Hoshi no houseki - Star Jewel Vol. 1: Hoshi no houseki, #1

By Miya Martin

When Jun Tanaka arrives for his first day at Maruimachi High, he notices that the girl sitting next to him is really cute — and has fox ears and tails?! Not only that, but he's the only one who can see them!

The foxgirl, Riko Kyuumi, confesses to Jun she can't remember her past, and asks for his help to find her memories. Along with Riko's friends Yuuji and Aoi, the four team up to form the Fox Goddess Investigation Club.

Will they solve the mystery of the fox goddess? Or will someone — or something — stand in their way...?

 

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Based on the popular learning app "kawaiiNihongo," which helps people to learn Japanese, you can follow Riko, Jun, Aoi and Yuuji through their adventures in Maruimachi. Written by Miya Martin and brought to life with illustrations by Rosuuri!

• Language: English
• Publisher: MardukCorp
• Release date: May 2, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393219545

Miya Martin

Miya Martin has worked with us since the beginning of kawaiiNihongo and is responsible for everything that happens in Riko's world. She has written for video games and other fiction projects, and when she's not writing, she also enjoys voice acting. Miya has a degree in East Asian Languages and Cultures and  speaks fluent Japanese.

Book preview

Cover.jpg

Contents

Prologue

—One Year Ago—

Chapter 1

— A Foxgirl Appears —

Chapter 2

— What’s in the Cards? —

Chapter 3

— Forgotten Past —

Chapter 4

— FGIC Assemble —

Chapter 5

— The Hunt Begins —

Chapter 6

— Accusations —

Chapter 7

— Checked Out —

Chapter 8

— The Nutty Professor —

Chapter 9

— Rise and Shrine —

Chapter 10

— Fox on the Run —

Volume 1

Story

Miya Martin

Artworks

Rosuuri

Idea

Jan Malte Dittmer

The scanning, uploading and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book, please contact the publisher. Thank you for supporting our author’s rights.

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Prologue

—One Year Ago—

Lightning flashed above the torrential rain, illuminating briefly the shape of a young woman, scrambling through the woods. The thunder that followed drowned out the sound of her heavy breathing, and that of the twigs snapping under her feet—but not the blaring alarm that permeated the air. She ran mindlessly, desperately; not in any specific direction, simply away.

Behind her, a large building, normally drab and grey, was lit up like a Christmas tree, as warning lights in red, green, and yellow sparkled through the curtain of rain. Searchlights pierced the darkness around the facility, scanning the surrounding forest. The girl danced nimbly through the brush to evade the beam. Before long, the building was out of sight, and the claxon faded into the night.

Her legs continued pumping. She still lacked a conscious destination, her body moving on autopilot toward the place she had called home before her abduction. Were she thinking clearly, she would have realized the danger in returning there—her pursuers already knew of her attachment to the place. But she was not thinking clearly. She could hardly think at all. For now, all she could do was run.

The shrine was tucked away into the side of a mountain. The path leading to it, once well-worn, was now overgrown. Yet, this was no problem for the girl—she could have found her way there blindfolded.

After what felt like hours, she reached her destination, slowing as she approached, exhaustion finally catching up with her. Through the gloom, lightning flashed once more, revealing the faded red of the small torii gate that marked the entrance to her home.

A wave of relief crashed over her as she passed through it, stepping finally onto the sacred grounds. A few steps past the gate, that relief took hold over the adrenaline that had been coursing through her body, and she collapsed in a heap, all her energy spent.

As her mind went dark, and her vision began to fade, she wrapped her tails around herself for warmth, and flattened her two, pointed ears against her head.

Chapter 1

— A Foxgirl Appears —

The spring sunshine streamed through the curtains, slowly bringing Junichi Tanaka to consciousness. He blinked once, twice—then, with a start, he leaped out of bed, seizing his alarm clock.

How is it so late?! I thought I set this thing!

He tore through his room in a panic, throwing on his uniform. It was the first day of school. Moreover, it was his first day at a new school, after his recent transfer to the area. Being late was a less than optimal way to make a good first impression.

Thankfully, his apartment was only a few blocks away from Maruimachi High. He dashed down the street, running through the arrival instructions in his head, going through the materials he was meant to have with him—

—when suddenly, something raced across his path, at about calf height.

Jun tripped, flying forward and landing on his face.

He groaned. As he pushed himself painfully to his knees, he looked around, trying to work out what had knocked him over.

A few feet behind him, a fox stood in the middle of the sidewalk, staring at him.

It was probably only his imagination, but it looked rather annoyed.

Hey! Watch it! Jun shouted—equally annoyed, but also a bit confused. ...What do you want?

He realized that talking to a fox was unlikely to get answers, but the creature looked so expectantly at him that it felt natural to address it with a question.

The morning light gave the creature’s red fur an almost supernatural glow. He had heard of foxes sometimes living in cities, but he was fairly sure that they were usually nocturnal. In any case, they didn’t typically hang around after being spotted by a human.

However, this one continued staring at him for another moment. Jun stared back and scratched his head, wondering what it could be looking for. Then, without a word (unsurprisingly), the fox jumped onto the wall surrounding the house they stood beside. It turned its head, giving Jun an apparently meaningful look, before disappearing to the other side.

Jun approached and peered over the wall, but the fox was nowhere to be seen.

He shook his head, perplexed. What kind of careless fox wanders around the city in the middle of the morni—

The morning. School. Right. He resumed his dash, all thoughts of the fox disappearing from his head.

Getting to the classroom, finding his seat, and sorting out his belongings occupied Jun’s attention until the teacher arrived. His thoughts remained fox-free until shortly after the beginning of homeroom.

As the teacher called roll, Jun’s gaze wandered the room, taking in each student as they replied.

Riko Kyuumi-san? the teacher called.

Here!

His eyes stopped.

The girl sitting at the desk next to him answered cheerfully, raising her hand in the air.

Jun’s heart skipped a beat.

The first thing that he noticed was her smile – it lit up her whole face.

Then, he took in her long, pretty, golden-red hair, that fell in waves around her face. Thinking about it, it was similar in color to the fox he had seen that morning, actually—which made sense, in combination with the fox ears on top of her head.

Wait.

He blinked. He rubbed his eyes.

They were still there.

A weird hairband, he decided. It was probably some fashion accessory trendy with the girls in this town.

But then a movement behind her back caught his eye, and he realized that part of what he’d thought to be her hair was in fact a set of bushy fox tails, which twitched and bristled with excitement as she waved for the teacher’s attention.

His jaw fell open as he stared. A fox girl. There was a foxgirl. Right next to him. Smiling and waving, as if there were nothing unusual about this. He looked around the room, expecting others to be staring or whispering—but everyone else