"Hmm… it's no good…" Shinobu put down the medicine in her hand in frustration, resting her chin as she stared fixedly at her notes.
After returning from the Red-light district, she had been working on an antidote, but from the moment she injected herself with the poison, she had no intention of leaving a way out for herself. After all, at that time, she wouldn't have thought that one day in the future, there would be a variable like Yoizumi.
Yoizumi changed her future.
And now… she couldn't help but want to step into a tomorrow that shouldn't have existed for her, together with him.
Currently, all the medicines developed within a month had no effect. She even admired herself.
She really had dug a bottomless pit.
She had once thought about whether Yoizumi's Blood Demon Art could remove the poison from her body, but she quickly dismissed the idea.
Because she dared not gamble.
She learned from Yoizumi that his ability transfers the opponent's injury to his body, increasing the pain threefold on top of the original.
What if it was the same for poison?
The poison in her body, just a tiny bit, could kill how many ordinary demons.
There was probably 500 times the lethal dose of poison surging within her body right now. If Yoizumi transferred it, that would be 2000 times… Shinobu dared not let him take that risk.
Even if the probability was 99%, that 1% was what she feared.
Shinobu, physically and mentally exhausted, sighed.
She glanced out the window, and all she saw was a vast expanse of white snow.
Pushing open the window, her breath turned into white mist.
She wanted to see him a little.
She wanted to see those clear eyes that one could see to the bottom of with just a glance.
Just one glance was enough to put her at ease.
Perhaps she was too tired, thinking about something during the day and dreaming about it at night. Shinobu felt as if she was experiencing a hallucination.
On the rooftop over there, Yoizumi was on it.
"…"
"!"
It really was him!
Yoizumi, he was awake!
Her agitated heart gradually calmed as she approached him. She only felt that it was like the day they first met.
A unique demon in a dilapidated house, looking up at the night sky, ignoring her. Perhaps he was annoyed by her many questions, so he turned to look at her.
And now, she appeared before him just as she did at the beginning, asking the same questions, but receiving a different attitude and heartwarming words.
Those eyes hadn't left her since she appeared.
She slowly sat down beside Yoizumi with her hands behind her back. They were very close, so much so that with even slight movements, their arms would touch.
"It's late, why aren't you resting?" Noticing Shinobu's fatigue, Yoizumi asked with concern.
"Just dealing with a few things." She rubbed her hands together and blew a warm breath into them. The temperature outside was still a bit low.
Noticing this, Yoizumi thought for a moment, then opened his hand and extended it towards Shinobu.
Shinobu smiled faintly and placed her hand in his palm, but it was met with a cold sensation. She didn't withdraw it, instead keeping her hand steadily in Yoizumi's, sighing softly.
"Yoizumi's hands are cold too."
Because of his use of Breath of Snow, Yoizumi was not sensitive to cold. He tried to withdraw his hand but couldn't, and when he looked up, he met Shinobu's smiling eyes.
"This is good. We'll be warmer this way."
"If you're cold, we can go back." Yoizumi was a little worried about Shinobu getting cold.
"Let's stay a bit longer, the scenery here is beautiful~"
"Okay, please give me your other hand too." Shinobu obediently complied, and both her hands were enveloped by Yoizumi's. Yoizumi imitated Shinobu's earlier action, exhaling warm breath entirely onto Shinobu's hands.
Seeing the young man with his head slightly lowered, looking so earnest, Shinobu couldn't tear her gaze away.
How… does he always unconsciously make such gestures… you fool… "During my coma, how were Tanjirou and the others?" When he felt Shinobu's hands warm up, Yoizumi didn't let go, still tightly wrapping them in his own.
"You were in a deep sleep for a month and a half~"
"That was enough time for Tanjirou and the others to recover to the point of being lively again."
"Thank you for your trouble."
"I should be thanking you." Hearing this, Yoizumi looked at Shinobu in confusion, thanking him?
The night wind gently ruffled Shinobu's dark purple hair. Her beautiful purple eyes were filled with a bright smile. On the girl's delicate face, a lively smile Yoizumi had never seen before blossomed, her eyes curved, and her lips formed a beautiful arc.
Her pleasant voice was filled with endless tenderness.
"You saved me…"
"How should I repay you, Yoizumi~"
Yoizumi stared at Shinobu in a daze. Was this Shinobu's genuine smile?
His gaze trembled. It seemed that the strange movement in his heart had reappeared. For some reason, Yoizumi couldn't meet Shinobu's smile directly. He subtly looked away, not daring to make eye contact with her.
"It's good that I could help you."
"I don't need anything in return."
Feeling his heart beating more and more violently, Yoizumi felt as if something was uncontrollably spreading within him.
What was it?
Yoizumi didn't know.
But… he tightened his grip on Shinobu's hand a little more.
"If…"
"You absolutely must repay me."
"Then please, Shinobu, always keep that smile."
Seeing that Yoizumi wasn't looking at her, and the faint blush on his usually cold and distant face, Shinobu softly asked.
"Only something so simple, is that okay?"
"Yes."
"May I ask for your reason, Yoizumi?"
"…" Yoizumi was silent for a long time, so long that Shinobu thought she wouldn't get the answer she wanted, just like before. Then, his thin lips parted slightly.
"It's beautiful…"
"I like Shinobu's smile."
Yoizumi didn't understand what it meant to be subtle; he only knew that he wanted to say that.
He couldn't deceive his own heart, and similarly… he couldn't deceive Shinobu.
—Aside—
Regarding Kochou the demon.
Because when typing'Shinobu', autocorrect always changed it to 'person', so… Shinobu = Kochou person.
Kochou turned into a person = Kochou the demon.
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