
"Listen to me, Rin, we'll win this time!"
The girl's face was filled with determination, as stubborn as an ox, and there was no way to stop her.
"Alright, I trust you."
At worst, he would just act cute with Ibuki again.
While he was at it, he could bring some good sake so that Ibuki-dōji could drink her fill.
Even if their campaign failed, they could retreat safely.
Perhaps due to her straightforward personality and long-term life in training, Minamoto no Yorimitsu did not notice that Felix's hair was a little damp and simply asked about it out of curiosity.
"By the way, Rin, why do I feel like you smell a little good right now?"
"Oh, when I was giving Umeko a bath, she was so naughty that she poured water all over me, so I had to wash her all over again."
"This fox is far too disobedient."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu's eyes held a hint of coldness, as if she could see the pink-furred fox resting on the bed through Felix's room.
"Cough, it's nothing; it just wants to play with me; it definitely doesn't have any bad intentions."
"Alright…" Minamoto no Yorimitsu agreed with his statement, then turned back and said, "Then you should rest well today. Tomorrow we will be heading to Mount Ibuki, which is very dangerous. If you are not careful, you can easily get injured."
"I got it."
Unable to stop her, Felix could only run to find the wine that Old Man Mitsunaka had hidden.
If his daughter wanted to commit suicide, he would have to find something to buy her life.
Ibuki might be easy to talk to, but that didn't mean she had no temper.
---
Old Man Mitsunaka finally returned at night.
He heard that his daughter dared to challenge the legendary Ibuki-dōji.
He felt both gratified and worried and couldn't help but look at the child who had always been very composed and had a strong sense of self.
"Rin, are you really sure?"
If Abe no Seimei had said this to him—that he would defeat the infamous Ibuki-dōji with just fine wine, thus saving his daughter's life—
Minamoto no Mitsunaka would not hesitate to pick up his own Doujigiri Yasutsuna and show him why the flowers were so red!
A squinty-eyed Onmyōji who was born with a love for pleasure was definitely not a normal person!
Even though Ibuki didn't have as many terrifying rumors as Shuten-dōji, her strength was still among the top tier in the world today.
Rather than a demon in appearance, she was more like the successor of dragons and gods and had an inseparable relationship with the legendary Yamata no Orochi.
Even he wasn't confident he could survive against her.
How could such a terrifying entity possibly be dealt with by just two jugs of treasured wine?
"Don't overthink it; please just tell me if you're willing or not."
Upon hearing this, Minamoto no Mitsunaka, still deep in thought, spoke to himself.
"Incarnation of Indra, this is a part of the power that my daughter inherited. If we trace the origins, neither of them is more noble than the other."
Most importantly, Felix's origins were equally extraordinary.
Perhaps this was the fundamental reason why he was able to make Ibuki-dōji ignore them and return safely alive.
Thinking of the family's long-cherished wish and prosperity, the highest realm of a martial artist...
Twists and turns were necessary on the road to growth.
He was no longer able to provide the children with a truly meaningful education.
Let's give it a try; it'll broaden their horizons.
"That's the only way. My wine is in the cellar; you can take it all tomorrow."
"Thanks."
"No, just like you said, this is my daughter's life-saving money."
Ibuki-dōji was too powerful.
Minamoto no Yorimitsu was extremely unwilling to accept this and dared to challenge the strongest demon in history.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------(˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶) ‹ (Advanced Chapters @patreon.com/c/Gooberilla)
[1] Should I add NTR tag :D?