Guidance

There was still a difference between Oitsuki, who borrowed the divine name of Inari, and Miketsu, the true Inari Okami. Regarding the prayers of the faithful, Miketsu could discern the degree of sincerity and whether they harbored ill intentions, whereas Oitsuki found it difficult just to clearly hear the content of the prayers.

After all, she had only been a wild god for less than a year. Listening to prayers was a power she had gradually mastered after becoming a wild god; previously, as a yokai, she would directly hear spoken prayers or observe shrine ema to understand the wishes of the faithful.

Once Miketsu determined that many prayers from this village were not pure, she began a simple investigation with Makoto. This was not difficult; by remaining within the divine realm or demon realm and silently observing what these insincere individuals were doing, ordinary mortals without spiritual vision could not perceive Miketsu and Makoto. Only after gaining a preliminary understanding of the villagers' true nature did Miketsu seek out Oitsuki.

Clearly, Oitsuki's exceptional diligence and overly direct manifestations brought more than just faith; they also fostered idleness in some villagers. Once they realized that by offering a few more prayers each day, they could gain something without effort, then using prayers for profit, or as an excuse for laziness, naturally came into being.

In her quest for faith, Oitsuki had devoted all her attention to fulfilling more prayers. She didn't bother to discern the reasonableness of these prayers or observe those who prayed; she simply rushed to complete the prayers and collect faith, which clearly led to numerous problems.

Some villagers, it seemed, regarded Oitsuki not as a deity, but rather as a tool. While this wasn't yet a widespread phenomenon, it was already tending to spread.

“How could this be… I tried so hard… Why would they deceive me…” Standing in the empty field, Oitsuki muttered to herself, her voice thick with a sob. The truth of these matters was a great blow to her.

“Therefore, as a deity, it's not enough to simply fulfill every wish of your devotees… Furthermore, the way you've been granting their wishes has also created problems.” Looking at the crestfallen Oitsuki, Miketsu stepped forward, picked her up, and then called out to the sky.

“Makoto!”

A bright yellow bird flapped its wings, slowly descending from the sky, landing before Miketsu.

“Lady Uka.”

Miketsu nodded to Makoto in acknowledgement, then, holding Oitsuki, she climbed aboard, and Makoto immediately took flight, soaring into the distance.

Makoto flew through the dark sky for a while, and upon reaching a certain area, began to descend and circle. Below Makoto, the land was shrouded in darkness, where a long fiery dragon slowly advanced. It was a large group of people, holding torches, marching in a line. The flickering torchlight illuminated their grim faces, and each person held a sharply honed farm tool.

Protected by the separation of realms, Miketsu and her companions observed the crowd below from mid-air, unnoticed. Oitsuki quickly recognized who they were.

“These people… they’re from the other villages, and they’ve come again…” Because Oitsuki had long been stealing from neighboring villages for her devotees, conflicts and skirmishes had already occurred between the villagers from both sides. However, due to Oitsuki’s covert assistance, her devotees had suffered almost no losses, while many from the neighboring villages had been injured.

“They are here to rescue someone,” Miketsu said calmly. “During your last conflict, some of their people were captured and are being held as sacrifices for tomorrow.” Makoto had overheard the entire village discussing this when she visited, so she knew quickly.

“Hmph… It doesn't matter how many times these guys come; with my secret help, our side will never lose.” Oitsuki said directly, seemingly not taking these troublemaking humans seriously.

“I know you can handle it, but do you want your festival tomorrow to turn into a bloody brawl?”

“Uh… that…”

“Even if you can handle it this time, what about next time, and the time after that? The more you steal, the more people you offend, and eventually, all the surrounding villages might unite against yours.”

“So what… As long as I’m here, even if they all come together—”

“What about the Onmyoryo? Have you thought about that? If matters escalate to this extent, the Onmyoryo in Heian-kyo will surely become aware. If they dispatch an Onmyoji to thoroughly investigate the cause and effect, your exposure is inevitable. At that point, they might well declare the faith here to be evil sacrificial rites and deal with it accordingly. Your fate would not be good.”

Therefore, it was fortunate that Miketsu had come through here today. Otherwise, if Oitsuki continued her reckless behavior, the consequences would have been very severe.

“Ugh… But what else can I do? I can't conjure the things my devotees need, so I have no choice but to take them from other places. I, I just can’t help it,” Oitsuki said weakly, completely unable to refute Miketsu, whether on grounds of power or morality, her expression full of grievance.

“So, you see, becoming a deity isn't just about putting in effort. Think more deeply. Before acting, consider the consequences. What devotees truly need might not merely be the fulfillment of their wishes, but more importantly, protection and guidance.”

After Miketsu finished speaking, Oitsuki, cradled in her arms, fell silent, her eyes wide as she pondered what was on her mind.

Seeing Oitsuki in this state, Miketsu had Makoto fly back to the village, landing within the shrine at the village center. There, Miketsu dismounted from Makoto and placed Oitsuki back on the ground.

Afterward, Miketsu lifted the repulsion her divine name held over Oitsuki, allowing the shrine's accumulated faith to once again flow into Oitsuki's body. The small beast, previously on the ground, began to glow, its form slowly expanding, and within a short time, it transformed back into the half-beast-like maiden.

“This… You, you returned the faith… no, you gave it back to me?” Facing her restored wild god form, Oitsuki looked at Miketsu with a mix of surprise and doubt, her tone and demeanor having changed significantly from when they first met.

“While your methods were inappropriate, this faith is still the result of your own diligence, and I would not simply take it from you. However, after witnessing those events, you should know what to do from now on.”

“The situation has not yet deteriorated to an irreversible point; there is still time to remedy it.” With a gentle smile, Miketsu said to Oitsuki, who, recovering from the joy of regaining her faith, happily replied.

“Yes! Lady Uka!” Imitating Makoto’s address, Oitsuki said to Miketsu.

As for this wild god who had usurped her divine name, Miketsu had no intention of stripping her of her faith and banishing her from the shrine. After all, while Oitsuki’s methods for collecting faith were improper, her nature was not bad, and she was quite diligent. In terms of actively gathering faith, Miketsu thought Oitsuki was even stronger than her own "lazy fish" self.

Moreover, this Inari branch shrine had reopened precisely because of Oitsuki’s efforts. Miketsu herself would feel bad just sending Oitsuki away. It would be better to let her continue, using Inari's divine name to keep collecting faith for Inari.

After all, Miketsu herself was the true owner of Inari’s divine name. Although Oitsuki could use this faith, it ultimately belonged to Miketsu. Letting Oitsuki continue to manage this branch shrine was far better than leaving it vacant.

Miketsu would provide Inari’s divine name and the shrine to Oitsuki, allowing her to gather faith for Inari. The faith Oitsuki collected could actually be used by Miketsu herself, and with even higher authority. Why wouldn't she be pleased with this arrangement?

Inari Okami had her own spirit beasts and divine messengers, as well as yokai shikigami; perhaps she could even have another wild god as a subordinate deity.

All these ideas were quite good, but the biggest challenge was to instruct Oitsuki, making her understand what was appropriate and what was not. She couldn't be allowed to act recklessly under Inari’s divine name. Miketsu's previous actions were precisely to teach and warn Oitsuki, so she would understand what mistakes she had made and what consequences they would bring.