The dining hall of Yonabe-tei was most silent in the early morning hours when daylight was still weak. The only sound was the rustling of pages as Mibu Yoshino, the proprietress, turned through her ledger alone at the corner of the counter. A sturdy woman in her sixties with white-streaked hair tied back, she rose earlier than anyone else each morning to sit in this seat. It seemed to be the rule of this place. When Souichi descended the stairs, Yoshino glanced up briefly. That was all. Gintsuki was at one of the dining tables. The woman who had been lying down until yesterday was now here this morning, having walked on her own, sitting in a wooden chair. The white overcoat was the one Yoshino had mended yesterday, and the stitching on the right shoulder was still raw. Her long silver hair caught the morning light and glowed faintly translucent. Her skin was the color of white porcelain. Her expression remained unchanged—like a mirror reflecting nothing. Souichi pulled out the chair across from her and sat down. Yoshino brought two wooden plates. Rice porridge that seemed to be leftover from last night, and thinly sliced dried fish. Souichi thanked her; Gintsuki gave a slight bow. Souichi had already learned that this was the extent of her greeting. For a while, the two ate in silence. The porridge was lightly salted and carried the scent of grass. He still wasn't accustomed to the flavors of this world, but it wasn't bad. After Souichi had eaten about three spoonfuls, Gintsuki opened her mouth. "Koubuchi, to" Short. Just two characters. Souichi stopped his spoon and looked at Gintsuki. Gintsuki kept her eyes on her plate and added slightly more. "Curse, to lift. Only, path" Koubuchi—a place transmitted as a sacred site of witches in the Ryouhyou River basin. It was said to exist somewhere at the center of the world, and that reaching it would allow one to touch the root of the soul and be freed from all curses. However, the path was said to change with each generation, and no one knew the certain way. It was one of the first things Yoshino had told Souichi when he came to Akari Town. The curse mark beneath her collarbone flashed through his mind. That reddish-black pattern that pulsed and spread—its outline. The stone-cold chill when he had touched Gintsuki's bare skin. If that was caused by a curse, then she had been traveling alone to lift it. Souichi thought for a moment, then spoke. "I don't know how to get back anyway. I'll go with you until we find a way" He said it lightly. As lightly as possible. He knew his inner thoughts weren't that light. With injuries as severe as hers, and being hunted by Kyukanshuu—a radical faction of demons, an armed force that relentlessly pursued humans and witches—it was impossible to let Gintsuki go alone. Something deep in his body was telling him that clearly. But putting it into words felt somehow wrong. A forty-year-old man telling a woman with such an age gap "I can't leave you alone" seemed to contain feelings he didn't fully understand himself, so he had put forward the more plausible reason of "until we find a way back." Gintsuki raised her eyes from the porridge and looked at Souichi's face for just a moment. Then she gave a small nod. There were no words. But somehow, that nod conveyed acceptance. Souichi picked up his spoon again and brought the remaining porridge to his mouth. Outside the window, the morning of Akari Town was beginning to stir. ＊ "There's been damage from Kirifood Insects in Kurumamicho Village, they say" At a corner table in Akashouro—the only tavern in Akari Town and a gathering place for adventurers—the information broker Tsuji Hayabuma tilted a wooden cup as he spoke. A man in his thirties who drank before noon, he had an amiable face, but his eyes were oddly sharp. "Kirifood Insects, you say" "You don't know? Well, travelers wouldn't. They're low-level monsters that live in Kurikiri Forest. They move through the mist and ravage crops—insect-like things. Each one isn't much trouble, but in swarms they're a nuisance. Southwest of Akari Town, there's a farming village called Kurumamicho, and their wheat fields have been getting hit lately" Beside Souichi, Gintsuki tilted her head ever so slightly. She was listening. "What's the reward?" "It was posted on the Koubanza—the adventurer's guild board—but I haven't checked. For pest control in a farming village, probably around ten gold rings, I'd guess" Ten gold rings. Based on the conversion Yoshino had taught him, that would cover travel expenses and lodging for a while. Souichi glanced at Gintsuki. Gintsuki received his gaze and gave another small nod. The same wordless acknowledgment as before. ＊ After confirming the request with the village chief of Kurumamicho—a farming village about forty-five kilometers southwest of Akari Town—the two headed toward Kurikiri Forest in the early afternoon. The forest lived up to its name. It was a dark forest with densely growing conifers, and the moment they stepped in, thin mist cut into their field of vision. Beyond twenty meters was already hazy. Fallen leaves and decomposing leaf litter were damp, clinging to the soles of their shoes. A heavy, fermented smell from the earth clung to his nostrils. "Visibility is terrible" Souichi said it like a murmur, placing his hand on the hilt of his sword. Gintsuki followed silently. Her white overcoat seemed to dissolve into the mist, so Souichi unconsciously moved closer. It was a practical judgment about not getting separated, but he sensed it was more than that, so he stopped his thoughts there. About five minutes in, they encountered the first swarm. Kirifood Insects—beetle-like monsters about thirty centimeters long—were clustered under dead branches, more than a dozen of them. Thin mist seeped from the surface of their carapaces, apparently contributing to the thickness of the mist in Kurikiri Forest. Their movements were slow, but their fangs were sharp, and they were the type to overwhelm with numbers. "I'll drive them together, you finish them off" He said it in a low voice, and Gintsuki nodded. The strategy was simple. Souichi would pin one insect with his sword and gather the swarm in one place, while Gintsuki would finish them with word-weaving. Word-weaving—magic in this world that converted magical power into phenomena through incantations in ancient language—had high accuracy and was suited to freezing swarms together. Souichi's sword-wielding nature, which allowed him to slip through magical barriers, had proven effective against magical beasts in two previous battles. The moment one Kirifood Insect sensed movement and began to stir, Souichi stepped forward. He struck the ground with the flat of his blade. The dull sound made the swarm react, clustering in one place. Souichi maintained his stance and retreated, moving to a position away from Gintsuki's front. He raised one hand as a signal—now. Gintsuki's lips moved. An incantation in ancient language—a sequence of sounds with structure, different from ordinary speech. Souichi didn't understand the meaning, but he felt as if the air's density was changing. Magical power was concentrating. And then. With a dull thud, smoke rose from Souichi's back. "—Eh?" He turned around. His back was scorched. The back of his jacket was charred pitch-black, thin smoke rising from it. The swarm of Kirifood Insects was unharmed, frozen in place with what looked like bewilderment. Souichi was also bewildered. An odd silence fell among the three parties. The Kirifood Insects came to their senses first. One of them began to squirm. That was the trigger. "—I said the enemies were over there!!!" He shouted. While shouting, he began chasing the insects. The swarm scattered in panic. Souichi, smoke rising from his back, pinned one insect with his sword. When he looked back at Gintsuki. She was expressionless. That usual face that reflected nothing. Except. Her cheeks were slowly turning red. It was the face of someone questioning which character of the incantation she had gotten wrong. A face with too little expression for a human, yet that redness in her cheeks was oddly vivid. While he was shouting at her, she tilted her head and lost herself in thought. It was so impossibly cute that Souichi couldn't keep shouting. "...Let's try again. This time I'll give the signal and won't move until you start" It had become a wry smile. He was aware of it himself. The redness in Gintsuki's cheeks deepened slightly. There was no sign of an apology. She probably couldn't apologize. They reorganized. Souichi carefully gathered the scattered Kirifood Insects, and this time, only after he had completely stopped their movements, he raised his hand. Gintsuki began her incantation. Her mouth moved slowly, as if confirming each character. This time, the air cooled correctly. White frost ran through the mist, enveloping the swarm of Kirifood Insects. Ice covered their bodies. Their movements stopped. All thirteen fell quietly to the ground. Silence settled. Both of them were breathing a little heavily. Souichi touched the charred back of his jacket with his hand. His fingertips turned black. Gintsuki silently observed Souichi's back. He could tell she was remorseful, but she didn't apologize—or rather, couldn't. There was the circumstance that she couldn't waste her word-weaving capacity. "Well, we finished them, so let's call it good" It was his honest feeling. ＊ On the way back to Akari Town, Gintsuki gently pulled on Souichi's sleeve. The force was weak. But she definitely pulled. When Souichi turned around, Gintsuki silently began walking toward the market. There were no words. But the intention was clear. She was going to buy a new jacket. Souichi smiled wryly and followed. The market in Akari Town was busiest in the late afternoon, with food and miscellaneous goods stalls packed tightly along the stone-paved street. The smell of grilled fish and the dry scent of herbs crossed in the air. In a section dealing in clothing, several traveling cloaks made from a combination of linen and leather hung displayed. Gintsuki touched each one carefully to confirm. She was checking without using words. Souichi watched from beside her. (When Gintsuki does this, her expression moves just a little, I think) It wasn't a clear change. But the way she narrowed her eyes seemed subtly different between when she touched fabric she didn't like and when she thought something was acceptable. After just two days together, Souichi was already noticing this. Then. Gintsuki's gaze stopped at Souichi's left arm. She rolled up his shirt sleeve to check—the laceration from the magical beast battles of the past two days, still carrying a faint redness. The bandage he had wrapped himself was already removed, but the scar hadn't completely disappeared. Souichi hadn't been concerned about it. In thirty years of dojo work, he had acquired many scars like this. But Gintsuki, without a word, took Souichi's arm. Her slender fingers wrapped around his forearm. Cold. The temperature of stone. The same body temperature he had felt when she was treated yesterday—a coldness that didn't seem human. Gintsuki drew his arm closer and gently placed her cold fingertips on the scar. Something deep in Souichi's chest throbbed painfully. (Calm down. This person is just checking the wound right now) He told himself. It was true. Gintsuki's face was completely unaware, simply concerned about the injury. But Gintsuki's lips began to move. Word-weaving, he realized, and by then her face was already drawing closer to his arm. A faint healing incantation with minimal word-weaving capacity—apparently, magic like this required the one casting it to bring their mouth closer to the target than normal incantations. Souichi didn't understand the mechanism. He didn't understand, but as a result, Gintsuki's lips