Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 112 9 Going to Kyoto!

Chapter 112 9. "Going to Kyoto! (4)"

After leaving Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, the group went to Kamogawa. Masumi was a little disappointed with the scenery during the day.

They stood on the riverbed filled with tourists and discussed where to go next.

"How about going to Guibune?" Qian Ai suggested.

"I heard from classmates who have been to Kifune Shrine that it is the shrine that best protects girls."

"Bless the girls?"

"Yes." Qian Ai nodded: "It's not only a shrine for marriage, but also a very famous place for casting curses."

"It is said that many girls go there to curse bad men and mistresses, so you often see bad men kneeling and begging for forgiveness at Kifune Shrine after being cursed."

"Hey! That sounds interesting!" Asami showed an interested expression: "Let's go there! How about it?"

"I can be anywhere." Linyin said softly.

Kurokawa Mio turned to look at him: "Where's Masumi?"

"...Let's go somewhere else."

"Hey, why?" Qian Ai protested with her lips pursed in displeasure.

"Are you scared, Masumi-san? Could it be that... you want to be a scumbag?" She glared at Masumi fiercely.

"certainly not."

He shook his head helplessly and explained, "It's a matter of time and distance. Guichuan is quite far from the city, so taking a taxi or hiring a car is very expensive. If you take the Eizan Railway, it's very crowded."

"Hmm...it sounds like that's right."

Qian Ai muttered to herself with a disappointed look on her face, but she quickly adjusted her mood, raised her head and asked, "Where are we going next?"

"...Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine, right?"

Built in 4 AD, Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine in Kyoto is the head shrine of 711 Inari shrines nationwide. It enshrines the deity Uga no Mikonomi, who blesses prosperous business, good harvests, family safety, and the fulfillment of wishes.

The most famous scenery is the Thousand Torii Gates.

Although it literally says "Thousands of Books", the actual number is more than 1, which come from donations from various companies because it is the patron saint of businessmen.

The vermilion torii gates are stacked one on top of the other, forming a deep tunnel.

"Wow! So beautiful!"

Qian Ai marveled at the scenery.

But the next moment, her brows furrowed slightly.

Seeing this, Masumi asked, "What's wrong?"

"No, I just suddenly felt that my vocabulary was a little too poor."

Qian Ai scratched her ear embarrassedly: "When I see the scenery, I can only say plain words like 'Qili'."

"It's nothing to worry about." Masumi shrugged nonchalantly.

"Isn't there a saying? The most real ideas are those that seem to come from a whim."

“The first words that come out of your mouth when you see a scene are your true feelings.”

“But there are some people who can speak eloquently.”

"Who? A teacher from your school's literature department?"

"Murasaki Shikibu, Sei Shonagon..." Qian Ai counted on her fingers. The serious expression on her face was no longer there, but replaced by a joking and playful expression.

"Ah, and Izumi Shikibu."

(Note: All three were female writers of the Heian period, one of the Thirty-Six Poet Immortals of the Middle Ages, and were the authors of The Tale of Genji, The Pillow Book, and The Diary of Izumi Shikibu, respectively.)
Masumi could only smile bitterly at this.

"By the way, Izumi Shikibu once went to Kifune Shrine and prayed for her husband to change his mind."

"Is it really a pity that I couldn't go to Kifune Shrine?"

"A little, but it's not absolutely necessary."

Qian Ai raised the corners of her lips, "It's really fun to be able to hang out like this with Masumi-san... and everyone else."

"Wait, where are the others?"

Before they knew it, the two of them had walked deep into the Thousand Torii Gates, leaving the other four behind.

"Kurokawa, Seno, and Hanekawa are all very exhausted. Kamishiro is taking care of them, so it will probably take a while for them to catch up," said Masumi.

"Hey, that's it."

Qian Ai had an inexplicably excited smile on her lips, her eyes shining brightly:

"So now it's just me and Masumi-san."

"what are you up to?"

The childhood girl rolled her shoulders energetically, smiling with her white teeth showing, and held his arm with her slender hand.

"While everyone is away, let's get to the top first!"

◇

"Wooah~ I've reached my limit."

After the two of them climbed to the viewing point on Mount Inari in one breath, Qian Ai sat down on the bench next to them exhausted and let out a deep breath.

The sigh that left his lungs was filled with the humid heat of summer.

"Who told you to run so fast?"

Masumi said as he sat down next to her. Like the Kiyomizu stage, this place had a great view of Kyoto.

This trip to Keihan has been going smoothly so far. The weather has been sunny for the first two days. Masumi hopes that it will continue tomorrow. After all, we have to go to Uji to watch the fireworks festival on the last day, and it must be sunny.

Qian Ai adjusted her breathing and stared quietly at Xiying in front of her.

"If we don't reach the top quickly, we won't be able to see such a beautiful scenery."

In the misty crimson color, the city at the foot of the mountain emerged, and before we knew it, it was almost dusk.

"So beautiful," she murmured.

Masumi looked at the girl who was staring at Xiying in a trance. He thought that she was very beautiful even if she said that.

"Mamazu Masumi."

"Ok?"

She suddenly looked at Masumi, a warm smile appearing in the corners of her eyes and eyebrows.

"Come to think of it, it's been a long, long, long time since I've been like this with Masumi-san."

She exaggeratedly piled up several adjectives like "a long time" and laughed so hard that her voice was like a pile of building blocks that were about to fall down.

"How long has it been?" Masumi smiled bitterly.

"Five years."

“Do we need to add so many ‘long, long, long times’ to five years?”

"Yes."

She turned her head again, lowered her eyelashes quietly, and said in a low voice that sounded like a sigh: "After all, the time spent alone is much longer than I imagined."

"..."

"Besides, even before we went to Tokyo, Masumi-nii rarely came out with me."

Qian Ai suddenly glanced over with dissatisfaction.

"It was you who didn't allow me to look for you at that time." Masumi sighed.

"Who told you to pick me up at the school gate with your guitar on your back, with a band member next to you with colorfully dyed hair and earrings?"

Qian Ai frowned and said, "It caused strange rumors to spread around the school the next day."

"I heard Asahina from Class A is really good at having fun, did you know that?", "Hey, foreigners seem to be very open-minded." Things like that.

"Sorry." Masumi said solemnly.

"There's no need to apologize. After all, it's all in the past." Qian Ai shook her head.

"But even though I said that, Masumi-san will still continue to come to me."

"After all, Aunt Stephanie took such good care of me."

"Is my mother the only reason?" she said dissatisfiedly.

"Hmm... not really." Masumi thought for a moment and said, "We are childhood sweethearts after all."

"Hmph...childhood sweethearts?"

She raised the corners of her lips as if to imply something, looking very happy.

"Even when I introduced myself to Mami-san, I was reluctant to use that word."

"I've thought about it carefully, and it seems that you were the one who forbade me to use this word in the beginning."

"Eh? Is it true?" Qian Ai asked in surprise.

"Well, I remember it happened when you were in the second grade of junior high school."

"No way? Masumi-san's memory is so good."

Despite her surprised tone, the childhood girl smiled happily.

"If you don't like it, I'll forget it immediately."

"Hey, wait! No, you can't forget it!" Qian Ai said with a blushing face.

Then, seeing Masumi's smiling face, she puffed up her cheeks angrily and punched him on the shoulder.

"Ah, it hurts."

"You deserve it, and I wasn't trying hard at all."

"Really? How can you play such a joke on a girl? 'Forget the memories' or something like that..."

"Feel sorry."

"There's no need to apologize. Or rather, I'm the one who needs to apologize..."

Suddenly, the girl's mood dropped almost visibly.

Her shadow stretched out across the ground, blending vividly into the evening shadows, and her voice was so still that it seemed to blend into the surrounding darkness.

Chiai's lips trembled slightly, and then an expression appeared on her face that Masumi had never seen before.

"I'm sorry, Masumi-san."

"What's wrong? You're talking about this all of a sudden."

"I'm so happy that you can come back to Kobe again. When I went to Tokyo, I thought I would never see you again."

"That's not the case. This isn't the Edo period."

To ease the suddenly tense atmosphere, Masumi joked, "The Tokaido Shinkansen is much faster than the Five Roads built by the Tokugawa shogunate."

The childhood girl raised the corners of her lips slightly, a smile appearing on her lips, just like every time she heard him tell a joke, even if it was not funny.

Then she closed her eyes, the smile disappeared from her face, and she lowered her head with moist eyes.

"...When you said you were going to Tokyo to pursue your musical dreams, I was happy that you had found your purpose, unlike me who was drifting with the crowd back then, but I was also scared inside."

"Fear?"

"Well, I'm afraid you'll drift away from me."

The light-colored hair tips cast shadows in front of the eyelashes.

"Masumi-san is very powerful. I know this kind of thing best because we've always been together."

"So when Masumi-san has a goal and works hard for it, I find it hard to believe that I will be able to stand on the same level as Masumi-san by then, so we will definitely drift apart."

"I hate this!"

"The intersection of two people gradually becomes something that can only remain in memories."

After she finished speaking, she cupped her cheeks with her palms, and a muffled sound escaped from between her fingers.

"...So, there was only one time when I suddenly had a very excessive and selfish thought in my heart."

"I hope Masumi fails."

Her voice trembled slightly uncontrollably.

"...As long as this is the case, Masumi-san will always be by my side."

After saying that, Qian Ai remained silent.

Her straightforward words made Masumi feel his heart tighten. Just as he was about to say something, the girl raised her face again.

Sparkling emotions overflowed from her eyes, slid down her cheeks, and were coated with warm colors by the sunset.

"I'm sorry, Masumi-san."

Her voice choked. "Really...really...that's too much, right?"

"Now, I've found what I want to do, so I can imagine what it feels like to have my dreams shattered..."

"Mamaru-nii must be in a lot of pain right now..." "Whenever I think about how I once had such an extreme thought... I feel... that I shouldn't be standing next to Mamaru-nii like this..."

The words spoken in a tearful tone became fragmented and finally became completely incoherent.

She just kept repeating "I'm sorry" and burst into tears.

Masumi said nothing, but just stayed by her side silently.

An open environment can help people unload their burdens, and their tense nerves can be diverted by trivial matters. So what is your mood now?

A long while passed until Qian Ai's sobbing stopped.

He then slowly said, "You don't need to blame yourself at all."

"But……"

"As for that feeling of worry, it's unnecessary. The emotional connection between people is not that fragile."

Masumi's Adam's apple moved.

That's all, it's as if there are countless transparent threads made of air wrapped around it.

The childhood girl remained unmoved, tears still welling in her eyes. Looking at her who was about to cry, Masumi uttered short and clear words from his lips.

"I want to see Qian Ai, now and in the future."

"..."

The corners of his eyes, stained with tears, twitched and widened slightly.

"I know that I haven't been back in Tokyo for five years, so it's not very convincing to say this, so—"

Masumi took a deep breath and said, "I will use the time in the future to prove this to you."

"..."

Qian Ai finally stopped sobbing and looked at him.

"Masumi-san..."

The girl spoke again, her voice no longer full of energy as usual, just like the setting sun overhead, and then she let out a long sigh...

"Thank you."

"Sure enough, I feel much better after I said what was in my heart."

A light full of joy flowed from her smile, which was the afterglow of the fading evening light falling on her.

Her color gradually brightened up, and then she suddenly raised her voice:
"Really?! Masumi-san, do you know what you just said?"

Qian Ai jumped up from the bench like a jumping cat, and her cheeks suddenly turned as red as a cooked octopus.

It seems that she has recovered from her crying.

"What kind of words?" Masumi tilted his head in confusion.

"Really, this is totally inexplicable!"

She stamped her foot cutely.

"That's what I wanted to say." Masumi said helplessly.

Those eyes, a little red and swollen because of crying, stared straight at him.

But after just looking for a moment, Qian Ai turned her head away, coughed fakely, and then spoke in a nonchalant tone.

"By the way, why haven't Rin and the others come up yet? Are they lost?"

"This is a scenic spot, how is that possible?" Masumi shook his head and picked up his phone, only to find that Rin had already sent him a LINE message.

"Kamiyo said that since Seno and the others couldn't make it up, they were waiting for us to come down from the main hall."

"Ah? Why are you saying this now? Let's go down quickly and don't keep everyone waiting."

"Ah."

The air in the summer evening was still slightly warm, and the setting sun dyed the Inari Mountain Road red. The two of them walked down the mountain along the same route as if they wanted to escape from this red world.

"By the way, Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine in the evening is a bit spooky and gloomy."

"Because there's no one around."

"And the crows' cries are scary too."

"Ah, is that a wild boar?"

As if to hide her shyness from crying just now, Qian Ai talked a lot along the way.

Masumi listened nonchalantly while thinking about what Chiai had just said, "incomprehensible".

What's going on is so confusing.

It was not until he passed through a torii gate donated by XX Co., Ltd. in 2009 that a spark flashed in his mind.

Isn't that sentence just now a bit outrageous?

He glanced at the childhood girl calmly, and a smile bloomed like a flower on her lively profile.

◇

"Sorry to keep everyone waiting."

When they went down the mountain to the main hall, the crowds of tourists were no longer crowded, and the two of them immediately spotted the four girls waiting there.

"It's ok."

Rinne came over, and Masumi found that she was holding a small amulet in her hand with the wishes of "safety at home" and "safety on the road" written on it.

“I just bought it over there.”

She handed the two of them a box of Inari sushi.

"Mami-sister and the others are clamoring about being hungry. Does Chiai want to eat?"

"No, I want to save my stomach for the hot spring meal tonight!"

"What about you?"

Throughout this period, Kamishiro rarely called him by his name directly.

"Oh, thank you."

Masumi was actually a little hungry, so he decided to eat one to fill his stomach first, and took the box of sushi from Rinone.

Each piece of Inari sushi is wrapped in plastic film, so it is easy to eat like a hamburger without getting your hands dirty or needing to prepare a plate or chopsticks.

He picked up a piece of sushi, opened the package, and took a bite.

Soft and sweet fried tofu is the fox's favorite flavor.

The folk impression that foxes love to eat fried tofu is that the island country did not raise chickens in ancient times, and the foxes in the neighboring Western countries ate chickens.

"Masumi-kun is so mean, he only cares about eating for himself! He's as cunning as a fox!"

Asami's dissatisfied protest drifted over from the other side.

"I know. I'm not planning on eating it all."

Responding helplessly, Masumi walked towards the bench. The three girls seemed exhausted and fell limply on the chairs.

"Give."

He handed over the sushi.

None of the three girls caught it with their hands.

"Ah~"

The rosy lips are open, like a goldfish.

"I'm out of strength, Masumi, please feed me." Kurokawa Mio said in a soft voice, becoming soft and sticky.

"Hurry up, Masumi-kun," Asami urged weakly.

Haiyue said nothing, but her mouth was opened as wide as possible. However, because it was originally very small, it didn't look that big.

"Is it so exaggerated?"

Masumi sighed, took out a piece of Inari sushi, peeled off the plastic wrap, and handed it to Kurokawa Mio's lips on the far left first.

The moment the rice touches your lips.

Chew chew chew chew~
Like a hamster, its neat white teeth chased and bit towards him, and Masumi quickly retracted his fingers.

It was so scary, my finger was almost bitten off.

Kurokawa Mio narrowed her eyes contentedly.

Next is Seno in the middle.

The moment the Inari sushi was handed over, her soft and plump lips opened, took the rice sushi wrapped in tofu skin, put it into her mouth, and then... she swallowed it in one breath?

"thanks for treatment."

"There are grains of rice stuck to my mouth."

"Please help me take it off, thank you."

"Pick it yourself."

"Hey, why is this happening?" She snorted in dissatisfaction.

Finally, there is Haiyue sitting on the right.

"This one is so big... Is there a smaller one..."

"Isn't Inari sushi usually this size?"

"Oh……"

Haiyue then bit the sushi rice ball timidly.

The sticky voice was filled with the sound of swallowing food. After a while, the girl opened her lips again as if to show off.

Looking down at the girl's mouth from top to bottom, you can see that the connection between the upper palate and the esophagus is clean.

Only a crystal clear line of saliva was dripping.

“…I ate it all…”

"Oh, very good, very good."

Masumi said as if coaxing a child.

Then he looked at the three satisfied girls with a strange expression, frowned slightly, and murmured in his heart.

What on earth am I...doing?
A practical activity for primary school students to feed carp?

There is one last piece of sushi left in the box.

He turned his head to look at Linyin who was not far away.

The black-haired girl's soft and beautiful face was a little embarrassed, and she turned away like a cat unwilling to be picked up:
"I don't need to be fed like that."

"Wait, I didn't say I was going to feed you like that."

Realizing her misunderstanding, Rin's face flushed.

"Well, let's go back to the hotel."

"Oh." Masumi nodded and watched her turn around evasively and walk towards Chiai where the ema was written.

"Ah, Rin'in's here, why is your face a little red?"

"...It's okay. Qian Ai's eyes are also a little red."

"Ah, well, it's nothing. Oh, right! Let's draw ema together."

"Write your wish on the ema and hang it high. When the gods see it, they will help us realize our wish."

"It's just psychological comfort."

"Shh, don't say such unkind things in a shrine. And Rin'in drank the water from Otowa no Taki this morning, didn't she?"

"It's just thirst." Linyin said lightly.

"No, that spring water is really effective."