Chapter 8: Please Ensure You Maintain Your Best Condition
"Fine, fine, fine. You're good-looking, so you're always right."
Tatsu waved his hand and walked into the room, feigning helplessness.
"For the sake of my own life, I suppose I'll squeeze in with you."
"It's not like I'm losing out anyway. If word got out, people would say I was the one taking advantage of Lady Flower Hashira."
As he spoke, he took a look at the room's furnishings.
Although the room was spacious, there was no bed, only a futon spread out in the center of the room that looked soft and comfortable.
This was the standard setup for a Japanese-style guest room. There was only one sleeping space.
Tatsu's gaze lingered on that single sleeping space for two seconds before quickly shifting away to the somewhat old wooden chair in the corner.
"Well then..." Just as Tatsu was about to speak to claim the "terrain," Kanae spoke first.
She pointed to the only futon, wearing a smile that made it impossible to refuse.
"Tatsu, go get some rest. You've been through a lot tonight, and your Spiritual exhaustion must be significant."
As she spoke, she walked over to the hard wooden chair and patted the backrest.
"I've been executing missions out in the field for years, so I'm used to it. I can just find somewhere to doze off for a bit."
"Besides, I am a Flower Hashira, so I recover energy faster than you. You are a demon and need deep sleep to resist the weakness brought on by the daylight."
Kanae said this as a matter of course, as if this were the only natural arrangement.
In her view, although Tatsu was a demon, he was now her companion—a companion with a fatal weakness. Protecting the weak and taking care of her comrades was a creed carved into her bones.
Just as she was about to sit down, a hand suddenly blocked the space between her and the chair. It was Tatsu's hand.
"Stop."
Tatsu wiped the playful expression off his face, his brows furrowing slightly, and his gaze turned exceptionally serious, even carrying a hint of "ferocity."
"Kanae, did you get something wrong?"
"Eh?" Kanae blinked, looking confused. "What is it?"
"I am a demon. My physical attributes are several, even dozens of times that of a human."
Tatsu pointed to his own chest, his tone firm. "Even if I didn't sleep for three days and three nights, I'd just have slight dark circles under my eyes. But what about you? You are human, a creature of flesh and blood."
"Tonight you've been traveling and staying alert; your mind has been tightly wound. Now that we finally have a safe place, you want me to sleep on a soft futon while you sit on a hard wooden bench?"
"But..." Kanae tried to object.
"No buts!" Tatsu cut her off immediately, leaning forward. In that instant, he deliberately released a trace of the oppressive aura belonging to a demon.
"You are my lifeline right now, so how could I let my lifeline sit on a hard bench?"
Tatsu muttered to himself, but spoke eloquently, "If we run into an emergency, like another demon hiding in this inn, you are the main damage dealer responsible for the fight. If you don't rest well and your combat effectiveness drops, wouldn't I be doomed too?"
He pointed to the futon and said in a tone bordering on an order: "Therefore, for my safety, and so that this fear-of-death demon can live a little longer, please ensure you maintain your best condition. Go to sleep. This is a request, and it is the optimal solution for now."
Tatsu's words were half-true and half-false. The true part was that he really did treat Kanae as his current talisman.
In this crazy world where demons eat humans and humans kill demons, clinging tightly to a thick, sturdy backer was the first rule of survival for a transmigrator.
The false part was that he wasn't actually that cold-blooded. Looking at this foolish woman before him who could have easily cut him down with one sword stroke, yet chose to trust him and even give up her bed for him, the part of Tatsu's heart that remained soft even after becoming a demon was deeply touched.
Let a girl sleep on a chair while he took the bed? As a model youth from his past life who had received nine years of compulsory education, he couldn't do such a thing; even as a demon in this life, he couldn't afford to lose face like that.
Kanae was stunned as she looked at Tatsu's face, which was written with the word "determination." She was a smart person with a keen mind. She understood the logic in Tatsu's words: he was treating her as a talisman.
This should have been a relationship of exploitation, but for some reason, hearing it from Tatsu made her feel a different kind of... warmth? Was he using this clumsy, even self-deprecating way to care for her?
Even though he was a demon, he was more considerate than many humans. The corners of Kanae's mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly.
She didn't expose Tatsu's little scheme, nor did she continue to argue. Because she knew that this man, who appeared somewhat cynical, had an unshakable pride deep in his bones. If she insisted further, she feared he would simply sit on the floor.
"Since Mr. Tatsu has said as much..." Kanae shook her head gently, her tone carrying a hint of helpless indulgence. "In order to better protect Mr. Tatsu, I will respectfully comply."
She turned around and walked toward the futon.
"That's right." Seeing her relent, Tatsu heaved a huge sigh of relief, and his face returned to that annoying, punchable smile. "Even if you're a tool, you need to be well-maintained to be used effectively, right?"
Kanae took off her wooden sandals, placed them neatly by the side of the futon, then untied her haori and lay down in the bedding with gentle movements.
The bedding carried the scent of the sun, causing her nerves, which had been tense all night, to instantly relax.
She turned on her side and looked toward the other end of the room. Tatsu had already moved the chair and was heading straight for the darkest corner of the room.
It was the corner formed by the wardrobe and the wall, completely shielded from the light. He placed the chair backward, then straddled it, gripping the backrest with both hands and resting his chin on his arms.
"Tatsu..." Kanae called out softly, looking at him huddled in the shadows.
"Hmm? What is it? Can't sleep and want a bedtime story? I only know how to tell 'Black Cat Detective,' which isn't very suitable for a young girl like you." Tatsu's voice came from the darkness, muffled.
"Pfft..." Kanae was amused by his nonsensical words. Although she didn't know what 'Black Cat Detective' was, it sounded very interesting.
"I just wanted to say..." Kanae pulled the quilt up, covering the lower half of her face, leaving only her sparkling eyes visible. Her voice became somewhat muffled. "Thank you. And... goodnight, or rather, good morning."