Click!
The two of them opened the second chest, only to find another pile of vegetables inside—cabbages, potatoes, even tomatoes and the like. They had absolutely nothing to do with the Dango Milk they were supposed to find, which meant they had chosen wrong again.
"Still nothing... Looks like our luck isn't very good..."
Ayaka murmured.
"It's fine. We'll simply keep looking."
She did not care much. Neither of these chests showed any signs of having been opened before, which meant the other groups had not searched this area. They still had a chance.
"Mm, you're right... Let's go back to the other fork, Shogun-sama."
Ayaka suggested.
After returning to the original fork in the road, this time they chose the path directly ahead. Unlike the route beside the stream, this one led uphill. A fox statue stood on the right, while stone steps stretched up behind it, with signboards on both sides indicating the direction.
They had already chosen two out of the three routes. If this one also turned out to be wrong, then they really would have to admit, as Ayaka had said, that their luck was terrible. Still, surely it could not be that bad. Her instincts told her that this time, they had definitely chosen the right path!
The two followed the stone steps up to a hill in the upper reaches of Chinju Forest... Yet before they even had time to look around—
Poof!!!
A thick cloud of smoke suddenly erupted before their eyes, obscuring their vision so completely that they could barely see their surroundings.
"...What? I-I can't see clearly. It feels like something is moving?"
Ayaka was no longer as flustered as she had been before, perhaps because she was growing accustomed to it, but she still instinctively hid behind the Shogun.
"...?"
Moving?
Hearing that, she narrowed her eyes and stared into the smoke. There seemed to be the silhouette of some four-legged creature within it, broad and bulky, swaying left and right in an absurdly exaggerated manner as a shadow against the haze—
Moo~!
It even let out a ridiculous cow's bellow.
What in the world is that?
She stared in confusion.
"Well? Yours truly scared you, didn't I?!"
Then came a familiar, hot-blooded voice, brimming with the smug pride of a child. There was absolutely no—absolutely no—sense of fear whatsoever. If anything, it only made people want to laugh.
Who was it that claimed he was an expert at scaring people again?
"Eek—this is... so frightening..."
Ayaka spoke with considerable emotion while still pressed against her. Whether she had actually been frightened or was merely playing along was unclear, though judging from the situation, she was probably just giving the other person a graceful way to save face.
"Hahahahaha—!"
Seriously... why did he have to burst into loud laughter after scaring someone just to announce his own presence? It completely ruined the atmosphere. It somehow made the whole thing feel cheap, even comical, and... stupid. The Shogun found herself inwardly criticizing him from every possible angle.
Indeed, the owner of that voice was none other than Arataki Itto from earlier. So he really had been diligently going around frightening people, though the results left much to be desired.
Poof!
Several seconds later, the smoke finally dispersed, and the figure had vanished as well.
"Haa..."
Ayaka exhaled.
"Were you actually frightened?"
She looked at the girl beside her and asked.
"Me? No... But if I showed no reaction at all, wouldn't Mr. Arataki feel awkward?"
Ayaka raised her folding fan to cover her mouth as she offered her analysis.
"I don't think you need to cooperate with his performance quite that much."
"Hehe~ But... isn't that precisely the effect a Test of Courage is meant to create? It needs the proper atmosphere."
Ayaka gave her an indulgent smile.
Of course, she really had been somewhat frightened before, but she had gotten used to it over time... Or perhaps Arataki Itto's methods were simply far too ridiculous to be scary.
"...That does make sense. You're as considerate as ever."
She smiled in return. More accurately, Ayaka was simply always thinking about other people's feelings.
As they talked, the two followed the signboards until they reached a small hill nearby. The moment they approached, they could tell that the container there was completely different from the previous chests. Rather than a wooden chest, this was a crate specifically meant for drinks. There was no need to inspect it closely to know they had finally found what they were looking for.
"Look. Aren't these the Dango Milk?"
Ayaka crouched down and picked up a bottle wrapped in distinctive decorative packaging, showing it to her.
"Indeed... That's it."
She took the bottle and inspected the familiar design. It was the bottled drink Ei especially loved, though she herself was rather fond of it as well.
"Wonderful. But... why is there a scarecrow beside it? Strange... What's that supposed to be for?"
Just as Ayaka said, a battered scarecrow lay across the top of the crate. Several arrows had pierced straight through its chest, making the sight rather eerie.
"Probably to enhance the atmosphere... It's fine. There shouldn't be anyone lying in wait nearby."
She reassured the girl. The moonlight overhead was especially clear at this moment, illuminating the edge of the hill directly and coating both the ground and the two women in a layer of pale silver gauze. Rather than frightening, the scene felt almost dreamlike, like something from a painting.
"Still... now that we've found the item, that means we've gained a slight lead."
Ayaka smiled faintly.
"Mm... Here. Try some."
She handed the Dango Milk in her hand to the girl.
There happened to be exactly three bottles in the crate. One for each of them, while the final bottle could be saved for Ei, though she had no idea whether Ei would come or not.
Click!
At that moment, the scarecrow in front of them suddenly jerked upright, as though pulled by a hidden thread. It was probably another mechanism designed to put on a show and add to the atmosphere. Logically, it should have activated the moment someone reached for the item, but apparently something had gone wrong this time, causing it to trigger several seconds too late.
"Looks like it's a mechanism... though perhaps... something went wrong with it?"
Ayaka commented tactfully.
"It's fine. Try the drink first."
She glanced casually at the suddenly upright scarecrow and urged Ayaka again. She had a feeling the girl had never tried this drink before.
"Mm..."
Ayaka understood the Shogun's subtle attempt to recommend it and smiled inwardly. Obediently, she opened the Dango Milk, first breathing in its faint aroma before parting her lips around the mouth of the bottle. Supporting the bottom with one hand, she drank quietly and gracefully.
"..."
Seeing that, the Shogun opened her own bottle and drank alongside her.
Several seconds later...
"Haa... It's really delicious. Sweet without being cloying, and it even carries the flavor of dango."
Ayaka evaluated it with a smile.
Her description was almost exactly the same as Ei's... Perhaps that truly was the charm of this drink.
"Ei especially loves this."
She swallowed the drink in her mouth, narrowing her eyes as she savored its delicious flavor before saying this to Ayaka.
"What about you?"
Ayaka asked.
"I... like it very much too."
Who knew whose taste she had inherited? Apparently, preferences really could be passed down.
"Hehe~ Then I'll buy a few crates and have them delivered to Tenshukaku in the future."
Ayaka proposed.
"Don't do that... Haa... There's no need to waste your money."
She immediately refused.
"All right. Then I'll simply have the servants deliver them there from now on."
Ayaka smiled as though the Shogun's protest had gone in one ear and out the other.
"..."
Haa... forget it...
They really did love drinking it, after all.
"Still, as expected of a drink both Shogun-sama and Lady Ei enjoy. It truly is delicious. It feels as though all the fright and oppressive atmosphere from earlier have been healed away by the Dango Milk."
Seeing that she was no longer objecting, Ayaka smiled in satisfaction before turning the topic back to their surroundings. She glanced around and relaxed slightly.
"Looking carefully, this is still the Chinju Forest I'm familiar with. It's clearly right below the Kamisato Estate, yet today has given me a completely different experience. Still, it doesn't seem nearly as frightening anymore."
She shifted her gaze away from the intact kitsune statue beside them and looked back down at the bottle in her hand.
"Though this is the first time I've learned that you're afraid of things like this..."
That much was true. Despite being childhood friends, she had never known Ayaka was afraid of ghosts and supernatural things. Ever since Ayaka admitted it back at the Kamisato Estate, the Shogun had been thinking about it.
"Hehe~ That's true... Now that you've learned about another side of me, I may feel a little embarrassed or even unsure of myself, but... this sense of reassurance that comes from being understood by the person I love is something nothing else could ever replace."
Ayaka seized the opportunity to flirt with her again, catching her completely off guard.
".../// There you go again..."
Her face flushed as she adorably turned her embarrassed gaze away and complained in a muffled voice. But as she shifted her eyes aside, she suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure in the corner of her vision.
...Ei?
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