[Part 4/4]
"Doubts regarding you and your maid haven't yet been cleared. Do you understand that?"
"So you're going to confine her, too?"
Instantly seizing onto Sumire's words, her mother-in-law retorted. Placing a hand on Tamaki's shoulder and pulling her close, she fixed a sharp gaze on her son's wife. It was a scene reminiscent of a protective mother bear guarding her cub.
"..."
"..."
Though Aoi and Shirowakamaru felt a complex mixture of emotions in response to this attitude, they refrained from voicing anything.
"...Mother-in-law. Haste in reaching conclusions is not advisable. Please listen to the entire story."
Looking at her unemotionally from the front, Sumire sighed softly and conveyed her differing perspective to her mother-in-law. Then, she narrowed her eyes and gazed intently at Tamaki.
"Tamaki-san. As your instructor, I'll provide you with an opportunity."
"An opportunity...?"
"Yes, it's a story that fulfills your wish."
"Tamaki-san, no way!? Something like that..."
Kochou noticed the unsettling tone of the conversation and tried to interject, but it was too late. Sumire voiced her proposal.
"I'll grant you permission to independently search for the Ezo princess. If you manage to apprehend your maid during that process, then I'll arrange for you to interrogate her about the incident, leaving it to you rather than the mayor and others."
"...!!?"
The instructor's proposal was something Tamaki couldn't simply ignore. It was an exceedingly appealing proposition.
"Is that... really true!?"
"Yes. If you don't trust me, I can draft a written agreement. We can even enter a Curse Art contract. As far as my authority extends, I'll facilitate your inquiries with your maid."
However, Sumire added a condition.
"But it's only if you can protect her. And once you accept the contract as an exorcist, you must fulfill your duties even if it means risking your life. Are you prepared for that?"
"Stop joking!!"
Kochou forcefully shouted in response to Sumire's words. Intimidated by her determination, Shirowakamaru, who had been holding back, shrank her shoulders in fear.
"..."
Although Aoi didn't show it on her face, she was undoubtedly surprised. This old woman rarely expressed her emotions so openly. Perhaps only for him? Could it be, this old hag...
"This child has only been in our care for half a year and is still a household member in training! Yet, despite being a responsible instructor, what are you thinking, allowing this?"
"It's fine."
"Tamaki-san!?"
Tamaki didn't turn her head in response to Kochou's astonished gaze. She had already made up her mind.
"I understand the logic too. And I understand the urgency of the situation. ...And besides, nothing will start if I don't make a decision."
Tamaki lowered her head as if recalling something, then immediately looked straight at her instructor. With a strong resolve, she stared at her.
"...Madam Advisor, thank you for protesting on my behalf. However, I can't back down on this matter. In any case, it's an urgent issue, and having more hands would be better."
"Even so, does that mean..."
In contrast to Tamaki's determination, Kochou trembled as she spoke. Her face turned pale, and she seemed on the verge of fainting.
"Allowing a solo search?"
It was Aoi who made the pointed observation. Everyone present directed their attention to the sakura-colored figure.
"Mother, if you still suspect the household member there, you wouldn't allow solo actions, would you?"
"So, do you want me to assign an escort for her?"
"Well, just so you know, there's a young boy over there. Shikigami Art practitioner, Hotoya's young lady, who was trained in swordsmanship. I think it would be better for both of them to work together, complementing each other."
With a sharp gaze, Kochou turned to her disciple, the former boy. Under the collective gaze, the former boy prodigy met Tamaki's eyes and relented.
"Um, Shirowakamaru-kun? I, well..."
"If my master permits it, I'm fine with anything."
Her response ignored Tamaki's hesitancy and confusion. And the response she received from her instructor was already a foregone conclusion. And so, Shirowakamaru's company was decided upon.
"...Understood. Then, I will also dispatch one person as an overseer and assistant."
"Dispatch...?"
Sumire granted permission for Shirowakamaru to accompany them, but she wasn't done. She inserted another participant into the equation, much to Aoi's puzzled expression. The question of who would be dispatched made everyone on the scene wary and curious.
"It's still before dawn. For now, you should rest. Tomorrow morning, I'll send someone from my side to your room... Well then, I'll take my leave. I need to assist that person."
Sumire declared unilaterally and turned her back on Tamaki and the others.
"Oh, wait...!"
"That's right. Tamaki-san. It would be wise not to bring an Ezo servant with you this time, right? ...If you don't want to raise unnecessary suspicions."
"What...?"
Tamaki was about to say something to her instructor, but before she could, Sumire warned her. Warning given, she disappeared down the hallway without looking back.
"Unnecessary, suspicions...?"
Amidst the clear hostility in Hotoya and Shirowakamaru's gazes, Tamaki alone pondered her stern instructor's words, trying to make sense of their peculiar phrasing.
While Kochou and Shirowakamaru directed clearly hostile gazes, Tamaki was the only one silently mulling over her strict instructor's words. Trying to comprehend the peculiar phrasing as she felt confused...
...
...
...
"Sigh..."
In a dimly lit room, the sakura-colored princess continued to stare at her receding back reflected in the mirror, finally letting out a deep sigh. A sigh of relief.
"Princess..."
"Lower it. That's enough."
She spoke coldly to the half-youkai who had been waiting outside the folding screen. Rather than malice, it stemmed from a lack of emotional composure.
For her now, even conversations with her blood relatives through the shikigami were a considerable burden. Normally, she could have established a direct visual connection through the ritual, without the intermediary of the mirror.
...Without the mirror, she couldn't gather the courage to look at her birth mother directly. The weight of the past had made her feel so powerless.
"Phew..."
"Um, um, Princess..."
Another sigh. Breathing even weaker than before. The hesitant tone of Shiro as she addressed her master seemed to suggest her own frailty. The princess knew the reason.
"...What is it?"
"Did it go well? That... promise with your birth mother..."
"Oh, are you dissatisfied with the fact that you were confined because of 'his' sister?"
"N-No, it's not like that..."
The white girl denied in haste. Of course... that was impossible. The princess looked down at her servant with a cold gaze. She knew. She knew that this fox, who was now awkwardly avoiding her gaze, was also longing for him, seeking him incessantly.
She wanted him to comfort her about her past...
(...That golden fox, maybe I should stuff it and make a trophy out of it.)
It was truly detestable. To dig up unnecessary memories, to disturb a sleeping child, what was the purpose of all this? Thanks to that, she had managed to instill a sense of dependency in the innocent girl who was trying to stand on her own.
(I hope I can somehow soften the landing...)
The tanuki woman's curse is a problem too. That would make him sad as well. Hurting or getting rid of her isn't a good solution. It would be better if the situation could be fixed without trouble. But even though this white girl is half-human and half-youkai, a youkai is still a youkai (a kind of spirit creature). When a youkai gets too full of itself and only cares about what it wants, it becomes a hassle. Actually, when she said she wasn't happy before, it was a sign of that.
Aoi even thought about leaving his beloved's sister because it's hard to stay in touch with him. But she denied it.
"However, the promise with Tomobe-san..."
"I will fulfill it. At least, I will go."
That woman, who had neglected her for so long, wouldn't know. She wouldn't be aware of the last trump card Aoi could summon using the legitimate Shikigami technique. If combined with Chouei, it's unlikely that anyone would suspect that she was attempting to escape.
The issue is whether he will come himself... From the information obtained through the succubus that controls the hummingbird, Aoi had an inkling. He is not by the side of her detestable parents now. He's hidden somewhere.
He's probably assigned to some kind of task, but Aoi was annoyed by how he willingly followed the orders of those irritating individuals as if he were intended for them. Is he intending to interfere with contact with him? Or is it a warning to him himself...
"...There's no use worrying about it."
If that's his choice, then she can only accept it. After all, she's always been unreasonable and selfish. If she were to go back on that just this once, it would mean that's what it's all about. She must respect that. There's no other way.
So, it's fine. She'll make the others understand. In fact, if she can be the guinea pig for their experiment, it should be fine for all of them. It was a wonderful friendship among women.
"Hehe. Friendship, huh..."
Reflecting on such a relationship, Aoi chuckled, now realizing that she had changed.
"Princess...?"
"But more importantly..."
Ignoring the puzzled Shiro, Aoi murmured to herself as if pondering something. Just who was that woman (Sumire) talking about when she mentioned an additional overseer...
"I've heard the story!! You really are quite a troublesome person, aren't you!? It can't be helped. My master, my teacher bowed so deeply. In order to save face, I will personally serve as the overseer. If you do anything strange, I'll chop off your head on the spot... yeek!!?"
"...Huh?"
The next morning, a younger senior disciple (Murasaki) entered the room by swinging open the shouji paper door forcefully and then immediately stumbled and fell dramatically. Tamaki stared in astonishment, her mouth agape...
Fan art:
Title: Blue Demon
URL: [Link]
Title: Kayo-chan and Chouei
URL: [Link]
Q: Hey, author. Why does the daughter of Ako in this worldline also hit her head?
A: Isn't it because of the world's power of revision?
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