Reimu Hakurei lay comfortably in the air.
Children her age were usually at the most mischievous stage of their lives, driven by boundless curiosity, but Reimu showed no sign of that tendency.
She floated above the pond with a blissful expression. The secluded surroundings kept the air laced with cold threads of moisture, which went quite well with the gentle afternoon sunlight.
An easygoing life like this, with nothing to do but drink tea every day, was exactly what Reimu dreamed of.
Most importantly, Yukari Yakumo, who usually appeared at inexplicable moments to assign her tasks, had been nowhere to be seen for several days.
"Still, it's a little unusual for Yukari to disappear for days without even leaving me any training assignments..."
Reimu Hakurei muttered in her childish voice.
Her exceptional talent and unusual upbringing had made Reimu precocious.
Although her understanding of the ways of the world was still limited, she already possessed the insight to see the essence of complicated matters and distinguish good from evil.
"Did something happen that she had to deal with personally?"
Reimu glanced at the sky and dismissed the thought.
She was born with remarkably keen intuition. She could pick out the best item in a shop without even having to choose, and whenever she encountered something she could not understand, she could usually guess the truth with considerable accuracy, even without any evidence.
Since she had sensed nothing unusual, there was evidently no crisis unfolding at present.
"Then again, maybe she went to see someone. The Previous Shrine Maiden, or those strange youkai..."
Reimu pondered in frustration before finally shrugging.
"Oh, well, I don't need to worry about that. If anything serious happens, I'll let that gap youkai who does nothing but make trouble for people handle it. Looking on the