Hot Spring

"Hmm? Inside the corpse?"

Upon hearing this, Kikyo looked at the demon's corpse, which had been severed into seven or eight pieces. She observed it carefully and truly discovered something shimmering on the right side of its abdomen.

She walked straight over, took out a small knife, and extracted the glowing object.

It was none other than the Jewel of Four Souls.

"To think it could actually be seen..."

The Slayers nearby watched as Kikyo retrieved the Jewel of Four Souls with such precision, and they were all incredibly astonished, as they had been unable to see anything at all.

"Are you all alright? Has the Jewel of Four Souls been found?"

Just then, the Slayer Village chief hurried over.

"Yes, it has been recovered."

Kikyo held out the Jewel of Four Souls. The jewel, which had previously been tainted by demonic energy and grown somewhat dim, now seemed to have been purified; the darkness slowly dissipated, and it began to emit a pure pink glow once more.

"The Jewel of Four Souls... it has been purified!"

The Slayer Village chief's mouth hung slightly open, and he was clearly stunned, having never expected such a thing.

The chief knew that the Jewel of Four Souls absorbed the negative emotions of humans and demons, thereby gaining evil power. He knew this because ever since he had obtained the jewel, it had grown increasingly dim.

Yet now, in Kikyo's hands, the jewel had been completely purified.

"It seems the responsibility of guarding the Jewel of Four Souls must fall to you, Priestess Kikyo! I leave it to you to protect this jewel well and ensure it does not fall into the hands of demons."

The way the Jewel of Four Souls reacted in Kikyo's hands proved that she was the only one capable of guarding it.

"Yes, I will."

Kikyo nodded expressionlessly.

The hour of the demon, or roughly five o'clock in the afternoon...

The people of the East liked to call the time just before dusk the "hour of the demon."

They firmly believed this was a cursed time, when all evil spirits and ghosts would appear in the sky.

Legend had it that during this time, many ordinary people could see ghosts and the like.

In the Honkai manga, Yae Sakura and Kallen could both emerge from the Stigmata Space to wander about during the hour of the demon.

Yae Sakura watched the ghosts appearing nearby; for them, this was a rare time to enjoy the sun and the daylight.

Ghosts that feared the sun emerged one after another, as the sunlight during the hour of the demon would not harm them.

"I say, Kikyo-chan, why not rest in the village for the night before leaving? Is there really a need to be in such a rush?"

After taking possession of the Jewel of Four Souls, Yae Sakura had been prepared to get some good rest and take a hot bath or something similar.

Who would have thought that, before long, Kikyo would bid the Slayers farewell and leave.

They hadn't even eaten!

"There is no need. They have already sacrificed too much to guard the Jewel of Four Souls; we cannot trouble them any further. As long as the jewel remains in that village for even one day, demons will come knocking."

"But... alright!" Yae Sakura wanted to say something, but she gave up.

After walking for a while longer, Yae Sakura looked at the surroundings and paused. "Kikyo-chan, this isn't the path we came from, is it?"

Although Yae Sakura was unfamiliar with ancient roads, she still recognized the path she had just walked.

"No, it is not."

"Then where are we going?" Yae Sakura asked, puzzled.

"We are almost there."

Finally, they stopped at the side of a small hillside. Yae Sakura looked at the small pool of water steaming in front of her...

"Kikyo, this is... a hot spring? A natural hot spring!!" Yae Sakura hurried to the side of the spring and tested the temperature with her hand; it was just right!

"Yes, you have always wanted to soak in a hot spring, haven't you? I vaguely remembered there being a natural one nearby," Kikyo said to Yae Sakura while lost in thought.

"Kikyo-chan, thank you!"

Walking over to Kikyo's side, Yae Sakura gently hugged her. She had only mentioned wanting to soak in a natural hot spring once or twice, and she hadn't expected Kikyo to remember.

She was truly grateful!

As for Kikyo's hurried departure from the Slayer Village, Yae Sakura had already forgotten all about it.

Why there was a natural hot spring here, Yae Sakura wasn't entirely sure...

However, the East did have a massive active volcano, namely Mount Fuji, which erupted once every three hundred years.

Perhaps it was because of the active volcanoes that the East had so many natural hot springs.

"I will set up a barrier first, and then you can go take your bath. It is already quite late, and we will have to spend the night in the wild, so you can soak for as long as you like."

As she spoke, she pushed Yae Sakura away and began to set up the barrier—one that perfectly covered the area around the hot spring.

Watching Kikyo, Yae Sakura suddenly seemed to think of something...

"Big sister, there's actually a hot spring!"

Higokumaru, who had finally woken up again, looked at the hot spring in front of her and became excited at once.

She had likely exhausted herself earlier and fallen back asleep, but now she was finally awake.

"Higokumaru, what is wrong with you today? Why do you seem so sleepy all the time?" Yae Sakura looked at the Higokumaru on her body, puzzled.

"I don't know either, but I'm sure a soak in the hot spring will fix it!"

"..."

Once Kikyo had set up the barrier, since they had no change of clothes, it was impossible to bathe while dressed, and it wouldn't be comfortable either.

"So comfortable!"

Lying in the hot spring, she immediately felt a sense of comfort wash over her entire body, something she hadn't felt in a long time.

"Kikyo-chan, come in too!"

Looking at Kikyo on the bank, Yae Sakura's eyes lit up, and she quickly invited her.

"Yes." Kikyo did not refuse. She took off her clothes, placed them on the bank, set the Jewel of Four Souls on top of them, and walked slowly into the hot spring.

"Could you please not stare at me like that?"

Kikyo noticed that Yae Sakura had been staring at her the whole time. For some reason, she felt a slight hint of shyness, even though they were both girls.

"Eh? Is that not allowed?"

"It is not that it is not allowed..."

She suddenly realized that being a girl now wasn't without its perks!

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