"Grandpa…" Yoizumi-nii stiffly pursed his lips and nodded in response after a long while.
A strange feeling of embarrassment inexplicably spread in his heart.
His master's husband, is called "Grandpa"… Does that mean Kanao now thinks he is Shinobu's husband?
But he isn't married to Shinobu yet.
He hasn't even proposed to Shinobu… This should only be said after Shinobu agrees, right?
Hmm… Does he need to prepare something?
Actually, back in Swordsmith Village, Mitsuri had once mentioned something called a ring to him.
It's used when getting married.
(He wasn't sure if rings were used in the Taishō era, but Mitsuri likes Western desserts, so she might know.)
He tried to make one based on Mitsuri's description and planned to give it to her at an appropriate time.
Right now… it seems it won't work.
With a great war imminent, as long as Kibutsuji Muzan is not dead, life will never be peaceful.
After everything is over, he'll give it to Shinobu.
Now, however, he could start preparing… for a proposal.
Whenever he touched upon this word, Yoizumi always felt his heart burn.
What was wrong with him?
"Grandpa?" Seeing that Yoizumi had responded but then stared at the ground in a daze, completely unresponsive for a while, Kanao hesitated but still called out.
She still had some things she wanted to ask Yoizumi.
He unnaturally closed his eyes, and Yoizumi snapped back to reality; he had been overthinking things.
"Don't call me that yet, wait… wait until later."
"Just call me by my name."
He was embarrassed.
Kanao's powerful eyesight could always keenly detect subtle changes in others' faces, so she was almost certain of it.
"Okay, Yoizumi-san."
Secretly letting out a sigh of relief, he then looked at Kanao again. He had been in Butterfly Mansion for so long, and besides the night he first arrived and was about to leave, he hadn't spoken to her.
Neither of them were talkative. For Yoizumi, Kanao could only be described as a stranger. Shinobu would occasionally tap his head and say,
(Honestly.)
(You and Kanao, why are both of you so quiet?)
(Why am I surrounded by such quiet people?)
Tanjirou had also mentioned it to him.
(If Kanao could talk more, that would be great.)
(I really want to be friends with her.)
(But she's often quiet and keeps to herself.)
(It reminds me of Yoizumi-nii from before.)
A quiet person always needs a lively person to accompany them.
Yoizumi thought that it was precisely because he had so many gentle people accompanying him that he fell in love with a gentle person.
"Kanao."
"Yes?"
"What do you think of Tanjirou?" Yoizumi asked with a sincere expression.
Huh?
Kanao's lips parted slightly in surprise. What did she think… of Tanjirou?
What a strange question.
Seeing that Yoizumi wasn't joking at all, Kanao's hands, hanging by her sides, slowly twisted her skirt, creating wrinkles that showed her inner turmoil.
Her gaze fell on a small flower growing from a crack in the stone at her feet.
Tanjirou was very enthusiastic, and even with someone like her, his enthusiasm didn't wane in the slightest. His face always bore that bright and warm smile. She could tell that Tanjirou's smiles were always from the heart.
Why did he smile so happily when he faced her?
Even though she rarely answered him.
She would sit silently to the side, and he could sit beside her, telling interesting stories for an entire afternoon.
If she reacted, he would even excitedly wave his arms, thrilled.
The more Kanao recalled her various interactions with Tanjirou, the hotter her earlobes became, visibly reddening.
This reaction probably means she doesn't dislike Tanjirou, right?… Yoizumi was clearly unaware of how ambiguous his words had just been.
After a long while, Kanao's wandering gaze gradually refocused. As if having made a huge decision, she finally spoke, her voice as thin as a mosquito's buzz.
"Tanjirou is a very… warm person."
"I think he… is very… very good."
Yoizumi nodded in agreement. Tanjirou, his younger brother, was indeed such a person.
"If possible…"
Hearing this, Kanao's cheeks flushed slightly. A hint of a smile appeared on Yoizumi's otherwise expressionless face, his tone still calm and even.
"Please be friends with Tanjirou."
"…" The atmosphere instantly quieted. The surrounding wind blew Kanao's bangs from her forehead. She was stunned for a moment before she reacted.
Friends?
So he was talking about being friends?
She had thought… With a dizzy, flushed head, Kanao slowly nodded.
Yoizumi, oblivious to the situation, secretly rejoiced for Tanjirou.
Another friend…
That's great, Tanjirou.
After a while, Kanao finally remembered what she wanted to ask Yoizumi.
"How is Master?"
Kanao had originally thought she could participate in her Master's training, but she didn't expect her Master to join a secret experiment, making her unable to participate in this Pillar Training.
She hadn't seen her Master in a long time.
On her Master's birthday, she happened to be out on a mission and sent local specialty medicinal herbs via Kasugai Crow as a birthday gift.
In fact, Kanao was very grateful to Yoizumi.
Because of Yoizumi's presence, Master finally had someone to rely on, someone to accompany her, and she would even show genuine smiles.
The Master with Yoizumi-san was a side of her that Kanao had never witnessed before.
Kanao was very grateful for Yoizumi's appearance.
As her Master's disciple, or perhaps her sister.
Kanao sincerely hoped that her sister could be happy.
That must be the scene Kanae-nee-san would want to see.
"Shinobu is doing well. She'll be very happy to know you care about her," Yoizumi's tone contained an almost imperceptible softness when he mentioned Shinobu.
"Thank you," Kanao bowed her head to Yoizumi.
"And…"
"Thank you for appearing by Master's side. Please continue to accompany her in the future."
Yoizumi paused, a flicker in his sapphire eyes, followed by his indifferent expression gradually softening into a gentle smile.
"I will."
"I promise."
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