/jp/ - Otaku Culture

Another bright, shining day greeted Tsukasa as she made her way through the crowded village square. Curious girls and cocksure men couldn’t help but notice the daitengu’s cute assistant passing by. Megumu often nagged her about wearing something more befitting of a daitengu’s assistant, but she really didn’t get it: Her simple white romper revealed nothing, but promised to blow away in the slightest breeze. It was perfectly unremarkable without diminishing her natural appeal.

Still, it was satisfying to dress up like the most-hated miko in Gensokyo. So much so that after her first visit, she convinced Megumu that it was completely necessary to have an insider at the HSE to ensure their partnership would stay positive for the tengu. All she had to do was copy the employee roster for the day and write a sentence or two about how spoiled the white wolves were that week. After doing the same for each schedule rotation, she had enough report copies printed to last a few months. After all, who had time to write about tengu when there was a juicy morsel in the shrine to play with?

Ran was at the front counter, pouty as always. For the first couple of weeks, the shikigami would ask all kinds of nosy questions: Why do the tengu need another supervisor? How did Tsukasa qualify for her position? Why were the White Wolves reluctant to intervene during Tsukasa’s visits? No matter how many times she was given perfectly reasonable answers, Ran wouldn’t believe her! Eventually, she stopped trying and just let Tsukasa have her perfectly-justified sessions without a word. So much for customer hospitality!

Today, though, she stood her ground with a smile. “I’m sorry, ma’am. The HSE is currently serving a client.” The receptionist’s inflection got better with practice, but the malice in her words was palpable. “As our client’s session began a mere 58.435 seconds ago, I’m sorry to inform you that you, dear partner, will have to wait for an entire session to pass before you can enter.”

“Oh, thank you for the warning! It’s no problem, really. I can wait as long as I need to.” Tsukasa shot back a bright smile, familiar with this song and dance.

“On the contrary, valued partner, I think it would be better if you enjoyed yourself outside the establishment.” Ran motioned to the front door, impersonating a caring employee as best as she could. “There are many entertainment and souvenir establishments located in the village that will be sure to satisfy your hunger for the HSE’s services. Even if we can’t satisfy you, we prioritize the customer’s happiness above all else.”

“I find myself happiest here. After all, the humidity level here is perfect. Your tail doesn’t fray here either, does it?” The question went unanswered. The foxes sat down – one in a guest chair and one in a receptionist’s – with fake smiles plastered on their faces. The exchange continued for 85.744 seconds, before a mass of green and red flung open the door to attraction, spewing black bile.

“Not worth it, not worth it, not worth it!” Half-cognizant, Hina stumbled and muttered incomprehensibly towards the front door. A goddess of misfortune frothing at the mouth would have an interesting impact on the HSE’s image.

Ran sprang into action, deftly avoiding the dark fluids. “W-Wait, dear customer! Didn’t you wear the seals and charms?”

“It wasn’t enough! There’s too mu-auuuuugh!” The inky puddle quickly grew. Ran reached into her dress for some sort of transmitter while carefully leading the sickly goddess away from the front door towards one of the auxiliary exits.
“Oh my, this seems like it’ll take a while to take care of, won’t it? I think I’ll go ahead and keep Anon company for you.” All Ran could do was throw a scornful glance towards the kudagitsune. Honestly, Tsukasa didn’t need her permission in the first place. It just felt right to let her know that she can’t do anything to stop her.

(Part 1)