I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship, so I Became a Space Mercenary-Chapter 516: 「No, I’ll Have to Decline」

TN: After receiving feedback from the community, I’ve decided to change ‘Power of Law’ to ‘Spiritual Power’. Additionally, ‘First Power of Law’, ‘Second Power of Law’, and ‘Third Power of Law’ will now be referred to as ‘First Spiritual Form’, ‘Second Spiritual Form’, and ‘Third Spiritual Form’. I believe these new terms better capture the meaning of the original Japanese and align with the religious aspect of the Holy Empire. Over the next few days, I’ll begin updating the older chapters accordingly. I’ll also correct any overlooked mistakes, so it may take some time, but everything should be completed within a week or two at most.

「In simpler terms, ’tis a curse. We may call it impurities or sin, but at its root, ’tis simply a curse. When thou treadest upon the grass, sometimes small insects are crushed beneath thy feet, and the grass too is trampled, is it not? Even such acts, seemingly small, add to the curse. ‘Tis the resentment of the things thou hast trampled, negative Spiritual Power, if thou wilt.」

「I see, that makes sense.」

The gorgeous fox lady chuckled, seemingly amused by my inability to fully grasp her point. She took a puff from her luxuriously decorated pipe and exhaled a plume of smoke.

「Normally, curses of that level are naught to be concerned about. Hast thou ever seen the snow? If so, this shall be easy to explain. When a single snowflake falls upon bare skin, it will not cause thee to freeze to death, will it? A curse, or impurities as we oft name it, is much the same. Of course, if it accumulates too greatly, thou mayst suffer frostbite, or even freeze to death. In thy case, it was as if thou stood in a snowstorm for hours, only to dive into a frozen lake for a swim… yet, owing to thine abnormally hardy body, thou hast somehow emerged unscathed.」

「Abnormal… abnormal, huh…」

「Cease thy stubbornness. Thou art well aware of thine own abnormality, art thou not?」

「Even if I’m aware, that doesn’t mean I want to admit it.」

「Admit it, admit it. So long as thou livest, it shall ever be a part of thee.」

With that, she burst into hearty laughter.

After the Exorcism Ritual, where I somehow caused a massive explosion—or was it a fiery inferno?—I was left alone, face to face with the important-looking woman presiding the ritual. Though ‘face to face’ is a bit of an exaggeration, as we were just having a casual conversation.

Still, this incredibly gorgeous woman was a bit distracting. Every time she laughed or moved, the things wrapped in that thin fabric of hers jiggled. There’s no way she’s wearing a bra. She’s absurdly beautiful, which makes her genuinely hard to deal with.

Also, her fluffy fox ears on top of her head and those massive, fluffy tails behind her—how many are there? Nine?—are really attractive.

「Hmm, yet still, thou art quite something. To think thou art able to feel lust toward me. That is rather remarkable.」

「I can’t believe I’m the one saying this, but… could you not be so direct? Maybe, you know, soften your words a little? Also, I think it’s pretty normal.」

I mean, she’s incredibly beautiful, and her breasts are jiggling like that. The phrase ‘beauty capable of toppling a kingdom’ fits her perfectly.

「Is it not so? By any measure, I am super sexy, am I not?」

「Yeah, I mean, it’s a bit weird for you to say it yourself, but yeah, you’re insanely sexy.」

「But in truth, most are far too frightened to desire me. ‘Tis not as though I wished to become this way, but I have all but entered the realm of higher beings.」

「Huh.」

「Ah, thou dost not truly understand, yet be honest with me—thou wanna do me, do ye not?」

「Yeah, I wanna, obviously. But every instinct I have is screaming at me to not touch you.」

To explain how much my instincts are warning me off, it’s like taking the absolutely forbidden feeling I had toward Serena and multiplying it by a hundred. It’s a definite no. But… I still want to do her.

「Ah, such loneliness. How I yearn for the warmth of another.」

「Could you stop giving me those glances? Also, why did you abduct me in the first place?」

Right after the massive eruption of purple flames, I was kidnapped by this gorgeous nine-tailed fox woman. I have no clue how she pulled it off, but I was instantly transported to this room. It wasn’t some cheap trick like hypnosis or super speed. No, it was probably some kind of spatial teleportation, or something similar.

「What? I merely wished for a quiet, one-on-one conversation. Yet, perhaps, we could enjoy a little closeness as well, dost thou not think?」

「No, I’ll have to decline.」

「Thy instincts are keen… If thou were to become mine, things would indeed be much simpler.」

The nine-tailed beauty sighed dramatically, slumping against the armrest and taking a long drag from her pipe.

「If a beautiful woman asks me for something, I’ll help however I can… within reason. And for a fee.」

「Thou couldst do as thou pleasest with my body, if that is thy desire.」

「As tempting as that offer is, I’ll have to pass on that reward. I feel like I’d never be able to come back.」

I don’t even fully understand why I feel like this, but I’m certain. If I sleep with her, it will be the end. I’m not sure what will end, but something definitely will. Everything would come to a dead halt, or maybe I’d be stuck moving forward forever. Either way, the result would be the same. I’m not sure what I’m even saying at this point.

「’Tis a true pity… But no matter. When the time cometh, when all other paths have closed, seek me out. I shall await that moment.」

「I’ll try to avoid that. I don’t dislike you, but still.」

When I said that, she smiled, put a hand to her lips, and blew a kiss in my direction.

☆★☆

「Was that a… blown kiss?」

Suddenly, I found myself back at the Exorcism Ritual site.

「H-Hiro-sama? Did you just… appear out of nowhere?」

「Yeah, probably.」

I responded to Mimi while scratching my head. What the hell just happened? Did I get tricked by a fox or something?

「Hiro, you… were did you get that…?」

「Huh?」

「That’s a pretty striking lipstick mark you’ve got there. Bright red.」

「Was it her…? Where is it?」

When I asked, Kugi quietly approached me and began rubbing my left cheek with a handkerchief. A bit too hard, though. That hurt a little.

「One moment you were spewing out flames, and the next, you vanished. What the hell is going on?」

Elma came over, just like Kugi, and gave me a kick in the shin. She held back, but it still hurt.

「You saw that insanely beautiful woman at the ritual, right? The one in the extravagant outfit and nine fluffy tails? She abducted me with some weird spatial teleportation power, then sent me back the same way.」

When I said that, Elma furrowed her brow.

「Was there really someone like that?」

「Huh? Yeah, of course there was! My flames wouldn’t go out, and Kugi kept giving her these worried looks like asking her ‘What should we do?’ And we even talked about the Mother Crystal in front of everyone.」

「???」

Not just Elma, but even Mimi had a confused expression, and for some reason, so did Kugi. But I’m sure she was looking in the direction where that woman was standing!

「No, my Lord. I did not direct my gaze toward any specific individual. I merely looked away, hoping for assistance from someone overseeing the ritual. But when I looked back, you suddenly erupted into flames and disappeared.」

「…You’re not trying to play some kind of trick on me, are you?」

「I wouldn’t dare to do such a thing!」

「What…? That’s kinda scary. Like, horror movie scary…」

So, that nine-tailed beauty was only visible to me? Does that mean that the conversation I had with her before I got transported was also unheard by the others? Was I already under her spell the moment our eyes met? Who is she…? That’s terrifying.

「Did you just say a nine-tailed beauty…?」

The wolf-like handsome priest asked me with a grave expression.

「Yeah, she was a stunning woman with tons of tails, kinda like Kugi’s. She was wearing this thin shrine maiden outfit, puffing on a pipe, and every time she moved, well, you know, things jiggled and—ow!?」

Elma kicked me again. Sure, the jiggling was amazing, but Elma’s sensitive chest is—ouch, okay, okay, I get it! I didn’t even say anything, and she’s somehow reading my mind and kicking me more! Stop it already!

「She mentioned something about her being close to becoming a higher being or something, and she said it was impressive that I could even feel lust toward her. Oh, and she talked about how impurities and sin, at their core, are basically curses or something like that.」

「Ah… there’s no doubt. It’s her.」

The handsome wolf guy stared off into the distance. Is this person a problem? Well, she definitely felt like a major problem. She is dangerous no doubt about that.

「Through natural talent and relentless training… no, regardless, she’s someone who has surpassed human limits and ascended to a higher plane. That person is a being that a mere mortal like me cannot comprehend.」

「So, she’s like a half-god or something?」

「That’s one way of putting it.」

So, does that mean that the gut feeling I had about how bad it would have been if I’d actually slept with her was right? I would’ve ended up on the other side, with no way to come back? That’s terrifying! And wait, beings like that are just walking around freely? The Holy Vuelzarus Empire is way too dangerous!

TN: The nine-tailed beauty talks in a very old-fashioned way, like an Edo period courtesan, but sometimes she uses very modern terms, not completely gal-like, but close to it, so you might find some inconsistencies in her tone, but those were intentional.