Chapter 180: Fireworks

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When the red steam train passed by the lake and entered the tropical jungle, Kamibayashi Miko had no choice but to discuss with Minamoto Kiyomoto, who was beside her.

“Think of a way,” she whispered in his ear.

“Think of a way?” Minamoto Kiyomoto looked at her with confusion.

Kamibayashi Miko glared at him, then glanced at Himegami Izayoi, who was throwing popcorn into her mouth, and slightly loosened the hand that was covering her lips.

The rosy, vivid, and perfectly full, delicate lips, the upper lip was broken, and it was very clear. And at a glance, it was caused by an external force.

“It’s not ugly,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said with a low laugh. “Not only is it not ugly, it’s also very tempting…”

Kamibayashi Miko did not speak and looked at him.

“Cough, I’ll kiss you forcefully here and pretend it’s an injury I just got?”

“Is there a difference between this and the previous injury?”

“Before, it was in the tunnel. Others would suspect that you and I were too intense. Isn’t that what you’re embarrassed about? It’s different now. I’m forcing a kiss on you, and you’re resisting. It’s an accident,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said persuasively.

Kamibayashi Miko was deep in thought.

What Minamoto Kiyomoto said made sense, but she didn’t have to think to be able to say with certainty that this was just an excuse for him to kiss her again.

It was nothing to be kissed once, but the key was: the wound on her lips, at a glance, had been there for a while. It was impossible to disguise.

Minamoto Kiyomoto glanced at her and said softly, “If you have any concerns, I can force a kiss on Izayoi and let her lips get injured too. But… I’m on a date with you today. I still want to kiss you.”

‘Scum! A complete scum! Miko, wake up! Don’t be deceived by this kind of scum!’

In Minamoto Kiyomoto’s sea of capacity, Tamahime sat on the steam train, her hands on Kamibayashi Miko’s shoulders.

This was another way to play with Minamoto Kiyomoto’s memories.

Tamahime could materialize all the scenes in Minamoto Kiyomoto’s memories, such as this afternoon, the sunny restaurant, and the taste of the desserts and coffee she enjoyed.

These senses of touch, taste, hearing, and smell, and even feelings, were all Minamoto Kiyomoto’s memories. The warmth of the sun she felt, the sourness of the coffee, and the sweetness of the date were all reproductions of what Minamoto Kiyomoto had felt.

She would not have her own new experiences.

In reality, Kamibayashi Miko suddenly glanced at Minamoto Kiyomoto, her eyes filled with a smile.

Minamoto Kiyomoto’s heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t seen this smile for a long time. The first time was in April, when she had kicked him into Sanshiro Pond.

Before Minamoto Kiyomoto could react, Kamibayashi Miko reached out and secretly pulled his collar, pulling him into her arms.

A fragrance of lotus flowers blooming in the early morning.

Before their lips could touch, she pushed Minamoto Kiyomoto away again.

“What are you doing?” Kamibayashi Miko frowned and looked at him unhappily.

Himegami Izayoi, the Hokkaido Miko, the Itomi sisters, Hanyu Chika, and Yagyu Michiko all looked over and stared at Minamoto Kiyomoto.

“I…”

Kamibayashi Miko’s snow-white, slender fingers gently touched her lips, her eyes even more unhappy.

The others’ eyes also became more subtle.

“No… I didn’t!” Minamoto Kiyomoto looked back and forth, unable to defend himself.

“Master Kiyo, no, Kiyomoto, no, Minamoto… Kiyomoto,” Himegami Izayoi slowly revealed a smile.

“Wait, wait a minute, Koyako, you have to believe me!”

“Believe in your kissing skills?”

“No, that’s not right. You can believe it. With my skills, you know, it’s impossible for there to be a wound, right?”

Himegami Izayoi scooped up the popcorn from the popcorn bucket and threw it at Minamoto Kiyomoto.

Minamoto Kiyomoto tilted his head slightly, and with the skill of a circus clown, he caught all three popcorn kernels that were aimed at his forehead with his mouth.

Himegami Izayoi was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing, “Are you a puppy?!”

Kamibayashi Miko was also very amazed, not by his skill, but by his thick skin.

Rikka looked at the two of them, and finally cheered without any emotion, “Oh—” and clapped her hands without any emotion.

“What’s wrong?” Itomi Sayaka asked curiously.

Himegami Izayoi and Rikka were in the last row, and Minamoto Kiyomoto and the others were in the second to last row. The Itomi sisters, who were sitting in the third row, did not notice this short circus performance.

“It’s nothing,” Minamoto Kiyomoto ate the popcorn and stared at Kamibayashi Miko through gritted teeth.

The Itomi sisters followed his gaze and looked at Kamibayashi Miko.

“What’s wrong with your lips?” Itomi Sayaka asked subconsciously.

“I was bitten by a dog just now,” Kamibayashi Miko replied faintly.

“A dog?” Itomi Yuki was stunned.

Kamibayashi Miko looked at Minamoto Kiyomoto next to her. Minamoto Kiyomoto casually picked his ear, and without any emotion, and very perfunctorily, “woofed.”

“…”

A burst of laughter.

Even Kamibayashi Miko couldn’t help but smile.

Minamoto Kiyomoto followed suit and laughed. His gaze inadvertently met Itomi Yuki’s. Itomi Yuki, who was not smiling, turned around and looked at the front of the train.

“Master Kiyo, I won’t allow you to degrade yourself like this,” Himegami Izayoi, after laughing, began to show off her kindness.

“It’s okay,” Minamoto Kiyomoto’s tone was casual. “Miss Kamibayashi covered her mouth for a long time. I barked like a dog. It’s even.”

“Covered her mouth for a long time?” Himegami Izayoi’s gaze shifted to Kamibayashi Miko, carefully observing her lips.

Kamibayashi Miko covered her lips again, her right hand forming a hand knife, and chopped at Minamoto Kiyomoto’s waist.

After getting off the steam train, Himegami Izayoi’s Mickey headband seemed to be angry.

Kamibayashi Miko no longer covered her mouth and boldly showed the accident of love.

But whenever one of the eight people looked at that place for a few more seconds, she would subconsciously cover it up.

Minamoto Kiyomoto had never seen such a cute Kamibayashi Miko, so he deliberately stared at her.

As for him, Kamibayashi Miko just gave him a cold look and dismissed him.

The sun began to set in the west. The tourists walking by had tired faces. The eight of them decided to go to a restaurant for dinner.

There were many restaurants in Disneyland, such as the Crystal Palace, the Queen of Hearts’ Banquet, and Grandma Sara’s Kitchen;
The business hours were also different. Some were only open for lunch, some from the opening of the park to four in the afternoon, and some until eight at night.

They discussed for a while, and finally, at the suggestion of Chiba resident Yuki, they chose the Diamond Horseshoe Restaurant.

A 5,500 yen set meal.

Raw ham, shrimp, juice, quail egg salad, mixed nuts, beets, steak, buttered bread, jam, and Mickey-shaped carrots, and so on.

The combination was rich, but the actual amount was not much.

Itomi Sayaka didn’t drink juice and ordered white wine.

Himegami Izayoi didn’t eat the quail eggs in her salad and gave them to Minamoto Kiyomoto.

Kamibayashi Miko was careful when she ate her steak, trying not to touch the wound on her lips, but she still touched it when she drank her juice.

Itomi Yuki ate the buttered bread in small bites. Among so many people, she was the most like a dignified young lady.

Hanyu Chika ate the cake in her dessert first and left the fruit for last.

Yagyu Michiko… seeing her eating so softly and shrinking to the side, Minamoto Kiyomoto suspected that she had been bullied at school when she was a child. He especially wanted to pat her head and order her a children’s meal.

After dinner, they rested for a while and then went to see the parade.

When they arrived at the square, it was already full of tourists preparing to enjoy the Christmas fireworks.

“Are you going back to Shikoku for the New Year?” Itomi Yuki asked softly.

“Hmm,” Minamoto Kiyomoto nodded. “I’m going back tomorrow.”

“When are you coming back?”

“The day after the New Year. Actually, the Shinto Lord doesn’t have a New Year’s holiday. Being able to rest for so many days is already my willfulness.”

Itomi Yuki nodded lightly.

“With the Coral Demon Moth, and becoming a Shinto Lord, will it be a little safer?” she said as if to herself.

“No,” Minamoto Kiyomoto hesitated for a moment and replied to her, “Just like the fireworks later, they look dazzling, but they’re gone in the next moment. People are such fragile things.”

Itomi Yuki was silent for a while, watching her sister and Hanyu Chika introduce the castle in front of them to Yagyu Michiko.

“Maybe… maybe it’s not fireworks, but the stars in the night sky?” she said.

“I’ll take your good words,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said with a smile. “If I can, I also want to live forever.”

The lights around the square suddenly went out, and in the dimness, classical music was heard.

“It’s about to start,” Itomi Yuki looked at the sky above the castle. There were no fireworks yet, only Orion in the winter sky.

Minamoto Kiyomoto did not look at the night sky, nor did he wait for the fireworks to go up. Instead, he looked for Kamibayashi Miko and Himegami Izayoi.

Himegami Izayoi was pestering Kamibayashi Miko, wanting to poke her lips. Kamibayashi Miko impatiently waved away her hand that was reaching out again and again.

He took a few steps and came to their side.

The two of them raised their heads and looked at him. Just as they were about to speak, a crisp crackling sound came from the winter night sky, and splendid fireworks bloomed like chrysanthemums above the castle.

The two of them couldn’t help but turn their attention to the fireworks.

Under the reflection of the lights, the two beautiful cheeks flickered between light and dark.

“Why are you staring at us?” Himegami Izayoi withdrew her gaze and said to Minamoto Kiyomoto with a smile.

Kamibayashi Miko also withdrew her gaze, looked at Minamoto Kiyomoto, her eyes filled with a smile.

Minamoto Kiyomoto did not speak, just smiled sincerely and brightly.

“You’re so silly,” Himegami Izayoi scolded with a laugh, her tone filled with intimacy.

Minamoto Kiyomoto wanted to keep looking at them like this.

Whether it was as short as fireworks or as eternal as stars, in this life, he wanted to keep looking at them like this and be with them.

---

After the fireworks festival, Minamoto Kiyomoto said goodbye to the Itomi sisters.

“See you next year,” Itomi Sayaka said coolly.

“See you next year,” Minamoto Kiyomoto replied.

Itomi Yuki waved her hand lightly, and Minamoto Kiyomoto smiled.

After the four of them left in Itomi Sayaka’s newly bought sports car, Himegami Izayoi said to Minamoto Kiyomoto, “That child likes you.”

Danger!
“What’s so strange about that?” Minamoto Kiyomoto replied as if it were a matter of course.

“You’ll fall in love with her, right? She’s quite cute,” Himegami Izayoi said with a smile.

“Impossible.”

“Nothing is impossible in the world.”

“Then the probability is extremely low.”

“How low is extremely low? One percent?”

“You find a monkey, no, a shark, and give it a keyboard. It can type out the entire ‘The Red and the Black’ without a single mistake—that’s about how high the probability is.”

“How is that possible? Sharks don’t even have hands.”

“Nothing is impossible in the world.”

Himegami Izayoi took off her Mickey headband and put it on his head as if to vent her anger.

Minamoto Kiyomoto snorted, turned his head triumphantly, and asked them, “Do I look good?”

“You’re so vain,” Himegami Izayoi scolded with a laugh.

“You look good,” Kamibayashi Miko said with a smile that was like coaxing a child.

Rikka reached out and adjusted the crooked Mickey headband for Minamoto Kiyomoto.

“…”

Himegami Izayoi looked at the Hokkaido Miko. She realized that compared to Itomi Yuki, the one she needed to solve now was this person right next to her.

A great battle was about to break out.

Minamoto Kiyomoto held Kamibayashi Miko’s hand and took the opportunity to leave while the two of them were looking at each other.

“Come back!” Himegami Izayoi quickly chased after him and held Minamoto Kiyomoto’s other side.

The Hokkaido Miko pulled Minamoto Kiyomoto’s sweatshirt from behind. It wasn’t pitiful at all. Instead, it was like holding a dog leash and walking a dog.

The tourists who came out of Disneyland and were on the same road looked at the four of them strangely and watched them disappear into the Christmas lights.

Returning to Hakusan Shrine, Shirako sized up Kamibayashi Miko at the first moment.

“Lady Miko!” she saw Kamibayashi Miko’s lips, both sympathetic and angry. “Were you beaten by them? Did they bully you?”

Kamibayashi Miko was stunned for a moment and subconsciously touched her lips.

Before she could explain, Shirako glared at Minamoto Kiyomoto angrily.

“You piglet, why are you still alive? Why aren’t you injured? Why didn’t you protect Lady Miko?!”

“I haven’t even settled the score with you yet!” Minamoto Kiyomoto retorted. “You guessed that we were going out on a date, but you didn’t keep it a secret!”

“I… I…”

“What about you? You can’t even keep a secret?”

“I’m not a selfish person like you. I like to share secrets!”

“…”

Seeing Minamoto Kiyomoto’s shocked and speechless look, Kamibayashi Miko laughed.

She said to Shirako, “Don’t learn from him.”

“Who’s learning from him?”

“What do you mean, learn from me?”

“Let’s take a bath,” Kamibayashi Miko lightly dealt with the two of them.

“You go first. I’ll go get a change of clothes.”

Shirako grabbed Minamoto Kiyomoto, who was about to follow her to the bath.

On December 25th, Christmas Day, the color of the sky was a bleached light blue.

Minamoto Kiyomoto, Kamibayashi Miko, Himegami Izayoi, Rikka, and also Shirako, Noi, and Little Butterfly, all returned to Shikoku together.

After the Kyoto Noryo Festival, entering and leaving Shodoshima Island was very strict, a strictness that ordinary people could not feel.

After the battle between Izumo-taisha and the Shinto sect, the Lord of Kyoto even ordered the Shikoku Shinto Lord to move the headquarters of Shikoku to Shodoshima Island, right at Ryusui-ji Temple.

Although the Shinto sect was now in name only, the Shikoku Shinto Lord still did not move away. The people who needed to be on guard against were not only the Shinto sect.

On the Pacific Ocean, the mastermind who had provided the Shinto sect with yokai remains had not yet been identified.

Passing through a small mountain-like cloud layer, speaking of this matter, Himegami Izayoi said with certainty, “Who else could it be but the Taiko?”

“Perhaps,” Minamoto Kiyomoto was noncommittal.

If it were before, he would also have thought it was the Taiko, but after meeting Tamahime, the Ogosho also became a suspect.

‘It must be him!’ Tamahime was extremely certain, as a matter of course as Himegami Izayoi.

In the sea of capacity, on the seaside of Shodoshima Island in summer, she was skateboarding on the seaside road.

Her palace dress had also been changed. She was wearing a T-shirt and denim shorts, very cool. She didn’t have the slightest bit of the reserve that an elder should have, and let her fair skin be exposed.

Only the golden crown on her head was still worn.

‘Have you seen those yokai remains?’ Minamoto Kiyomoto asked her curiously.

‘I’ve seen some, and I haven’t seen some, but it must be him.’

‘Where’s the evidence?’

‘It’s him. You don’t even believe me? I’m your mother-in-law. You’re pretty good at skateboarding.’

*’.’

“Let’s talk about it after the New Year,” Minamoto Kiyomoto replied to Himegami Izayoi and also perfunctorily to Tamahime.

Whether it was the Ogosho or the Taiko, he was no match for them now.

The red-gold dragon swooped down and landed on Shodoshima Island.