I had read enough strange stories to know one rule.
Deals with non-humans always cost more than they promise.
"What happens if I refuse?" I asked.
The fox spirit looked down at my chest. There was a hole where my heart should have been.
"You finish dying," she replied calmly.
I laughed.
Not because it was funny—but because fear had already burned itself out.
"Show me the contract," I said.
The moment I focused on the paper, something strange happened.
Words appeared beneath the ink—words that weren't there before.
Contract Effect: Borrow power from the Fox Spirit.
Hidden Cost: Gradual erosion of emotional attachments.
The fox spirit's eyes narrowed.
"Oh?" she murmured. "You can see that?"
"So every contract has a real price," I said slowly. "And you don't like when humans notice."
She stared at me for a long moment. Then she laughed.
"Interesting," she said. "Very interesting."
She changed the contract.
Hidden Cost: Loss of one human trait for every use of power.
"What trait?" I asked.
"That," she replied, "will be decided by me."
I dipped my finger into the blood pooled on the shrine floor and signed.
The paper burned away.
My heart started beating again.