Watashi no Shiawase na Kekkon - Volume 1 - Chapter 30

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Chapter 30 - Walking towards the future

It was all over when Miyo regained consciousness.

According to the doctor's examination, most of the injuries she sustained seemed to be bruises, but some of them were quite severe and she was ordered to rest in her room at the Kudou residence for several days.

During that time, she couldn't do her chores and Kiyoka personally took care of her. Somehow, Miyo couldn't calm herself down and was filled with a mix of happiness and anxiety.

Yurie was so glad that Miyo was safe that she kept crying the whole time, and they couldn't help but worry if she would die from dehydration. However, despite her free-flowing tears, Yurie still took great care of Kiyoka, who was taking care of Miyo, so that was quite impressive.

After that, Miyo also heard bits and pieces of information about what happened to her family home.

Apparently, the flames formed from the use of ability did not weaken and lose momentum and had burned down most of the Saimori mansion. As it was a wooden house, it was a disaster that happened in a blink of an eye and the countless plants in the courtyards did not escape unscathed either.

After the fire had been put out, although parts of it remained, the building was almost completely destroyed by fire. Thankfully, in spite of the misfortune, no one was killed in the fire.

After losing their mansion, the Saimoris decided to dismiss most of their servants and move to a rural villa in the countryside. Apparently, in that place, they will be living a life much poorer than they've ever been. Furthermore, for the Saimori family who naturally hadn't been taking on any work as ability users recently, this would be a window for them to retire from the industry. It was in actuality, the downfall of the Saimori family.

Kaya was sent to serve a family famous for being extremely strict. While she had Paranormal Vision, as she didn't have any abilities, there was no danger in leaving her in the outside world. Since she was still young, she might as well go out to experience the world a little.

For the Tatsuishi family, on the other hand, as the details of what the family head, Tatsuishi Minoru, had done was not made public, he was not punished under the eye of the law. However, as a form of punishment to take responsibility for his actions, the seat of the family head was handed over to his eldest son, Tatsuishi Kazushi. After settling into his position as the new head of the family, Tatsuishi Kazushi apologised profusely to both the Kudou and Saimori family. He also accepted the restrictions on the movements of his family under the supervision of the Kudou family, effectively making the Tatsuishis subordinate to the Kudous.

Though of course, there was no way Kiyoka would just sit back and do nothing to the people who hurt Miyo and caused her unnecessary suffering. The fact that each of these punishments had been decided by Kiyoka through harsh negotiations, as if they were felons, was deliberately kept from Miyo.

It's doubtful if they would be able to live a decent life now that they've completely lost their positions, homes, and lavish lifestyles. Ah, but that's not a problem for them to be concerned about.

And so the days passed in the blink of an eye.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, I'm alright. My injuries aren't that serious..."

Miyo got out of the car with the help of Kiyoka.

The two of them were now at the Saimori residence which had been burned to the ground.

As the clean-up will start tomorrow, Miyo was really insistent on asking Kiyoka to let her visit the Saimori residence. At first, Kiyoka had no intention of ever letting Miyo come here again, but in the end, albeit a little unhappily, he reluctantly nodded his head.

There was something that Miyo absolutely had to confirm here.

"Watch your step."

"Yes."

The house she was born and raised in had been burnt beyond recognition.

There were barely any pillars and foundations left here and there, but the bulk of the house had turned into a blackened lump of charcoal, so much so that she couldn’t even tell the original layout of the house.

It was to the point where even those who have lived there all their lives wouldn't be able to where the rooms were. Though she did feel a little melancholy, it was nothing more than that and she was able to move on without much sentimentality.

Then, they set out for their destination with Miyo's rather unreliable memories.

Kiyoka followed silently next to Miyo, occasionally lending a hand, paying attention to make sure she didn't fall.

Where they headed for was the largest of the several courtyards in the Saimori residence.

There used to be a single cherry tree planted there—it was her mother's tree.

The tree has long withered and died, but the stump was still there.

She used to be able to see it as the courtyard was originally a part of her mother's room, as well as the room she used when she was a child. As no one had gone near it for years now except to clean it up, the courtyard was largely left untouched.

Naturally, the stump itself was already lifeless. It just stood there, dry and grey.

Miyo had a dream when she fell asleep.

Her mother, who was dressed in a sakura-coloured kimono, beckoned to her from under the tree, just as before. Miyo couldn't stop thinking of that scene and so, she came to see it one last time.

The stump of the cherry tree was still there, blackened and charred, but still intact.

Miyo crouched down beside it and Kiyoka also sat down next to her.

"This is?"

"Yes... This is the Sakura tree my mother planted when she married into the family."

Miyo had not approached this garden for some time. Even though the tree had already been cut down by the time she was at the age where she could remember, its tragic appearance overlapped with the many traces of her mother she had lost.

And it made her all the more lonely.

She slowly reached out to touch it with her fingertips.

These stubborn roots had remained in the garden for so long, yet it was so fragile and crumbled easily like a sandcastle.

Just then—

"...Urk"

For a moment, Miyo's head was assaulted with a sharp, painful shock before it disappeared.

She didn't even have time to say a single word—it happened so quickly, in less than a blink of an eye, that even Miyo thought it might have been just her mind playing tricks on her.

"What's wrong?"

"Ah, no..."

She hurriedly retracted her fingertips in surprise, clenching her hand in a slight daze.

It's probably just that her body still wasn't in the best shape—was the explanation Miyo gave herself as she stood up.

"Are you alright now?"

"Yes."

Right now, Miyo was the only proof of her mother's existence.

(But it's okay)

Miyo's mother must've called her back to this place one last time to help her move forward.

That's right, she's going to move forward from now on. She's not going to throw her past away, but she's going to move on from here.

There was no need for her to cling to what could've been in the past as Miyo had now found her way to achieve new happiness.

When they exited what was once a gate to get to the streets outside, she saw a familiar face waiting for her.

"...Kouji-san."

When his name was called, Kouji smiled a little guiltily, his brows turning into a "/\" character.

"Miyo, it's been a long time..."

"Mhm, it has."

Other than the chaos that ensued at the Saimori residence the other day, the last time Miyo saw him was when she happened to run into Kaya in town, and that was a month ago.

Moreover, they didn't exchange words with each other at that time, it felt even longer.

"Are you recovering well?"

"Yes, thank you."

"That's great... Can I talk to you for a minute? I won't be staying in town for much longer... and I think this is my last chance to do so."

Miyo had heard that it was thanks to Kouji that she was rescued relatively quickly, so his invitation did come at the right time as she wanted to express her gratitude towards him. However, if Kiyoka was against it, she wouldn't force it either.

With that in mind, she glanced up at her fiance next to her, who sighed deeply before nodding.

Seems like he gave his permission.

"Alright."

"Thank you. Then... shall we move to the side for a bit."

The two of them sat side by side on the low stone steps in the shade of a nearby tree.

When they were younger, they used to rest here like this in between games. It was times like this with Kouji that allowed Miyo to get by even after losing her mother and losing her place at home.

She couldn't thank him enough for being on her side all these years.

"...Kouji-san, thank you for coming to help me the other day."

"I'd say you're welcome, but I didn't do anything—I couldn't do anything. Unfortunately, all I could do was to go get Kudou-san."

Kouji looked rather depressed with his shoulders slumped

"No, but still, Danna-sama told me that it was thanks to you that he was able to rescue me so quickly/"

"...Is that so? Then, I suppose that's good."

Miyo tried to say something more encouraging but stopped herself.

What he needed from Miyo was not something like encouragement. Therefore, it was only right for Miyo to just play the role of a listener.

"I was really frustrated; I can't do anything at all. I'm an ability user but I can't use my ability at all. I just left it aside, thinking it didn't matter as long as I had the blood in me. Even though I talked big about helping you, I just gave up at the end of the day."

Even so, just his presence, the Kouji who would get angry in her stead, was certainly a source of emotional support to her—that was how Miyo sincerely felt from the bottom of her heart.

If she didn't have Kouji, the sole person who was on her side, she probably wouldn't be here anymore.

"That's why... You might have already heard from Kudou-san, but I've decided to start over and train myself."

Kouji's expression of deep remorse turned vivid and bright in the next moment.

It seemed that Kouji would be going to the old capital to train as an ability user. There still remained many powerful families of ability users and things relating to abilities in the old capital, so apparently it was more suitable for training than the imperial capital.

However, even though he would be training, his engagement to Kaya would not be called off, and he would still become the next head of the Saimori family. Depending on his future growth, there was a chance the Saimori family could be reinstated—was what Kiyoka said.

Of course, for the Saimori family which was forced to move to the countryside due to a scandal, bringing it back to its former status when they haven't been handling tasks that dealt with the supernatural, wasn't going to be an easy feat. It would be up to Kouji himself to decide what the future would be like for them.

It was not something Miyo could help with, but she would give him her best wishes from afar.

"I will do my best. In your case... I'm sure Kudou-san will protect you well. I want to get stronger, to gain the strength to protect that which I wish to safeguard."

"Yes."

Just as Miyo had decided to move on, Kouji too, begins to move forward with hope.

She can't lose to him. There were many things that Miyo needed to do to make herself worthy of becoming a future wife of the head of the Kudou family.

She secretly resolved in her heart.

"Also..."

"?"

Kouji seemed hesitant to speak as he scratched his cheek.

"Do you remember... what I was about to say that day?"

That day—he's probably referring to the day Miyo was ordered to marry Kiyoka, wasn't it? Yes, she remembered that day really well.

"I... towards you—-"

At that time, Miyo didn't have the leisure to worry about or listen to what Kouji was going to say. After all, she was so full of anxiety and despair for her future back then.

Though if it's now, Miyo was sure that she would be to calmly listen to whatever it was.

So Miyo decided to give him the answer he wanted this time.

"No, what was it...? I'm sorry I don't remember."

"You don't remember?"

"Yes... Erhm, was it something important?"

"I see... No, it's fine, I was going to tell you to forget about it. It's not important at all. I see, I see."

Kouji nodded vigorously, his expression refreshed as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

Miyo was glad for him if he had gotten some form of resolution in himself.

"Let's go back soon. I'm afraid Kudou-san might get angry if I talk to you for too long."

"Alright."

By the time they returned to the entrance of the Saimori residence, both of them had bright expressions on their faces.

Kiyoka gently placed his hand on the head of Miyo, who ran up a few steps towards him while saying "Tadaima".