After a rebellion was suppressed, the Kazahana Daimyō's thoughts were somewhat complicated. Just as Kazahana Dotō had said, he lost, yet the Kazahana Daimyō did not win either.
War has no victors, only losers.
The Kazahana Daimyō tried his best to cover up this rebellion and did not nail his own younger brother to the pillar of shame.
After eating a meal at the daimyō's residence, Kairen stood up, preparing to accompany Miroku to the Land of Demons.
The Kazahana Daimyō tried to keep him: "How about staying two more days?!"
Koyuki also said unwillingly: "Kairen, stay with Koyuki for two more days!"
Kairen shook his head: "No, I still have to go to the Land of Demons to help Miroku's people!"
Miroku bowed respectfully at the side, expressing her apology.
After their attempts to keep him failed, the Kazahana Daimyō and Koyuki saw Kairen and Miroku off.
They walked to an open area where flowers and grass welcomed them, the air fresh and clean.
Kairen instructed Fubuki: "I don't need your loyalty. You're too weak. From today onward, Koyuki is your lord."
"You are responsible for protecting her. If she dies, you are to commit seppuku."
Fubuki knelt on one knee and nodded: "Understood, sir!"
Koyuki jumped into Kairen's arms, nestling softly against his chest as she cried in a low voice:
"Kairen, when will we be able to see each other again?"
Kairen pinched Koyuki's cheek: "Anytime. I will leave you a curse mark. Whenever you miss me, I will appear!"
Kairen lowered his head, his teeth turning into snake fangs as he bit the side of Koyuki's neck.
Slowly, a curse mark formed on the back of Koyuki's neck, composed of three small magatama.
Miroku watched quietly, a glimmer of light flashing within her pale lavender eyes.
Kairen set Koyuki down and bid farewell to the Kazahana Daimyō and Koyuki: "Until we meet again!"
After a cloud of smoke exploded, a gigantic blue-gray eagle carried Miroku and flew into the sky.
Below, Koyuki cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted loudly: "Kairen, goodbye—"
The Kazahana Daimyō rubbed Koyuki's head and said with great satisfaction:
"Koyuki, our greatest gain in the Land of Fire was meeting him."
"He will be your treasure for a lifetime. You must hold on to him tightly in the future!"
"Got it! Dad!"
...
The deep blue sky drifted with clusters of clouds, like pieces of cotton candy—take a bite, and they turned into nothing but air.
Miroku propped her chin with both hands, swinging her feet happily.
Unlike the enclosed space of Susanoo, flying on the eagle's back felt even freer.
Miroku gradually forgot the heavy mission of being a priestess, forgot the responsibility of ruling a nation. Right now, she was simply a lively young girl.
Kairen's voice rang out: "You're in a really good mood right now!"
Miroku nodded: "I really wish I could turn into a bird, flying freely through the sky without any worries."
Kairen smiled: "How do you know birds have no worries? They fly around to look for insects. When it gets cold, they migrate south. When it gets hot, they move north."
"It's precisely because life has worries that living can move forward."
Miroku quietly savored Kairen's words. Within those plain sentences lay the true meaning of life.
"And besides, the early bird gets the worm! If you get up late, the worms will be eaten by someone else!"
Miroku pondered carefully again, suddenly noticing the darkness in Kairen's heart, and tugged hard at one of his feathers.
"That definitely wasn't something nice!"
"How can you slander my sincerity?! Fine then, let's continue communicating and discuss the continuation of life!"
"What are you going to communicate about?" Miroku lifted her small nose and tugged at Kairen's feathers again.
Kairen thought for a moment: "How to do it—now that really is a difficult problem."
"How about we play air shock now?"
"Air shock?!"
"Yeah! Straight dive from the sky, hook style, spinning style…"
Miroku didn't understand the words, but she grasped Kairen's evil intent and tugged hard at his feathers again.
"Can you rein in those wicked thoughts of yours?!"
Kairen tilted his eagle head: "What wicked thoughts? I'm a proper person, you know. I write in my diary every day. Don't slander me."
"Hehe…"
"And also, stop pulling my feathers. After all, you can't be sure where the feathers on my back come from?!"
Perhaps because there were no outsiders, or perhaps because she truly sensed Kairen's sinister intentions, a side of Miroku that few had ever seen emerged.
"I'm going to pull them! I'm going to pull them!"
Miroku kept yanking at Kairen's feathers until a large patch on his back was pulled bald.
Kairen flew into a rage and spotted a lake below.
Like a hunting eagle diving for fish from high in the sky, or like an arrow released from a bowstring, he plunged straight toward the water.
"Watch me soak you head to toe!"
With a loud "splash," Kairen crashed into the lake.
Miroku was completely soaked. Poor at swimming, she clung tightly to Kairen's feathers.
Immediately afterward, Kairen transformed into a gigantic whale, carrying Miroku as he swam out of the lake.
Miroku was dripping wet all over, yet instead she developed an intense interest in the water.
Kairen asked: "You've never swum before?!"
Miroku shook her head: "When I was little, I didn't have a single companion. Everyone was afraid of me, yet also in awe of me, because I could foresee their deaths. So there were many children's games I never understood."
Kairen comforted her: "To wear the crown, one must bear its weight. You were born extraordinary. Blending into the mundane world would only drown your talent."
Miroku shook her head: "I just want to be an ordinary person. I don't want to shoulder such enormous responsibility."
"Alright! Then I'll carry your responsibility for you! On my back, it should be lighter, right?"
"Thank you."
"We're family—why say thanks?"
"Hehe…"
Miroku grew interested in the lake and patted Kairen's back: "Hurry up and teach me how to swim!"
"Alright! Alright! Alright! I'll teach you all kinds of styles—freestyle, butterfly, dog paddle… whatever you want to learn, I'll teach you!"
"Hurry up!"
"Wait, let me first turn into a swimsuit for you to wear."
...
After a bout of playful splashing in the water, Kairen and Miroku went ashore.
Kairen lit a fire nearby and hung Miroku's clothes on a rack to dry.
At this moment, Miroku was wearing Kairen's original clothes.
The two sat by the fire, quietly driving away the dampness from their bodies.
The moisture here was heavy, and Miroku moved closer to Kairen.
Kairen was handling the fish he had just caught from the river. Sensing Miroku's closeness, he smiled: "It's very damp here, but…"
"If you want to generate heat in a damp place, you need to keep rubbing continuously in a confined space."
Miroku leaned her back against Kairen's and once again sensed the thoughts in his heart.
Somewhat speechless, she said: "You're talking dirty again!"
"What dirty talk? These are all great principles."
Kairen handed the roasted fish to Miroku.
Miroku took it, curiosity on her face: "I've never eaten grilled fish before!"
As the ruler of a nation, she usually ate only delicacies from land and sea—how could she ever have encountered such rustic food?