Chapter 504. Wataten!: An Angel Flew Down to Me
"Yeah, yeah, that's right; she should take good care of the President. If she hadn't happened to leave, the President wouldn't have been so severely injured."
Inside the Student Council room, Shinomiya Kaguya's voice was laced with dissatisfaction toward Kikyo. Although she knew perfectly well it wasn't Kikyo's fault, seeing the injured President still made her instinctively vent a little bit of misplaced anger. This was simply proof of her love for Shirogane Miyuki.
"But," Fujiwara Chika reminded her wordlessly, "if she's the one taking care of the President, wouldn't that lead to... you know?"
"Eh? Huh!?"
Shinomiya Kaguya blinked blankly at first, then reacted. Her hair practically stood on end like a startled cat, and she let out a shrill scream, her face radiating the ultimate "defeated heroine" look.
"No! Absolutely not! President, President—my President! Nooooo!"
His ears ringing from the panicked Kaguya's noise, Shirogane Miyuki glared at Fujiwara Chika with a look that said, I'm going to kill you, sooner or later. The latter stuck out her tongue and gave an "ehehe" laugh.
Meanwhile, in the new mansion, Emilia—who had been working here since before the video started playing—stopped her diligent tasks, her heart filled with warmth. Jinenji's experience was similar to hers back then; Jinenji met his own Shirogane Miyuki, and she had met her own Hikigaya Hachiman, crawling out from the abyss.
Like an angel, Emilia smiled beautifully and offered a prayer.
"Ever since I met Hachiman, I've been happy all the time. So, you must be happy too, Jinenji, and everyone else suffering in that world."
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「Shirogane Miyuki originally wanted to say that he could take care of himself and there was no need to trouble others, especially a woman.」
「After all, changing bandages required taking off clothes, and being naked in front of Kikyo was something he found very hard to accept; it was too embarrassing.」
「To that end, Shirogane Miyuki wanted to flatly refuse Kikyo's request to care for him... but when he saw Kikyo quietly looking at him, he suddenly yielded.」
「Though she was an incredibly gentle and easy-to-talk-to priestess, Kikyo possessed a unique aura of stubbornness.」
「Once Kikyo took over, Shirogane Miyuki truly felt a level of comfort unlike anyone else's.」
「Whether it was wrapping bandages, changing medicine, or helping him turn over and change clothes, under the handling of Kikyo's slender and skillful hands, not only was there no pain, but it was as if he were being served; it was so comfortable Shirogane almost cried out.」
「And these tedious tasks continued day after day. Each time, Kikyo was just as meticulous and attentive, without a shred of impatience.」
「She was almost like a mother... he wanted to make such a comparison, but Shirogane Miyuki suddenly realized that Kikyo's actions, patience, and compassion actually ran deeper than that of a biological mother.」
「She was like a sacred doll, so perfect that one was left speechless.」
「Enjoying the personal service of a beautiful girl whose appearance, figure, and personality were all flawlessly impeccable, Shirogane Miyuki would occasionally, due to male instinct, find a few stray thoughts arising irrepressibly.」
「But those thoughts were snuffed out by him within half a second.」
「Kikyo's holiness made him feel ashamed of his own unworthiness, and he deeply loved Shinomiya Kaguya... even if he could no longer return to Earth.」
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"Waaaah, I don't care how, but please, think of something and get better quickly, President!"
In the Student Council room, a terrified Shinomiya Kaguya anxiously grabbed Shirogane Miyuki's collar and shook him back and forth so hard he was nearly suffocating. Kaguya felt this was looking very bad. Think about it: Hikigaya Hachiman once said he loved Yukinoshita, and not long after, he was head over heels for Emilia.
She absolutely did not want to become a second Yukinoshita—not even if she died!
"Calm down, Shinomiya! Rest assured, that 'me' right now doesn't like Lady Kikyo at all."
Shirogane Miyuki placed both hands on Shinomiya Kaguya's shoulders and comforted her earnestly. He wasn't lying. No matter how wonderful Kikyo was, it was impossible for him to fall for her that quickly. Those occasional thoughts were purely the male instinct to want to desecrate something pure... how to put it? It was because Kikyo was so holy.
The holier something is, the more humans occasionally have thoughts of wanting to tarnish it; this kind of fleeting thought is something everyone experiences. For example, many people occasionally have a fleeting urge for self-harm; this is because a complete, healthy body is beautiful, triggering an instinct to destroy or defile it. But this instinct only appears for half a second before being suppressed, and no one acts on it. Future Shirogane Miyuki's thoughts toward Kikyo belonged to this category.
"Argh, seriously!"
At their resting spot, Inuyasha scratched his head in extreme frustration. He knew Kikyo was kind-hearted and would meticulously care for anyone in need of help, but seeing Kikyo treat another man like that still sparked some subtle feelings in him. However, because he had accumulated goodwill toward Shirogane Miyuki earlier, he was stuck in a dilemma and couldn't bring himself to hate the guy.
"..."
At the same time, walking aimlessly along a stream, Kikyo looked somewhat pensive. She was thinking about Jinenji... being a half-demon, Jinenji made her think of half-demons in general, and by extension, Inuyasha. The resentment toward Inuyasha deep in her soul was still condensed, but it had indeed cleared slightly. Because of the half-demon. Because Jinenji, a fellow half-demon, was not a double-crossing conspirator like Inuyasha.
"Inuyasha..."
Whispering the name, Kikyo's eyelids lowered, revealing her more human side.
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「Thinking of Shinomiya Kaguya made him want to return to Earth. Shirogane Miyuki wanted to know if this world had something similar to the Philosopher's Stone.」
「If such a thing existed, he might be able to return to Earth, much like Ayanokouji Kiyotaka made a wish to go find Hikigaya Hachiman.」
「"Hundreds of years ago, the most powerful priestess fought against demons. Their souls condensed together to form a jewel; that jewel is called the Shikon Jewel."」
「"Legend has it that if you make a wish on the Shikon Jewel, it will grant it."」
「Speaking calmly, Kikyo's expression remained flat. "The Shikon Jewel has now shattered into countless fragments scattered all over the world... It is an evil thing that bewitches the human heart. Do not touch those things."」
「Shirogane Miyuki immediately agreed. "Mm, alright."」
「Even if he was very tempted, since Kikyo said it was an ominous object and gave such a warning, he naturally gave up on the idea of searching for the Shikon Jewel.」
「He trusted Kikyo deeply.」
「Just as Hikigaya Hachiman trusted Emilia deeply upon their first contact.」
「Although Shirogane Miyuki lacked that discerning eye for "the real thing" and was a bit slower, he could now truly see that Kikyo was absolutely the kind of "real thing" worthy of being around without any guard up.」
「Therefore, he naturally listened to Kikyo's words.」
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