[26] Shiki Ryougi

"Hmm?"

The Head of the Ryougi family, who was in conversation with Kazuya, seemed to sense something and said, "It looks like Shiki is here."

"Huh?"

Kazuya turned slightly, but the room's door remained motionless. He wondered how the old man had detected someone's arrival.

"Don't worry about it," The head of the Ryougi family said, closing his eyes. "Come in, Shiki."

Whoosh—

As the door opened, a small girl, around five or six years old, with twin tails appeared at the doorway.

Impressive...

Kazuya maintained his expressions, but inwardly, he were slightly surprised. In his dreams, Kazuya had encountered various situations where people stealthily approached him. Usually, he could sense their presence.

However, this time, he hadn't detected Shiki Ryougi's approach.

In reality, this wasn't a big deal. After all, Shiki Ryougi didn't exude any hostility, and her footsteps were light, so there wasn't much to notice. What was truly remarkable was that the head of the Ryougi family had detected her.

Indeed, there were people beyond ordinary people. Even without any mystical abilities, these families that had been passed down for centuries had their own unique skills that set them apart.

"Father."

"You're here," The head of the Ryougi family said without much change in expression, glancing at Shiki Ryougi. "Good, I've finished saying what needs to be said. Akitaka."

"Yes."

"I'm tired. Take them downstairs."

"I understand." After giving a respectful bow, Akitaka Suzurigi stood up and said to the two, "This way, please."

"Thank you."

After leaving the presence of the imposing head of the Ryougi family, in the hallway, Kazuya greeted Shiki Ryougi, saying, "Hey, it's been a while, Shiki."

Shiki Ryougi glanced at him and then turned her head. "Strange person."

"Huh? Are you talking about me?"

"Yes, it's you, a really strange person."

Kazuya pretended to think hard. "Hmm... What's so strange about me? I can't figure it out..."

"Well..." Shiki Ryougi sighed. "Enough with the theatrics. You don't need to treat me like a child. I'm not that young anymore."

"Ha, not that young?" Kazuya smiled, comparing her height to his. "Yeah, you're definitely not that young anymore."

"I mean, seriously, do you find this amusing?" Shiki Ryougi suddenly stopped and said with dissatisfaction.

"Are you upset?" Kazuya also came to a halt.

"No," she replied, continuing to walk forward, adding, "Alright, Akitaka, you can go ahead."

"...I understand, Miss." With that, Akitaka Suzurigi left.

Slowly, there were only the two of them left in the corridor.

"Is that so? Are you 'Shiki' or 'SHIKI' now?" Kazuya asked, taking out a piece of paper with the characters for 'Shiki' and 'SHIKI' written on it. After all, these two words had the same pronunciation in Japanese.

Shiki Ryougi, the product of the Ryougi family's "masterpiece," had two personalities: the passive 'Shiki' and the aggressive 'SHIKI.' Both personalities coexisted in the same body.

"Haven't you figured it out already?"

"Well, you're 'Shiki' now, right? What about 'SHIKI'?"

"She doesn't want to see you right now, so I'm here." Shiki extended her hand.

"Huh? What?"

"A gift, a gift. You didn't come empty-handed, did you?"

"Oh, no, of course not. I prepared a gift." Kazuya smiled and took out a bracelet from his pocket. "Here, it's a gift for you."

"Ah... just this one thing?" Shiki seemed a bit displeased.

"Although I thought you might prefer something like a dagger, you're still a girl, so I refrained from buying it. So, I didn't get you anything this time."

"Well, you seem to understand." Shiki smiled and accepted the bracelet. "But this isn't for me, is it? What about my gift?"

"Well, you see... I couldn't think of anything unique. Let's talk about it next time, okay? Next time."

"Next time?" Shiki sighed. "Is it going to be another year?"

That's right, a year... Kazuya's previous visit to this place was not two years ago but just a year ago. This was already his third visit.

"Yes, yes, I get it. After a while, when Kazumi starts school and if I have the time, I'll come to visit you. How about that?"

"Sounds good." Shiki stopped and turned to face him. "We're here. Come this way."

'Shiki' and 'SHIKI' both felt that the Ryougi family wasn't a pleasant place for them. Their father didn't treat them as daughters but as tools to lead the Ryougi family in the future. Their brother disliked them and had even run away from home. Their grandfather, who had taught them many things, had also passed away. The people in the family regarded them with reverence and fear, making them all the more detestable.

But this guy was different.

This man named Kurokawa Kazuya.

The surprised expression he had when he first saw them, as if he had known them for a long time, was strange. Furthermore, he didn't exhibit fear or any feelings of reverence toward them.

For Shiki, who had an extremely acute sense of the emotions of those around her, this was almost self-evident. Relying on her intuition, she could clearly determine that this person had no ill intentions. This was why Kurokawa Kazuya received VIP treatment in the Ryougi family.

Because he held the friendship of the future head of the Ryougi family.

Shiki was well aware of this, although it was somewhat inexplicable, and she didn't understand the feeling exactly. Nevertheless...

Ah... it made her feel comfortable.

Compared to the people in her family, she preferred to be around this person and talk to him. This was true for both Shiki and SHIKI.

And the reason Shiki had come out initially wasn't because 'SHIKI' didn't want to see Kurokawa Kazuya.

It was just that, according to the judgment of both 'Shiki' and 'SHIKI', Shiki's more outgoing personality was better suited for the initial meeting. That's all.

"This is it. The place where you'll be sleeping tonight... Well, I should say, are you planning to stay overnight, or are you in a hurry to leave tonight because you're worried about your little sister?" Shiki looked at Kazuya and mentioned how he had left in a hurry last time.

"Well, this time, I've negotiated a bit, so I should be able to stay until tomorrow night. What about it? Can't bear to see me go early?"

"No, if you want to leave early, that's fine. It'll put my mind at ease."

"Haha, is that your way of being tsundere? You're quite cute."

"Cute..." Shiki said as she conjured a dagger into her hand. "Do you want to die?"

---

If you're interested in reading more, feel free to visit my patreon which already contains 20 chapters: 

https://www.patreon.com/XElenea