"Is it really okay for you to slander my ancestors to my face?"
Miyamizu Mitsuha huffed with her hands on her hips, but her fingers subconsciously pinched a few times.
The soft Mori Tsukisa.
"This is a hypothesis. Haven't you seen those academic inferences?"
"Please don't use 'academic' inferences to speculate about my ancestors' names."
In fact... there was no such cute naming method. The older generations of the Miyamizu family used 'Yutaka,' 'Fumi,' and 'Koto' as names.
After buying coffee from a vending machine, the two sat on the chairs of the '360-degree Panoramic Open-Air Cafe' and chatted as the sun began to tilt.
"The Autumn Festival is in October. Tsukisa, you can come to watch."
Autumn, Shrine Maiden, Kuchikamizake, ritual ceremony.
Mori Tsukisa longed for it, but Mitsuha was troubled. "Only travelers from big cities like you would like country life. People really do envy what they don't have."
Mori Tsukisa thought for a moment and felt that wasn't right.
In any case, she had never envied Miss Eriri, who was still at a childhood level of development.
Blinking, Miyamizu Mitsuha poured out a series of complaints: "Dilapidated, small, and crowded, there's nothing here; the train only comes once every two hours, the convenience store closes at nine; there's no bookstore, no dentist; though there are two taverns—there's no place hiring, and no one wants to marry into here..."
"The daylight hours are short, too." Miyamizu Mitsuha drained her coffee in one go. "I'm definitely going to Tokyo for university."
On the way back, Mori Tsukisa discovered a rare phenomenon of a crowd gathering—there weren't many people in this small town. The girl pulled a somewhat reluctant Miyamizu Mitsuha closer... it was a middle-aged man giving a speech. He had thick eyebrows and large eyes, his hair short and neatly parted at the forehead. His serious face looked around with a scrutinizing gaze, his tie was straight, and a sash hung over his dark brown suit.
[Mayor of Itomori Town]
[Miyamizu...]
Toshiki?
Noticing Mitsuha's inner conflict, Mori Tsukisa turned her head in concern.
"It's... it's my father..."
Wow. My Mayor father?
"Why are you..." Mori Tsukisa found it hard to describe. "Not very happy, Mitsuha?"
The impassioned and high-pitched speech continued: '...In order to continue revitalizing our town's affairs, we must stabilize our finances. Only by doing this can we create a safe and secure town...'
Listening to the speech, the whispers of the surrounding townspeople reached Mori Tsukisa's ears.
'This time... Miyamizu will surely be elected again, right?'
'That's for sure. Hey, I'm just saying it here. I heard, I heard he's really invested heavily this time.'
A fat auntie carrying a vegetable basket muttered. In the crowd, Mori Tsukisa saw three familiar faces... and the three of them also saw Mori Tsukisa and Miyamizu Mitsuha.
Miss Old Clothes?
"Yo, Miyamizu." The Boy's eyeliner still hadn't been drawn very successfully today, but he had changed to a new stud earring. "Why isn't the Mayor's Child with the Child of the civil engineering company owner?"
While he was teasing, the two girls beside him chuckled lowly.
"That's right, they're tied together, a so-called union of interests. Mitsuha will probably be an 'extraordinary' person in the future, right? With a father like that, she can do anything."
"Don't talk about the girl like that. Maybe Mitsuha will stay here and be an 'eternal Shrine Maiden' for all we know."
"The kind of Shrine Maiden who eats it and then spits it out?"
Miyamizu Mitsuha didn't speak. She lowered her head and pulled Mori Tsukisa to leave. With one pull, she didn't budge. She turned back in surprise to look at the girl with the lush black hair.
"Miss Old Clothes?" Mori Tsukisa, the 'Big Eater' lady Arrietty mentioned who was always hungry for food, had eaten many things but never a loss. "You're dressed much better today than last time. Are those new clothes?"
Hmph.
The girl with her hair in a side ponytail raised her chin proudly. "Who exactly are you? Another 'Power Mutual Friend' of the Miyamizu family?"
Mori Tsukisa's dazed look made her seem harmless and simple. She took a step forward, her curvaceous, soft figure and extremely exquisite face making the two girls subconsciously step back.
"I am Mori Tsukisa, Miyamizu Mitsuha's friend." As she spoke, the young girl pouted and rubbed non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes with curled fingers. "You all... don't be so jealous of Mitsuha. Becoming the Mayor's daughter wasn't something she could choose herself—"
"She's just a very hardworking and kind girl. Besides being a bit prettier than you, having a better family background than you, being kind-hearted, having great grades, and having a bright future..."
"She doesn't have any other merits..."
"Your own lives will be very wonderful too. Please, please don't disparage others in private just because you're jealous..."
The drama queen girl sobbed and pouted, and the surrounding whispers grew even louder.
'I knew those three kids didn't like Little Mitsuha...'
'To participate in the ritual ceremony and yet disparage our Shrine Maiden behind her back?'
'Sigh, the Miyamizu family has always passed it down through generations. What do they have to be envious of... honestly...'
Hearing the waves of dissatisfaction from around them, the three high school students, who had never experienced such a situation, panicked. The Boy took a few steps back, exposing the two girls hidden behind him—this earned him even more looks of disdain.
Miss Old Clothes wasn't afraid of being watched. She puffed out her chest and approached Mori Tsukisa. "Everything you're saying never happened! Miyamizu Mitsuha isn't as—"
'Hey, that's enough! Shouldn't you be at home at this time?'
'Why do two girls have to cling to the same Boy all day long?'
'Mitsuha is the Shrine Maiden! The Shrine Maiden! How many generations of heritage has Itomori Town had? Go home and ask your parents, and stop spouting nonsense here!'
Amidst the girl's embarrassed and stiff expression, Mori Tsukisa quietly curled her lips, her cold eyes full of mockery. She leaned close to the girl's ear and whispered with a laugh, "See? The grapes you can't reach are especially sweet to others..."
Arrietty scratched her head.
Rich lunatics are truly terrifying. She was now just praying that in a few years during the exams, Mori Tsukisa wouldn't apply for an arts university... like the acting department or something.
The three young people slunk away through the crowd, disappearing quickly with their heads down. The commotion in the crowd also caused Miyamizu Toshiki, who was giving his speech, to stop.
He saw Miyamizu Mitsuha.
"Mitsuha?" The serious man's nasolabial folds were very deep, which gave Mayor Miyamizu even more presence when he put on a stern face. "Can't you walk with your head held high and your chest out?!"
Miyamizu Mitsuha lowered her head gloomily and pulled Mori Tsukisa along without a word.
Mori Tsukisa looked at Miyamizu Toshiki, who was staring their way... She pressed one hand against Miyamizu Mitsuha's back, pushing it down hard, while she herself mimicked the hunched posture of an old person... Right after the My Lord Mayor's reprimand of 'Why don't you hold your head high,' the two young and beautiful girls began to walk in an old lady's posture with an eight-character gait... Miyamizu Mitsuha swore she was forced!
But no one cared about that. All the surrounding townspeople burst into laughter!
Miyamizu Toshiki's face turned ugly as he glared at Mitsuha and Mori Tsukisa. "You—you two!"
Mori Tsukisa turned back with a grin, pulled down the corner of her eye, and stuck out her tongue—
"Blehh! I'm not listening to you!"
After saying that, she grabbed Miyamizu Mitsuha and ran.
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