"Pain…"
When i tugged her right hand, Kiana grimaced again, letting out a small cry. Even Yae Sakura had patted her shoulder earlier.
Raiden i stopped in silence, her expression darkening further—but not toward Kiana.
She gently placed her hand over Kiana's, feeling carefully. There was no fracture, no visible wound. Kiana's right hand, unlike her left, hadn't been injured by any deliberate force.
Seeing this, Kiana whispered softly, "Shoulder… it hurts."
i took a deep breath, calming her emotions, and slowly released her hand.
Her voice was quiet and low. "Let's go back to the shrine first. I'll put dicine on you when we get there."
Yae Sakura…
She would rember that na.
"Mm-hmm."
Kiana obediently followed beside i. After a few steps, unable to keep her thoughts to herself, she tried to shift her focus with a bit of chatter.
"Sorry, i. I couldn't get Narukami back for you."
"That sword doesn't matter."
i kept her head down as she walked, her tone unnaturally calm. "If it's lost, then so be it. You're more important than that sword."
Kiana's eyes widened.
"R-Really?!"
She could hardly believe what she'd just heard. After three months of shalessly flirting with i, was this finally a confession?!
Had she already succeeded in winning her over?
Could she start calling her wife now?!
Overwheld by joy, Kiana's mind went hazy. She even began imagining the grand wedding scene in her head.
"Mm."
i didn't look up. Her thoughts drifted to the 'Narukami' that had been enshrined in her family shrine for generations, to her father's stern lessons in swordsmanship, to that cold, heartless letter.
Then she thought of Kiana—the light that had suddenly appeared in her life, the monts they'd shared these past three months.
Turning her head slightly, she looked at Kiana's pale face—fair to begin with, now even whiter from the pain.
Her voice was steady, resolute. "In my heart, you're more important than Narukami."
Kiana's brain instantly translated i's words as a confession. Her face flushed red. "I-I feel the sa! No, I an…"
Sothing short-circuited in her brain. Before she knew it, she blurted out, "Compared to this whole world—you're more important!"
i froze on the spot.
She understood Kiana's feelings, but… that comparison sounded a little strange.
Kiana's face grew even redder after realizing what she'd just said. If her hands weren't injured, she would've buried her face in them already.
Kiana, what are you even doing?!
"Ahem, I an, what I ant was…"
Kiana scrambled to change the topic, trying to escape from the unbearable awkwardness. "I—I found out sothing about your father!"
At the ntion of her father, i's expression imdiately cooled. "You t him? He took Narukami—I already know."
How did i know that?
No, wait—that wasn't the point.
Kiana shook her head quickly. "It was Yae Sakura who took Narukami. She said she was acting under your father, Raiden Ryoma's, request."
i's eyes flickered slightly, but soon cald again.
Even retrieving the sword, he couldn't be bothered to do it himself.
"I see. So he intends to use Narukami for sothing important."
"Right! They're taking Narukami to fight Almighty Thunder—and use its power to forge Narukami into a true Edict Edge."
Almighty Thunder?
The woman Kiana had chased—the one nad Yae Sakura—had told her everything?
Raiden i stood silent for several seconds.
"We'll talk about this after we return to the shrine."
"Mm-hmm! Whatever i says!"
Kiana nodded at once, her face full of obedience.
They made their way back to the shrine.
Once there, i guided Kiana into her ditation room and retrieved a small jar of ointnt for treating bruises and sprains from a nearby cabinet.
After taking the jar of dicine, i had Kiana sit down while she knelt beside her. Without saying anything, she reached out and gently pulled down the fabric covering Kiana's shoulder.
The skin beneath was smooth and fair, the graceful curve of her shoulder revealed in the air.
For a brief mont, i's mind went blank—she suddenly realized how improper her actions might seem.
No… they were both girls. There was nothing improper about it.
Besides, she wasn't trying to tease Kiana—she was just applying dicine.
Still, what caught her attention was the deep, striking bruise near Kiana's chest.
"i?"
Kiana called her nervously, her voice tinged with shyness. i had been staring at her shoulder for so long that even Kiana, who was usually shaless, began to feel embarrassed.
i gently pressed Kiana's head to face forward again, her voice returning to its usual calm tone. "Don't move. I'm putting the dicine on."
"Oh…"
The cool ointnt spread across Kiana's bruised skin, soothing the pain slightly. i worked carefully, her touch steady and precise.
The white ointnt was applied evenly, and when it began to lt, i placed her palm over it, using a practiced technique to help the dicine absorb quickly—firm enough to be effective, gentle enough not to hurt.
"Does it hurt?"
"No," Kiana replied honestly, then blushed and added, "It actually feels kind of nice."
It wasn't that she enjoyed pain!
It was just that i's touch was so gentle—it didn't hurt at all.
"I'm glad."
Raiden i's skilled movents ca from experience—most of it learned through treating her own wounds. Since childhood, she had practiced swordsmanship and sparred often, so injuries were inevitable. But her father was rarely ho, and even when he was, he offered no comfort. She had long since learned to tend to herself.
Over ti, she had beco proficient at it.
Kiana hesitated, then decided it was ti to tell i everything. She spoke carefully. "Can I continue what I was saying before?"
"Go ahead. I'm listening."
"It's like this," Kiana began. "Yae Sakura told that long ago, the Yaoyorozu no Kami descended upon this world, bringing calamity to humanity. To save Izumo, they poured the nation's strength into forging twelve Edict Edges—blades capable of slaying gods and seizing their divine authorities."
"A thousand years ago, at an imnse cost, they slew Sovereign of Revelation and forged the first Edict Edge, 'Truth.'"
"Under the leadership of 'Truth's' blade master, and with the sacrifice of all the pioneers, Izumo temporarily banished the remaining eleven most powerful gods of Takamagahara."
"For the past thousand years, Izumo has continued fighting the Kami of Takamagahara, slaying them in the unseen corners of the world and maintaining the last fragnts of order."
"But now, a millennium later, those banished gods are returning."
"Yae Sakura said she took Narukami because the sword enshrined at the shrine—Narukami—is one of those twelve Edict Edges, the blade corresponding to Almighty Thunder's divine authority."
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