As if she had already seen through what Mitsuba was thinking, Sumire looked at the hesitating Mitsuba before her. With a smile on her face, she simply asked:
"Mitsuba, are you ready to stop?"
This sounded like a question completely unrelated to the topic they were about to discuss?
Why would Little Sumire suddenly ask this?
Mitsuba was somewhat puzzled, but she immediately understood.
Because this was not the first time she had heard similar words.
On a night decades ago, Mitsuba had also heard another person say something similar to her.
That person at the time was Sumire's mother.
So, in just an instant, Mitsuba understood what Sumire meant by these words.
This was her indirectly refusing her.
Refusing that question she hadn't even asked yet.
"Mitsuba, I am a very greedy person."
Stepping forward to gently embrace the stunned Mitsuba, Sumire closed her eyes and whispered softly beside her ear with a smile:
"If I decide to reach out for something, I will definitely grasp it firmly in my hand, forever and ever, never letting go.
Because I cannot endure the jealousy of having what I want taken by others—not even a little bit.
So, Mitsuba, are you prepared?
Are you truly prepared to be grasped in my hand forever and ever, bound to me for all eternity?"
"I..."
"Don't force yourself."
Raising her hand to stroke Mitsuba's long hair, Sumire softly interrupted Mitsuba's unspoken words.
"I can sense that you are not someone willing to stop for long, Mitsuba—at least not now.
So, rather than exploiting your current guilt and gratitude toward me to force out a reluctant result.
It would be better to let go here and now, allowing our memories of each other to remain at this most beautiful and comfortable moment for us.
This is the most suitable choice for the two of us, isn't it?
Don't worry about my future. As long as you can remember me, I will not truly have died."
Sumire chose to let go.
From a personal emotional perspective, she of course wished she could stay by Mitsuba's side forever, accompanying each other until the end of time.
But from a rational perspective, she could not do this.
This was not only because she still needed to cultivate and search for the Blue Spider Lily, but more importantly, she had long noticed that Mitsuba was not someone who would stop for long for any single person.
She was naturally carefree, fond of freedom. When she grew tired of resting in one place, she would immediately set off for the next.
When she grew weary of being with one person, she would immediately withdraw to search for the next companion.
The long-lasting and fixed companionship Sumire desired would only be a shackle for Mitsuba—a shackle growing increasingly heavy.
But she was unwilling to do this, unwilling to bind Mitsuba for her own desires.
So, accompanying Mitsuba for a short time as a human, then parting at the most appropriate moment—this was actually the best way to get along with Mitsuba.
And this, too, had been Sumire's original intention.
She had decided from the very beginning to only be "that small segment of memory" in Mitsuba's eternal life.
Allowing Mitsuba to suddenly recall her for just an instant at some special moment in the future—this was enough...
Tears sliding down her cheeks, tightly hugging Sumire before her, Mitsuba opened her mouth. She seemed to want to say something, yet that normally eloquent mouth could not produce a single word at this moment.
Without any coercion, without any request from her, the Butterflies and their descendants had from beginning to end been silently protecting her in their own ways, voluntarily and without seeking any reward.
Everything was just like at that fireworks festival decades ago, when the original two made their respective wishes for each other...
"Very well, I respect your choice."
Wiping away her tears, her pupils instantly transforming into the shape of mandala flowers, Mitsuba condensed a pitch-black mandala flower in the palm of her hand.
"But, Little Sumire, I must give you this flower."
After some slight adjustment, Mitsuba handed this mandala flower to Sumire before her and said seriously:
"This flower is my domain. I have used it to alter your karma. From now on, you must always carry it with you.
It will protect you to live a long life of a hundred years. It will protect you from encountering any danger, from suffering any unexpected peril. It will ensure that your future life is smooth sailing...
As long as you are within my domain, even the gods cannot alter your karma. Do you understand?"
This was perhaps the only way she could repay these Butterflies.
Mitsuba was unwilling to forcibly change others' lives.
Having once had her own life restricted by her parents, she could not bring herself to force these Butterflies to let go of their obsessions, to forcibly make themselves forget her.
As long as it was what they truly wished to do, even if she did not agree with it, she would not harshly stop them.
But at the same time, Mitsuba could not simply watch them, one after another, throw themselves at her like moths to a flame.
So, the only thing she could do was to protect their safety to the best of her ability...
Yes, this was the only thing she could do, and what she must do.
"Mmm."
Understanding this was Mitsuba's heartfelt intention, Sumire did not refuse. Instead, she carefully accepted this mandala flower and placed it close to her body beneath her clothes.
A flower shaped by Blood Demon Art would naturally not be as fragile as ordinary flowers. As long as it was not directly exposed to sunlight, no amount of squeezing would affect it.
It could even exist like this, never withering even after hundreds or thousands of years.
"Alright, let's stop talking about these sad topics. Aren't we supposed to attend Mr. Keizo's daughter's wedding today?
Let's hurry, it's already noon. I hope we haven't been too late..."
After hiding this special mandala flower close to her body before Mitsuba's eyes, Sumire finally smiled and changed the subject.
Yes, Hakuji and Koyuki's wedding was today.
This was what Keizo had personally told the two of them at the fireworks festival the night before last.
However, what neither Mitsuba nor Sumire expected at this moment was that this small wedding, long arranged among family and friends, would ultimately fail to arrive at the fulfillment it deserved...
"Doctor Butterfly? Master Mitsuba? You've finally returned!"
Mitsuba and Sumire had just stepped out of the clinic when they saw Uncle Kudo running toward them in panic. He blocked the two of them before him and shouted in a trembling voice:
"Master Keizo and his daughter have both been poisoned to death!"
"You... what did you say?"
Mitsuba's pupils contracted violently upon hearing this, her entire person instantly frozen in place.
___
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