You thought to himself with relief as he picked up a piece of radish and put it in his mouth, chewing a couple of times.
But come to think of it—why was Chihaya being so aggressive today? She was usually pretty composed, wasn’t she?
Why was she so eager to make Futaba pick a side? Could it be that his own probing of Futaba over the past few days had been too obvious? Was Chihaya jealous?
You thought it over and decided that possibility was the most likely. He began planning what he could do to make it up to her later.
The soup in the pot was still bubbling away. The steam blurred everyone’s faces.
The group sat around the table, each with their own thoughts, but no one brought up what had just happened.
Outside the window, the sky had gone completely dark. The light from the stone lantern in the courtyard swayed slightly in the night breeze. The shadows of the bamboo stretched long across the wooden floor of the corridor. The distant mountains were now just black outlines, and at the border with the deep blue sky, a thin layer of mist hung.
You cleared his throat.
“It’s a full moon tonight. How about we all go out to the courtyard to look at the moon?”
No one objected, so after dinner, the five of them stepped out of the room and sat in a row on the corridor, looking up at the moon.
Tonight was a full moon. The moon was large and round, hanging over the eastern mountaintop. Silver-white moonlight spilled down, covering the entire courtyard as if it had been dusted with frost.
The wind came down from the mountains, carrying a chill, rustling the bamboo. The cicadas sang in waves, sometimes near, sometimes far, blending with the wind—not annoying, but adding to the atmosphere.
You sat in the middle, with Chihaya on his left and Mai on his right. Futaba and Nissho Hitomi sat a bit farther out on the ends. The five sat side by side, shoulders close together.
He stole a glance at Chihaya beside him.
The moonlight fell on her profile, softening her features. Her usual coolness took on a paler, more distant quality under the moonlight—like the moon itself.
‘Now’s a good chance to apologize.’
You reached his left hand behind his back and gently squeezed Chihaya’s hand.
Chihaya’s expression didn’t change. Her gaze remained fixed on the moon above. But You noticed the tips of her ears turning slightly red. She turned her head slightly to look at him, a quick movement—her eyes met his for just a moment before she looked away. Her fingers moved, gripping his hand tighter in return.
Mai sat on You’s other side, secretly observing her sister and him the whole time. Seeing her sister’s reaction and then You’s profile, she let out a mental hmph.
Before You could recover, his right hand was also grasped by a slightly trembling small hand. It was Mai. She must have reached her hand behind his back at some point, secretly taking his hand. Her grip was lighter than Chihaya’s, and her fingers were a bit cold.
You didn’t dare turn his head. He was afraid that if he did, his expression would give something away.
‘Did Chihaya notice?’
He glanced to his left. Chihaya’s gaze was still on the moon, her expression calm.
‘She probably didn’t notice.’
Mai’s fingers lightly squeezed his palm, as if to say, ‘I’m here, you know.’
You’s body stiffened. On his left was Chihaya, on his right was Mai, both holding his hands. He didn’t dare move, didn’t dare look at Mai, just stared straight at the moon.
As for Nissho Hitomi and Futaba, sitting farther out, they didn’t notice the three in the middle’s little movements. They were focused on the moon, each lost in their own thoughts.
Hitomi looked at the moon, thinking about what to do next.
She had seen Chihaya’s tactics today clearly. Forcing Futaba to pick a side, using Divine Grace as a test. Beautiful, clean, leaving no room for retreat. If it hadn’t been for the server’s timely intervention, Futaba would have had a hard time getting away unscathed today.
‘So this is the opponent I’ll face in the future?’
Hitomi thought. If she were in Futaba’s position, could she have handled Chihaya’s move? The answer was—she wasn’t sure.
But if she kept being passive and never took the initiative, how would she answer to Amaterasu Omikami? She had already received Divine Grace; she couldn’t just do nothing.
Hitomi sighed inwardly.
‘Amaterasu Omikami wants me to be the Legal Wife, but what do I have to compete with Chihaya? Her skill, her decisiveness, her reading of the situation—none of them are things I can match. And Chihaya has known You longer, their chemistry is better. Even Mai has a natural advantage over me—she’s Chihaya’s sister, so they can work together more easily.’
‘What should I do?’
‘Should I wait and watch the fight between Chihaya and Futaba, then reap the benefits? Or should I take the initiative now, while Chihaya’s attention is on Futaba, and get closer to You first?’
She glanced at You’s profile. The moonlight fell on his face, making his expression hard to read, but he seemed a bit stiff—probably just her imagination.
She looked back at the moon.
‘I’ll wait a little longer.’
‘At least until I see how the first round between Chihaya and Futaba plays out.’
Futaba was also looking at the moon, but thinking about something else.
She was pondering how to handle Chihaya’s next test.
She had gotten through this round, but Chihaya wouldn’t let it go. She knew Chihaya—once that woman set her mind on something, she wouldn’t easily give up.
Chihaya would definitely probe again. Futaba couldn’t avoid it. Today she had been lucky—the server came at just the right time. What about next time? And the time after that? Chihaya wouldn’t give her many chances.
Futaba’s fan lay on her knee, unopened. Fingers slowly traced the ribs as she thought about countermeasures.
‘Besides, if I refuse, what excuse can I use? “I don’t know the Prayer Spell Technique”—that excuse will only work once. And if I accept? Doesn’t that mean admitting I belong to Tsukuyomi?’
She bit her lip, a slight frown forming.
‘Come to think of it, Lady Kaguya has never stated her position on this matter. This so-called Divine Descent—getting close to the Divine Child of Tsukuyomi and bearing a child—is ultimately just the mortal world’s conjecture about divine intentions. No one truly knows what the Deity is thinking. In fact, the Tsukuyomi Family doesn’t even have a Curse Technique Tradition for transforming Miko into vessels for Divine Descent.’
She looked up at the moon, feeling a bit unsettled.
***
As time passed, the atmosphere in the courtyard gradually relaxed.
The cicadas chirped in waves. The wind rustled through the bamboo grove. Moonlight spilled across the wooden floor of the corridor, shining silver-white.
You listened to these sounds, and his heart slowly calmed. Both his hands were still being held, but he had gotten used to it—even found it a little comfortable.
The young ladies also began to focus on moon-viewing.
Chihaya lifted her head, gazing at the moon. Her expression was calm, but there was a faint, almost imperceptible smile at the corners of her lips. Mai also looked at the moon, her fingers still intertwined with You’s, not letting go. Hitomi’s gaze shifted from the moon to the hydrangeas in the courtyard. Futaba opened her fan and slowly waved it, but her eyes were unfocused—clearly lost in thought.
And then—
You felt the moon flicker for a moment.
A tremor emanating from the moon itself, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. If he hadn’t already possessed Spiritual Power, he would never have noticed it.
He looked up, staring at the moon.
The moon was still there, radiating a soft glow, just as before.
But what he had just felt was definitely not an illusion.
The young ladies all looked up almost simultaneously.
Chihaya’s pupils contracted slightly.