AFTER settling Yoru at Shinozaki’s office, the latter dropped me off in front of my house in Kashii. He even greeted my parents.
“I know your daughter through work,” he explained. “I offered to drive her home since President Mami forced her to stay out until the last train.”
My late arrival with a handsome man from an unfamiliar company shocked my parents. Nevertheless, they thanked Shinozaki. They were aware of my work situation, and apparently my father—a normal, human civil servant—recognized him and considered him trustworthy. At any rate, the evening concluded without any further fuss.
🍁🍁🍁
✦ ✦ ✦
THE following day, I went to work as usual.
When the setting sun began to cast its bright glare through the windows, I visited every floor to close the blinds. Finished, I returned to my desk and checked the time. It was exactly six o’clock in the evening. With a heavy heart, I headed to President Mami’s office for my final task.
“Pardon me,” I mumbled in front of his door. Upon entering, I saw—
Shinozaki?
“What the heck?!” I cried. Then I noticed the large, unfamiliar creature sitting in the president’s chair. “A t-tanuki?”
“Crafty old men are often called tanuki, no?” said Shinozaki. “Looks like we’ve found ourselves a shapeshifting one.” He glanced at the president. “Takeshi Mami. You’ve been absorbing spiritual energy from your employee, Kaede Kikui, haven’t you?”
I yelped. “Seriously?!”
“On the surface, Chikuzen Clear is an ordinary business leasing office equipment. Secretly, however, President Mami has been leasing shapeshifting tanuki disguised as office equipment. Then he sells the personal information gained through such deceit.”
I wasn’t expecting that.
“Your actions, President Mami,” continued Shinozaki, “have grown far more conspicuous since Kikui joined the company. Gorging yourself on so much spiritual energy must have made you cocky. Regardless, your behavior is undeniably criminal.”
President Mami trembled with rage. “Th-This is slander!” he bellowed, his tanuki tail visible behind the chair.
I could only gape.
“You can explain how this is slander to the Fukuoka prefectural police,” Shinozaki replied. “The Ayakashi Unit is already on its way. Please voice any concerns you have to them.” Then, indicating that I should accompany him, he swept out of the office.
Still somewhat dazed, I asked, “A-Am I going to be arrested too? What about my coworkers?”
“The humans will probably be fine,” Shinozaki answered, shrugging as we descended the stairs. “At the very least, nothing serious can come of the police questioning you. You were just an office grunt, after all.”
The whoop-whoop of sirens echoed from outside. Shortly, officers entered the building and took President Mami into custody.
After exchanging a few words with them, Shinozaki turned to me. “Let’s go,” he said.
“We can just leave?!”
“They advise us to do so before the regular police arrive and the real trouble starts.”
I bowed to the officers, clutched my tote bag to my chest, and withdrew to Shinozaki’s company car on shaky legs.
I wound up sitting in front since his personal belongings crowded the back seat. The car’s FM radio played quietly in the background, and as soon as he started driving, I heaved a deep sigh. “I’m still in shock,” I said. “That was terrifying.”
“I’ll drive you home. Mind putting your address in the GPS?”
“No problem.”
The car sped toward my family home, crossing Tatara River in a straight line to Kashii on National Route 3. Shinozaki clarified the situation on the way.
“Takeshi Mami is a tanuki from Shikoku,” he said. “After losing a power struggle, he and his associates decided to hide out in Fukuoka as humans. Mami started a leasing company; the others opened upscale restaurants, riding the wave of the postwar economic boom. Before long, they integrated into Fukuoka as normal citizens.”
Once he grew comfortable, however, President Mami returned to his crafty ways. He’d always been a disreputable tanuki, after all.
“Mami hired tanuki who struggled to shapeshift into humans. He ordered them to disguise themselves as office equipment, saving him money on the devices Chikuzen Clear leased. In all likelihood, his scheme would have stopped there, had a new employee overflowing with spiritual energy not joined his company.”
“Oh, right, how did you describe me again?” I asked. “Walking around a safari park wrapped in meat?”
“Your spiritual energy stirred Mami’s ayakashi instincts,” said Shinozaki. “Touching you, absorbing your energy, he began to regain his ambition. Presumably, he sought to make even more money, expand his influence, and exact vengeance on the tanuki in Shikoku. He leased tanuki after tanuki. Then he started to sell the personal information of clients throughout Fukuoka Prefecture.”
In the end, his greed had led to a police investigation.
“I’m sorry I didn’t save you sooner. The police were questioning a tanuki who literally exposed himself with his tail. But he refused to rat out Mami, so I probed the spiritual energy in your office via your transit card. Naturally, I shared the information with the authorities. I apologize for using you, but you should receive a letter of thanks from the police within the next few days.”
“I’m, um, glad I could help.” After a moment of thought, I ventured, “So…the company is going under, isn’t it?”
“At the very least, humans such as yourself will probably be laid off.”
“Yeah, that makes sense…”
“Why the long face?”
“Well, I’m wondering what to do now. Unlike other women my age, I don’t really have any goals or dreams.”
During high school, my friends all chased their chosen futures, endeavoring to improve their lives in various ways. Each of them was dazzling in their own right, and I’d contented myself watching from the sidelines. One friend had wanted to become a social media star. Another aimed to polish her performance in club activities. Others pursued leaving Kyushu, attending college, and finding a decent man in Tokyo.
I didn’t need anything so grand. A normal life, one full of laughter and within my sphere of comfort, was more than enough.
“I just want to live a modest, peaceful life,” I said. “I enjoy office work and living with my parents in Fukuoka. I wouldn’t mind marrying someone in the area. All that must sound pretty strange, right? It’s definitely odd. No one would call what I want a ‘dream.’”
Sporadic cars zoomed across the expressway gently arcing over Hakata Bay. The sound of rushing vehicles and the hum of the engine sat quietly between me and Shinozaki. Yoru slept on my lap, recharging his spiritual energy. A dreamlike, evening view of the harbor—tranquil and beautiful—unfolded below us. Brilliant light illuminated the ships and cargo containers.
“You remember how I turned down your offer to work at your company?” I asked.
“Of course,” Shinozaki replied.
“Honestly, I was scared. Scared that if I worked for you, I’d have to abandon the normal life I’ve tried so hard to protect. Not only can I see ayakashi, but I’m also leaking spiritual energy? That sounded crazy. The notion of leaping into an abnormal life terrified me.”
“That’s perfectly natural,” he reassured me. Seeming to consider each word before he spoke, he continued, “Instinctively, you must fear standing out due to being born with spiritual energy. In other words, your survival instinct manifested as a desire to live a simple life in a stable environment. This instinct persisted as an obsessive compulsion when you considered the future. I mentioned this before, didn’t I? People with spiritual energy are more likely to become prey to ayakashi.”
“…I see.”
“And besides, I think you’ve chosen an admirable way of life.”
“You do?” I turned to look at him.
The fox smiled. “Your upbringing, environment, parents, and the people in your life have already brought you fulfillment. You have so much love that you don’t feel the need to chase dreams. Isn’t that right?”
“Yeah… I guess so.”
“You know the comfort of a normal life and recognize the happiness afforded to you. Struggling to get ahead isn’t the only point of existence. Your wonderful parents raised you to be an admirable woman.”
My vision suddenly blurred, and I rubbed my eyes. Somehow, Shinozaki had unearthed my innermost feelings, sentiments I hadn’t even recognized.
“You’re exactly right,” I said. “I love my parents, and the world I’ve grown up in has been so happy.”
Since childhood, my life within that fifty-kilometer radius had been so blissful that it felt tailor-made for me. I was raised in a regular household, my parents were a happy couple, and I couldn’t have asked for better friends. I wanted to continue living in that world.
Unfortunately, none of my friends had the same dream. Perhaps, somewhere deep down, I felt guilty for not dreaming bigger.
“Modern society constantly fuels our desires by bombarding us with information,” Shinozaki said. “I think it’s wonderful that you’ve lived such a happy life. And you have worked hard to achieve your dream, haven’t you? There’s no need to think so poorly of yourself.”
“Huh? But I don’t have any exciting goals…”
“Chikuzen Clear’s reviews started to improve when you joined the company.”
That was news to me.
“According to clients, the company got faster at processing paperwork, and the reception staff were more attentive,” Shinozaki said. “Before, Chikuzen Clear had a lot of negative ratings in those particular areas. Your hard work rebuilt their reputation. I’m sure of it.”
Evidently, he’d done his research before scouting me. He knew exactly how I operated.
“Despite the harsh treatment and sexual harassment, you worked hard for three years without missing a day or coming in late,” he pointed out. “You methodically learned how to do your job and performed those duties every day, your attention to detail backed by genuine effort. Last night when you were talking to Yoru, I saw for myself how perceptive you are.
“Your boss displayed so much favoritism because he’s an ayakashi. It was simply bad luck; you would’ve had a much better time working at any other company.”
Shinozaki switched on the turn signal and changed lanes, smoothly guiding the car through the interchange. “Don’t be afraid to acknowledge your strengths,” he said. He smiled at me before gliding onto the off-ramp. “You’re a wonderful young woman. I guarantee it.”
The hardened parts of my heart began to crumble piece by piece.
“So, will you come work for me?” he asked, still smiling as he regarded me with serene eyes. “I would love to have someone with your talents. Plus, I would do everything in my power to protect your normal life.”