A slight sound came from within the room, and Kenma pushed the door open to enter.
What met his eyes were gift boxes that nearly filled half the room.
These assorted gifts were all congratulatory presents brought by the guests who had attended the wedding.
And in front of this pile of gifts, Yoruichi had already taken off the rather cumbersome white ceremonial attire, wearing only a simple red under-kimono. She was there, opening the gifts one by one to look through them.
A small pile of opened gifts had already accumulated.
Hearing the sound, Yoruichi turned her head to look.
Seeing Kenma's familiar figure, Yoruichi, who had long since mentally prepared herself, suddenly felt a wave of inexplicable panic.
Her cheeks instantly became scorching hot, so hot she didn't know what to do.
'Calm down, calm down, Yoruichi.'
'Isn't it just a newlywed couple spending their wedding night together? It's no big deal…'
Although she silently tried to soothe her suddenly agitated emotions, it was ultimately difficult to settle down.
No matter what, this was her first time.
She had absolutely no experience.
What was to come had to be done for real.
It wasn't something she could calm down from just by giving herself a secret pep talk.
"He… hey, Kenma, you- you're here."
Although Yoruichi tried her best to affect her usual casual and free demeanor, the moment the words left her mouth, her tongue twisted unnaturally, and her voice came out stuttering and halting, revealing the nervousness in her heart without a doubt.
'I- it's over…'
'This is a huge embarrassment!'
Yoruichi let out a wail in her heart.
At this moment, she didn't even dare to look directly at the man before her who was about to become her husband.
Seeing Yoruichi's reserved appearance, Kenma suddenly smiled to himself.
The usually tense expression on his face began to melt, becoming gentle.
He glanced at the mountain of gifts piled in the room and asked Yoruichi, "Isn't there a dedicated storage room for these guests' gifts? Why were they moved here?"
"Ah, oh, I was just idle, wasn't I? So I had people move them over to open them and see what gifts they gave."
She had returned to the room early to wait, and her mood had become tense and anxious, which was why she had found something to do to distract herself.
Kenma said softly, "Don't the household servants keep a list? Wouldn't it be easier to just look at the list?"
"A list is a list. How can it compare to seeing them with your own eyes?"
Yoruichi quickly walked to the side, picked up a hardcover notebook from the pile of opened gifts, and handed it to Kenma.
Kenma took it and saw that it was indeed the list of gifts from the guests.
He opened it and scanned it roughly; some entries had been circled with a pen.
Kenma looked at the pile of unwrapped gifts and immediately understood.
This must be Yoruichi's handiwork; the circled items were the gifts that had been opened.
His gaze fell on a line in the list. Kenma's eyebrows suddenly shot up. He walked to Yoruichi's side, only to see her body tremble slightly, which she then forcibly suppressed.
Kenma smiled to himself again, not pointing it out immediately. Instead, he pointed to the record on the list and looked at Yoruichi's exquisitely beautiful profile.
"Yoruichi, look, Vice-Captain Ōmaeda's gift… he actually gave money directly. It really fits his style."
"Mm, Ōmaeda's family is very rich. Sometimes when the Second Division is short on funds, he's the one who covers the costs."
Yoruichi nodded, a layer of fine sweat beading on her forehead.
As his captain, she was quite satisfied with her vice-captain.
Whether it was his ability, his loyalty, or other aspects, Ōmaeda always made people feel at ease.
As for her wedding, would she find it vulgar that Ōmaeda's gift was just money?
Yoruichi would never think that!
Giving money might have the stink of copper, but Ōmaeda had given far too much.
With a wave of his hand, he had sent five whole large chests, each half a man's height.
Such a large amount had shocked even Yoruichi, despite her noble birth.
It made her head spin.
And this was just the wedding gift alone.
In addition to this, he had also prepared a separate gift just for Yoruichi.
Another two large chests full of money.
And this money was given to her secretly by Ōmaeda; no one else knew. It was completely Yoruichi's private fund.
Hearing Yoruichi's words, Kenma couldn't help but nod repeatedly.
'Vice-Captain Ōmaeda is just that reliable.'
Incidentally, Kenma's sentiment was purely out of appreciation for Ōmaeda's character and ability.
It had absolutely nothing to do with the two chests of money he had secretly been given earlier.
Kenma moved a little closer and asked, "Yoruichi, how many of the gifts you just opened have you looked at?"
Sensing Kenma's approach, Yoruichi suppressed the tension running from head to toe, trying to appear more natural.
"I'm not sure, probably not even a fifth of them."
She shook her head, her voice still revealing a hint of restraint.
Kenma put down the list in his hand, his gaze fixed directly on Yoruichi beside him.
Looking at her delicate features and deep tan skin, a trace of passion appeared in his eyes.
"Then let the servants check them tomorrow."
"Right now, we have important business to attend to."
As his voice fell, he embraced her.
In a tumble of clouds and rain, the night passed.
Early morning.
Kenma opened his eyes on time from the bed and felt a weight on his body.
Looking down, he saw Yoruichi clinging tightly to him like a koala, her eyes closed and her breathing even.
Gently moving her arms and legs, Kenma tried to get out of bed, but the movement was too large and woke Yoruichi up directly.
"Mmm… huh? Is it morning already?"
Yoruichi rubbed her eyes, a moment of confusion flashing through them as she looked at Kenma beside her.
Suddenly, a wave of pain came from the lower part of her body, making her unable to resist letting out a few soft groans.
"Yoruichi, are you alright?"
Kenma's movements became much larger once he saw she was awake.
"I'm going to train. Do you want to come?"
Yoruichi propped herself up with her arms and looked out the window. Through the paper screen, she could see that it was still pitch black outside.
"What are you talking about? It's not even light out yet."
She waved her hand and buried her head back into the pillow.
"I'm fine. If you want to go, go by yourself. I'm going to sleep a little longer."
"Alright."
Kenma said no more, got dressed, and walked out of the room.
As for Yoruichi, after Kenma left, she gently opened her eyes.
'No, I can't sleep at all.'
On one hand, there was the pain coming from her body; on the other, there was a strange feeling in her mind.
'I… I really did it…'
Recalling the amorous night with her husband, an expression of lingering fear appeared on Yoruichi's face.
"Damn it… it hurts… It's not as comfortable as Mikoto said."
She gently pounded the bed with her fist.
She wanted to close her eyes again and just fall asleep.
But the images of their intimacy from last night couldn't help but surface in her mind, making it impossible to sleep.
Because of her personal discomfort, she had only let Kenma slow down and do it once before they hastily finished.
But recalling it now, for some reason, she suddenly felt a strange need.
The scenes from last night replayed before her eyes.
It seemed… amidst the pain, there was indeed a strange, wonderful feeling…
'Maybe… try it one more time?'
...
When Kenma returned from his training, he saw Yoruichi resting her cheek on her hand, lying languidly on the bed.
Seeing him return, Yoruichi looked at him with her gleaming eyes, the corners of her mouth slightly upturned, a peculiar expression on her face.
It seemed to be one of anticipation, yet also of apprehension.
Kenma asked, puzzled, "Didn't you say you were going to sleep a little longer? How come you didn't sleep?"
"If you're not sleeping, then get up. It's a good time to go see Father."
Yoruichi giggled. "Hey, Kenma, how about we go again?"
"You should get up now, or there won't be enough time for our later arrangements."
Kenma frowned slightly.
"That's why we have to be quick," Yoruichi urged. "Hurry up, hurry up and take off your clothes."
Seeing this, Kenma sighed in his heart.
Later, the two of them were, indeed, late.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]