Fanwai - Son of Man

Something is following.

It seems that a little boy of seven or eight years old has this kind of cognition.

The temperature at the beginning of August is already hot.

Takashi Natsume, who had finished the first semester of the year, walked home with his schoolbag on his back - no, it can't be called home, because he is under the fence at the moment.

The little boy with brown hair sighed and stopped.

"Don't follow me." He said, his voice soft and waxy, with a slight disgust and a palpable fear.

He could feel that there was something hidden around him now, and this thing was invisible to ordinary people.

Natsume Takashi knew that he was an outlier to those classmates and relatives around him.

He can clearly see the world that ordinary people can't peep into – he can see, he can talk, he can touch.

No one else can do it.

"Go away." He looked up at the void in front of him—he couldn't determine the exact location of the ineffable being that followed him, but he knew clearly that the other could hear him.

"Don't follow me." He said again.

"Imp." A phantrum suddenly appeared in front of him, and the little boy was frightened and took two steps back.

Takashi Natsume stared at the figure in front of him, which was gradually becoming solid, and his hand holding the shoulder strap of his schoolbag tightened.

A person who suddenly shows his body - a youkai should be said. This youkai has the same appearance as the same human category, and even in terms of human aesthetics, he is a fairly handsome male, but the strange way of the other party's appearance, the pair of ears on the top of his head that are as dark as his hair, and the tail that sweeps behind him, all indicate the fact that the other party is not human.

So far, Takashi Natsume has never seen such a human-like youkai.

"Who do you think you're talking to, little ghost?" The youkai raised an eyebrow and moved its nose slightly, as if it was sniffing the scent of a human in front of it.

After a while, the black-haired youkai blinked, and his expression became much more relaxed, "Reiko Natsume's ...... Son? ”

The little boy with brown hair paused slightly and pursed his lips, "It's a grandson." ”

"Ahh The youkai nodded, "What about Reiko?" ”

"Reiko's grandmother has passed away a long time ago."

"......" The black-haired monster was silent for a while, looking at the little boy in front of him, as if he was a little annoyed, "Well, I forgot the time." ”

Natsume Takashi didn't ask the other party what he meant by this, just looked at the monster in front of him and bit his lower lip, "Are you a friend of Reiko's grandmother?" ”

"Not a friend." The monster lowered his eyes to look at the child who had just reached the height of his waist, and his gaze swept over his dirty clothes and small wounds, "But you grandparents and grandchildren are really the same, and they haven't grown." ”

After he finished speaking, he stretched out his hand towards Takashi Natsume and grabbed the little boy who wanted to retreat.

The youkai's palms were unexpectedly warm - which made Natsume Takashi slightly stunned.

In his memory, the youkai who approached him and tried to eat him were all cold. Those who are crossed by youkai will also feel a chill somewhat.

A youkai with such a body temperature, Takashi Natsume is the first time I've seen it.

Or maybe he had seen too little, the little boy thought.

"The first time I met Reiko Natsume, she was even more embarrassed than you." The youkai's fingers ran over the scar on Takashi Natsume's arm, and under the surprised gaze of the little boy, the slender scar healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The child's voice was soft and full of surprise, "Do youkai have such power......

"Who said I was a youkai?" The black-haired youkai was not happy, and he paused, "Although it used to be." ”

Natsume Takashi took his eyes off his arm and looked at the youkai in front of him, "It's not a youkai, what is it?" ”

"It's a god." The ears on the top of the head of the self-proclaimed god twitched, and he pointed to a small shrine enshrined at the entrance of the shopping street, which was the shrine of the Evil Devourer.

The devil knows why the shopping street does not worship Ebisu but the god of devouring evil.

Natsume Takashi's eyes widened, "Evil Devouring God?" ”

"Don't call me that." The black-haired god shuddered, "Just call me Ao Ling...... What's your name? ”

A slight flush appeared on the face of the little boy who learned the name of the god, "Takashi Natsume." ”

With Reiko Natsume's surname?

Ao Ling raised his eyebrows and pointed to the traces on Natsume Takashi's body, "Reiko was bullied because she had no one to take care of her, what about you?" ”

Takashi Natsume withdrew his hand and did not speak.

Ao Ling looked up at the sky, hid his ears and tail, and patted Natsume Takashi on the shoulder, "I'll go back with you to have a look." ”

The little boy was startled, "-No need! ”

When the god heard this, he didn't speak, but watched him silently.

The weight and longevity of the passage of time and age made even a staring without any threat unbearable for the young son of man.

Eventually, he took the god to his host family.

It was a small apartment.

Almost with a glance, Ao Ling could tell that the family was not suitable for cubs.

Resentment and vicious anger hovered in this house, and in this world that was not suitable for youkai to live, the dark aura here was enough to nourish many small youkai who would cause harm to human bodies.

And human cubs are extremely fragile to those little monsters, and they are very easy to bully.

It only takes a little demonic power to make the cub suffer from a serious illness, and if you don't take care of it carefully, it is very likely that you will die.

The god lightly hooked his fingers and grabbed out the dark and hidden little monsters directly, and the darkness devoured them, and the little monsters of darkness that had lost their survival were thrown aside to fend for themselves.

Ao Ling turned his head and looked at Natsume Takashi who was full of shock beside him with a wonderful expression, "It's not easy for you to live safely in such a place. ”

The little boy pointed to the little monster who jumped off the building and crawled, "Those ......"

"It's all the little things in this house." The god cupped his cheeks, "You are not suitable to continue living here, the breath on your body is very tempting to youkai, and it is good that the smell is diluted by mixing in the crowd, but if you stay in one place for a long time, the smell will become thick, and sooner or later you will find a youkai who you can't bear." ”

But I have nowhere to go.

Natsume Takashi wanted to say this, but he looked up at the god beside him, and struggled fiercely in his heart.

He was eager to see if he could beg the gods to take him away - he didn't mind any myths or other rumors, it couldn't be worse than it was now.

But he didn't dare to say it.

Because he is just a lowly, insignificant, unpopular human being.

The god glanced at the little boy beside him, snorted, raised his hand and rubbed his head, "Originally, I just passed by and smelled Reiko's scent and wanted to come and see her, but now it seems that I am going to take a drag oil bottle and leave." ”

Natsume Takashi was pressed against his head, and when he heard this, he was stunned, raised his head and looked blankly at the god in front of him.

But in the next moment, the blankness in his eyes faded, and a beautiful light shone in his amber eyes, "You, are you going to take me away?!" ”

Ao Ling smiled, "Don't want to? ”

Takashi Natsume tightly clenched the big hand above his head that was about to withdraw, "I do!" ”

The god followed his strength and pinched his still baby fat face again, "Wait outside." ”

Natsume Takashi nodded vigorously, took two steps back and hid at the corner of the stairs, poked out a pointed head, and watched in amazement as the divine robe on Ao Ling's body turned into a straight suit, knocking on the door of the family where he was staying.

Natsume Takashi didn't like the family, and although he was always grateful that the couple was willing to take him in out of a humane spirit, he never liked it.

The contradictions between the members of the family are very acute, the man is drunk, drunk and loses his job, and the woman has to go out to find work for the mortgage and the family, perhaps finding some solace outside—or doing some special job, she often does not return home at night.

When the man spends his savings, he continues to drink heavily with the woman's money, scolding and making noise every day, and even starts to do it in serious cases.

The woman was even more reluctant to come back, so she just waited every day on the way to school for Natsume Takashi and handed him the money she needed for a day - why she gave it by the day, it was not that the woman was stingy, but that she found that her husband would rob Natsume Takashi of the living expenses he brought back every time.

The woman felt very guilty for the little boy who was fostered in their house, she knew that in her absence, Takashi Natsume might starve and freeze, and even be cursed and beaten by her husband, but she was never willing to go back.

Takashi Natsume once saw this aunt walking with another man in a suit and leather shoes, describing intimacy, and he understood everything.

It's not that I don't want to help him, Natsume Takashi thought, but if I take him, maybe the aunt and the man will be separated.

Because he's a burden, a useless oil bottle.

With such a cognition, even in the face of a lot of injustice, Natsume Takashi did not complain at all.

Takashi Natsume is a strong child, as long as someone still has a trace of kindness towards him, he can embrace this kindness, absorb warmth and work hard to live.

However, it doesn't matter anymore, Natsume Takashi looked at Ao Ling who walked into the apartment, and the corners of his lips curled slightly.

If it were a god, he would never abandon him again.

- Even if he is deceived by Ao Ling, it doesn't matter if he is a monster, he has nothing anyway, and he is also called a freak.

Freaks are about to have a real place to stay.

Once this idea comes out, it is like a vine that has broken through the ground and grown wildly, entangled in the heart, and it can't be torn off no matter how much it is pulled.

Ao Ling came out of the house, holding a large cardboard box, and turned to walk towards Takashi Natsume.

"Let's see, are there any missing relics and your things?" He beckoned to the little boy who was crouching next to the stairs.

Natsume Takashi obediently came over, and after taking some inventory, he nodded, "That's all." ”

"Hmm." Ao Ling pursed his lips and frowned, looking at a book with a thick green shell that was pressed to the bottom of the box.

Natsume Takashi looked at Ao Ling's expression, a little nervous, "What's the matter, Ao Ling...... My lord? ”

"I always feel a little wrong, this." Ao Ling pointed to the book, thought about it, and picked it up, "Do you mind if I open it and take a look?" ”

Takashi Natsume shook his head, "Please." ”

Ao Ling untied the book in his hand and saw a flattened folded piece of paper falling from it, and the paper was full of words.

The god glanced up at the son of a human beside him, and the other looked back at him with a blank face.

"See?" Ao Ling asked.

Takashi Natsume nodded.

The little boy had a good score in Mandarin, and looking at the beautiful font, although he couldn't recognize all the characters and didn't have enough comprehension skills, he could tell from the format that it was a letter written by his grandmother, Reiko Natsume, to a person named Ba Wei.

I just don't know why, and I didn't send it.

After reading the content of the letter, Ao Ling looked down at the book in his hand, turned it over, and found that there were three words written on it.

This is the account of a friend mentioned in the letter.

This letter was indeed written by Natsume Reiko to Ba Wei, this girl knew how to master the power, after learning how to master the power, she went out to conquer many youkai while traveling, thinking that Ba Wei often complained about the lack of labor at the shrine, so she pondered to give this friend account full of the names of the yokai to Ba Wei.

Most of those youkai have tame personalities, and their strength is weak, so they probably don't mind becoming fans of the gods, but will be grateful for the protection of the gods and concentrate on their work.

It's a pity that death came suddenly, and this letter and friend's account were not handed over to Ba Wei, so they were turned into relics and fell into the hands of Natsume Takashi.

"I'm still thinking about where to send you, but now I have an idea." Ao Ling stuffed his friend's tent and the large box into the beast's teeth, and pulled Natsume Takashi, who was sitting on the ground, to stand up.

Natsume Takashi clenched Ao Ling's hand, "Can't I follow you?" ”

"Hmm." Ao Ling patted Takashi Natsume's head, "I don't like to be close to humans very much, you and Reiko are accidents." ”

The light in Natsume's eyes dimmed little by little, and unspeakable disappointment and emptiness spread upward, with bursts of dull pain.

"I'll hand you over to the 'Ba Wei' on the letter, he's a monster - but for now, it's a divine envoy, serving a god of bonding, and he also took care of Reiko back then, and he's a good person."

Ao Ling picked up Takashi Natsume, who was hanging his head and falling into a gloom all over his body, sniffed the smell floating in the air, and waved his hand to envelop a hidden barrier over the son of man, jumping directly from the height of the five-story building.

Natsume Takashi let out a short exclamation, and opened his hands to hug Ao Ling's neck hard.

"It's supposed to be a holiday, right?" Ao Ling fell to the ground, tugged at the little short hand that strangled his neck, and after seeing the child nodding, he jumped on the roof of the car next to the street with a bad heart, and rushed all the way to the outside of the city by stepping on the roof and wall of the house.

"Before I go to Ba Wei, I'll take you to see the world of youkai." Ao Ling hummed happily, and followed the smell to the front of a tavern in the old city.

"I'm not an adult!" Takashi Natsume looked at the god who had lifted the curtain of the izakaya and was nervous.

Ao Ling ignored him, sat down directly with a smile, looked up at the fox-faced boss and waved his hand: "Boss, I'm here again!" ”

Takashi Natsume was surprised to see that what was originally the wooden door of an izakaya suddenly turned into a seat, and the black-haired god sat on a long wooden bench and beckoned to him.

- This is not an izakaya, but a mobile oden stall run by two foxes.

Takashi Natsume stood in place for a while, "Fox oden? ”

Ao Ling was also surprised, "You know? ”

"I've heard from a passing youkai." Natsume Takashi looked at the fox stall owner who was staring at him, and wiped the dust off his clothes in a cramped manner, before carefully climbing onto the wooden bench.

"Ahh The she-fox wearing an apron on the side looked at this human son with a sudden expression, "Isn't this Reiko?" ”

Ao Ling smiled and ate skewers, and had no intention of answering for Natsume Takashi.

The little boy looked at the few skewers that the fox boss had put in his bowl, and replied cautiously, "Reiko's grandmother has passed away, and I am her grandson." ”

"Ahh The female fox sighed and added a few more balls to Takashi Natsume, "Eat more, Reiko likes to eat our fish balls the most, and every time she eats a round belly, she has to pack another one to take away - and often bring fried tofu to Lord Bawei." ”

Natsume Takashi picked up the bamboo skewer for a moment, turned his head to look at the god who was immersed in hard work, and then looked at the boss and his wife with a shy smile on his face, and his voice was soft and glutinous: "I still want to know something about Reiko's grandmother, can I ...... Can you please tell me? ”

It's not something that can't be said.

It's not a secret that Natsume Reiko, a powerful shrine maiden, is a secret among the youkai, but in fact, this shrine maiden who came out of an orthodox shrine is a little different from other shrine maidens.

Her reputation among youkai is high.

Reiko Natsume doesn't travel to destroy youkai, she talks to youkai, sympathizes with youkai's difficulties, and forgives some youkai who have inadvertently caused trouble to humans.

She communicates with youkai and is willing to accept any youkai who comes to her for help, she is kind, gentle, and powerful, and many youkai are willing to follow her.

She seems to have accepted the names of some youkai, but made it clear that she didn't have the idea of forming a faction.

Later, Reiko Natsume disappeared.

Takashi Natsume never thought that the grandmother who behaved strangely in the mouths of his relatives would be such an image in the eyes of the monsters, and his eyes lit up as he listened to the story of the female fox while eating fish balls.

"It's been a long time, I haven't seen Reiko for years, and I didn't expect her grandchildren to have already been born." The female fox sighed with emotion, and put a few pieces of barbecued pork in Natsume Takashi's bowl, "Eat more, this meal is free for Reiko's sake." ”

"Huh? This ......" Takashi Natsume wanted to say that it was not appropriate, but finally closed his mouth.

— because he really has no money.

Ao Ling, who had been eating non-stop, looked up at the boss with an earnest gaze, "Guizhi is exempt, what about me?" ”

The female fox said softly, "Your bill will be sent to Lord Ye Wang as usual, Lord Ling. ”

Ao Ling held a bamboo stick: "...... I'm a customer for hundreds of years! ”

"My mother once gave you a free order, and it is said that it took three months to earn it back, Lord Ling, you can eat it too much."

It means that we are not exempt from this single list.

Ao Ling: "......"

It's easy for you to lose mine.

The black-haired god bit a piece of fried tofu, holding his face and looking at Natsume Takashi, who was enthusiastically fed and exempted, very envious and jealous.

Natsume Takashi was rarely able to experience such care, and the bright and lively smile on his face made the female fox's heart soften, and she hurriedly stuffed him with a bunch of food.

Takashi Natsume was barely able to walk this time.

Ao Ling took him away, reached out to hold up the round belly of Natsume Takashi, looked at the little boy lying on his shoulder little by little, and couldn't help but reach out and pinch his face.

Natsume Takashi opened his eyes in a daze, "Where are we going to rest, Lord Ao Ling?" ”

Ao Ling thought for a while, "Go to Flower Street." ”

Takashi Natsume was a spirit, and he woke up in an instant.

……

The two months spent wandering around the yokai world with Ao Ling that humans can't detect were the happiest times since Takashi Natsume lost his parents.

He heard about Reiko's grandmother from many youkai, and many youkai who had received Reiko's favor took good care of him.

The enthusiasm of those simple-minded monsters to repay their kindness was almost irresistible to Natsume Takashi.

From the time he left his foster home with Ao Ling, he was empty-handed, but when he followed Ao Ling to the Imperial View Shrine, there were a lot of monsters in Ao Ling's beast teeth that gave Natsume Takashi care.

Treasures, coins, names and some very unique little gifts.

Natsume Takashi followed Ao Ling into the torii gate of Mike Shrine, and the joy and anticipation in his heart almost overflowed from the pair of sparkling amber eyes.

"Ba Wei's personality is a bit awkward, you can just listen to what he says." Ao Ling told Takashi Natsume this and led him up the stairs of the Imperial Shrine.

Since having Natsume Reiko,The incense that gradually dimmed at the Mike Shrine has woken up to a new wave of spring.,Now several times Natsume Reiko is gone.,The incense has never been cut off.,There are still shrine maidens in the shrine.。

But this shrine maid doesn't have any special abilities on her body, she just wears a shrine maiden costume as a part-time job and comes to clean the shrine every day.

Ao Ling took Natsume Takashi and glanced at the shrine maiden, and then directly bypassed the main shrine in front of the Mike Shrine and stepped into the enchantment.

The moment he stepped into the enchantment, the Taisha in front of him, which looked quite magnificent, suddenly changed, and turned into a courtyard.

In the past two months, Natsume Takashi, who has often been in and out of this kind of barrier, is used to it.

Ao Ling knocked on the god card hanging on the edge of the clean hand pool, "Ba Wei! Mikage! We're coming out to pick up customers! ”

In the side room of the courtyard, a scroll broke through the door and smashed straight into the head of the black-haired god.

A low roar came from the room: "Get out! Not available! ”

Takashi Natsume was dumbfounded.

Ao Ling bent down to pick up the scroll, pulled Natsume Takashi to the room, and stood at the door looking at the demon fox Ba Wei who was sitting at the table and struggling to write, "I'll bring you coolies." ”

Only then did Ba Wei raise his head, glanced at Ao Ling like a charity, and when his eyes turned to Natsume Takashi, his face changed, and he threw out a scroll again, and his tone was full of anger: "Get out!" I don't want to take care of Reiko Natsume anymore! ”

Ao Ling was stunned, a little dazed, "Huh? Again? ”

"My daughter threw it to me, and my grandson brought it back to me?? She died and couldn't live in peace! The demon fox gritted his teeth, "I should have chased her to Huangquan to beat her up!" ”

Ao Ling: "......"

Maybe it's because you have a long history of taking care of your children, after all, you take care of the descendants of Xuelu one by one.

Of course, Ao Ling didn't dare to say this.

If you force Ba Wei to be in a hurry, you will definitely be beaten - Ba Wei has been going back and forth between Yujing Shrine and Xiguo for so many years, and he has also helped him deal with many affairs, so that Ao Ling is embarrassed to fight back every time he fights.

"Actually, this kid is different." Ao Ling pushed the dazed Natsume Takashi forward with a serious face, "And Reiko didn't let you take cubs for free, she gave you a whole platoon of coolies, but she died before she could give it to you." ”

Ba Wei looked at him with a cold face.

Ao Ling handed over his friend's account and the letter.

Natsume Takashi looked at Ba Wei and always felt that this demon fox was a little familiar.

After reading the letter, Ba Wei verified the authenticity of the name on his friend's account, and his face faded a lot, he glanced at Natsume Takashi, nodded lightly, and said in a flat tone: "Yes, the school in Tokyo should open in just two days, just ask someone from the Nuliang Group to help you stuff a good school." ”

Ao Ling breathed a sigh of relief, and clasped his hands together with a smile and high-fived, "This child's name is Natsume Takashi." ”

"Oh." Ba Wei looked cold.

"Bawei." Ao Ling pulled Natsume Takashi, who was frowning his face and trying to remember, to Ba Wei's side, with a flattering expression, "I want to eat three-color cakes!" I want to eat sashimi platter! I want to eat soba! Want to eat......"

"I remember!" Natsume Takashi suddenly interrupted Ao Ling's shameful act of reporting the name of the dish, "You are the uncle who comes to cook for your mother every time your father is not at home!" ”

Ba Wei's expression froze, his face suddenly became extremely sinister, and the pen in his hand was shattered in an instant.

Ao Ling was dumbfounded.

666666666 on my Barve!

It's worthy of being an old daddy!

He is simply a good servant of the people! Good buddies for cubs!

Ao Ling quickly picked up Takashi Natsume, who had lit the cannonball, turned around and rushed out of the room, dodging left and right to avoid the fox fire attack from the embarrassed and angry Ba Wei, and rushed into the house of the Mikage God.

The roar of Ba Wei in the side room resounded through the Mikei Shrine.

"Ao Ling, take that cub, get out of !!!!! for me"