The Plum Blossom and the Fox.

"Aah! It's been a while, Fuku!"

A week after the lord of Kiko, Iwasawa Hiroshi, confirmed that he will be sending an ambassador to Fuku, a carriage arrived in the capital of Fuku, carrying a man who excitedly shouted as soon as he got out of the vehicle.

"Kaminari Tatsu-sama, I suppose?"

"Yep! That's me! You must be Nayoko-san that Iwasawa-sama told me about. Working here as your cover?"

"It is, Your Honor. While I might be working here as the head servant, our special… guest, is not in here."

"I see! That's good!"

This is Kaminari Tatsu, the ambassador sent by the Lord of Kiko to oversee and lead the negotiations with Fuku province. With a bright and lively face, a bit taller height than a normal man and shiny black hair and irises, one would assume that he is of noble lineage.

However, this man isn't known for his real name and appearance in Kiko, but rather, with his title.

"Kaminari Tatsu-sama, I wish to talk."

"Mm? What would that be Nayoko-san? Want to ask something to me?"

Once his belongings have been placed inside the villa that now acts as Kiko's embassy to Fuku, and the other servants are tidying up and placing his things on his bedroom, he was lead by Nayoko to a room resembling an office where she prepared a pot of newly brewed tea for him.

"No… it would be more appropriate to say that… I want to talk to the Fox of Naka Harbor."

"Oh… I see… You want to talk to this side, huh?"

"-!"

At the previously cheerful and charming expression on his face, now sits an intimidating expression who has the smile of a predator playing with his prey before ripping it for dinner. That made Nayoko's face spasm for a moment out of fear and made her step back a little.

"Please, please… don't be too scared. I'm here as an ambassador representing his nation and master. I wouldn't be so crass to do anything reckless, would I?"

"Y-y-yes…"

"Now, now, now… calm down, milady. I'm not here to harm you for now."

"I-I understand. I'm sorry for that."

As she poured a cup of tea for him and he received it calmly, his expression softened up until Nayoko cannot feel any malice in his expression anymore. With that, she opted to tell him her question that she held back earlier out of fear.

"When will we start with the schemes, Your Honor?"

"Before that, just call me Tatsu-san. Except for times when I am going with a plan, I'm usually not fond of being given titles such as Your Honor and Master."

"Understood. Would Tatsu-sama suffice?"

"It's good enough."

Seeing the man who sent a malicious aura towards her earlier, enjoying the tea and having a cordial conversation with her, made Nayoko think about who the Fox of Naka Harbor really is.

"Cut me some slack, Nayoko-san. It's my first day in here. I haven't even pissed here and you're already asking me to make a scheme? That's not too fair to teeny-weeny me, wight~?"

"S-sorry… It's just-"

"Don't worry, don't worry. I'm not complaining. Just telling you to give me some time to get used in here."

Still, Nayoko kept a mental note that whatever this man may say or do, he is someone sent here by his lord to tear down the government of Fuku.

She might be working with him, but she doesn't want to get too close to a shady figure like him.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Nayoko-sama… is something bothering you?"

"Haah… nothing, just remembering the past."

"I'll leave you to have your nap then, Nayoko-sama."

I, the leader of the Women of the Night, is coated in as many covers as I can place on my face and name. Of course, I have a reason to pursue such a dangerous way of rebellion.

I grew up in Kurobe city, a town at the southernmost tip of Fuku. Being in a land covered from the sea storms by towering mountains that made the province look like a bowl, I grew up and loved to run around the rice paddies with my friends during harvest season when our fathers would be taking the rice to thresh them, and we'd play on the leftover hay left from the threshing.

It was a fun childhood. A memory that I wish to cherish until the current time.

However, all of it ended because of them.

"Slaughter them!!!"

"Take the women and children to the cage! The slave merchants would have some use for them!"

"NOOOO!!!"

One day, those barbarians from the north of Fuku attacked Kurobe and took us away from our homes while slaughtering the men who cannot be of use to them.

"3 gold Kan? 3 gold?! SOLD!"

"Next in line are women from the south, with their renown craft of Kurobe Sake, these ladies are sure to be the succulent type in anyway you want~!"

"I'll buy 'em! 15 Kan!"

"20 Kan!"

We… were sold to brothels.

At the young age of 12, I was already sitting amongst the other older ladies-of-the-street. Dressed in a vibrant kimono, my hair styled into attractive buns and braids and my face painted with rice powder for whitening and red dyes for oriental fashion, we await men who would rent us for the night and prepare yet again for another client.

"Yo-chan… I'm… Urk-!"

"Hey! Are you-"

"My client was rough… he made me drink too much…"

When I turned 14, only 24 out of the 50 women who was bought en masse to work in here remained. Our mothers who felt despair as they laid with men who aren't their husbands would apologize to us at night and would be found lifeless tomorrow, having ingested poison or cutting their wrists to end their suffering and shame. And us, who was far too young, would be pushed around by our clients to do things that we cannot endure doing. But because we are slaves to our brothels, we cannot do anything…

"Gak-! Guhak-!"

"Hey! Ataga-chan collapsed!"

"She's vomiting blood!"

And when men from the north came to Fuku, they brought a myriad of diseases passed through intercourse that made our lives a living hell. Syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, Herpes and one unnamed disease that we made our bodies weak, leaving us vulnerable to other diseases.

Though we asked our proprietors for medicine or aid, they turned us away and just made plans about buying more slaves to fill our ranks once we bit the dust.

At that point, I already learned that there is something horribly wrong with how we are looking at things.

Why are we sitting here, doing nothing but endure this destiny?

Why are we still here, just to suffer?

Everyday, we prepare ourselves for people who rent us, yet we only receive meager food from our masters.

I don't want to be here anymore. I don't want us to just be like this.

"I want to be free."

With those words, my path to freeing my people started.

"Haah?! What are you wenches doing here?!"

"…Die."

When I killed our masters and burned the brothel to make a distraction for our escape, we swore an oath to each other. Not just as childhood friends, but as women who suffered under the same line of work.

"We will avenge our fathers, brothers, mothers and friends… The blood of those wretched men will be ours to spill, and their souls shall burn in King Yama's incinerating gaze, never to return to Samsara to haunt us again."

"We are nameless women who abandoned their past to become instruments for our revenge. From this day forward, I will bear the name Nayoko, and we shall swear an oath to the Plum blossom marked on our skins, to give the symbol of our bondage a new meaning… as a symbol of our rebellion against those who destroyed our homes and lives."

We scattered across Fuku, some even reaching to the neighboring provinces of Shinka and Kiko to find our other friends who was sold en masse to other brothel owners. We freed them and made them come home while others who aren't from Fuku, yet wanted to be free, joined us as well.

"We pledge an oath to the Plum blossom on our skins. They will no longer be a symbol of our suffering, but a symbol of our rebellion. Long live the Women of the Night!"

As our numbers grew larger and larger, we found more clues regarding the attack that happened 12 years ago. And it led us to just one group of people.

"This was their fault. Since Kurobe is an independent state that can stand even without the support of the Daimyos, they went on a surprise attack followed by the assassination of the lord. Now, the Yamaguchi clan is under the nobility's leading…"

The nobility… they are our enemy.

We swore an oath, and we don't wish to abandon it. No matter how powerful they might be, we will defeat them. We will make them feel the suffering we went through.

"Nayoko-sama!"

"Ahh!"

After someone shouted my name and barged into my room, I awoke from my recollection of memories and looked at the girl who seem to have an anxious look on her face.

"W-what is it?"

"The nobles… The Kurayama clan and Shigure clan are fighting each other!"

"What?!"

Once I heard that, a thought jumped to my mind and I immediately ran to that room to inform the person who must know about this news.

"Tatsu-sama! The Noble clans are-"

"Killing each other? Good."

"Huh?"

"If they're fighting each other to the last man, that means that I've done my scheme well."

As he placed his teacup down and opened his eyes that carries the same malice as before, my body shuddered in fear with the realization…

"Can you brew me some more tea, Nayoko-san?"

"A…aah…-!"

"You see… Lord Iwasawa told me that Fuku would fit me well…"

As his lips rose into an insane grin, I instantly knew…

"And well, it seems like it wouldn't bore me… Well then, shall we continue, Nayoko-san?"

That this man lives up to a monster more voracious than the one on his title.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"The Fox of Naka strikes again… what an amusing title these people suddenly gave me…"

I am Kaminari Tatsu, a young businessman living in Naka harbor. Called a gentleman at the streets by my merchant colleagues outside of Kiko and a beast in the sheets by their wives and daughters, I am renown for many things that most people find hard to do.

"That bastard! Get him out of here!"

"T-Tatsu! This isn't how we talked about this! You said you'll pay them back if I will give you that pearl!"

"So sorry, Maeda-san. You borrow the money, you pay for it. As for the pearl, I'll have a lotta fun spending it."

"W-wait!"

"Bye-bye!"

One of them is making absolutely easy money.

"Odds or evens… odds or evens! Bet!"

"I'm on odds!"

"Wah! You lose again Tatsu, it's evens!"

"Argh! Lost again!"

Since I've mostly gained money the easy and fraudulent way, I am prone to lose it in the same easy and fraudulent way. I go to mahjong and other gambling houses, bet on games, drink myself till I activate the "heat" in my body and if they are available, I'd go visit some of my "friends" for some "fun".

However, these "friends" of mine aren't locals. Most of them are from Kise or the provinces in Kanae who are known to be serial cheaters due to marriages only being seen as a status or business booster. The real attractive women are those at my own homeland of Kiko.

Oh boy, don't get me started with how obsessed I am of the women in here. Their perfect stature that lets you melt into their loving gazes, their soft and silky hair carefully maintained with fruit shampoos and aromatic oils, their perfect curves that feel so tender and precious to the touch. And man, I'm not so proud of this, but I once "accidentally" found a gap at the wall of a female bathhouse and saw things in there that I burned into my memory.

Sadly, Kiko is a conservative nation. Unlike most of the other provinces, you can't sneak into a girl's house and ask for her consent in the name of "night crawling". If you manage to sneak into some girl's room and wake her up with an offer, she'd either shriek and the entire village will be chasing you with their weapons or, if you're really unlucky, the girl herself would cut your head off.

There used to be an actual legal way around this in the form of courtesan houses and brothels. But as I already said, since Kiko has a conservative populace, only outsiders works and buys here.

Eventually, I just came to accept that I won't have any chance of getting a one-night experience with my fellow countrymen. My objects of desire would stay just like that, a dream that I cannot reach out into reality.

"Why don't you just marry a Kiko woman and stop bothering me with this drivel every time you ask me to drink out?"

"That's the problem, my friend. I get turned on with doing it with a friend's cheating married wife. But I can't imagine myself getting a hard-on when a woman is married to me and asks for it."

"Man, your tastes are too F'ed up… Why the hell am I friends with you again? You're outright telling me right now that you may have laid your hand on my wife."

"Woah, woah, woah… hold it right there. You've got it all backwards. She laid her hand on me first, that's not my fault."

"Get the hell away from me…"

And thus, with no real way for me to attain the one yearning of my heart, I was able to focus more on my swindling campaign against the people of Naka.

"That's right, sir! Invest in this pyramiding investment table and you can double your money in just two weeks!"

"Wahoo! I'll leave it to you then!"

One of these schemes is this pyramiding scam. I offer a fake output of money to people by calling it as an investment. At first, they will only fork out chump changes to test it out that I can easily double, and when they finally bit the deal by throwing in large amounts of cash, it's my time to delay it due to "errors with the other clients" until I get my chance to escape with all the money.

It takes a lot of time for me to pull this off and I need a new identity and look every time I do it, but the thrill of tethering between being caught and a huge amount of profit makes me want to keep on doing it not only for the money but also the fun.

Another one of my schemes is something that I call as a "Sea bubble". As I said before, I have friends from Kise, more specifically, the golden coast of Kingo. This stretch of land at the north of the province produces a lot of gold ore that will then be sold out of the province.

Because of my connections, (literally and figuratively, by the way. If you catch my drift ;p) I can get hold of a lot of these gold ores before they are shipped out and now, I have tons of gold under my ownership ready to depart for Naka harbor.

Now, let me test out if you have the potential to be a scammer too. Will I:

a. Keep the gold until it arrives and sell it for a raised price?

b. Sell it to merchants by claiming it is jewelry-grade gold?

c. Sell its ownership while it is still not in my hands?

If you answered only one of these, you are absolutely wrong. Because I'm gonna do all of them!

"500 Kan!"

"650!"

"1000 Kan!"

"SOLD!"

For this, the first thing I do is to claim that it is jewelry-grade gold, but this is obviously just a lie. Because you see, Kise's gold are actually gold sediments from the seacoast that entered the sea caves and formed into gold ore. The problem is, unlike true underground gold ores that has been processed by underground water and volcanic activity, gold from outside water is more prone to contain impurities, lowering its luster and malleability and thus, lowering in value as well.

But that is not something that my victims would see while I am selling it to them. After all, it is still at the sea, right?

So while I am waiting for it to arrive, I will auction off the ownership invoice of the shipment and thus, gain a lot of profit. However, in the middle of the "voyage", the ship will encounter a number of "problems" that will delay its arrival. And this, is where the bubble starts.

To put it in simple terms, gold is a precious material and merchants and smiths alike are very sensitive to the fluctuations of its price in the market. Because of this, even a difference in a single digit that would appear to be an insignificant difference to normal people are taken as a big deal by these people.

The heart of the scheme is reliant to that fluctuation. I would auction off the ownership of the materials during a "high" time at the prices and using the "problems" that I mentioned earlier, I will bid my time until the prices go "low" and finally tell the buyer that the shipment has arrived.

Now, did you notice that I placed focus on the word "voyage"? Here's another one of my tricks. That shipment was already here weeks or even months before all of this even happened. It never went through those problems nor was it newly settled in the warehouse where I kept it.

All that I had to do was to announce that I have gold, sell it, make up reasons as to why it will be delayed and when the time comes for that gold to have a low price, show it to the buyer who already paid me. This is where things get more interesting. Instead of taking the materials, most merchants would beg for me to buy the gold back even in a lowered price all in order to not lose more of their resources in finding new buyers for it because just like that one common principle in business, the longer a product with a deferred value stays at your hand, the more difficult it is to let go of it later. In short, for businessmen, time is more precious than gold can ever be.

The result? I get the buffer or left-over money from the rebuying of the materials in a lowered value and because the gold is still with me, I can rinse and repeat the entire process every other week in order to not make my buyers suspicious of anything. The only thing I have to do is to rewrite a new ownership invoice, pay a random ship captain to prove that the shipment came from his last trip and change the location of the warehouses to make the process more authentic.

The last one of my schemes is my favorite one. Simply because it's something that I really, really like to pull off.

"I love you."

"Mmm~ You're so warm~"

I call it the "love letter scam". The principle is really simple. In Naka harbor's many courtesan houses, there is a bulletin board where people who want some "at-home action" can pin their request for a short-term relationship. This is where I come into the scene.

I'll pick a client that looks promising enough and write letters to him/her, claiming that I am interested with the idea. At this point, many of these people would immediately ask me to meet up somewhere at a certain time but I'd play the "bashful" act and say that this is my first time in this kind of thing, and I am still shy. If they bite that, that person and I would be exchanging letters for a while. Sometimes, I will drop words that would stir their hearts and with that, their next letter would contain a gift or two. The process will take a bit of time but by the time when I have fully caught their heartstrings, I will tell them that I am ready to appear to them and ask for money to travel to where they are since I am in "a place far-away from them". If they bite that and send the money, I will appear there and since they don't know that I am the person they've been talking to, they will ask who I am and why I am there instead of a "mature rich man" or a "fledgling young maiden" that they expected.

"The person you are talking to is a swindler known for this scheme and I am the bounty hunter tasked to find that person and make them pay for their crimes."

"W-W-What…?"

"I'm sorry if this will break your heart, but you have been tricked. The person you've been talking to was just after your money. And this meet up is nothing more but a way for that person to distract you and disappear from the conversation."

"T-Then… how did you-"

"I caught wind of the letter from the proprietress of the courtesan house. She told me to go here as soon as I can to catch the criminal but… I was too late."

After this act, the person would usually break down in tears and hit their heads on a wall after the heartbreak. And in their frustration, will ask me to catch that person and give me money to support my "hunt". Completely unaware that the person they now hate was me all along.

Now that I've explained all of my despicable acts, you might already know about what I really am. I am a heartless, merciless and sadistic man who revels in the suffering of others. Feelings? Consideration? What a stupid thing to have. If I win and get what I want, I don't care about what I have to do to get it. Even if I have to throw another person out of a ship, I'd do it.

That's why when that guy made me taste my own bitter medicine, it crushed my pride and ego more than I can ever rebuild it.

"For your Pyramiding scam, the only thing I had to do was to input a huge sum of money, so you won't be able to double it from the investment with lower amounts by those above me in the chart. For your gold inflation trick, the Auditor just had to inspect all the warehouses in Naka and find your 1-year-old crate full of gold that has been sold illegally a multitude of times already. And for your love letters, you can't really do it if there are no more courtesan houses in Naka."

While I was being held down by a man dressed in a ninja's garb, he appeared while clapping his hands slowly.

"Say, you're a one-of-a-kind criminal, aren't you?"

Once his face was close enough for my vision to recognize him, I immediately froze up on the spot.

"What's wrong? You look like you saw a ghost."

"Y-Y-You…"

I know him. Unlike the great and respected leader that the normal folk know him as, I know him in a different way since I buy information from the black market.

"Say my name…"

"Iwasawa… Hiroshi."

"You're damn right."

The Master of Naka Harbor, The Prime Noblesse Oblige, The Leader of the Kiko Nobility, The People's Innovator…

The Lord of Kiko.

"Why… why are you here…?"

"That's supposed to be my question to you…"

He knelt near my head and pulled it up by dragging my hair forcefully upwards.

"You… why are you here?"

"Eek-!!!"

I haven't experienced something like this ever before. I was supposed to be the one who feared by others, the guy who laughs at the misfortune and pain of other people… but now…

"P-Please… Please don't kill me!"

I am the one begging for his own life.

"…Kuro."

"Yes, my Lord."

"Throw him into the slammer. I'd think about what I can use him for while he's in prison."

"As you command."

The ninja strangled me until I lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was in a prison cell under Naka castle.

"Hey, wake up. Lunch is here."

"Urk…"

For three days and three nights, I lived in a jail cell. I laid on a haystack that prickled my skin while I slept. Did number one and number two on a smelly chamber pot. And fed a simple meal of bean soup and rice balls twice a day.

"You. Stand up."

"Where are we going?"

"I'm ordered to bring you to the bath house. Lord Iwasawa wanted to talk to you so you better wash off the grime on your body and look good enough to appear to him."

"W-what?"

"Enough blabbering! Move!"

The thought alone of talking to that man sent shivers down my spine. I crossed gazes with him once and it was enough for me to almost faint because of fear.

"You three! You're with us too."

"Argh! Finally…"

"About damn time…"

"Back to business, huh?"

Before stepping out of the underground prison, we stopped by a jail cell where three familiar faces are being kept.

"Haah… that guy better keep his word."

"I don't care about lords or nobles. He said he'll keep us here for appearances, but three days is a bit too long for a contract."

"Hey, at least our brats have our loot. The attack at Aoya was good, ain't it?"

They may not recognize me since I keep my face hidden in the black market, but I know their faces. They are the three mountain bandit group leaders near Aoya. What are they talking about when they said "the attack at Aoya"?

At the surface, we silently cleaned ourselves at the baths and had a short but relaxing soak. We wore the clothes that was left for us which is strangely dyed in black. We were about to step into the courtyard when suddenly…

"!!!"

"Wha-?!"

"Who are you?!"

"What the hell are you doing?!"

Soldiers suddenly appeared out of the shrubs and held us down to tie our hands and feet.

"What's the meaning of this?!"

"Why are you tying us down?!"

"You damn government dogs! I'll kill all of you!"

The three bandits was shouting as we are being dragged to four wooden stakes planted on the grounds of the courtyard. I was still in too much shock to say anything that only when those things were pointed to us, did I understand the meaning of all of this.

"You!!! This isn't what we talked about!"

"You're much worst that criminals like us!"

"Our brats will avenge us! You'll regret ever being born once they come for you!"

With the hail of threats, the young man stood still with a confident smile on his face.

"Who are you talking about? Them?"

He raised his hand, and some soldiers threw something round that bounced to our feet. When it stopped rolling, the sight made my skin crawl and my hair raise up in shock.

"You… you heartless demons!!!"

"How dare you behead and play with our brats!"

"You'll pay for this!!!"

"Pffttt!!!"

Hearing their threats, instead of being intimidated, the young man laughed heartily and even clutched his stomach as if mocking the three.

"Hahahahahahahahaha!!! Kahahahahaha!!!"

"Why you-!!!"

"Ahaha… well then, I've had enough fun with you four…"

He spoke and raised his hand as if in signal.

"Time to pay for a life worth of crimes…"

"YOU TRAITOOOORRR!!!"

"Go see each other off in hell."

*Byak!!!*

In a volley of gunshots from the muskets, blood showered around the grounds and innards flew in whichever direction it went to. But when I opened my eyes, I felt that I have never been harmed.

"I see that someone received the musket that doesn't have a ball… Are you just lucky… or are the heavens giving you a chance to atone for the things you've done?"

"P-Please…. Please don't kill me… I… I beg you!!!"

When he approached me, fear flooded my mind and I even felt my crotch getting wet with my piss.

"Go back to the bathhouse and wash yourself again. Go to the tearoom at the castle in 30 minutes, or else, you're the next one to have a shattered skull."

"Y-Y-Yes! Yes!!!"

As if having a demon chasing me, I sped to the bathhouse, washed my bloodstained face and musty crotch, dried my body, wore new clothes and ran as fast as I can to the castle's tearoom.

"I see that you're more than punctual once you have an important person requesting to talk to you."

"Hah…hah…hah…"

"Come sit here. I have something that I want you to do for me."

I hurriedly complied and sat on the pillow on the other side of the table and tried to look as calm as possible.

"…Are you familiar with the saying "Even a slight breeze can move the calmest lakes"?"

"P-pardon?"

"I believe it's a local idiom that means "The smallest events can change the biggest of things." I meant to say it under the context of Kiko's situation right now. With me being a newly seated Daimyo, things are changing across the province that I am not aware of at all."

"I… I understand."

"Now, even though I have a mountain-worth of paperwork to do and a lot of meetings to go to, Nobisuke and his subordinates are telling me that I should take a breather today and relax. That's why I invited you over, I heard that you're a witty and sly guy. I thought that maybe you can help me have a decent game of Chess."

"Chess?"

"It's something like Shogi, you see. Just with a fewer pieces and different rules."

Shogi? Did he seriously made me run here with my life on the line just because he wants to play?

No! I shouldn't fall for that line of thought! What if his offer of a game has a different meaning? Is it possible that-

"So, shall we play a game, Kaminari-san?"

"Y-yes…"

If I lose here, I'm gonna die!

"Since you're the guest, I'll let you choose your group. Would you take the white or black pieces?"

"Umm… I think I'll go with the black ones…"

"Then I get the white ones…"

Wait, what if I do win and he'll kill me out of shame?!

"Let me arrange your board before I explain the rules…"

This guy… this guy is scaring me!!!

"…And that is how you move the pieces. Huh? Hey, are you alright?"

"Y-yes! Absolutely!"

"I-I see…"

I must absolutely make sure to make this a tie! Or else, I won't be getting out of here alive!

An hour later, I made the final move and he sighed lightly.

"A tie, huh? Well, it just means that you've bested me."

"N-no… This is nothing. If anything, I wish to commend your foresight throughout the entire game. If not for it, I wouldn't have been able to keep up."

"Is that so? I appreciate the gesture."

Is it over? Is it finally over?

"Now that the pleasantries are over, I wish to talk about how things will go from here to the future regarding you, Kaminari-san."

"M-me?"

"Yeah. You see, you're an infamous swindler named "The Fox of Naka Harbor" by the people. With the amount of contempt that you've accumulated from your tricks, it's impossible for you to live a normal life now that rumors have spread that we've arrested you. My men haven't caught the one responsible for leaking that information, but sure enough, data about your appearance and name hasn't leaked yet because there are still no people shouting your name in order to ask me to execute you."

"E-execute?!"

"That's right. Even though I am the Lord of Kiko, I am still bound to public pressure. Haha! If the people of Naka would ask for your head, I'd have no choice but to serve it on a platter for them."

"Eeek!"

I can't believe it! He just said that he might kill me if he was asked by the people without even changing his lively expression!

"So instead of losing a witty guy like you, I want you to listen to me carefully, Mr. Fox. Starting from now on, you will work under me. I will place you at the newly-made Office of the Provincial Internal Revenue Auditor as a consultant on how to deal with swindlers. Sine you used to be one and you have a sharp mind on your head, I believe that it will suit you well, yes?"

"Y-yes! Yes! Absolutely!"

"Mm! I can sense your enthusiasm already! Well then, Kaminari Tatsu-san. Welcome to Naka castle's board of officers. Starting tomorrow, you'll be the chief consultant in the Auditor's office. Good luck on your work."

Once I have thanked him and walked out of the room, I saw a man dressed in light samurai armor leaning on the wall of the hallway.

"Hey. You look like you went through hell."

"I… I wouldn't call a meeting with the lord like that."

"Heh… As expected after what you went through…"

I don't know who he is, but he seems like a higher-up in here.

"You're curious, aren't you? Why he didn't kill you earlier when he ordered a musket to be pointed to your head."

"-!!!"

"I want you to remember this, you criminal scum. Lord Iwasawa might be kind to his people, but he has the capacity to be the most ruthless punisher to those who would break the laws he put into place. Try to step even a toe on the line he laid down…"

"Eek!"

When our eyes crossed, I felt the same feeling as earlier from the lord. The feeling of a gaze filled with murderous intent and pure malice directed at me.

"…and you can see to it that you won't even be able to live long enough for another dawn to shine on you."

"I… I understand…"

I hung my head low and walked away slowly until I reached the room provided for me.

"That man… and that guy at the hallway…"

Is this possible? I used to be the predator but now I am the prey…

"Those two are absolute monsters…"

Even though I felt fear when I saw them, a thought came to me that allowed me to calm down long enough to think through my situation.

Right now, I have a new job at the castle, my past crimes are waived and I am presumed dead now just like how he promised it would appear so to the people I wronged…

I see this as an absolute win.

So… I guess, I should restart my life now. Make a new start after all the crap I did in my life before…

"Yeah, that's for the best."

As I finally calmed down and laid back on my room, a knocking on the door roused me up to open it.

"Hello! Are you the new bureaucrat hired by Iwasawa-kou-sama? My name is Asada Kahono! Head maid of the castle!"

What appeared behind the door is a girl dressed in a servant's uniform with a futon and pillow on her arms. With her height, she looks like a 14-year-old sent on an errand by her mother. But somehow, the words "head maid" made me think how someone as young as her had that job.

"Ah… yes."

"I'm here to bring your futon and other necessities. I'm also here to tell you about the times you can go to the castle dining hall for the workers to eat. The office workers usually eat before the other staff members so it's important that you know the schedule so you won't look like you're out of place when dinner time comes."

"I… I see."

"Anyway, I have other things to do. But since you're new here, don't think twice about asking me for help, I'll try to help you out as much as I can."

"I appreciate it."

Once she left, I felt something weird that I haven't felt before…

"Why did that girl… looked so cute to me?"

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"General Shimura… are you sure about not informing the lord about this?"

"I mean no disrespect to our master, but even you can't help but notice it, can you, Kuro?"

"I do. Kou-sama has that weakness…"

From the very start, it was only me and Kuro who arrested that guy and even made him fear for his life. We've implanted a thought in that man that he cannot remove out of his mind to think of even rebelling or escaping.

Kuro tortured him until he cannot put up any mental defense anymore, while I pretended to be Iwasawa-sama to make him the object of that criminal's fear.

If Lord Iwasawa hears about this, there is a chance that he'd be displeased with us. But… this is the only way that we can help him. After all, our master currently lacks the mental strength to take someone's life without deeming them worthy of death.

"This shall be our secret, Kuro."

"As you wish, General."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Fast forward to current time Fuku province, Kaminari Tatsu, the Fox of Naka Harbor, unleashed his fraudulent talents yet again to make the noble clans to fight against each other.

"You Kurayama scum! How dare you burn down our warehouses!"

"Just payback, you Shigure bastards! You're the ones who tricked us to buy those rotten fruits!"

From the embassy's office, he can clearly hear it. The clashing of swords and death throes of men being slaughtered all around the city as the turf war of two clans that he initiated bloomed into a fully chaotic scene.

"T-Tatsu-sama! You said that you won't be doing anything today, right?"

"Mmm… I did say that…"

"Then what is this?! My members might get caught up in this problem!"

"No, no, no, Nayoko-san. That won't happen."

"Huh?"

The young man walked to his table and drank another cup of tea before speaking to the woman.

"Things has always been like this between the two noble clans. All that I did was to light the fuse that led to this situation… literally and figuratively, mind you."

"Literally… the fire in the warehouse-"

"Bingo~!"

Seeing him like this, one would almost think that he went back to being that guy he used to be.

"Haah… what a sight…"

But one would also notice this new set of words that he speaks when he ends up victorious in a scheme.

"For the Peace of Kiko…"

Indeed, unlike before when he does things like this out of the pursuit of fun or for money, Tatsu has now gained a new reason to wield his sharp wits and foxlike craftiness in scheming. Back then, it was out of fear. But now, this former criminal has gained a sense of service equal to the most loyal retainers of Iwasawa Hiroshi.

And now, he wields a different title that he rarely uses but is infamous across the black markets of the provinces for taking down their branches and hideouts using scams and raids.

"My name is Kaminari Tatsu, and the title given to me by Lord Iwasawa Hiroshi and Chief Shrine Maiden Akizuki Hisako is… The Fox Disciple of Goddess Inari."