Chapter 22 - Sealed Memories 3
I managed to barely stand up whilst supporting my knee, and after slapping my knee a few times to ensure the feeling of soreness had disappeared from kneeling the entire night, I stretched my arms lazily as i turned to notice Asaka still crookedly sitting on the ground with teary eyes staring towards her knee.
"Asaka no big baka, who asked you to act cool, accompanying me for the entire night."
"Hiroto............" Wronged, Asaka had her eyes reddening alarmingly fast; she bit her lips in order not to let her tears drip out.
"Come here, big baka, climb onto me, I"ll carry you back."
"Really! Hiroto!!!"
"What are you still dazing around for, hurry up unless you want me to leave you here alone and going back myself."
I struggled to carry Asaka as i walked on the path along the back hills , while panting i still noticed that there"s still a long stretch of road beneath the hills.
"Hiroto, why don"t I climb down and walk myself."
"No!! How can I let an injured girl walk by herself!!"
I tried to act cool and persevered on, as I walked slowly with unsteady steps along the pathway.
"Hiroto is sooo goood eheheheh." Asaka rested her head on my back and said.
"Laughing like that makes you look like an
idiot, sheesh."
"Did not!!!"
Along the way throughout I kept on talking with Asaka, and my attention had completely been distracted; by the time I"ve reached home and laid onto bed my clothing had completely been drenched with sweat, while Asaka sat beside me, using a napkin to tenderly wipe the sweat off my face.
Suddenly Kazai rushed into my room, and shouted to me lying on the bed: "WAKA-SAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
(TL: Kazai is j.a.panese for "Fire")
I always felt rather annoyed towards Kazai"s fiery temperament, and said: "Kazai, can you lower your volume every time you called for me."
"I"m sorry waka-sama, but this is really an urgent matter, I"ll need to bring ojou-sama away, today is the day of choosing the shrine maiden, and only Asaka is not present right now."
(TL: nah, i won"t be using miko (j.a.panese word for shrine maiden))
Asaka slapped her head like she had just remembered something and said: "Ah, today is the day of choosing the shrine maiden, it"s very important.
Feeling a little tired, I said: "Then Asaka you"ll just go ahead, I"m feeling a little tired, after I"ve woken up from a short nap I"ll go look for you."
"Mm, mm. Then Hiroto you must quickly come find me then~"
"All right, all right." Waving my hand lazily towards Asaka to imply for her to go, I then shut my eyes wanting to have a good sleep.
And I heard Kazai leaving from the room with a "PANG PANG PUNG PUNG"
(TL: those are noisy footsteps sounds made from Kazai)
sounds, which made me feel quite annoyed, I then plugged my ears up with my fingers and afterwards accidentally went into deep sleep.
When I"ve woken up again, it"s already afternoon, and it was Mokuzai"s knocking that had woken me up.
"Waka-sama you had slept quite enough already, Master had given me orders that I must supervise you eating these dishes." Mokuzai placed some rice and vegetables on the table before standing aside while respectfully watching me.
"Whaat, even to go so far as to watch me eat, oh yeah... How"s the shrine-maiden process going along for Asaka." Scratching my head, I jumped down from my bed and walked towards the table, grabbing a pair of chopsticks and the bowl of rice as I subconsciously asked Mokuzai.
"Ojou-sama is doing well so far, along with Second-Master"s daughter she entered into the finales of the test, except......."
"Second oji-san"s daughter huh? The one who was being said of being a demon? And what do you mean by except, can"t you say your sentence finish in a single breath?"
I ate my food as i spoke to Mokuzai.
"Except that the final test is una.s.suringly difficult......"
Quickly finishing my meal I had became rather lazy, I gave a burp and looked at Mokuzai while asking: "Oh~ difficult in where?"
Mokuzai gave a gloomy expression as he said: "It"s to stay in the small hut, in the forest near the back of the hills for three days without eating or drinking."
"Eehh, without eating or drinking for three days, that"s rubbish, what if Asaka starves because of this stupid test, who exactly set this stupid test in the first place?"
"It was the Takane"s first generation of Masters that designed it, and it already had a few hundred years of history...... saying that the purpose is to test the shrine maiden"s endurance.
I became rather speechless, what else could i further say about our ancestors test that they had set, when suddenly a bright idea flashed across me: "Mokuzai, beside that small hut is there anyone guarding it."
"Yes, there"s a patrol doing surveillance every two hours, why does waka-sama want to ask this for?" Mokuzai asked with an expression of confusion on his face.
I sn.i.g.g.e.red as I said: "Of course it"s to give Asaka some food to eat, Mokuzai you"ll definitely help me on this one right."
Mokuzai upon hearing this became rather shocked and he frantically shook his hands: "Waka-sama this...... this can"t be done........ if Master knows then the consequences will be severe."
"What"s wrong with this, if you don"t say it, and I don"t say it, who else would know about this? If we don"t give Asaka something to eat, she"ll definitely starve to death..... please Moookuzai nii-san, normally you"d always loved me and Asaka nee-chan, please please help us just this once." I hastily blinked my eyes and pleaded with Mokuzai with a tone of moeness.
(TL: "cute" doesn"t totally fit in at all, i subbed in moe to show that Hiroto is trying to cuddle up to someone. "Act cute" could be a form of scolding in english, so, naah.
- ch 22 end -