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First Arc
Chapter Four
《あの女》

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【October, 23, 2001】

Alone sat a young girl and her brother in the middle of a zen garden. Each filled with peaceful melodies in their hearts.

The girl was of eleven years of age, but held more maturity than most. She donned soft locks that reached to her neck. Her hair was akin to that of the fallen autumm leaves surrounding them. Her eyes were closed as she hummed a soft rhythm under her breath.

Her brother sat close to her, sitting in a seiza posture, timidly but patiently awaiting the moment to speak to her. His soft black eyelashes fluttered as he blinked his eyes. His lips pursed into a pout as he adjusted himself in his place.

"Nee-san, did you like meeting that Gojō?" He finally mustered all his courage to her ask that simple question.

They were of opposing sides but he payed no mind to the mindless words of the elders. Even if they say it was forbidden, he didn't care. She was his sister no matter what.

He was just as curious when he heard that his sister had met the heir of their clan's enemy.
Servants had talked about it all day and bantered about whether or not there was a possibility of an peace treaty between the clans.

He wanted to confront her himself about it.

His sister seemed to stop at his question, slowly opening her eyes as she turned towards him. This unveiled the elusive beauty of them. They were like deep pools of golden sheen surrounded by rings of crimson.

She looked intrigued by his question and parted her lips before a smile formed on her delicate face.

"Why so curious, Sei?"

He fell silent, before turning away in embarrassment. He was now hugging his knees, making her laugh lightly at him. The tips of his ears turned pink as he refused to face her amused expression.

Just as she was about to tease him more, they suddenly heard footsteps approaching them. They both became alert, standing up immediately, the younger boy bowing his head respectfully towards them. He seemed more nervous than his elder sister who only wore a smile of hospitality towards whoever was to come into the garden and did not bow towards the newcomer.

As the footsteps became nearer, a clear view of the newcomers were shown to the two siblings. The younger between the both of them slightly looked up to see who it was, curious and unaware of what was to come.

He looked confused when he saw an unknown woman walking towards them. The woman wore commoner's clothing and wore a grin on her face as she saw them.

How did she even get in the estate? How? Who was she?

His sister suddenly stepped forward and seemed to be protecting him by veiling him with her shadow. He was surprised but understood what she meant, worry in his eyes as he looked at his sister's towering form.

His sister immediately lifted her guard upon connecting glances with the unknown woman, feeling a strange but strong pulse of cursed energy from her. She still maintained her polite expression but deep down she was filled with dread.