After little Sara woke up, everyone around her had already started on their own tasks.
Under the expectant gazes of his little sister and mother, little Ayato began writing.
Meanwhile, big sister Eula was teaching Lord Shura Anyakonsen-shou how to draw.
The idle head of the Kamisato household was admiring paintings and calligraphy.
And Kirara, the cat, had run over to the old man's side to affix plum blossom seals onto the artwork.
"Hmm? Have you thought of something?"
The old man, sensing that little Sara had opened her eyes, turned to ask her.
"Mm. Her Excellency the Shogun... I think she's someone who appears cold on the outside, but is actually very gentle, right?"
Hmm...
Hearing little Sara's words, the old man fell into thought.
That statement was probably pretty accurate, wasn't it?
Deciding not to shatter the image little Sara held dear in her heart, the old man nodded.
"Then go ahead and write it. If you have an idea, there's no problem putting it down."
"Mm, I understand."
Little Sara nodded, then very methodically found herself a desk and began to write.
But the old man did not join the children in writing. Instead, he chose to practice drawing.
The drawing process could not exactly be called smooth—it was full of twists and turns.
First, he sketched the correct outline. At the beginning, it was all rough drafts. Though it was a bit slow, the old man patiently drew out the portrait stroke by stroke.
Then he placed a sheet of translucent paper over the draft and inked the line art.
Coloring...
Touching up details, adding shadows...
It sounded easy enough, but once he actually started working on it, he basically had to keep running over to little Eula every few minutes to confirm where his drawing had gone wrong.
By the time he finally finished the piece, it was already time for bed.
Little Eula looked at the girl the old man had drawn and fell into thought...
This girl...
She had already moved beyond the "little milk bun" category—she felt a bit younger than herself...
Yet under the old man's brush, she carried a gentle, almost wife-like warmth...
"Old man, does this girl actually exist?"
"Maybe?"
"Maybe?"
"The old man's wife is Seele, but the main wife is her—she's the one who runs the household."
"Oh, so that's how it is."
So it was still the old man's paper-wife after all...
Little Eula instantly understood the meaning behind the old man's words.
But for some reason, it felt like all the paper-wives the old man liked tended to look quite young.
"Alright, alright, time to get ready for bed."
The old man stretched lazily—drawing really took a lot out of him.
Then he stood up, intending to head back to his room to sleep.
"Old man, aren't you going to put these away?"
Little Eula looked at the drawing and title the old man had left on the table.
"Nah, I'll need them again tomorrow."
The old man yawned, looking quite listless.
Little Eula looked at the old man, feeling rather helpless.
She glanced at the artwork on the table, held down by a paperweight.
After thinking it over, she figured nothing would happen to it in the Kamisato household, so she simply followed the old man and left.
The other children had already returned to their rooms early in preparation for the busy day ahead.
The pavilion, which had just been lively moments ago, suddenly grew quiet and empty.
As the cold moonlight shone down, the little pavilion appeared even more desolate.
A gentle breeze passed through. The drawing held down by the paperweight remained unchanged.
Yet under the moonlight, the white-haired girl in the painting, draped in a white fur shawl, still smiled with the same gentle softness.
And above the artwork were the words the one who had just picked up the brush had left behind.
Liyue: Huang Kingdom
Chapter One: The Realm Is Hard to Govern—Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage by the Lord of Geo
Final Chapter: The Seven Stars' Lamps Extinguished—The Wise King Falls Ill and Passes at Guili Plains