All around, excited voices of students could be heard, but Yoru and the three girls were not among them. After all, they were no longer as inexperienced as before. Having witnessed the grandeur of the Underworld, these sights now seemed rather ordinary.
"It's certainly a very luxurious hotel, but compared to the President's estate, it still falls short," Xenovia remarked.
Her words made Irina and Asia nod in agreement. That castle, which could no longer even be described as "luxurious," was naturally beyond comparison to any hotel in the human world. Honestly, just a single artwork from that castle was probably worth as much as the entire Sirzechs Hotel.
After the noisy group entered the lobby, they found many Kuoh Academy students already gathered, waiting for the accompanying teachers to take attendance before they could move freely.
Among the teachers were Azazel in a kimono, Gabriel in a simple suit skirt, and Rossweisse in sportswear.
Once the instructions were given, Rossweisse stepped forward.
"Mm. In Kyoto's underground shopping center, there's a 100-yen shop. If you're short on anything, just make do there. Don't be careless with your spending money. If you get used to being wasteful as a student, you'll grow into a useless adult. Money is something that circulates through the world—if you keep buying this and that, you'll quickly run out. So just make do at the 100-yen shop. Remember, the 100-yen shop is one of Japan's treasures."
Having been sent to Yoru by that old man Odin, Rossweisse had now become a teacher at Kuoh Academy. Though she had changed who she served, her frugal nature clearly hadn't changed a bit.
Thanks to their looks, the Valkyrie Rossweisse and the newly arrived Gabriel were already extremely popular among the students—so much so that they were starting to rival Rias and Akeno's "big sister" level of popularity.
So, despite her somewhat nagging lecture, the students showed no impatience. In fact, several girls even invited Rossweisse to go shopping with them.
"Please keep these points in mind. Now, after putting your luggage in your rooms, you'll have free time until 5 p.m., but please don't wander too far. Keep your activities within the Kyoto Station area, and return to your rooms by 5:30."
With the final words from the last teacher, the group was finally dismissed.
Yoru and the others packed up and prepared to head out.
Since they had decided to visit temples and shrines, Xenovia naturally took the lead in making suggestions, choosing Fushimi Inari Shrine as their first destination—a shrine said to be dedicated to foxes.
Inari Station was just one stop from Kyoto Station. From there, the road led straight to the approach to Fushimi Inari Shrine. After a short train ride with the three girls, they arrived at Inari Station.
The moment they stepped off, they saw a sign reading Welcome to Fushimi Inari Taisha. The station itself was exquisitely decorated, with pillars and beams painted in the same bright vermilion as the shrine and torii gates. Right outside the station was a shopping street filled with stores selling all sorts of local specialties.
"Hey, look, Asia, Irina—so many unusual things on display," Yoru said.
"Wow, they're all such cute foxes!"
"I wonder if I have enough spending money to get a few souvenirs here."
Barely having arrived, the Church Trio was already enjoying Kyoto's atmosphere, chattering away like ordinary schoolgirls.
Shopping really was in women's nature—the three of them stood around the adorable fox plushies, clearly tempted but still hesitating.
"Alright, let's buy them after we come down from the shrine. We'll get some for Rias and the others too," Yoru said, patting Asia on the head.
"But it seems there are quite a few presences keeping an eye on us. Looks like even with Rias' pass, they still don't trust us. The youkai and onmyoji here are really wary of demons."
"Well, this is their territory. It's only natural for them to be cautious. As long as we don't start any trouble, it'll be fine," Xenovia replied, and both Asia and Irina nodded.
The group climbed the stone steps, passing under the first gate, and soon came to a large entrance guarded on both sides by fox statues resembling stone lions.
"These are warding statues. Normally, they'd repel demons like us, but thanks to our pass, they're letting us through," Xenovia commented, glancing at the fox statues.
"These torii gates are all part of the barrier. Without the pass, going through would definitely alert the big shots here. Speaking of which, Kyoto's Inari Shrine is famous for its thousands of torii forming a corridor. With so many barriers protecting it, this must be one of the strongholds of Kyoto's leader," she added.
"Yeah, that's right. The supreme commander of Kyoto's youkai, the Nine-Tailed Fox—Kyūbi Kuzuha—lives here. Azazel already told me that later I'll need to visit her as the representative of the Three Faction Alliance," Yoru said, rubbing his nose in annoyance. Azazel had gone off to enjoy himself, leaving him to handle this troublesome matter.
The scenery of Mount Inari was indeed enchanting. The Church Trio took pictures and chatted happily along the way.
Yoru, of course, didn't act like an excited child. After accompanying the girls for a while, he headed straight for the summit.
According to Azazel, it was proper etiquette to pay a visit, and from the way he said it, it seemed all three factions wanted Yoru to represent them.
For Yoru, this was a good thing—it meant he was getting closer to his goal.
When they reached the top, an ancient shrine stood there.
Painted in deep crimson, with white and gold decorations, it appeared delicate and immaculate in the light mist. Fox statues surrounded the shrine, which was encircled by trees that blocked most of the sunlight, giving the whole place a dim, serene atmosphere.
"So this is the residence of the fox spirit? It really does have a clean and elegant feel," Yoru murmured.
As he stepped toward the shrine, about to push the door open, rustling sounds came from the forest behind him.
"Hm~ You're not from Kyoto, are you?"
A clear, pleasant voice drifted from the woods, and with Yoru's senses, he could feel dozens of presences with unusual auras surrounding them from all sides.
"Well… looks like we're surrounded," he said with a wry smile, rubbing his nose before turning his gaze toward the small girl being guarded in the center by the youkai.
She was a petite girl in a shrine maiden's outfit, with cute pointed ears. Clearly, she wasn't human, and the restless tail swaying behind her revealed her identity.
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