Chapter 44 44: How to Ride a Royal Yokai

— — — — — — In the pocket dimension "Eirin~ I brought you more samples!" The silver-haired woman dissecting the T-virus paused and set down a test tube containing a drop of blue liquid. She sighed as she looked at the small plastic bottle in Veyron's hand, clearly containing some kind of pill. "Just the T-virus and the zombie virus you gave me yesterday are already enough to keep me busy for a while." "This one's different," Veyron said, setting the bottle down on her table. "Panacea. If you can research something useful out of it, great. If not, maybe it'll still spark some ideas." "Panacea?" Eirin blinked. "Which one?" "Which one do you think? The one that can cure all diseases." "I don't have a ton of intel on it," Veyron continued. "Just that it's said to be able to cure any known disease within two hours. Or more specifically, any disease known to the organization that used to have it." "'Any known disease,' huh?" Eirin popped the cap and saw three red pills inside. After a brief pause, she picked up one and handed the bottle with the other two back. "If it's just for research, one should be enough." "Keep all three. I already gave one to Kaguya before I came here, and I still have a bunch more. These three are for you." Veyron could guess what she was thinking. The SCP-500 he got from the draw didn't come in single units. Each "×1" prize was a whole bottle—and inside were exactly 100 pills. Unless someone pulled a genius move like using it to "cure" a hangover, this stash was going to last a long time. "Well, if that's the case, I won't hold back." Eirin tucked away all three pills without hesitation. "Store them in a cool, dry place, away from direct sunlight," Veyron reminded her. Then he added, "I'm heading to the Western Lands in a bit. Should be back in... I dunno, maybe two weeks." The trip was to see Kazami Yuuka. When he left the sunflower fields last time, he told her he'd come back after checking in at home. But then he got sidetracked with a mission in the Highschool of the Dead world, and just like that, half a month had slipped by. Now, for a millennia-old yokai whose daily routine is pretty much "wake up → flowers → nap," a few weeks probably didn't even register. But since he was free now, no need to delay further. --- To know after his last ten-pull, Veyron still had over 9,000 points left. While browsing the group shop, something among the 128 refreshed items caught his eye—something he figured Yuuka might like. A nice little gift to make up for the sunflower seed mess from last time. "Hey, come with me on a trip," Veyron called out as he stepped into the courtyard and gave the sunbathing Inukimi a pat. "A trip? Where to?" Inukimi stretched and gracefully stood up. "The Western Lands. Same place where we first met. I'll tell you where to go after that." "...Wait a sec, don't tell me you're planning to ride me?" She bared her fangs a little. "Mutual help, right?" Veyron said, running his fingers through her fur like a brush. "Hmph. I'm the heir to the royal bloodline of the Inu-Yokai, destined to rule over all the yokai of the Western Lands." She turned her head with an air of pride. "So don't even think about riding me! If word gets out, how am I supposed to be king?" "Simple. Just don't let it get out." Veyron scratched under her chin. "You don't say anything, I don't say anything... who's gonna know?" "Don't try to fool me! This isn't about word getting out!" "Oh? Then what's it about?" "..." Their eyes locked, and for a moment, Inukimi looked like she was seriously considering sinking her teeth into him. — — — After some time... When they finally left the bamboo forest, Veyron was, indeed, riding on Inukimi's back. A thin layer of mist surrounded them, cloaking their forms. The spiritual energy laced within the clouds kept them hidden from any prying eyes. Convincing her wasn't too hard. Since coming to Eientei, she got along decently with Kaguya, but because Veyron had only been a regular human when he built the bamboo house, it was small. One room for him, one for Kaguya, one more for Eirin... and that was it. So Inukimi had no room, luckily. As a yokai, she wasn't too picky—and thanks to the special mats and blankets, the floor was clean and comfy—but still, it wasn't a long-term solution. Veyron promised that after this trip, he'd build her a proper bamboo house next to the main one. He was already planning to expand anyway. If not for the sunflower field promise, he might've started preparing the materials already. Yep, he used something he was already about to do as a bribe to get his way into riding a royal yokai. Seeing how happy she looked now, Veyron didn't bring up the whole "he won and she was being ridden" thing. No point ruining the mood. Gotta say, as someone with royal blood, boasting about being undefeated among the younger generation of Inu-Yokai and allowed to roam free across the lands, Inukimi had some real skills. In her full beast form—over ten meters tall—she soared through the skies, crossing mountains and rivers with Veyron on her back. What used to take several days by foot, they cleared in under half a day. When they returned to where they first met, Veyron pointed her toward the sunflower fields. — — — After a few dozen more miles, Inukimi suddenly stopped. "We can't go any farther this way. That's the territory of an ancient yokai—over a thousand years old. We'll have to go around." She idly scratched at the dirt, leaving claw marks. "Honestly, it's a little embarrassing, but the reason our clan even rules the Western Lands now is because a few centuries back, the great demon that once ruled this place somehow pissed her off... and she completely annihilated him." "The Flower Master of the Four Seasons?" "You know her?" Inukimi looked relieved. "Good. I forgot this is where we met." "Then no need to go around. She's exactly who I'm here to see." Veyron gave her a reassuring pat. "Wait... what?!" Inukimi froze. . . .