Aoi glanced around anxiously one last time, and only after confirming the coast was clear did she finally let out a breath of relief.
Leaning in, she whispered to Horitake in a worried tone, "Lord Horitake, you actually went to see Lady Kanroji's parents?! Does this... does this mean your relationship is officially set in stone? Have you already received their blessing?"
At the mention of this, Horitake couldn't help but nod with a hint of smugness. "Exactly! I have already secured the approval of Mitsuri's parents."
Aoi stared at him with a complicated expression before pressing further. "Then... do Lady Kanroji's parents know that she isn't your only woman?"
"They know that as well."
"They know?!" Aoi's eyes widened. "And they weren't angry?"
Recalling the encounter, Horitake replied, "Surprisingly, no. In a way, Mitsuri's parents are incredibly easygoing—so easy to win over that even I was caught off guard."
Caught up in the drama of it all, Aoi couldn't suppress her excitement. "How did that even happen? Tell me the details, Lord Horitake! It sounds like something very interesting must have occurred."
Looking at her gossipy face, Horitake shook his head dismissively. "Hmph. You're far too young to be this obsessed with gossip. What good does knowing this do you? Stop asking; I'm not saying another word. Anyway, get back to work, Aoi. I'm going to find Shinobu-san."
With that, Horitake turned to leave.
Aoi panicked, trying to block his path. "Wait! Just tell me, Lord Horitake! What's the harm? Just satisfy my curiosity! I promise I won't tell a soul!"
"Give it a rest. Don't I know how you gossipy women operate?" Horitake scoffed. "The moment you say you won't tell anyone is the exact moment it's destined to be leaked. You'll tell someone while swearing them to secrecy, then they'll tell someone else with the same warning, and so on until the whole world knows!"
He didn't look back as he strode down the corridor of the Butterfly Mansion.
Left behind with her basket of laundry, Aoi stamped her foot in frustration. "Lord Horitake! You're going to end up with no friends acting like that! See if I ever help you cover your tracks again!"
Horitake raised a hand without turning around. "I don't need a kid like you to cover for me. Aoi, don't you know? Relationships require honesty, not deception. When Shinobu-san asks me what happened, I'll just tell her the truth. Why should I hide it? Lying to her would only make her angrier."
Aoi watched his figure disappear into the depths of the hallway, rendered speechless. She could only sigh, abandoning her curiosity, and head out to hang the laundry.
Horitake reached the innermost part of the Butterfly Mansion and stopped before the laboratory door. Shinobu was inside, immersed in her work.
As he stared at the door, imagining her focused silhouette, Horitake couldn't help but feel a surge of nerves. Despite the bravado he had shown Aoi, his heart pounded with a mix of anticipation and guilt.
Taking a deep, steadying breath, he knocked.
"Come in," came Shinobu Kochō's voice from within.
Horitake pushed the door open and stepped inside. He found Shinobu seated at her research table, surrounded by an array of vials and jars, completely absorbed in her task.
One glance told him she wasn't brewing medicine; she was developing poison. He knew this because her medicinal alchemy table was on the opposite side of the room. This side was reserved for her deadlier "personal projects."
Walking up behind her, he gazed at her busy back. Suddenly, a visceral impulse took hold of him. Without a word, he reached out and wrapped his arms around her from behind, pulling her into a tight, warm embrace.
Shinobu had originally intended to give him a hard time for his long absence, but the suddenness of the hug caused her resentment and anger to melt away instantly.
She turned her head slightly, looking at his face which was now inches from her own, and murmured with a hint of reproach, "Oh? So you actually remember the way back?"
The words pierced through to the softest part of Horitake's heart.
The way she said it... it made him feel like a wayward husband who had been out carousing until the early hours, only to find his aggrieved wife waiting up for him. A wife who knew of his philandering but suffered in silence, unwilling to break the bond, greeting his late return with nothing but a melancholy sigh.
In that moment, Horitake was flooded with guilt. He felt like an absolute scumbag—the kind that deserved to be struck by divine lightning.
Think about it: what had he been doing this past week?
He had been meeting Mitsuri's parents. He had been visiting the sleeping Nezuko, waiting for her to wake up so he could indulge in some tender affection with her.
From a certain perspective, he really had been out "fooling around" for a week. And while he was enjoying himself, Shinobu had been here, toiling away alone.
The realization weighed heavily on him. He tightened his grip on her, pressing his cheek against hers, and whispered with genuine sincerity, "Shinobu-san... I'm sorry."
Just from the tone of his voice, Shinobu knew. She knew he hadn't been "behaving" himself during his week away. While she doubted he was doing anything truly nefarious, he had almost certainly been spending time with the other two.
She rolled her eyes at him with a look that was both coquettish and exasperated, her voice softening into a playful tease. "Go on then. Tell me. Just how many things have you done behind my back to be sorry for?"
Horitake pulled a chair over and sat down beside her, keeping one arm firmly around her waist.
"What do you mean 'behind your back'? That makes it sound so terrible. I just went to see Mitsuri and Nezuko. You already know about the two of them."
"Just because I know doesn't mean I don't mind, you know," she countered gently.
"Shinobu-san, don't be like that. Don't you want to know what I actually did?"
"Fine," she sighed, leaning into him. "Speak. I'm listening."
And so, as they leaned against one another, Horitake slowly recounted the events of the past week.
Shinobu listened intently, shifting from an emotional perspective to a more objective one. Once he finished, she processed the information and reached a conclusion.
"I see... so that's how it was."
She nodded thoughtfully. "Visiting Mitsuri's parents... that is understandable. You've been with her for a year now, and she asked you to meet them quite some time ago. It was a reasonable thing to do."
"And as for Nezuko... she slept for two years straight, and you rarely had the chance to visit her during that time. Seeing her now that she's finally awake is also perfectly logical. Taking care of your juniors and your little brother figure was just your duty as a senior."
She paused, looking at him. "Technically speaking, you didn't actually do anything 'wrong' this past week."
"But then," she added, her voice trailing off with a faint pout, "why is it that I still feel so incredibly annoyed?"
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