Chapter 145: Drinking Water

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Tokyo, Chuo Ward, Nihonbashi, Kakigara-cho 2-4-1.

Suitengu Shrine was bustling with people, most of whom were pregnant women.

It was said that using the bell rope of Suitengu Shrine as a belt would make childbirth easier and smoother.

“Superstition, ridiculous! If a rope were useful, what would be the point of obstetrics?”

Among the crowd of people praying for a safe delivery, the person who said this was very conspicuous.

First, other men were accompanied by only one woman, while he had two, and they didn’t look like sisters or anything;
Second, this man was very handsome;

If he were an obstetrician, the woman on the delivery bed, looking at him, it was unclear if it would be smooth, but it would definitely reduce a lot of pain;

Finally, the two women accompanying him, one was as pure and beautiful as a fairy, the other was beautiful and graceful. How could such beauties appear in a shrine for praying for a safe delivery?
The husbands, whose children were all in their wives’ wombs, were so jealous their hearts ached. They even wanted to rush up and beat that person up.

The person who said this was naturally Minamoto Kiyomoto, a thorough anti-superstitionist, who looked down on the palm-reading fortune tellers on the streets of Shinjuku the most.

This had even become a sickness. When he heard someone say they wanted to have their palm read, he wanted to turn and walk away. Recently, it had become so severe that he had an adverse reaction of coughing.

Between the box-like tall buildings, Suitengu Shrine was nestled among them.

The simple and elegant eaves of the shrine, with carved beams and painted rafters, hung a large lantern with the characters ‘Suitengu’ written in Chinese.

The mother dog in the stone sculpture of the ‘mother and child dogs’, when being stroked by a pregnant woman with a very large belly, yawned, and its sleepy eyes glanced at them, letting out a “woo—”.

“Is this a wolf?” Minamoto Kiyomoto pointed at the mother dog shikigami and asked the two shrine maidens.

“Who cares if it is or not? I’m going to touch it too,” saying this, Himegami Izayoi prepared to get in line.

“What are you getting involved in? It’s still early for you to be a mother,” Minamoto Kiyomoto pulled her back and teased.

“What do you mean getting involved? What if I’m pregnant? You didn’t wear that thing last night,” Himegami Izayoi, like a girl who had been loved and abandoned, caressed her flat abdomen pitifully.

“…Miss Kamibayashi, we did sleep together, but we didn’t do that kind of thing at all,” Minamoto Kiyomoto turned to the silent Kamibayashi Miko and said.

“Actually, after you fell asleep, I secretly did it,” Himegami Izayoi snapped her thumb and middle finger together.

“I didn’t even wake up?”

“Of course not, but you did call out.”

“Call…” Minamoto Kiyomoto swallowed a breath. “You drugged me?”

“Mhm, mhm.”

“You can still do that kind of thing when you’re drugged?”

“It’s because I drugged you that I could do that kind of thing. How can you not even know this? And you say you’re smart. You’re really a fool.”

Kamibayashi Miko listened to the two of them talk quietly.

Thinking that even if she didn’t say a word, the two of them could still chat so happily, like a real couple, a sense of desolation and sourness welled up in her heart.

In that case, it’s okay for her and Minamoto Kiyomoto to separate, she thought.

“Miss Kamibayashi…”

Minamoto Kiyomoto noticed Kamibayashi Miko and was about to speak to her when the Suiten Miko, calling “little brother,” walked out of the hall.

The Suiten Miko, with her delicate features and soft voice, indeed fit the image of the “God of Safe Delivery” and “God of Water” of Suitengu Shrine.

Too deceptive.

Minamoto Kiyomoto withdrew his gaze from Kamibayashi Miko. Before he could speak to the Suiten Miko, Himegami Izayoi spoke first.

“Let me see your hand.”

Minamoto Kiyomoto: “…”

He suppressed the itch in his throat, didn’t cough, and looked at Kamibayashi Miko with pleading eyes. Kamibayashi Miko ignored him.

“What’s wrong?” the Suiten Miko asked softly, gently pulling up the sleeve of her shrine maiden’s attire and handing her soft, water-like hand to Himegami Izayoi.

Himegami Izayoi looked at her hand for a while.

“It’s nothing,” she smiled and let go.

Seeing that the Suiten Miko was about to continue on this topic, Minamoto Kiyomoto quickly cut her off, “Your Excellency, Suiten…”

“Big Sister Mizu,” Big Sister Mizu corrected.

“…We’re here this time to ask you for a favor.”

“A safe delivery? I can help.”

“No, it’s not,” saying this, Minamoto Kiyomoto’s tone changed. “No, it’s not. The matter of a safe delivery, I’ll also have to trouble you.”

“That’s right. After all, it’s not three, but six. We have to let the God of Safe Delivery bless us. Maybe the last three children will die in childbirth,” Himegami Izayoi said with a smile, her tone sarcastic but cute.

Her full and vibrant lips made one want to take a bite.

The Suiten Miko didn’t know what they were talking about, but she could probably guess. It was just that thing between men and women.

“Please come in first,” she smiled slightly and led the way.

“You go first,” Minamoto Kiyomoto made a “please” gesture to Himegami Izayoi.

Thinking of the six children made her angry. Himegami Izayoi “humph”ed and habitually flicked her sleeve. Unfortunately, she wasn’t wearing a yukata today, so there was no grandeur for her to flick.

She took the lead and entered the hall. Minamoto Kiyomoto and Kamibayashi Miko followed behind.

“How does she know her three children will be born first? Maybe it’s yours,” he said to Kamibayashi Miko with a smile.

Kamibayashi Miko glanced at him, wanted to say something, but didn’t feel like it.

Minamoto Kiyomoto thought she was still angry with him and jealous of Himegami Izayoi. His heart was extremely sweet, and also a little troubled.

Not knowing what to say, he took Kamibayashi Miko’s hand and squeezed it gently.

I want to forgive him for everything—such sweetness and tenderness flowed into Kamibayashi Miko’s heart along with that force.

“Did I allow you to touch me?” she said with a cold face, pulling her hand back irritably.

“I was wrong, Miko,” he whispered in her ear, his eyes looking at her with a smile.

Kamibayashi Miko ignored him and walked straight into Suitengu Shrine.

The Suiten Miko led the three of them into a quiet room.

On the walls of the quiet room hung portraits of the “God of Safe Delivery” and the “God of Water.” There was also a vase, a few cushions, and nothing else.

The four of them sat on the cushions. In the middle were tea and some mother-and-child-dog-shaped snacks.

“…Your Excellency, Suiten, if you find it difficult, it’s okay to say so directly. I’m very clear about the difficulty of this matter,” Minamoto Kiyomoto stated the purpose of his visit.

The Suiten Miko held her teacup and fell into deep thought, not answering immediately.

Minamoto Kiyomoto understood. After all, it was a prefecture-level yokai.

A single piece of the “Yellow Springs Demonic Dragon’s” remains was equivalent to three Kasen.

These three Kasen were not ordinary Kasen. They had to be like Minamoto Kiyomoto, delicate, bold, and possessing countless powerful spells.

And the “Yellow Springs Demonic Dragon” had nine pieces of remains. Even with the simplest addition, not considering that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, that was still a full 27 Kasen!
27 Minamoto Kiyomotos, not to mention all thirty-six Kasen, but against thirty Kasen, he was sure to win.

It was such a terrifying situation. To ask the Suiten Miko to help without thinking, at the risk of her life, was too much to ask of others.

“I can promise you,” after a long time, the Suiten Miko spoke, “but I have one condition.”

“No,” Himegami Izayoi, who was eating snacks, refused without thinking.

Minamoto Kiyomoto laughed, patted her knee comfortingly, and said to the also smiling Suiten Miko:
“Please speak.”

“I can participate, but I’m only responsible for healing,” the Suiten Miko stated her condition.

“Of course you can!” Minamoto Kiyomoto nodded without hesitation. “This battle is very dangerous. We need a Kasen-level expert who can act as a healer. Your Excellency, Suiten, is undoubtedly the best candidate.”

“I have a second condition.”

“If you don’t have a third, I can listen to you again,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said with a laugh.

“No more, just two,” the Suiten Miko also laughed. She raised her slender and soft index finger, “From now on, you have to call me ‘Big Sister Mizu’.”

“…”

Crunch! Himegami Izayoi’s neat, snow-white teeth bit into a puppy biscuit, breaking the dog’s body.

She looked at Minamoto Kiyomoto with a smile, watching his reaction.

“Okay,” what could Minamoto Kiyomoto do? “Big Sister Mizu.”

The Suiten Miko’s smile widened. She had the magnanimity of the God of Safe Delivery and the gentleness of the God of Water.

“Little brother, drink some water,” she kindly refilled Minamoto Kiyomoto’s untouched teacup.

“…Thank you.”

It was completely unclear which water the Suiten Miko was talking about.

Himegami Izayoi chewed on the biscuit as if it were a bone, making a terrifying sound.

“I hope you can do this for me too,” she said coldly to Minamoto Kiyomoto.

“Eliminating the ‘Coral Demon Moth’ and becoming the Honshu Shinto Lord, isn’t that for you?”.

Himegami Izayoi snorted with contempt and disdain, meaning—You know who you’re doing it for.

“Actually, little brother, you don’t have to come and ask me,” the Suiten Miko said to Minamoto Kiyomoto. “When the ‘Coral Demon Moth’ reappears, almost all the shrine maidens and Kasen in Kanto will participate in the subjugation.”

“If Big Sister Mizu also receives the order, you will still only be responsible for healing. I can guarantee you this. The Divine Medium will be the commander of this battle. She has the right to make such arrangements.”

“Then I have to thank little brother in return.”

“No need to thank me. Can we forget about calling you Big Sister Mizu?”

“That’s not okay,” the Suiten Miko put down her teacup, with the gentle firmness of an older sister. “You have to do what you promised. That’s what a good son of Auntie Ayako would do.”

The next moment, she showed an expression of suddenly remembering something.

“Little brother, have you told your mother about your participation in the subjugation of the ‘Coral Demon Moth’?” she asked curiously.

Minamoto Kiyomoto’s eyes lowered slightly.

If there was anyone in this world who could restrict him from doing as he pleased, besides Kamibayashi Miko and Himegami Izayoi, it was only his mother, Ayako, who had given birth to him and raised him.

Kamibayashi Miko held her teacup and looked down at her reflection in the tea. The surface of the water rippled slightly, making it hard to see clearly.

“It’s precisely because I don’t want her to worry that I came to ask you,” she heard Minamoto Kiyomoto say. “Next, I will go and ask more people.”

◇

“What Big Sister Mizu? Pfft.”

Leaving Suitengu Shrine, Himegami Izayoi held a small bag of snacks given by the Suiten Miko, eating and cursing.

“Mind your manners, Lady Ise Miko,” Minamoto Kiyomoto reminded her.

“The identity of the Ise Miko can’t restrain me!” Himegami Izayoi blew at her bangs angrily, super cute.

Let alone the Ise Miko, even the noble identity of the “Lord of Kyoto” couldn’t restrict her.

Compared to Kamibayashi Miko, Himegami Izayoi, whether she was crying, or laughing, or angry, had a kind of allure, like a strong beam of life, making him also full of vitality.

On the contrary, when he was with Kamibayashi Miko, he also became indifferent and otherworldly. Besides each other, he didn’t care much about anything else.

How could he choose between these two? So he had made up his mind without hesitation to pursue both of them at the same time.

To be decisive and not let himself fall into any confusion or pain was Minamoto Kiyomoto’s principle of handling things.

From this afternoon, they took leave from school again.

Fortunately, in order to facilitate the “leave” of practitioners, the Ministry of Education and Culture of Kanto required all schools not to make rigid regulations on class time. As long as the grades were passable, it was fine, under the beautiful name of—free development, there is a future.

“Where to next? Kansai? Hokkaido? Or to find your old flame?” Himegami Izayoi asked.

“I’ve never been in a relationship. Where would I have an old flame? Don’t talk nonsense.”

“Aren’t you her boyfriend? How is she not an old flame?”

“It’s fake, a rumor. The news nowadays has no credibility.”

The three of them were at the Seiyoken in Ueno, the Seiyoken that appeared in the novels of Natsume Soseki and Mori Ogai.

The seafood curry rice, black sauce beef rice, scallops, and shrimp were all large and fresh.

The bread with butter had the aroma of being freshly baked.

At the next table, two urban ladies had only ordered tea and were chatting leisurely, talking about importing tuna from California.

The restaurant was not very lively, and they could enjoy their meal in peace.

“Besides Sayaka and the Hokkaido Miko, I plan to send a letter to the others and free up time for training,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said.

“As expected, you only visit women,” Himegami Izayoi said sarcastically.

“Sayaka doesn’t have a fixed place to live. The Hokkaido Miko is an expert of the same level as you. She alone is worth all the time,” Minamoto Kiyomoto explained.

“Miko, aren’t you going to say something about him? This is definitely his excuse to flirt with women everywhere,” Himegami Izayoi said to Kamibayashi Miko.

Kamibayashi Miko was spreading sauce on her dinner roll with a knife and fork.

“You don’t have to do this,” she said to Minamoto Kiyomoto while spreading.

“You can’t be complacent, Miss Kamibayashi,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said with a laugh. “The more people there are, not only will we be safer, but those who were invited by us and those who had to come because of orders will also be safer.”

He took a bite of shrimp and added:
“This time, let everyone see how vulnerable yokai are when Kansai, Kanto, and Hokkaido join forces!”

Kamibayashi Miko’s action of spreading the sauce stopped.

Hearing what Minamoto Kiyomoto said and seeing what he did, she couldn’t help but be moved.

As long as there were enough experts, Minamoto Kiyomoto would be fine, and the two of them wouldn’t have to separate.

A heart full of joy instantly filled her entire body.

In a happy mood, she couldn’t help but take a bite of her dinner roll, then put it down again.

“What’s wrong?” Minamoto Kiyomoto asked.

“It’s not good,” she replied.

Minamoto Kiyomoto laughed, not because the matter was so interesting, but because her mood had finally improved.

“Try the shrimp. It’s not bad,” he handed the plate over.

“I’ll try,” Himegami Izayoi’s knife and fork flew over and speared the shrimp.

The shrimp was gone. Japanese cuisine was so stingy. A single plate only had two shrimp.

“Excuse me, another serving of shrimp, please. Mmm—, a glass of apple juice, thank you,” Minamoto Kiyomoto raised his hand and called out.

After returning in the evening, the three of them no longer joked or read books, but trained seriously on the outer corridor.

It was almost mid-November. The night air was cold, and the chill was invasive. If they didn’t use their divine power, Kamibayashi Miko and Himegami Izayoi would catch a cold.

Minamoto Kiyomoto was not training his divine power. He was holding the remains of the Hakone giant dragon and the red-gold dragon, staring at them.

He tried to learn the spells in the remains, trying to comprehend a deeper level of the “Demon Body Spell” in preparation for the prefecture-level yokai remains.

There was no progress in either.

The spells of yokai involved the use of divine energy, which was beyond the scope of human understanding.

As for the “Demon Body Spell,” a village-level yokai had a 100% success rate, a town-level was half luck and half strength, and a prefecture-level was completely up to luck.

Minamoto Kiyomoto didn’t plan to try.

If he kept fighting battles that were not 100% winnable, he would be betrayed by fate one day. Even he was no exception.

He wanted to live, because he had a happiness he wanted to pursue.

At two in the morning, the three of them returned to their own rooms to rest. Minamoto Kiyomoto sat by the window, hunched over the table, writing letters to the experts he wanted to win over.

He wrote clearly about the pros and cons, promised a reward, and sincerely pleaded.

“…I am very clear that this is a very dangerous matter. Whether you accept or refuse, I can understand. Please make your choice without any worries.”

“If you can come, I will definitely remember this favor.”

“Minamoto Kiyomoto”