tokyo creator

Chapter 318 Guanxu

Under the setting sun, in the ruined shrine, Haiyuan sat in front of the original worship hall, looking at Saioudai in the ruins of the dance hall from a distance.

Around Saioudai, the invisible "land" was still isolated there as a deep chasm, making it impossible for the tentacles of the original gray to reach her.

Now that Ibuki Rika has completely taken control of the country, for some reason, the ban on Saioudai has not been released.

When asked this question directly, the fox just rolled his eyes with a bad idea on his face, and quickly fled the divine realm from the torii gate: "Laixiang doesn't know, hahahaha woof woof..."

So Hui Yuanchu simply gave up the idea of ​​leaving for the time being and just sat there, meditating.

In the darkness of consciousness, countless groups of cicadas are weaving a web.

On this web, line by line, there is countless information - about Ibuki Rika and Saio Dai.

Haiyuan had first seen Ibuki Rika's entire life - it was Ibuki Rika who took the initiative to present it to him.Among them, there has never been anyone suspected of being a Saio Dai.

On Saiodai's side, the presentation of her life needs to be divided into two parts.

The Yu Liuhun that Hui Yuan saw directly, and the part that was spoken by Guan Xu.

The Saiodai that Haihara originally knew was put together from these two parts. Although it was not as complete as Ibuki Rika, it still covered most of Saiodai's life.

But, again, there was never any trace of Ibuki Rika in it.

But there is obviously some strong emotional drive between these two people. It is not just a one-time relationship, but a long-term entanglement, and there is also some strange correspondence in their life trajectories.

Saioudai didn't care, because she was always restrained and couldn't even move a finger.As for Ibuki Rika... almost every chance she gets, the fox will show its fangs and sharp teeth towards Saioudai.

...I blew the incense, and the King of Zhai came on behalf of me.

Guanxu.

Miko, Divine Branch Matsuri, Saio, Lord of the Toyo Kingdom.

Eros, Artabatus, Sophia.

The cicadas are weaving this information together, trying to weave it into a web.

——But the more the web is woven, the more obvious the hole in the center becomes, making it impossible to ignore it.

Hui Yuan stared at the net in the spiritual world with his eyes closed, thinking - there is still one condition missing.

To explain everything and connect it all, a decisive condition is needed.

Suddenly, a voice interrupted Hui Yuanchu's thoughts.

"Haihara-kun, aren't you going back?"

Hui Yuanchu stopped thinking, opened his eyes and looked back at the visitor: "Master Gong Si, you are still alive."

Onishi Miyaji had some scratches on his body, but overall he was fine.She picked a slightly flatter place a little further away and sat down, looking helpless at Haiyuan's initial answer: "...Haiyuan-kun, you are such a polite young man."

Of course Hui Yuanchu already knew that Daxi was fine.

At the moment when the gate tower was destroyed by the god's flying axe, Hui Yuanchu saw a huge white paper crane from behind the smoke.

Just like the paper crane she was riding on when he first met Miyaji-sama under the God of Inari.

"Asakami was not injured, neither her beautiful appearance nor her fair skin showed any scars." Onishi Gongji added.

"...That's not the point, is it?"

"Asakami expressed her firm determination to me. She said that she is the miko for you and Rika..." Onishi smiled and said, "From now on, I will serve you... in the way a miko should do, absolutely not discount."

Haiyuan initially understood the subtext: "Are you Shinto witches... all like this?"

"What kind?"

Huiyuan thought about it for a while and used a more euphemistic expression: "It seems that he doesn't care about sacrificing himself."

"So, this is a miko." Onishi replied briefly, and then asked, "Do you look down on this kind of behavior?"

Hui Yuanchu shrugged: "That's not true."

... Speaking of which, we can say that he himself is the Lord of flesh and blood, and he gave birth to the Lord of Love.

Oh, that's not right, the miko's actions are not out of love.

Onishi nodded and continued to explain: "The existence of witches is to communicate between humans and gods. Therefore, it is natural that witches are born with both human and divine sides."

"Even the same thing will have different evaluations and different meanings from the perspective of humans or gods."

"Miko must be 'compatible' with this difference, or in other words, make herself a 'transition' and 'buffer zone' for this difference."

"…So, this is what a miko is. We do not do this kind of thing without shame, but we must have a sense of shame, but we must insist on doing this kind of thing. This contradiction itself is the step between the gods and humans. between, in an unbiased manner.”

"The reason for doing this kind of thing is the bond with the gods. And the shame that arises when doing this kind of thing is another matter, that is the bond with the human world."

"So, witches use the term 'service', but in fact they serve not only the gods, but also the human world. Only by bowing to the gods and the human world at the same time can the two worlds be connected."

"I'm just saying this, I hope you don't misunderstand Asagami. She is not a shameless woman. In fact, she is just practicing the miko's code very seriously and doing what a miko must do."

Hui Yuanchu nodded: "Thank you for your explanation, I understand."

Onishi continued to look at him: "So, will you accept her? I mean, although you may not understand the thoughts of the witches, will you respect her decision?"

Hui Yuan thought for a while and decided to deal with it first: "Okay."

Onishi Miyaji then nodded, "That's good. I hope you can know that this is the awakening of the miko... although it can easily lead to misunderstanding."

Then she took advantage of the situation and said: "...For example, when you just defeated her, Qiangami also said that he wanted you to sacrifice her."

"This is also what a miko should do. It's another kind of devotion."

"In this ceremony, different witches have different responsibilities. Some are responsible for serving as sacrifices, and some are responsible for making sacrifices."

"The person responsible for the sacrifice is not nobler than the person who is the sacrifice. Because the Saiou who survived in the end was actually a sacrifice in a sense, but it only burned longer and carried more burdens."

Then Onishiyaji paused.

...I see, what I really want to say is actually here - Hui Yuanchu looked at her and thought to himself.

Sure enough, Onishi Miyaji's expression became more serious, his voice was softer, but his articulation was clearer and he said slowly: "I heard Laixiang said that you refused yourself, and you did not agree with Laixiang to continue to perform the following rituals."

"I understand that Haibara-kun is a good boy with a sense of justice...but how should I put it? If this is out of sympathy for Saiodai-sama, this is unnecessary. Because if Saiodai-sama himself can speak now, It will definitely express the same meaning.”

"——After all, this is a miko, an existence that straddles both sides of humans and gods. Even the same thing will have different evaluations and different meanings from the side of humans or gods."

"I hope Mr. Haiyuan can understand that everyone who participated in this ceremony came with the consciousness of dedication..." Daxi slowed down his speech, stared at Haiyuanchu and said: "...We are not doing this. What a murder, but everyone dancing together to the gods."

Then, as if she had finished speaking, she stood up again, still being polite: "This is just a little idea of ​​mine. I hope it can give you some reference."

Hui Yuan Chu sighed.

...Sure enough, he actually came here to work as a lobbyist for Laixiang.

However, the reason why Hui Yuan initially stopped Laixiang from killing people was not because of a boring sense of justice.

"I will consider your words seriously." Then Hui Yuanchu said, "But can I ask you something else?"

Daxi, who was about to leave, was surprised by Hui Yuanchu's words, and stayed behind: "Say it."

So Hui Yuanchu began to ask questions: "Master Palace Secretary, you just said that the witch's understanding of devotion is the link between humans and gods."

"Yeah." "More accurately, shame is part of the bond."

"Yes."

"But Laixiang is completely different in this regard, right?"

These words made Onishiyaji fall silent for a moment.

After a while, she said as if talking to herself: "But Laixiang is different."

"The so-called natural son of God means that he is born on the side of God."

"So that child will not feel ashamed at all... he will only be pleased." Finally, she sighed deeply, "And being pleased is something that only gods can do."

Hui Yuanchu took the opportunity and said, "So, can you tell me about Laixiang's past experience?"

Daxi showed a complicated expression, but still nodded.

She sat back down again and began to speak slowly, sentence by sentence.

Although Hui Yuanchu already knew most of the things, his original intention in asking Daxi was to add another perspective to see if he could get more information, so of course he just listened carefully at this time.

……

It wasn't until the moon in God's Realm fully rose that Daxi stopped completely.

Haiyuan was a little disappointed at first, because he didn't get more information from it... For example, there was still no one similar to Saio Dai around Laixiang.

However, looking at the expression on Daxi's face at this time, he still blurted out and asked another question: "So, has Mr. Gongji ever regretted it?"

Daxi seemed to understand what he was talking about and said slowly: "Yes."

"...Maybe it's because I don't have children of my own. In fact, for a while, I really seriously considered adopting Rika and letting her inherit the Onishi name and the shrine."

"Although the miko has both human and divine sides...but at the beginning, I really wanted her to be on the human side."

"After all, I started holding Arika when she was still so young..." She said, making a gesture of holding a baby, and her face showed kindness unconsciously.

She paused, for a moment, staring at the baby in her empty arms.

Then, Onishi raised his empty hand tremblingly and covered his face: "So... when Laixiang later told me that her classmates in school and Tanaka had done something to her... I was deeply moved. Regret it.”

"She won't feel heartache herself...but I will."

"I should have kept her... I should have tried my best to keep my child here, by my side..." The woman covered her face and sighed deeply.

Hui Yuanchu simulated Daxi's state of mind and said softly: "Those encounters are bad enough in themselves. But it's even worse when Laixiang completely loses his heart..."

Daxi just covered her face and nodded silently. It took a while to control her emotions. She put down her hands and showed a tired face.

Hui Yuanchu waited patiently until she looked at him again before asking, "But, what are you doing now?"

"You clearly regard Rika as your own child, why are you trying to help her ascend to the position of Saio now?"

"You know what Saio means. If Laixiang really becomes Saio, it actually means leaving you forever, right?"

Onishi Miyaji answered without any hesitation this time: "Yes, Rika took the initiative to find me later and said that she wanted her own shrine and wanted to become a Saio. So, I thought for a long time, struggled for a long time, and finally came to the conclusion After reaching a conclusion, I will try my best to help her."

It seemed that she had been prepared for Hui Yuanchu's question, or that she had indeed thought about this question for a long time and had actually gotten the answer.

"—Because mikos inherently have two sides, human and divine. Whether it is humane or divine, in fact, for mikos, both are natural paths. No matter which side you choose, it is not a mistake.

"Just like Tian Tian Nu Ming, she is both a witch and a god.

"Ordinary people take the human path because they don't have the ability to take another path. At first, I hoped that Laixiang would take the human path, just because of my selfishness. But now that Laixiang has started to take the Shinto path..."

"Besides, the world really needs a new Saio——"

Daxi breathed out.

"——After all, I am also a miko." She raised her head and looked directly at Haiyuan Chu and said, "If the pain of being a mother is the bond of humanity... then while suffering, you still have to do the so-called 'right thing' , is the bond of Shinto...this is my devotion."

Hui Yuan was speechless at first.

He sighed and said to himself: "I think my fate is a little strange..."

"What did you say?" Onishi Gongji didn't hear clearly.

"I mean - you are not a good mother." Hui Yuanchu enlarged his voice angrily.

Onishi smiled bitterly.

"I don't know why..." The more Huiyuan recalled, the more he shook his head, "I always encountered irresponsible parents and children who took a strange path."

He lowered his head and pinched his fingers, and began to count in a low voice: "Monitor, one."

"Saya-chan, two."

"Miss Zhe and Zheli, three couples."

"Over there, Guanxu and Saioudai are also...the fourth pair."

"Master Gong Si, you and Laixiang are also the same. The fifth couple..."

"——Please wait a moment!!!" Haiyuan was counting, but was suddenly interrupted by Onishiyaji's very loud voice.

He raised his head and looked at Onishi Miyaji's face in surprise - the woman's expression at this time was a bit strange.

"Just now, did you mention Guan Niyi and Saiwangdai?"

"Yes, what's wrong?"

"So what you're saying is... Guan Miyi and Saioudai are father and daughter?"

"Isn't this natural?" Hui Yuanchu was a little confused.

Onishi Gongji's brows were furrowed: "Can you tell me something you know?"

Haiyuan thought about it for a while and felt that he could not find any reason to think about that nasty man, so he calmly told everything he knew about Guanxu and Saioudai.

During this period, Onishi Gongji's expression went through a series of changes, and finally calmed down again.

Then she pondered for a moment and spoke slowly: "Speaking of which, I do know Guan Miyi of the Shrine. But this acquaintance is actually just knowing each other's names, hearing some anecdotes, and the fact that I have gone to the Shrine to report on my work for decades. When I was there, I had three or five face-to-face encounters."

Then, she said slowly, "So, when I saw Guan Miyi this time, I didn't have any doubts about him..."

"After all, this person does have proof of the shrine that cannot be forged, and he does preside over the ceremony."

"Although his temper seems to have become weirder than what I heard, and he is becoming more and more inhumane and unlovable, and he does not want to be polite to me at all... But anyway, we have almost never interacted before. I It’s not certain that if you stay in contact with Guan Miyi for a long time, you will find that he is indeed such a person.”

"but……"

Onishi Palace Secretary's face darkened: "Guan Miyi of the Shrine has converted to Shintoism since he was young, got married and had children. He definitely does not have any daughters, and he definitely does not lead any corrupt private life."

"And this time, Saio's surname is Shirai. He has a clean and clear family background. He is from the clan of the Meiji Shrine. There is absolutely no way he has anything to do with Guan Niyi."

"...So, in this ceremony, the two people we have dealt with until now - this man whose personality and self-narrated experience are completely different from the one I know, and the girl whose face has never been shown …”

Onishi Gongji glanced at Hui Yuanchu, and then looked at the girl not far away, his expression was extremely serious, and he said word by word: "——Are they really 'Guan Niyi' and 'Shiraisai Wangdai'?"

(End of this chapter)