"Mr. Aiden, please sit!"
"Would you like some alcohol? We have the family's fine brew here, and also liquor from your country!"
Seeing Aiden sit down, Maki knelt in front of him, then asked considerately.
"If you don't like either, I also prepared wine."
"Bring some sake then!" Aiden usually followed local customs when it came to food and drink, besides, if he really wanted good alcohol, it was better to drink it back in his own country.
"Mr. Aiden, wait just a moment!" Maki said, her gaze shifting to the maid kneeling at the doorway.
"Yumiko, bring a bottle of sake, then three cups."
"Yes, young miss!"
The maid nodded, stepped back a few paces, and left the dining hall. But just as she went out, Chizuru came in right after, carrying two dishes.
"Tch, I thought you weren't coming back!" Chizuru basically never showed Aiden a good face.
Puffing her cheeks, she said, "At least my time and effort weren't wasted. Here, I specially made you r favorite type of food."
As she spoke, Chizuru placed the two dishes in front of Aiden.
Aiden lowered his head to look, well now, classic Mapo Tofu and pan-fried dumplings.
'This must be the stereotype, huh!'
When Aiden looked at those two stereotypical dishes, his brows furrowed ever so slightly. Although it was just a fleeting moment, Chizuru still keenly caught it.
"What, you don't like it? If you don't, I don't care either. If not for my sister insisting…" Chizuru walked up to Aiden, hands on her hips, rolling her eyes at him.
Since coming home she had changed into another short kimono her sister required, its hem only reaching her thighs. Her long legs, unaffected by kneeling for long, were now right before Aiden's eyes.
It seemed if he tilted his head just a bit, he could see Chizuru's "absolute territory"…
"Chizuru…"
But before Chizuru could finish her words, she was cut off by Maki speaking up.
"You're not a child anymore, be more composed!"
"Oh!"
Probably because she had already been scolded by her sister earlier that day at the family company, Chizuru obediently shut her mouth.
After letting out a small "oh," she knelt quietly beside her sister, though her eyes still kept glancing at Aiden.
At this time, the maid named Yumiko returned with the sake and cups. Just as she was about to pour, Maki waved her hand, signaling her to leave.
"Chizuru!"
After the maid shut the door, Maki looked at her younger sister.
"Go pour for Mr. Aiden."
"Wha… fine."
Shot a glare, Chizuru behaved, stood up, shuffled over in small steps, knelt down beside Aiden, picked up the bottle, and with clear reluctance poured him a cup.
Then her nose twitched a little, and she let out a faint hum.
Aiden smiled lightly, "Thank you, Miss Chizuru!"
But Maki immediately reminded, "Just call her Chizuru, Mr. Aiden. Don't be so distant."
Aiden glanced sideways at her, nodded, then lifted his cup and drained it all at once.
After he set the cup down, with just a look from her sister, Chizuru obediently poured him another. Then Maki asked, "Mr. Aiden, how does it taste?"
Aiden nodded, "Very good!"
Though a little weak in flavor.
But as a guest, naturally he had to pick pleasant words for the host to hear.
Sure enough, Maki pursed her lips into a smile, "As long as Mr. Aiden likes it, that's good. There's plenty of aged liquor at home, but since Chizuru and I don't really like to drink, at least now it won't go to waste."
"Listening to you, it sounds like you want me to stay long-term and finish all your liquor?" Aiden raised his cup again, sipped, and asked with a laugh.
"If Mr. Aiden is willing, of course you may." Maki also took a sip, but her beautiful willow-leaf brows furrowed slightly. After hesitating a moment, she downed the rest in one go.
She didn't seem good at drinking. With just that cup, a flush bloomed across her pale cheeks, and paired with her delicate features, she looked stunning.
By now Aiden had long been tempered by countless trials. However beautiful a face was, it rarely made him lose composure. Still, there was admiration in his eyes.
Yet his expression only flickered for a moment. After finishing her cup and eating some food to steady her stomach, Maki didn't notice. But Chizuru saw it clearly.
"Looks like this guy has feelings for Sis too!" Chizuru thought, showing a pensive expression.
"But Sis is the family's appointed shrine maiden, bearing heavy duties. Truly helpless."
Curling her lips, Chizuru refilled her sister's and Aiden's cups, then picked up her own chopsticks to eat.
She wasn't some servant maid after all. Filling her own stomach came first.
After that, the three ate and chatted, though mostly it was Maki asking and Aiden answering, while Chizuru was more of a listener, occasionally cutting in when pouring.
During Maki's questions, she deliberately and subtly brought up Aiden's family matters. But she spoke extremely vaguely, afraid that asking too much might annoy him.
In her view, Aiden didn't seem like the type of man who'd be content to live off a woman anyway.
Aiden naturally understood her indirect probing. He faintly felt like she was trying to play matchmaker, perhaps wanting him as a live-in son-in-law. After all, he knew Kagura shrine maidens weren't allowed to marry.
Still, even though he was interested in both sisters, becoming a son-in-law was definitely not something he'd agree to. So, to most of her questions, he gave perfunctory answers, leaving Maki rather frustrated.
Seeing this, she stopped asking. Once or twice was fine, but pressing further would only seem nagging or with ulterior motives. So she quickly shifted the topic.
"Mr. Aiden, where did you go today?"
"The outskirts." Aiden scooped a mouthful of rice, swallowed, then said, "Tokyo's traffic is terrible, far too congested, and my vehicle…"
At that, he glanced at Chizuru, who pretended innocence and turned her head away.
Shaking his head, Aiden decided not to bring up the car, and simply continued, "After wandering the outskirts, I found a dojo and took a master!"
Hearing this, Maki asked curiously, "I'm very curious what kind of dojo could interest Mr. Aiden enough to formally become a disciple? With your skill, ordinary dojos surely wouldn't be worthy?"
"Actually, that dojo is very ordinary. But…"
Before Aiden could finish, Chizuru cut in sourly, "What other reason? The master must be a woman. And a very beautiful one at that. The scent of woman clinging to him can be smelled from far away."
'Girl, you should change careers to police dog. Detective works too. But why does your tone sound a bit strange?'
Still, being exposed made Aiden's old face flush. Taking Mai Shiranui as his master really was more about craving her body.
But then again, who wouldn't? With Mai Shiranui, what man wouldn't?
"See, he's blushing. I was right!"
Although Aiden quickly used a trick to return his face to normal, Chizuru had already seen it. She glared at him unhappily.
'My sister has feelings for you, and you go chasing after another woman? Even if it's apprenticeship, our Kagura family's martial arts aren't inferior, you know? If worse comes to worst, I could teach you myself!'
But she didn't say this aloud. Her sister was thin-skinned, she feared embarrassing her.
"Chizuru, looking at Mr. Aiden that way is a bit rude." At this time, even Maki seemed a little displeased.
Seeing her younger sister act like this, she felt some frustration, 'Clearly we met him first, and yet you didn't seize the chance, letting another woman get ahead.'
'I'll have to find a chance to see for myself what kind of woman she is!' Maki thought.
In truth, at first this dinner was quite cheerful. But toward the end, the Kagura sisters' interest clearly waned. The atmosphere wasn't cold, but it no longer carried the warmth from before. In the air, a faint sourness lingered.
Only, it wasn't clear who it was coming from.
After dinner, Chizuru tossed down her chopsticks and ran off to bathe. Since she'd just had a biking accident two days ago, her sister Maki had forbidden her from racing at night. Bored, she could only watch TV after bathing.
So this time it was Maki who sent Aiden back to where he was staying.
Not long after, the two of them walked along a pebble-paved path, entering the courtyard.
Tonight's moonlight was lovely. It shone over the courtyard, illuminating everything. The marble table beneath a cherry blossom tree even reflected a faint glow.
"Mr. Aiden, you don't mind if I sit here a while, do you?"
Maki's gaze lingered a moment on the marble table, then she asked Aiden, who was about to head inside.
Hearing her voice from behind, Aiden paused his steps, turned back, and nodded, "Of course. But Miss Maki, this is your family's shrine. You don't need my permission."
Seeing her already seated at the stone table, he thought for a moment, then went and sat down as well.
"I told you, just call me Maki. Don't add honorifics." Looking at Aiden across from her, Maki spoke with slight displeasure. She felt he was keeping too much distance.
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