I have an unlimited number of shikigami

"Oh, I see."

Yukino Riho nodded, giving a cute, puzzled look to indicate that she understood.

"..."

Kitagawa Ryoko felt that Yukino-nee didn't understand at all, but she didn't know how to explain it.

"Alright, let's go back. We still need to watch you practice dancing." Yukino Riho turned around and walked back into the house.

“Oh, listen to me…” Kitagawa Ryoko pulled her hand and called out “Yukino-nee, Yukino-nee” a few times, talking bad about Fujiwara Izaya the whole way.

"Do you have a grudge against Fujiwara-kun?" Yukino Riho asked solemnly.

"No." Ryoko Kitagawa shook her head.

"Then why are you always criticizing him?"

"Because he's never been a good person!" Kitagawa Ryoko tapped her fingers on Yukino Riho's arm. "Let me tell you, I secretly investigated him. He has so many lovers, he's a total scumbag!"

"Alright, I got it." Yukino Riho's expression showed no sign of anything amiss.

Kitagawa Ryoko was still looking at her resentfully: "Yukino-nee, hurry up and get rid of him. If this continues, that woman in his house called Empress will come knocking on your door, and she might beat you up. You know, women can be jealous for no reason. Even if you and he are completely innocent, it won't matter. If she really misunderstands, she won't care about any of that. Besides, she's a wicked woman who runs a brothel."

"Don't talk badly about people behind their backs." Yukino Riho glanced at the little girl.

Kitagawa Ryoko puffed out her cheeks, looking somewhat angry.

"Alright, alright." Yukino Riho smiled playfully. "Let her hit me if she wants, it's no big deal. I'm a Yuki-onna, I won't get killed." Then, as if remembering something, her smile faded, and she sighed softly, "If that's the case, Fujiwara-kun might be in a difficult position..."

"Ah, you still care if that scumbag is in a difficult position? Are you crazy..." Kitagawa Ryoko looked heartbroken. "Men don't deserve to be treated so well. What's the use of sweet talk now? He wouldn't dare show his face if the Empress came knocking on his door. You don't know, that Empress is very rich. He's a gigolo! Yukino-nee, wake up..."

Yukino Riho simply smiled at these words, then lowered her eyes slightly and remained silent.

The two walked around the pool and onto the veranda. A man walked over from the other side of the corridor, and they met face to face.

Takenaka Akira stared intently at the woman in the pale blue kimono, embroidered with silk that shimmered with a cold light like the winter sky. Her lowered white neck was an unforgettable, slender, and fair neck.

When he recognized her from the side, Takenaka Akira stepped in front of the two of them and greeted them gently, "Yukino, it's been a long time."

Yukino Riho then raised her head.

The melon seeds, as pure and elegant as snow, came into view.

Her eyes opened, a hint of confusion in them, holding a pair of bright, dark, moist eyes that seemed easily hurt. Her long eyelashes, when closed, resembled the delicate touch of a butterfly at rest; when blinking, they were like the fluttering of butterfly wings, and her bright eyes were like the wondrous patterns on those wings…

After a long moment of confusion, Yukino Riho finally recognized who was in front of her and bowed slightly in greeting.

"Mr. Takenaka."

This demon was a regular at the Furukawa Kaikan.

The scar at the corner of his eye was caused by Yukino Riho, who, following the old lady's orders, personally cut it with an ice blade after he got drunk and harassed a maid at the guild hall.

"It's been so long, Yukino is still as beautiful as ever." Takenaka Akira greeted him warmly, as if he were greeting an old friend he hadn't seen in a long time.

"You're too kind."

Yukino Riho frowned slightly, seemingly unimpressed by the praise, and pulled Kitagawa Ryoko around him as they walked into the house.

"Wait a moment." Takenaka Akihito caught up, thought for a moment, and finally calmed down. "For the past five years, I've been looking for you. I often wandered around the clubhouse, but you weren't there. I heard recently that you were running a bakery, right? I'm so happy for you, but it seems like things aren't going too well. If you need anything, you can let me know..."

"Hey, who are you?!"

Before Yukino Riho could speak, Kitagawa Ryoko roared out with a hostile expression.

"Hmm?" Takenaka Akira hesitated for a moment, looking at the little girl. "Who are you?"

"My student." Yukino Riho quickly shielded Kitagawa Ryoko behind her.

This demon has a history of harassing maids, so she doesn't feel comfortable letting the little girl face him.

Kitagawa Ryoko peeked out from behind her, glaring fiercely at the strange man: "I'm Yukino-nee's boyfriend."

"..." Takenaka Akira's expression was strange for a moment, and he wanted to continue speaking.

"Please wait."

Yukino Riho frowned, stepped aside, and led Kitagawa Ryoko into the room, then slammed the door shut.

Takenaka Akira lingered in front of the door for a long time before turning to leave.

She didn't say anything harsh; her words were gentle but maintained a sense of distance. However, the contempt hidden in her eyes pierced the skin a thousand times over, like autumn vines sticking to clothes... Takenaka Akira touched the scar at the corner of her eye, thinking that if she couldn't have it, then let her destroy it.

Chapter 150. He's Back

September is fast approaching.

In late summer, the leaves of the trees are spotless and shimmering, as if they have just been washed clean.

In the backyard of the Furukawa Kaikan, Kitagawa Ryoko walked along the corridor and saw Yukino Riho move a chair to sketch under the flower trellis. Imagine the flower trellis by the pond, where wisteria blossoms form a purple waterfall, like a velvet cloth adorned with violet patterns.

The sun shines brightly, and birds fly among the lush grass.

A woman as beautiful as snow, head bowed, lost in her own thoughts, her silhouette amidst the blooming purple flowers in the courtyard, exuding an indescribable loneliness.

Ryoko Kitagawa tiptoed over, wearing wooden clogs.

"Hey, why aren't you saying anything?" Yukino Riho was probably startled. She shrugged and then closed her sketchbook.

"Hey, is Yukino-nee drawing?" Kitagawa Ryoko asked with a smile.

The little girl's eyes sparkled with intelligence and wit, yet remained completely innocent.

"It's finished," Yukino Riho said irritably.

"Okay, Yukino-nee, wait for me a moment."

Kitagawa Ryoko turned around and ran back into the house.

A moment later, she brought over a small red basket.

"what is this?"

"It's afternoon tea."

"I'm not hungry."

"Let's eat together."

At Kitagawa Ryoko's insistence, Yukino Riho had no choice but to sit on the lawn.

Today is another sunny day, with a gentle breeze and bright sunshine. From under the flower trellis, the blooming wisteria flowers look like a thin layer of mist.

Yukino Riho, who teaches music, still wears a beautiful blue kimono with a silk sash to coordinate with the dance. The blue silk kimono looks so harmonious on her, making her look many times more beautiful than in ordinary clothes.

Just as Kitagawa Ryoko was admiring Yukino-nee's outfit with rapt attention, she heard Yukino Riho's voice: "We're leaving the day after tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, that's right. Will Yukino-nee dance with us? Or accompany us with music?"

"I don't perform for people."

"why?"

“Please, I’m a Yuki-onna.” Yukino Riho picked up a fallen wisteria flower, a petal that looked poignant and beautiful in the bright midday light. “A Yuki-onna won’t dance for anyone else.”

"Can't I even be Yukino-nee's protector?!" Kitagawa Ryoko picked up a flower, biting it between her lips as if she were holding a flute, and then said, "Ryoko will chase away any man who gets close to Yukino-nee!"

The warbling of orioles echoed from the flowerbeds, while Yukino Riho sat quietly on the lawn, eating pastries. Her almost transparent beauty gave her an ethereal and magical quality, like a precious dream from which she would never awaken.

It's really wrong of me to make such a beautiful girl like Yukino unhappy!

In her mind, Kitagawa Ryoko cursed that scumbag man repeatedly from beginning to end.

Yukino Riho had no idea what the little girl was thinking.

She rested one hand on her face, tilting her head to look at the easel, softly humming a classical folk song. After a few lines, she leaned down, resting her chin on her hands clasped in her knees. A bite of pastry lingered in her mouth, and the soft light filtering from the easel evenly coated the snow-white canvas, giving it a crystalline sheen. Her long, straight, black hair was always tied back at the nape of her neck, revealing her clean white collar. The white collar complemented her sharply defined face better than any other color…

A fat, black crow perched on the treetop next to the flower trellis.

Yukino Riho felt that the crow looked familiar, as if it were someone protecting her every step of the way.

She lay there, motionless, in the summer sunlight, like a lonely seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl... It evoked a deep sense of pity in one's heart.

Kitagawa Ryoko pondered that perhaps the boy she didn't yet know was somewhere getting intimate with another woman, and she absolutely couldn't let him get any closer to Yukino-nee.

"What is Yukino-nee looking at?"

"Hmm?...Looking at the flowers."

"Wow, what beautiful flowers!" Kitagawa Ryoko said, as if trying to make conversation. "What are they called?"

"Wisteria flowers".

"What about that tree with the yellow flowers over there?"

"It's forsythia."

"The branches are full of flowers."

“Back when I was still at the association, I often used forsythia for flower arrangements. But once the spirea bloomed, it became my first choice for flower arrangements.”

"Does Yukino-nee really like flowers?"

"I guess so," Yukino Riho nodded.

"Shall we pick some to take home now?"

"No matter how beautifully flowers are arranged, they are short-lived... It is kinder and more appropriate to leave them on the branches and admire the new blooms every day."

“Yukino-nee is so thoughtful,” Kitagawa Ryoko agreed. “Could Yukino-nee come here every year from now on? Come to this place full of wisteria blossoms?”

"Hmm, okay." Yukino Riho smiled slightly.

"Let's name this place!"

"Isn't this the Beichuan Guild Hall?"

"A name that only Yukino-nee and I would say. How about 'Sakino'?"

“It reminds me of Kyoto,” Yukino Riho said, shaking her head. “In Murasakino, Kita Ward, Kyoto, there’s a Daitoku-ji Temple that’s covered in wisteria.”

"So you'll call it 'Violet Path'?"

"Hmm, Kyoto has a Hanamiko-cho (flower-viewing path), this is a bit too..."

Ryoko Kitagawa tilted her head and thought for a moment before persisting, "How about 'Hana no Oka'?"