《• ʀ ᴇ ʙ ɪ ʀ ᴛ ʜ •》[ ᴍᴜᴢᴀɴ x ᴏᴄ ]

C1- ☆Plum Red☆

"Nao-sama, please take better care of yourself! Kagaya-sama is worried and he's got enough work on his hands! Please don't be so stupid!" After yelling at the top of her lungs, the woman seemed to have realized what she said and her face was suddenly stricken with horror.

Nao simply chuckled softly.

"N-Nao-sama..! I d-didn't mean it that w-way...! I... ah..." The woman began to stutter and panic, a ridiculous deep shade of red decorating her face as she struggled to make up for what she caused.

"There, there, Yui. It's fine. " Nao said, waving her words off as she twirled a strand of her black hair nonchalantly.

"I know I make you worry too much. Even my brother expresses his concern through our letters. "She told Yui, her handmaiden.

The poor woman was the type to get easily worried and nervous. And with Nao's reckless personality, Yui often ends up in a pit of panic or dilemma because of her mistress' behavior.

"I'll try not to do it again." Nao smiled, trying to make amends.

Yui then bowed. "Please!" She begged because the both of them knew that Nao would still try to sneak out despite being called out.

Between the two Ubuyashiki siblings, Nao, despite being female has an adventurous and quite curious personality. Nao was also a bit rebellious and liked doing things on her own which is why she is often caught sneaking out of the compound. Nao longed for freedom but her body was weak and although she did practiced swordsmanship, she couldn't utilize it properly because of the curse of their family.

Yui, Nao's handmaiden and a woman in her early thirties always worries for her mistress. Yui knows that her mistress is an old soul and loves the feeling of being free and unrestrained. But her mistress is still quite reckless, she didn't seem to mind that one wrong move could end her life.

She was an Ubuyashiki for goodness' sake and there were dozens of demons lurking every night!

Yui couldn't quite understand why her mistress always chose to sneak at that time, knowing that there are monsters in the shadow.

"Yui-san, don't worry too much. I'm a big girl. Brother knows that I can take care of myself. I know how to fight." To make a point, she took out a dagger hidden under her clothes.

"I practiced a lot!" She beamed, waving the thing and twirling it as if it was a simple kitchen knife.

Yui almost want to cry then and there.

"Nao-sama..." She uttered before she started yelling again. "PLEASE HAVE SOME DECENCY!"

Nao took a cautious glance at Yui and nervously laughed, she immediately hid her dagger.

"Kagaya-sama told you not to wield weapons! It's dangerous! And going outside at night is dangerous, Nao-sama! What if something happened to you?! There are demons! What would I do, Nao-sama!? I'm going to cry a lot! And Kagaya-sama won't be happy! Please be more considerate!"

"Okay, okay! Forgive me, Yui. I'll try not to go out too much." She smiled, placing a comforting hand on the woman's shoulder. Yui immediately bawled her eyes out, repeatedly crying again.

Nao could only sigh, knowing it was her fault that Yui was sobbing about how she always 'sneaked out too much' and 'got herself in danger often because of her recklessness'.

"It's okay, Yui. If it makes you feel better, I'll be staying at my room the entire night. "She encouraged which made the older woman calm down a little.

Of course, Nao really did intend to stay at her room to rest but then it wasn't her fault that she heard the guards talking about a festival in town.

Her curiosity got the better of her and she ended up sneaking pass the guards using the secret passage that only she knows.

'Gomene, Yui. But I'll be back later.' She thought, mentally apologizing to the woman. When Nao finally arrived at the village, she couldn't help but gush about how sparkly and how beautiful the lights were.

It was like a dream. There were stores, people dressed in kimonos, food and booths where people tried their luck.

Nao immediately went to see people trying to scoop goldfish. Her eyes sparkled at the sight.

"Ojou-san, would you like to try?" The old man said, handing her a scooper.

"Please!" She beamed brightly and tried her luck but after a few attempts, she couldn't seem to get a single one at all.

"Ahaha! That's okay, Ojou-san! Since the little lady seem so sad, I'll give this to you!"

Nao immediately smiled. "Uwaa.. Thank you so much!" She took the small fish that was in a small plastic bag. She stared in amazement and gushed at the adorable creature. Nao named the goldfish, Nemi.

After thanking the kind man, she went to other stalls and even went to watch a dragon dancing in the center. There was some kind of play as well about a swordsman fighting a demon.

Nao watched all of it intently. She was so engrossed in the festival that she lost track of time.

It was only when she passed by this particular stall that she realized how late it was.

"Ojou-san, you look troubled." Nao glanced and saw an old lady. She seemed to be the owner of the stall and when Nao turned, she saw that the woman's stall sold jewelries and charms of sort.

"I'm fine, Obaa-san." Nao graced her a smile as she lifted her kimono, suddenly feeling its heaviness after how long she was walking around the festival.

Nao approached the woman.

"Obaa-san, do you have something that I could give for someone who is sick? Something like a goodluck charm?"

The old lady smiled, her wrinkles distinctly forming.

"Ah. Ojou-san, if you'd like, you can have that necklace over there. It's for your brother, isn't it?"

Nao looked at the old lady with surprise.

"You can take it."

Nao smiled shyly. "But I'd like to pay for it. It's too beautiful to be considered free." She reasoned, staring at the wisteria design engraved on the silver bracelet. Gold would not suit her brother afterall.

The old lady shook her head.

"No need, Ojou-san. It's meant for you."

"Umm..." Nao tried to pay for it but the woman stubbornly refused and simply told her to keep it.

"It will lead you to something." The old lady told her but as Nao walked around the festival, she could only doubt the woman's words.

Nao didn't believe in coincidences.

She decided to go to the river to watch the fireworks instead but as she was walking, she ended up tripping on a rock. Nao fell down but she immediately placed her hands infront to brace the impact.

The goldfish slipped from her hand and it fell down on the dirt.

Nao's eyes widened, disregarding the pain she was feeling.

When she tried to stand, she ended up wincing.

"Ojou-san, are you okay?" A soft voice called to her. When Nao looked up, she was met with a pair of crimson eyes staring back at her. And then she heard it, a loud bang in the sky and a flash of light.

It didn't take a genius to know that the fireworks were starting but as Nao continued to look forward, her gaze could only be held captive by the man infront of her.

This man is a demon.