Tokyo, but I'm a deceitful scumbag.

Isn't he just a con artist with a terrible personality?

You don't want me to remember you, do you? Who cares!

Forget it, forget it!

"Ouch!"

Because she raised her chin too high, she tripped over a curb and fell to the ground.

Her hair was instantly turned into a mess, and blood appeared on her fair forehead.

Fortunately, the alcohol seemed to numb her pain. She quickly stood up, kicked the curb in frustration, wiped her forehead briefly, and continued walking home, ignoring the comments from those around her.

Just then, she saw someone tearing down a missing cat poster on the street.

Hey, this person's face looks familiar...

and many more……

Relying on that vague impression as a seed, memories that had almost been forgotten gradually revived.

That's him!

Overwhelmed with excitement, Ichikichi froze for half a second before her body acted before her mind, and she gave chase.

The chase led them to the alley entrance.

I watched a wonderful show where a human turned into a fox.

She froze, completely stunned, a violent chemical reaction coursing through her mind.

what happened?

Was it a hallucination? Or was I seeing things?

No, that fox is clearly still in the same spot!

That guy... was he a fox in disguise?

Do monsters really exist in this world?

I...he...this...

"Hey, what a beautiful fox!"

But before she could sort out the mess in her mind, three men dressed as thugs appeared at the other end of the alley.

Perhaps they were runaways who had dropped out of school, or perhaps they were idle men addicted to pachinko, but in any case, their eyes lit up the moment they saw the fox.

"It could fetch a good price at a pet store, right?"

"Let's find a burlap sack..."

Looking at the three people, Ichikiku was moved.

The brain hasn't fully processed the information; what drives the body is the purest emotion from within.

How can we allow something to happen to the person we finally found again?

Although I don't know anything about fox spirits or anything like that...

But one should repay kindness, which is the simplest principle of being a person, and Kikumi Ichichi would never hesitate on this point!

She grabbed a mop from the wall, holding it like a baseball bat, and yelled at the three men, "Hey! You bastards!"

At this moment, the spirit she once had as a delinquent girl returned.

But unlike when she was blocked at the gate by yakuza, the reason she swung the bat was no longer out of despair, but to protect the people she cared about.

"That's my fox, you're not allowed to touch him!"

"Where did this woman come from? Don't underestimate me... Ouch!"

One of the thugs turned around and cursed back, but before he could finish speaking, the mop handle had already hit his shoulder with a whooshing sound, causing him to stagger three steps and howl incessantly.

The other two looked up to help, but when they actually saw Ijichi Kikuri, they were intimidated by her aura.

A woman with a ferocious face, fierce eyes, blood streaming down her forehead, and long, flowing red hair, wielding a wooden stick with ferocious power, charged towards them. This…

Where did this crazy woman come from?!

It's just like the legendary Red Demon!

They just wanted to catch a fox to earn some pocket money, not risk their lives!

After exchanging a glance, the two turned and ran away without saying a word.

"You...you guys are so disloyal!"

The only person who was hit was stunned, but out of the corner of his eye he saw that Ichiki was about to swing her bat a second time.

"Wait for me!"

He shuddered, then instantly covered his head and scurried away, disappearing into the alley.

It's safe now...

Iji Chikiku took a few deep breaths and looked at the mop in her hand with some surprise.

The wooden stick was covered with cracks, and it looked as if it would break at the slightest touch.

Did I really use that much force in that swing?

I haven't exercised in years, so how come I'm stronger than I was in high school? Is it the effect of alcohol? That shouldn't be the case; I've only had a few sips. This increase is too exaggerated...

Oh wait, now's not the time to worry about that!

She quickly dropped the mop and went to the fox.

This……

is it him?

It is indeed a very beautiful fox.

Especially that fluffy, cloud-like tail; it must feel really nice to touch.

Damn it, what am I thinking...?

Kikuri Iji patted her cheeks and began to think about what to do next.

We can't leave the fox here in the cold, no matter what.

But taking it away directly would be too conspicuous.

I don't have a big enough pocket myself.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Ichikiku.

After hesitating for a moment, she gritted her teeth and unbuttoned her blouse...

The following 300 words are omitted.

Chapter 20 This fox is super cute!

Edo Castle Ruins, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo.

There is a 30-story Torch Building here, which ostensibly belongs to a shipping company, but in reality, it is the headquarters of the countermeasures office in Tokyo.

Inside a conference room on the second basement floor of the building.

"The investigation results are in..."

"This was a double-cross among extraordinary individuals. Our countermeasures office never intervened from beginning to end. The eldest daughter of the Tendo family was deceived..."

"The illusion barrier inside the Abe Department Store is extremely sophisticated, seemingly using a technique that was lost three hundred years ago, and is extremely dangerous..."

"However, he managed to break through such a difficult barrier, even if it was through some trickery, which shows that he is stronger than we imagined..."

"Could that 'smiling fox' be a great demon...?"

"It shouldn't be that bad, but with the spiritual energy becoming increasingly abundant around the world, it's hard to say what will happen in the future..."

"This needs to be taken seriously..."

"The above is a summary of the entire entrepreneurship lecture incident. The relevant records have been filed. The investigation into Nobuyuki Kayaba and 'The Smiling Fox' will be handled by the Spirit Search Team Three..."

End of the meeting.

Aoyama Maki stepped out of the room, took a deep breath of the fresh air with less human presence, and casually pulled out two lollipops.

She first took one into her mouth, then offered the other to the girl in the corridor who had her head down and seemed to have faded away:

"Today's is watermelon flavored, it's really delicious!"

"……Thanks."

Asuka Tendo sullenly took the candy, popped it into her mouth, and then...

It crunched and broke apart with a loud crack.

Maki Aoyama shook her head and laughed: "Haha...it can't be that bad, can it?"

Asuka Tendo raised her head, her large eyes brimming with tears:

"Maki-nee, I've been fooled by the same person twice!"

After Asuka Tendo called for backup and the countermeasures office thoroughly investigated the Abe Department Store, she finally realized that she had been deceived.

There were no heroic predecessors; I was just deceived by a con artist.

Although a crime committed by superhumans was solved by chance, being deceived is being deceived.

Not only that, when asked about the person's appearance afterward, she found that she couldn't remember anything and couldn't provide even a single useful clue.

Furthermore, she recalled being scammed after buying desserts earlier this month, but she couldn't remember what the person who lied about having "egg cancer" looked like.

By connecting the two incidents and through her colleagues' investigation, she finally learned who the culprit was.

The con artist codenamed "Smiling Fox"...

Its specific strength is unknown, but it has been confirmed that it possesses the ability to prevent its appearance from being recorded by any person or device...

"I actually got scammed by that guy twice in one month!"

"Ahhh!"