"Chirp—"
Miroku rode down from the sky on Kairen's azure eagle shadow clone.
Kairen stepped forward to greet her, gently performing a knight's salute.
"Beautiful princess, I've already completed the commission for you."
Miroku said nothing. She rushed straight toward Kairen and threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly.
Nestled against Kairen's chest, Miroku cried tears of joy.
She didn't want anyone to see her vulnerability—except Kairen.
"Thank you, Kairen!"
Miroku's fragrance filled the air, making Kairen's heart itch.
He almost wanted to take the sky as a quilt and the earth as a bed, reenacting the primal age of slash-and-burn.
But Kairen gently patted Miroku's soft back.
"I told you—we're family now. No need to be so formal."
The surrounding warriors looked at the two embracing figures—one man and one woman, one golden and one black, like an immortal couple.
Their earlier dissatisfaction gradually faded away.
A Kairen with such power was far beyond their reach and was worthy of being the sovereign of the Land of Demons.
A blessing descended from the heavens. The people of the Land of Demons poured out of their homes, kneeling on the ground to give thanks to this unknown immortal.
...
Miroku welcomed Kairen into her royal palace and brewed a pot of tea.
The two tasted the sweetness of the tea leaves, sitting in quiet silence, neither speaking first.
Kairen didn't like the tea's bitterness followed by sweetness. To him, it felt like shrinking back after all of life's sediment had settled.
He preferred richer, sweeter flavors—like milk.
Kairen abandoned the complicated kneeling posture and crawled onto the mat, treating the place like his own home.
Miroku watched quietly, not minding Kairen's rudeness at all. She slowly set her teacup on the table, maintaining her noble kneeling posture.
Kairen propped his head with his right hand, staring straight at Miroku.
The two simply gazed at each other.
Miroku also carefully examined the shaman she had chosen.
Handsome features, outstanding bearing, ethereal and elusive, like an immortal of the mortal world.
But once you seriously step into his world, you'd find it filled with all sorts of wicked thoughts.
Ignoring that, he was still a decent person.
It was just this age…
Suddenly, Miroku blurted out, "Twenty years from now, when my face is full of wrinkles—will you still want me?!"
Kairen didn't hesitate at all. He nodded immediately and even gave an answer beyond the standard.
"Even if you're so old you can't walk anymore, I'll become the cane that supports you, and we'll spend the rest of our lives together."
For some reason, an indescribable love welled up in Miroku's heart.
With just this short sentence, she knew the man before her was worth entrusting herself to.
"Ding!"
"Miroku has gained 10 romance points toward you and wants to rest her head on your chest."
With a gentle tug from Kairen, Miroku's noble composure shattered instantly, like a lovestruck少女 lying in a young man's embrace.
Miroku gazed at Kairen's masculine face, her cheeks slightly flushed. A ray of light had entered her lonely world.
Romance in the mortal world nourished the heart like honey.
Looking into Miroku's pale purple eyes, Kairen thought to himself how easy it was to fool two-dimensional women. Say a couple of sweet words and they practically hand you their heart.
Not like three-dimensional women—no matter how much you flatter them for half a lifetime, all you get in the end is: you're a good person.
Kairen felt as though he had once again grasped the secret to courting two-dimensional girls. He then stared directly into Miroku's eyes.
There seemed to be a light shining from his own eyes into Miroku's lonely world.
Kairen gently stroked Miroku's hair. "Between moonlight and snowlight, you are the third color; between the sun, moon, and stars, you are the rare fourth."
"Ding!"
"Miroku has gained 10 romance points toward you…"
"I have a very, very long story that will take a whole lifetime to tell you slowly."
"Ding!"
"Miroku has gained 10 romance points toward you…"
"We stand in different dimensions, yet perhaps we once waited for the same dawn."
"Ding!"
...
After this series of moves by Kairen, Miroku grew even closer to him. The next step would be calling him dear brother.
Resting her head on Kairen's chest, Miroku softly said, "Kairen, can you stay with me in the Land of Demons for a lifetime?"
Like a greedy little girl, she wanted to tie what she loved to her side and never let it go.
Kairen's voice carried a sense of bearing the salvation of all beings.
"In this world, demons and gods rise together. I have no intention of competing for supremacy, yet I know the suffering of the common people."
"Countries like the Land of Snow and the Land of Demons—who knows how many there are under heaven? I want to walk their worlds barefoot and leave behind a spark of hope."
Miroku seemed to understand Kairen's lofty ambitions and leaned even closer to him.
"Kairen, you're truly great!"
Kairen smiled as he toyed with Miroku's hair.
As expected, a woman in love has negative IQ. If Miroku activated her power to peer into hearts, all she'd see would be a mass of black.
How could he be that kind of good person? Staying tied to the Land of Demons forever—wouldn't that be hanging himself from a single tree?
Drawing small circles on Miroku's back, Kairen took a couple of heavy breaths and said,
"How about tonight…"
Miroku instantly understood. Her neck slowly turned red like a ripe apple.
She stammered, "I… I, I…"
Kairen could tell at a glance she wasn't ready. He rubbed her back.
"Forget it! Forget it! Let's talk business now!"
Miroku let out a sigh of relief. Though she spoke of fulfilling the high priestess's legacy, when it came time to truly face it, a bit of fear crept into her heart.
Miroku sat upright, her pale purple eyes looking at Kairen.
Kairen said, "You know that your country's disaster hasn't been completely resolved. The source of it all is the demon Mōryō."
Miroku nodded, then glanced at the purple bell around her neck—a tool meant to suppress the high priestess's immense power.
When facing Mōryō, releasing it would grant unimaginable strength.
Kairen continued, "Do you know where Mōryō is sealed?"
Miroku answered, "At the altar of the Land of Demons!"
Kairen stood up. Seeing that dusk was approaching and that he was tired as well, he decided to deal with Mōryō tomorrow.
"Tomorrow we'll go to the altar and resolve the source of all this!"
Miroku nodded. "Alright!"
"Then tonight, let's consummate the marriage!"
Miroku shot Kairen a glare, then had the palace servants prepare dinner.
Kairen lay on the mat and, without realizing it, rested his head on Miroku's thighs. No matter how much she pushed, she couldn't move him and could only put up with his shamelessness.
Holding Miroku's hand, Kairen carefully examined the lines of fate within it.
"Look at this line… it intersects here, proving we're fated!"
Miroku quietly watched Kairen spout nonsense. Instead of annoyance, a warmth rose in her heart. In the past, the high priestess's palace was empty and cold, devoid of any human warmth.
Now, with one more man, the atmosphere had become far more pleasant.
Suddenly, Kairen froze. "Did I forget something?"
Miroku asked, "What?!"
Kairen thought carefully. Which beauty had he not yet encountered?
After a long while, it finally hit him. "My two military advisors!!"