>>21442
Thanks. This should be enough. I think my main problem is on deciding which tenses and verbs that I should use on the story. I save the note for future reference. Oh well. Enjoy the update.
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You get up from the terrace, ready to walk again.
"Didn't doctor say that you shouldn’t move too much?" Kanako tells you. She still helps you stand though.
"I won't stop you, but be careful," She says. You'll just take a little walk, nothing more. You take some steps forward with Kanako following you behind, until you reach the shrine gate. Checkpoint reached, easy. Can't believe how hard it was to walk here yesterday. You remind yourself not to get overconfident though, especially with what lies ahead; a long path downhill.
"You want to go down there?" Kanako asks. You nod, and try to step carefully on the rough road. Let's do this again. Right stick, left foot... Sometimes the stick gets stuck in the ground, but you can manage it.
"Where do you will go to, outsider?" She asks again. Good question. You don't know where to go. You will not traverse all this path to the village, assuming the road gets there. You signalled her that you don't know where you'll go. Kanako sighs and shakes her head.
"Well, I know a nice place not far from here. Do you want to go there?" Hmm, it's not like you have a choice. Kanako smiles and slowly walks ahead, leading you. You wonder what the place looks like...
---
"There we go," Kanako stops. You look at the place; A big lake, with some decorated pillars. It was relaxing just to see the scenery.
"So, is it good?" You nod and smile to her, then sit at the side of the lake. You dip your left foot into the water, it's surprisingly warm.
"Do you know that this mountain is an active volcano? It makes the water at the lake always warm." She informs you. You assume that maybe it’s healthy to take a bath here, but the pillars may be a sign that this lake is sacred. "It was Suwako's idea to bring the lake here. I doubted if that's a good idea at that time, but it seems she was right. The water's warm like that when it's on the original place," She says again. Wait, transported? Like, bring the waters to here, or re-create the lake? How? Kanako noticed your strange expression.
"Don't think that too much, outsider, you'll only hurt your head. Just believe that it happens," She pats your head. Whatever, the lake is here; you don't really care about how the lake was formed. Sometimes ignorance can save your sanity. You then ask her why they don’t make this lake as a recreational place, since it’ll bring more people to come here and the shrine. And not counting the income from that.
“Well, it’s not like we’re not trying that before... Maybe Sanae have told you, but this place is far from the village. But what really makes people rarely come here is that humans actually aren’t allowed to come here. There’s a reason why this place is called Youkai Mountain,” she says.
Wait, Youkai? Like that Tengu girl? So there are more of them at this Mountain… But looking at the reporter, it seems it’s not Youkai in traditional terms, if there is one. You decided to ask how hard it is to live here with 2 daughters, and how they can live here, since she said that humans aren’t allowed here. After reading your message, she laughed.
“Who, Sanae and Suwako? No... They are not my daughters,“She tells you. Your face reddens in shame. “Suwako is much, much older than you think, outsider, it just that she has body of a child. And Sanae was a far descendant from Suwako’s family,” She informs. “But me and Suwako treat Sanae like our own daughter, so your guess has not really missed.”
You think for a while, Suwako is older that she looks, fine. You can handle that fact. But Sanae is her descendant? How old is she? Kanako seems not kidding when saying that there are many weird things here. It is not nice to ask for a woman’s age, so you just stay silent about it.
“Well, when we first came here, there was some conflict with the original residents, with humans aren’t allowed and other stuff... but we already managed it. They are actually nice when you are accepted by them,” Kanako says. “Living here isn’t really that hard once you get used to it. Sometimes there are incidents and stuffs...But not a big deal. You might want to back to your own place once you know yourself though."
Yeah, you don’t really want to burden them for long. When you are healed you’ll go search your identity, and go back to your own place somehow. Maybe you’ll help this shrine while searching yourself. They already did so much for you. You’ll definitely help this shrine.
The warmth in your left foot, combined with the soft chilling wind, makes you sleepy. You lie down on the ground and close your eyes-
"Hey, don't sleep here. You'll caught cold." Kanako shakes your body, preventing your consciousness from slipping away. Well, she's right; the air maybe will be even colder in the next hours, so it's a bad idea to sleep in the open space like this. What a shame...
"Let's go back if you want to sleep. Besides, you will be caught by Sanae if you stay here for too long." You nod. Kanako helps you get back on your foot and stick, and then walks away from the lake. You'll go back to that place sometime.
---
You and Kanako go back to the shrine. Suwako stands under the shrine gate.
“Where did you two go?” She instantly asks.
“Just went to the lake, Suwako. He insisted to walk around, so I gave him a destination instead of having him moving around mindlessly,” She explains.
“Ah, why didn’t you tell me earlier? We could've gone together there!”
“Somebody needs to stay in the shrine, you know…” Kanako shakes her head.
“Anyway…” Suwako looks at you. “How was the lake? Did you like the place?” She asks. You confirm her guess. She seems happy hearing your answer. “You know what, Kanako? One day we all should have a picnic once at the side of the lake, like back on outside world!” She suggest.
Before Kanako opens her mouth to reply her, you three noticed that there are two figures in the sky.
“Ah, it’s Sanae. It seems you’ll get checked again, outsider,” Suwako says. You look again as the figures come closer. Yes, it’s that flying shrine maiden, with another flying woman, in red and blue nurse outfit. You take a note to yourself, flying women are usual in this world.
“Welcome back Sanae. I see you successfully brought Eirin here,” Kanako greets her.
“I was planning to take some medicine plants at the nearby field anyway. Killing two birds with one stone,” The doctor says to Kanako. She has long white braided hair under the nurse cap. She carries a big bag, possibly her equipment. “So, is this the patient?” She looks at you carefully.
“Yeah. “I already gave the details about the results of his last check, didn’t I?”Sanae asks.
“You already have Sanae…Anyway, my name is Yagokoro Eirin,” She introduce herself to you. “Is there any room that I can use Sanae?”
“Sure! Follow me.” She leads the doctor to your room.
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You got through some check up from the doctor. It took a long time before it’s finished.
“…The burn wounds, second degree burns. It’ll take around three weeks to heal. Expect some permanent scars,” The doctor starts explaining. You try to touch your fac- Ouch.
“Be grateful that it hurts to touch. If the burn is more severe, you can’t feel anything at all,” She says. “And your bone fracture... It should take around three months if you rest well.” She continues. “I couldn't find any wounds in your throat, I afraid the blow on your head affected some nerves that control your vocal chords.”
“Will it get healed?” The shrine maiden asks again in your place.
“Normally, it won’t. But…” She stops for a while. “I can try to create a medicine which can cure it. Maybe there is some side effect. And of course there is a price...”She explains. Well, you are not sure... A chance to be able to talk is always nice. But you worry about the side effect…On yours and the shrine’s wallet. You already cost this shrine much for your treatment. You don’t want to be a bigger burden to this shrine…
“The choice is up to you. Do you want to take it or not?”
[]Take it.
[]Don’t take it.