I have an unlimited number of shikigami

The singing and swaying figures on stage are the embodiment of beauty, exceptionally elegant and captivating.

"Deep affection and tender feelings reside with Yuejun,"

"Accompany me home."

"The moon is half-full,"

"A person is a pair."

The end of the dance.

Kawashima Miki closed her eyes, and the sunlight reflected off her long eyelashes onto her cheeks.

She was reminiscing about her past.

From the wonder of the world as a young spider to the joy of transforming into a human for the first time; from the endless boredom of learning how to become human in Shikoku to the confusion about the future after becoming empress in Tokyo.

Twenty-eight years is too short to summarize, yet too long to examine in detail.

She opened her eyes and met Fujiwara Izaya's gaze.

A sweet and warm feeling welled up inside me.

In a gentle and intimate atmosphere, Kawashima Miki, with a radiant beauty like a clear morning after a snowfall, rushed into the boy's arms.

※※※※※

Dusk fell over Yushan.

Yukino Riho went to find the students at the Furukawa Hall to prepare for the evening's performance, while Natsuki Kuriko led the two ladies back to the inner courtyard of the palace to change clothes. Fujiwara Izaya walked alone in the woods, intending to discuss the evening's plans with Ansha.

The brightly colored cherry blossom grove gradually faded into the shadows.

Only the slopes near the lake retain the afterglow of the setting sun.

As Fujiwara Izaya walked, he suddenly stopped.

Ahead, a woman seemed to be waiting for someone.

Bright orange flowers bloomed at her feet, and beautiful blue butterflies danced around her.

There was a white deer beside her.

The angle was wrong, so the woman's appearance wasn't very clear. Fujiwara Izaya could only see a white deer bowing its head to drink water by the lake, while the woman gently patted the deer's back.

I got a little closer to take a look.

She was wearing a crimson, narrow-sleeved kimono, and her hair was styled in a bun.

A silver hairpin pierced through the middle of her hair bun, and the tassels hanging down swayed gently like half a butterfly.

They got a little closer.

I noticed that the ribbons around her sleeves and the thin belt peeking out from her skirt and trousers were also red. The sleeves were very wide, and in the evening breeze, the sleeves trembled slightly as if they were about to take flight.

"Isn't that Lady Tokiwa from the parade?" Fujiwara Izaya walked past her, somewhat puzzled. Suddenly, Lady Tokiwa turned around and said to him, "Come over here."

Fujiwara Izaya saw clearly her face, which was incomparably noble and beautiful, bathed in the sunset.

In that instant.

He felt a triple joy.

As dusk settled, a gentle evening breeze blew, and a beautiful woman appeared... Fujiwara Izaya walked over, brought his nose close to her ear, and said, "You smell so good, Lady Fujiwara. The butterflies and white deer must have been attracted by you, right?"

The Lady of the Imperial Household gently raised one hand.

Fujiwara Izaya instinctively took her soft, girlish hand in his and they strolled together in the sunset.

Chapter 165. Madam, you don't want your daughter to go hungry, do you...?

"Why are you here too?"

"Of course I want to know what else you're hiding from me."

Are you satisfied now?

"Very satisfied."

Will they report me when I get back?

"As long as you can keep it a secret, I don't mind."

"Long live understanding!"

As the sky was bathed in the glow of sunset, the two strolled along the lakeside, through a cherry blossom grove, and onto a secluded path.

They walked for a while, barely speaking a word. Like a couple going through a period of stagnation, Fujiwara Izaya and she strolled aimlessly through the valley as dusk fell.

In the distance, trash left by tourists is burning in the bushes, with white smoke rising in wisps.

The camphor trees by the roadside have intertwined branches.

The withered leaves on the branches already give a sense of autumn.

Holding the hand of the Lady of the Palace, Fujiwara Izaya's mind was filled with all sorts of random thoughts.

At this moment, she was comparable to the most noble and elegant statue in Heian Shrine in Kyoto. I wonder if it was just my imagination, or if I was really that captivated by her.

"What are you thinking about?" the Lady asked languidly.

Fujiwara Izaya gently squeezed her palm: "I'm thinking about how to conquer a high-and-mighty widow."

"Then you'll have to put in a lot more effort." The Lady looked at the clear sky and smiled charmingly at him, as if the secret of happiness was being revealed from her mouth.

At times like these, Fujiwara Rin can also appreciate the extraordinary beauty of the hazy sunset.

After walking for a while, we passed a field of flowers.

The tulips in the field were in full bloom, so beautiful that it almost made you want to shout.

Red, yellow, white... the flowers blooming in profusion seem to dye the air with vibrant colors, penetrating the hearts of flower admirers.

Fujiwara Izaya couldn't help but gently place his hand on the knot of the kimono sash on the back of the Lady.

The lady of the palace found it amusing, but she didn't show it on her face.

After walking a little further, the path through the flower field became increasingly narrow, no longer wide enough for two people to walk side by side.

The lady of the palace walked ahead, slightly lifting the hem of her kimono.

Suddenly, a strange feeling washed over her. She thought: The scumbag has his back to her. Should she stop and let him bump into her so that they can both fall into the flower field together?

She wanted to stop immediately.

But I also felt that this was not quite natural.

The imagined scene floated into the mind of the Lady of the Palace.

Her current mental state prompted her to delve into the core of the problem.

Those uneasy cores, like joyful microparticles lurking in the crisp air after the rain, even made her nostrils smell the alluring fragrance emanating from these transparent microparticles... Of course, it's also possible that the scent of tulips was creating an illusion for her.

The two walked out of the flower field one after the other, passing the waterfall in the central courtyard.

At the waterfall's mouth, a rope of grass was strung up to ward off evil spirits, with white paper pieces tied to it fluttering in the wind. After passing the waterfall, Lady Gozen saw a village.

This is a typical village that can be seen everywhere in Japan. In front of every house, there are firewood and clotheslines. Some houses are drying clothes for the whole family, while others have strings of dried persimmons hanging under the eaves. The surface of the persimmons is a glossy orange-red like the sunset.

"Are the people living here ordinary people or monsters?" Lady Gozen asked curiously.

“Both ordinary people and yokai have them,” Fujiwara Izaya said, stretching out his hand again.

"Why are there ordinary people here?" The Lady of the Imperial Household seemed not to notice his hand.

"Because the mountain god is benevolent." Fujiwara Rin couldn't hold her hand either, so he casually picked a persimmon from a persimmon tree by the roadside. He wiped it with his sleeve and handed it to her: "Want some? It's very sweet."

"Thank you."

The lady of the palace took a small, elegant bite.

The sweet juice instantly soothed my throat and warmed my heart.

Fujiwara Izaya picked one and ate it himself, then continued strolling around with her.

The persimmon trees lining both sides of the village road were laden with fruit, which shone brightly in the setting sun. The persimmons, hanging from the small branches, didn't sway in the wind due to their weight, making them appear as if they were nailed to the air, motionless and embedded in the sunset.

The lady would occasionally glance back at the boy beside her.

He munched on a persimmon like an ordinary country boy, the juice dripping from the corner of his mouth down his collar, but he didn't bother to wipe it away. As he walked, he introduced the local customs and traditions, his clear voice carried on the wind, resonating in my ears.

This feeling is wonderful.

It's like how city dwellers yearn for the pleasures of rural life.

Born into a high and mighty royal consort, she gazed at the country boy's arms, bathed in the setting sun, his hair dyed golden, and thought that it would be best if she could lean on his arm and walk along this road, all the way to a far, far away place.

So, will he take her arm again after being frustrated?

This ever-changing young man, since his appearance, was sometimes carefree, sometimes lazy, but he would never easily back down. He certainly couldn't possibly be tired of this older widow walking beside him… after all, she had meticulously made up for her appearance this time. Her hair was elaborately styled, her clothes were gorgeous, and she possessed an incredible fragrance… He probably never dreamed that this seemingly exceptionally noble woman harbored girlish fantasies of him taking her arm.

The Lady of the Imperial Household couldn't help but smile.

Hearing her whisper, Fujiwara Izaya turned to look at her: "Is something making you happy?"

"Put your hand out, you idiot..." The Lady continued to smile, but this time her smile turned somewhat cold.

To Fujiwara Izaya, that smile seemed to say, "You scumbag! I know your tongue is sweeter than honey, I know your courage is greater than a wild beast, so what are you pretending to be a gentleman for! Can't you just shut up and say something to coax me? What does it mean to stay silent? Do you think I'll care? Do you think I'll take the initiative? You bastard—"

So cute!

Fujiwara Izaya suppressed a laugh, stopped in his tracks, and turned back the way he came.

"Hey hey!"

The Lady of the Imperial Household was immediately stunned.

"Wait a minute," she called to Fujiwara Izaya, raising her pleading gaze, "Are we going back already?"

The young woman's uniquely melancholic and hazy eyes, reflected in the twilight sky, shone with a slightly orange glow.

Even if it was an act, her demeanor couldn't help but prompt Fujiwara Izaya to exclaim, "What a beautiful middle-aged widow!"

"?"

The Lady of the Imperial Household's face immediately darkened.