MTLNOVEL Chapter 111: Master, I Want to Learn How to Kill Oni!
T/N: just so you know Heian-kyo is the former name of kyoto.
....
[You confirmed several times that you had not misheard.]
[The Minamoto no Yorimitsu in front of you did say that she wanted to kill oni.]
[You were sure that this was her purpose in coming to find you.]
"Kill oni?"
Ian put down the roasted prey in his hand and looked at the graceful female warrior.
"What an unheard-of idea."
"This is the first time I've heard someone say in front of me that they want to do such a thing."
"Everyone has their own wishes, don't they?"
Minamoto no Yorimitsu answered very directly.
"And my wish is to kill all the oni in the world."
"But—"
"Miss Minamoto no Yorimitsu."
Ian looked up at the stars above his head, his expression a little subtle.
"I think you may have some misunderstanding about the identity of an onmyoji."
"It is true that onmyoji can predict disasters and understand calamities, and they can also come into contact with various demons and ghosts."
"But this doesn't mean we know how to kill oni."
"So if you want to learn about this kind of thing—I think it would be better to find someone else."
"No."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu shook her head firmly.
"I don't think so."
"Your deeds are famous in Heian-kyo, how could you not know the art of killing oni?"
"Just a false reputation." Ian smiled slightly.
"Among so many deeds, has anyone really seen me kill oni?"
"I think, none, right?"
"..."
Ian's words stopped Minamoto no Yorimitsu.
Just like he said.
Although there are many stories about this man killing oni in Heian-kyo, everything is just at the level of "stories."
No one has ever seen this great onmyoji kill oni.
Minamoto no Yorimitsu's silence let Ian know that she couldn't refute.
He stood up and said in the moonlight:
"So Miss Minamoto no Yorimitsu, please go back."
"I'm not the person who meets your requirements."
"And thank you for your hospitality tonight."
[You left the mountain.]
[You walked towards your residence in the moonlight.]
[You felt a gaze behind you all the time.]
[You know Minamoto no Yorimitsu is still following you.]
"Miss Minamoto no Yorimitsu."
Ian turned around.
"There's really no need to follow me anymore."
"I can't teach you the art of killing oni—instead of wasting so much time on me, it's better to look for other possibilities in this world."
"I think, with your persistence in spending months on the same thing, you will definitely be rewarded in the end."
"No."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu answered almost without hesitation.
"If I really just wanted to find someone to teach me, I wouldn't have left the capital."
"What I'm looking for is a great onmyoji like you—only you meet my requirements."
"But I've already said that I can't meet them, right?"
"No, you just think I don't respect you enough and don't want to teach me."
"..."
[You realized that the compassion just now gave Minamoto no Yorimitsu an illusion.]
[She seems to attribute everything to her not being 'respectful' enough to you.]
[You really want to correct all this.]
[But seeing Minamoto no Yorimitsu's eyes, which are brighter than the bright moon, you realized that you probably won't be able to change her mind in a short time.]
Ian sighed.
"Then do as you please."
"I just hope you don't feel like you wasted your time then."
"Also—"
"Why are you following me all the time..."
"Oh... Master, you're asking this."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu shook the bow in her hand and raised the fur on her body.
"Master, as the saying goes, 'borrowed items should be returned to the owner'."
"Since you lent me the bow and fur just now, according to common sense, I should return them to your house intact."
"Besides—"
"The moon is high tonight, I think you don't mind me staying overnight, right?"
"..."
Ian looked at Minamoto no Yorimitsu.
"I said, a woman like you staying in a strange man's house will cause a lot of gossip."
"I know."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu met Ian's gaze without avoiding it.
"But I don't care."
Having said that.
Ian knew that he couldn't refuse Minamoto no Yorimitsu's request to stay overnight.
"Okay."
"Then you can stay for one night."
"But—I hope you won't regret it."
"I will never regret it."
[Minamoto no Yorimitsu was very happy.]
[She followed you closely.]
[She returned to your residence with you.]
[To be honest, this should have been avoided.]
[Taking a beautiful woman home with you at night is the best topic for after-dinner conversation.]
[But you're not worried at all.]
[Because you know your poverty will avoid all this.]
[You're home.]
Minamoto no Yorimitsu couldn't believe what she saw.
In her eyes was an extremely dilapidated house.
The windows that should have existed had long since disappeared, leaving only a wooden frame telling the original purpose and location.
The tatami on the ground was unevenly stepped on, looking messy.
If you look closely, you can even see the reeds sticking out from below.
The corners of the walls were full of cobwebs, and the remains of small insects were stuck on them, looking a bit dry.
There was a big hole in the roof, only covered with some dry grass.
The leaking place let in moonlight, shining on the quilt below.
The rotten pillow next to it lay quietly in the darkness.
A damp and dark smell permeated the small space, which was particularly pungent.
Is this a place where people can live?
Minamoto no Yorimitsu frowned, and even her breathing became a little difficult.
Ian's voice also sounded at this moment.
"Miss Minamoto no Yorimitsu, seeing this scene, you should know that I don't have the skills you imagined, right?"
"If you put down the bow and fur now and leave, you should be able to get out of Kawaguchi by dawn."
"In this way, the time you wasted is only today."
Ian thought that this could ruthlessly shatter Minamoto no Yorimitsu's fantasy.
But what he didn't expect was that after hearing these words, not only did she not give up, but she became more active.
"No."
"I'm not leaving."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu hung the bow on the nail on the wall, then took off the fur, folded it, and put it on the table next to her.
She looked around and finally chose a relatively clean place.
She cleared the dust on it and sat down directly.
"Master, I'm tired, it's time to rest."
"Then—"
"Good night, I wish you and I have a good dream."
Saying this, Minamoto no Yorimitsu really leaned against the wall and fell asleep without any precautions.
Seeing this scene, Ian sighed.
He knew that he couldn't drive her away tonight.
After confirming that she was asleep, he picked up the only quilt that looked decent in the whole room and gently covered her.
Then, he picked up the rotten pillow next to him and fell on the other side of the room.
Feeling the faint strange smell in the air, Ian subconsciously said.
"It's really troublesome to get along with people."
Even so, Ian still felt his eyelids getting heavier and heavier.
[You were actually very sleepy.]
[After all, you competed with Minamoto no Yorimitsu in swordsmanship in the morning, started thinking seriously about your own problems after noon, and even went into the mountains at night.]
[The only energy supplement was the prey just now.]
[In this case, it is inevitable to be sleepy.]
[You fell asleep.]
[Time came to the next day.]
Shua shua shua—
Ian heard a sound in his ears.
It was the sound of something being washed—he had almost never heard it before.
With doubts, Ian slowly opened his eyes and then saw an extremely unexpected scene.
Minamoto no Yorimitsu was sitting on a small stool, and in front of her was a large wooden basin filled with clear water.
The quilt that was on her last night was now completely soaked in it.
And Minamoto no Yorimitsu herself was holding a small wooden brush and constantly scrubbing its surface.
"Miss Minamoto no Yorimitsu, what are you..." Ian asked puzzled.
"Oh."
Seeing Ian wake up, Minamoto no Yorimitsu temporarily stopped what she was doing.
"Master, you're awake?"
"I'm washing the quilt."
"This..." Ian got up.
"Why did you suddenly think of washing the quilt?"
"Because—"
Minamoto no Yorimitsu looked at the quilt, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, seemingly finding it difficult to speak.
"Just take it as my personal hobby."
"Anyway, I can't ignore a quilt like this."
"But thank you for your concern last night, Master."
"..."
Ian hesitated for a moment, then continued.
"But if you wash the quilt, tonight..."
"It's okay, Master."
Minamoto no Yorimitsu put her hand to her forehead, making a gesture of looking at the sky.
"The weather is very good today."
"I think as long as I hang it on the bamboo pole later, it should be dry before sunset."
"Then, you can enjoy a comfortable and warm quilt."
"It should be about time now." Minamoto no Yorimitsu wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"Master, please rest aside, I'll dry the quilt for you."
Seeing Minamoto no Yorimitsu about to start, Ian spoke again.
"Wait a moment."
"Master, what's wrong?"
"Let me help you." Ian walked towards Minamoto no Yorimitsu.
"The quilt will be very heavy after absorbing water, it's too difficult for one person."
"Okay, then."
[The sun rose in the southeast.]
[The warm sunlight fell on every part of the village.]
[You and Minamoto no Yorimitsu worked together to dry the quilt.]
[You successfully hung it on the bamboo pole.]
[But your doubts did not end there.]
[Because there were many tools you didn't have during this process.]
"Miss Minamoto no Yorimitsu."
"Just call me Yorimitsu." She replied, disarmed.
"Yorimitsu."
"What's wrong, Master?"
"Where did you get these brushes and wooden basins? I don't remember having these things, right?"
"Oh, Master, you don't have these things."
Yorimitsu looked at the village outside the courtyard, her eyes filled with joy.
It was a place very close to Ian, but with almost no interaction.
"I spent money to ask the nearby villagers where I could buy these."
"I was very lucky, it only took me a little over an hour to get everything I wanted."
"..."
Ian looked at Yorimitsu in front of him.
"Yorimitsu, aren't you afraid of other people's gossip?"
"Not afraid."
Yorimitsu smiled slightly.
"Master, I know I'm here to learn the art of killing oni from you."
"No gossip can break my will."
"You're really determined."
Ian gave a wry smile.
"But unfortunately, I really can't teach you the art of killing oni."
"It doesn't matter."
Yorimitsu smoothed the wrinkles on the quilt in front of her.
"Master just can't teach me now, it doesn't mean you can't teach me in the future."
"..."
[You knew that the more you explained, the deeper Yorimitsu's misunderstanding of you would become.]
[You had to think about how to make her change this perception.]
[But Yorimitsu was not willing to let you think quietly.]
[She began to pull you and repair your dilapidated residence.]
"Master, do you think this window pasting is okay?"
"Or do you like other styles? You can tell me, I'm very experienced in this."
"Whatever."
"Then let's keep it like this."
"Okay."
So the window position, which was originally empty, was pasted.
"Master, for the tatami, would you like to change to a new one, or just use the old one?"
"Either choice, I can make it happen for you."
"Whatever."
"Then let's use the old one, it's more convenient."
"Okay."
So the tatami, which was originally uneven, was fixed.
"Master, I'm going up to fix the roof."
"Can you please help me hold the ladder and pass me some tools when necessary?"
"..."
"Forget it, don't go up, it's too dangerous."
"Let me do it myself."
So Ian fixed the big hole in the roof himself, hammer by hammer.
Similar repairs continued in the following time.
By the time everything was almost finished, Ian was a little emotional.
Was this still his original house?
It was incredible.
"Master." Yorimitsu's voice came from the side.
"I think this is where you should live, what do you think?"
Ian gave a wry smile.
"Maybe."
"But I have to say, Yorimitsu, you're really amazing, you can handle everything so well in such a short time."
"Thank you for the compliment."
Yorimitsu readily accepted the compliment from Ian—it seemed to be an unparalleled honor for her.
"But to be honest, it's because I sincerely think Master deserves all this, so I'm so motivated."
"Master, please wait here for a while."
"There's one more thing I have to do for you."
"What is it?" Ian asked puzzled, "Didn't we finish everything we needed to do just now?"
"No." Yorimitsu shook her head.
"Those are trivial matters."
"And what I'm going to do next is the behavior that can truly express my respect."
"Master—"
"Please let me serve you in your bath."