So how do I talk to Nilah? I've tried many times before but only now is an accurate answer important. Nilah is smart enough to communicate on a basic level.

  Come on girl, you can tell me. I wouldn't be surprised if you'd suddenly started talking.

  Nilah just gave me a judging stare.

  Now that I think of it, you're quiet for a fox, don't foxes make sounds? You hardly make any.

  Nilah let out a strange glacial, eerie sound.

  Whoa, you didn't curse me, didn't you? I did not expect that… Can I do that too?

  It didn't take long before I nailed the imitation and Nilah and I were creating various glacial eerie sounds.

  Wait! I still don't know what's up with you and Giana! Stop distracting me!

  Nilah was silent again. She did request cuddles, though.

  I cuddled and petted Nilah while thinking of a solution.

  The best Nilah can do is answer questions with ‘yes’ or ‘no’. The problem is that I need to avoid leading questions.

  Hey Nilah, I’m going to ask you several questions. I want you to put up a certain number of tails depending on how correct or false my question is. 1 tail is ‘ very false’ , 9 is ‘very true’, 5 is ‘I don’t know’, ‘Neutral’ or ‘Neither’. Anything else is varying degrees of ‘true or false’. Let's see if you understand.

  I put Nilah down and covered us in illusions. Nilah got 9 tails out.

  Your name is Nilah, correct?

  Nilah put up 6 tails.

  Right, bad question as you’re officially named [Pneuma Boreas]... Why am I so bad at this? Ok different question. My name is Agnis Hourai, correct?

  Nilah put up 9 tails.

  I love sand.

  Nilah put up 1 tail. I rewarded her with some snacks.

  Ok… You hate me.

  1 tail.

  You hate Giana?

  6 tails.

  So, it's neutral, leaning a bit toward hate/dislike.

  You are upset because I spent less time with you?

  4 tails. The meaning of this is still vague but at least she is not upset. Or…

  You're afraid that Giana will take up more of my time in the future?

  2 tails. So, it's not the feeling of jealousy or abandonment.

  There is a difference between Giana as a friend and as a mate in your eyes?

  Nilah jumped and put up 9 tails.

  What is the difference?

  Nilah stared at me.

  Right, she can't answer this with true or false… but Nilah knew Giana liked me. Did she not know what I thought about her? But she knows everything I know…

  You know anything I know right?

  Nilah put up 9 tails.

  So, she knew…

  Me liking Giana is dangerous?

  Nilah put up 7 tails.

  Oof. I can't ask her why…

  Is Giana liking me dangerous?

  Nilah put up 3 tails.

  So, I'm the problem?

  1 tail.

  I don't get it… Giana is the problem?

  Also 1 tail.

  Neither of us is the problem but me liking Giana is.

  Would it be better if I liked someone else?

  1 tail.

  It feels like I'm getting ‘colder’ with my questions.

  Would it be better to stay single?

  5 tails…

  What does Nilah want?

  It has to do with me and the relationship between me and Giana changing.

  Is it the charm magic?

  2 tails.

  Is it something I know about?

  The first question that Nilah had to think about. It should be a ‘true or false ‘ answer, right?

  Nilah put up 5 tails.

  What does that mean… uhm did I forget about it?

  Nilah put up 1 tail.

  So, I didn't forget it but she doesn't know if I know… or is it neither true or false? What in Hourai’s name is Nilah trying to tell me?

  I assume it's important.

  9 tails. Not surprising, she wouldn't make a fuss otherwise.

  What question could bring me closer to the answer?

  Is a curse, charm or special skill preventing me from finding out?

  I realized that Nilah might have problems answering if only one of the three was correct but she put up 1 tail.

  Am I going to feel silly for not realizing when I finally figure out what you mean?

  No hesitation and 9 tails went up.

  Am I overthinking?

  Another 9 tails.

  So, it's not life-threatening?

  A disappointed single tail… so it will be life-threatening?

  Is it heartbreak?

  Nilah put up 3 tails.

  Heartbreak is part of the problem?

  8 tails went up. So, is that a ‘yes, but not quite?’

  Do you think I will cause Giana ‘heartbreak’?

  2 tails went up.

  Will she break my heart?

  Again 2 tails.

  I might have to visit a beast tamer as this seems more complex than I thought. But… would that even work? Nilah isn't a monster or an animal…

  So what? You think I will break my own heart?

  8 tails went up.

  You can't be serious… Why would I do that?

  Nilah said ‘I don't know’ by putting up 5 tails.

  On a scale of 1-9 how big of a part was that of what you wanted to tell me?

  3 tails went up to indicate that there's still more.

  I will break my own heart? What does that mean? It didn't take me long to get an idea.

  Oof I might actually do something like that yeh… Nilah are you sure that I'll do something like that?

  Nilah put up 7 tails and had a similar look on her face as when we were stuck with the fairies.

  So… what you're trying to say is that you want to make sure that it's worth it?

  8 tails went up and she requested more cuddles.

  And that's why you're aggressive to Giana?

  No tails went up, but I got the feeling that it would score a lot of tails.

  As Nilah had said, I feel silly. I had paid a lot of attention to make sure Raishin and Noelle were a good fit. I didn't do that for myself with Giana.

  I think she is, but I might be biased. Did I put in effort to check? Raishin and Greg are just happy I found someone, they don't seem to keep an eye out.

  Thank you, Nilah

  That said, what do I look out for? Try to focus, temporarily remove ‘attraction’ from the mix and see what's left? Is that even possible with the insane amount of charm magic she can put out?

  The more I thought of it, the harder it got. It seems that Giana was motivated by her feelings for me, she died for me, and she pulled me out of the spirit world. Even stopped her career.

  I started to brush Nilah and my tails.

  Am I overthinking things again? I don't want to make careless mistakes. Our lives, or worse, the fate of our race is on the line.

  So, Giana has done a lot to get here, what have I done for her? … I let her die, kept evading her and even forgot she existed for quite long… Vixens like toxic traits, but I haven't done anything for her…

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  Oof not a good start. Being toxic only works if I also give something back.

  Is this what you meant, Nilah?

  I got a soul crushing ‘1 tail’.

  Why is talking so hard… I probably have to talk to Giana after this… My life was never going to get easier, right?

  Nilah was being a smartass and put up 1 tail again.

  Lost

  The talk with Nilah had been partly successful. I still don't know exactly what she meant, but she seems happy that I got the gist of it. I couldn't shake the feeling that I misunderstood her a bit.

  I'm not telling you to stop doing what you do, but can you keep it down or more subtle? Giana was quite distraught after you suddenly attacked her.

  Nilah didn't show a reaction, but she's smart enough to understand this, the question is if she wants to…

  Nilah climbed on my head and curled up.

  Hey, come on! You're a bit too big for that!

  Nilah didn't care, and it looked as if I had a strange light blue fluffy turban on my head.

  Fine! Let's make fools out of ourselves!

  I repurposed the illusion to [Paradox Teleport] to the aquarium.

  Hmm, where am I? Note to self: [Paradox Teleport] is a bad idea if I have no clue where the destination is .

  I was still in Gittrian, but not in a part I had been before. It was mainly residential and I approached a young couple to ask for directions.

  Excuse me, where can I find the aquarium?

  “Which aquarium? Gittrian has 3 of them.”

  Are you sure?

  “Quite sure, there are 2 in the city center and one near the Gittrian River.”

  Uhm, the closest one to the Yttroz Industries Headquarters.

  The young man thought for a bit. “ I think they're all equidistant from Yttroz Industries Headquarters.”

  Of course, they are… silly vixen… how am I supposed to find her? Thank you, have a nice day.

  “Wait! On closer look, aren't you the Silver Torrent?!”

  Uhh, what would a guy like him do, randomly appearing in a residential area?

  “Oh, he has a point, Henry. I’m sorry, he is a big fan of the Silver Torrent, he must have mistaken you. I hope you find your aquarium and uhh… nice hat.”

  The woman waved and the couple left.

  Is my passive skill weakening? Or is my popularity spiraling out of control? My passive skill works as it always did, which leaves one more option. Getting idols in our team didn't do my popularity any favors.

  I chain teleported to the roof of the Yttroz Industries Headquarters, but it got redirected.

  For fuck's sake, I just want to relax on a high rooftop!

  Several guards got alerted by my sudden appearance.

  “Oh, look someone tried to teleport in. The spies are getting more and more careless. Wait you're not a spy, you're that guy that likes to sneak in according to our records. Guys! We caught a celebrity!”

  Why am I so shit? I’m sorry guys, I have no time. Can you tell me which aquarium is the best for a ‘Meet up’?

  “Oh, meeting a lass, eh? Hmm, the one near the river is more educational and uhh boring, I suppose the one near the pool is the best, so the one to the southwest, 2 blocks away from Aurum.”

  Holy shit, that was useful, how can I thank you?

  Other guards gathered to find out what was going on.

  “Can you sign my sword?” The useful guard handed me his sword.

  Just a question, why use swords when most people can just kick your ass with magic?

  “Well, we mostly have to deal with Toxic Donkeys and shadow users, they often rely on weapon mastery as their magic can be traced.”

  Ah right, I should have known.

  The useful guard showed me a beat-up sword.

  A lot of Toxic Donkeys lately?

  The useful guard nodded.

  I fished out a high-quality sword out of my dimensional pocket and signed it for him.

  There, it's yours now, keep up the good work.

  I teleported away before he started his emotional outburst.

  The sword I gave him could sell for 1 gold. I hope it doesn't ruin his life.

  There it was, an enormous, imposing building. It had a large model of a pink jellyfish on the front. There is no doubt, Giana is here.

  The inside was spacious. People were waiting to gain access to the section that held the aquatic life.

  I was unsure what to do, this place is huge and this is just the entrance hall. A quick scan revealed that Giana wasn't waiting in this hall.

  The queue wasn't too long, but people were staring at my strange ‘hat’.

  There is a high chance that foxes aren't allowed inside, so Nilah had to stay like this.

  “Are you here for entertainment purposes or educational purposes?”

  Uhh the former, does it matter?

  “We have sections for both. The entertainment section is connected to the pool.”

  I see, that's actually quite genius, entertainment section it is.

  “Very well, here is your ticket, enjoy your stay.” I got a polite nod and a smile as I went in.

  This isn't a vixen trap, is it?

  I walked in and got surrounded by walls of water and glass. I recognized many creatures, but there were plenty that I've never seen.

  Whoa.

  I wandered through the blue-green corridors. I took note of any creature here, as these must represent what is normal on this planet. It hurts to admit, but I’m quite ignorant of what animal and monster species are supposed to be normal. I've read many books about them, but I keep getting surprised.

  I'm getting hungry…

  The fish looked tasty, and I needed to control myself. The look for a place to eat started, as I didn't want to pile up more crimes, yet.

  The corridors were endless. There were some halls selling souvenirs but no food. My stomach protested, and I had no clue where I was supposed to go.

  I activated my Elgards eyes, but I couldn't find anything as most of this place was the same. All the water blended in with the corridors. My filters were not all powerful, a filter that gives more detail would most likely make the fish pop out like crazy.

  So, aquaria could counter Elgards eyes too, eh? Unless I find a specific filter.

  I made some attempts and got something passable. I made several turns but I had entered a corridor with a familiar starfish.

  Why aren't there any maps in this watery maze?

  My stomach was making noises that scared the bystanders. Is trying to behave going to end up killing me?

  “Hey dude, are you alright? Your stomach is making scary noises.” A handsome guy wearing a lot of bling came to my aid.

  I need food… where is the restaurant here?

  “Oh, yeah it's hard to find, I got caught in a similar situation on my first visit.”

  The guy was being a bro and guided me to a hall that had a strange-looking restaurant.

  I don't recognize this place.

  “Oh, it's one of those newer ones.” He said as he brought me inside.

  What is its specialty?

  “Burgers and fries.”

  Sounds like junk, what are those?

  “You've never been to one before? Here look.”

  Nice dude handed me a menu card. I read the menu and my hands started to shake. ‘Nice guy’ got demoted to Assassin. So, they have come for me when I was weakened. I recognized these brown sticks; they were made out of potatoes!

  Oh, hell no! You almost got me there, I have to say, you are very skilled. I almost fell for it!

  The Master Assassin gave me a confused look before I [Faded] away and left this slaughterhouse. A place holding this many potatoes must be part of an evil organization.

  I kept an eye on this ‘Headquarters of evil’ for 30 minutes, but they didn't send more assassins after me.

  Back to wandering the corridors. Do I just take food out of my dimensional pocket? But is that acceptable in a place like this? Also, people are staring at me. Probably waiting till I let my guard down to finish me off.

  My body started to feel weak when I heard a distant song.

  Oh no! They have Giana!

  I had almost forgotten why I came here. It was known that I was a beast kin, so I got my ears and tail out and focused on the song. I don't often rely on my hearing, as my eyes are overpowered. Overpowerdly useless currently.

  It was easy to track Giana by sound. It was also laced with charm magic, causing it to automatically draw me in.

  The area changed, and it looked as if I were in a pool. I got halted by a magical barrier. Text floated through it.

  ‘ Reserved by Giana Kahlua’? How do I get in without busting this barrier down? It's not an impressive barrier…

  It let me pass through with no issues after I ‘touched’ it.

  “Groah!”

  Yes, yes, stomach.

  This area was empty, so I enjoyed a hearty potato-less meal.

  My energy was restored, partially. Time to save Giana.

  I walked into an enormous space which resembles a tropical beach. It was similar to the basement Barusu had built for me, there was hardly any indication that we were inside.

  The beach was empty, besides 1 person, and my jaw dropped.

  What I found wasn't a vixen but a mermaid. Her tail had sapphire scales. But why does she look so much like Giana?

  I focused and pointed.

  Give up fiend! You won't trick me! What did you do to Giana!?

  The mermaid smiled, made a sexy pose and sang.

  Ugh, I thought that I would have resistance to charm attacks now… Just wait and see, Giana is going to mess you up!

  “Foolish Deca… it's me, silly.”

  She jumped at me and I managed to catch her.

  Oh, wait you told me that you were also a mermaid.

  Giana was normally a bit shorter than me, but she would be nearly 3 meters tall if this was her ‘human’ form.

  “Oh, sorry it seems that my scales cut you.” She said as she healed my bleeding hands. “So, what do you think?”

  Do you taste like fish, now that you're a mermaid?

  I got hit with a headlock but this one hurt a bit. It was a ‘10 damage’ headlock.

  “Don't eat me! I mean my appearance!”

  Well, you look stunning as always.

  “You… you didn't need ‘alone time’ to get a break from me, did you?”

  Don't be silly, I needed to talk to Nilah.

  I said as I pointed at Nilah who had fallen off my head and was glaring at Giana. The headlock had knocked her off and Nilah probably saw that as a declaration of war.

  “Oh… I don't know what I have done to upset her…”

  She's not upset, what I've understood is that I need to make sure you're worth the effort, bluntly speaking. And my guess is that Nilah will test how stress resilient you are.

  Giana let go. “Is that so?”

  Nilah put up 8 tails.

  That's an affirmative.

  “Well then, do your worst. I will not give up and prove myself.” Giana said melodically as her charm magic spiked.