Basics

"The customs of this world, this town specifically, aren't as easy going as most of the people summoned here thought they were," Xylvia said, adjusting her imaginary glasses. "While this place is a very friendly and welcoming city despite the Corruption, new people who come here somehow find ways to piss us off because of their ignorance."

I decided to hold off the traveling plans and start with learning the customs and the do's and dont's of this world. A good start to being an adventurer was to first have some connections with the locals, so I definitely don't want hurt anyone's feelings.

"Starting things off, you should never whistle at a Felinian," Xylvia said. "It's not that it hurts our ears or anything, but it's just very annoying to listen to."

"How annoying?" I asked.

"Imagine my claws scratching onto a metal table."

Oh that's very annoying.

"And some of the more outgoing Felinian see it as a challenge to fight. Numerous people from different races, some Summons from decades ago, have had there limbs mauled off and were left to bleed out, but that's a pretty rare case nowadays."

Huh. A cat-call to a cat-girl could result in your limbs getting shredded. Never would've guessed that.

"Next, don't ever ask a random Felinian to grab or stroke their tail. Touching a Felinian's tail has a deeper meaning that just for the soft touch. A Felinian allowing it is the best sign of trust and devotion towards the person touching. It can be used as a sign of incredible friendship, or as a Felinian's marriage proposal."

"Woah…that's so cute!"

Just the thought of it made me blush. To think that a Felinian's sign of trust is them letting you touch their tail! It's so cute! It's TOO cute! There's no way in hell something like that is actually true! It's WAAY too good to be true! Please say "sike", or "gotcha", or something Xyl!

"Anyways…when it comes to friendship, a Felinian will allow their friend to pet or even use their tail as a pillow since they're incredibly soft," Xylvia continued. "When it comes to marriage, well…uhh…*ahem!* Let's dismiss that for the time being."

Don't tell me that the toucher cuts their hand and covers the Felinian's tail with their blood…

"Don't ever ask a Felinian about the size of their ears. Basically, just don't ever mention about their ears. Don't even look at them. Just…pretend they don't even exist."

"Why?" I asked, slightly creeped out.

"…Some of the Summons are…weird…"

"I don't even wanna know?"

"You don't even wanna know."

I still kinda want to know.

"Come with me for a moment." Xylvia said as she suddenly hopped off her chair and dragged me out of the building.

She walked me about a few meters down the road until she stopped and pointed at a random woman who had ears that looked like a fox's.

"I want you to walk up to that woman and introduce yourself as the new Summon."

"Why though?" I asked, head tilted and completely puzzled.

"The best way for you to understand is if you talk with a Felinian directly. Just…be prepared."

"Prepared? For wha-?"

Xylvia suddenly shoved me forward towards the random Felinian woman.

"Hurry up! I wanna get back to that discounted food!"

"Alright alright. Don't shove me."

Well, this is both annoying and weird. I'm being pushed into this and I have no idea what it is I'm being pushed into. I hate this horror story.

I tried my best to shrug off the anxiety I was feeling and walked up to the Felinian woman. Best to get this over with I suppose.

"H-Hello," I greeted with the best word I could come up with. "My name is Hiro Satomi. I'm the new Summon."

I'm not the most social person, nor do I try to be, but simple introductions aren't too much for me to handle.

The woman noticed me after the "hello" and turned to greet me…

"Ooh, why hello there."

With a hello and…her hands covering her ears?

"I didn't know the rumors of a new Summon were actually true. H-How do you do?"

Why is she covering her ears? Is this some kind of Felinian introduction. Dammit Xylvia, why aren't you teaching me these things first?!

"Oh, I'm ok I guess," I responded while also covering my ears. "This new world still has me a little overwhelmed, but I've got someone helping me out. Shouldn't be too hard once I learn how to read, write, and travel around."

The woman gave me a strange look.

Ahh crap. Did I mess something up? I didn't offend her unconsciously did I? Was it something I said, or am I not covering my ears correctly?

"Hey…um…why are you covering your ears?" The woman asked me.

"Umm…not to be rude, but I could ask you the same thing." I responded.

Xylvia started walking over with a smile on her face- wait no…is she chuckling?

"I will say…I was definitely not expecting that." Xylvia chuckled lightly.

"Um…care to explain Xylvia?" I said to her.

Her laughing was starting to annoy me slightly. Is she making fun of me, or did I do something funny?

The Felinian woman suddenly rushed over to Xylvia, grabbing her arms and raising them up to cover her ears. Xylvia looked both puzzled and kinda annoyed by the woman's actions.

"Why aren't you keeping your ears covered?" The woman asked, looking a little shocked.

"Hey, calm down would you," Xylvia sighed, pulling the woman's arms away from her head. "I'm not scared by a Summon like you guys."

"But miss-"

"Enough. That Summon was a decade ago and died from a group of Corrupted. They're not all the same. Besides, my intuition is spot-on…for the most part. I'm sure I would know if this man was gonna do…that."

Ok, now I'm completely lost.

"Um…am I supposed to understand something, because I'm still pretty clueless right now."

"I just wanted you to see what it'll be like talking to Felinians," Xylvia said. "Anyways, wait right here. I've gotta go find someone. And knowing her, she'll be right where she always is in this time of day."

Umm…what?

Before I could even get another word out, Xylvia had already started sprinting off to wherever she was needing to go, leaving me alone with this random woman…who was still standing next to me with her ears covered.

I glanced over at her and she simply smiled, still covering her ears.

I don't even know why she's covering her ears, but I'm starting to feel a little insecure.

Ten minutes later

"And then she watched the tape and sees this barrage of horror being displayed right in front of her."

The woman was enthralled with the story I was telling her. Well, to be more specific, it was just the plot from the movie "Ringu."

"And then, the tape cuts to black and her phone starts ringing," I continued. "She picks up the phone and hears a girl whisper 'seven days…' in this creepy voice."

"Whoooah…" the woman gasped.

While I was glad that she was really enjoying the story I was telling her, I really wished that she would stop covering her ears. Yes, I know that it's some Felinian/Summon thing that I still have no explanation for, but my feelings are getting kinda hurt a little here.

"AAAAHH!! IT'S THE STRIPED BEAST!!"

A scream suddenly rang out across the city road; crowds of people from their respective homes or businesses immediately started rushing back inside. I've never heard so many locks go off before.

Striped…beast?

Before I even had time to question what had just happened, an overwhelmingly powerful presence nearly knocked me off my feet. I could barely catch my breath as the atmosphere tightened around me, slowly making me feel dizzy and nauseous. My fight or flight responses kicked in, but of course my body stayed frozen. Every limb was locked into place, as if I had just stared into the eyes of Medusa.

The woman behind me immediately sprinted away. Guess her instincts kicked in much faster. I'm surprised that she could even run with this amount of pressure in the atmosphere.

I finally caught a glimpse of what it was that caused this. It was a striped tiger with a woman's body in its mouth. Well…at least I thought it was.

Turns out, it was Xylvia dragging a woman with her. And she looked incredibly pissed. Still though, I would not have guessed that she was the one who caused this amount of pressure.

And the woman who I thought was getting mauled to death was actually just pouting at Xylvia. She would swing her arms around while whining about a bunch of random nonsense. This only made Xylvia even more pissed off.

"How dare you interrupt my session," the woman growled angrily. "Here I was, thinking that I would finally get some action, but here you come once again ruining the fun. Seriously, have you no shame."

This sent Xylvia to a whole new level of mad. I don't think I've ever seen someone's face contort into something this sinister before. I kinda wanted to sprint away myself.

"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR THAT COMING FROM SOMEONE LIKE YOU," Xylvia screamed at the woman with no restraint. "You make Felinian's look like a bunch of lewd freaks! Why can't you just open up a brothel or something?!"

"You said it yourself you childish lunatic," the woman said back. "I make Felinian's look like a bunch of lewd freaks, so who in their right mind would even want to work with me in a brothel. If anything, I'd have to work with them in one."

"Well then why don't you just do that?!"

"I don't want to wait. That's so boring. Seducing a man is much more fun than just having one get on top of you for five minutes and leave you dissatisfied. There needs to be a mood; an atmosphere. Without that, where's the enjoyment in sex?"

"Man I wish you put those 'thinking' skills of yours towards something more beneficial."

I guess it's safe to assume that they know each other. I'll also assume that it's safe to say that this woman is some kind've exhibitionist or something. And thank god the pressure finally died off, so now I can finally breathe again. Now that Xylvia had finally stopped dragging the woman, I could finally get a better view of her.

She looked to be about mid to late twenties. Her hair was a mess and covered parts of her face with a jet-black color; blacker than darkness black and eyes not of green jewels, but of green grass. Her voice, whenever she wasn't upset, was fully composed and filled with experience and maturity with a hint of gracefulness. Her attire was very treating to the eyes. White cloth with red strands of ribbons tied around the waist, sleeves, and shoulder blades to keep the outfit from falling. Cherry red lip balm and black eye-liner for a dominant look and better compliment to her long eyelashes. Her ears and fur were a sunrise orange color with a fluffy white fur on the interior of her ears. They were great big ears to. Like the ears of a fox.

"So, you wanna tell me why you dragged this woman here?" I asked Xylvia.

"This woman is quite the terror," the woman said as she picked herself up. "Here I am enjoying a nice stroll through the city, then here she comes jumping out and kidnapping me for no reason. She's nothing but a ferocious beast I tell you!"

Xylvia sighed, her anger reproductions a fraction of that intense aura. Her ears even spiked back up along with her tail, which was in a jagged position.

"Hiro, listen…"

5 minutes earlier

"I knew it."

Xylvia kept herself hidden by the wall that lead into a dark alley. There, she saw two boys who looked to be in their late teens and a young woman with great ears and rather seductive clothing. Everything about her sent waves of pheromones towards the boys that made them blush and grow a little shy towards the woman.

"Oh, there's no need for you to be scared of me," the woman said, inching closer and closer towards the boys with a slow, mischievous walk. She went from her two legs to her legs and arms, prowling closer and closer with her teeth beginning to show.

To some, this might be considered a sign of a predator feasting on some unlucky prey. However, in this world, this was the ultimate seducing mechanism that a Felinian could ever pull on someone.

"Once you get a taste of me, you'll be begging for more," the woman continued prowling towards the boys. "My bite may be tight and tickle a little, but I guarantee that your grip will be even…tighter~"

Xylvia was completely fed up with this whole scene and bolted right out with an overwhelming aura pouring out from her body. The boys instantly froze, their head turning while producing a comical mechanical *squeeeek.*

When the boys turned their head around, they saw a great tiger with her fangs out along with a devilish grin.

"I think it's past your curfew boys." Xylvia growled.

"P-P-Past," one of the boys whimpered. "B-But, it's not even…mid-light yet…"

Xylvia didn't even bother saying anything else. She unveiled her claws and started to walk forward menacingly, just the look on her face alone completely killed the confidence of the two boys. They said nothing either. Only horrific screams escaped from their mouths as they bolted away as quickly as they could.

Xylvia then ran up to the woman, who had no time to react, and grabbed her by the ears.

"Come with me for a moment." She growled through her teeth.

The woman said nothing. Only beads of sweat followed by a loud *gulp* came from her as she was dragged mercilessly across the road by the back of her dress.

Present time

"…and there you have it," Xylvia concluded. "You understand?"

"Well…I understand that you're a complete lunatic and that she's an exhibitionist, but other than that I still don't have a goddamn clue as to what you're trying to tell me."

"Hey, I'm not a lunatic!"

"You dragged another random woman into whatever situation you got me in just to explain something to me without any context whatsoever!"

"Hey…I'm trying."

"Hey…do I still need to be here…" the woman groaned.

Ok, what I do understand is that for whatever reason Felinian's besides Xylvia cover their ears when they meet a Summoner. So, what does this woman have to…hang on. How come she's not covering her ears.

"Figure it out yet?" Xylvia asked.

"Well, not really. But, I do get what you're trying to get to."

"Alright, care to explain Rosary?"

"Huh, explain what," the woman named Rosary asked. "How about you tell me these things before you drag me twenty stretches across the road!"

"Alright. The reason I dragged you here is because this man right here has a lewd obsession with ears."

…huh?

Before I even had time to react to whatever the fuck Xylvia just muttered out of her mouth, Rosary had started to fall to her knees. She groped and stroked all around her body, then messaged her ears slowly while forming a devilish grin with her lips.

Every part of her looked seductive, except for her eyes. They looked…odd. As if they were contradicting her actions.

"Would you like to touch them~?" Rosary asked me with that devilish grin.

"Umm…no?"

"Yeah, I made that up." Xylvia said, then suddenly falling back first onto the ground from her bellowing laughter.

Rosary immediately towered over Xylvia's, still laughing herself into the dirt, with a really terrifying grimace.

"How dare you insult me like that," Rosary shouted angrily. "Drag me across the road. Call me a lewd freak. I don't care. But never, ever, make me look like a fool ever again."

"You made yourself look like a fool when you announced to the whole city that some Summoner rammed his genitalia through your ears." Xylvia paused in the middle of her laughter to say.

"Ehh…?"

"Oh yeah, this woman is infamously known by all Felinians about an incident that happened a decade ago. A Summoner met her when she used to work in a brothel and introduced her to a rather…unsettling fetish."

"It was the most delightful experience I had ever felt in my life," Rosary beamed, her hands caressing her cheeks as they blushed with the color of roses. "That man spoke the most curious words. Words that I never knew could be said in a sentence. He would say 'I'm gonna **** your brains out!' And 'My long, thick **** will destroy that thick skull of yours. And your brain will be flooding in my *****.' I never felt so alive during that moment."

I legit wanted to just have a boulder smash the brains out of my skull so that I could escape from whatever the hell I was listening to. I've seen some very horrific things, but I've never heard of anything like this before. Now I understood why Felinians covered their ears. Hell, I'd cover mine as well after hearing about something like that!

"You people are too close-minded." Rosary complained.

"You're too open-minded you freaky tramp!" I shouted back, covering my ears out of fear.

"So there you have it," Xylvia said, picking herself up off the ground. "Now you know why Felinians cover their ears whenever they see a Summoner. Though, you are the only Summoner alive now, so this whole custom should die down. Well, I hope so at least."

I just got here and I'm already being discriminated by an entire race. I guess it's not all bad since this is a pretty scarring story to hear, but even so it does hurts a little.

"So are there any other wacky things I should know about?" I asked Xylvia, praying to Gleam that there wasn't.

"No, not really," she replied. "At least, not that you should know at the moment. Just be a decent person and you should be fine."