Chihaya spent the entire day thinking about this problem.
She thought about it while sitting on the corridor, while drinking tea, and even while teaching You how to practice curse art—she was somewhat distracted, but she had no clue. She grew a little irritated, tapped her fingers on her knees a few times, then pulled out that bead from her sleeve.
The surface of the bead shimmered with a faint silver glow. It felt warm and smooth, slightly cool, like a piece of jade that had been washed by water for a long time. This was Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto’s divine grace; calming the mind and soothing the spirit was one of its most basic functions.
Chihaya rubbed the bead, and her heart did calm down a bit, her breathing gradually steadied.
Perhaps there was no need to rush. You-kun and all of them hadn’t even spent a full week together since their first meeting. The Hakone hot spring trip was still a long way off; she could take things slowly.
Thinking this, she let out a sigh and then noticed that the sky was already dusk.
Orange sunset light streamed in through the window, cutting a long strip across the floor. The bamboo in the courtyard swayed gently in the wind, shadows flickering back and forth on the corridor.
You and Mai sat by the table.
You looked at her with a strange expression, a look of “What are you thinking about?” confusion in his eyes. Mai hugged a cushion, her chin resting on it, her eyes shifting back and forth between her older sister and You.
Chihaya snapped back to reality and met You’s gaze.
“Chihaya, what are you thinking?”
You asked cautiously.
“Even if it’s divine grace, you don’t need to be this absorbed.”
Chihaya opened her mouth to casually find an excuse to brush it off.
You’s words just now flashed through her mind: divine grace.
Chihaya’s eyes lit up slightly.
‘Right, divine grace. Isn’t this the best touchstone?’
The vague idea in her heart gradually became clear; she had a plan.
Chihaya smiled slightly, stood up, walked to the table, and sat down.
“Nothing. I was just thinking about some things. It’s fine now.”
You scratched his head.
“Is that so? That’s good.”
Chihaya glanced at the clock on the wall. In about ten minutes, Futaba and Hitomi would be arriving. In recent days, they had all been showing up at the Moon Residence entrance right at mealtime; eating together as a group of five had become a fixed routine over the past few days.
Well, now was the time to prepare.
She stood up, went to the washroom to wash her hands and rinse her mouth. Her movements were very slow and meticulous. When she came back, her face still had undried moisture, her skin glowing softly under the light.
She sat back down at the table.
Then she took out that divine grace bead.
The silver-white light was especially noticeable in the twilight. Chihaya held it up to her eyes to look, then reached for the glass water pitcher on the table. The pitcher still had more than half a pitcher of clear water, freshly changed in the evening—clean and transparent.
Chihaya dropped the bead in.
With a soft plop, the bead sank to the bottom of the pitcher and lay there quietly.
You saw this and was startled.
“Chihaya, what are you doing?”
Chihaya raised a finger to her lips.
“You-kun, please stay quiet for now.”
You shut his mouth.
Chihaya pressed her hands together, closed her eyes, and began to pray.
Her lips moved slightly, her voice so soft that even You sitting beside her couldn’t make out what she was chanting. But he could feel that power—spiritual power radiating from Chihaya, enveloping the water pitcher.
Mai, watching from the side, blinked rapidly.
‘I think I know what Chihaya is doing—big sister is going to use the divine grace here?’
‘But why?’
She couldn’t figure it out, so she silently continued watching.
The bead slowly dissolved at the bottom of the pitcher.
Silver-white light spread from the bead’s surface, strand by strand, like ink drops into clear water, growing brighter and more translucent. The clear water in the pitcher visibly transformed into a pool of faintly glowing silver liquid.
Chihaya stopped praying and opened her eyes.
She reached for the pitcher and poured the silver liquid into tea cups. One cup, two cups. She placed one cup in front of herself and one in front of Mai.
Mai couldn’t help it.
“Sister, what are you—”
Chihaya smiled but didn’t answer.
She glanced at the door, then at the pitcher. There was still half left.
You was about to ask, when a gentle voice came from the door.
“You-kun, Chihaya, Mai-chan—Futaba and I are here to interrupt.”
Hitomi pushed open the door and stood at the entrance, her face still wearing that spring-afternoon smile. Futaba followed behind her, slowly waving her fan.
The two walked in and simultaneously saw the silver liquid on the table. Then the pitcher with half left, its silver-white light glaring in the twilight.
Both Futaba and Hitomi’s expressions changed.
Futaba’s smile remained, but her pupils contracted slightly.
Hitomi also looked shocked.
‘What game is this? She used the divine grace just like that?’
Futaba spoke first.
“Chihaya.”
Her voice still had that airy tone, but much slower than usual.
“You used Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto Omikami’s divine grace just like that? Without requesting permission from the Omikami, aren’t you afraid of his wrath?”
Chihaya’s expression didn’t change.
“Since You-kun gave it to me, that means I have the right to handle this gift.”
Her voice was very calm.
“I don’t think Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto Omikami will blame me.”
She pointed at the tea cups on the table.
“This one is mine. That one is Mai’s.”
Then she pointed at the water pitcher.
“That—is yours, Futaba.”
Her gaze was fixed directly on Futaba.
“Aren’t you always saying you are the Divine Child’s fiancée? Then as a gift from the Divine Child’s family, you should have a share too, shouldn’t you?”
The air in the room froze.
Futaba’s smile froze on her face. The amusement in her eyes also faded. It wasn’t anger, not fear, but something more complex, indescribable.
Everyone present understood Chihaya’s subtext.
This was forcing Futaba to pick a side.
Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto’s divine grace was not something a shrine maiden of the Kaguya-hime family should use. The grievances between the two deities were clear to everyone present—Kaguya-hime, on Amaterasu’s orders, had encroached upon Tsukuyomi’s faith, and Tsukuyomi’s incense offerings had been divided by more than half. This was an open secret in the Shinto World.
If she used it, it would be betrayal.
But from another perspective, it wasn’t betrayal. Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, as one of the Three Noble Children second only to Amaterasu, was theoretically Kaguya-hime’s direct superior deity. Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto was the night, the moon itself; Kaguya-hime was the “Princess of Moonlight,” a subordinate of Tsukuyomi. From this angle, a shrine maiden serving Kaguya-hime accepting Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto’s divine grace was merely “correcting her allegiance.”
The question was—how would Futaba choose?
If she accepted, she would be branded with Tsukuyomi’s mark. Chihaya naturally wouldn’t have to worry about the possibility of her performing a divine descent on Kaguya-hime’s orders and bearing a child with You. Futaba would be on their side.
If she refused—that was even better. She would lose her standing to call herself the Divine Child’s fiancée. It would also help put an end to You’s hopes.
With this move, Chihaya had forced Futaba into a dilemma.
Hitomi silently praised in her heart. She also felt more pressure.
‘Chihaya’s move was beautiful.’
‘I didn’t fully understand the votes from a few days ago, but this kind of “force someone to pick a side” tactic isn’t rare within noble families. I never expected Chihaya to use it here.’
‘This way, Futaba is backed into a corner, caught between a rock and a hard place.’
‘Is this the opponent I’ll face in the future? So much pressure.’
She glanced at Chihaya. That cool, clear face wore a smile, as if victory was already in hand.
Then she looked at Futaba. Futaba’s smile was still frozen on her face, but from her eyes, nothing could be read.
Hitomi withdrew her gaze and lowered her head.
‘It’s none of my business. I am a shrine maiden of Amaterasu, not of Tsukuyomi, nor of Kaguya-hime. I don’t need to pick a side—at least not here.’
Mai’s eyes sparkled.
‘Her thoughts were simpler—Futaba-nee, who had always been in control all these years, what would she do this time? Could it be that big sister is about to win this round?’
She was very eager to hear Futaba’s reply.
You was stunned by this move.
Although he had guessed from his old man’s attitude earlier—just like on the day of Amaterasu’s Divine Descent, his old man knew Futaba was from the Tsukuyomi family and served Kaguya-hime, yet still said vague things like “these daughters-in-law.” What did that mean? It meant that in his old man’s eyes, Futaba’s identity wasn’t that sensitive. Or rather, the relationship between Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto and Kaguya-hime wasn’t as tense as the girls imagined.
But he couldn’t say something like that.
Not to mention whether the girls would believe his one-sided speculation. If he sided with Futaba now, Chihaya would definitely see him as turning his back on them. That would be a loss.
You shut his mouth and decided to continue watching the show.
Futaba stood still, not moving.
A few seconds passed, or maybe a few minutes, and then Futaba suddenly regained her smile.