The group quickly found a restaurant and sat down. The shop wasn’t large, and a noren curtain printed with the words “Hakone” hung at the entrance. Inside was a tatami private room.
After sitting down, the girls first introduced themselves to Hitomi. Chihaya’s tone was flat, Mai was a bit shy, and Futaba was still all smiles. Hitomi responded to each in turn, her voice gentle and her smile appropriate.
The atmosphere seemed harmonious. You felt relieved. His premonition from earlier must have been an illusion. This atmosphere looks pretty harmonious.
Chihaya smiled at him. Her smile was very sweet, but sweet in a slightly off way. You looked confused.
“You, could you go buy me a drink? I want the matcha milk from that shop we passed earlier.”
“Why didn’t you say you wanted it when we passed by? Now you’re asking?”
Mai’s eyes lit up. She leaned in, pressed her hands together in front of her chest, and used that cute voice that any normal guy would find impossible to resist.
“I want chocolate milk too, You. Please go get it for me—”
Futaba chimed in with a grin.
“I want mango.”
You started to catch on. These girls were trying to get rid of him. He raised his hands in surrender.
“Fine, fine, I’ll go, I’ll go.”
He counted on his fingers.
“Chihaya matcha, Mai chocolate, Futaba mango—right?”
He turned to Hitomi.
“What flavor do you want, Hitomi? I’ll get it all at once.”
Hitomi blinked, surprised to be asked.
“Ah, me?”
She thought for a moment.
“Strawberry would be fine. Thank you, Divine Child.”
You nodded, stood up, and slid the door shut behind you as you left. Footsteps faded down the corridor.
***
As the door closed, the atmosphere in the room shifted instantly.
Chihaya picked up her teacup, took a small sip, and set it down. The bottom hit the table with a sharp clink.
She smiled.
“Now that You is gone, we can have a proper talk.”
‘Hitomi joining is the will of both Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto and Amaterasu Omikami—I can’t stop that. And You does need more people for the procreation of the bloodline. But I still need to ask her about it.’
Futaba agreed with a laugh.
“That’s right, that’s right. Since Miss Hitomi is meeting everyone for the first time, it’s a good opportunity to chat and get to know each other.”
Her smile was brighter than before, but there was something deep in her eyes.
‘Things are getting interesting. The area around this Divine Child is so interesting. I need to steer the conversation, or Chihaya might use what Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto just said to corner me. Better let her and this Hitomi go at it first.’
Mai also put on a cute smile.
“There are some things I’d like to ask you too, big sister Hitomi.”
Her tone was sweet, and coupled with her baby-fat cheeks, it packed a punch. But what she was thinking was completely different.
‘Damn, another competitor. My sister and Futaba are already hard enough to deal with, and now there’s Hitomi. And this Hitomi looks even more dangerous—those two lumps of fat on her chest are too annoying. You looked at them several times today. At this rate, when will he ever notice me?’
Hitomi looked at the three of them and felt a chill.
‘Just as I thought, trouble. The Mochizuki family won’t just let me join, given my background. But why are the Tsukuyomi family members next to the Divine Child? That’s strange. As far as I know, Kaguya-hime and Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto are enemies, aren’t they?’
She replied gently,
“Miss Chihaya, Miss Futaba, and little Mai, feel free to ask whatever you want.”
Chihaya didn’t hold back.
“What do you think of You?”
Hitomi was silent for a moment. She looked down at the tea leaves floating in her cup, then spoke after a few seconds.
“I don’t know.”
Her voice was soft.
“But the Divine Child seems like a good person. I believe we’ll get along—and I’ll do my duty as a wife.”
Chihaya nodded, her expression unchanged.
“And what did Amaterasu Omikami instruct you to do?”
Hitomi’s smile stiffened. ‘Does the Mochizuki family always ask so bluntly? Didn’t we clear things up in front of the shrine earlier? Now she’s asking again? Ah, this is exhausting.’
She kept her smile and spoke calmly,
“Amaterasu Omikami naturally told me to help the Divine Child. After all, the two deities are siblings by blood.”
Chihaya stared at her for two seconds.
“Only help?”
“Only help.”
Hitomi’s answer came without hesitation.
Futaba fanned herself, her eyes darting between the two.
“Then, Miss Hitomi—”
She tilted her head.
“What do you think of the relationship between Amaterasu Omikami and Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto?”
That question was even trickier than Chihaya’s. Hitomi glanced at Futaba.
‘This one is hard to handle.’
“What happens between the two great deities isn’t something a mere miko like me can comment on.”
Her answer was watertight.
“I just follow the divine oracle and complete my mission.”
Futaba smiled and didn’t press further.
Then Mai spoke up, her voice still sweet and harmless.
“Big sister Hitomi, where do you live?”
“Tokyo. I’m currently working at the Imperial Household Agency.”
The three girls were a little surprised. ‘Well, she’s a government employee.’
Mai grew cautious. ‘She lives in Tokyo like You, and she’s a civil servant. This big sister Hitomi is really tough.’ She couldn’t find a topic to jump in with, so she just said “Oh” and stopped asking.
Chihaya was quiet for a moment.
“Miss Hitomi.”
“Yes?”
“You’ve probably noticed—Mai and I are You’s fiancées.”
She paused.
“We don’t oppose you joining. But there’s one condition.”
Hitomi didn’t flinch, meeting her gaze.
“Please, go ahead.”
“Don’t do anything that would harm You.”
Hitomi was silent for a second. Then she laughed.
“Miss Chihaya, after I marry the Divine Child, I’ll be his wife.”
Her voice was soft but firm.
“Why would I do anything harmful to my own husband?”
Chihaya looked into her eyes. Hitomi didn’t look away. After a few seconds, Chihaya nodded.
“Good.”
She picked up her teacup and took a sip.
“Then I look forward to working with you, Miss Hitomi.”
Hitomi raised her own cup.
“I look forward to working with you.”
Hitomi felt a stir. ‘Chihaya’s implication just now—so this Miss Futaba from the Tsukuyomi family isn’t the Divine Child’s fiancée? Yet she’s still here. Interesting.’
She decided to probe.
“Miss Futaba, what is your relationship with the Divine Child?”
Futaba’s smile froze for an instant. It was so brief that Hitomi wouldn’t have noticed if she hadn’t been watching closely. Then it immediately returned to perfection.
“I’m obviously You’s girlfriend.”
Her tone was as light as if she were commenting on the nice weather.
“Didn’t Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto just say it? I’m one of the divine wives too.”
Futaba smiled brilliantly, but inside she was bleeding. ‘Great, now I’ve trapped myself. But if I hadn’t admitted it, I’d have shown weakness. That’s not acceptable.’
Hitomi seemed thoughtful.
“But I heard that Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto and Lady Kaguya are… somewhat at odds?”
Futaba cut her off quickly.
“Not at all. Lady Kaguya is a subordinate of Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto. The two get along very well—those are just rumors.”
Hitomi smiled.
“Is that so? I’m sorry, I spoke out of turn.”
Futaba laughed.
“No, no, it’s fine.”
‘This Miss Hitomi is more formidable than she looks.’ She was already planning how to turn the tables when footsteps sounded from outside—You was back.
The girls exchanged a glance and quickly adjusted their expressions. The room’s atmosphere became warm and friendly.
“I’m back—”
You stood at the door, holding a plastic bag, a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead.
“There were so many people, I waited in a long line.”
He looked at the four in the room.
“What were you all talking about?”
Chihaya smiled.
“Nothing much. Just girl talk.”
Mai nodded with a smile.
“Yeah, yeah.”
Futaba took the mango milk from You, inserted a straw, and took a sip.
“Thanks for your hard work, Divine Child.”
Hitomi also accepted the strawberry milk and murmured a quiet “Thank you.”
You sat down in his seat, opened his cola, and took a big gulp. ‘Ahh, refreshing.’
He looked at the four girls’ expressions—Chihaya as cool as ever, Mai beaming, Futaba fluttering her fan, Hitomi drinking her milk with her head down. Nothing seemed different, yet something felt off.
He was sure something had happened while he was gone. But if he asked directly, they definitely wouldn’t tell him.
‘Forget it, women’s hearts are as deep as the ocean. This kind of thing is still too difficult for me.’