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#2

Over the years, I've worked at just about every level conceivable for my various jobs and contracts, from lugging around concrete mix, to working heavy machinery, to hacking together code for robots worth more than all of my organs on the black market, and damn-near all of it has been within the field of industrial-scale fabrication. In fact, during the latter parts of my career, I made it a priority to return to the lower parts of the production chain and help the boys on the ground just so I can keep everything in perspective. During my last job as a chief foreman before my sudden translocation, it was practically a priority that I didn't lose sight on what went where.

Why? Well, I'm not sure I should share that. I was working with some sensitive raw materials, of which we had a limited amount. Due to the sensitivity of said material, it had to be refined and processed at the procurement site, which introduced a number of interesting challenges. The one that gave us the most grief was certainly production bottlenecks. "Oh, you're just going a bit slower. What's the problem?" Some might ask.

Believe me, I wish it was that simple.

Bottlenecks, especially ones in the middle of the production chain, rapidly become an enormous headache. These slowdowns require logistical adjustments, finding storage facilities for materials and components not in use, the shuffling of ground-level employees for cost reasons, and a thousand other things I don't care to get into right now. The woes don't even end after the bottleneck is solved, because now you have to make more logistical adjustments, backfill previously dismissed workers, and weigh the cost-to-benefit ratio of keeping the erected storage facilities. In my experience, it's always better to anticipate and head-off slowdowns before they can ever occur.

Is this the best way to do things? Maybe not. Sometimes it can pay to have a surplus of materials for shortages and whatnot, but balancing everything from the get go is the most efficient way to do things. If there's something I've grown to despise, it's wasting time and materials.

My current bottleneck? Energy for Automata Gigue. I estimate I can fill perhaps three or so small golem cores a day before I am forced to rest, which is really not optimal. The Youkai, my current benefactors, have seen fit to sign me on and keep me on retainer in service to the Kyoto Youkai Palace. So far, they've been generous and courteous, and are willing to supply me raw materials so long as I make good use of them, but I'm not going to be able to justify my contract with only insects made of wire. I have to find an energy source adjacent to "life force" and devise a worthwhile harvesting method.

My first thought was "taking life force from others is the most straightforward solution," but not only does that seem distasteful, that could land me in trouble. In addition, I don't even know if that would work. How does one steal life force? Can living beings resist having it extracted? What is life force, exactly? The lack of information is frustrating, and considering most of the palace library is in Japanese, I believe I'm going to be forced to rely on my own intuition and experimentation for a while.

Now, I could try to convince others to donate life force, assuming I can find a way to bridge the gap between the donor and the golem core with Automata Gigue, but then we run into logistics issues. What if the best donors are not always available, or if repeated donations have negative health effects? No, I believe harvesting proper energy myself without the need of outside assistance is the way to go.

With any luck, my upcoming experiments will yield some results.

Beep-beep! Beep-beep!

Slowly, Stephen cracks open his eyes and stares at the plain, featureless ceiling. In the back of his groggy mind, he wonders why his bed feels so much softer than usual. He looks to the side, seeing an unfamiliar wall where a decorative scroll hangs. On the unfurled scroll is a painting of a tall tree, where traditionally styled Youkai sit among the branches, each one performing a different task. The man definitely doesn't remember ever buying something like this.

'Oh, right. It's not mine.'

The cell phone golem on the nightstand beeps again, and blinking the sleep from his eyes, Stephen picks up the hacked-together device and checks the time.

7AM, JST.

Putting Comms back down, Stephen throws the covers off of himself and slides out of the too-soft bed, standing up. Raising his arms over his head and stretching, Stephen mulls over the last few days.

It's been two days since he came to the Youkai, and Stephen has had to wait around as his new prospective employers draft up a contract for him. He and the palace majordomo, Kurohane, met again the day after his arrival, but it became clear to both man and Youkai that a typical employer–employee contract simply won't suffice, so they agreed to meet once more, this time with Lady Yasaka present to make any last-minute changes she sees fit. To a man used to working and keeping busy, the wait forced Stephen to find ways to keep himself stimulated.

Naturally, experimenting with Automata Gigue was the first thing he did.

His trio of wire bees, Alpha One, Alpha Two, and the sapphire-bearing Alpha Three, all had their bodies unwound and rewound into different shapes to test the limitations of their cores and bodies. The results were telling, to say the least.

His initial comparison of Automata Gigue to 'Ork Magic' wasn't too far off the mark, as intent, it seems, plays a key role in the function of a golem's various body parts. He twisted Alpha One into a rough humanoid shape, but forgot to give its head defining characteristics. When asked to perform tasks, Alpha One remained still, apparently unable to hear or perceive its surroundings. It took a moment, but Stephen eventually figured out the issue.

To rectify that, Stephen stuck the knife of his multitool into the golem's face and wiggled it around until two holes were formed. After repeating the same thing on each side of Alpha One's head, the golem, now possessing 'eyes' and 'ears', could properly perceive the world around it. After unwinding some of the coiled wire around its back and fashioning them into crude but recognizable wings, the golem then gained the ability to fly.

That led to another test. Is there any appreciable difference between purpose-made components and hack jobs?

Yes. A fair amount, in fact.

Alpha One's eyes were functional enough, but his vision was colorless and fuzzy with only a pair of crude holes as eyes, as Comms would confirm by displaying A1's point of view. The immobile holes also meant that A1 needed to turn his whole head to see around him.

The old cellphone that Comms used to inhabit was then pulled out, and its crummy flip phone camera extracted. The camera, when mounted on Alpha One, then produced a much clearer picture with color. Once more, there was no integration process; the instant a new component was mounted, A1 could utilize it. A1 was then returned back to his bee configuration.

Stephen then moved on to the potential use of acrylic rhinestones and was left with mixed feelings.

The wire bee fitted with a rhinestone was activated, only to be capable of almost nothing. The golem had an operational time of roughly 5 minutes, and faltered when given complex instructions. Through some trial and error, Stephen discovered that the rhinestone golem could follow multi-step operations, but only if there is no sophisticated problem-solving required. With some creative thinking, Comms was able to wirelessly interface with and slave the rhinestone golem to itself, essentially controlling the lesser golem as a drone. The issue of battery life persisted, however, and presented a new issue in how the slaved rhinestone golem became erratic when flying outside of Comms' wireless range.

On one hand, it's disappointing to see that such an abundantly available core has such a terrible operational time and lacks the ability to make decisions… On the other hand, the rhinestones take almost no energy to animate, can be bulk purchased for pennies on the dollar, and can be remotely operated by another golem acting as a central processor. In other words, rhinestone golems might shape up to be excellent one-use kamikaze weapons.

'Note to self: Get some 3D printers and research how powerful a shaped charge has to be to penetrate a skull. A self-driven kill-swarm sounds like a nightmarish deterrent.' Stephen finishes stretching and looks around his room.

Well, his temporary room.

The Kyoto Palace apparently has a number of diplomatic suites for ambassadors and visitors of different cultures, and Stephen was given temporary lodging in a Western-style bedroom until more permanent quarters are prepared for him. The Youkai apparently have an eye for quality, as even though most of the furnishings aren't Japanese, they're all still superb in comfort. Despite the olden style of the room and the rest of the palace, the Youkai apparently haven't let themselves fall completely behind the rest of the world, as the attached bathroom has plumbing and running water, and the light switch on the bedroom wall controls the chandelier lights overhead.

Setting Comms by the bee golems on the wooden dresser, Stephen strips out of his sleeping clothes, showers and brushes his teeth in the bathroom, and returns to don some day wear. Despite never providing the Youkai with his body measurements, they somehow filled the dresser with appropriately sized clothing.

Digging through the dresser, Stephen finds an array of clothing for just about every occasion. The drawers are neatly divided between Western clothes and more traditionally Japanese outfits for the more culturally savvy. Not wanting to look like a fool for selecting the wrong set of clothes, the traditional attire is left alone.

'Either someone is messing with me, or Youkai have funny ideas on what Westerners wear,' Stephen lifts a shirt with a flame pattern of all things with an amused smile. Setting it aside, he opts instead for something less extravagant. Jeans, an undershirt, and a button-up shirt are fine.

Just as he finishes dressing himself, there is a quiet, polite knock at the door.

'Probably breakfast,' the displaced man muses. "Come in!"

The bedroom door swings open on soundless, oiled hinges, and in steps a kimono-clad nekomata servant girl, a tray of food held in her hands. She bows her head slightly. "Steele-sama, your morning meal has arrived," she murmurs, stepping in further and setting the tray on the low table, one of the only bits of Japanese furniture in the room. "Also, Kurohane-sama would like to meet with you today when it is most convenient for you. It is in regards to your employment."

'It's about time. I've been getting antsy sitting here doing nothing,' Stephen smiles. "Thank you. Please inform Kurohane-san that I will be glad to meet him as soon as I've finished breakfast. Let's say… An hour from now?"

The servant bows her head once more. "Of course, Steele-sama. A servant will be here to escort you to the meeting place in one hour." Her piece said, the servant exits, closing the door behind her with a subdued click.

"Comms, set an alarm for fifty-five minutes and turn it off if my escort arrives before then," Stephen says over his shoulder, getting a confirming beep in return. Sitting down at the low-set table, the man smiles at that food laid out before him.

Rice, a rolled omelette, a slice of fish, some miso soup, and some sliced, assorted vegetables, all fresh as can be. With it is a cup of steaming tea. There has to be some sort of symbolic artistry to the arrangement of each dish, Stephen muses, but it's lost on him. All he knows is that it's going to be delectable. The Youkai chefs within the palace are talented to say the least.

"Definitely can't complain about the food," he says to himself, picking up his chopsticks and digging in.

Just as Stephen polishes off his tea, there is another knock at the door, and he looks up at the clock on the wall with a raised eyebrow. 'It's only been twenty minutes. Is Kurohane that eager?' Regardless, he sets his empty cup down and clears his throat. "Come in!"

The door swings open, and Stephen blinks in surprise.

Standing at the threshold is no servant or Kurohane, but a young kitsune girl. The girl is adorned with fine, yet plain red-and-white robes like a miko. Her golden eyes share the same hue as her hair, which is pulled into a wild ponytail, and her furred fox ears, which twitch on top of her head. Most notably, though, are the nine fluffy, golden tails trailing behind her. The exact name of the girl escapes Stephen, but old memories tell him who he's looking at.

'The Youkai leader's daughter. What is she doing here?' He narrows his eyes, acutely aware of the precarious situation he's found himself in.

"Can I help you, miss…?" Stephen plays dumb and lets the question hang.

The kitsune girl blinks, then she freezes up with her tails floofing up behind her, as if she didn't expect to actually get past the door. A second later, she composes herself and smooths out imaginary wrinkles on her clothes, forcing her face into a mask of neutrality.

"H-Hm!" The fox girl begins, covering her stutter with as stoic a face she can muster. She steps into the room and stops at the table. "I am Princess Kunou of the Kyoto Youkai! I understand that you are seeking shelter with our proud and noble people, stranger?" She says, tilting her head back and looking down at Stephen imperiously.

It would be more impressive if she wasn't four-and-a-half feet tall at most.

'Heh. Cute kid.' Stephen lets himself calm down. 'Whatever this is, it doesn't seem like it's planned. Assuming I'm not placed into an already existing engineering team, Kurohane will probably be my direct superior, and… It's Yasaka, right? Yasaka is above Kurohane, so Kunou here is the daughter of the boss's boss. Certainly can't do any harm by making nice.'

Stephen rises to his feet, and Kunou's eyes widen when he towers over her.

"My apologies, Princess," Stephen can't help but smile as he bows at the waist. "Had I known I would be visited by royalty, I would have dressed a bit better," he says, straightening up and gesturing to his clothes.

"Tall…" Kunou mumbles under her breath before once more composing herself. "Hm! You are excused." She says, sounding every bit like the princess she says she is. "As I was saying, you have come to seek refuge with the noble Youkai?"

Stephen rubs his chin. "In a way. Employment is more what I'm wanting."

Kunou levels him with a raised eyebrow and opens her mouth, probably to ask why, then she stops herself short. Crossing her arms, she nods vigorously. "Of course! Your, erm… talents are very interesting!" She exclaims, floundering slightly. "But they must also be useful! Tell me, do you truly believe that you can do good for our kind?"

'Ho, I get the feeling that someone got curious and is poking their nose where they shouldn't be.'

"Oh, Princess! You know that we can't openly talk about…" Stephen smirks and shifts his eyes. "The Thing. You know? The Secret Thing I do."

"Of course, I know!" The kitsune agrees as if she's in on everything. "There are eyes and ears everywhere! It would be foolish to talk about the Secret Thing. I was… merely testing you." She throws a look over her shoulder and scurries to the door, shutting it with exaggerated care before zooming back over to the table, where she sits primly. "Now we may proceed."

Stephen lowers himself down and sits as well. "Sure thing, Princess. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Steele Stephen, but you already knew that," he says with a knowing smile, making Kunou fidget. "As for your question, I do think I can do quite a bit for the Youkai people. I'm an engineer of sorts, you see, and I like to think I'm quite good at identifying and fixing problems."

"What sort of problems?" Kunou asks, once more fixing her face into a mask of noble neutrality. "I cannot think of anything that readily plagues the Youkai, much less any that can be resolved by a mundane engineer."

'She sure talks like a princess, that's for sure,' Stephen muses. "All sorts of problems, perhaps even ones you don't even realize you have."

The answer doesn't seem to satisfy the kitsune, because she crosses her arms and narrows her eyes. "Really?"

"Really," Stephen nods. "With the exception of biomedical, I've touched upon pretty much every field of practical engineering that I can. In fact, my last job in my old home of Texas forced me to use everything, so I've got plenty of practice."

"Texas?" Kunou seemingly focuses on that word alone. On top of her head, her fox ears perk up. "You're from America?" She asks, leaning in.

"Speaking English and looking the way I do didn't give it away?" Stephen jokes with a small smile. He clears his throat, exaggerating his slight southern twang into a full-blown drawl. "O' course I am."

"Kaubōi!" The foxgirl exclaims, her eyes literally sparkling. Behind her, her tails all wiggle in excitement. "Do you drive a truck as wide as a whole street? Do you actually make boots out of snakes there? Is everything really bigger in Texas?"

Stephen reels back a bit at the barrage of questions and puts his palms up in surrender. "Easy there, Princess. I'll be happy to answer any question you have, but it's gotta be one at a time."

The girl freezes and goes red in the face. Her arms and her tails both twitch, as if she can't decide which set of limbs to hide her face behind. A second later, she settles on looking away in embarrassment. "My apologies, Steele-san. That was unseemly of someone of my standing."

"No harm done," Stephen waves her off and leans forward, relaxing his arms on the table. "Not many foreigners around here, I take it?"

Kunou shakes her head, the red on her face fading. "No."

"Your English is mighty refined for not having any native speakers to practice on. Heck, it's better than a lot of native speakers, even."

The compliment makes the girl perk up. "Oh, that's nothing. Kitsune like myself naturally learn languages faster than most. Mother insists I study with diligence, so I have learned English, Mandarin, and Korean so far."

Stephen lets out an impressed whistle. "Four to my two. All I know is English and Spanish, and my Spanish isn't all that good. You're quite a smart girl, Princess Kunou."

Kunou preens.

"Maybe you could tell me a bit more about yourself, Japan, and the Youkai?" Stephen throws out, resting his chin in his fist. "A cultured young lady like yourself must be a great teacher."

If there is anything Stephen has learned over his years, it's that nearly everyone loves talking about themselves, and absolutely everyone loves someone who is good at listening. No expert with children is he, but the same must apply, right?

The kitsune girl smiles brightly, then seems to realize something and frowns instead. "Wait a moment, what about my own inquiries about America and Texas?" She asks, her earlier concern with Stephen's prospective employment forgotten. "This hardly seems like a fair exchange."

"You're right," Stephen nods along. "How about we make it into a game?"

"A game?"

"A game," he nods again. "We go back and forth, asking one question each until I get called away for a meeting I have in a bit. You can explain as much as you want, and skip questions if you want to. The only rule is to be honest if you answer. Agreed?"

The girl smiles once more. "Agreed."

"Ladies first, please," Stephen begins, gesturing to her.

Kunou laces her fingers together on the low table. "Are you…" She thinks better of her question and stops. "What is it like…" Again, she stops and looks down at her hands indecisively.

"You were asking me earlier about trucks and boots and whatnot, those sound like good starting points to me," Stephen gently guides.

"Right!" Kunou smiles again. "Steele-san, do they really make boots out of snakes in Texas?"

Stephen holds up a hand and makes an unsure gesture. "They do, but nowadays most of the snakeskin boots you see are faux leather. As time went on, more and more people took offense to killing snakes just for their skin. I knew this old native gent who lived on the edge of El Paso who made real rattlesnake boots, but he only made two pairs a year, on account of believing that he should use every part of an animal if he ever has to dispatch one. Never went out of his way to hunt for snakes, but when one had to go, he used all of it."

"All of it?" Kunou seems mystified. "All of it?"

"Saved the venom for herbal medicine, the fangs and bones for charms, and the meat for eatin'," Stephen says, giving the girl a wink. "Snake is a little chewy, but real good if cooked right."

Stephen could practically see the wheels in the girl's head turning, wondering what snake tastes like even if her nose wrinkles at the thought.

"I suppose that makes it my turn," Stephen hums and thinks for a moment. "When I woke up, I noticed the scroll on the wall," he begins, nodding his head back towards the mentioned decoration. "After sitting and thinking for a moment, I realize I don't know what all of the Youkai on there are. Can you tell me what kind of Youkai are around Kyoto so I don't make a fool of myself?"

The opportunity to teach an adult something puts a delighted gleam in Kunou's eyes. "It would be my pleasure!"

The man and girl go back and forth, chattering about this and that. It becomes all too obvious to Stephen that Kunou is a brilliant, yet sheltered girl, as even the most mundane stories he has to share are met with adorable wonder. Or perhaps the Youkai princess just has a fondness for America, or more appropriately, a fondness for the Japanese idea of America? Stephen's roommate back in college was definitely some flavor of otaku and a fan of anything Japanese, so it stands to reason that the inverse can exist.

'I didn't expect a fox princess to be a westaboo, though. I better not tell her that I grew up in the suburbs and not out in the untamed Texan wild. It'll break her heart.'

In return, Kunou gladly gives textbook explanations for any questions Stephen might have. Etiquette, who's who around the palace, Youkai magic, the general state of Kyoto's political climate, and even things about herself and her mother, Yasaka. The more they speak, the more Kunou begins to sound like a young girl rather than a holier-than-thou royal. Kunou even reveals a few juicy tidbits about the inter-faction relations between the Youkai and the various other supernatural forces.

Try as they might to be insular and self-sufficient, the Youkai are still forced to capitulate to mightier factions, namely, the Devils. The Devils apparently benefit from things like travel visas with no expiration date, indefinite land leases, reduced tariffs, and a slanted nonaggression pact. In return, the Youkai get… Nothing.

Well, almost nothing. The nonaggression pact says the Devils will look out for the Youkai in the event of hostile enemy action. Stephen is sure that it's worded very nicely, but ultimately this is the Devils they're dealing with. Even if everybody involved in penning the pact was a pleasant individual, it's still an opportunistic ploy to keep the Youkai dependent on outside assistance.

With greater industrial capabilities and a bolstered military from, say, a workforce of magic robots, the Youkai should be able to renegotiate these unfair conditions. That might be an interesting talking point with Yasaka…

…But as Kunou relaxes and the talk carries on, Stephen finds himself disturbed when he notices just how tired she looks. Kunou can't be any older than twelve, yet without the aloof mask of noblesse on her face, there is a noticeable droop to her eyelids that comes not from lack of sleep, but stress. It's a look Stephen has seen upon coworkers and even himself at some points. It looks wrong on the face of a little girl.

"I see…" Stephen finishes listening to Kunou explain the approximate hierarchy and division of duties within the Kyoto Palace. Yasaka is at the very top, with a council of clan elders under her. Below them is Kunou herself, then chief retainer Kurohane and…

Shit. He doesn't recall. He missed half of the pseudo-lecture when concern over Kunou's health took root. The poor girl just explained that she does a little of everything, like finances, scheduling, and overseeing low-level diplomats to try and ease Yasaka's oppressive workload, and he focused a little too heavily upon it.

"Sorry for speaking out of turn, but do you mind if I ask another question?" Stephen asks, considering what to say. "It's a follow-up to what I just asked."

Kunou blinks. "Ah? I do not mind."

"You explained the rough division of responsibilities between the palace's various leaders, and while you are obviously a capable young lady, I have to wonder if it's healthy for you to be taking on so many duties at your age," Stephen looks away for a moment. "Maybe this is colored by human perception, but you look stressed."

Kunou puffs out her chest and crosses her arms. "It's nothing I cannot handle."

"But should you be handling it? That's the question I'm more concerned about," Stephen says, doing his best to sound disarming. The last thing he needs is the little girl who outranks him getting argumentative. "I'm not trying to be disparaging or insulting, but between all of your studies and your work, are you getting enough time to yourself?"

The fox girl deflates some, her shoulders slumping. "If I don't help Mother, then she'll have so much work to do that she'll never have any time to do anything else…" She mumbles. "Kyoto is the seat of power for the Youkai people. Even if there are other factions and enclaves of Youkai who self-govern within Japan, they still look to Kyoto as a capital and unofficial authority. Mother, for all intents and purposes, rules all of supernatural Japan by her lonesome, but without the ease of actual national unity." Kunou's face screws itself up in frustration, and then melts into resignation, her ears and tails going limp. "At least if I help, Mother and I can spend some time together, even if it's not often…"

Stephen once more looks away, a frown tugging at his lips and an unpleasant tightness in his chest. "I see... Where is your father during all of this? Shouldn't he be helping Yasaka-sama?"

Kunou's face takes on a painfully forced façade of neutrality, and Stephen instantly knows that he misspoke.

"I do not know where my father is," the princess begins, each word slow and deliberate. "He could not handle the pressure of the Kyoto court, and fled before my birth. For his disgrace, it is forbidden to even speak his name." Kunou takes a deep breath and blinks, but she can't quite hide how wet her eyes are. "It's no matter. That was years ago and he is – "she pauses to swallow a lump in her throat, "– long forgotten."

On pure impulse, Stephen stands and slowly circles around the table. He seats himself beside Kunou and wraps an arm around the girl's shoulders, making her stiffen up.

"Steele-san?" She asks unsurely, staring up at him with wide eyes still shining with unshed tears. Despite her uncertainty, she doesn't pull away.

"Might not be proper for some foreign peasant to hug a princess," the man jokes with a smile, "but you look like you need it. It might not be the exact same, but I kind of understand what you're going through."

The girl sniffles. "You do?"

"My old man up and vanished one day, back when I was a bit younger than you," Stephen murmurs, rubbing a thumb on Kunou's shoulder. "Left me, my sister, and mom behind. I wondered if it was something I did, or if he ever wanted a family in the first place. Then I wondered what was going to happen to us. Poor mom worked two dead-end jobs for years so us kids could eat and keep a roof over our heads. It broke my heart that she was forced to work so hard that we never got to see her…" He pauses. "Do other people give you grief about your father?"

Kunou nods silently, staring down at the table. "Some of the Youkai clans' heads and a few of the elders on Mother's council question my worthiness as an heir. They do not want a bastard one day leading Kyoto."

Stephen's blood begins to boil.

"Don't listen to them," Stephen says firmly. "They don't know a god-damn thing, and it's none of their business in the first place."

Kunou jumps at the curse, staring up at him with wide eyes.

"People said the same kind of things about me, that some southern boy from a broken family wouldn't be worth anything," Stephen continues without missing a beat. "It was a sweet, sweet day when I proved them wrong. When your day comes, and it will, it'll be even better! They'll look back on the time when they doubted you and feel like right fools."

The fox girl sniffles again, but her smile returns, even if it is small. "Thank you, Steele-san," she murmurs. "Is that why you came to Kyoto? So you can find better work and send more money to your mother?"

Stephen huffs ruefully. "I wish, honey. Mom passed away a few years ago. Working sixty, sometimes eighty hour weeks for years and years in a row took their toll, and all the stress left her sickly. During a visit with family up north, a bad case of pneumonia took her from us. No, I'm just here for me."

Kunou's eyes widen in horror, and now it's her turn to do the hugging. The kitsune wraps her arms around Stephen's torso and presses her face to his shirt. "I apologize! I didn't know!"

The man just pats her back. What a sweet kid. "It's fine. No harm done."

Kunou pulls away, and Stephen releases her before getting up and sitting back down on his side of the table. As he sits, he can't help but grimace slightly with how glum Kunou still looks. "Say, Princess? I never did explain the Secret Thing, did I?"

The girl blinks, suddenly realizing that all of her questions earlier were deflected. "You didn't."

"Well," Stephen grins slightly, "let me show you a bit. I've got some big plans for Kyoto, and if everything works out the way I want, then a lot of stuff around here should be nice and streamlined, giving you plenty of time to spend with your mom."

The girl's face lights up, and Stephen's grin grows in response.

"A1!" Stephen barks at the nightstand. "Leave standby and come here!"

The wire bee suddenly comes to life and buzzes his wings, lifting off from the nightstand. He zooms through the air and lands on the table, flicking his shiny little antennae.

"Eep!" Kunou nearly leaps to her feet in fright, only pausing when she realizes that the bee on the table isn't real. "What is that thing?!" She asked, pointing a shaking finger at Alpha One.

"A golem," Stephen holds out a hand, letting A1 crawl into his palm. He lifts his creation and shows it to the startled girl, who begins to calm down. "One I made using my Sacred Gear, Automata Gigue."

"A golem?" Kunou blinks, bewildered. "Like a shikigami?"

'What the hell is a shikigami?' Stephen wonders to himself. "Kinda? My Sacred Gear allows me to cobble pretty much anything together and give it life. They're even intelligent, too."

Stephen can see the brain in Kunou's little head turning, considering the implications of what she's been told. As everything clicks into place, her eyes light up in realization. "Oooooh…"

Knock-knock!

Both Stephen and Kunou turn their heads to the door, where gentle knocking interrupts their conversation.

"That's probably for me," Stephen stands and walks over to his nightstand, pocketing Comms and the other bee golems. "It was a pleasure to meet you, princess. I'd love to sit down and talk again sometime soon."

Conflict flashes across Kunou's face. "Steele-san, if you don't mind, may I… accompany you to your meeting?" She asks hopefully.

Smiling, Stephen playfully rolls his eyes. "Already missing me? I haven't even left yet."

The kitsune puffs out her cheeks and scowls. "How boorish! It's not every day a commoner can enjoy a presence such as mine!" She says, slipping right back into 'princess mode'.

Stephen looks at her with a raised eyebrow, and she instantly backs down, twiddling her fingers nervously. It then strikes him that his joke might actually have hit close to home. The girl might actually miss him despite the short amount of time they've known each other.

'We did have a heart-to-heart and all, so I guess that's not too strange…'

"Geez, you're making me feel guilty," Stephen exhales sharply through his nose, holding back a laugh. "It's your palace, princess. You hardly need my permission. By all means, come along."

A smile returns to Kunou's face. She rises to her feet and dusts off her clothes, saying nothing else.

Knock-knock!

"Steele-sama?" The sound of a woman's voice, the same woman who served Stephen breakfast, calls from the other side of the door. "Your meeting will be beginning shortly."

"Well…" Stephen combs his fingers through his short hair, ensuring everything is in place. "Let's get this show on the road."

The walk to the meeting room isn't a short one. The nekomata servant sent to fetch Stephen jumped in surprise when Kunou followed out of the room with the man, but said nothing. Along the way, Stephen looks around, trying to memorize the path just in case he ever needs to use it again. Frustratingly, though, the inside of the palace must be using some kind of non-Euclidean, space-bending magic, as they pass rooms that are bigger on the inside than on the outside, walk through halls making impossible turns, and witness other mind-boggling feats of architecture.

"Some sort of space bending?" Stephen quietly asks the princess at his side, eyeballing a team of fox-masked, sword-bearing men who nonchalantly walked out of a broom closet, one that would have been too small for even two of them.

"It's not space magic," Kunou whispers as they walk. "It's all illusions, the work of Mother's personally trained kitsune illusionists. The layout of the palace is intended to be confusing to frustrate invaders. There are also many hidden passages for guards and servants to take."

So the whole palace is some kind of demented fun house? Ha! It sounds like kitsune illusionists would make a killing running a commercial escape room. Stephen takes Comms from his pocket and gives the electronic golem a short look.

Apparently, the golem is not fooled by the illusions. Comms has been faithfully mapping out the path from the Westerner suite to here so far, and none of the twists and turns Stephen is sure he experienced are on the electronic map. Excellent.

The nekomata servant leads Stephen and Kunou down a long hallway to a large set of double sliding doors, where Kurohane waits. As they approach, the crow tengu focuses on Kunou with confusion. "Kunou-hime?" He asks. The old crow then fires off several questions in rapid-fire Japanese, dismissing the nekomata servant with a wave of his hand.

"It is rude to speak as such with a foreigner present, Kurohane-san," Kunou sniffs imperiously. "As for what I am doing here, I am accompanying Steele-san. We shared an enlightening talk, and as his employment concerns the potential future of Kyoto, I have deemed it appropriate to sit in and observe."

Kurohane's mouth draws itself into a thin line, but he does not protest. "Very well, Kunou-hime. It is your right, so I shall not impede you. Be warned that Yasaka-sama may have a contrary opinion." he says reluctantly. He then puts a tired smile on his face and turns to Stephen. "Steele-san, a thousand apologies for the delay. Yasaka-sama is a busy woman, and we are fortunate her schedule today allowed enough flex for a meeting. Has your stay so far been well?"

"Fantastic," Stephen sees no reason to lie. "I'm definitely going to need to learn Japanese soon, however. I don't know what I was expecting when I went to the palace library only to find I couldn't read anything."

Kurohane chuckles. "Eager to learn? A fine attitude to have."

"I can teach you Japanese, Steele-san!" Kunou jumps into the conversation. She seems to realize halfway through her words she spoke rather casually, and coughs into her fist, calming herself. "What I mean to say is that it would be a privilege to assist an honored addition to this fine court."

Stephen clicks his tongue and shakes his head. "Princess, that's your time, not mine. I can find a tutor or teach myself. You don't need to spend your free time on me."

Kunou looks as if she's about to protest, so Stephen raises a palm to forestall her, drawing a sharp intake of breath from Kurohane.

"If you'd like to visit and talk, however, I certainly won't say no to that," Stephen throws the girl a bone. "Swing by anytime."

"Anytime?" Kunou confirms, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

"Anytime," Stephen smiles. "I'm a fair hand at multitasking, and do some of my best listening when I'm working. Whatever you want to talk about, I'll make some time for you."

Whatever argument Kunou had withers on the vine, as she folds her hands behind her back and gives Stephen an aloof stare. "Very well. I will hold you to that, Steele-san."

"I expect nothing less," Stephen returns his attention to Kurohane, who looks rather bewildered. "Anyway, the meeting?"

It takes the tengu a moment to recover. "Ah, yes, of course. Please come this way," he says, gesturing to the doors.

Kurohane slides the doors open, leading Stephen and Kunou into a lavish parlor. On the high ceiling is a colorful mural, depicting a white, nine-tailed fox serenely sitting within a red sun decorated with black wave marks. Around the sun are a number of other celestial bodies, upon which other stylized Youkai rest. The artistry is so inhuman it looks as if the painting may come to life at any moment. In fact, after a moment of staring, Stephen sees that the picture is moving! Slowly, but surely, the planets are revolving around the sun, moving only millimeters at a time.

On the left side of the square room, the sliding doors are open, letting in natural light and revealing an immaculate side garden, one that has to be tended to every single day with how well-maintained it is. Or maybe the whole thing is an illusion? Gah. If he's going to be living with a bunch of kitsune, then augmented reality glasses for defeating illusions are going to become a must.

By comparison, the table and cushions in the center of the room are rather understated… Until Stephen realizes that the table is a single, unbroken piece of wood. It's as if a tree was grown into the shape, debarked, then treated with the finest varnish and polish money can buy, making a dark wood table of impossible quality.

Around the table are four cushions of red silk, one on each side. Stephen takes the nearest one, with Kunou taking the one on the right, and Kurohane, the left.

"Yasaka-sama will be with us shortly," Kurohane says quietly. "Steele-san, our lady is fair and reasonable, but I must ask you to be respectful and keep your wits about you."

'Keep my wits about me?' Stephen frowns. 'What does he mean by that?'

As if prompted by his thoughts, the set of doors on the other side of the parlor slide open, and in steps…!

The displaced man's breath hitches in his throat.

In walks a woman too perfect to be human.

Gold is the first color he notices. Her long hair, her mirth-filled eyes, the fur of her fox ears and nine swaying tails, each one has the same color and luster of gold.

Her skin, with a pale, snowy complexion utterly free of any blemish, practically glows in the sunlight. The room grows brighter as she walks in.

The top of her yellow, silken kimono is worn loosely, exposing her shoulders and eye-catchingly large bust to an almost scandalous degree. Further down, the rest of the garment hugs her shapely body not shamelessly, but boldly, defying standards with unquestionable confidence and a supreme assurance of her beauty. The unspoken dare to question her is there, but who would ever be foolish enough to try?

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person, Steele-san," the woman smiles serenely, each word smooth and sweet, as if slathered in honey. "Kurohane was thoroughly impressed with your abilities. It is not an easy feat to wow my dear crow to such a degree," she says with a tone of mischief, as if enjoying a joke only she understands. "I am Yasaka, Ruler of Kyoto. I'm hoping our relationship will be a long one," she ends with a wink.

Immediately, Stephen has two thoughts. Firstly: 'Someone got on well with her and left? Why?'

And secondly… 'I am so in over my head. Fuck.'

Below are the names of some patrons who got to view this chapter early and felt like signing it. A huge thanks to them and everyone else who supports this story and everything else I write.

Planetace, Spice_King, Dicloniuslord, Derpydude9001, demonmonkey89,OmegaEntertainment, Dingus, Moxie, Ash The Kitsune, speedyzman13, ncskeeter56, ShaRose, Emeraldleafeon, xxcoder, Peter D, Sulphurcat, AMeek, DNGDutchie, Green0Photon, JustALurker, PixelGMS, Kammight, WiseKitsune, Motanium, BrokenOlive, UnholsteredIII, Fabhar, SleepyKamo, TitaniumPhoenix, Emilowish, Rémi C.,