"Co-continue?"
Hina Amano knew exactly what Ye Xing meant by continuing. Recalling that wonderful feeling from earlier, the words of refusal that instinctively came to mind stuck in her throat, unable to be spoken. She wanted to agree, but didn't dare due to the conflict between her shyness and desire.
"Not willing? That's fine, I need to rest anyway."
Watching Ye Xing casually stretch and lie down on the bedding, Hina Amano was about to say something when she suddenly remembered something. She pulled out the small box given by the elderly innkeeper from her pocket and handed it to him, asking curiously:
"What is this thing? Do you recognise it?"
Seeing the small box in Hina Amano's hand, Ye Xing couldn't help but comment sarcastically:
"Why do these cliché romantic comedy scenarios, meant to express a girl's innocence, keep popping up? Do you really not know what this is?"
Hina Amano looked utterly confused.
"What exactly is this?"
"Just put it on the table. Don't worry about it – I generally don't use it anyway."
"Oh, alright."
Hina Amano nodded obediently and didn't dwell on the topic further, placing the small box aside.
Just as she was about to sit on the nearby chair and spend the night resting at the desk, she saw Ye Xing pat the empty space beside him on the bedding and say calmly:
"Let's sleep together."
Hina Amano's face flushed slightly as she hesitated:
"This... this isn't really appropriate, is it?"
"Come on, we've already had negative distance contact – why care about this now?"
Before Hina Amano could figure out what he meant by 'negative distance contact', Ye Xing continued seriously:
"Although I've eliminated all of the enemy's divine messengers and their power has greatly diminished, they are still beings referred to as deities. It's hard to say what other trump cards they might be hiding. We need to recover our strength quickly before entering Itomori Town tomorrow morning."
"But..."
Seeing Hina Amano still hesitating, Ye Xing played a card he was quite skilled with but didn't often use:
"You wouldn't want me to get distracted protecting you because you're mentally unfocused, and end up injured or even killed in battle, would you?"
This statement, especially coming right after she had just witnessed Ye Xing's ten severed fingers and thought he might be permanently disabled, was particularly devastating to the kind-hearted Hina Amano.
The mere thought of Ye Xing being seriously injured or even lifeless because an ordinary person like her burdened him made her heart feel tight, almost to the point where she could barely breathe.
She absolutely couldn't let that happen.
Her slight embarrassment should be set aside during such a critical time.
Besides...
They had already done what needed to be done earlier.
"If it's just sleeping together..."
Hina Amano walked to the bedding and carefully lay down at the edge. She reached out, pulled half of the quilt covering Ye Xing over herself, and said in a voice as faint as a mosquito's hum:
"It... it should be fine."
"Alright then, let's sleep."
After Ye Xing responded softly and turned off the lights, the room plunged into darkness and silence.
Hina Amano felt her heart pounding violently in her chest and her body growing inexplicably warm. Only one thought occupied her mind:
'What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?'
Her thoughts had completely slipped beyond her control.
After all, it had been less than two hours since Hina Amano's first life experience.
A man and a woman alone together in a room, with an ambiguous atmosphere.
Even the breeze blowing through the window, carrying a slight chill after the rain, seemed to be lending a helping hand.
Now, what troubled Hina Amano most was...
What position should she adopt to face Ye Xing?
Turn sideways and sleep while looking at his face?
Then she... wouldn't be able to resist kissing him, and then...
Hina Amano didn't even dare to imagine what might follow.
Sleep with her back to him?
But if he reached out, slipped his hand under her clothes, and grabbed the same places as before, could she...
Maintain her composure?
After long pondering, Hina Amano finally realised something.
What would happen tonight seemed to have nothing to do with how she positioned herself.
No matter the situation, if Ye Xing truly made a move, she would only be able to offer token resistance while secretly welcoming it.
At this thought, besides nervousness, a faint, inexplicable anticipation surfaced in Hina Amano's heart.
Yet after waiting for who knows how long, she had even relaxed and begun to feel drowsy, but Ye Xing, lying beside her, showed no sign of movement.
Summoning her courage, Hina Amano carefully turned her face, trying to appear nonchalant as she stole a glance sideways.
To her surprise, Ye Xing was lying flat on his back with his eyes closed, breathing evenly, having fallen into a peaceful, infant-like slumber.
"This..."
Hina Amano had imagined countless possible beginnings, but she never expected this outcome.
For a moment, she was stunned.
After a few seconds, a strange yet logical thought suddenly crossed her mind.
"Could it be... Ye Xing really has no interest in me?"
Initially, Hina Amano instinctively resisted this idea.
But the more she thought about it, the more it seemed to align with normal logic.
Ye Xing had said that their intimate acts were merely acting to lure out that deity.
If so, then after achieving their goal, there was no need to continue...
Yet she recalled that, upon entering the room, Ye Xing had jokingly asked whether they should continue.
If at that time, instead of remaining silent, she had agreed...
Would things be different now?
Hina Amano's heart sank into deep turmoil.
...
The next morning, after checking out, Ye Xing and Hina Amano—who clearly hadn't rested well and looked weary—left the inn together.
On the road, Hina Amano occasionally stole glances at him, as if trying to discern something from his expression.
Had he been pretending to sleep last night, or was he truly asleep?
Unfortunately, when Ye Xing wore the mask of abstraction, its abstract nature was so profound that no one could penetrate his true thoughts.
Though Hina Amano had won in one aspect, at this moment, she was utterly defeated.
As the two entered the boundaries of Itomori Town and were walking, red threads reappeared, swiftly forming a sentence.
"Huh? Lord Ye Xing, didn't I say I'd arrange a car to pick you up? How could I trouble you to walk?"
"Cut the flattery."
Ye Xing was well-prepared for the red threads' sycophantic nature.
"You're asking Mitsuha Miyamizu, a first-year high school girl, to find a vehicle to pick someone up outside town - who could she possibly ask? Probably only her father, I suppose. Let me emphasise again, our deal only involves saving Itomori Town. Don't dump any father-daughter relationship issues on me."
"Hehe, you saw right through me."
The deity of Itomori Town specialised in honesty.
She didn't understand why Lord Ye Xing, who had never visited Itomori Town before, knew about the emotional distance between Mitsuha Miyamizu and her father - that they didn't even speak normally due to certain matters.
But she wouldn't ask about it either.
So he knew - no big deal.
After all, Mitsuha Miyamizu counted as one of this deity's shrine maidens, and she clearly heard every prayer in the young girl's heart daily.
She wanted to leave the remote town of Itomori and live in a big city.
Although Mitsuha Miyamizu herself didn't yet understand why shrine maidens needed to exist, she hoped her grandmother and father would stop obsessing over her deceased mother and could reach reconciliation.
The deity kept all the girl's desires in mind.
Only...
She couldn't directly change her circumstances.
But Lord Ye Xing could.
As for reasons to get his help?
The deity had already exhausted all efforts to bring Ye Xing to Itomori Town.
What happened next would depend on Mitsuha Miyamizu's own efforts.
Thinking this, red threads danced twice in the air.
Working so tirelessly - she truly was a competent guardian deity.
"Then I shall await your esteemed presence at Miyamizu Shrine."
...
Meanwhile, at the Miyamizu residence.
"Mitsuha? Mitsuha?"
Only after her grandmother called twice did Mitsuha Miyamizu belatedly snap back to attention.
"What is it, Grandmother?"
Her younger sister Yotsuha Miyamizu sat nearby, watching her sister's distracted state and shaking her head helplessly, pointing expressionlessly at the bowl of miso soup before her.
"It's gone cold. Why have you been so absent-minded lately? Spring fever?"
"Y-You're talking nonsense again. What spring fever?"
"Then you've gone stupid."
"You're the stupid one."
Listening to her two granddaughters' banter, Hitoha Miyamizu merely sipped her tea, her bespectacled eyes studying Mitsuha, who sat there with a thoughtful expression.
Just then, the wind chime at their doorway suddenly rang without any wind.
Ding-ding-ding.
"This is..."
Hitoha Miyamizu's expression abruptly changed. She noticed several red threads on the half-finished braided cord she'd been working on last night gently flutter, but when she looked again, they had returned to normal, as if it had been just an illusion.
An ordinary person would think their eyes were playing tricks.
But as a shrine maiden, Hitoha Miyamizu wouldn't think that way.
Everything happening around them was a revelation from the deity.
The wind chime ringing without wind, and these red threads floating by themselves...
The deity was trying to tell her something.
Just as Hitoha Miyamizu thought this, she suddenly heard a young girl's voice from outside the door.
"Excuse me, is anyone home?"
Mitsuha Miyamizu slowly rose to her feet, noticing that her granddaughter Mitsuha had moved faster than her, as if she had already known someone would come visiting – she even seemed somewhat eager.
"They're here."
Mitsuha Miyamizu ran to open the door and saw that the two people standing outside were indeed the ones she had been thinking of.
One of them had twin-tails and looked very sunny and lively, radiating an aura that made people instinctively want to get close – this must be Hina Amano.
As for the other...
Mitsuha Miyamizu glanced at Ye Xing standing there in his black casual wear and couldn't help but pause for a moment.
Although she had seen these two during her soul separation, the experience had felt like a dream – not only was there a hazy, fog-like quality to it, but the memory of the events grew increasingly blurry after waking.
Now she was finally seeing them with her own eyes...
"He really is handsome..."
Hearing Mitsuha Miyamizu's murmured words, Hina Amano was completely stunned.
What?
There's competition?
Technically, this was her and Ye Xing's first real meeting with Mitsuha Miyamizu.
The first meeting...
And you're directly complimenting Ye Xing's looks like that?
Little Mitsuha, what exactly do you mean by that?
What are you trying to do?
Though Hina Amano thought this, she didn't say anything more.
After all, she and Ye Xing had done plenty together, so she wasn't in a position to say anything to Mitsuha Miyamizu.
Noticing Hina Amano's expression, Mitsuha Miyamizu belatedly realised what had happened and quickly covered her mouth.
Oh no.
She had actually spoken her inner thoughts out loud.
"Um... no, no, that's not it."
Mitsuha Miyamizu waved her hands repeatedly, looking flustered and panicked as she stammered out an explanation.
"When I said handsome, I meant he clearly looks like he's from a big city, his style is very appropriate, his appearance is very... w-well, anyway, he just looks like he's from Tokyo!"
Hearing Mitsuha Miyamizu's words, Ye Xing simply smiled and replied.
"You've got it wrong – we're not from Tokyo, we're from Kyoto."
"Eh?"
Hearing this, Mitsuha Miyamizu first froze, then showed an embarrassed expression, wishing she could find a hole to crawl into.
She had always assumed Ye Xing was from Tokyo.
But now that she thought about it carefully...
If he was originally living in Tokyo, why would he be staying in a hotel?
How could she have overlooked such details and created such an awkward misunderstanding...
This is so embarrassing.
"Mitsuha."
Hearing her grandmother's voice, Mitsuha Miyamizu quickly turned around.
"Grandmother, these two are..."
"No need to explain."
Hitoha Miyamizu waved her hand, bent over and slowly walked up to Ye Xing and Hina Amano, then slightly bowed her head in greeting.
"I am Hitoha Miyamizu, the caretaker of this Miyamizu Shrine."
"The gods have bestowed a revelation, welcoming you two honoured guests who have travelled from afar."
"Please come in."
Hitoha Miyamizu's attitude was exceedingly polite, not only because of the deity's suggestion but also because she sensed a faint spiritual power emanating from the young man and woman before her, who appeared to be around the same age as her granddaughter, Mitsuha.
Moreover, judging by her granddaughter Mitsuha's demeanour...
It didn't seem like this was their first meeting.
Hitoha Miyamizu silently pondered this as she and Mitsuha led Ye Xing and Hina Amano into the building.
No sooner had they sat down than Ye Xing spoke up without waiting for her to begin.
"The Divine Godmother referred us."
"The Divine Godmother?"
Hearing this familiar name, Hitoha Miyamizu smiled and nodded only after having Mitsuha pour two cups of steaming hot tea for Ye Xing and Hina Amano.
"So that's how it is. How has she been lately?"
"Not bad. Withered wood meeting spring, old tree sprouting new buds, sunset still holding its afterglow - she's blossoming with new romance."
"Ahem..."
Hitoha Miyamizu, who had just taken a sip of tea, nearly choked upon hearing this.
The content itself wasn't particularly remarkable.
It was mainly the adjectives Ye Xing had chosen...
They were simply too absurd.
Mitsuha hurriedly patted her grandmother's back, and only after Hitoha Miyamizu had recovered her breath did she compose herself to continue questioning.
"Might I ask what brings you two here from so far away? Is there anything we can assist with?"
Hina Amano stopped Ye Xing as he was about to speak, looking towards Hitoha Miyamizu, who held her teacup and spoke with an awkward smile.
"Um... would you mind putting down your teacup first?"
Hitoha Miyamizu initially frowned slightly, then shook her head with a wry smile after placing the teacup on the table.
"I've lived this long and served as shrine maiden for so many years - what haven't I seen? Please speak freely, I..."
"Good, then I'll be brief."
Ye Xing chose to be direct, without any concealment.
"We need to kill a god."
"Eh?"
Hitoha Miyamizu's first reaction upon hearing this was to turn and look at her granddaughter Mitsuha, her face full of confusion.
Had she misheard?
Mitsuha pressed her lips together and nodded with a complicated expression.
"You heard correctly, he... indeed wants to kill a deity."
Hitoha Miyamizu was dumbfounded.
She had lived most of her life - what hadn't she seen?
But this particular thing, she truly hadn't encountered before.
"Kill a deity? Are you serious? You must understand that gods are called gods precisely because..."
"Hold it right there."
Ye Xing waved his hand, complaining with an exasperated expression.
"You already went through the shock phase earlier, let's skip this repetitive astonishment segment and cut straight to what methods we should use to capture that deity, OK?"
Hitoha Miyamizu took a deep breath, her face showing hesitation as she said.
"Well... I would need to consult the deity first before I could..."
"Grandmother."
Mitsuha Miyamizu tugged at her grandmother's sleeve, speaking cautiously.
"About that... the deity our Miyamizu family worships... has already agreed to help."
"What? How could you..."
Mitsuha Miyamizu's grandmother initially looked startled upon hearing this, then observed her granddaughter's expression. After a long pause, her face lit up with sudden understanding as she spoke thoughtfully.
"So that's how it is... It seems you truly have talent as a shrine maiden. Perhaps you might even be the most suitable person in our Miyamizu family's history to become one."
Ye Xing noticed that when Mitsuha heard these words, there was little joy in her eyes - instead, she appeared resistant and dejected.
The reason was simple.
Becoming a shrine maiden meant staying in Itomori Town for the rest of her life.
And Mitsuha didn't want to remain here forever.
"So..."
Ye Xing turned to the elder Miyamizu with a smile. "Is there a way to find a deity's true form?"
The old woman remained silent for a long time, studying Ye Xing's smiling expression and gazing into his eyes. Only after confirming that this young man wasn't joking but speaking seriously did she respond in a grave tone.
"There is a way."