Chapter 47: Suspicion

At some point, Mozart’s “Minuet” began to play in the hall.

The fashionably dressed upper-class people began to dance elegantly.

Itomi Sayaka’s gaze fell on Minamoto Kiyomoto, conveying the meaning of ‘it’s your turn to be useful’.

Minamoto Kiyomoto shook his head, moved to the corner with the three high school students, and together they exuded an aura of absolutely not dancing.

“Mr. Minamoto, aren’t you going to dance?” Hatori asked strangely.

“I can’t dance,” Minamoto Kiyomoto replied. “Aren’t you going?”

He looked at Hatori and the boy named Takashi and smiled.

Hatori’s face immediately turned red, and she secretly glanced at Takashi.

“Th-there are so many people, and we don’t dance well. We’ll be laughed at,” Takashi said in embarrassment.

“Yes, what Shin-kun says makes sense. We’d better not embarrass ourselves,” Hatori nodded, her eyes showing a hint of regret as she looked at the scene.

To be able to dance on such an occasion, most people might not have the chance even once in their lifetime.

However, to ask a high school boy to muster up the courage, not be afraid of embarrassment, and lead the person he liked onto the dance floor with clumsy dance steps was really too much to ask.

“Big brother,” at this time, Itomi Yuki said.

“Hmm?” Minamoto Kiyomoto’s voice softened a little.

Itomi Yuki looked at the adults on the dance floor and said as if to herself, “When you get older, do you stop caring about a lot of things?”

Was she saying that when she got to university, she would give up on proving that she was better than her sister?

“I wonder,” Minamoto Kiyomoto also looked at the dance floor. “I’m not that old.”

Itomi Yuki withdrew her gaze and glanced at him.

Minamoto Kiyomoto met her gaze, “I’m only twenty. I’ll be twenty-one this September. The old one is your sister. She’s almost 27.”

In the distance, Itomi Sayaka, in a white dress, saw Minamoto Kiyomoto talking to her sister again. She said ‘excuse me’ to the person beside her and walked over.

Before she could hook Minamoto Kiyomoto’s arm, Minamoto Kiyomoto spoke first.

He said in a gentle yet slightly reproachful voice, “Drink less.”

For a moment, Itomi Sayaka thought the two of them were really in a relationship. The caring words gave her a comfort like falling asleep to the sound of the rainy season at night.

“Why didn’t you ask me to dance? I was waiting for you,” she said with a hint of dissatisfaction. She didn’t hold Minamoto Kiyomoto’s arm, so she didn’t pinch him.

“Let’s not have physical contact, and I can’t dance anyway,” Minamoto Kiyomoto leaned close to her ear.

Itomi Sayaka’s bright eyes glanced at him with a look that was both dissatisfied and coquettish—no one was curious why the two of them weren’t dancing. It certainly wasn’t because of their feelings.

At this time, a man walked over.

“Miss Sayaka, may I have this dance?” the man asked with a smile.

“Thank you, but I’m sorry. I seem to have had a little too much to drink,” Itomi Sayaka rested her hand on her forehead, looking dizzy.

“Excuse me,” the man nodded to the others and returned to his original position.

“You see,” Itomi Sayaka, who had sobered up again, said to Minamoto Kiyomoto, “if you don’t dance with me, there are plenty of people who want to dance with me.”

“That’s true,” Minamoto Kiyomoto agreed with a smile.

Itomi Sayaka had fair skin, a slender figure, and a not-so-small chest. She was a coveted beauty.

Smelling the fragrance of her hair and dancing with her slender waist in his arms was definitely something a man would dream of.

“I don’t really like that person,” Itomi Yuki suddenly said.

“Oh?” Itomi Sayaka, changing from her affectionate tone with Minamoto Kiyomoto, asked her sister in a teasing tone.

Itomi Yuki was a little dissatisfied, but she didn’t protest.

“That person’s eyes are very turbid, not as clear and bright as big brother’s, but big brother…” at this point, Itomi Yuki stopped.

Minamoto Kiyomoto’s eyes were clear and bright, but he was a philanderer who was clearly dating her sister but was expressing his affection for her.

Hearing this, Itomi Sayaka clapped her hands and laughed out loud.

“If you judge a person by their eyes, then you’re greatly mistaken. You’re still too naive,” she said with a smile.

Itomi Yuki thought her sister was right, but she would never say it out loud.

Listening to the cheerful music, she changed the subject, “The violin is played very well.”

“I found~ him,” in Itomi Sayaka’s proud words, there was a not-so-obvious pause.

Itomi Yuki was used to being teased by her and didn’t take it to heart.

But at this moment, Itomi Sayaka’s peripheral vision was all on Minamoto Kiyomoto.

From the moment Itomi Yuki mentioned the violin, he looked at the performance area, his gaze falling on the performer.

She was a woman, wearing a black performance dress, with delicate features, so gentle and weak that one wanted to protect her.

“I’ve seen this person before,” Minamoto Kiyomoto’s fingers, holding a wine glass, pointed at the performer. “She often performs near Myogadani Station, but she plays the cello.”

“You remember quite clearly,” Itomi Sayaka said with a smile.

Hatori and Takashi’s bodies trembled. They felt the terror of a mature woman.

“At that time, she was like me, running around for a living all day. In the end, we both met you. What a coincidence,” Minamoto Kiyomoto’s gaze remained on the instrument.

“Changing the subject, I hate it!” Itomi Sayaka glared at him with dissatisfaction.

She sized up Minamoto Kiyomoto. The man’s face still had a smile that was hard to read.

A person with a high capacity mostly had this problem, including herself.

Minamoto Kiyomoto glanced at Itomi Yuki. She had a listening expression.

The music pouring out of the violin was light, elegant, concise, and simple, giving people a sense of beauty. It was indeed a wonderful performance.

“Does Yuki-chan understand classical music?” Minamoto Kiyomoto asked curiously.

Itomi Yuki nodded slightly and opened her cherry-like lips to answer, “After all, I was born into such a family. I’m sure I’ve studied it for a while.”

“Sayaka too?” Minamoto Kiyomoto looked at the older sister.

“I even guided Yuki-chan. Yuki-chan was so cute at that time. She would even hold a doll at night and run to my room—”

“Sister!” The younger sister glared at her sister with eyes that could kill.

“Look, isn’t my sister cute? She’s shy~~” Itomi Sayaka poked Minamoto Kiyomoto with her elbow as if to show off.

Minamoto Kiyomoto sized up Itomi Yuki, and Itomi Yuki immediately pointed her murderous gaze at him.

Minamoto Kiyomoto’s gaze turned to Itomi Sayaka, and he said with a solemn expression, “From today on, your sister is my sister.”

“What’s the hurry? We’ll talk about it after you pass the test,” Itomi Sayaka said with an impatient look, but her hand held his arm.

One of them was tall and slender, with a handsome face; the other had a slender waist and a large chest, with a delicate face. Standing together, they were like the best promotional photo in the best wedding dress shop.

Hatori looked at the two of them with admiration, while Itomi Yuki suddenly felt that the two of them were a good match—neither of them was a good person, and they were both bullying her.

Minamoto Kiyomoto touched the hand Itomi Sayaka had placed on his arm. They looked deeply in love, but it was a little painful to be pinched.

“By the way,” Itomi Sayaka tilted her head, her fair face turned to the side, and asked Minamoto Kiyomoto, “have you ever learned any musical instruments?”

“I won a gold medal in painting for the whole of Shikoku in elementary school, was undefeated in judo in the whole of Shikoku in junior high school, and started studying seriously in high school, getting full marks in all subjects.”

“Wow, so amazing!” Hatori and Takashi both looked at Minamoto Kiyomoto as if he were an alien.

Not to mention them, even people who also studied at the University of Tokyo, non-science and engineering students, had an inferiority complex towards science and engineering students, and the medical department of the medical faculty was the major with the highest score in science and engineering.

Minamoto Kiyomoto was the number one person in the medical department of the medical faculty.

“I asked you if you’ve ever learned any musical instruments. What are you showing off for?” Itomi Sayaka, who had graduated from Juntendo University, said with dissatisfaction.

“Do you have to make me say that I don’t know any musical instruments?”

Before everyone could laugh, Minamoto Kiyomoto said again, “I learned the recorder in elementary school. Nothing else.”

“If you haven’t learned it, you haven’t learned it. Why be so secretive,” Itomi Sayaka said with a laugh that was not malicious.

“You’ve all learned it. I’m self-conscious.”

Lies—this word simultaneously appeared in the minds of the four people present.

That look of being so ashamed of himself, if the full score was one hundred, giving him ten was because of that face.

The five of them chatted until the party ended.

“Kiyomoto-kun, please stay,” Itomi’s mother said, trying to persuade him to stay.

“Thank you, auntie, but I have class tomorrow. I have to go back tonight,” Minamoto Kiyomoto replied.

“Isn’t university class time very late? Tomorrow morning, let Sayaka take you.”

“I really don’t need to. Thank you, auntie.”

Seeing that Minamoto Kiyomoto insisted on going back, Itomi’s mother no longer tried to persuade him and told him to be careful on his way back.

Because he had to catch the train, Itomi Sayaka drove Minamoto Kiyomoto to Chiba Station.

The rain had stopped, and the night wind was blowing, which was particularly comfortable.

Compared to the luxurious party, Minamoto Kiyomoto preferred the free starry sky and night.

“I’m not satisfied with your performance today. I’m deducting 300,000, so I’ll only give you 700,000.”

“Big sister, can you deduct 10,000?”

“Then 690,000.”

Minamoto Kiyomoto didn’t speak anymore.

When they arrived at the station, Itomi Sayaka didn’t get out of the car and said, “I’ll just drop you off here.”

“That’s enough, thank you.”

Itomi Sayaka took out a cigarette case, took out a cigarette and held it between her moist lips, and lit it with a lighter.

While smoking, she watched Minamoto Kiyomoto unbuckle his seatbelt and open the car door.

Just as his foot was about to step out.

“What’s the name of that person who plays the violin?” Minamoto Kiyomoto suddenly turned his head and asked.

Itomi Sayaka’s heart skipped a beat, and her face showed obvious displeasure.

“Even if we’re just pretending to be boyfriend and girlfriend, to ask for another girl’s name in front of me, do you think I’ll be indifferent?”

Minamoto Kiyomoto laughed lightly, “Big sister Sayaka, don’t really fall in love with me.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t like people younger than me,” Itomi Sayaka reached her hand out the window and flicked the cigarette ash.

“It’s the opposite for me. I want to like someone younger than me.”

“If you dare to make a move on my sister, I…”

“I told you, your sister is too old. Wait, what are you doing with your phone? I don’t mean I like elementary school students!”

After Minamoto Kiyomoto left, Itomi Sayaka extinguished the cigarette she had taken three puffs of, stepped on the gas pedal, and started her journey home.

When she passed the “Chiba Central Police Station,” she realized her negligence.

According to her personality, when no one else was around, she should have generously told Minamoto Kiyomoto the name, instead of pretending to be jealous.

She just hoped that Minamoto Kiyomoto wouldn’t overthink it and think that she had fallen in love with him.

From a probabilistic point of view, Minamoto Kiyomoto should have the self-awareness that ‘it’s natural for girls to fall in love with me.’ This was why handsome guys were always so calm.

But looking at the lights of the police on duty, Itomi Sayaka’s mind flashed back to the joke Minamoto Kiyomoto had made at the banquet—

“I won a gold medal in painting for the whole of Shikoku in elementary school, was undefeated in judo in the whole of Shikoku in junior high school, and started studying seriously in high school, getting full marks in all subjects, and was number one in the country.”

◇

The 23:50 Sobu Line, the last train from Chiba to Tokyo, was completely dark outside the window.

Minamoto Kiyomoto, reflected in the glass, was lost in thought, his eyes staring blankly out the window.

He wasn’t thinking about Itomi Sayaka, nor was he thinking about the violin player. He was thinking—on this night, in that secluded Hakusan Shrine, what were Kamibayashi Miko and Himemiya Izayoi doing now?

Entering the shrine from the large banyan tree, walking on the sando up the mountain, he occasionally saw fireflies in the dense forest.

When he reached the middle of the mountain and was about to return to his small mountain hut, he suddenly felt a pain in the back of his head.

Minamoto Kiyomoto turned his foot and walked towards Kamibayashi Miko’s house.

In the Tang-dynasty-style building, the lights were bright, and Himemiya Izayoi was also there.

“I’m back,” Minamoto Kiyomoto’s tone was cheerful.

“Welcome back, Young Master Kiyoshi. Should you confess first? Or kneel first? Or do you want to be killed directly?”

“What did I do again?” Minamoto Kiyomoto asked with a smile.

He walked through the Japanese-style room and came to the veranda.

The two miko were both wearing yukatas. In the middle was a small stove for burning charcoal. On the stove were skewers, and beside them was chilled sake.

Fire Fan was kneeling beside Himemiya Izayoi, occasionally helping to pour sake.

Shirako, as if to support Kamibayashi Miko, and as if not to lose to Fire Fan, was kneeling beside Kamibayashi Miko, pouring sake for her.

Seeing Minamoto Kiyomoto, Shirako immediately showed a smile, “Piglet, I have a task for you! Come and serve Lady Kamibayashi!”

“I like serving people the most,” Minamoto Kiyomoto walked over with a grin.

“Fire Fan, you can leave too,” Himemiya Izayoi ordered.

“Yes,” Fire Fan first lowered her head in response, then bowed slightly to everyone, then slowly stood up and walked towards the room.

The beautiful silk Tang-dynasty clothes trailed gracefully on the ground.

“Why are you here so late at night?” Minamoto Kiyomoto poured sake for the two of them. After pouring, he found that there were only two toso cups. He had really become a servant.

“Watching a movie,” Himemiya Izayoi lifted the toso cup and leisurely took a sip of sake. Her movements were quaint and extremely beautiful.

“Watching a movie? Oh, you were monitoring me,” Minamoto Kiyomoto realized.

“Do you think Itomi Sayaka and that performer have a problem?” Kamibayashi Miko spoke directly.

“After a whole day, hearing Miss Kamibayashi’s voice again feels exceptionally pleasant,” Minamoto Kiyomoto sighed.

Himemiya Izayoi looked at Minamoto Kiyomoto, and Kamibayashi Miko also looked at him.

“I must be overthinking it,” Minamoto Kiyomoto said. “Hearing that Yanagi Michiko has joined the ninth group, seeing someone playing music, and then two women, I can’t help but overthink it and connect them.”

“Draw a picture of that person,” Himemiya Izayoi said.

“Are you sure you want me to draw it?” Minamoto Kiyomoto looked back and forth between the two of them.

“Or we can take your head off and look directly,” Himemiya Izayoi proposed a second plan.

A minute later, Himemiya Izayoi held the white paper and observed it with Kamibayashi Miko. Then the two of them raised their gazes at the same time.

“What are these sawteeth?” Himemiya Izayoi asked.

“Fingers,” Minamoto Kiyomoto replied.

“What about the lines here?” Kamibayashi Miko asked.

“Collarbone… no, it seems to be the collar of the clothes. Eh, what’s this?”

“You drew it and you’re asking us? And it’s only been a minute,” Kamibayashi Miko was so helpless she seemed to have a headache.

Himemiya Izayoi put down the white paper and asked with a laugh and confusion, “Didn’t you win a gold medal in painting for the whole of Shikoku in elementary school?”

“Yes, I still have the certificate at home. Unfortunately, times have changed.”

“Forget it,” Himemiya Izayoi leaned lazily against the beam pillar, looking at the bright moon in the sky. “Whether it’s Yanagi Michiko or not, we just have to wait until June 20th.”

“As expected of Lady Izayoi!” Minamoto Kiyomoto said, flattering her.

“Praising Miko is just a pleasant voice, but praising me is so perfunctory?” Himemiya Izayoi looked at him with a slight smile.

Minamoto Kiyomoto suddenly froze, paused for a moment, and asked, “Do you smell any flowers?”

“The gardenias in the courtyard have bloomed,” Kamibayashi Miko said.

“Such a strong fragrance, no wonder. Speaking of which, I saw fireflies when I was coming up the mountain.”

“Is that so,” Himemiya Izayoi handed over the toso cup, and Minamoto Kiyomoto poured her some sake.

The miko drank one sip at a time. Minamoto Kiyomoto had nothing to drink and could only watch.

“If you want to drink, go and get a bowl,” Kamibayashi Miko looked towards the kitchen.

“No need, I’m already drunk.”

The faint moonlight, the quaint veranda, the miko drinking yukatas, the fire in the stove, and the fragrance of gardenias.

(End of Chapter)