I Became The Academy Necromancer

Chapter 292: The Grown-Up Nine-Tailed Fox

“P-please! Just one more chance! I beg you!”

Goben sobbed as the soldiers dragged him away. His desperate cries, like those of a child throwing a tantrum, were heart-wrenching to witness.

“Illuania! It wasn’t supposed to be like that! I just wanted to make you and Sevia truly happy! For us, who lived in the shadows of the back alleys, to live a life people would envy!”

“Goben...”

Illuania’s expression twisted in anguish. Knowing that he had committed these sins for her sake weighed heavily on her heart.

Thud.

At last, Goben was dragged out of the room.

In the silence that ensued, everyone’s gaze shifted to Illuania and Sevia.

I approached them cautiously.

Though I knew words would not provide any comfort, I felt it was my duty to stay by her side.

“I was wondering...”

Illuania’s eyes shimmered with melancholy. As she cradled her child tightly, she began to pour out her honest feelings.

“Can I really... have a normal family?”

“...”

“Is there someone who can love Sevia as much as I do?”

“...”

“Will this child eventually get a father?”

Tears streamed down her cheeks, pooling at her chin. In one breath, she had become a woman who made a man both a victim and a perpetrator.

Forcing herself to stifle her sobs, she continued.

“I just wanted Sevia to live a life that wouldn’t make others pity her. To be loved by her parents, to tell her friends about her father proudly, to be scolded, and to make memories...”

With a pained expression, she reflected on what might have been.

“As Sevia grew older, I wanted to take her out for picnics. To watch the flowers bloom while sharing a homemade lunch. And later, when she went to kindergarten, I’d attend her performances with her father, cheering her on. Afterward, we’d all go out for a nice meal together.”

Surely, all that would have been possible to do.

“I thought that having a father would make her brave enough to stand confidently before others. That just having that presence would give her the strength to live proudly.”

She had no reason to feel ashamed.

I wanted to tell her this, but I doubted my words would be of any real comfort.

“I know I’m not an innocent woman. I didn’t love Goben, but I still used him. I thought it would all be fine as long as Sevia grew up well.”

“...”

“If there’s a price to pay for my selfishness, I’ll accept it.”

Burying her face in Sevia’s tiny frame, Illuania held her child tightly, sobbing yet treasuring her in her arms.

“But this child is innocent. Isn’t it only natural for her to wish to have a father?”

The bitter sight made others turn their eyes away, one by one.

“I just want her to grow up in a good environment, to be happy.”

It was a natural desire as a parent.

The helplessness of failing to provide that and the self-blame weighed heavily on her.

“Someday, if my child gets hurt because she doesn’t have a father, then I—!”

As Illuania was crushed under the weight of her guilt and sorrow...

“Should that even matter?!”

The unexpected voice of a girl broke the heavy atmosphere as she stepped in through the same door Goben had exited moments before.

Her tail unfurled into nine radiant petals behind her, like a blooming flower.

Like a divine sage descending to impart wisdom or a guardian deity sent to protect.

A soft, glowing light radiated from Xiao Hu as she walked forward, stopping just in front of Illuania.

I had called Xiao Hu here, believing she could say the words Illuania needed to hear.

“Are you really going to cry your eyes out just because she has no father? Is that child the only one without a dad?”

“...”

Did I make a mistake?

The thought hit me like a bolt out of the blue, and even Deia and Darius were looking at me, their eyes asking if this was really okay.

Stunned, Illuania looked up at Xiao Hu with wide eyes.

“Look at me. My parents were yokai! Not just my parents— the world I lived in was filled with yokai!”

A past riddled with scars.

For the first time, a girl who was yet to overcome it herself spoke candidly of the harsh reality that surrounded her.

Xiao Hu then pointed her finger at me.

“And when this person destroyed everything, I lost it all. My family, my friends, everyone I ever knew—everything.”

Despite her bold declaration, I showed no reaction.

“Because... because...”

Clenching her fists tightly, Xiao Hu lowered her head, her expression filled with frustration as if trying to swallow something unpalatable.

Finally,

“Those people were actually flesh-eating ghosts who devoured humans.”

She embraced the truth.

“And I was one of the humans they were raising. And someday, they probably planned to eat me too.”

Illuania’s trembling gaze gave the impression that she was starting to understand the point Xiao Hu was trying to make. Her lips parted slightly.

“In the end, I never grew up as a normal human. I was simply livestock, raised to be consumed.”

“...”

“However...”

Her eyes glistened with tears.

“Even so.”

As she tried to steady her quivering voice, Xiao Hu continued.

“I will live well.”

Her voice carried a hint of tears.

A past so bitter, that it was too painful to move on from.

Yet, the girl moved forward.

“Even someone like me, who grew up in a crappy environment like that, will become someone everyone can admire and call remarkable.”

For the sake of that child before her, even if it hurt, she hoped Illuania wouldn’t believe that the future of a child like Sevia would be ruined by the presence of just one person—a father.

“She has no father? Her parents are bad people? Whenever you feel that guilt, just think of me.”

Xiao Hu’s tail blossomed magnificently.

A nine-tailed fox.

“I was raised as food for yokai, believing those false connections to be real.”

There were various legends about the nine-tailed fox. A creature said to devour livers, seduce people, or drain their vitality.

And being such a famous yokai, it had inspired numerous similar creations and accumulated many folktales.

Among those tales, one stood out—the nine-tailed fox was a yokai that longed to become human.

“Even so.”

Tears streamed from her rounded eyes, but Xiao Hu confidently pointed her thumb at herself.

“I’ll grow into an amazing adult.”

Xiao Hu’s tail and ears emitted a soft glow and began to disappear into a shimmering light.

“So...”

Standing atop her wounds and pain, the girl rose again. Unable to do so alone, she found a reason to endure and get back to her feet in the tiny baby before her.

A relationship of mutual dependence.

And so, the girl transformed into a complete yokai.

“Trust me, even without a pathetic father like that, Sevia will grow up to be happy and remarkable.”

And became human.

***“Well then, I’m off now.”

Early morning, the day after Goben was arrested, Xiao Hu hoisted her bag on her shoulders and smiled brightly.

The fox ears that were perched atop her head and the nine tails that had once draped around her back were gone.

Leaving only a young girl who stood tall and confident.

“You could stay for a bit longer.”

Perhaps feeling like she owed her, Deia made the suggestion, but Xiao Hu shook her head.

“No, the road is long, and I have a lot to do once I get there.”

The girl who was once broken now stood firm. And seeing her like that filled me with pride for no particular reason.

As her eyes met mine, her lips moved hesitantly before she finally bowed her head low.

“Thank you.”

“...”

“I learned and realized a lot thanks to you.”

Receiving gratitude from the girl who once declared she’d kill me brought back memories of that time. I gave her a faint smile in return.

“Your growth, your change. It was all your effort. So have confidence in yourself.”

She had proven she would be able to continue to overcome anything.

Xiao Hu immediately raised her head and flashed a radiant smile at my words.

“I will!”

As the farewells were coming to a close, Illuania stepped forward with Sevia in her arms. Matching her pace, Xiao Hu carefully drew closer.

“Can I hold her just once?”

At Xiao Hu’s question, Illuania silently handed Sevia over.

Kyaa!

Sevia, now cradled in Xiao Hu’s arms, let out a gleeful laugh.

“Her name means... savior, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“It’s the perfect name.”

Xiao Hu’s presence was proof that Sevia’s future wasn’t bleak.

And at the same time, Sevia’s existence gave Xiao Hu a reason to stand firm and not crumble.

Their bond, though brief, ran deep, making their connection all the more special.

Hoping Xiao Hu’s final moments here would end with laughter, I decided to share the little tidbit I’d heard from Deia.

“If you stick out your tongue, the baby will copy you.”

“Huh?”

“Like this.”

I stuck out my tongue a little in front of Sevia. Imagining her copying me seemed cute, but...

Kyaa!

Sevia only squealed and giggled without imitating me in the slightest.

Instead, the reaction came from behind me.

“Pfft! Hey, he actually did it!”

“Is Master Bastard just an innocent cutie? Did you really believe the baby would copy you?”

Krk.

I bit down hard without realizing it, nearly biting my tongue in the process.

“Run!”

“You’re so bad at taking jokes!”

As soon as I glared at Deia and Findenai, they immediately turned and fled.

“Huft, pretend you did not hear any of that.”

I adjusted my expression with great effort and turned back to Xiao Hu and Illuania.

However, they already had smiles spreading across their faces.

“I didn’t know you had this side.”

“It was cute.”

“Do not push it.”

Anyway, the initial goal was achieved. The atmosphere had lightened considerably, and the three parted ways with smiles on their faces.

Before going past the Verdi Household’s front gate, Xiao Hu bowed deeply towards the mansion several times for the last time.

***“Wow, look at all this dust.”

After some time had passed. _{𝖓𝔬𝔳𝖕𝖚𝖇.𝖈𝔬𝔪}

Returning to the Lanlan Diner, Xiao Hu clicked her tongue when she noticed the amount of dust that had accumulated.

It wasn’t just dusty; the place was in total disarray, and there was trash scattered all over.

With no one around, it seemed that local delinquents used it as a hideout until it became too filthy even for them.

“Sigh.”

Xiao Hu brought back a pile of rags from the riverside and began cleaning the place.

Because she spent most of the time ensuring the kitchen’s cleanliness, it took her longer than expected.

And as she straightened her back, thinking it was almost done.

A calendar hanging in the kitchen caught her eye.

It was from several months ago, with one date subtly marked.

Having rarely entered the kitchen before, she had missed the ominous message written below the mark.