Ding-ding-dong!
Listening to Sakura Mai's declaration that she'd take responsibility for her, Yuzu—still hugging the big sister's slender, resilient waist—slipped into a rather... bewildered state.
A whole cluster of question marks popped up in Yuzu's little head.
???
Just as she was realizing that what she'd done to Sister Mai earlier, back when she was poisoned, might have been a little too much.
When even the Sword of Erasure had been wrung dry and shrunk back, leaving Sister Mai to curl up pitifully in her arms.
Sister Mai actually said... she'd take responsibility for her?
Su Yuzu stared at Sakura Mai in astonishment.
And in Sakura Mai's eyes, the girl's bewildered, astonished posture took on an entirely different meaning.
Aggrievement.
Sister Yuzu must be so aggrieved she wanted to cry.
Because of her own incompetence, she hadn't kept the Sword of Erasure under control. In the end, she'd dragged innocent Sister Yuzu into it.
After being so cruelly bullied, Sister Yuzu was forced to prop herself up and tidy the messy scene, all while having to look after a scoundrel like her.
Even for a girl as strong as Sister Yuzu, feeling aggrieved would be perfectly normal, wouldn't it?
Sakura Mai gently held Su Yuzu tighter.
She was already sitting in the girl's arms, and the Knight Princess was rather tall to begin with.
As Su Yuzu embraced her waist, Sakura Mai lowered her shoulders slightly and pressed her chin into the crook of the girl's neck.
Faintly... Sakura Mai caught sight of the tiny scratch marks along the girl's neck, beneath her hair.
They were the last little traces of struggle left behind by the Sword of Erasure, which had been ravaged nearly to the point of collapse.
But in Sakura Mai's eyes, they became evidence corroborating her own beastly deeds.
The Knight Princess suddenly didn't know how to face the girl before her.
She could only hold Yuzu tightly, feeling the trembling and dread of the soft, powerless body in her arms, trying to be as gentle as she possibly could to soothe the girl's emotions.
Sakura Mai even gave up on explanations like, "The one who committed the atrocities against Sister Yuzu earlier wasn't me, but the Sword of Erasure lodged within my body."
In the Knight Princess's view, explanations were all hollow and feeble.
Since she'd already committed such a grave mistake, she ought to do everything in her power to make up for it.
Honored Mother had gone through the Sakura family's genealogy.
The last marriage alliance between the Sakura family and the Soga clan had already been over a hundred years ago.
There would be absolutely no problem with Sister Yuzu marrying into the Sakura family.
Back then, she'd even joked around with Soga Yura.
Since you don't want Sister Yuzu, then just let Sister Yuzu come to the Sakura family and be a little princess.
Even if Sister Yuzu wanted the stars in the sky, the entire Sakura family would surely do everything they could to satisfy the girl's every request.
If only Sister Yuzu weren't an outsider to the Sakura family, unable to draw the Sword of Erasure.
Even if Sister Yuzu wanted the Sword of Erasure itself, it would be no problem.
Now... Sister Yuzu could draw the Sword of Erasure, and she herself had committed such a grave mistake.
That jest from back then seemed to be slowly coming true.
Sakura Mai held Su Yuzu, carefully caressing the tiny scratch marks at the back of the girl's neck. "I'm..."
"I'm sorry—"
"I will definitely take responsibility for Sister Yuzu."
Su Yuzu opened her mouth wanting to say something, but in the end she likewise felt that any explanation was utterly futile.
How was she even supposed to explain?
That it wasn't Sister Mai who had devoured her, but rather she who had devoured Sister Mai's Sword of Erasure?
Su Yuzu seemed to see once more the way she herself had looked, biting back a smile, when Soga Yura had bragged that she could handle it, that she still had strength left.
You couldn't say the picture was merely similar—you could only say it was exactly identical.
And besides... a misunderstanding like this seemed rather nice, actually.
"There's no need for Sister Mai to take responsibility..." Su Yuzu, supporting Sakura Mai's weight, whispered haltingly by the Knight Princess's ear.
The girl's humbleness and meekness instantly made Sakura Mai recall the past—
Back when that scoundrel Soga Yura was still a jerk, wounding Sister Yuzu's pride and heart time and time again.
Sister Yuzu back then had seemed just like this, always regarding herself as far too insignificant.
"How can that be!!!"
Sakura Mai suddenly grew agitated, then let out a soft whimper and shrank her shoulders with a shudder.
The Sword of Erasure had no physical form, after all.
In the end, the one who bore the burden and the lingering aftermath was still Sakura Mai.
But Sakura Mai, having no experience, didn't realize anything was amiss. She earnestly took hold of Su Yuzu's shoulders and looked her straight in the eye.
The Knight Princess's pair of emerald eyes looked very solemn and very earnest.
"I will definitely take responsibility for Sister Yuzu."
She struggled a little, wanting to get down.
The Knight Princess's once vigorous figure now looked somewhat unsteady, and Su Yuzu hurriedly reached out to steady Sakura Mai.
Little did she know that such a gentle, considerate Su Yuzu only made Sakura Mai blame herself even more.
Even though her legs seemed to tremble as if they'd give out beneath her, the Knight Princess still put on a grand air of knightly chivalry. "As for Soga Yura... I'll speak to her."
"Including the Soga family head..."
"I'll go beg Grandpa to talk to the Soga family head personally."
"And if Grandpa won't agree... I'll yank on his beard."
"As for Father and Mother..." Sakura Mai recalled the way her own father doted on her mother, along with Sakura Renxin's disposition of always fearing the world wasn't chaotic enough.
They... perhaps ever since Sister Yuzu had come to visit the Sakura family's dojo. From the moment Mother had said, so meaningfully, that it didn't matter whether Sister Yuzu could draw the Sword of Erasure or not, since it would come to the same thing sooner or later.
Some things had probably already been decided.
It was only that, back then, she'd still wanted to treat Sister Yuzu as a little sister; but now... she'd become a little bride.
"They won't object either."
Su Yuzu looked at Sakura Mai, wanting to speak yet holding back.
Tell Sister?
Sister would probably just capsize this entire ship on the spot.
"As for Sister... let's leave that for next time." Su Yuzu wanted to stop Sakura Mai.
But the more timidly the girl tried to stop her, the more Sakura Mai saw it as all the more reason she needed to shoulder this responsibility.
And so, the seemingly lively, energetic "victim," together with the "perpetrator" who needed Yuzu's support just to walk—who took a long while to steady herself before finally making her way out of the changing room with a gait slightly different from usual.
Outside, the sky was gradually growing dark.
Soga Yura had already been sitting in the lounge in a daze for a very, very, very long time.
Su Yuzu had gone to special lengths to tidy her hair.
After making up with Soga Yura, she'd slowly been letting her hair grow out, and now the girl carefully tied a little of it up, letting it drape across her neck to conceal something.
As for Sakura Mai... the Knight Princess's cheeks, stained with a pretty rosy flush, were probably quite hard to conceal.
The instant the two of them appeared together, Soga Yura's eyes seemed about to redden.
But—
Sakura Mai actually beat Soga Yura to it by a step.
"Yura..."
"I like Sister Yuzu!"
"Please let Sister Yuzu marry me!"
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