Tokyo, but I'm a deceitful scumbag.

He didn't explicitly name anyone, but the girl immediately realized who he was talking about and softly replied, "Tendo Ryuji."

"The family's undisputed strongest member of the new generation, his magic and shikigami are exceptionally powerful, and he is considered a potential Grand Onmyoji within the first ten years of the spiritual energy revival. Moreover, like me, he joined the Countermeasures Office and became the leader of the Spirit Search Team Five within three years..."

After finishing her long speech, Asuka Tendo curled her lip and added at the end:

"...However, this genius is no less capable, and I'm five years younger than him! I'll definitely be stronger than him in five years!"

Hoshino Hideyuki nodded earnestly, "Yes, Master, you're the best! The best teeth in the world!"

Girl: "To be honest, your kind of flattery sounds a bit disgusting..."

"Hey~"

Just as the girl and her "shikigami" were exchanging feelings by hurting each other, a female onmyoji who had just greeted her came over.

She looked to be about eighteen or nineteen years old, and quite pretty, only slightly less so than Asuka.

Although she was also wearing a kimono, she wore a silver earring in her left ear, and the hairpin in her hair was also trendy. She also had sunglasses hanging at her neckline, which showed a strong sense of modern fashion in the details.

"Asuka, this must be your new contracted shikigami, right? He's so handsome! No wonder you've taken him in human form for the first time ever~"

She said this to Asuka Tendo, but her smiling eyes were fixed on Hideyuki Hoshino.

"Is this guy a fox spirit? What's his name? He's really something, managing to pull Tomoya into an illusion!"

Tendo Tomoya, who was standing next to him, sneezed violently.

Meanwhile, Hoshino Hideyuki responded with the same squinting smile, "You flatter me, but may I ask who you are..."

"Tendo Mizuki is a very young person; strictly speaking, she is my niece."

Before the good fox could finish speaking, Asuka Tendo interrupted him, then stood between him and Mizuki Tendo, arms crossed, brows slightly furrowed, and said in an unfriendly tone:

"This girl is a shikigami collector. She's always stealing shikigami from other members of the clan. Don't talk to her!"

"Oh dear, is it really necessary to be so strict, Auntie?"

"you!"

Tendo Mizuki blinked, then, taking advantage of her height, looked over Asuka's head at Hoshino Hideyuki and said, "I just want to give every shikigami a better home."

Hey, what a coincidence!

I, Fox, also want to find a dozen or so rich women and have each of them give me a home~

Hoshino Hideyuki raised an eyebrow, reached out and placed his hand on Asuka's shoulder, then said to Tendo Mizuki, "I'm very interested. Mizuki-san, why don't you tell me in detail what benefits I could get if I went with you?"

"You stinking fox!"

"Hehe, no problem, as long as you make a contract with me, I'll..."

However, before she could finish speaking, Hoshino Hideyuki added:

"What's the base salary excluding performance bonuses? What about the internship salary? Are there social insurance and housing fund benefits? How many days a week will I be called in? What's the overtime situation like? Is there a year-end bonus? Are naps allowed in the office? Do they check attendance? How many days of annual leave are there? What about after the contract expires after five years? Are cats allowed? By the way, if they are, it's a minus for me..."

Tendo Mizuki: ?

After a barrage of questions, Tendo Mizuki was completely dumbfounded.

Is this... is this still a God of Techniques?

Seeing this, Hoshino Hideyuki sighed softly, "Can't you answer? Miss Mizuki, your approach to running the shikigami business is unprofessional; you have absolutely no expertise..."

"Uh……"

Speechless with grief, Tendo Mizuki turned and fled in defeat!

"Pfft~"

Asuka Tendo smiled happily.

But as she laughed, the girl started counting on her fingers.

Although she knew the fox was just joking, she couldn't help but think:

Is raising this fox really that troublesome? Is my salary in the countermeasures office enough? Do I have to smash my piggy bank to afford it...?

Just as the monsters and Onmyoji in the hall were each preoccupied with their own thoughts, the guards at the door suddenly shouted in unison.

Immediately afterwards, a short, plump old man in fine clothes walked in, smiling and waving a fan, surrounded by servants.

After taking his place, just as his servant was about to introduce him, he waved his hand to stop him, coughed twice, and said himself, "Esteemed masters, I am the current Shogun, Hojo Yasumasa. Thank you all for coming from afar to lend your assistance..."

Then came a string of empty words, like thanks, praise, and welcome.

It's clear that the members of the Tiantong family aren't particularly interested in this.

Those who care a little about saving face, like Ryuji and Asuka, will return the greeting and say some polite words. Those who don't care about anything, like Tomoya Tendo, will just give a superficial bow and remain silent.

As for foxes...

He felt that the Hojo Shogun looked a bit like the North Kai from Dragon Ball, and was thinking of trying to stick two cricket antennae on his forehead sometime.

Shogun Hojo was completely unaware of what the people in the hall were thinking, and continued to deliver his carefully prepared welcoming speech.

But just then, a servant came running in, sweating profusely, and scrambled to the general's ear, whispering something in his tongue.

The next second, General Hojo's expression changed drastically.

He coughed twice, wiped his forehead, and addressed the crowd:

"Well, I originally planned to invite all the masters to a meal first, but now, I have some bad news..."

"The thirty-six Buddha statues necessary for setting up the Ashigahara barrier were stolen by the long-haired demons on their way here..."

Chapter 208 Old Fox Just Loves Watching Beautiful Girls Fall on Their Butts

It took Hoshino Hideyuki some effort to understand what had happened after Hojo Shogun's somewhat awkward and off-key explanation.

It turns out that the ancestors of the Tendo family once set up a huge barrier in Ashihara, as a powerful weapon for mortals to fight against the long-haired demons.

However, each time this barrier is activated, it requires the collection of thirty-six Buddha statues, each embodying the wishes of the people, and their placement at various nodes. When it is closed, all the wishes within the Buddha statues will be exhausted.

It is impossible to sustain this kind of consumption with just one castle, Ashihara.

To solve this problem, after each time the long-haired demons were driven away, the generals of each generation would distribute the Buddha statues, whose power had been exhausted, to temples in various places so that they could receive offerings to replenish their power. When the long-haired demons invaded the border again, they would send people to retrieve the Buddha statues and set up a protective barrier.

This method has always been effective in the past.

But this time, the long-haired demons somehow got intelligence and ambushed the group transporting the Buddha statues back to Ashihara-to, stealing all of them!

"Everyone..."

General Hojo lamented, "Without those Buddha statues, I truly don't know how I would defend this Ashihara."

Fortunately, we still have a chance to salvage the situation!

"After those hairy demons stole the Buddha statue, they dared not take the main road and could not move quickly. They are probably still wandering around in the mountains and have not been able to return to their camp."

"In that case, we have time to find them and retrieve the Buddha statue!"

"This task is far too important for ordinary people to handle; I have no choice but to entrust it to you all..."

"I hereby promise that anyone who helps find the Buddha statue will be richly rewarded, and the one who finds the most will be appointed as the Ghost Exorcist and commander of the Yin and Yang corps..."

OK OK.

Hoshino Hideyuki blinked, wondering if this was a straightforward quest. As expected of an NPC who safeguards crucial items.

Over here, Tendo Ryuji, as the leader of the new generation (although Asuka was not convinced), readily agreed and said, "Shogun, leave this matter to us!"

The rest of the Tian Tong clan members echoed this sentiment.

Although they were not clear about the specific criteria for the Divine Jade to select trial participants, even a fool could see that contributing to such a crucial matter as fighting the long-haired demon would definitely earn them points.

So soon.

The group of Onmyoji then descended to the city gate.

General Hojo personally saw them off and gave each person a map and a compass made with a tortoise shell base—this compass would automatically indicate the direction when they approached the Buddha statue.

It sounds powerful, but its effective range is only one kilometer, so Onmyoji cannot rely on it alone to find their targets.

"...May you all have great success in your military endeavors!"

After handing over the items, General Hojo waved goodbye to the group of Onmyoji.

The Onmyoji exchanged glances and then quickly dispersed, each going their own way.

After all, from this point on, they became competitors.

"Let me see the map~"

After leaving the city gate, the fox spread out the key item, shook his head and gestured for a while... then threw the map to Asuka Tendo.

The drawing is terrible!

As expected, maps made in this feudal era are no good; they give me a headache. I'm not going to look at them anymore!

"You little fox..."

The girl pursed her lips, held up the map, looked at it carefully twice, and then said, "Let's head north. There are more mountains and forests there. If I were the long-haired demon, I would definitely go that way!"

"Got it~"

Hoshino Hideyuki glanced at the girl's twin tails with a mischievous grin and said, "As expected of the long-haired girl who has the same hairstyle as the long-haired demons, she can easily connect with their energy~"

"Hey! You damn fox, what do you mean by this?!"

Asuka Tendo's eyes widened, and she reached out as if to grab Hideyuki Hoshino's hair.

"Damn it, I'll braid your ponytail too!"

Despite their bickering, the fox and the girl didn't slow down. On the contrary, with the help of their extraordinary powers, they moved through the forest almost as if flying.

Before long, the compass started to respond.

"This way!"

Asuka Tendo immediately became excited, and with her little feet on wooden clogs, she jumped several times on the treetop, and in the blink of an eye, she had darted far away.

A few minutes later, the compass stabilized, and the two of them looked down from the top of the tree...

The good news is, we did indeed spot a hairy ghost!

The bad news is... there's already an Onmyoji standing next to me.