Please to Kitsune-sama!

Now that she had set a goal, it was easy to see what needed to be done.

To become stronger, she would need two things: leveling up, and collecting magic stones.

The magic stones were necessary to increase Inari’s magic power. And if she raised her level, her stats would improve—and with talent, she might even acquire new skills.

Truth be told, the skill part was the real hurdle. There was even a saying: “Level is effort, skill is talent.”

“Fumu… so there be quite a number of these ‘dungeons,’ it seems.”

Inari was currently in Tokyo, where there were reportedly ten fixed dungeons, both large and small.

By default, fixed dungeons were centrally managed by the Awakener Association. As for temporary dungeons… well, the blunt truth was they were a free-for-all.

Once someone cleared one, it became immediately obvious whether it was a fixed or temporary type. That’s why, the moment a dungeon emerged, Awakeners would rush in, scrambling to be the first.

If it turned out to be a fixed dungeon, then it fell under the Association’s jurisdiction, and they would implement measures to prevent any single Awakener from monopolizing it.

Screwing up that balance would be catastrophic, hence the Association maintained strict neutrality.

Details about the Association’s fixed dungeons were published in thick guidebooks like the one Inari was reading, complete with recommended levels, listed monsters, and more.

“Reservation is by telephone. Open 24 hours, the number is…”

She paused and glanced at the phone in the living room.

It wasn’t a rotary dial—rather, it had buttons, and even some kind of mysterious screen attached to it. A strange device… no, a modern marvel.

She had turned the place upside down earlier and found a manual, but it was so confusing it felt like it needed a manual to explain the manual. Still, she had at least managed to figure out how to make and receive calls… supposedly.

“Uuu… Why doth the phones of this age possess so many functions? Why must one press so many buttons? Would it not suffice to turn the dial with a clack and a clatter!?”

Grumbling like some nostalgic grandparent, Inari’s frustration was understandable. To go straight from black rotary phones to touchscreens was like being thrown into a sci-fi time warp.

For modern people, this sort of thing was second nature—so no one ever thought to explain it.

Had she been living in an apartment with an automatic lock, she probably would’ve ended up crying at the door.

Regardless, Inari cautiously crept toward the phone, poking at the buttons with great care. Her tail was puffed up from tension. If there had been any unexpected noise right then…

Ding-dong!

“KIEEEEE!”

Still holding the receiver, Inari jumped into the air, clutching her wildly pounding heart before setting the phone back down.

“Wh-What in the—!? Ohh… ‘Twas the intercom, eh?”

On the camera screen of the intercom was a woman in a suit. Though Inari still didn’t really understand how to use the intercom system, she had already reached her mental limit for the day.

She ran over to the door instead and opened it with the chain still on.

“If ‘tis the newspaper, I’ve no coin for thee. If thou be a peddler, likewise. So, what business bringest thou?”

“I’m from the Awakener Association. Here’s my identification.”

The card read: Awakener Association, Japan Headquarters — Sales Support Division, Yasuno Kaho.

After seeing it, Inari removed the chain and let her inside.

“Ooh! ‘Support,’ I know that one! That’s what you shout when thou’rt in trouble and someone doth come to help!”

“Eh? Ah—yes! I’m Yasuno Kaho, from the Support Division. I was sent by Secretary Chief Aoyama to assist you, since your case is rather… unique.”

“Oho! Then thou shalt teach me how to use the telephone! And the bath! And what else!?”

“Eh!? W-Wait, from there!?”

“I know not even where to begin learning! I’ve only ever used a radio in terms of moving house-things!”

“Why is that!? What kind of place were you living in!?”

“A mountain village, with nary a soul about!”

“Wha—uh—wait, wait a minute! I was told you were sheltered, but this is another level entirely… Wait, this is my first solo assignment and this is what I get!?”

Yasuno smiled stiffly, her face turning pale, then excused herself and stepped outside.

She quickly pulled out her smartphone and made a hushed call to her superior—but Inari, of course, could hear it all perfectly.

“Um, sir? Yeah, she’s seriously out of touch with modern society! No, I mean, she doesn’t even know how to use basic appliances! And she has fox ears and a tail! And she looks like a kid but your briefing sheet didn’t mention any of that— Wait, what!? ‘Handle it somehow’!? Uh, wait—Manager!?”

“Hmmm… This seemeth quite troublesome indeed… Though I admit, this be mostly my fault. I’m beginning to feel a bit sorry.”

“Hii!? N-No! Please don’t say that!”

“Worry not, I heard it all loud and clear. For the record, the ears and tail are mine own.”

Peeking her face out from the front door, Inari gave that declaration. Yasuno went pale as a sheet and let out a strangled whimper.

“P-Please, anything but a formal complaint…”

“Nay, I shan’t be doing such a thing. Still, I must say… these new transceiver boxes of yours are rather stylish, aren’t they?”

“That’s a smartphone… not a transceiver…”