But beyond that expression and voice, Aoi knew that the woman in front of her was not at all calm. If her mind was really calm, she wouldn't have squeezed Ao's wrist with enough strength to break it, nor would she have slammed down a sharp and silent killing intent like a drawn sword.
"Why... Why are you here now...?!" Aoi exclaimed, her voice trembling with anxiety.
It was a natural question. This woman who had been traveling outside the country for a long time due to her separation from her father, why is she here now?
"Oh, Aoi," the woman said, her tone dripping with false sincerity. "Isn't it natural? My beloved husband woke up, after all. So, it's the duty of a devoted wife and mother to hurry up and rush to wherever he is."
"You crazy person...!" Aoi exclaimed in disgust.
The words that Aoi uttered toward the woman who proclaimed herself to be a devoted wife and so on were a mass of pure disgust. It is impossible to acknowledge that this woman who never saw her husband as a man, and whose twisted love knows no bounds, is a good wife, let alone a wise mother.
She will never allow this woman who abandoned her daughter to hell for her father to be her mother.
"Stop it, Sumire, Aoi. Fighting among family members is not something to do," Yuusei said, his voice calm but firm in an attempt to defuse the situation.
Those words spoken in a calm manner, however, did not seem to have any persuasive power to Aoi because of the person who said them. What is this man saying...? Aoi looked at him with such a reproachful gaze, but the man himself didn't seem to care about it, which made Aoi miserable.
"Sumire, thank you. ...Did you use dimensional shortening to get here?" asked Yuusei with a hint of curiosity in his voice."Yes. Two days ago, I received a message from Ryuukai Province. I'm very pleased to hear of your (Danna-sama) recovery," Sumire, who had come from the prestigious Ako family of the West region and moved to the North region, replied respectfully, her voice filled with warmth and affection.
Her expression also showed her joy at her husband's recovery, with an attitude reminiscent of a dreamy girl in love. It was the face of a woman who had become crazy with lust and love, to the point of abandoning even her own daughter.
"Uh...!!?" exclaimed Aoi, her revulsion at her mother's behavior evident in her tone.
Aoi trembled with nausea and disgust. Her thought process was insane. Aoi couldn't understand the attitude of her own mother.
"Well... I asked the doctors just now, but it seems that neither mother nor Uemon are present. It seems they are away on some mission, Aoi?" asked Yuusei, his voice tinged with concern.
"...!? So, what is it?" replied Aoi, her voice heavy with the weight of her situation.
At the sudden question of the sacrifice, she hesitated for a moment, but then acknowledged it. There was no way to hide it. At the same time, she bites down on her bitterness because the situation is too difficult.
In a sense, the opportunity was too exquisite. With all the exorcists of the powerful families on an expedition at the imperial court's request, and even her mother returning, the awakening of the ghosts would have too great an impact. Although the administration of the Onitsuki family had moved from a single-minded regime by the head of the family to a council system led by influential members due to many years of coma, it could become overturned. Aoi is anxious. She was anxious, but...
"I see. That's unfortunate," Yuusei said gravely. "I must hurry and send letters to everyone."
"...What?" Aoi asked, her voice small and hesitant.
She was unintentionally upset by her father's politically bad statement.
"W-why...?" Aoi stuttered, her voice trembling.
"Hmm?" her father responded, sounding bemused. "What's wrong? I'm not conceited, but I'm the head of the family. It's my duty to tell everyone about my recovery, isn't it?"
"This is not what you must be talking about...!" Aoi shouted, her voice rising in anger.
She was upset and screamed. She did not understand her father's action. He had awakened himself nad he should have already heard roughly that his authority had been reduced drastically from the doctor. Despite this, why would he send out a letter all at once? ...If anything, he should send it to those who could be his allies first, or he should seize those who remain in the house first before he sends it. It's hard to believe that the man who tried to cut off his daughter can't understand such a thing. How could he...!?
"Please calm down my daughter, Aoi," Yuusei said sternly. "As a member of Onitsuki, you must stop behaving in a disgraceful manner."
To Aoi's agitation and embarrassment, Yuusei even declared such a thing. How dare he speak about the reputation of Onitsuki when he has no right to?!
"What's wrong, why are you doing this...!?" Aoi cried out, her voice trembling with frustration. "You, you are just like this... like this...!!?" Her voice trailed off into a choked sob as she struggled to find the words to express herself.
As if something had possessed her, as if her memory had slipped away, Aoi's mind is disturbed by her father's caring feelings toward her. A pure emotion that she held towards her father as a child is now awakening, and she feels like she can expect something from him. However, her rationality and experience repel that feeling, causing Aoi to collapse on the spot, dropping to her knees in fear.
(No, no way...! This is...!!?)
Due to her conflicting emotions and memories from that day, coupled with her own fear, the impact was significant.
...Or perhaps if her special person had been by her side, she wouldn't have been this lost. If she had gone as far as she went that day, she might not have had such sweet feelings. In that sense, her mind had become too rounded.
And yet, there was a slight expectation. It was like hoping that what happened that day was just a mistake or a misunderstanding. Even though she knew that it couldn't be true, her emotions overpowered her rationality. Onitsuki Aoi is a person of emotion rather than reason.
(No, I hate it! Tomobe......!)
At that moment, she was not the haughty Onitsuki princess, but simply a shaken and trembling little girl. She was a child seeking salvation in the depths of her heart from the person she loves, without understanding what was happening.
"Well, this is troublesome," Yuusei said, his voice laced with annoyance. "You can't even speak anymore. You're just like a child... Sumire, please have your daughter leave the room for now. We cannot allow others to see her like this."
"I understand, my dear." Sumire's voice was apologetic. "I apologize for my daughter's disgraceful behavior."
Sumire gently took hold of Aoi's hand and led her towards the door. Sumire's strength was significant, but Aoi had no energy to resist even if she wanted to. All she could do was to follow it helplessly.
"My daughter is such a disappointment," he muttered under his breath. "Hmm, who's coming? I think Hina is back too, right? Bring her to me."
Aoi heard her father's order from afar as she was expelled from the room...
* * *
While Onitsuki's second princess was fighting in fear and desperately seeking help from her beloved, her sister was there.
It was three days ago when she arrived directly at Onitsuki's mansion with her dragon, forcibly breaking into the house. It was only natural for the surroundings to be chaotic, and amidst the chaos, Hina carried him back to her room, which she then closed up with several layers of boundaries and shut herself up in that room.
The dimly lit bedroom, illuminated only by the small light of a lighthouse, was already so filled with the scent of a female's musk that it was suffocating and even nauseating.
She has already repeated the sublime and pure ritual countless times with both hands' fingers. And now she will do it again, starting from the beginning once more, for him. To start.
Her red tongue crawled over his skin like a slug. From the tip of his toes, one by one. Then her tongue, glistening with saliva, moved its caresses little by little up and down his body... the object of her caress was carried out with care, with respect and affection, without exception or any omissions.
When her tongue reached the top of his belly, she hugged him lovingly. She hugged him with her thin, bare body, clinging together and pressing against him, trying to increase the area of contact as much as possible.
She buried her face in his muscular and strong chest, feeling his body temperature, relieved that he was alive, and savored his body odor as if in a trance, tracing her finger over the scars all over his body, listening intently to the beat of his heart that fluttered like a small bird and sighing with emotion.
What a fragile heartbeat. How many of these fragile beings did that woman send to their deaths? Indignant at that woman's deeds, she pitied him, cared for him, wiped away his sweat with her tongue, and cleansed him. And she overwrote the mark of those senseless beings with herself.
She didn't end it with just a lick, she kissed him all over his body to prove her unwavering love for him. She kissed him repeatedly while messing up her hair and writhing her body as if pecking at him... but for her, it was nothing special.
When they were young, she had kissed him on the cheek just like her parents did when they spent time together. Moreover, on that day when he tried to save her from hell, she boldly kissed his lips as well... it was different from that woman who kissed his lips without consent. It was a true expression of love. A vow of love that they both accepted, a true vow of pure love...!
"That's right, it's a promise. Our secret promise... hehehe, are you okay? I'll keep the promise."
With rough breaths, Hina whispered those words while touching both of his cheeks. She stares at his face, blushing deeply, curling up the corners of her mouth, looking ecstatic, and gazed at her beloved's sleeping face.
Yes, she will never forget the promise they made just before they fled from the house. There was no way she could forget it.
'In sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, in riches and in poverty, let's love, respect, comfort, help each other with all our hearts as long as we live.'
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