The morning light grew brighter.
Kaede Village stirred awake from its slumber; wisps of cooking smoke curled upward, the farmers set out to work the fields, and the laughter and chatter of children echoed along the village paths.
It was a scene of peace rare in this age.
Within the Shrine, Kōbe Hikaru sat cross-legged on the veranda.
Before him lay the purple Thunder Horn, the dark-purple reverse scale of the Dokukō, the jet-black claw of the Nekomata, and, tucked against his chest, that red comb.
The spoils of his earlier hard-fought battles—every one of them was here.
[Thunder Beast's Horn: favourability 4]
[Dokukō's reverse scale: favourability 2]
[Nekomata's claw: favourability 1]
[Sakagami Ketsura: favourability 3]
Kōbe Hikaru looked at the numbers on the panel, pondering inwardly.
Favourability was rising far too slowly.
These things were all yōkai weapons—unlike ordinary objects, they held yōkai power of their own; they could be wielded, and would not resist his use of them.
But to truly fuse their abilities into himself, to make them part of his own mutations—that was still a long way off.
He reckoned each would need to reach 30 favourability to unlock its first talent, 50 for the second, and 100 favourability before complete fusion.
At this rate, he'd probably have to "date" each of these things for a whole month apiece.
He arranged the four items neatly before him once more, like a teacher assigning seats to his students.
The Thunder Horn sat at the far left, now and then sparking off a thread of electricity, twitching restlessly.
The reverse scale lay in the middle, quiet and still, its surface occasionally seeping a wisp of purple mist—it looked docile, but Kōbe Hikaru knew this fellow was sinister to the bone.
The Nekomata's claw was at the far right, utterly motionless, like a stone.
As for Sakagami Ketsura—
Buzz.
Buzz buzz buzz.
Sakagami Ketsura was vibrating at a rather furious frequency, as though protesting that she hadn't been set out front.
Switching on vibrate mode over here, are we?
Kōbe Hikaru pressed down on the restless comb against his chest. "Quit fussing, kid."
"You actually didn't set me out!" Sakagami Ketsura's voice came from within his lapels.
"Your spot is the innermost one."
"What? What's that supposed to mean!? Does innermost mean the most important?"
"It means I don't have to bother with you!"
"..."
Sakagami Ketsura fell silent for two seconds, then vibrated even more violently.
Only then did Kōbe Hikaru fish her out from his chest and set her at the very front of the four items—a spot all her own, facing toward him.
Like a homeroom teacher moving the naughtiest student to right beneath the lectern.
The vibrating stopped.
The skull's expression was hard to read, but the slight upward curve of that jawbone clearly carried a smug satisfaction.
This was what you called luring by letting go.
Truly worthy of me.
Kōbe Hikaru thought to himself, and simply gazed on, a thoughtful look on his face.
"Hikaru, what are you thinking about?"
A cool, clear voice came from behind him.
Kōbe Hikaru turned his head.
Kikyō was approaching, carrying a wooden tray that held two bowls of steaming congee and several little side dishes.
She had changed into a clean shrine maiden's outfit, white blouse and red hakama as ever, her jet-black hair bound behind her head with a white ribbon, a few stray strands falling at her ears.
The morning light fell across her profile, tracing out an exquisite, clean-cut contour.
Her pale cherry-blossom lips were pressed slightly together, yet within her jet-black eyes lay an indescribable softness.
Watching her, Kōbe Hikaru suddenly felt this scene was rather unreal.
Last night he'd been locked in a life-or-death struggle with the great yōkai Kibōmaru.
This morning he was eating breakfast with his lover.
The contrast was just too stark. But he liked it.
"Thinking of you."
he said, with perfect justification.
Kikyō's movements paused for a moment.
A flicker of emotion surfaced in those jet-black eyes, then quickly settled back into calm.
"Greasy."
She set the wooden tray down and sat beside him—whether she meant the greasy plate in her hands, or the yōkai at her side, or both, there was no telling.
The two of them sat shoulder to shoulder, facing the village beyond the Shrine.
In the distance, the villagers were already busy in the fields, the occasional lowing of cattle and crowing of roosters drifting over.
Little Kaede was chasing a butterfly at the village entrance, took a tumble, then scrambled up and kept after it.
Very peaceful.
Very ordinary.
As if that earth-shattering battle of last night had never happened.
"Eat up."
Kikyō pushed a bowl of congee in front of him.
Kōbe Hikaru once again said nothing about not needing to eat, but simply took up the bowl as a matter of course and drank a mouthful.
It was very hot, yet through the perception extended by his yōkai aura's simulation, the taste was actually not bad.
"Did you make it?"
"The villagers brought it."
Kikyō took up her own bowl too, sipping it in small mouthfuls.
"They said they wanted to thank you for saving the village."
Kōbe Hikaru did not reply.
He merely looked at that bowl of congee, recalling the countless slaughters he'd witnessed along his road, the many villages put to the sword.
Once upon a time, faced with such a normalized state of war, all he could do was watch.
And now, he could actually shelter a place too?
Though it was by riding on Kikyō's coattails, admittedly.
He nodded.
Their gazes met in the air.
In the morning light, that cool, clear face was right before him.
He could make out the curve of her lashes, could catch that faint fragrance about her, like wildflowers in the mountains.
"Kikyō."
"Mm?"
"You're sitting very close."
Kikyō was slightly startled.
She lowered her head and looked.
The distance between them was indeed a touch too close.
Her shoulder nearly pressed against his arm, their knees touching through the fabric.
"..."
Kikyō did not pull away.
She merely raised her head and looked into those crimson eyes of his.
"So what?"
Kōbe Hikaru smiled.
"Nothing."
he said. "Just that this is nice. Whether as a person or as a yōkai, it's good to be a little candid—no need to put on any pretense."
Kikyō agreed wholeheartedly.
Silence promptly spread out once more.
But that silence was not awkward.
On the contrary, it let the two of them, sitting quietly, feel each other's presence all the more.
And then—
Kikyō moved.
She turned to the side and tilted her head up slightly.
Those jet-black eyes looked straight at him, her cherry-colored lips parting just so.
Kōbe Hikaru froze for a moment; he truly hadn't expected Kikyō to take the initiative.
But the next second, he caught on and lowered his head.
Their lips gently touched.
Very light, very shallow, like a dragonfly skimming the water.
Yet in that instant, what Kōbe Hikaru felt was genuinely wonderful.
When they parted, a faint blush had already risen to Kikyō's cheeks.
It was the first time Kōbe Hikaru had seen her like this.
The usually cool, self-possessed shrine maiden was, in this moment, like an ordinary girl. Or rather, she should have been an ordinary girl all along, should have been enjoying the things that came with her age.
"...Stop looking."
Kikyō lowered her head, her jet-black hair falling down to hide her expression.
"Looking at what?"
"At me."
"You're my lover—if I don't look at you, who would I look at?"
Kikyō's body went still.
Then, the corners of her mouth curved up.
[Shikon Jewel — Naohi: favourability +1]
[Current favourability: 68 (Intimacy)]
[It says: "Continue."]
Looking at the prompt on the panel, Kōbe Hikaru couldn't help grumbling inwardly.
Even if this is thanks to you... still, you're a single jewel—what are you butting in for over there?
Do you even know the meaning of taking it step by step!?
Kōbe Hikaru did a tactical lean-back in his mind.
Kikyō had no idea what he was thinking; she just quietly stacked the two empty bowls together and gathered them onto the wooden tray.
Her movements unhurried, her breathing steady.
Yet the blush did not fade for a long while.
But everyday moments like these were truly nice.
Very nice.
So nice that he nearly forgot—he actually had a whole pile of serious matters to attend to.
....
The crisis, too, had truly not receded.
Having finished breakfast, Kōbe Hikaru once again took stock of the cards in his hand.
The Six Mutations.
Body, Eye, Hand, Waist, Bone, Blood.
Among them, the Bone Soul Transformation, having fused the ability of the Hiraikotsu, could freely manipulate the hardness, form, and direction of growth of bone.
This was his strongest means of attack at present.
The Blood Mutation, meanwhile, remained his strongest sensory ability.
But these alone were not enough.
That battle with Kibōmaru had already proven it.
Even with the land's recognition, even with Kikyō's cooperation, he had only barely forced his opponent back—just barely, by the narrowest of margins.
Had Kibōmaru been willing to pay any price—even the price of perishing here himself—then even with Kikyō's protection, Kōbe Hikaru might not have escaped unscathed.
Not to mention that behind Kibōmaru, there were still the other yōkai of Kyoto.
And further still... Hagoromo-Gitsune.
That was a true great yōkai.
By Kōbe Hikaru's reckoning, an existence that had completed at least thirteen mutations.
Beyond that, there was also Kibutsuji Muzan, hidden away in the darkness—that progenitor of the oni, the fellow with an undying body—who, though not especially powerful compared to these great yōkai, was nonetheless a not-insignificant nuisance.
There were far too many enemies in this world.
And his current strength was still nowhere near enough.
He needed to push his progress along a bit, too.
The Thunder Horn, the reverse scale, the Nekomata's claw—all three of these things needed their favourability maxed out as soon as possible.
Once he could fuse their power into the Six Mutations, his strength would climb another tier.
Quantitative change brings about qualitative change.
This was, after all, the path he had charted for himself.
Turning the six mutations into six great mountains, using sheer quantity to shake the threshold of qualitative change.
"What are you thinking about?"
Kikyō's voice sounded again.
Kōbe Hikaru came back to himself and found her watching him.
"Thinking about how to grow stronger."
He hid nothing. "Kibōmaru won't let this rest."
"Next time, it may not be just one Kibōmaru."
Kikyō nodded.
Her expression, too, turned grave.
"I know."
she said.
"So—"
She rose to her feet, the longbow already gripped in her hand.
In those jet-black eyes, that resolute light kindled anew.
"I won't slacken either."
"You grow stronger, and I'll grow stronger too."
"Only that way can we fight side by side—and stay together always."
Though she was already strong enough, when it came to the use of spiritual power, Kikyō could, without a doubt, grow yet more refined.
At the very least, the next time she faced an existence of Kibōmaru's caliber, she had to be able to subdue her opponent effectively!
Kōbe Hikaru looked at her.
And yet,
Gazing at this shrine maiden in the morning light—white blouse and red hakama, longbow in hand, black hair fluttering.
Kōbe Hikaru was suddenly struck by inspiration... and asked a question.
"Staying together always—does that include tonight, too?"
Even if just to hold each other, that would be fine.
At his words Kikyō was suddenly taken aback, then shot him a sidelong glare—yet, as if some spirit moved her, she did not refuse.
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