The border between Shinano and Mino provinces. A battle to intercept moles took place there.
Two weeks have already passed since that dusty, unpleasant battle.
As for me, I've been holed up in the Nagahama Imperial Palace lately.
That said, I'm not exactly depressed.
On July 13th of this year, I was seriously considering how to stage the scene when we head to the Water God's place.
"We probably won't be able to do such large-scale preparations this year... so how can we effectively promote it? Eventually, we need to make it a festival that involves the entire Omi region..."
I muttered those things to myself, arms crossed, groaning in front of the paper, inkstone, and brush.
From ancient times to the present day, "festivals," a form of ritual, have been an indispensable part of governing the people.
It goes without saying that festivals and celebrations have an aspect of redefining and making people more aware of their place within a community.
And if religious authority is introduced as an intermediary, it will also facilitate their discipline and indoctrination.
In that sense, the Zhenjiao Festival on July 13th becomes important.
This festival must be one that raises awareness among the people of northern Omi, and among those who are under the influence of the Biwa religion.
"...Haa"
However, it was impossible to think about the festival all the time.
I sighed and lay down on my back.
In the back of my mind, I was always thinking about something else.
Yes, I buried that mother mole with my own hands.
Or perhaps they're referring to that monster—the one with whom communication is impossible, a creature that, from a human perspective, is clearly nothing but a monstrous form.
Paradoxically, this also means that, from the perspective of the mole, humans are the ones who are abnormal.
And when I think about how the moles viewed us humans, it's all very disheartening.
"Taishakutsukimo—Yoriko said that moles are demons that act on instinct, so communication is impossible. Therefore, the only option is to kill them."
However, when I recall that statement again, I can't help but think this:
Perhaps it was precisely because they were monsters driven by instinct that natural communication was possible.
"But if the very existence of moles threatens human survival... ah, damn it."
I groaned, covering my eyes with my left hand.
Both of his hands still bear the scars of the lacerations he once inflicted upon Longxing, when he beat him to death.
From the beginning, in order to live peacefully with Ichihime, I used everything at my disposal and acted out of self-interest, and I have now incurred the consequences of my actions.
There's probably nothing I can do about it now, no matter how much I worry about it.
I removed my hand, opened my eyes, and gazed at the ceiling. It was a beautiful ceiling, made of high-quality wood.
Perhaps because it's springtime, there's a soft, gentle fragrance in the air.
It was a mixture of the scent of wood and tatami mats with the smell of earth. Recognizing this, I slowly tilted my head.
I sensed someone's presence nearby.
"Ah, that's strange..."
I don't know when she got in—a girl was sitting cross-legged in the corner of the room.
Her long blue hair was as beautiful as ever, but her cat ears were drooping.
His face is hidden, and it is impossible to see his golden eyes.
"What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
I slowly twisted my body and stood up.
Then he approached the head of the Asai family's spies and sat down right in front of her.
I noticed that Myo had a somewhat melancholic air about her.
"...that"
The cat-eared girl slowly lifts her head, but then lowers it again.
She was clenching both hands tightly around her thighs.
When I touched her hand and gently wrapped it around it, Myo hesitantly lifted her head again.
"You don't have to try to speak with too much enthusiasm. Take your time."
I said that, slapping my knee.
Then, with a look of slight relief on her face, Myo lowers her bottom into her cross-legged position.
The sweet and sour scent of an immature girl. I held her close and rocked her slowly from side to side like a cradle.
"Myo always works so hard, so I'm sure she's been bottling up a lot of things, right? She probably doesn't get many opportunities to express her true feelings."
"..."
"Besides, we haven't had a chance to talk like this, just the two of us, recently. Let's talk about a lot of things."
"Lieutenant General..."
I gently tightened the grip I had on Myo's thin stomach.
Then the zashiki-warashi girl looked back at me with teary eyes.
She must be starved for fatherly affection—thinking this, I smiled at her.
"ah..."
Suddenly, Myo's face turned bright red and she looked down.
She's still at that age, it seems. When she saw my face, she probably got embarrassed to say what she was about to say—probably.
"What's wrong, Myo?"
Realizing I needed to ease her tension, I stopped hugging her for a moment.
He gently placed his left hand on the neck of the cat-eared girl, who immediately looked sad.
At that moment, Mio's body stiffened in shock.
Slowly stroking her slender neck, throat, and the underside of her chin with my fingertips, I whispered softly in her ear.
"There's no need to be nervous. Calm your mind and body... and speak slowly."
"Ah... ah... ah..."
Myo's neck is slender, but when you touch it, you can feel the strong, living pulse.
When I ran my finger down his throat, I could feel his small Adam's apple move slightly.
Perhaps I'm still quite nervous.
Having made that judgment, I gently began to massage her thighs.
"Chu... Lieutenant General..."
"Myo, you always work so hard with these legs... I need to loosen them up. Now, relax your body... and just let go."
"Um... well, your... body...?"
"That's right. I'll listen to Myo's troubles while I'm calm and composed."
My primary concern was to ease Mio's tension, so I whispered near her cat ears.
Then, with a gentle breath, the head of the Asai family's secret agents made the little limbs twitch.
He gently stroked her trembling thighs through her kimono, trying to soothe the tension in her young body.
I have absolutely no ulterior motives.
With nothing but thoughts of Tae in my mind, I did my utmost to create an atmosphere that would make it easy for her to talk.
"Myo, you might want to eat a little more... You're way too thin."
"Ah... ahh..."
"Besides, you won't grow big if you don't eat properly."
"Mm...ah, haa...uh, uhh...Lieutenant General...Lieutenant General..."
The blue-haired, cat-eared girl trembled uncontrollably and, for some reason, began rubbing her thighs together.
And for some reason, I feel like she's rubbing her butt against my crotch—but I'm probably just imagining things.
(Well, of course. A little girl like Mio, in her early teens, wouldn't do something like that.)
I'm sure their positioning was off because they were rubbing their thighs together, and they're just readjusting it.
A misunderstanding could damage her reputation.
In any case, it's certainly a somewhat problematic situation.
"...Myo, don't move around like that."
Saying that, he gently grasped Myo's slender neck.
Suddenly, the cat-eared girl's body goes limp, just like a kitten being held in its mother's mouth.
Apparently, even this aspect is cat-like.
"Lieutenant General, I... I..."
Myo looked at me with a flushed face, but with determined eyes.
Perhaps she was trying to convey her anxieties and worries.
But the timing was bad. Terribly bad.
"Ah... ahhh..."
My left hand was gripping her neck.
That hand was just pinching the blue cat ears.
Suddenly, the little body began to convulse violently.
"Ah... ah... Chujo-sama..."
Her golden eyes had melted into a dreamy, languid state.
Her slender, childlike hips were twitching and convulsing.
It seems he's completely relaxed.
"There, there. Good boy, good boy."
"Mmm...ah, mmm...mmm..."
With her face bright red, Myo lets her chin be rubbed and just lets it happen.
After gently stroking the cat-eared girl and successfully calming her down both physically and mentally, I softly whispered in her ear.
"Myo, your body seems to have completely relaxed now..."
"Ah... yes... If that is what you wish, Lieutenant General, then anytime..."
"I see, I see."
To be honest, I don't really understand what this girl, the head of the Asai family's secret agents, is talking about.
I think he probably wants to say something like, "I'll come running anytime, anywhere, if you wish."
While playing with the cat ears, which have a uniquely soft and squishy texture, she lets out a hot sigh and seems to be completely melting, and asks the strange question.
"So... Myo, is there something bothering you?"
"Eh...? Um, Lieutenant General, well, right now..."
"Isn't it precisely because of the current circumstances?"
I can't help but feel there's some kind of disagreement, but I still need to ask the questions that need to be asked.
I gently grasped Tae's chin and gazed into her teary eyes.
Then the cat-eared kunoichi, with a dreamy expression on her face, revealed her innermost thoughts as I prompted her.
"Actually, well, I..."
With her chin still being held, the cat-eared beauty continued in a trembling voice, almost hyperventilating.
"It's my fault, um..."
"It's okay, calm down."
Her breasts were just beginning to swell. I wrapped my arms around them and hugged her tightly.
Suddenly, Myo let out a troubled sigh.
(To reassure a child who is feeling anxious, I need to give them a proper hug... But their stomach is delicate... So this is the only place I can put my arms around them.)
I had absolutely no ulterior motives; I simply held the girl in my arms out of concern.
I'm sure my feelings were conveyed clearly.
Having regained her composure, Myo lovingly placed her small hand on my arm and began to speak, little by little.
"Actually, well... Kyoko's mother..."
"Is that Mrs. Todo?"
"Y-yes... Well, actually... that day when your mother passed away..."
"..."
"I've done something terrible..."
As I tightened my grip on her, who was looking down, I rocked my body from side to side, swaying back and forth like a cradle, just like before.
Perhaps because she was floating, Myo spoke, albeit haltingly, word by word.
"That day, I... I picked a fight with Yokichi, so I couldn't make it in time... and that's why..."
"...Ah, I see."
I whisper with a sigh.
"So that's why Myo and Takatora came together...and ended up being late."
"Y-yes..."
I spoke gently to the cat-eared girl who flinched in surprise.
"You were really brave to say that... You must have been suffering too, right?"
"Ah, ah!!"
In response to my question, Myo shook her head.
Her hair swayed softly, tickling my arm.
"It's not spicy... Yokichi's is much spicier... so...!"
"..."
The sweet atmosphere from earlier has already faded, and Mio begins to cry out in anguish.
As I continued to hold her in my arms, I still spoke to her gently.
"What's done is done, there's nothing we can do about it, Myo."
"...!"
I continued speaking to the girl, who flinched in fear.
I held her slender body close, gently rocking her from side to side, and whispered to her like an older brother.
"So, let's think about what we're going to do now. Myo, what do you want to do?"
"it is..."
"it is?"
"...I want to go back to how things were before..."
From what I hear, Myo and Yokichi—or rather, Takatora—were on fairly good terms.
They would tease each other, but their relationship never became irreparably bad; they were more like friends who would quarrel with each other.
However, that also ceased after Mrs. Todo passed away.
It is said that Takatora has started to distance himself from Myo and ignore her.
"I see..."
This problem is more deeply rooted and serious than I had anticipated.
Moreover, it wasn't something I could resolve by intervening.
Forcing the two to meet and talk to reach a settlement is nothing more than a coercive, school-style method.
If you do that, you'll end up in a rather distorted relationship where you appear to have reconciled on the surface, but deep down you're still harboring resentment.
And it seems that Myo herself is well aware of that fact.
However, this cat-eared girl is still only in her early teens. Moreover, she's not good at conversation and certainly not good at communicating. She also has trouble expressing her emotions.
Therefore, I no longer know what to do or how to do it.
That's why you've come to me—to ask for my help and guidance for the future.
"Myo, this is going to be a long haul... and I think it's going to be a tough experience for you too..."
"yes..."
Seeing Myo's cat ears drooping completely, I gently, yet encouragingly, said:
"I'll continue my relationship with Takatora the same way as before."
"But... but... I was ignored..."
"Even so..."
I stroked the head of the young head of the Asai family's secret agents and said:
"Takatora can't keep ignoring Myo forever. Eventually, he'll reach his limit and explode. He'll surely spill everything he's been thinking to you."
"..."
"That's pretty much the only chance we have to mend our relationship. When his heart is laid bare, all we need to do is honestly express my feelings. If we do that, we'll be able to reach the deepest parts of Takatora's heart with our words."
If that still doesn't work, come back and talk to me again.
When I told her that, Myo nodded. And at that very moment—
"Lieutenant General! Someone claiming to be an envoy from the Takeda family has arrived... what shall we do?!"
—And that's what Shuko came to tell me, full of energy.