Trust

Kasumi Froze at the mention of her father. The pressure in the room increased and Tomoe was not her usual laid-back self. Clearly, she was serious about whatever she had to say, but Kasumi didn't know why.

"Don't be so tense, you are not in trouble." Tomoe saw Kasumi tense up and get a little defensive which was a fair response. Tomoe didn't mean to scare her at all, but she needed to be serious.

Kasumi was able to relax a little, but she still couldn't help feeling responsible for what Tomoe was going to say.

"As you may have guessed I had fought with him the other night putting him in the state he is now. There is no way for him to heal via magic so he will be in the hospital for a few months." Tomoe admitted she was responsible for Kasumi's father, but that was a given.

"Okay." Kasumi knew that wasn't it, but she couldn't guess what else Tomoe had to say unless it involved Ayame. This triggered Kasumi to think of the conspiracies that she and Ayame came up with the other day.

"I assumed you probably have told Ayame which is fine, but there are some things you should know." Tomoe hesitated for a moment as she was trusting Kasumi with very important information.

"You don't have to tell me." Kasumi saw the reluctance, so she didn't want to force Tomoe to say anything. Kasumi was happy with how things were, so there was no need for Tomoe to admit anything.

"No it's fine, it's better that you know. I planned to tell Ayame first, but I don't want to ruin the new life that she is starting." Tomoe didn't know if it was the right choice, but she needed to tell someone. There was a chance things go wrong in the near future so she needed someone to rely on just in case.

Kasumi stayed silent waiting for what Tomoe had to say since there was no changing her mind now. She still had no idea why Tomoe was so trusting, but Kasumi was not going to let her down.

'Anything for Ayame, she is my last hope to get out of this damn cycle from my father.'

"Ayame's father is your father's second in command and is the reason why she lost her mother. Right now she thinks he is in prison for another reason but in fact, it's for killing her mother." Tomoe dropped a broad explanation which was a slap to the face for Kasumi as it was not what she expected.

"Wait, you're not saying it's Ronin are you?" Kasumi knew this person very well as it was a man that looked after her when she was younger.

"Yes, it's him. He is Ayame's father and is the one that killed her mother. Your father also did help and was the one that organised the whole thing, but Ronin took all the blame." Tomoe's voice trembled even at the thought of it made her want to cry, but she held strong. She just hoped Kasumi would understand why Ayame hasn't been told yet since this was Tomoe's biggest worry.

"I-I can't believe it." Kasumi thought about it more and more until it finally clicked. Ronin's race appeared in her mind and the resemblance was clear.

"I can tell you more, but that's what I wanted to say, now my only request is you don't tell Ayame. Not until at least your university is over or if Ronin gets out of prison. I will let you know if you can otherwise I will tell her, but I hope you understand how heavy this is." Tomoe had some relief finally getting it off her chest, but now she needed to know what Kasumi will do.

"I understand, thank you for telling me." Kasumi felt like Ayame should know, but when thinking about it in Tomoe's shoes, it was clear she was trying to preserve her happiness over the truth.

"That's good to hear, I will try to be the one to tell her as I don't want to accidentally cause a split because you hid the truth. This is only a last resort and a safety net for myself since I know it won't be the last of your father." Tomoe was finally able to relax now that Kasumi was onboard. It was a gamble, but it worked out in the end.

"Makes sense, but why me? I'm literally the daughter of Sebath, the one who planned the murder." Kasumi was honoured to be trusted, but it seemed very unorthodox to tell someone who could easily betray them.

"Because I know how Sebath is… As shameful as it is to admit, I used to date him way back way before you were born and by no means am I your mother, but let's say I experienced his wrath." Tomoe wanted to puke thinking about it, but what she thought was a mistake ended up being useful.

"W-wait what?!" Kasumi thought she heard wrong, but there was no mistaking, however, it put to question how old is Tomoe. She looked around 100 years old, but for her to have dated Sebath would mean she is at least 200+ years.

"I am 300 years old by the way." Tomoe flicked her hair feeling proud of her looks since they hadn't aged a day.

"Wow and here is my dad with grey hairs and wrinkles." Kasumi was in shock as although Kitsunes lived for 1000 years on average, they usually will still have some indication of aging.

"It's a rather simple trick I learnt, but if it would shock you even more, I am older than your father. He is just too stressed and didn't bother to take the bath in the fountain of eternal youth at a young age." Tomoe mentioned the method to her madness which really intrigued Kasumi.

"I know that look, but sadly I cannot take you yet, I would recommend waiting until you are in your late 20s before going just to make sure you are at your most beautiful." Tomoe smirked as Kasumi had the protentional of being one of the most beautiful looking Kitsunes, but she would need a few more years before locking in her looks.

"Awww, now I really want to go!" Kasumi pouted as she loved the thought of never worrying about her looks, but it seemed like today is not the day.

"Haha soon, but there are still a few things we have to do before we can even enter the highlands." Tomoe talked about the highlands which is the place that resides the high council for kitsunes. It's the place where all disputes between the race are settled as well as allows them to live out in the normal world.

Without the governing people of the highlands, there would be no way that the kitsunes could stay hidden especially with the rapid rate of technology advancing. However, even though they have done a lot of good, they also can be quite a nightmare to deal with since they monitor every kitsune's actions. This was a big reason for many why they are disliked as it restricts a lot of their freedom.

"Still haven't been to this highland place. Is it as good as they make it sound?" Kasumi knew it was a place that only had a population of kitsunes, but she wasn't even sure if it was a good place to go.

"It really depends, they make a lot of decisions about what you can and can't do, so unless they interfere with your life, you can live without ever having contact." Tomoe couldn't say much as she never really dealt with them before, but she knew how much they tried to stop Ayame's mother from her research which Tomoe could imagine is unbelievably frustrating.

"Makes sense." Kasumi didn't form an opinion yet until she deals with them, so for the time being they don't exist for her.

"Anyway, with that out of the way is there anything you want? I don't actually have a job for you." Tomoe finished her piece so she opened the floor to Kasumi to ask something.

"Oh that's right, I wanted to ask if I could join Ayame on her missions." Kasumi remembered the whole reason she was there and with a closer bond to Tomoe hoped there was a better chance to join.

"Hmm interesting… So Ayame met you on a mission to the stadium didn't she." Tomoe instantly connected the dots as Kasumi shouldn't know about Ayame's job, but it would make sense if Kasumi so happen to catch Ayame in the middle of her mission.Tomoe always had her suspicions ever since that night but never could confirm and she didn't want to dig since there was no reason too.

"Oh shit… umm yeah I may have asked Ayame for her assassin contacts that night as a way to contact her." Kasumi didn't bother to hide it as there no longer was a point.

"Pffhaha, I really wondered how that happened, but I'll ask Ayame for the details." Tomoe shook her head as it was really dangerous for Ayame to do something like that, but Tomoe couldn't be mad since it turned out really well. She only hoped that it won't be a recurring behaviour of picking up girls while assassinating a target.

"Now about your request, I will have to think about it. It isn't as easy as you tagging along since we do get human government requests and those are very strict." Tomoe wasn't against the idea, but she would need to inform clients as well as an adjusted price since now it's 2 people working.

"Fair enough, I didn't think it would be as easy as just asking." Kasumi half expected this response but hoped it would just be a yes.

"Give me some time, but I will tell Ayame in the next request if you can go or not."