The autumn wind howled, particularly in the mountains at night, carrying the crisp chill of moonlight like a frigid blade.
“It’s so cold, so cold…” The white-haired girl, walking through the forest, rubbed her hands together, attempting to generate some warmth.
Even after nightfall, Shion had still ventured out wearing her Miko attire. Moreover, to prepare for a potentially severe surge of malevolent spirits, she had brought Spirit Cutter with her.
Her entire ensemble was clearly intended for exorcism. If nothing transpired tonight, she would simply consider it an outing as a cosplay Miko. However, should any evil spirits appear, this outfit would prove quite useful.
As she walked, the young woman continuously released her abilities, attempting to detect any surge of evil spirits in the surroundings.
Regrettably, the town was eerily quiet that day, almost as if evil spirits had never existed. Not a single trace of their presence could be sensed.
As Shion broke from her focused state, a bone-chilling cold immediately surged through her legs.
“Ugh, seriously, did they not consider winter when designing this Miko outfit? At least give me some tights and gloves!” Shion stood by the roadside, vigorously rubbing her legs together.
Though the warmth was fleeting, it was, at the very least, better than nothing.
‘I need to hurry, hurry to Rie’s house. It’ll be warm there…’
As she neared Rie’s doorstep, Grandpa Butler was already waiting. The moment he spotted the wisp of white in the twilight, he bowed respectfully to Shion.
“Guardian Lady, thank you for your arduous visit late this evening. Refreshments have been prepared; please, come in quickly.”
“Alright, thank you, Grandpa Butler.”
Although she had visited many times before, their meetings had almost always taken place at the Akifuu Onsen Ryokan. Rie had always claimed it was for “a good rest in the hot springs after an exorcism.”
Well, that was her excuse, but Shion always came for exorcisms at night. If she were to soak in a hot spring late in the evening, she’d have no choice but to go to school wrapped in a bath towel the next morning.
‘So, this might actually be my first time visiting Rie’s house?’
Stepping inside Rie’s home, Shion was somewhat surprised. Despite being a prominent local family, renowned for their immense wealth, the interior decoration was not overtly opulent.
Pale green tatami mats covered the floor, and a red and white peony blossom sat atop a reddish-brown wooden cabinet. The walls were adorned with numerous paintings, a mix of ink wash and oil, almost all depicting various corners of the town.
“Shion-chan, the Hoshimori Shrine is right here, you know~” Just as Shion was lost in admiration of a painting, Rie had, at some unknown moment, approached her from behind.
She placed her left hand on Shion’s shoulder and her right directly around her waist, as if to guide her away with an embrace.
“Senpai, that tickles a bit!” Shion exclaimed, though she made no move to push Rie’s hands away.
“Alright, Shion-chan, won’t you have something to eat? It’s quite late, and the butler has already prepared some snacks.” Rie guided Shion to sit on the sofa, the two girls settling shoulder to shoulder.
Rie picked up a small slice of cream cake and brought it to Shion’s lips.
“There, there, Shion-chan, have a bite,” Rie said with a beaming smile.
“Senpai, I’m not a child!”
“But feeding Shion-chan is so much fun.”
Though Shion still looked a little pouty, she obediently opened her mouth, allowing Rie to place the cream cake inside.
The cream cake was perfectly sized, perfectly sweet, and the richness of the cream was just right.
“So sweet…”
“Mm, it’s delicious, isn’t it? Have some more~” Rie gently pulled Shion closer, making her turn sideways, and picked up another slice of cake. “This one’s red velvet cake~”
Shion opened her mouth again, swallowing the cake in one bite. ‘Still… so delicious!’
“As expected, Shion-chan truly loves cream desserts. It seems I’ll have to prepare more next time.”
“Senpai, you still have cream on your finger,” Shion said, extending a small hand to point at Rie’s finger.
“Oh? You’re right, I’ll just wipe it off.”
With that, Rie pressed her cream-stained finger against Shion’s inner thigh, beneath her skirt, and gently traced downwards.
“Eep!”
Her sensitive area infringed upon, Shion’s body trembled violently, a sharp gasp escaping her lips.
“Senpai, you’re so mischievous!” Shion couldn’t help but retort.
Rie chuckled mischievously. “Oh? How is that my fault? Wasn’t it Shion-chan who insisted on lying in my arms, wanting me to feed her little cakes?”
“What??” Shion turned her head, only then realizing that, under Rie’s deliberate guidance, she had almost been cradled in a princess carry, lying in Rie’s arms and being fed small cakes like a baby.
Shion quickly wriggled free from Rie’s grasp, then sat upright on the sofa, watching Rie warily, like a mouse observing a cat. “Senpai, you’re terrifying! I didn’t even notice I was lying in your lap. It feels like if I’m not careful, I’ll be completely devoured.”
“What’s wrong with that? Isn’t being completely devoured by your senpai a good thing?”
Shion gulped. Ever since she and Rie returned from Tokyo, Rie’s assertiveness had been consistently strong. While she maintained the demeanor of a refined young lady in public, her private conduct was, at times, a little intimidating!
“Um, Senpai, let’s talk business first! I came to ask if you’ve been ‘relieving pressure’ from the seal again recently?” Shion quickly brought up the primary reason for her visit to Rie.
“No, I haven’t in the past few days. Besides, if I were to ‘relieve pressure,’ I would definitely need to contact you. I don’t have a way to deal with those evil spirits on my own,” Rie said, shaking her head.
“But when I performed my prayer detection today, I sensed a strong evil spirit presence…” Shion expressed her concern. “Though I didn’t feel it again on my way here.”
Rie pondered for a moment, deep in thought. Then, she closed her eyes.
Shion could tell that Rie, before her, was likely sensing something as well. As the successor to the Igarashi family, she possessed her own unique ‘link’ to the seal.
“Nothing. The seal is completely intact, and there’s no significant pressure,” Rie stated decisively.
“Ah, if that’s the case… then why did I sense it?” Shion was beginning to feel quite perplexed.
“Oh, well, if Shion-chan can’t sense it, let’s set it aside for now. After all, I’m confident you can suppress evil spirits, and if not, I can simply draw it into the seal myself,” Rie said, winking.
“Shion-chan, since you’re already here, shouldn’t we do something tonight?”