Chapter 360: Tamamo the Fox Dancer
The villages outside relied on their fields, but those living in the city relied on trade. The streets established in the castle town of Shimousa Province were lined with various shops on both sides. In addition to local residents, one could even spot a few foreign missionaries and merchants engaged in maritime trade.
At the center of the town stood the grand and magnificent residence of the Lord of Shimousa, surrounded by various government departments. Beyond that were the town's residents; the luxurious estates belonged either to government officials or successful merchants. However, none of this had anything to do with the people who came to this city to eke out a living.
It was in the remote corners of the town that the common folk gathered. These places were a melting pot of society—the "fish and dragons mixed together"—where all sorts of people could be found: honest petty citizens, farmers coming to town for the market, skilled swindlers, performing dancers, acrobats, and magicians.
There were also those from the outside who came to the market carrying bamboo baskets or pushing wooden carts. Nearby, low-ranking samurai carrying weapons searched for employers, causing pedestrians to quickly clear the way to either side of the road.
Turning off the most prosperous main thoroughfare into a corner, only a few peddlers carrying poles and setting up stalls remained in the vicinity.
Halfway through their walk, Tasuke began to cry. The boy was very well-behaved; unless something was truly wrong, he wouldn't cry without reason. It is said that children without parents grow up quickly; perhaps he, too, had sensed something.
"Tasuke? What's wrong?" Atsu picked up the infant, placed him on a chair, checked his diaper, and turned to Shirou. "He hasn't gone potty. Grandpa, Tasuke must be hungry."
"Then take out some steamed buns, dip them in water, and feed him," Shirou said.
"Yes." Atsu obediently followed the instructions, but Tasuke merely held the softened bits of bun in his mouth.
"Ptooey!" The infant smacked his lips and turned his head away in disgust.
When traveling, taking care of an infant who has lost his mother is the most troublesome task. Fortunately, Tasuke had already grown teeth and could be weaned. Though he might not get used to it immediately, if there was food to keep him alive, there was nothing to be picky about.
However, such logic cannot be explained to a baby. Infants have no other way to communicate; they cry when hungry, they cry when uncomfortable, and then leave everything to the adults to handle. That is his way of survival.
He had eaten before only because he had been hungry all night; as expected, plain steamed buns were too difficult to swallow.
"Waaaaah!" Tasuke turned his head away and began to cry pitifully.
"Now isn't the time to be willful. If he won't eat, let him cry; we'll feed him when he's hungrier," Shirou said, hardening his heart. They didn't have the luxury of modern times—no imported milk powder, no specialized nutritious baby foods made from fruits and vegetables.
"Tasuke, you have to be good. Mommy and Daddy are gone. You have to endure; you have to eat to grow up quickly. Come, eat this," Atsu comforted her brother, but as she spoke, her own eyes welled with tears.
"Ugh... hic..." Seeing his sister sad, Tasuke sniffled and stopped crying, though he still looked utterly piteous.
"Honestly... let's go, I'll find a way," Shirou grumbled. He picked up Tasuke, took Atsu's hand, and walked to a cattle hall. Finding a shopkeeper with lactating cows, he used a great deal of persuasion and finally managed to buy a jar of milk.
Then, Shirou led Atsu to a teahouse that sold tea and snacks. Inside, there were tables and chairs for guests to drink tea and chat. At the entrance, there were long bamboo benches for passing pedestrians to rest.
"Atsu, stay here with Tasuke. I'll go inside and ask the shopkeeper to help heat the milk. I'll be right back." Shirou bought a Japanese variation of a candied hawthorn—a red candied apple—from the shop, handed it to Atsu, and gave her his instructions.
"Okay, Grandpa. It's so sweet~!" Atsu sat outside the teahouse, licking the candied apple while watching her brother.
"Ya ya!" Tasuke stared curiously at the crystal-clear, ruby-like candied apple in his sister's hand, his eyes full of anticipation.
"You can't have any, Tasuke. You're still too little to eat sugar," Atsu said as she licked the treat.
"Ya ya~!" Tasuke shouted in protest.
"I really can't do anything with you, Tasuke. I'll rub some of the sugar on a bun for you then," Atsu said helplessly.
Shirou walked into the teahouse and asked the owner—a grey-haired old man—to help heat the jar of milk. Meanwhile, a group of people were sitting nearby chatting.
"Yes, it seems things are restless outside lately, even though it's no longer the Warring States period," an old man drinking tea muttered to himself.
"Hmph, a peaceful life was disrupted long ago. Only you city folk find it strange; outside the walls, weird things have been happening for a while now."
"What? Traveling Merchant, do you know something?" several nearby tea drinkers asked curiously.
The traveling merchant continued: "I haven't dared to go far lately. I advise you all not to walk the roads at night if you have business outside the city. Once night falls, black things are wandering everywhere, and there are frequent reports of people being 'spirited away'... and now something big has finally happened. Several villages were turned to ruins overnight, slaughtered by some unknown monster."
The traveling merchant lowered his voice intentionally, as if telling a ghost story. It was very evocative; everyone nervously held their breath and listened intently, not daring to make a sound, fearing the monster that slaughtered villages might suddenly appear right there.
"Was it bandits? Did anyone escape?" the tea drinkers asked nervously, swallowing hard.
The traveling merchant shrugged. "I wouldn't know. Anyway, I heard the whole village was destroyed overnight. If anyone did see it, they probably died there. These times are hard; the people there were honest farmers who used to do business with me every month."
"Bah! So you only heard about it," the tea drinkers said dismissively.
"Here, young man, the milk you wanted is heated." At the counter, the owner—who had also been listening to the story—saw that the milk in the small pot over the fire had boiled. He poured it back into the jar and handed it to Shirou.
"Much obliged." Shirou took the milk jar with both hands and set down a few copper coins for the firewood.
"By the way, young man, you came from a village outside, didn't you? Do you know anything? What happened with that village slaughter?" the owner asked Shirou curiously.
"It was bandits. Murderers who specifically strike after sunset. It's best not to go out at night," Shirou replied flatly.
"So it really was that... bandits. It's not peaceful outside," the tea drinkers nodded one after another.
"Fortunately, we are city folk. We have houses and jobs here; we don't have to rely on what comes out of the dirt to live," someone sighed with relief.
"Sigh, it looks like I really can only do business in the city for now," the traveling merchant added with a helpless sigh. To spend money, one must first have a life.
"That is the wisest course," Shirou said. He then took the jar and walked toward the door.
"Hey, young man, don't leave yet! I have tea and snacks here; tell us more about the situation in those villages!" a tea drinker called out.
This time, Shirou did not answer and walked straight out.
There was nothing to say. For these people, not hearing and not seeing was the greatest happiness.
The villages outside were attacked by bandits—the people here only needed to know that much. It was like how adults tell children they'll be snatched by wolves if they go out at night to scare them into staying inside.
However, in a place where wolves actually exist, adults do not use wolves to scare children. "Bandits" followed the same logic. Compared to fellow humans like bandits, whom government soldiers could at least fight, the entire city would plunge into panic if they knew it was an invincible monster.
"Grandpa, you're back!"
"Ya ya!"
Atsu, her lips slightly stained red from the candied apple, was holding her brother Tasuke. She had been peeking inside the door from time to time; seeing Shirou emerge, she immediately stood up and greeted him with a smile.
"Mm. Let's feed Tasuke some milk first, then find an inn to stay in," Shirou agreed with a smile.
Though it took some effort, Tasuke's food was finally secured. Feeding him spoon by spoon, the infant Tasuke finally settled down. However, he would still need to get used to eating thin porridge as soon as possible; perhaps Shirou could develop a porridge recipe with added milk for a rich, milky fragrance.
He wanted the children to eat better, but he couldn't spoil them. In truth, the brown rice and coarse grains of this era were nutritionally superior, even if the texture couldn't compare to the white rice of the future.
In reality, even after selling that jewelry, the money on hand was limited.
Staying just one night at an inn here without meals cost half a silver koban. With all the money he had, it wouldn't be enough to stay here for even three months.
If he wanted to save money, he could choose not to stay in these spacious, bright, large inns and instead opt for cheaper rooms in more remote corners.
Those places were actually slightly modified private houses where there was nothing but rows of wooden bunks. A dozen or twenty people would cram into one room for the night. It was like the cheap beds of the future—beds lined up throughout the whole room for fifteen or twenty dollars a night, grandly titled "Youth Hostels."
Carrying small children, it was truly unsuitable to live in such a place, so he chose a mid-sized inn near the crossroads.
Shirou was led by the attendant to a room in a corner of the second floor. It was neat and clean, and an incense burner on the tatami spread a fragrance throughout the room.
Little Atsu, holding her brother Tasuke—who had drunk his milk and fallen asleep—now showed signs of exhaustion as well, letting out a yawn.
"Atsu, since you're tired, sleep for a while. I'll wake you when it's time for dinner," Shirou said, spreading out the bedding on the tatami and arranging the pillows and quilts for the girl.
"Yes, Grandpa..." Atsu rubbed her eyes and obediently climbed into the bedding. She had been on the move all day, seeing things she had never encountered before, combined with the impact of what happened in the village.
The child was already overburdened. Her previous energetic display was merely a byproduct of forcing herself to be strong while her emotions were tightly wound.
When he stepped out of the door and was about to head down the stairs, he happened to run into the fox dancer returning from a performance.
"Ara, isn't this the gentleman who ran away earlier? What a serendipitous encounter, fufufu. Can we have a proper talk this time? How should I address you?" The fox dancer, wearing a blue kimono, leaned her back against the stair railing, raised a hand, and greeted Shirou with a smile. Her pupils shifted and her ears twitched slightly; she seemed to be in a good mood.
"Ah, hello, Dancer-san. You can just call me Shirou," Shirou said with some embarrassment, surprised by the coincidence.
"Where are the little girl and the baby?" The fox dancer stepped closer, intentionally brushing against Shirou, her body emitting a unique fragrance.
"They were exhausted after a day of traveling and have already fallen asleep," Shirou said.
"Then I won't go over to your side to disturb them. In that case... Shirou-san, why don't you come to my room?" the fox dancer invited.
"Eh?!" Shirou cried out in surprise.
And so, Shirou was led by the dancer to her room. She seemed to have booked the largest room for herself, partitioned with sliding doors into what was actually two rooms. The people in her troupe seemed to be her employees, enjoying quite good treatment.
But it made sense upon reflection. Although her current identity was that of a dancer, as the Nine-Tailed Fox who had brought ruin to five or six nations—becoming the most favored consort of the ruler every time—the rewards she received would be staggering even if she didn't intentionally hoard wealth.
The current Tamamo-no-Mae was merely using the identity of a dancer to play in the mortal world.
"Shirou-san, please help yourself. This is green tea brought over from the land of Cathay." The fox dancer invited Shirou to sit, brought out some tea snacks, and brewed a pot of fine tea. Only after finishing these tasks did she sit formally facing Shirou.
"Excellent tea!" Shirou thanked her, taking a sip and praising it. As expected of the Nine-Tailed Fox who had traveled many nations, she had mastered the essence of brewing tea. While
matcha was popular in Wa at this time, the method of steeping tea leaves in hot water could only be truly appreciated if one had visited Cathay.
The first sip brought a fragrance amidst the bitterness; the second sip revealed the unique sweetness of the tea leaves, dispelling fatigue and relaxing the mind.
"I'm so glad you like it. I've actually always dreamed of being able to do things like this. When I was in Cathay before, the popular style was still boiling tea with ginger and onions. So, a while ago, I specifically went back to find a master and learn this technique," the fox dancer said, looking at Shirou with a delighted smile.
"I just wanted the person I like to be able to enjoy this flavor. Well, for a wise wife, this is only natural. I wonder if anyone likes such a wise wife? If someone asked me to brew tea like this for them for a lifetime right now, I might just say yes." The fox dancer showcased her virtues, giving Shirou a meaningful smile.
"Err..." Shirou sat up straight, not knowing how to respond.
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