Steel Trim

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 43

Today was bizarre. To be honest, half of the walk over here, John was mentally preparing himself to deal with a hostage situation, but thankfully, the tax collectors didn't think of that. Yet, in all his musings, he didn't predict this.

He stared down the now kneeling, absolutely horrifying undead with a frown, before loo...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 42

It had been a while since Yuki had people react to her like this. She didn't miss it, despite how useful it was.

People cleared out of her path like she was an incoming flood, and the militia obeyed without question. At least nobody was begging for blessings yet. No, that would likely come later. This move… it may necessitate mo...

Discord Poll

Hey there everyone! I was curious: would you folks be interested in a discord server for EMK and any other projects I may do in the future? It'd probably not only be a patron server, but an open one, with patron exclusive areas.

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 41

It was hard for Rin to believe. To think that there was a nogitsune lurking in these woods… Even worse, she had the power to befuddle minds!

It was hard for Rin to believe.

To think that there was a nogitsune lurking in these woods… Even worse, she had the power to befuddle minds! Still, it had to be the truth!

It ...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 40

John did not sleep for long, and what he got was mercifully dreamless, but he felt better. Different. Yuki was right. What happened was in the past, even though it tore him up inside. He couldn't change it.

What he could do, though, was change the future, which was why he was in his workshop at dark o'clock, drawing out ideas for a new gau...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 39

John stumbled into his room and flicked on the light, slamming the door behind him and dropping the heavy barricade across it. Breathing heavily, he collapsed onto his mattress, looking up at the unadorned ceiling.

This was so fucked up. How the hell could he just pretend everything was fine after everything that happened? First, he killed...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 38

Not a word was uttered between them during the trip back to the fort; the tension hanging over the pair like an executioner's axe, with neither willing to say the first word. John stood on the far side of the path from Yuki, scanning for threats compulsively, but never letting his eyes linger in her direction for too terribly long. It might invi...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 37

"Now, let's get a good look at you," Kiku mused before spinning him around in her grip like a doll, forcing him to look at her before he could begin to process her insane statement about her and Yuki once being one and the same.

He could see the "family" resemblance between the two; the mysterious kitsune had a motherly figure like Yuki an...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 36

John did what he did best. All the bile, all the hatred, all the dread and pain and doubt burning him up from inside… he forced it down into a nice neat box to be dealt with later so he could face this monstrosity. He could—would endure. He always had.

It faded away into the background, along with the screams of the men he man...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 35

Before they went to the building, they checked the rest of the kappa's landmarks… Although they turned up nothing more than a few more entrances to the Nameless nest and what appeared to be a few shrines. The spread of the Nameless nest exits was honestly worrying, and John was starting to suspect that it might be like a damn city down there.<...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 34

John hated to give much ground on this matter to Yuki, but after even that little break, his shoulders didn't tense up in the same way, nor did he find himself blanking as he worked.

Rin had awoken and was still a bit… out of it, so Yuki had opted to keep an eye on her and try to guide her through some meditation. In fact, he could feel ...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 33

John awkwardly laid the dragon woman on the mattress she had been sleeping on, stepping back as she immediately curled up like a sleeping cat the second she touched fabric. It was weird, awkward, and he wished he were doing anything else, but it had to be done.

"How long is she going to be like that, you think?" He asked, turning to Yuki a...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 32

It took a while for John to come back to his senses, and by that point, they were already walking back to the fort to "plot their next move." Yuki had stolen his notebook a while back, writing down what were presumably all the spots where the kappa had seen armed people fishing. Now that he thought of it, he could have brought his self-drawn map...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 31

"Are you sure, John?" Yuki's voice shook him out of his trance, and he nodded after a moment of thought. Obviously, he wouldn't share anything about her, as it was not his story to tell. But his?

There was no avoiding it.

Rin had seen him crack at the mere presence of a few men whom he should have been so far beyond that the...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 30

The three walked down to the river, with Yuki in the lead, John in the middle, and Rin in the back. It still made John's spine tingle to have the new addition to the fort behind him, granted, but given how she had been looking at him with stars in her eyes this whole time, he didn't expect any issues. Really, he figured she was more likely to sh...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 29

The morning was a bit awkward, if only because John had to deliver food to Kaito. Obviously, the man didn't give him any problem when he was being untied. No, believing someone has superhuman abilities and can casually crush your skull goes a long way to making someone behave. Most of the uncomfortable silence came from seeing "Lord" John casual...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 28

John walked into the room and turned on the lights, his face kept carefully neutral even though his mind swirled, Kaito immediately quieting in his presence and freezing like a deer in headlights. John had a chair under either of his arms, and he set them up across from the captive tax collector. Perhaps three feet distant, John sat, crossing hi...

Royal Road Launch

Hey folks! Hope you enjoyed the newest chapter. I wanted to let you know about something else, too, since I have your attention, and this one may be a bit large to just silently drop in the comments. I've actually launched on Royal Road now at the link up above! I know I've been asked in the past about this, so I figured I'd spread the new aroun...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 27

John sat on the wall under the night sky, a knot of worry sitting heavily in his gut. Maybe he should have gone with Yuki. He knew that she could more than handle herself, but heading out solo always ran the risk of being blindsided by something.

He knew that he would only slow her down, though. While able to sneak, he doubted he ...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 26

Tracking them back to their residence was, honestly, embarrassingly easy. They didn't even try the most basic of tricks to ensure they weren't being followed. Really, Yuki was almost insulted. How did they even get this far without getting hunted down in the street like animals? Were they truly that secure against reprisal? She knew thi...

Title Art

Hey hey people, I have a bit of a surprise for you all today! Done by the wonderful "Realjustnothing" on Twitter, I got some cover art! Here's a version with no words, too, so you can appreciate the crazy detail they put in. (Outfits in the story may not be as shown yet, but these ones make for a way better cover.)

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 25

Yuki walked down the shaded path alone, the gentle light of the moon filtering between the leaves. She breathed in deep, soaking in the peace and starlight, and bothered not with a disguise other than uncomfortably weaving her tails together. The kitsune feared nothing this forest could offer. If the Nameless came en masse, she'd escape easily. ...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 24

The burst of inspiration carried him through most of the setup work and raw number crunching, even if Yuki sitting there watching him work was a bit of a distraction. Thankfully, he could reuse a bunch of earlier, outdated or scrapped foci for this design. How could he have been so blind? There were already ways inherent in magic where you could...

Quick Inquiry

Hey hey folks, this is going to be a weird one, but do you all happen to have any EMK memes laying about that you might have posted in a chat somewhere? I'm planning on posting this on Royal Road under the name SteelTrim in the near-ish future, and I'm absolutely awful at summarizing anything, never mind managing that in entertaining ad form. In...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 23

John looked out the door with a mild frown. Rin had taken to work eagerly, which he didn't expect. Even now, she was weeding the central courtyard, pulling plants from between the stones with a steady hand… although he did have to stop her from cleaving them with jets of water and blades of ice at first. She had clearly never done any gardenin...

Announcement

There will be no chapter this week. I had to put my cat of seven years down today due to massive kidney failure. I'm sorry.

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 22

"I… honestly don't know what to say to that," he replied, his absolute bafflement overflowing into detached serenity. The dragon woman sure had some ideas, alright. Why would that ever work? "Didn't you just threaten to kill me a few hours ago?"

Rin had the good sense and shame to wince, at least. "That was a mistake on my part," she adm...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 21

John was still fuming as he followed the cart back to town, his eyes burning a hole in the back of Rin's head between checking the surrounding forest for threats. Strangely, the woman who had threatened to cut him down a mere hour ago was… surprisingly pliant after he exploded at her, although he still wasn't sure if she actually felt guilty o...

Engineering, Magic, and Kitsune Ch. 20

"You can't just say 'no' to a duel!" exclaimed the crazed woman in disbelief.

"Why not?" John asked, "I'm not obligated to fight every weirdo who shouts at me on the street." This was, in fact, the wrong thing to say.

"How dare you!" she shouted, pounding a fist on the table hard enough to crack it. "I am Nagahama Rin, not some rando...

Quick Announcement

Heyo folks, just letting you know that next week's chapter is probably going to be in the evening rather than the morning! Unfortunately, my schedule for next week got changed so I work early on Tuesday to cover somebody's vacation, it should be only for that week, and the last time I tried to mobile post a chapter it turned into a disaster. 2025-02-25 17:30:06 +0000 UTC View Post