"Miss Yae, you seem to be very interested in the art of Evocation."
The young man, who had clearly noticed the change in the Miko's emotions, set down the tea bowl in his hands and looked at the local Miko.
"Is there someone you desperately wish to see?"
He saw through me?
The Miko, who did indeed wish to see Rin one more time, quietly sized up the young man who had previously and arbitrarily classified her as a good person.
This young man from Shenzhou had far too mysterious an origin.
She had just heard him recount some of his deeds.
Slaying a great sorcerer of five hundred years.
Researching the doctrines of time and space.
Without a doubt, this was a heroic character who could be written into legends, absolutely not some profligate young master running around with his concubines and songstresses.
So, why would such a great personage appear in a backwater place like Yae Village?
The Miko, who perhaps had a slight misunderstanding of her hometown's level of development, looked at the fellow who practically had "There's something suspicious about me" written all over his face. She took a deep breath and then asked.
"Excuse me, but could you tell me why you have come here? What is your business?"
Li Zihan, who was clearly no ordinary person, did not seem like someone who would appear in a common village.
He must have been drawn here by something.
At this thought, Yae Sakura grew somewhat restless.
For someone like Yae Sakura, whose job it was to ensure the safety of the village, it was only natural that she pay close attention to Li Zihan, who had already revealed a part of his true nature.
---o---
"I am merely here to fulfill a promise."
The young man, who had once promised Yae Sakura he would resurrect her sister, smiled faintly.
Fulfill a promise?
Yae Sakura was stunned.
Then her expression grew suspicious.
Could it be that someone else is coming here?
"Do you have other friends who will be coming here?"
The Miko, who had not at all considered that Li Zihan was here to fulfill a duty to her, knitted her delicate brows.
"I am here to fulfill my promise to you."
The young man continued to speak, each word more shocking than the last, uttering a statement that was completely beyond Yae Sakura's scope of thought.
"Fulfill... a promise to me?"
Yae Sakura's expression was one of utter astonishment.
She remembered now. The way Li Zihan looked at her was indeed like he was looking at an acquaintance.
But...
In her mind, there was no impression of this young man from Shenzhou. How could there be any talk of a promise?
"For various reasons, I promised the future you that I would resurrect Rin."
Under Durandal the Dull Goose's slightly dazed gaze, Li Zihan very calmly revealed that he was from the future.
"At this point in time, Rin's soul should not have dispersed yet. I can collect it directly and then resurrect her in the future."
"Captain! Didn't you say we couldn't influence history?"
Miss Dull Goose, who couldn't fathom why Li Zihan would suddenly blurt out something like being from the future, couldn't help but question him.
According to the mission, their task was only to find Saint Kallen, wait for her to go splat, and collect her soul!
What was this about Rin?
They were currently in the upstream of time. If they recklessly screwed with things, who knew what kind of mess they would make of the future.
"Relax. Sakura is one of us, absolutely trustworthy. She's very tight-lipped."
The young man, whose form of address for Yae Sakura had suddenly switched from "Miss Yae" to the more intimate "Sakura," said nonchalantly.
"Also, I brought Fenghuang Down."
The young man, on whose palm a few crimson feathers had appeared at some unknown time, spoke to the Dull Goose with great seriousness.
Hearing the name Fenghuang Down, Durandal closed her mouth.
The Eighth Divine Key, Fenghuang Down, corresponded to the mind.
As long as one activated its power, altering another's memories to forcibly guide history back to its original course was not a difficult matter.
---o---
Unlike Durandal, who immediately gave up arguing, Yae Sakura was still pondering.
Promised the future me?
After thinking for a while, Yae Sakura remembered.
Li Zihan had previously mentioned that he practiced arts related to time.
If that art symbolizing time truly existed, then reversing time was indeed a possibility.
Perhaps... they were acquaintances in the future.
At this thought, Yae Sakura's expression changed slightly.
The way Li Zihan had just addressed her was not "Yae"...
It was "Sakura."
In the etiquette of the Far East, addressing someone directly by their given name was impolite. To do so without the person's permission could even be seen as a provocation or looking for trouble.
Generally, people who were not well-acquainted would address each other by their surname. If the person was older or of higher status, one would usually add "-san" or "-sensei."
For peers, "-kun" would be added after the surname, and this was the same between men and women.
Only family, elders, teachers, close friends, and lovers could call someone by their given name.
And this was the case in modern times.
In ancient times, when the other party actually had a surname, to be able to use their given name to address them was something that could no longer be described by mere intimacy.
What is the relationship between this man from Shenzhou and my future self?
To use a name like Sakura?
Yae Sakura looked at the handsome young man, and ripples began to form in her heart.
Could it be...
...my future husband?
At this thought, a hint of red touched Yae Sakura's cheeks.
If that was the case, then many things could be explained.
Why he had stated her name with almost no hesitation upon their first meeting.
Why he had displayed his wealth before her without a care, holding no guard against her whatsoever.
Everyone around her used the title "Lady Miko," which she thoroughly detested, but he used "Yae," and now, "Sakura."
...
No, that's not right.
I should verify this first.
The woman with sakura-pink hair, having thought of a certain possibility, looked towards Li Zihan. She opened her mouth, wanting to ask about the situation.
But—
Before the words could leave her lips, another voice rang out.
"Big Brother, you're done explaining things, right?"
"I'm a little tired."
The source of the voice was the girl who had been quiet the whole time, looking very delicate.
Yae Sakura wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but she felt that the girl's eyes now had a hint of red within them.
Her tone also carried a touch of aggression and a faint charm.
And, just now, she was looking at me, wasn't she?
Feeling the gaze that carried a slight hostility, Yae Sakura's heart tensed.
What... is the meaning of this?
"I'm more or less done."
The young man, who had also vaguely sensed that the Seele beside him had been swapped out for a certain pro pinch hitter, reined in his smile and became incredibly serious.
"Well then, it's time to rest."
The girl, whose eyes had now completely turned red, took the hand of the young man beside her and then gave Yae Sakura a faint smile.
"Miss Yae, please arrange a resting place for me and Big Brother."