Priceless Smile 2

Chapter 115: Drink

     Kazumi's now sitting on the veranda with Ringo by her side as they have star gazing. Unexpectedly, they're both holding a bottle of sake.

"Kazumi-sama, are you sure about drinking that?" Ringo asked.

"Of course. I managed to murder people so, why can't I drink even just a bottle? Besides, I have a high alcohol tolerance. I don't get drunk easily." Kazumi answered as she lift up the bottle to her mouth and took a drink.

Ringo sighed as she has done the same thing too. They were both silent for a while looking up the stars until Kazumi finished her bottle of sake. She left for a short while coming back with a tray of it containing ten bottles that surprised Ringo. But despite that, Ringo just sighed as she remained silent.

"I never saw you drink like this. Why are you doing this now?"

"Well, I don't know too. Maybe it's because I feel like my time's coming up so, I at least should take a little drink." Kazumi chuckled.

".... None of them.... listened right?" Ringo finished her bottle as she grab another one.
"You left this morning to go to their places but none of them listened right?"

"*sigh* I wonder how are you so quick-witted at things like that. What can I say when you already know the answer?"

"So it's just what you had told me back then, they reacted exactly at how you predicted it towards the truth behind Aiko-san's death. Are you really sure you'll let them be like that?"

"If they don't want to listen, I won't force them, that simple. You know, trust is like glass. It takes a lot of time to make but only a second to break. I can see this as my karma for breaking theirs." Kazumi again grabbed her third bottle as she finish her second.
"After all, I don't blame them for getting angry at me. I kept it a secret for a long time instead of explaining it to them from the beginning."

"But still, isn't that Ubuyashiki going to help you?"

"He already told me about that and.... no. I don't want him to get involved in this. Those Pillars might have the idea that he's being biased. I'll just take advantage of this."

"What do you mean take advantage of this?" Ringo faced Kazumi stopping herself from drinking.

"Emotions are strong enough to control us. If your emotions are unstable, so will be the decisions you'll make. I originally planned to distance myself from them in order to save them but seems like the gods helped me by having them distance theirselves from me instead. The further they are from me, so will they be from death."

"Why say that when you have us? We're all alive close to you."

"And that's what I'm scared of. I'm scared that in just a blink of an eye, in just a single night.... I'd lose you guys too. Just like how I lost my mother, Aiko-san, Haruko-san, and my siblings. I'm afraid that, the same thing would happen to those ones close to me right now."

Silence shrouded the two as Kazumi finished her third bottle and grabbed her fourth. They also stayed silent as they watch her and Ringo drinking alcohol. They all couldn't do anything but to shut their mouths and hold on tightly to their clothes.

Their scene changed again showing Kazumi performing chest compressions to an unconscious lady with a crying child beside her. Despite several chest compressions, the lady remained unconscious.

"Mother! Mother!" The child cried as he watch his unconscious mother being revived.

"CAAAW! EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY! AZAKURA HARUNA AND AZAKURA KANO HAS ENCOUNTERED AN UPPER MOON! CAAAW! PLEASE GO TO THEIR LOCATION AT ONCE! CAAAW!" A crow wearing a purple ribbon around its neck announced flying over Kazumi.

Despite that, she remained calm and composed doing chest compressions to the mother.

'Please! Please! I'm begging you to wake up! Please wake up! They need me! Please! Please!'
She begged in her mind as she continue on.

After what seemed like five minutes of her performing that, the lady slowly opened her eyes as she started to wake up. Kazumi called out for another civilian to assist the mother as she instantly left running away from them. As she run and jump from tree to tree, her face is expressionless as she go faster and faster.  As she come closer to the location, the sun has started to rise up.

Upon arriving, she saw the two lying on the ground lifeless as their body are almost covered in huge long needles. Despite this, she took in a deep breath as she breath it out and walked over to Kano. He's lying on the ground on his stomach as she saw the character for 'five' written on the ground by his blood before carrying his body walking towards Haruna who's also lying on the ground on her stomach too. As she put him down beside her, she made her face up seeing her open lifeless eyes. She put her hand over them as she close Haruna's eyes putting their heads on her lap.

'I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm late again. I'm sorry I came late.'

Obanai faced the opposite way with the others while Sanemi clenched his hands into tight fists remembering that day. The day they received the news of Kano and Haruna's death. None of them went to her place as they even bad mouthed her blaming her for their deaths.

Despite all her apologies in her mind, she's smiling as she caress their face. She held them until the supposedly bright skies became darker as the rain poured. Despite the loss, she kept her smile as she rest her head in between the heads of the two as she hug them.

"You two have gotten so strong. You two are very brave.... I'm sorry I'm late.... may you two.... rest in peace.... my siblings." She whispered as she held on to their clothes tightly.

Their scene changed again as it showed Kazumi in her room sitting on the floor with her back leaning on her closed doors as Kano and Haruna's haoris are on her table. Their funeral just ended as they just finished burrying their ashes. They were burried at a hill near the back of the estate instead of joining the other mounds of the deceased slayers near the headquarters.

Even after their death, she has no time to mourn as Taro just came with a new mission. She sighed as she smiled standing up to change. As their scene changed again, it showed Kazumi in her demon slayer uniform making medicine in a room they had never seen before. From the looks of it, it seemed like the room is an underground one as they spotted a trap door and a ladder leading up the ceiling.

"Master." Take called as he just came in from a hole covered by a light wooden door that seemed to be like a window.

"Yes?"

"Aren't you suppose to rest? Their funeral just began and ended yesterday and you just came back from a mission today, you haven't even changed from your uniform yet." Take answered in a worried tone.

"I'm fine. I just really have to finish this." Kazumi faced him with a smile as she continue on making the medicine.

"If Fujikase's here she'll be nagging at you now."

"Ahahaha! That's why I sent those three away to deliver some medicines for a while. To distract them so that they don't have to worry about me."