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A month?

Lily was stunned…

The distance she had traveled was at most one or two hours. Although the fragmented memories were intense, it was very short, how could she have been gone for a month?

Was one day in Takamagahara really ten years in the mortal world…

Just viewing the memories of a god would make time fly?

“Rika…” Lily knelt down ignoring how her skirt was ruined and revealing her legs, Rika was afterall a female raccoon. She helped Rika remove all the leaves and mud, “Rika, what’s with all your wounds?”

“Sometimes powerful monsters will appear here. If I must, I run away, but if it’s a monster I can deal with, then I’ll chase it away…”

Lily pulled Rika into an embrace and pulled out a life-recovery magatama. Rika was also an awakened and could use these.

“Rika, use this.”

Using the magatama, not only was she completely healed, but her strength also increased to awakened sixth stage.

“Sister, what is this? It’s so amazing!” Rika asked, bouncing around in joy.

Lily grabbed a handful of magatamas and put them into a small bag and stuffed it to Rika, “You waited here for a month, it was rough on you. Take these magatamas, you can practice with them in the future, protect the village.”

“Magatama!??? That, did I just absorb a legendary magatama!?”

Such a remote raccoon village had never seen such treasures. In Rika’s eyes, Lily who had grabbed a whole handful of magatamas was now even more mighty than her great grandpa.

Of course, Mita was so much more mighty than Lily, but just how could Rika understand? To her, Mita was just an old mischievous raccoon elder.

As for Lily, since she wasn’t tired, she and Rika traveled back to Mita’s temple.

Rika laughed and bounced the entire way back, but Lily’s eyes could not hide her worry.

Her heart was no longer confused, but how should she proceed from now on? The memories in the corridor gave her many doubts.

Just exactly who were those two girls? Those two were clearly not ordinary people, and since they had created the sakura parasol, was the elder sister really Suzuhiko-hime?

In that ancient battle, all the celestial maidens had suffered horrendous wounds, though the great goddess Tsukuyomi had arrived she didn’t know how the battle ended.

Tsukuyomi…

Looking up, Lily could see a bright full moon hanging in the night sky.

It was difficult to associate that goddess advising her with the merciless god who sent a heavenly annihilation at her.

Even if the great goddess Tsukuyomi looked down at the mortal world, could she really tell that I’m practicing her swordstyle?

Would she sit back and just watch that terrifying heavenly annihilation strike me?

Or, was that simply just a coincidence? The chance of that was too small, that heavenly annihilation was definitely aimed at me, even the main peak of Izumo Mountain that had existed for hundreds of years was destroyed, and her famous parasol that had resisted the attacks of demon gods was also wrecked, where in the world could you find such a coincidence in the world?

Perhaps such a great goddess like Tsukuyomi high up in Takamagahara wouldn’t pay attention to a prayer of a small female samurai in the mortal worlds right?

Maybe just as there were corrupt officials in the imperial court, there were wicked gods up high in Takamagahara? Perhaps the path of praying was occupied by such a wicked god…but why would that god do such a thing?

Or perhaps, there was another possibility…

Lily shivered, the other terrifying possibility was that…the great goddess Tsukuyomi had lost control over Takamagahara.

There was no way to know what had happened to the gods after the great war.

The other thing that Lily was concerned about was what she saw about Lady Ayaka’s past, why she failed to reach the peak and how she escaped…

“Lady Ayaka, is Lily someone you cannot trust? Why did you hide it from me…or are there things you simply can’t speak about…”

Through the dark night, Lily and Rika walked through the forest back to raccoon Mita’s temple.

When they arrived, they saw Mita sitting on the altar and five, six little raccoons playing around in the temple.

“Hmm, looks like you were successful, in truth, I also really wanted to get that tree core but I never dared to anger that vine, ahahaha.” Mita laughed out loud, “Lily, you really are amazing.”

Lily walked forward and handed Mita the vibrant emerald tree core and her sakura parasol.

With a wave of his hand, both items landed in Mita’s hand.

“Grandpa Mita, please!”

“Ahh, why act like that, you’re my granddaughter, you don’t need to act like an outsider, only…I made a few little toys recently, I would like to use a bit of tree core on them. Don’t worry though, there’s enough to repair the parasol.” Mita slowly rubbed the tree core.

“Please feel free to use the rest of the material.”

“Ehehehe, what a good girl.” Mita was overjoyed, “Your tree core has enough material to make three full parasol frames.”

Mita looked down at the wrecked parasol, “Thankfully the backbone of this parasol is still intact. If this backbone was broken, there would be no way to repair the parasol, as for the frame, I still have some confidence.”

“Please, grandpa Mita.” Lily bowed deeply.

“I estimate it will take ten days to half a month to repair the frame.”

Lily nodded, this was the famous sakura parasol, to be able to repair something from Takamagahara so fast, Mita was indeed a living legend.

“Sakura, it looks like we’re lucky.” Lily silently thought, “To be able to meet grandpa Mita is really a blessing among misfortune.”

“Grandpa Mita, what about the canopy…” Mita had said he would repair the frame but had not said anything about the canopy.

Mita showed a casual smile, “Ah, Lily, I will go repair the umbrella frame. I adopted these children from the forests, they were either orphaned by disasters or monsters. They are pitiful children, while I’m not here, will you teach them how to dance?”

Mita requested as he looked at the little raccoons playing in the temple.

A confused expression spread across Lily’s face, “Ah? Dance?”

“Ehehe, your figure and stance tells me you are definitely a girl who knows how to sing and dance. Though I’m capable, look at me, I’m unable to teach children how to dance. Little girl, just help these children, they’re very pitiful.”

Lily looked at those wild innocent eyes of the little raccoons and warmly smiled, “Mm, then I will try.”

Mita laughed out loud, “Ahahahaha, you are really a gentle and reasonable little girl. I shall go first, right, you can wander the back of this temple whenever you want.”

Mita left with the tree core and sakura parasol smiling mysteriously.

Bang! With a puff of white smoke, he disappeared.

“Grandpa Mita…” she didn’t understand what he meant by his last words.

From behind, she felt several expecting gazes land on her.

Turning around, she saw the little raccoons all stare at her with wide, large eyes.

“Rika, please look after them for a while, I need to go take a bath and change clothes first.”

Rika was an awakened sixth stage now, though young and looked no different from the other little raccoons, she was now one of the top experts among the regular raccoons.

She wondered what sort of strength grandpa Mita held.

Going to the backyard of the temple, Lily found a bathhouse and cleaned herself.

Afterwards she dressed herself in a simple white yukata. The temple lights were dim, red would look like black here, it would be better to wear white.

Walking through the temple backyard.

“Hm?”

She noticed a small house deep in the backyard behind a beautiful pond filled with water lilies, and the reflection of the moon shining in the waters.

An invisible aura seemed to radiate from the little house, an aura that she was attracted to for some reason.

Shaking her head, “I can’t make the kids wait too long. I’ll come back here later.”

Lily returned to the front of the temple.

She was at a loss when looking at the expecting faces of the little raccoons, to be honest, though she knew how to dance, she didn’t know much about how to teach.

“Follow me.” She led the little racoons out to a flat open space outside of the temple.

“Stand behind me and follow my movements.”

The little raccoons all nodded.

The moonlight scatters softly, the grassy fragrance spreads.
A lonely girl stands, sleeves weaving in dance.
No one would know, of her heart’s wish;
Look into her eyes, the sadness that hides.

A little fox jumped out, and started blowing a melodious flute in rhythm with Lily’s dance.

The little raccoons started singing an ancient folk song in Kansai, following behind Lily. Though they were round and short they all danced with Lily’s movements, a bit clumsy but very cute.

Lily’s eyes and dance were ethereal, paired with her white yukata and dancing in the forests, she looked like a fairy under the moonlight.

For a bit, Lily imagined a day when sister Rinne woke, she, Rinne, and all her other sisters would live in this hidden forest. It would not be a bad life, a pure simple life away from the battles and conflict of the world…

The winds whistled through the forests, folk rhythms, night dancing, harmony, lunar flowers…even the surrounding forests were immersed in this dreamlike atmosphere.

After the dance, the little raccoons all cuddled together and fell asleep, they looked so innocent and carefree. Lily remained awake and paced through the temple keeping watch over them. “They look so innocent and carefree, but it’s only a mask. These little raccoons have experienced misfortune, losing their parents and relatives, and yet still sleeping here so sweetly…”

Lily couldn’t help but feel pity, while Mita was away, she would protect them.

She released her demonic hound and had it guard the temple entrance.

She walked into the backyard and went to the little wooden house behind the pond.

Walking closer, she could feel a very unusual energy here. Taking a closer look, she saw a powerful seal over the wooden door of the house.

Carefully sensing the seal, she could tell that she would be unable to break the seal, but then again this was grandpa Mita’s backyard, she wouldn’t recklessly break random seals here.

And then for some reason, under Lily’s gaze the sealing spell lit up in beautiful blue flames, and became ashes…

The wooden sliding door fell to one side with a crack, revealing a half meter gap.

Lily looked inside, within the house laid an ancient and complex loom.

“Ah? This loom…why does it look so familiar?”