Shota is surrounded by monsters!

Among yokai, human names don't hold much significance. Most yokai address each other directly by their species, such as Ushioni and Ichimoku, and are rarely called by human names.

"it is good."

Well, Shota wasn't good at long-winded explanations, so he just gave a brief greeting. But noticing some of the strange looks from the yokai, he added, "Please rest assured, I don't eat people, I only eat yokai..."

"..."

The entire room fell silent.

Oh no, I forgot that everyone here is a monster, not a human.

It's never too late to mend the fence after the sheep are lost, so Shota quickly added, "If there are any large-scale invasions by enemies or bad monsters that need to be dealt with in the future, please don't hesitate to help! I'd be happy to help everyone."

There will always be battles between yokai. Rather than being killed and having their souls annihilated, it's better to use them for Shota's consumption. This is a promise his master, Nurarihyon, made to him; if he can contribute to the Nura Clan...

There are many evil monsters.

"Since you're all part of the Nura Clan now, there's no need to transform into human form, right? Let us all see your true form, Taotie."

Zhen tilted her head and looked at Shota, saying something that everyone present was probably very interested in Shota's true form.

"Hey, doesn't that bull demon also use a human form?"

Being stared at by a bunch of grown men while transforming into Shota was still a little embarrassing. The so-called transformation was usually just a fan service moment—clothes ripping off was too shameful.

"The demon's true form is too large. Surely this room can't contain it?"

"Okay, okay."

Surely someone would reimburse him for the cost of the clothes. After throwing down his jacket, Shota prepared to transform.

"and many more……"

The ghost woman sitting next to him gestured for him to wait, and after retreating five meters, she signaled him to continue. Even the centipede on Shota's other side had already shrunk its head to the left.

"Um... let's just forget about it..."

Walking to the center of the venue, Shota felt extremely annoyed by the spectator-like stares he was being given, and said, "Let's change it after the meeting..."

Even if he were shameless, he wasn't so destitute that he needed to be treated like a pet by a group of monsters. The way he transformed himself in the center of the room felt like he was making a fool of himself.

"Hahaha……"

The jeering monsters seemed to realize something was amiss; after all, the other party had a fearsome reputation, and things could get really bad if they got angry. So they all laughed awkwardly to ease the tension.

Seeing this, Rikuo Nura addressed the group, saying, "During this time, the old Rat Clan and the Gangoji Temple will be expelled for their crimes. However, we will also have new yokai companions joining us. The Taotie here is the best proof of that. I believe that with everyone's joint efforts, the Nura Clan will become the strongest again!"

"it is good!"

That's it!

“By the way,” Nura Rikuo continued, looking at Shota, “Shota-san, if you’d like, you could create your own group. After all, you’re not a permanent resident of the main clan. That might be better, right? As for territory…”

The former Nura Clan's territory and the former Genkoji Temple's territory are now under the control of the main clan. If Shota wants, he can move there and continue to be the local tyrant—life as a yokai is still quite comfortable. Of course, there will inevitably be some conflicts with the local human forces, but for the Nura Clan's yokai, humans only deal with murder and more serious matters. As for stealing food or having fights that don't result in death, they will turn a blind eye.

Even though the Nura Clan is less powerful than before, their strength should not be underestimated. After all, humanity cannot concentrate all of Japan's resources to wipe out the Nura Clan—it's worth noting that the Nura Clan is the most "disciplined" of all the yokai organizations in Japan. There are plenty of vicious yokai elsewhere, and many of them also see humans as "food." To prevent unrest from those powerful yokai, it's impossible for all human forces to concentrate on suppressing the Nura Clan.

"The area where the Old Rat Group is located seems to be quite close to Shota-san's house, right, Grandpa?"

The Old Rat Group—the same group that was wiped out during the last Rikuo Hyakki Yagyō (Night Parade of One Hundred Demons)—wasn't a very large organization within the Nura Clan. Their territory was a district within Tokyo. The Nura Clan's daily routine consisted of protecting yokai who obeyed human rules and suppressing those who did evil.

This is also their code of chivalry and benevolence among demons.

“Hmm. That spot is empty too.” Nurarihyon nodded. No one was using the empty spot, so it was better to make use of Shota’s remaining energy. We couldn’t just let him eat and drink for free all day, could we?

"Then it's settled. Shota-san, once you've decided on the group name and crest, come here and let us know. You can develop your own group members as well."

After giving Shota a word of advice, Nura Rikuo addressed the others, saying, "If you have time, please try to help out Shota-san. Originally, there would be a general meeting and celebration party when a new group joined. But now... so this can also be considered a celebration party for Shota-san."

Wait... in that case, give me at least double the amount of red bean rice.

"Congratulations, Taotie!"

"Please guide me in the future."

"If there's anything you need to do, feel free to ask me for help."

The yokai thanked Shota warmly—after all, yokai, like humans, are creatures of sight and smell. After observing him for a while, they found that Shota, the glutton, seemed much easier to talk to than the other yokai, so they stopped being so reserved, since they were all members of the Nura Clan after all.

"Thank you..."

Shota silently noted down the words of the poor ghost with the giant rice ball head who said he would help him. He also noted down the names of the other monsters who were going to help him, planning to ask them for some small gifts later.

Hmm, a small gift!

But... I didn't expect to become an officer so quickly, and even have my own underlings. Wait, does Lu Sheng mean to let me develop my own faction? In other words, currently...

"Boom-boom-boom-"

"Beep-beep-beep-"

Shota imagined himself dressed in a biker gang outfit, with a Nura Clan flag stuck on one side of his back and a flag bearing his future gang's name on the other. Behind him followed a black-haired vampire in yakuza biker gear, playing a drum, and a blonde-haired slime blowing a whistle. The three of them "majestly" patrolled their territory...

"My Lord Glutton, please enjoy the freshly baked Ghost Lamb Skewers!"

"Lord Sanka, please enjoy the most delicious blood!"

"Lord Slime, please try the latest juice!"

He enjoyed the tributes from his subordinates while also upholding justice.

"You bastard, who gave you permission to flirt with a female ghost on my turf!" Shota grabbed a troublemaking monster by the collar, shoved him to the ground, and then said to the pitiful female ghost beside him, "Are you alright, Miss?"

Then a glamorous idol drama unfolds, and the guy who was pushed down by Shota comes with his men to take revenge.

Of course, as a BOSS, it would be beneath his dignity to personally participate in the fighting.

"superior."

With a wave of his hand, the two guardian vampires and slimes behind him pounced on him.

She KO'd her opponent with overwhelming cuteness...

That should be the script for the story, no doubt.

This kind of life is so enjoyable... So enjoyable, my dear sister!

"ORZ".

Shota bent forward in disappointment, almost making the monsters around him think he was about to transform.

Chapter 43. The Monster Nightclub

"Rikuo, let me say one last thing." Nurarihyon waved his hand to quiet the yokai, and only spoke when everyone looked at him:

"Gentlemen," Nurarihyon said with a serious expression, "recently, there has been some unrest among the yokai in various places, so please strengthen the defenses after we return. Not only has the seal in Kyoto been weakened, but it seems that yokai in other places are also plotting something."

"besides……"

Nurarihyon paused for a moment, then said, "Be careful of the Sesshoseki."

"The Killing Stone? The Nine-Tails?"

"How is that possible? That thing hasn't appeared in a long time, has it? Apart from a few pieces that humans have taken for research, there couldn't possibly be any left out here."

"Gentlemen..." the general interrupted the others, saying, "I have already seen the stones. And... there are two of them."

“Taotie boy has also fought with him. But I’m not sure if he was acting alone.” Nurarihyon continued, “Reject the temptation of the power of the Sessho-seki. Remember, the Nura Clan’s strength is not because of the power of any one yokai. It’s because everyone contributes their strength to the Nura Clan’s Hyakki Yagyō (Night Parade of One Hundred Demons), and in turn, the power of the Hyakki Yagyō returns to you.”

"In case of any incident, please contact our family directly."

After finishing his statement, Nurarihyon concluded his speech, saying, "That's about all I wanted to say. Now, you can discuss this amongst yourselves. Rikuo, please entertain everyone. I'll be leaving now."

"Yes, Grandpa."

Next, it was nothing more than trying to get close to him and join in the fun; even the yokai couldn't escape this. Generally speaking, most yokai first congratulated Rikuo, then chatted for a bit, and then went to Shota to offer a few more words of congratulations.

"Pat-pat-pat-pat".

The abacus maker tapped an abacus he'd produced from who-knows-where a few times and asked, "How many people do you need to support?"

"Two. Including me, three."

"Four taels of gold per month. Come back to me when you have more manpower. However, there's no one left in the old rat group, so I'll give you a little more for now so you can develop your own team."

"Four ounces? Isn't that too little... Wait, gold?!"

If you get four ounces of gold per month, that's 200g... which is equivalent to seven or eight hundred thousand yen...

grunt.

You can eat your fill at the buffet!

"You can come to our family to collect the money when the time comes."

Having resolved the financial issues, Suanpanbo strolled back to the Nura Clan advisors to discuss other matters. Meanwhile, the demon woman who had been sitting next to Shota asked, "Do you need me to give you anything as a congratulatory gift?"

"Of course... ah, whatever you like is fine."

"Do you need me to send a few capable ghost girls to help you out?"

"That's really..."

Wait, another woman? Forget it, I don't need any more cute girls in my house right now. What I need are men, or maybe a powerful monster. Women are out of the question.

In short, Shota received a lot of strange souvenirs and promises, and the event ended with laughter. However, before leaving, he went to see the Grand General to explain something, and only after receiving his promise and permission did he leave.

"Hey, Shota-san."

"It's Mr. Shouwu."

Waiting at the door was the headless one I had met a few times before.

"Then I'll be going now, sister. I've already given you my contact information. Remember to come find me when you have time." The ghost girl Geng Xizi opened a large, jet-black umbrella, completely blocking out the sunlight. She floated in mid-air, waved to Shota, and then drifted away.

Hmm, that umbrella looks pretty nice. If I got one for Rea, it would be so much more convenient. At least she could go out freely during the day…

"Wait, Sister Xizi!"

However, the other party had already drifted away and hadn't heard Shota's call at all.

"This is troublesome. It seems I really need to take a trip up that mountain when I have time."

Shota watched the ghost woman disappear and muttered to himself, "Her location is quite far away. Will I have to take the Shinkansen for two hours to get there?"

"Yuko. When I first met her, she was just an ordinary ghost."

As a senior colleague of Yuuko, Kubinashi remarked with some emotion, "Now she's become the leader and a high-ranking member of Group A. However..."