"Hitomi, go back and inform everyone that the Test of Courage is over. As for the winners, well... they've already been decided."
Miko turned toward the bob-haired shrine maiden beside her—Hitomi—and gave her the instruction.
"All right. I'll head over right away."
After bowing to Miko, Hitomi turned around and left under everyone's gaze.
"Why did you choose her to be the shrine maiden hosting this Test of Courage?"
Watching the young girl's departing figure, the Shogun could not help turning her attention back toward Miko and asking.
"Hehe... How should I put it? That child has always been somewhat interested in this sort of thing. She even reads supernatural novels from time to time, so I simply went along with it and had her come."
Miko smiled, stroked one of her fluffy ears, and answered mysteriously.
"Now that the truth has been uncovered, I'll go meet with my client as well. 'Attempted theft' isn't a particularly serious offense, but it can't go entirely unpunished either. I'll take my leave first, Shogun-sama, Guuji Yae. I hope the two of you enjoy yourselves."
Heizou did not linger either. Since the incident had already been resolved, he still had his own matters to deal with, so there was no reason to waste any more time. After exchanging a few polite words with the two ladies, he prepared to leave.
"Mm... Go on. If you happen to see Sara afterward, give her this body's regards."
The Shogun nodded in acknowledgment and gave him this instruction before he departed.
"As you command..."
Heizou bowed to her, then left the area. Only three people remained, though strictly speaking... there should have been four, since Ei was still inside the Plane of Euthymia.
"I didn't expect you to team up with that boy..."
Once Heizou had left, Miko teased her.
"Haa... We simply happened to cross paths. Besides, he contributed greatly to resolving this incident and deserves praise."
She sighed and answered in that manner.
"Hehe, that's true..."
Miko shrugged.
"..."
During this time, Chizuru did not interrupt. She merely stood quietly to one side, perhaps lost in her own thoughts, or perhaps simply unable to find a place to join the conversation.
"Speaking of which, Miko... since you chose this pair of hagoita as the item for the third round of the Test of Courage, does that mean you knew about her from the very beginning?"
Remembering their earlier discussion, the Shogun glanced at the silent Chizuru beside them and deliberately asked the pink-haired shrine maiden.
Her question also pulled Chizuru out of her thoughts. Upon hearing the familiar surname of the pink-haired shrine maiden, the woman froze, suddenly remembering something...
"Miko... Guuji Yae... Yae... Could you possibly be—!"
She remembered, though she was still somewhat uncertain.
"I don't know whether you still remember, but during one year's Mikawa Flower Festival, I followed beside Kitsune Saiguu and watched her play Akitsu Haneasobi."
Miko folded her arms lightly across her chest, a trace of nostalgia entering her violet eyes.
"I saw you back then too. Of course, at the time, you probably hadn't developed a human form yet. You'd only just begun to possess the faintest hint of thought and awareness."
The nostalgia in her gaze gradually faded as she turned her attention back to Chizuru before her, looking rather interested.
"Lady Kitsune Saiguu... Ah, I remember now! You were the one sitting on Lady Kitsune Saiguu's shoulder back then..."
Chizuru finally confirmed Miko's identity, surprise appearing on her face. Before long, however, it faded somewhat, and her gaze took on the look of someone comparing the woman before her to the little fox from those days.
Miko nodded upon hearing this.
"That's right. Some time ago, I was taking a walk along the beach when I sensed familiar youkai power nearby. Although it was extremely faint, I still managed to find you. You were sitting in a tree, gazing at the travelers in the distance."
"I heard you quietly reminding yourself that you had to endure it, that you couldn't interact with humans."
Miko softened her voice and spoke as gently as possible while recalling what she had seen.
"..."
Chizuru awkwardly turned her gaze aside. A trace of shy embarrassment appeared in her expression, though what Miko said was indeed true.
"When did you...? I didn't notice you at all..."
She looked back toward the pink-haired shrine maiden, puzzled.
"Your power is so weak that it would have been stranger if you had noticed me."
Miko shook her head helplessly. In doing so, she also indirectly answered the question the Shogun had asked earlier. Chizuru had wanted to join the crowd, yet because of what had happened before, she forced herself to stay away from them, enduring the erosion of loneliness.
The Shogun understood now. Even without Miko saying it aloud, she knew why Miko had done this. After all, that woman was best at pulling these sorts of little schemes, and as fellow youkai, perhaps it was easier for Miko to understand Chizuru's feelings.
"Actually, you've been blaming yourself all this time, haven't you? In your heart, the fact that Kamai and the samurai met through Akitsu Haneasobi is inseparably connected to you."
Naturally, the perceptive Miko knew exactly what Chizuru was thinking. With a few simple words, she directly exposed the knot buried in the woman's heart.
"...Back then, I still couldn't take on a human form like this. I only possessed a vague consciousness."
Chizuru sighed.
"When they met at the Mikawa Flower Festival, I felt very proud, because I too had left a mark on their story."
As Chizuru spoke, a trace of happiness entered her voice. Just as she said, it had been something that made her proud.
"After they parted, I often heard Mr. Kamai sighing. I began blaming myself as well and couldn't help hiding away. When I woke again, the world had already changed."
"Lady Yae, can you tell me? Meeting again and again, parting again and again, brief moments rushing by in the blink of an eye, leaving behind nothing but regret and sorrow."
"Does our meeting with humans... truly have any meaning?"
Chizuru asked.
"The answer to that question is actually very simple. I think you already know it yourself. Why wouldn't it have meaning? Were you happy? Did meeting them make you happy?"
Miko asked in return.
"I... was happy."
Chizuru nodded.
"Then there you have it. As long as it made you happy, it had meaning. Saying that it was 'meaningless' is nothing more than deceiving yourself."
Miko shrugged.
"...But..."
"I know you're still uncertain and confused. I don't intend to force an answer into your head either. Some things are better understood on your own."
Miko understood her current state of mind and therefore gave her time.
"Mm..."
Chizuru obediently nodded.
"Actually, the story you mentioned—the story of Kamai and the human samurai—didn't end there."
Miko said.
"How could that be? Those two should never have met again."
Chizuru froze, sounding somewhat doubtful.
"The samurai's name was Yanagibashi Takuto. He was also the founder of the Soran Isshin Style. It's said that he comprehended this school of swordsmanship through his sparring matches with Kamai. Its third-generation head, Tominaga Masaya, also became close friends with Kamai.
"Five hundred years ago, the two fought side by side until the very end. The sword Tominaga wielded had also been passed down from Yanagibashi back then. For Kamai, the regret he once carried was instead resolved at that moment."
"I see..."
Chizuru suddenly understood... and also grasped what Miko was trying to say.
"Would you still say now that their meeting, including our own meetings with humans, was meaningless?"
Miko asked again.
"..."
Chizuru slowly shook her head.
"Exactly. Hehe... It seems you've understood as well. Fleeting splendor passes swiftly, and mortal life is like dew. That's precisely why we should enjoy the present while we can. You understand what I mean now, don't you?"
Miko smiled, then deliberately glanced at the Shogun, who had been lost in thought for quite some time. Her eyes shifted slightly before she secretly let out a sigh.
Those words had actually been meant for this child as well. But very clearly, she wasn't able to take them in right now, perhaps because she had fallen into some private confusion of her own.
Haa. It looks like I'll have to speak with her alone afterward.