In the slightly awkward atmosphere, dinner came to an end.

Ei said she was feeling a bit tired, and after finishing her meal, she quickly went back to her room.

Makoto and Yu Xie both pretended not to notice anything.

Night had fallen, and the bright moonlight bathed the Tenshukaku, making the roof appear as though it was covered in a thin layer of snow.

In the courtyard, Yu Xie and Makoto walked side by side.

"Yu Xie, do you think Ei is any different from other young girls?" Makoto suddenly asked.

This question was a bit odd. Ei was a body of a god, so it wasn't really appropriate to compare her to an ordinary girl. But as Ei's older sister, Makoto had asked anyway.

However, the question wasn't entirely wrong.

Perhaps, in some ways, Ei was still just a young girl.

She didn't understand the complexities of governing a nation like Makoto, nor did she have the human insights that someone like the Kitsune Saiguu would have.

"I think, at the moment, Ei is just a young girl." Before Yu Xie could answer, Makoto smiled slightly and continued, "Although she's lived for so long, in some aspects, she probably hasn't learned as much as you have."

Yu Xie didn't interrupt and quietly listened to Makoto.

"She's only interested in martial arts and spends most of her time honing her skills, so she doesn't know much about the world, and she doesn't even fully understand herself." Makoto continued, "I'm worried that if one day I'm no longer by her side, she won't know how to take care of herself."

Makoto's words were like a gentle breeze—light and soft, yet impossible to ignore.

"Don't make such assumptions. You can always stay by her side." Yu Xie said.

"Assumptions?"

"Anyway, don't worry too much about things that haven't happened." Yu Xie replied.

Makoto silently smiled.

"Yu Xie, could I ask you to look out for Ei a bit more? Even though she's much older than you, she's still really just a young girl."

Upon hearing Makoto's request, Yu Xie's heart stirred with complex emotions and an inexplicable sense of concern.

"As Head of the Royal Guards, protecting you both is my duty."

"No, this is a personal request. So, I don't want you to answer me as the Head of the Guards." Makoto said, her expression complicated and sincere, with something difficult to describe in her eyes, perhaps a tinge of sorrow. "It may be a little selfish, but I still hope you'll agree. Will you?"

In the ten years Yu Xie had known her, he had never seen Makoto look at him like this.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"I promise you."

"Thank you, Yu Xie."

Makoto slowly walked into the moonlight. The silver-white light illuminated her figure as she looked up at the stars, then suddenly turned to Yu Xie and said:

"It's the season when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. Let's call everyone tomorrow, and go enjoy the cherry blossoms together."

.....

The Next Day.

It was still early when Yu Xie heard a knock on the door.

The Head of the Royal Guards' residence was not a place just anyone could enter, and very few would dare knock on the door like that.

Yu Xie, still half-awake, could guess who it was likely to be.

"Coming." He climbed out of bed, dragging his still-sleepy body to the door.

The first thing he saw was a pair of familiar white fox ears and silver-white short hair.

As expected, standing outside the door was Kitsune Saiguu .

"Good morning!" Kitsune Saiguu said cheerfully.

"Oh." Yu Xie responded with a dull sound and crawled back into bed.

"Oh?" Kitsune Saiguu was slightly taken aback, "Is this how you greet your sister?"

"…" Yu Xie didn't reply and kept his eyes closed.

"You're not sleeping again, are you?" Kitsune Saiguu asked.

"…" Yu Xie remained silent.

Seeing this, Kitsune Saiguu paused for a moment, then closed the door to the room.

She then sat down by the bed, kicked off her shoes, and pulled back the blanket to lie down.

Yu Xie was startled and immediately jumped out of bed.

"What are you doing?"

Kitsune Saiguu smiled smugly, and her fox ears twitched slightly.

"Even though you've grown up, you're still the same shy Yu Xie from back then."

"…Alright." Yu Xie sighed helplessly. "I'll get up."

"That's better." Kitsune Saiguu got up from the bed, walked over to Yu Xie, and smilingly patted him on the head.

"You go outside first, I'll change clothes." Yu Xie said.

"Do you need me to help?" Kitsune Saiguu asked with a slightly mischievous smile.

"No need."

At the breakfast table, Kitsune Saiguu was eating her breakfast.

"You came here so early. You didn't come just for my breakfast, did you?" Yu Xie casually asked.

"Yes, I always feel like your breakfast tastes better." Kitsune Saiguu smiled. "Has your chef specially researched breakfast?"

"I don't think so. I actually think the breakfast at your place tastes better." Yu Xie couldn't help but recall the breakfasts the shrine maidens used to make when he lived at the Narukami shrine.

"Then why haven't you gone back to visit?" Kitsune Saiguu set down her chopsticks and stared directly into Yu Xie's eyes. "The little brother from back then has really grown up, huh? Got his wings and all, doesn't miss home anymore. Of course, I'm happy you can stand on your own, but don't get me wrong."

Although she emphasized that she didn't mean anything by it, it was obvious to anyone that Kitsune Saiguu's tone carried a hint of "resentment."

"The work in the Shogunate has been pretty busy lately."

In response to this "resentment," Yu Xie's tone softened a bit, even though what he said was the truth.

"Was it really that busy? Maybe I shouldn't have recommended you to join the Shogunate after all. I should have kept you with me, let you stay as a 'shrine maiden' instead."

"..."

Yu Xie definitely didn't want to wear a shrine maiden's outfit.

"Forget it, I won't hold it against you. Just make sure to come back often," Kitsune Saiguu smiled brightly again. "By the way, we're going to the outskirts to enjoy the cherry blossoms later. Have you prepared everything we need?"

"It's already been prepared. By the way, will Sasayuri and Chiyo be coming too?"

"They should be. They don't have much to do today."

.....

Outskirts, cherry blossoms in full bloom.

Amidst the pink cherry blossom forest, a young girl walked down a path, the hem of her kimono swaying gently in the wind.

Her black hair and red eyes were no different from humans, and her beauty was well recognized, even praised by the priestess of the Narukami Shrine, Kitsune Saiguu.

However, the pair of horns on her forehead marked her as something other than human, a symbol of the Oni race.

She walked lightly, occasionally looking up at the cherry blossoms fluttering in the air, her smile never fading from her lips.

She really loved spring, adored the cherry blossoms, and even more so, she enjoyed sitting under the cherry trees with friends on a beautiful day, chatting and admiring the flowers.

So when she received the message from Makoto the night before, saying that everyone would be going out to see the cherry blossoms today, she was overjoyed and had headed to the meeting place early this morning.

Though the others had not arrived yet, the clear joy on her face and the anticipation in her eyes were already evident.