"You are right. I do have a problem with this servant and I want her gone. Do you want to say anything against my decision?"
There was silence after Amane finished speaking. Sakura's eyes widened as she heard the unexpected words.
'Ah, it appears I made a mistake with my character. But then again, I had no intention of going with the flow.'
Most people in Amane's situation would keep their heads down and observe the situation before making any decisions. But Amane was different in that regard.
Instead of observing her surroundings, she should use what she could to change her image.
She had only been here for a day, but there were things she had observed that helped her make her decision.
At first, it appeared that the Tsurugi family was looking for a way to get rid of her, but they were unable to make any visible move against her. That gave Amane enough time to make a change.
Second, her host seemed to exhibit an unusual pattern of behavior. She was even thought to be mentally ill, which aided Amane.
She could easily pass herself off as her host's spilled personality. Amane wasn't sure if her resurrection was a fluke or if it was planned.
'But even if this is a part of someone's plan, I am not someone to look a gifted horse in the mouth.'
"Yoko, is there a need for you to do this? You know my father would not appreciate you harassing the servants. He is too stressed because of the family business and his mood is a little volatile these past few days."
As Sakura talked Amane down, the old servant smiled with delight. Sakura appeared to be attempting to play a neutral role by blaming her father.
'This girl is quite astute. But she's too young to be joining me in these games.'
Amane could see the message in Sakura's eyes, but she wasn't going to follow Sakura's lead.
"Sakura, I am not asking you to fire this servant, I am demanding you to. Either I will remain in this house or she will. It is up to you to decide which one of us you want to keep here."
Sakura went white after the ultimatum was issued. Her eyes couldn't hide their fear and longing.
'She liked me but doesn't want to upset her father.' Amane was certain she had correctly read Sakura's emotions in her eyes.
"I…cannot make this decision on my own. I'm sorry. For now, I will assign this maid elsewhere and we can have this talk later with my father?"
Sakura was trying to shift the topic but this was all Amane needed to hear before she made her decision.
"No. There is no need for us to discuss this topic any longer. Since you've already decided to keep the maid in the house, I will leave now."
Amane picked herself up and only took a step before Sakura realized she was serious. It instantly changed her tone and her decision.
"No, don't. I mean, I will fire this maid right now and replace your servant with a new one."
"There is no need. I do not need a personal servant right now but if I will need one, I will decide on them myself."
The old maid was shaking in her place when she heard those words. Her eyes instantly were filled with crocodile tears to gain sympathy from Sakura.
"L-Lady Tsurugi, please take pity on me. I have never offended your family and I have been loyal to you for so many years now. Please do not take my means of livelihood away."
The old servant was shaking and crying. It was a pitiful scene but Amane had seen so many similar scenes in her life.
Her previous life was filled with deception where people did what they needed to to get by. They begged, crawled, and even betrayed.
"I understand that you did not mean any harm but if Yoko doesn't want to keep you then I cannot do anything for you. Please leave now and I will talk with you later."
The light that was dying in the maid's eyes suddenly came back. Her shivering also lessened and she shot Amane one last glare before she went out.
'I guess I will see that maid again.' Amane had a feeling that the old servant will not be fired but reassigned so that she does not cross Amane's line of sight again.
Too bad for her, Amane would be going out of her way to seek the old maid out until she was let go. You could call Amane petty but this was the kind of person she was.
"Yoko, were you serious about going out all alone? You can't. It's really dangerous out there right now. Do you remember the guard that barged in on the meeting before? He said that our captured beasts managed to escape before they could be properly collared. It is really dangerous out there."
Amane had not been paying attention till now but the mention of beasts suddenly seemed of interest to her.
Seeing Amane interested in her talk, Sakura continued from where she had left the talk off.
"You know that the Tsurugi family had been in the business sector for generations and we are the only family who is into the Beast taming business."
"Our ancestors learned the secrets of beast taming from the Beast goddess Amane, who was one of our ancestors. Several others attempted but failed to implement her teachings. These techniques are only available to our family's leader."
"Ever since your father died, my father, the current family head had been trying his best to access those records but it is difficult for him to learn them. So please do not cause him any more stress than necessary."
"The situation out there is bad enough to make even the delegates of the Divine Guild back off. That's why they chose not to come here today."
Hering all that made Amane want to break out in laughter.
She had not expected to hear her name come out of anyone's mouth in such fondness, much less from someone of the Tsurugi family.
But these people had the facts all wrong. Amane was not someone from the Tsurugi family, nor did she have any connection with them in her precious life.
She had just taken pity on the young half-demon and taught him a thing or two about Beast-taming.
Since most beasts were creatures that possessed divine or devil power, they were difficult to capture. And their primal bodies carried much more magic than a normal human-like body could.
Back in her time, it was also believed that those with too much magic turned into beasts after they mastered it but no one had been able to prove this claim.
"So, you're an old man pretending to be the family head when he doesn't even qualify for it? I find it quite impressive that he managed to fool everyone this long."
"Yoko, don't say that about my father. He is trying his best to support us all so don't be rude. You should stay in your room today and then apologize to my father later."
Sakura took in a few deep breaths to calm herself down. Amane just felt amused at the pitiful attempt but she did not say anything.
"I will report what happened to father so make sure you apologize to him about your behavior. Don't forget how good we have been to you."
'I don't get this girl. At first, I thought she had a crush on me because she blushed but now it seems like she dislikes me quite a bit. Or maybe it is the hormones. Sakura is a teen after all so maybe it'd be the mood swings of youth?'
It had been a long time since Amane had been a teenager but it was unfair to compare herself with someone like Sakura.
Unlike Sakura, Amane did not have the luxury of an easy life. She already had an orphan or two to feed by this time of her previous life.
The door to Amane's room was forced close with a loud bang.
'It seems like I managed to push a lot of buttons on the princess's head. I hope it makes her rethink her behavior toward me.'
If you ask Amane, she would say that she was justified in her approach toward the maid and even Sakura. She hated being told what to do and did not have the best personality one could find there.
"Now that she had left, I guess it is time for me to check up on my situation. I can still feel my core but what else did I carry over after my death?"
Amane had quite a few useful tools in her arsenal before her death. She had even managed to force her magic into a unique format which she called a 'system.'
{System online. Rebooting functions.
ETA: 12 hours}
Ah, Amane's effort to bind the system with her core worked in the end. She could feel her magic interacting with her core and giving her the sense of being unbeatable.
It was a feeling that would not last long. The more Amane would expose herself to this sensation, the more naturally she would be able to use it.
She tried to get used to her previous strength for some time before Amane allowed herself to relax.
It was finally time for her to leave the room and check out the world.
Sakura Tsurugi had warned Yoko not to leave the room but Amane had no intention of following her orders at all.
She carved her freedom and she also wanted to see how strong she was in this life.
Amane could tell that she had not lost any mental or magical strength but her physical strength was something that no longer existed. It was something she would have to rectify.
'Since this is a new life for me, I need to decide what I should do in it. I no longer need to fight for my survival and I no longer need to look after anyone else.
So I guess there is just one thing left for me to do - enjoy this life to the fullest and make sure no one can bother me.
But to do that, I need to first make sure to take the family business back from that faker. Once I have this business, I will have the financial aid I need and I can reject anyone I want to.'
Amane would like to instantly begin her lazy life but it would not be safe for her. The old man would still force her to get married and Amane would have to go on a run to avoid him.
That was a situation Amane wanted to avoid at any cost in her new life.
"Now, let's see. I don't think I will be able to leave this building through the front door so that is out of the way. I only have one other way left."
Many people would call Amane crazy for the stunt she was about to pull but it would not be her first time doing something like this.
The 16th floor window might be a little too much for most people but it was a small jump for Amane. There was a small forest that surrounded her building while the world beyond that seemed like a fantasy to her.
The world outside the window looked u like anything Amane had seen before. It seemed to be made up of metal and concrete. Buildings covered the skyline as far as Amane could see and people down there were nothing more than ants.
But Amane's focus was not on any of that. Instead, her ears picked up a familiar cry and Amane allowed her body to fall out of the window. She had seen the beast in the distance and Amane knew what she had to do.