In the small tearoom in the middle of Suzuna-an, Alice, Suzu Honju, and Aqui Hinata quietly listen to Ogura's words. The girl who accidentally joined the tea party, with her clear voice and easy conversation, a small pair of headphones covering her sideburns, was retelling the short story according to her own understanding.

The girl's eyes were closed, which allowed her to concentrate on the wording.

The bound novels were placed together on the table, and the girl sat with her eyes folded with a dignified face, talking eloquently.

The novel is divided into two parts, upper and lower, and has no title.

The upper part is very short, about a quarter of the page, and sounds like the story of the white crane repaying the favor with the legendary fable.

"Deep in the mountains on a deserted snowy night, there is a single family living alone. ”

"A young couple living in seclusion in the mountains and forests, snuggled by the fire and reminisced about the past. ”

"One night on the same snowy day, a young girl dressed in gorgeous clothes knocked on the door of a farmhouse deep in the mountains. ”

The young farmer takes in a homeless girl, and the two fall in love. ”

"Spring ploughing and autumn harvesting, chopping wood and weaving, living a poor but comfortable life. ”

"Unfortunately, the good times were short-lived. The young farmer was ill in the spring because of a hidden illness in his childhood. ”

"The poor farmer had no savings, so he had to rely on his wife's day-to-day weaving for money. ”

"The farmer's wife, who hid the identity of the white crane monster, consumed her own strength to make her husband breathe. ”

"But in the end, it didn't make it better. ”

The young wife snuggled up in the arms of her weak husband and cried, and the husband comforted her. ”

"I said that、I knew she was a youkai for a long time.,Before dying, I confessed to her wife again.。 ”

......

......

"I'm sorry, I may have skipped something...... Because of the more emotional narrative、I personally find it difficult to understand。 ”

"But let me know a little bit about it. ”

"Compared to the first part of the fable, the beginning of the second part gives a sense of realism - it seems to be the story that is happening all around us. ”

"Soichiro, who has been given the meaning of "destroying youkai and protecting humans" since he was born, is running out because of the illness left by the battle with youkai. ”

At a young age, he had to accept that death was imminent, so Soichiro chose to give up his identity as a 'demon slayer', bid farewell to his family and friends, and lived alone in the mountains, intending to meet the rest of his life as a farmer who chops wood and farms. ”

There was a knock on the door of the snowy night in the mountains, and the first time he pushed open the hut, the farmer, who had been a demon exterminator, saw the demonic aura on the girl in front of him—it was the monster of the white crane. ”

"Did she kill her relatives before? Or did she kill her lover? In any case, retribution has arrived. This is truly a surprise that will be a great end to my life. ”

"The demon slayer, whose hands were stained with the blood of youkai, was killed by revenge at the end of his life, as if the leaves had fallen in autumn, was a natural sight - the farmer entertained the lost girl with great anticipation. ”

But the truth disappointed him, and the girl never did anything to him, but continued to tremble and try to maintain an immature human posture, and thus constantly consumed her strength, and looked at him with only tenderness and shyness. ”

"The farmer was a very clever man, and it didn't take long for him to figure out why. Killing a man is not the best way to punish him – he who does not farm does not know the beauty of the harvest, and he who does not receive does not know the pain of loss. If you want to make him desperate to the point of crying, you must take away the love of his life. ”

So, the farmer tried and fell in love with the monster disguised as a human girl. ”

In the days of sweet talk, the farmer could not help but think that now she had done what she wanted—if she was killed now, she must not look at her face, for it would be very painful. ”

However, the monster girl, who is now his wife, still did not do anything to him—until the farmer's body could no longer support it, and he suddenly vomited blood during the spring ploughing, and he could not afford to fall ill. ”

Lying weakly on the sickbed, the farmer thought to himself that there was no time. He used to dislike fighting unarmed, defenseless youkai, which made him feel like he was doing something pointless. Now, even if she is killed, I am afraid that she will not feel relieved. ”

But the girl seemed to have forgotten her identity as a monster—the sick farmer in a trance really regarded her as his wife. The youkai girl maintains her human form, weaving cloth day and night, and during the day she takes it to the village outside the mountain to exchange medicine and try to slow down the life of the farmer. ”

One night, the delirious farmer sat up, and suddenly took the girl's cold, scarred hand, which had brought him the potion, and said sternly, 'Tell me, you are not here to kill me. 』”

The girl's surprised expression and natural answer calmed his frowning brow. ”

The farmer coughed, wrapped his broad palm around the girl's aching fingers, and his voice became gentle, "What a beautiful finger. 』”

"'If one day I don't have beautiful fingers anymore, even then, will you still love me?'"

"The girl's questioning seemed to awaken the last spirit of the dying farmer, and his mind flashed back to the scene when the two first met——"

"A homeless human girl who defects to herself on a snowy night. ”

"The white crane monster who is obviously not enough to practice and stubbornly maintains his human form. ”

"The sweet words of love, the shy look of a girl. ”

"Asking again and again because of uneasiness......"

"'If one day, I don't have a beautiful singing voice anymore......"

"'If one day, I don't have beautiful fingers anymore......"

"If one day, I am no longer human, even then, will you still love me?"

The farmer suddenly remembered a possibility that he had deliberately ignored except for revenge. If that were the case, it would have been humanity itself that was truly insidious and cunning. ”

"The memories flew forward again, back to the childhood, the white crane that had been trapped in the trap outside the village, and watched it fly away into the distance—the heart was simple and pleasant, anyway, the hunter did not know that he let it go, how beautiful the crane was, and could not let it be caught. ”

Seeing the changing expressions of the people in front of her, the girl holding the medicine did not get an answer from her husband, and she began to feel at a loss and burst into tears. ”

"Of course. At last the farmer's voice came—"

"I can still remember the beautiful crane that spread its wings that day. 』”

"And then, I'll always love you." 』”

......

......

This is the end of the story.

There was a sudden silence in the tea room.

After hesitating, Ogura Kuri opened her eyes, looked at the expressions of the three people, and lowered her head:

"Very ...... I'm sorry, but I'm not good at this kind of emotional statement...... Because of some misunderstandings, I may not have clearly expressed the kind of ...... in the article Meaning, but I'm already trying my best to ......"

"No," Alice interrupted the girl's muffled tone and shook her head, "Miss Ogura said it well...... It's a bit embarrassing to say it, but it's a story I wrote, but I'm still a little moved after listening to it. ”

Suzu on one side tried to liven up the atmosphere: "This is a normal situation, Miss Alice, if the story told by an author can't even move herself, then it's a shame." ”

Ah Qiu nodded: "I agree with Xiao Ling's opinion, as well as ...... It's a good story, but for me, it's probably more than a story. ”

Hearing this, Xiao Ling glanced at Ah Qiu, and said, "That's right, anyone who lives in Gensokyo, whether it is a human or a monster, this article is not just a story." ”

"There is only one thing, and it is exactly what I and Kosuzu were hesitating about after reading it just now," Ah Qiu picked up the manuscript on the table that Alice had copied by herself, and muttered to himself, "Although only Soichiro's name is mentioned, it really looks like a story based on Soichiro Genuchi, the leader of the demon slayer a hundred years ago." ”

Alice nodded: "It's his story." ”

Aqiu keenly noticed that it was not "a story based on him", but "his story".

"Although the barnyard family only says that it is a family that studies and records yokai, in fact, it is a summary of the situation in various periods of the human world—I am very familiar with the life of Soichiro Genuchi that you mentioned...... According to records, the real Genuchi Soichiro was born with a congenital deficiency in his constitution when he was a child, and he almost died, and although he later recovered, he was depressed after leaving the village, and it is not impossible to have a recurrence...... In this way, there is indeed a fit. ”

"That's right, that's right, I know it too!" Xiao Ling also took the opportunity to speak, "Although it is kept secret from the outside world, it is not a big deal, ask some history that interests me, Ah Qiu will tell me." ”

"That's what I said," the barnyard on the side rubbed his forehead and smiled helplessly, "Genuchi Soichiro's deeds are an exception, and there are many people in the village who know his story—after all, when a child asks an adult why the demon slayers live outside the village, they have to mention this tragic hero-like figure." ”

"The end of this novel...... It's open-ended. It's just that the farmer's body can't recover, and the affectionate youkai lady who has exhausted her demonic power to take care of him has reached her limit. ”

Alice nodded, "Although it's open-ended, it doesn't make people think of the good things." ”

"I wonder why Miss Alice chose Genuchi-san to work with the fable of the White Crane to repay her kindness?"

Alice hesitated and smiled bitterly, "Yes, there will always be such questions...... It's Mo Ming, he helped me find clues and used them as writing materials. ”

The little bell on the side opened her mouth and did not speak.

Ogura Kuriko had been frowning and thinking about something since just now, and did not react to the name.

Ah Qiu continued to ask, "What is the clue?"

Compared with Mo Ming, who suddenly mentioned it, she paid more attention to the basis of Alice's creation - this story is so true, and Miss Witch claims that this is the story of Soichiro Genuchi, is there any secret that even she doesn't know?

Alice didn't answer, but asked rhetorically, "Miss Aqiu, is there any record of the burial of the former demon slayer leader after his death?"

"Yes. Soichiro Genuchi was killed alive by youkai - there is a kind of yin-yang technique that can see the last scene of someone's death through the medium, so the evidence should be conclusive and unquestionable. As for his aftermath, because there was no corpse left, the demon slayer who respected him sealed his former residence underground - as a mound for worship. It's a pity...... Now there are no more demon slayers who can worship him. ”

Alice nodded: "This is exactly this place, which has been dug up." ”

Ah Qiu showed a surprised expression.

It's okay not to know, but Mo Ming seems to know that it is Genuchi Soichiro's well-dressed mound and still digging it, and the behavior of this outsider can no longer be described as deviant...... Exhuming the graves of the ancestors – this is a perverse practice that is punishable by torture in the village...... Is it because of Miss Witch that a person like Mo Ming would do such an excessive thing? Thinking so, Ah Qiu couldn't help but glance at Alice's delicate and lovely appearance like a doll.

As for the identity of the teacher of the Hirori Witch, it is too special, and this is not something that Barnyard Aqiu plans to participate in at all, and the meaning is nothing more than that:

"What did you find?"

"The seal of Yin-Yang only ensures that the hut does not collapse underground, but it does not prevent the decay of the items...... It was impossible to tell how many dishes and chopsticks there were, how many beds there were, and no obvious feminine items such as dressers, and the only thing that could be identified was the small wreckage of the loom mentioned in the story...... Come to think of it, a hundred years ago, the big man who was able to become the leader of the demon slayer should not be so ingenious that he even weaves cloth, right?"

Aqiu paused and nodded: "In terms of the division of labor in the village, weaving was and is still a skill that is only taught to girls—young and strong men have jobs that are more suitable for them, and demon exterminators who live alone make a living by weaving, which does sound incredible. ”

"And the inference is based on that clue—" Alice nodded.

Xiao Suzu raised his hand and spoke: "However, the establishment of this story and the promotion of the plot are completely carried out by Soichiro's very strange personality - what is the historical Genuchi Soichiro?" looked at Aqiu.

"There are indeed two interesting facts about Soichiro Genuchi's life that are worth mentioning—" With his ability to remember, Aqui was able to easily recall the old stories recorded in the materials and tell the story, "This was before he became the leader of the demon slayer - he was very fond of drinking before leaving the village. Once, he was ordered to retreat to a big youkai, and he came to visit him with two jugs of wine, drank with the big youkai in the mountains, and woke up with a hangover before starting to fight, and killed the big youkai at the cost of serious injuries...... This incident did not make him hated by other youkai, and it is rumored that he was later seen drinking with the yokai, a friend of the great demon. ”

"And this?" was the first time Suzu had heard of it.

"The fun is still to come, and then there is a monster who takes pleasure in spoiling the women of the village, and he is ordered to fight, and he also visits with wine, and the monster has heard about this demon slayer, and he happily drinks it, and he is caught in the yin and yang spell he released in the wine, and finally his head is easily cut off...... I heard that the monster whose head was cut off has become a laughing stock among the big monsters. ”

"It's tragic to be ridiculed by your peers after you die. Xiao Ling complained casually.

Immediately, everyone seemed to realize something......

"So, is it a coincidence?!The psychological description of the demon slayer who thinks a little deviantly in the second part of Alice's novel really has the charm of this real character!"

"That ......" Alice looked at the three people present, not knowing what to hesitate.

No one knew if she was going to tell a secret, so she waited quietly for her to speak.

Witches live far longer than humans, perhaps...... What special circumstances did she have so many years ago?

"Actually, I did run into this problem when I first started writing...... It's hard to imagine a distinct personality out of thin air, so I ended up using the personality of a human I knew as a template......"

It turned out that this was the case, and several people had different expressions.

Ah Qiu suddenly whispered to the little bell beside him:

"Mo Ming's character...... Is it that awkward?"

Xiao Ling thought about it, "tsk", suddenly laughed again, shook her head and replied, "It's really hard to say." ”

Ah Qiu nodded: "In this way, as an adaptation of the legend, it is indeed enough to be in place, as for the cause of Soichiro's death, the novel is an open-ended ending, and it can also have more associations for those in the know." ”

Alice nodded: "Actually, there are still a lot of doubts - if it is really an infatuated monster woman, why haven't I heard of her deeds later, and her body was not left at the scene, as if she had evaporated." ”

Ah Qiu thought for a while and said, "Why is there a youkai swallowing Genuchi Soichiro, I think there are several possibilities...... For example, the youkai that devoured Soichiro is not the white crane youkai in the story, and humans are easily invaded by external evils when they are weak, maybe they accidentally found other youkai evil spirits, or ......"

"Wait, a few stops!"

Ogura Kuriko, who had been frowning and thinking without saying a word just now, suddenly interrupted the discussion, she looked at the three people who cast her gaze at her, and said in a calm tone:

"I see...... I see, you don't know about it, so you have to stop there. ”

"What's wrong, what's it?Hurry up, chestnut~"

"Before that," although it was shaken by the small bell next to her, Kogura Chestnut still planned to sell it, "I want to ask Sister Aqiu first, after that Genuchi Soichiro lived alone, is there any one in the village who can be called a relative alive?"

Ah Qiu thought for a moment and replied, "Soichiro is a proud nature, and before the incident that hit him so badly, he had friends all over the village...... But if you want to say that he is a relative and stays in the village, his righteous brother was killed by a monster, his adoptive father died by disembowelment after taking revenge after slaughtering a monster mountain, and the other righteous brothers also left the village as demon slayers, it may be ...... Grandpa Taigongwang, who taught him Yin-Yang Technique, is the only person in the village who is relatively close, right?"

After hearing this, Ogura Kuriko clasped her hands together and said, "There is no doubt that it is the old man...... Listen to me, where this last joint is. ”

......

......

"It's normal that Sister Xiaoling and Sister Aqiu haven't heard of this, and Miss Alice, as a witch, is naturally completely different from a real monster - the reason why I know about it is also because I was surprised to hear others talk about it. ”

"Although it is hearsay, I don't know whether it is true or not, let's take it as true, after the tea party, we naturally have a way to find some information for verification. ”

Xiao Ling shook Kogura Chestnut's shoulder: "What the hell is Chestnut, can you stop selling Guanzi!"

Chestnut smiled and replied, "That's - the reason why the youkai devoured Soichiro was to give birth to the children of the two." ”

"It's extremely rare for humans and yokai to reproduce offspring – and it's not the same as when the human side is female and the human side is male. ”

"In the story, the male human farmer and the female white crane youkai also have several ways to give birth to children - one is that the monster woman devours the man and uses herself as a breeding ground to cultivate, and the embryo of the half-demon will absorb all her demonic power, and the monster girl will disappear after giving birth to offspring. ”

Then it was half an hour, and no one spoke.

"Is that really the case? could there be something wrong?"

It's not like it's something that ordinary humans can grasp, so it's always strange to be mentioned.

Ogura Kururi smiled and said nothing.

Barnyard Aqiu suddenly said, "Miss Alice should have just borrowed the story of the white crane to repay her kindness, and in fact the monster is unknown, right?"

"There haven't been a white crane monster in Gensokyo," Aqiu thought for a moment and said, "But similarly, there were a few egrets and crested ibises that appeared a long time ago." ”

"I know the crested ibis!" said the well-informed little bell with a raised hand, "The crested ibis is not a crane, but this bird also has a docile personality and a beautiful and elegant body." The action is dignified and generous, and the appearance is beautiful and moving. ”

"Oh, has Suzu ever seen such an animal?" Whether it's Makai or Gensokyo, Alice hasn't seen an animal named Crested Ibis yet.

"Hmph, I saw it from an encyclopedia of some unknown world outside. ”

"In other words, it's actually well-documented, isn't it?" Xiao Ling nodded and said, "I think it's true, in this case." No...... I want to believe it's true. ”

After a while, Alice sighed: "If you believe this statement...... So ...... this story, which was originally just a matter of speculation?"

Xiao Ling shook her head: "There is still one last question, where did the half-demon who was the offspring of the two go? Why is there no trace?"

Suddenly, Alice, Motoi Kosuzu, and Barnyard Aqiu took a deep breath.

Turning his head to look at Ogura chestnut, who was sitting leisurely sipping tea.

Chestnut put down the teacup and smiled, "As you think...... It's impossible for a monster to take care of someone else's children, and the only thing that can be entrusted is the farmer's teacher in the village before his death—"

"This old man's transcendent status in the village is destined not to be able to raise a half-demon by him, and entrusting the half-demon to the demon exterminator is naturally even more of a joke - the only people who can raise the half-demon and hide his identity are the famous families in the world. ”

"But why haven't you heard of a half-demon living in the human world? Because the offspring born of a human man and a youkai woman will be almost indistinguishable from a human being, and no one can detect the fact that he is a half-demon by his appearance. ”

Even so, even if everyone accepted him as a human being, when the child understood the situation, his misfit would become an obstacle to his integration into human society—and it was not impossible that he would choose to leave the village. ”

"So, if you want to know whether Miss Alice's creation is true, you will have to ask - the story takes place in the timeline of nearly a hundred years ago, and in Gensokyo, is there a half-demon of the same age who has been adopted by a famous family in the world since that time, and then left the village to live alone?"

Except for Kogura Kuriko, the other three suddenly picked up the teacup in front of their table at the same time and took a sip of tea, hiding the emotions that were difficult to calm down in their hearts.

......

......

In the small tearoom in the middle of Suzuna-an, four girls sit quietly around a table.

Alice looked down at something, and Ogura Kuriko looked at her, and then at Barnyard Aqiu.

Motoi picked up Alice's manuscript on the table and looked at it slowly.

I don't know when, Xiao Ling suddenly spoke:

Finally, one day, with all his might, the farmer called out to his wife, who was weaving. ”

He took her bandaged hand, which was oozing blood, and spoke slowly. ”

"Looks like I'm going to leave you alone. 』”

When my wife heard this, she cried and laughed, "I'm ready." 』”

"You're such a ...... Stupid guys. Obviously, if you can't cultivate, you have to stay in a human house, how can that man be," the farmer's voice was very soft, and it seemed that it could disappear at any time, "but...... Thank you for making the rest of your life the most meaningful. 』”

"Humans and youkai fight each other desperately, and we love each other here. 』”

"'Remembered by no one, left nothing, nothing...... Didn't change. 』”

With that, the farmer closed his eyes. ”

"That's not the case, Husband-sama," the yokai girl held his hand, barely sustaining the last breath of humanity with the power of the yokai, "The proof of our love will be passed on...... It's going to amaze them, and then it's going to change. 』”

"The youkai of the white crane devoured the body of the demon slayer, giving birth to an existence called a half-demon, and her own body died with it. ”

This was supposed to be the end of the story, but it wasn't. ”

"Soichiro Minuchi's death was finally discovered, and the cause was made public by the demon exterminator. ”

The former leader, who apologized to the youkai and promised not to use the onmyojutsu again, was unable to escape the yokai's revenge. ”

"The hatred between the demon slayer and the youkai has proliferated, and both sides have exhausted their strength and forged a hatred that will never be dissolved. ”

In the end, until one of them perished, the thoughts of the couple could not reach anyone's heart. ”

The impromptu performance of Suzu Motoi adds an embarrassing back cover to this story that is blank at the end.

Alice sighed, "Maybe that's really the case." Should I add this paragraph?"

Moto shook her head: "It shouldn't be." ”

Kururiko Ogura agreed: "Although the blank part was said by Suzu, this emotion should not be expressed in words. ”

"But if you don't make it clear, there must be someone who can't understand the whole story, right?"

"Miss Alice, have you read Christy Q's The End of Detective S?"

"......," Alice thought for a moment and nodded, "I see." ”

Ogura Kuriko glanced at Aqiu Aki, who was smiling at her, and said with a smile: "Christie Q's usual method is very reasonable-people who can't read without pointing it out, she will only say 'regret' to these people-maybe because of lack of experience, or maybe because of careless reading, they didn't reach the end of the story." ”

In exchange for this, the very small number of readers who have come to their own conclusions will become a treasure to be treasured in his reading career—it is worth it to leave the truth and conceal the key to the birth of this treasure, and even to lose a small number of readers who cannot understand it. ”

Alice took a deep breath and replied, "Exactly." ”

Suzu added black tea to the cups of the four.

"I didn't expect the tea party to be so exciting, and I'm really happy today. ”

Ogura Kuri looked at the three of them: "I will remember today's joy for the rest of my life." ”

......

......

The tea party lasted for several hours, and Ogura Kuriko was flushed and discussing with a few people, as if she were in heaven, and she was reluctant to leave.

But in the end, there was no feast that would not be dissolved.

After a few people agreed that they would come back to such a tea party in the future, Xiaoling and Ah Qiu both said that they would definitely come up with short works that were not inferior to Alice for everyone to read—it seems that the excellent works they read have aroused the competitiveness of famous writers.

Leaving Suzuna-an, his home is only two streets away.

Pushing open the door, it was as deserted as ever.

Her footsteps sounded in the quiet hallway, and she slowly walked towards Ogura Kuriko's room.

Walking and walking, it seems that something has changed.

A leaf fell from her, and the pink-haired girl stopped.

Gu Ming Dijue squatted down to pick up the leaves and put them in his pocket.

Her clothes haven't completely changed back to their usual appearance, and now is not the time.

Things are going well, but there is still one last step to go -

Kill the real Ogura chestnut.

————————————

————— end of this chapter————

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"Feathers of the Four Seasons" to find out.

If you are interested, you can go to station B to search for music PV, great works. However, I think most of you who will read this novel have heard of it, right?