*** Yuki ***

Please don't kill me.

"Kill you? That isn't the worst idea," the Goddess of the Kitsunes says. "Do you remember the mission I gave you decades ago?"

"Find a man who would help build the next generation," I say, refusing to take my eyes off the ground. Not when I think I should slam my forehead on the ground.

"Oh, I thought you forgot. Decades have passed, and you still haven't completed your mission. A simple one, really. I don't need a strong man. Just one that can grow. We can force the rest. Yet you never picked one. Never just kidnapped one off the streets and ran like so many before you. All that traveling and nothing to show for it."

"Alzi."

"Alzi! Don't test me with that garbage! The mission shouldn't require me to offer the man things to help us! You're making your Goddess complete your mission. I have to convince Alzi to help us. That isn't how this is supposed to work. They should be living here for the rest of their life. Not having ME PROMISE THEM THINGS SO SHE HAS KIDS FOR MY REALM!"

"I..."

"Doesn't matter. You failed. Not only that, you failed to get Alzi willing to help us on her own. There's nothing you've done correctly in regards to Alzi or your mission. You understand that? You failed the one you say you love, and you've failed your people."

"Yes, my Goddess."

"Look at me."

I take a deep breath and slowly move my head. My Goddess's robes come into view quickly, a deep blood red. A sword at her hip and tails straight behind as she looks down at me.

"Everything. You tell Alzi everything. You want Alzi to love you, then find a way to earn it once the complete truth is out. It won't just be a pregnancy or two, and you'll have her love. No, that is long gone. It'll be a slow process. Pregnancy after pregnancy. Breeding after breeding. Painful labor after painful labor. And none of that will be what gets Alzi to love you. You'll have to work through all that pain and get Alzi to give a shit about you somehow. Remember, you did this to yourself. I can't have you lying to her anymore. I have to get her to help clean up your mess."

"Yes, my Goddess."

*** Alzi ***

"But no," Kitsuen says. "I won't trick you into sex. I just wanted to tease you. Nanoka talked to me about her most recent fluffing by her husband. Someone loves fluffy tails, so I wanted to give it a try. I see why she raved about it. If you ever want to get me pregnant, you can come back and visit me. You don't have to want to get me pregnant to visit. We can just talk as well."

What illusion is she trying to pull over me? She can't really not want a single thing from me.

"You're learning," Kitsune says.

"I've known that," I say. "Plenty have lied to me about being nice or just a friend."

"Yes, I suppose you learned that lesson a while ago. Look, while defending you is an important thing, it is costly. To keep other races from getting the illusion mana like I do, I have to sacrifice something, and that is males. Even if Fertility wanted to help, she couldn't. My people will always have fewer males born than others. Could you help my people? We'll be in your debt."

This is the real reason they asked me to come here first. Why did they want me to come up here and get a maid? Why would they want just to help me deal with their Queen? Loyalty to their stupid crown. And they know I can't just turn this down. Not when they're helping to defend me from Nature and Justice.

"They didn't know I would ask this," Kitsune says.

"They knew. Nanoka is smart enough to know you would ask," I say. "They knew about it. They all told me to come here. I didn't do that before. I didn't plan to show up, and now I have a new request for sex."

"I told her I wouldn't ask. She wouldn't have told you to come otherwise. You can take her to Fertility or Space and ask her about it. I'm losing women in this war, Alzi. I'm almost a century past when I was supposed to have extra men to help my people. Why do you think there are so few around? There aren't that many in the young generation. Almost everyone is out fighting. I need a champion of Fertility to fix my fertility issues. Yuki should've pulled you out of that stupid damn brothel immediately. There doesn't exist a world where a Kitsune can't sneak some women out of the lower realm. She. Alzi, please."

"What do I get?" I ask. All for a damn maid. Should've just pushed Aurora back into the position.

"Space has taken a liking to my people. My realm would let you get everywhere the easiest. Take a house. One that would let you raise your kids, both the kitsune children and the others, peacefully. I won't mandate numbers or attempts or anything. Just make a good effort to help my people have children. I don't know what it would look like, but they need help, Alzi, even if that means selling my womb to you for a century or something. I'm the one who needs help."

Sex this, sex that. All they offer. Sure, I'm the champion of Sex and Fertility. Why wouldn't I be the one to fix their fertility issues? But sex. That is my payment? I have a line out the door for that already. A Goddess is already in the line.

"I know. Look. This doesn't leave here. Not even Space can hear of it. Do you understand?"

"What is it? And stay out of my head."

"That isn't an option for us. It just happens. Do you want to become a Goddess?"

"I don't care," I say. These Goddesses seem a bit too broken to want to join them. Crazy focused on such strange things.

The tails slowly free me, squirming out of the way. Kitsune still sits on the edge of the bench, but her robe is a solid material now. Her head is resting in her hand as she studies me.

"Then there isn't much else I can give you, Alzi. My people are inching ever closer to extinction, fighting to defend you. I'm promising you a house to live in with your family that would let you be close to all your eventual land. Safe from everyone. My own body for some time. I'm not asking you to marry anyone. I'm not demanding you forgive Yuki or something. I'm not bringing up your blasphemy with Tanatsu. I thought the house was what you would want. You don't have to bring everyone to the house. It can be for your true lovers, and I can help Space set something up to let you quickly move around. What else is there? If I waltz down there, you'll just have more problems than you had before. You don't want all the Goddesses coming down there and having their way with the world again. Sooner than you think, you'll be left with just the Princesses and Geta."

"What?" I say. "Mommy loves me."

"You're married to just Nanoka. Kiyomi is all alone. Even Queen Yumanae's mother and grandmother are alone. You think their entire harems died at once? Think Yumanae hasn't had a few women die of old age in her harem?"

"Mommy isn't going to leave me." Latest content published on novel·fiɾe·net

"She isn't going to leave you. But she will die before you. She doesn't won't want to leave you, but Death won't give her up. Not after you take Aya from her. I'll help you keep your Mother around. Mai, Ilka, and Akhae as well. That is what becoming a Goddess gives you. But, you can't say a thing to anyone about it."

"She won't leave me. She won't. We promised. That's why we married. No. No. no."

Kitsune lays beside me and hugs me. Her hand runs up and down my spine. "That's life, Alzi. The powerful become lonely. But you don't have to follow that. I'll help you if you help me. How about that?"

"Tricks. That is part of the kitsunes. Illusions and tricks."

"No, no tricks. Contract say anything about this. Promise to keep it secret and help my people survive, and I promise to help you become a Goddess and bring your lovers with you to this realm. One that nobody can mess with anymore. True peace with your lovers and kids. The life you always wanted. How about that? Is that better than sex?"

"Yes," I say. I really couldn't look that far ahead. How was I still the little kid who thought their Mother would live forever? How many women did I watch die and not make that connection? How stupid am I?

"Then we have a deal?" Kitsune asks.

"What goddess will I become?" I ask. I don't need to become the Goddess of shit or something. Goddess of Slaves, so the mortals can still find a way to own me.

"I don't know. There are many options for you. I won't guess, there's still time for things to change even. But you won't be the Goddess of Shit or slaves. Well, I can't truly promise you won't be the Goddess of Slaves, but the mortals won't be able to own you. You'll just be in charge of slavery then. Not a slave with unlimited power or something."

"Fine," I say. I guess it wouldn't make a lot of sense for a Goddess to become a slave. "I'll help your people."

"Thank you, Alzi. I'm sorry I scared you, but this is important to me. You'll have the house and peace and my body if you wish for it. I truly wish to make you happy, but I just have to worry about my people. I hope you can understand that. Yuki is ready to tell you her mistakes. I'm sorry, I sent her on the mission, and I thought she was ready. Clearly, she wasn't. The Queen won't push you far tomorrow. Let her have something tomorrow. She needs to help the morale of my people."

"Can I just tell them I'll get some of them pregnant from our deal?"

"Basically, but make it look like the Queen got a deal and it wasn't me. Yuki's done much to hurt the royal family. You can make Yuki fix that image."

"I will," I say. I'm sure that means some big pregnancies for Yuki. Nakuma will take great care of her.