Reunion

The lingering chime of the wind bell echoed through the warm flower shop for a long time.

Shiyue Shuo stood rooted to the spot, his eyes—usually slightly weary from overthinking—wide open now, like a child caught red-handed by a parent after doing something wrong.

Mai stood across from him, less than two meters away. The tears at the corners of her eyes had yet to dry, and her nose was red, but her gaze was more alive than Shiyue Shuo had ever remembered.

"How much longer are you going to stand there like an idiot?"

Mai sniffled. Her voice was thick with a nasal tone, yet she still habitually tried to sound indifferent.

"Or are your legs not working properly anymore?"

Shiyue Shuo came back to his senses and instinctively raised a hand to scratch his head, only for it to freeze midway.

"Um... Mai, I know this is hard to explain, but my situation is a little unusual." Shiyue Shuo pointed at himself. "Theoretically, you shouldn't be able to see me or hear me speak, let alone like just now..."

"Like just now what?" Mai raised an eyebrow.

"Like... staring straight at me." Shiyue Shuo smiled bitterly. "I already made a Binding Vow with the world."

Mai said nothing. She simply strode forward and held out her hand.

The next second.

Mai's fingers accurately pinched his cheek.

The sensation was completely real.

It hurt a little.

"Does it hurt?" Mai asked.

"It hurts..." Shiyue Shuo bared his teeth. "And it feels like you've gotten stronger, Mai."

"Then it isn't an illusion." Mai released him. Looking at the reddening mark on Shiyue Shuo's cheek, the corner of her lips finally curved upward. "Looks like even a ghost can be touched by me."

"This isn't scientific, and it isn't sorcery either." Shiyue Shuo rubbed his cheek, while a storm churned within his heart.

Over the past few months, he had wandered all across Japan. Whether ordinary people, sorcerers, or even sharp-sensed animals, all had turned a blind eye to him. To this world, his body simply did not exist.

But why could Mai touch him?

"Probably because..." Mai seemed to see his confusion. She lowered her head and looked at her palm. "This life of mine was given to me by you, wasn't it?"

Shiyue Shuo froze for a moment.

That was true. In the Zenin Clan's Forbidden Vault, he had used the authority of the Twelve Talismans to reshape Mai's body and soul. In a sense, the power of rules belonging to "Shiyue Shuo" now flowed through her.

She had become his only anchor in this world.

"Stop thinking about all that complicated nonsense." Mai turned and walked to the shop entrance, flipping the "Open" sign to the side that read "Closed," then neatly locking the door.

"Since you're here, don't think you can slip away so easily."

Mai turned back and lifted her chin at Shiyue Shuo.

"Come upstairs. I'm hungry."

The second floor of Skyward Flower Shop was Mai's living space.

The decor was simple but cozy. There were natural wood floors, a cream-colored sofa, and several pots of succulents on the windowsill. A faint lavender fragrance drifted through the air, mixing with the scent of the flower shop downstairs and unconsciously easing one's tense nerves.

Shiyue Shuo stood somewhat stiffly in the middle of the living room.

For someone who had spent more than half a year struggling through ruins and slaughter, this scene brimming with the warmth of everyday life felt strangely unreal, as though it belonged to another lifetime.

"Sit wherever."

Mai took off her apron, casually hung it over the back of a chair, then walked into the open kitchen and opened the refrigerator.

"There are only ingredients for sukiyaki. Can you eat it? I mean... do you need to eat?"

"Not theoretically." Shiyue Shuo walked over to the sofa and cautiously sat down. The cushion sank beneath him without being forcibly corrected by the world. The feeling of being supported made him sigh in relief. "But I still want to try it. It's been a long time since I had anything hot."

Although he had not needed food or drink these past few months, he still occasionally picked up street food whenever he passed by, only taking a taste each time.

"Then wait."

Mai rolled up her sleeves and began washing vegetables and slicing meat.

Shiyue Shuo sat on the sofa, watching Mai's busy figure in the kitchen.

The sound of running water, the steady chop of a knife against the cutting board, and the hum of the induction cooker starting up. Those insignificant everyday noises sounded like the most beautiful music in the world to Shiyue Shuo at that moment.

His eyes suddenly felt hot.

"Mai."

"What?" Mai continued slicing scallions without looking back.

"Need any help?"

"Can you help?"

"Uh... I can cook instant noodles."

"Then sit still and don't get in my way." There was a trace of disdain in Mai's voice, but it sounded especially pleasant. "If you're really that bored, clear the table for me."

"Yes, ma'am."

Shiyue Shuo rose to his feet and walked over to the dining table. Several books on floral design lay on it, along with a few unwashed coffee cups.

He reached out and carefully picked up a cup.

"Can you... see me picking up the cup?" Shiyue Shuo asked cautiously.

"What are you talking about? Of course I can. Hurry up and clean up. The food will be ready soon."

The world did not forcibly correct the interference he caused in Mai's eyes. In other words, as long as he was in this house—or within Mai's line of sight—his "sense of existence" seemed to have been granted some kind of temporary permission.

"So the interference I cause in the world isn't forcibly corrected in Mai's eyes." Shiyue Shuo mused. "Does that make me Schrödinger's Ghost?"

Before long, the steaming sukiyaki was brought to the table.

Beef, tofu, konjac noodles, scallions, and carrots cut into flower shapes bubbled in the soy sauce-colored broth. White steam rose up, instantly fogging the window glass.

"Thanks for the meal."

The two sat facing each other with their hands pressed together.

Shiyue Shuo picked up a slice of beef, dipped it in raw egg, and put it into his mouth.

At that instant, the scorching heat and rich aroma of meat burst across his tongue.

"Delicious..."

Shiyue Shuo spoke unclearly, his voice unexpectedly choked with emotion.

This was not merely a taste. This was the feeling of being alive.

Mai watched him wolf down the food, and her gaze softened. She did not pick up her chopsticks, merely propping her cheek up with one hand as she quietly watched him eat.

"Eat slowly. No one's going to take it from you."

Mai pulled a tissue from beside her and handed it over. "How exactly did you spend these past few months?"

Shiyue Shuo swallowed the food in his mouth, and his movements slowed.

"More or less like this." He shrugged, trying to sound casual. "Wandered around, took in the sights, cleaned up some filthy things that annoyed me along the way. No one could see me, but it was pretty free."

"Free?" Mai snorted. "Sounds lonely to me."

"More or less." Shiyue Shuo smiled. "But it wasn't so bad."

"When Maki Zenin called, I asked about you. None of them knew anything. They said they didn't know anyone named Shiyue Shuo." Mai lowered her eyes, her long lashes casting shadows across her face. "I thought... you had disappeared completely."

"I only made a small Binding Vow with the world." Shiyue Shuo paused, his tone turning gentle. "Besides, you still remembered me."

Mai lifted her head and looked into Shiyue Shuo's clear eyes.

"Thank you, Shiyue."

"I should be thanking you too, Mai." Shiyue Shuo pointed at the sukiyaki on the table. "If it weren't for this meal, I might have forgotten that I'm human too."

Mai let out a snort of laughter.

"You never looked human to begin with. You looked even less human before, and now you look even worse."

The mood finally lightened. The two ate the hot pot while chatting about the little things that had happened over the past few months.

Mai told him amusing stories about opening her shop in Hokkaido, about customers who knew nothing about flowers, and about how the bakery next door always sent over unsold croissants. Shiyue Shuo told her about what he had seen as a ghost—about the comedians he had watched in Osaka, and the sunrise he had seen by the sea.

At some point, snow began falling outside the window.

Fine snowflakes settled on the window frame, while warm yellow light filled the room.

At that moment, there were no cursed spirits, no Sukuna, and none of those crushing destinies. There were only two young people enjoying this hard-won peace.

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