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Pat*eon : ilham20
"Okay—"
Kanao Tsuyuri answered without hesitation. She would never refuse anything Kanae asked, even if she didn't fully understand what it meant. Kanae had been the first person to truly reach her heart and become family.
Aoi Kanzaki didn't overthink it either. The moment she heard Kanae's request, she agreed on instinct. Anyone who spent even a little time around Kanae found it almost impossible not to melt in her warmth. Aoi was no exception.
"Huh?"
A second later the realization hit. Aoi jerked back from the hug, eyes wide, mouth hanging open in pure shock. "Nani? Nani? Nani?!"
What did she mean by "become Shuya's person"?!
Was that what she thought it was?!
No way… right?
Kanae opened her mouth to explain, but two voices cut her off at the same time.
"No way!"
It was Shinobu and Nezuko, speaking in perfect unison. They both froze, then glanced at each other.
Shinobu wasn't surprised Nezuko had spoken up. Nezuko, on the other hand, turned bright red the second Shinobu looked at her. She quickly dropped her gaze to her own feet, too embarrassed to say another word.
Everyone at the Butterfly Mansion already knew she liked Shuya— the three little girls had basically made it public knowledge. She had even secretly kissed him earlier. But having it pointed out like this still made her heart race with shy panic.
Kanae didn't look at Nezuko. Instead she turned to her sister with genuine confusion. "Why not?"
"This is what I should be asking you!" Shinobu shot back, voice rising. "Do you even know what you're saying?! 'Become Shuya's person'? Are you seriously trying to push them into the fire?!"
"Of course I know what I'm saying," Kanae replied calmly. "But—"
She had made the request to Kanao and Aoi precisely because she understood everything. If this were before she died, she would have focused only on destroying Muzan and preventing more tragedies. But now that she had come back to life and seen how heavily Shinobu had been carrying the burden for her sake, a small, selfish wish had taken root in her heart.
Destroying Muzan was still important. But more than anything, she wanted her little sisters to be happy. Truly happy.
Kanae met Shinobu's eyes and spoke softly, just two words. "The contract—"
Shinobu's momentum faltered. The fight drained out of her instantly. Because of the contract that now bound them, she could feel exactly what her sister was thinking. She had no right to criticize that tiny selfish wish. It was the same thing Kanae had always wanted—for them to live like normal girls and find ordinary happiness.
Now she was just adding one small, personal hope on top: that they could all be happy together, and stay sisters forever.
Shinobu had actually known this would happen the moment she signed the contract. She had just been too overwhelmed by the joy of getting her sister back to think about it.
Even though she hadn't read the scroll before signing, the moment her name touched the paper, every detail had burned itself into her heart. From that day on, she no longer belonged only to herself. Her life and Kanae's life were now completely tied to Shuya.
Maybe even after Muzan was gone, they would never get the peaceful, ordinary life Kanae had once dreamed of. But as long as she had her sister, Shinobu was content. She wasn't against sharing Shuya with others—after all, he had never belonged to just the two of them. She simply didn't know him well enough yet. Their contract had been made mostly because of Kanae.
She didn't want to force Aoi or Kanao into anything.
Kanae felt her sister's hesitation and offered gently, "Then how about this, little Shinobu? Let them decide for themselves?"
Shinobu hesitated, then glanced at the hopeful look on her sister's face and finally gave in. "Fine… okay."
"It's settled then. No take-backs~"
Kanae grinned like a little kid and held out her pinky. "Pinky swear—"
Shinobu sighed, looked around at Aoi and the others, then at her sister's serious expression. She had no choice. She hooked her pinky with Kanae's.
"Pinky swear. If you lie, you have to swallow a thousand needles."
The moment their fingers linked, Kanae's face lit up with pure victory. She turned to Aoi while gently patting Kanao's head. "Aoi, you can try spending more time with Shuya if you want. If you really don't like him, I won't push you."
She looked down at Kanao, who was still enjoying the head pats. "And you too, Kanao. If you don't like it, just say so. No coin flips!"
"Mm."
Kanao nodded blankly, still not entirely sure what was happening.
Aoi's brain was still spinning. Had her future really just been decided like that? She hadn't understood half the coded conversation between the sisters, but one thing was clear—Kanae was alive because of Shuya. And the price for bringing her back was probably that the girls had to become his women.
Looking at the expression on Shinobu's face, Aoi was pretty sure her guess was right. If it meant she could stay with Kanae forever as sisters, she was willing. But actually offering herself to someone… even she felt a little shy about that.
Trying things out first, though? That was fine.
Aoi let out a small breath of relief. "Okay. I understand."
Once the matter with her little sisters was settled, Kanae finally turned her attention to the only outsider in the room—Nezuko. Her gaze dropped to the wooden training sword at Nezuko's feet.
She tilted her head curiously. "Little one… do you want to learn Breathing Techniques so you can avenge your family?"