âBy the way, Master. I also heard that the painted incarnation canât be summoned if the main body of the monster painted on the scroll is nearby,â Kagura added.
âMhm,â Lily nodded and rolled the scroll back up before touching the wide roll gently, simply refusing to put it down.
âAlthough this âRecord of One Hundred Demonsâ holds an incredibly bizarre power, itâs also a money-squandering item. It takes four magatama to summon the monster cat once, and even though one hundred monsters can be drawn on this ancient scroll, just how many magatama would be lost to summon a true night parade of one hundred demons?â Lily wondered internally.
âYouâve worked hard, Kagura. Put these treasures away properly and rest well after that, all right?â Lily said.
Lilyâs consciousness returned to the outside world and saw that Yumi was actually holding up the parasol for her now.
She had switched with Yuki-Onna at some point in time.
As for Haihime, she was standing within the snow with hands folded to the front and seemed to have changed into a new dress already, actually wearing a decent, light purple kimono this time.
She then bowed to Lily deeply.
Lily and Haihime walked through the corridors of the temple as snow fell from the skies.
âIâll have to request Lady Haihime to guide me with regards to collecting the flames,â Lily stated.
âP-Please donât use the appellation of âlady,â I donât have the qualifications to have it in front of you, Miss Lily. If you wish to collect the flames of Mt. Fuji, I can guide you to the spot anytime you want.â
Lily and Haihime arrived at the latterâs bedroom after that. The snow-capped courtyard was visible from outside the roomâs door since it hadnât suffered much damage from the battle.
âIâve arranged for my clansmen to live inside the temple for the time being, so please donât worry too much, Miss Lily. Iâll send them to the provinces of Kanto and do my best to look for a region where they can live once the weather turns for the better. Although the monsters of these Endless Demon Mountains serve me now, I believe that my clansmen canât survive in these monster-infested mountains,â Haihime stated.
Yoriko came into the room at this moment while holding ancient martial artsâ books in her hands, and Haihime presented them to Lily.
âArenât these⌠your clanâs legacy? Iâve gone through them already, so Iâm pretty grateful for that. However, why are you giving these to me?â Lily questioned.
Haihime looked at Yoriko, âYoriko, why donât you return first and rest together with the clansmen?â
âAll right,â Yoriko gave Lily a somewhat longing glance and retired from the room.
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Haihime closed the door after seeing Yoriko leave and turned around to kneel before Lily suddenly, âMiss Lily. I said that Iâll give my everything to you if you help me kill that demon.â
Haihime bowed her head so low that her forehead was almost in contact with the tatami floor and even though her cheeks were just slightly flushed, her tone was far from playful, âI am just a useless woman who made the wrong choice. In the end, I was neither able to obtain vengeance nor protect my clansmen, and it nearly ended up with me and my motherâs hope getting tarnished. If it werenât for you, Miss Lily, I wouldâve been living a life worse than death for sure. Moreover, I even treated you like that previously. I know a woman like me is unqualified to serve you, but since I have some of the Endless Demon Mountainsâ monsters under my control now, I believe that I still have some value to you.â
âHaihime. Please donât mention things like value and such to me. I only acted because Amanojakuâs brutal and evil deeds pushed my patience to the limit. It wasnât to demand anything from you.â
âA promise is a promise, Miss Lily. Furthermore, now that my mother has been avenged and my clansmen are safe, I⌠am actually lost about how to live from now on. I feel like Iâm utterly empty, so please let me follow you. If youâre worried that my position as a former loyal aide to the monsters would affect your reputation, I can just serve you in the dark,â Haihime stated unhesitantly in a seemingly imploring tone.
âIâve never cared about reputation and such things. As long as youâre willing, Iâll treat you like a sister of mine from now on,â Lily stated politely.
âNo, I donât have such qualifications. Please let me act as your retainer. I-I want you to become my masterâŚâ
âMiss Lily, I-I really donât know what to do from now on. Iâve gone against the Land of East and canât return to it along with my clansmen with all the crimes Iâve committed. Furthermore, even if we live together, weâll still be somewhat estranged because of the misunderstanding between us in the past, and Iâve also become accustomed to living on this mountain.â
Lily recalled something suddenly, âHaihime, I get what you mean. However, I obtained a pretty incredible treasure from Amanojaku after killing him. Itâs an item that far exceeds his abilities, so even though this spot seems safe for now, Iâm worried that his backer might come to avenge him if you continue living in this temple. What would you do then?â
âWellâŚâ Lilyâs words made sense and Haihime also began to worry. If the adults of the Golden-Horned Tribe and Amanojakuâs father were to really arrive at the surface, they would undoubtedly catch and torture her. Just the thought of it made Haihime shiver.
âHaihime, I actually have a proposal for you. Just set the monsters free and move to my territory along with your trusted kunoichi and clansmen,â Lily suggested.
âEh? But wouldnât that end up implicating you? After all, Lord Kamakura wonâtâŚâ
Lily shook her head, âLord Kamakura wonât know about it. I own a valley between the Kai and Shinano provinces. Its environment is quite beautiful, and itâs also hidden pretty well. Itâs called Cherry Blossom Valley, and itâs divided into the inner valley and the outer valley. You can just let the clansmen live in the outer valley where they can engage in farming. Iâll ask Madam Kotoka to prepare the seeds and equipment required for that. As for you, you can just live in the inner valley. How about it? Yumi will also accompany us. She doesnât want to part from you as well, doesnât she?â
âEh, is that true? Is there really such a location in this world?â Haihime gave Lily a somewhat excited and longing look.
âItâs true,â Lily nodded wistfully.
Haihimeâs eyes glistened after finally seeing a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel and her mental and physical vitality also recovered because of this glimmer of hope.
She seemed to regain that charming look of hers gradually and leaned aside, undoing the front of her kimono subconsciously while exposing her slim and pretty legs out of the kimono by stretching them to the side, her nebulous aquamarine hair cascading down to one side in the process.
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âIâll trouble you from now on then, Master.â
âHuh? Youâre much older than me, Haihime, so thereâs no need to call me master.â
Haihime, however, leaned forward meekly and lied down on Lilyâs thighs directly, âIs my age not to your preference, Master? Iâm not just older, but also a virgin⌠isnât that quite the lossâŚâ
âD-Donât say such a thing. By the way, are you not going to take the name âKeikoâ back?â
âNo, I always want to remember that Iâm the loser in front of you, Master, while you are the victor,â Haihime hugged Lilyâs waist and pressed her cheek against Lilyâs underbody.
It was impossible for Lily to feel nothing after such intimate contact and her breathing turned a little rough as well.
âFine, then, so be it. Just get up now, alright?â
Lily yielded with a show of reluctance and helped Haihime up.
âI have something to ask you, Master.â
âUhm. Did you see a key among the treasures you obtained from Amanojaku, Master?â
âYes, itâs a little brass key.â
Lily didnât pay much attention to the items, so she couldnât recall it, âWhich treasuryâs key is it?â
âA treasuryâs key, you say. In a certain sense, you could call it one, I guess,â Haihime replied charmingly.
Thus, Lily asked Kagura about it.
âThereâs really such a key, Master. I planned to throw it away tomorrow since I found nothing special about it after appraising it,â Kagura replied from the mirror space.
âEh? Donât throw it away. Give it to me instead,â Lily stated.
The key naturally wasnât a grade 6 treasure or anything and was just a tough key made from grade 4 brass, thatâs all. However, Lily had found a way to allow an item lower than grade 6 inside the mirror space, which was to let her shikigami carry it on them. Kaguraâs dress, undergarments and underwear, for example, werenât grade 6 treasures for certain, but they werenât ejected out from the mirror space, so Lily took advantage of this loophole.
There was also no obstruction at all when taking it out from inside.
Hence, Lily took the key out and waved it in front of Haihime, âIs it this?â
âKyah. I hate you, Master⌠How could you⌠ask me such a thing intentionally?â Haihime turned her head away and covered her blushing cheeks with her hands.
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âEh, itâs just a key, isnât it? Whatâs so embarrassing about it?â Lily asked puzzledly.
Haihime then got up and raised the bottom of her kimono towards Lily, exposing her fair and warm underbody as well as the humiliating T-shaped black strap fastened to it.
âP-Please help me unlock it, then, Master⌠Or do you want to keep the key with you and make me continue wearing this contraptionâŚâ Haihime stated in a deep, mature, and submissive tone.
A feminine scent so intoxicating that it could even bewitch Lily a little was mixed in with the odor of leather emanating from the contraption.
Lily noticed a lock at the center of the contraption.
âO-Of course not. I donât have such strange hobbies. But canât you unlock it yourself?â
Haihime flexed her hips in front of Lily, âDonât you feel that itâs more meaningful to have you unlock it for me, Master?â
âFine, I got it. Iâll unlock it for you, then.â
Lily also planned to remove Haihimeâs fetters originally, so she stopped acting shy and held Haihimeâs hip with her fingers while the key-holding hand pushed the key into the keyhole on the leather belt.
âNgh⌠Itâs inside⌠MasterâŚâ Haihime blushed wholly and quivered all over, producing a gleeful voice from the excitement of obtaining freedom.
âI really donât get it. Does obtaining freedom really please you that much, Sister Haihime?â Lilyâs hip-holding hand circled to the back and held Haihimeâs plump and warm buttocks as the whole key went in and rotated inside the keyhole.
âNgh⌠Freedom feels the best. After all, itâs the freedom that youâve given me, MasterâŚKyah!â
Haihime let out a high-pitched squeal as the lock unlocked with a click.
Lily turned her head away and helped Haihime take off that humiliating contraption with one hand while supporting her body with the other. Haihime had gained freedom at this moment.
Her body lost strength and fell towards Lily who was forced to accept her into her embrace as she was seated in seiza.
âThank you, Master,â Haihime held the front edge of Lilyâs kimono, brimming with the charm of a mature woman post-submission as that hand of hers reached into Lilyâs cleavage in a probe.
âY-You donât need to thank me like this,â Lily was also pretty tensed up, so she ended up grabbing Haihimeâs hand to stop her, âSister Haihime. All of you have gone through a lot today, so why donât you rest a bit earlier? You can guide me to fetch the flames of Mt. Fuji tomorrow, alright?â
âMhm⌠Alright, Lilâ Master,â Haihime answered in a lonely and empty tone with glistening eyes.