Junka Hoshino,

On the 361st day after she officially joined the job, she received a notice from her boss, Morikawa, that she was sent to Pingan City.

"It will be the first anniversary of the inauguration of the main hall in a few days.

Hirano Fujishiro helped her pack her luggage.

"Originally, everyone had discussed how to spend the first anniversary with the main hall," he said.

"Does the main hall have to leave tomorrow?"

"... There's no way."

Junka Hoshino closed her folding fan with a "Pa" sound.

From her expression and actions, she was also in a bad mood.

"The boss rejected my application." She took a deep breath.

She reluctantly explained for the terrible superior who desperately squeezed employees, "A week ago, he found that the timeline of that time and space had obvious signs of disorder.

After a few days of monitoring,

The Government of the Hour basically confirmed that there were a few Retrograde march operations there.

After that, several inquisitors were sent back in defeat... Only then did he decide to let me go and investigate the situation. "

But,

This was only the superficial reason.

"I know!" Something small jumped on her shoulder,

Whispering in her ear, "Are there some people who want the master to bring back the little turtle maru during the Battle of Tanchipu?

Morikawa didn't agree, so he casually found a reason to transfer you to the year of Yongyan. "

Junka grabbed his hat as if nothing had happened,

She pulled him down and stuffed him into the quilt.

Hirano pretended not to see anything.

"If it's just to investigate the situation, it shouldn't take too much time." He tried to comfort her.

"I hope so." Junka looked at the clock in the room: the hour hand moved again,

It was time for the children to go to bed.

So..,

She said to Hirano Fujishiro, "You should go back quickly,

The first stage will be worried. "

Hirano smiled,

He didn't say anything, "Brother Ichii won't worry about me even for such a small matter,

And the short knife will never be afraid of the night,

Instead, he carefully folded the exquisitely patterned cloth,

And placed it on the edge of the tatami,

Then he politely said goodbye, "Then I'll go back. Good night, Main Hall."

"Well,

Good night. "

Hirano walked out of the room, closed the door considerately, and turned to leave.

After he left, Junka sighed softly. She lifted the blanket and looked at the angry little Fu Mourning God sitting cross-legged on her pillow.

The meaning of "Xiao" was different from the meaning of "Xiao" in Komusubi's name. It was not a humble title, but a simple literal meaning.

"Your body has shrunk to the size of a thumb, and your IQ has shrunk to that of a cub?"

Junka reached out and poked his silver head. "Who told you to enter my room when I was practicing magic? You got caught in the crossfire."

"Ouch, ouch, ouch — it hurts so much."

Fu Mourning God, who was about the same size as Thumbelina, hugged her index finger and said unhappily, "I told you I was going to give you a scare this afternoon, but you're still hiding in your room when it's time!"

"In the end, you did scare me."

Junka raised her hand and waved it in the air. She was satisfied to see that Fu Mourning God's eyes had turned into the shape of mosquito coils. She stopped and said, "I don't know how to solve this situation. Since you don't want to go to Sanchū, I'll take you to Pingan City. You should be able to solve this problem if you find a good Onmyoji."

"… 988, Seimei Gong should still be alive."

"Tsuru Maru actually thought of Seimei Gong first."

She held him in the palm of her hand and looked into his golden eyes. "But Haruaki Abe is not that easy to meet. What if you never change back?"

Amaterasu Ōkami above, she really only wanted to tease this Thumbelina a little. She wanted to see if this Fu Mourning God, who had changed his way of thinking and body, would have any cute reactions that would make the universe explode …

She didn't expect to receive such, such … such a sincere reply. It was completely unlike his usual style.

The unfortunate Fu Mourning God who had shrunk to the size of a thumb, Tsurumaru Kuninaga, was unexpectedly serious in the face of her joking words. He took a few steps forward and used his small hand to touch the tip of Junka Hoshino's nose.

"I will still accompany master forever." He said solemnly.

…

This vow seemed to have transcended time, life and death, and finally returned to its original master's side on this quiet and ordinary night.

Seeing such a cute Fu Mourning God in front of her saying such cool words, Junka wanted to laugh.

'You scared me to death, you scared me to death!

Tsuru Maru, if you were the original you, I would blush for three minutes, hahahahaha. 'She really wanted to say that.

She did smile, but tears came out of her eyes as she smiled.

Tears fell on her arm drop by drop, like flowers blooming on a rainy day.

Tsuru Maru didn't know what to do, as if the wittiness he usually used to scare others was sealed together with his body at this moment.

He stood there, looking at Junka smiling and crying, his face was full of confusion.

If he was still the original height and body shape, he would definitely reach out and hug her, just like the first time he met her in the form of Fu Mourning God when she had a breakdown. He held her in his arms and felt the hot tears sliding down from his collarbone … to his heart.

But now he was a thumb-sized person, he could only … like a comedian, he tried to wipe her tears with his paper-sized sleeve like a clown.

Junka sniffled and smiled through her tears.

"I don't know why I'm crying."

She wiped her tears and took out a handkerchief to wipe Tsuru Maru's hands, "Just now, I felt so sad and happy at the same time … Tsuru Maru, is it related to the past that I have forgotten?"

Tsuru Maru was a little absent-minded.

"Well, let's not talk about this. Let's sleep."

Junka pursed her lips and changed the topic, "I made a mini bed for you with the candlestick … Well, just put it on the ground. It won't be good if I step on it. You can sleep next to my pillow."

She helped Tsuru Maru solve the problem of sleeping and then turned off the light.

"Good night, Tsuru Maru."

"… Okay." Tsuru Maru came back to his senses, "Good night, master."

There was only darkness in the room.

Chun Xia thought that she would think of a lot of messy things, but in the end, she fell asleep very quickly.

Junka Hoshino fell into a deep sleep.

The tip of her nose smelled the faint scent of incense, and an unfamiliar voice slowly recited in her ear.

The sound of the bell in the garden is the sound of impermanence; The color of the twin sal-trees is the omen of decline … The proud cannot last long, just like a dream … The ferocious are destroyed … just like dust before the wind …

He calmly recited it, paused for a moment, and sighed:

… The proud cannot last long, just like a dream; the ferocious are destroyed, just like dust before the wind … No matter how the world changes, the principles of this world will never change.

When he said this, he did not continue.

(Heika Monogatari?)

Junka woke up for a moment, but under the influence of the incense, her consciousness became hazy again.

"Knock, knock, knock."

There was a well-ordered knock on the door. From this sound, it was obvious that the person who knocked on the door was a very strict and meticulous person.

Tsurumaru Kuninaga woke up with a start.

He first looked at the person next to him. Good, he was still sleeping soundly. Then he noticed that the person in front of him had shrunk from a giant to a normal size.

'That scared me. Master couldn't have shrunk together with me, right?' This was Tsuru Maru's first thought.

He nimbly got out of bed and found that the bed that Candlestick Cutter had specially made for him had disappeared, and the furniture around him had also returned to normal size in his eyes. Only then did he feel relieved.

"Knock, knock, knock."

There was a second knock on the door, and then the voice of today's attendant came from outside the door: "Master, are you awake?

Sanri Yue Temple and Kohimaru Hall are already waiting for you in the study. "

'… No way, Sanchū and Komusubi woke up so early.'

Tsuru Maru reflexively looked at the clock in the room. It was half past eight, about the time he usually woke up.

'I can't let Hasegawa know that he's sleeping in master's room …'

He helplessly knelt down, pushed her shoulder, and whispered: "Master, wake up, Hasegawa is shouting outside."

Junka was still sleeping quietly, and her lips were even slightly raised.

Tsuru Maru's heart was filled with a strong sense of uneasiness.

"Master?"

He whispered: "You're not deliberately scaring me, are you?" and put his hand under her nose: The girl's breathing was steady, as if she was just in a very sweet dream, and wouldn't wake up for a while.

But Tsurumaru Kuninaga knew that wasn't the case.

He quickly retracted his hand, strode to the door, and suddenly opened it. Hasegawa was stunned, and was about to erupt in anger when he said: "Hasegawa, I'll immediately go find Morikawa with Sanchū and Komusubi. You inform all the swords that master's soul has been taken away."

"What???!"

Hasegawa was thrown into chaos.

"— — Master's soul has been taken away." Tsuru Maru repeated with a cold expression: "It's just a 'spirit'."

…

…

"Spirit" was invisible, and it couldn't be touched, but sometimes it could be felt.

This feeling varied from person to person. Some people only had a vague premonition, and some people could "completely perceive" it.

The fourteen-year-old Ma Ye Tong was such a case.

He had just returned from Shigeru Yu's place, and stopped for a moment in the outer corridor, he saw a woman in white clothes with waist-length hair standing by the pond, and her eyes were confused.

He thought that she was a guest invited by Shigeru Yu.

Although he found it strange that Shigeru Yu would invite a miko, he didn't have the intention to inquire, and planned to quietly leave.

Suddenly, Miko-sama seemed to have noticed him and joyfully called out: "Sir — —"

There was no one around, so she would only call for him.

Ma Ye Tong was forced to stop, and he suppressed the unhappiness in his heart, turned around and said: "Yes, may I ask you …"

As soon as he said that, he realized that he was being rude.

"I shouldn't be like this, Shigeru Yu -sama will say it."

He was about to say something to remedy the situation, but suddenly he saw the miko, who completely ignored etiquette, hurriedly trotted in front of him and asked seriously: "Excuse me, do you know where Haruaki Abe -sama is now?"

"…" Of course he knew.

This Great Yin-Yang Master, who was deeply trusted by the Emperor and had a reputation in the capital, went to Gaoye a few days ago and hadn't returned yet.

Every day, the Emperor would say that 'Qing Ming isn't here, and the northeast corner isn't very stable recently.' This scared the other Yin-Yang Masters of the Yin-Yang Lodge and made them apologize repeatedly.

This was what Shigeru Yu's Tsuru Maru told him today.

"That lord went to Gaoye to visit a senior monk," Ma Ye Tong said.

He couldn't hear the miko's inner thoughts … If it was two years ago, he might have felt that it was strange and panicked, but with so many previous examples, he was almost numb to the loss of his [Astral Vision].

The miko sighed and said: "That's troublesome."

He couldn't help but ask: "Is there something you need?"

His master, Shigeru Yu, was a Yin-Yang Master who directly served the Emperor. In terms of ability, although he couldn't compare to Haruaki Abe, he was still very outstanding.

If she was willing to tell him about her difficulties, perhaps he could help her solve them.

"Oh my, what are you saying …" The miko exclaimed in surprise.

She covered her face with her wide sleeves and asked carefully: "Could it be that you still haven't discovered that I'm a spiritual body?"

Author Has Something to Say: 8.16

After reading the manga, Seiji changed Ye Wang's age a bit, and also changed the awkward title of "adoptive father".

Note: [Only the bell of the Garden Abode plays the sound of impermanence; the flowers of the twin sal-trees represent the omen of decline for those who prosper.

The proud are difficult to endure, just like a dream of the moon; the fierce are destroyed, just like the dust before the wind.]

This was the opening sentence of Ping Jia Monogatari.

Seiji should be able to guess who said this in this chapter, right?

166.