Chihaya pushed the silk cloth toward You.
“Start by sensing the spell pattern structure. Just like with Purification, infuse your spiritual power and feel the patterns embroidered with silver thread.”
You took a deep breath, placed his palm on the silk cloth, and closed his eyes.
Spiritual power slowly flowed out from his palm, seeping into the silk cloth. He could feel the silver threads—not with his eyes, but by “touching” them with his spiritual power. The root parts were thicker, and the spiritual power flowed relatively smoothly. The branch parts grew thinner and thinner, becoming harder to move through the further they went.
The first branch was cleared.
The second was fine.
The third got stuck.
The spiritual power couldn’t push through, as if there was a wall ahead. He tried increasing his output, but the wall didn’t budge.
He opened his eyes and looked at Chihaya.
“The third one can’t be cleared.”
Chihaya glanced down at the silk cloth.
“It means your spiritual power’s intensity and control precision are insufficient. It’s normal that you can’t clear it.”
“Then what should I do?”
“Practice.”
Chihaya’s tone was calm.
“Start with the parts you can clear, then gradually increase the difficulty. With enough practice, you’ll naturally clear it.”
You felt his temples start to throb again. He closed his eyes once more and tried a slightly thicker branch. It went in smoothly enough, but got stuck halfway again.
He opened his eyes and looked at his hands.
He thought he had more or less mastered spiritual power. He could guide it, release it, even perform incantationless casting. But now he realized that was just the basics. Fine control was a completely different matter.
Chihaya watched from the side, saying nothing.
Futaba leaned against the corridor pillar, waving her fan very slowly. Her gaze shifted between You and Chihaya, a slight smile on her lips.
Mai hugged a cushion, her chin resting on it, staring at You’s hands. Hitomi sat at the very edge, holding a cup of tea that had already gone cold.
You closed his eyes again.
This time he chose the root part—the thickest line. The spiritual power flowed smoothly, no stuttering from start to finish. He tried speeding up and slowing down, the spiritual power moving like an extension of his arm. He could control the root part freely, but the branch parts got stuck at the slightest touch.
He opened his eyes.
“The root is fine. The branches aren’t.”
Chihaya nodded.
“Then practice the root first. Train the spiritual power flow in the root part to its extreme, then gradually extend to the branches.”
“Extreme? What level counts as extreme?”
Chihaya thought for a moment.
“When casting a spell, the time for spiritual power to traverse the root part must not exceed one instant.”
‘Listen, listen. Is that even human language? One instant? What does that mean? Is there even such a unit of time?’
He suppressed his complaints and asked honestly,
“How long is one instant? Isn’t that just an adjective?”
Futaba smiled and added from the side,
“You-kun might not know, but one instant is a Buddhist unit of time. If converted to the metric system…”
She blinked.
“It’s about 0.36 seconds. You know, Shinto has a long history, so the cultivation terminology is a bit old-fashioned.”
You was silent for a while. He felt his knowledge had been subtly insulted again.
‘0.36 seconds? What a joke!’
Chihaya looked at him and softened her tone.
“Healing is inherently difficult. You’ve only been practicing for one morning. No need to rush.”
You nodded.
‘What else was there to say? Just practice.’
He placed his hand on the silk cloth again and closed his eyes. Spiritual power seeped from his palm, following the root part of the spell pattern structure, over and over. Repeated endlessly.
Chihaya watched him and nodded, saying nothing more. Although she had chosen this spell with a bit of provocation, she admired You-kun’s tenacity. This couldn’t be explained by talent alone. He would surely succeed; the only difference was how long it would take.
Futaba still had her smiling expression, slowly waving her fan.
‘This is the man I’ve set my sights on. Do your best, You-kun.’
Hitomi silently complained in her heart.
‘The passing grade for the first step of practicing the Healing curse art—the spiritual power conduction time in the root part—is clearly two instants. Chihaya just casually halved it? But I can’t say she’s lying, since she said “extreme.” Still, one instant is terrifying. Can You-kun really do it?’
She recalled when she first learned Healing. Back then, she also sat there every day, practicing over and over with the silk cloth. At that time, she thought her progress was very fast.
The elders of the Nissho Clan praised her as the most talented miko in nearly two hundred years. And she had indeed lived up to that reputation. When she first learned this step, her result for spiritual power conduction in the root part was one instant and twelve ksana. (Note: One instant equals twenty ksana.)
Yes, even with Hitomi’s talent, she had not reached the level of one instant during her learning process. But if it were him, perhaps he could do it. Thinking this, her gaze toward You carried a hint of hope.
As for Mai, she simply believed You would definitely succeed.
‘As for her sister’s requirement? That’s definitely not a problem for You-kun, because You-kun is a genius. Do your best, You-kun! You’re the best!’
You didn’t know the people around him were watching. His attention was entirely on the silk cloth.
He had gone through the root part many times, and it was already very smooth. He began trying to accelerate the spiritual power flow back and forth in the root part, but when he reached a limit, he felt the spiritual power was about to disperse.
He opened his eyes and looked at Chihaya.
“Any progress?”
Chihaya pressed her finger on the silk cloth.
“Try again. Let me feel it.”
You nodded, closed his eyes again, and began guiding the spiritual power flow through the root part. Then he opened his eyes.
Chihaya withdrew her finger and nodded calmly.
“You’ve made progress. Keep practicing.”
She sat back and continued drinking tea, but her heart was far calmer than her expression.
‘How long has it been? Half an hour? The spiritual power flow speed has improved significantly. This speed is terrifying.’
You opened his eyes again.
After some more time, he felt that through practice, his spiritual power speed had increased a bit more than before.
Chihaya clapped her hands.
“Alright, that’s enough for today.”
You was startled and opened his eyes.
“We’re not practicing anymore?”
Chihaya nodded.
“Try again tomorrow. That’s it for today. Your spiritual power circulation should have reached its limit. Overusing it doesn’t help spiritual power growth; on the contrary, it’s harmful to the body.”
You sensed the spiritual power inside him. Indeed, after the continuous practice just now, although there was still some left, it seemed a bit unstable. And only when he relaxed did he realize that sitting cross-legged on the ground and channeling spiritual power had exhausted his entire body.
“Tired?”
Chihaya asked.
“A little.”
“Then rest.”
Chihaya stood up, folded the silk cloth, and put it back in her sleeve. She turned and went into the house, then came out with a plate of snacks and a pot of tea, placing them on the veranda.
“Eat something. Replenish your strength.”