Chapter Ninety-Five: Shrine Maiden Itou Shin'e

The clock had been turned back half a month.

School was on break, and just as Ito Shinhui had been hoping to rest properly for a while, she suddenly received a call from her father, Ito Toru.

On the phone, Toru made it clear that he would no longer make things difficult for her financially. But he also added one condition: that Shinhui work part-time as a shrine maiden at Fukuen Shrine in Yamanashi for a period of time.

A shrine maiden, in the simplest sense, was a priestess stationed at a shrine.

Many people idealized the profession, but in truth, shrine maidens were not at all rare in the real world.

In the broadest sense, a shrine maiden served as a “bridge” between gods and humankind.

On a spiritual level, one could even say she embodied a form of faith for the Japanese people.

But in modern terms, a shrine maiden was simply someone who worked at a shrine.

Shrine maidens at ordinary shrines generally fell into three categories.

The first were the “daily-duty” girls, the ones who cleaned and welcomed visitors. They were the shrine maidens most commonly seen, and there was no real barrier to entry; one only needed to know the basic customs and taboos of shrine life.

The second were the “administrative” girls, who handled matters inside the main hall. They were usually older, and their main responsibility was to host and manage shrine events.

The last category was the “dance” group, the maidens who had to know how to perform kagura.

This was an ancient ritual, so usually only people from shrines or families of shrine maidens could perform it.

And the kind Shinhui had to do part-time work as was precisely this last kind.

Part-time work, in her case, was really more like a substitute position.

The previous shrine maiden had become unexpectedly pregnant, and Fukuen Shrine had been unable to find a replacement to take over her role in time.

This had worried the shrine’s head priest, Miyamoto Shinichi, to no end.

Just then, he happened to learn that the daughter of his old friend Ito Toru, another member of a shrine family, was also in Tokyo. So he tried asking Toru whether his daughter might be willing to come to the shrine and work part-time for a while.

As an old friend, Toru naturally agreed without hesitation.

And so this scene had come to be.

Ito Shinhui, who should have been enjoying a quiet winter vacation, was forced to put on the shrine maiden outfit she hated most, and every day she had to perform kagura for passing tourists, dances so mortifying they made her want to die of shame.

At last, these past two days of heavy snowfall had kept visitors away from the shrine. Yet today, three tourists had come again.

Every time she thought of it, Shinhui gritted her teeth in frustration.

Apparently sensing her resentment, the junior shrine maiden who had come to report bowed her neck and sensibly withdrew from the room.

Meanwhile, as the hours passed, lunchtime arrived before long.

Miyamoto Shinichi invited Anhe and the others to eat together in the shrine cafeteria, but they declined, saying they had brought boxed lunches with them.

After repeated invitations yielded no result, Miyamoto had no choice but to leave alone.

After he was gone, Amiya Saori watched Anhe open his travel bag and asked curiously, “Why did we turn down Mr. Miyamoto’s invitation? I was actually looking forward to trying the food at the shrine.”

“Then you’re going to be disappointed,” Anhe said.

He looked around the room, and seeing that no other shrine staff were nearby, he took out several cans of meat from the travel bag and said casually, “Some shrines actually don’t allow meat.”

“Huh?”

Saori let out a puzzled sound, then noticed the meat cans Anhe had taken out and exclaimed, “Then why did you bring so many—mmph!”

Before she could finish, Anhe clamped a hand over her mouth.

“Shh. Keep your voice down.”

Making a hush gesture, Anhe glanced at Amiya Sagi, who was sitting beside them. When Sagi saw him look over, she nodded, then stood and closed the paper sliding door to the living room.

Only then did Anhe release Saori, wiping his saliva-wet hand on her clothes as he explained, “That’s only true for some places. I don’t know whether Fukuen Shrine forbids meat, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. If they do, wouldn’t we go the whole day without meat?”

At the mere thought of missing meat, Saori, who had been somewhat unhappy a moment ago, immediately fell silent.

Anhe quickly finished the portion of canned food that had been set out in front of him. Seeing that the Amiya sisters were still eating, he simply stood and stepped out of the living room.

He planned to go to the restroom.

But after only a few steps, he ran into a serious problem.

He had no idea where the restroom was.

The urge in his lower body was growing stronger by the second. Fortunately, heaven had not yet closed all roads: not far away, on a set of steps, a somewhat familiar back offered his lower self a glimmer of salvation.

Thanks to his ability to replay memories, Anhe recognized at a glance that it was the back of the shrine’s chief priest, Miyamoto Shinichi. He immediately quickened his pace and moved toward him.

But just as he drew near, before he could even greet the man, a series of strange, sultry, rhythmically familiar sounds drifted into his ears.

Something like an adult video?

That thought flashed through Anhe’s mind.

As if to confirm his guess, Miyamoto Shinichi, having heard the movement behind him, turned around at almost exactly that moment. When he saw that it was Anhe, he said in surprise, “Oh, it’s you, Anhe-kun.”

Anhe nodded in response, but his gaze was drawn to the smartphone in Miyamoto’s left hand.

It was the newly released iPhive from last September. Saori had one, too. But what caught Anhe’s attention was not the price or the features; it was the content on the screen.

A man and a woman were engaged in a game of cards on a wide bed, and the variety of their positions was enough to make even Anhe, who had seen countless such videos, silently click his tongue.

He took in the scene for only a moment before looking away, then back at Miyamoto Shinichi. Raising a brow, he teased, “Mr. Miyamoto, I didn’t realize you were into this sort of thing.”

“It’s fine. I only watch it from time to time.”

Miyamoto smiled without much concern and turned off his phone.

Only then did Anhe notice that in Miyamoto’s other hand was an aluminum bowl, filled to the brim with rice and side dishes. With a sharp eye, he even spotted chicken drumstick and fish.

Apparently noticing Anhe’s gaze, Miyamoto first glanced at the meat in his bowl, then explained, “We don’t have those kinds of taboos at Fukuen Shrine.”

“I see.”

Anhe nodded, then remembered why he had come and asked, “Mr. Miyamoto, is there a restroom nearby?”

“The restroom?”

Miyamoto pointed to a small building not far away and explained, “There’s one over there, though we don’t keep toilet paper in it. Do you need some, Anhe-kun?”

As he spoke, he took a wad of toilet paper out of his pocket.

But Anhe waved his hands in embarrassment and refused repeatedly. “No, no, thank you for your kindness, Mr. Miyamoto, but I brought my own.”

What a joke. A man who had just been watching that sort of adult video—who knew whether he had already done the deed with it? Anhe had no desire to end up indirectly touching some other man’s ape.

After returning to the office to tie his shoes, Anhe reappeared there only to find that Miyamoto Shinichi was gone. Presumably he had found a quieter, more secluded place to continue appreciating art.

Come to think of it, though it had only been a fleeting glance, if he considered it carefully, the woman in that video seemed absurdly well-endowed.

A line suddenly surfaced in his mind:

Big? A sharp light flashed in your eyes. Since Miyamoto Shinichi himself doesn’t even care, and can remain so calm while watching a live feed from the bedroom surveillance cameras at home, does that mean you might also have a chance? With that thought, a brilliant plan formed in your mind: all you need to do is get Miyamoto Shinichi drunk tonight, then obtain the surveillance footage and home address from his phone. Then, under cover of night, go to his house and use the video as leverage to force him—

What did that mean?

The sudden narration made Anhe’s brain stall for a moment. After a while, he finally sorted out the key words.

What Miyamoto Shinichi had just been watching was not an adult video at all, but a live feed from his bedroom surveillance camera. As for the identity of the woman in it, that was self-evident.

And yet, Miyamoto Shinichi had looked at the video with such utter calm just now, clearly as if this was not his first time...

At that realization, Anhe’s scalp tingled. He immediately hurried his steps.

He intended to finish the shrine visit as quickly as possible and get the Amiya sisters out of there early.

After all, a man who could smile broadly while watching a video of his own wife coming out was rather terrifying.

Unfortunately, that wish was doomed not to come true.

Because after crossing the courtyard and just before reaching the restroom, Anhe encountered yet another acquaintance.

Ito Shinhui.

At that moment, she wore a golden crown on her head and held a sacred bell in her hand. Her upper body was clad in a white robe with red trim and a red sash tied at the waist, while her lower half was covered by a red skirt-like hakama. Her feet were in white cloth shoes.

Because they were walking straight toward each other, the moment Anhe saw Shinhui, she saw him as well.

Both of them froze, then spoke at the same time.

“Why are you here?” x2

The surroundings fell silent for a moment. In the end, it was Anhe who spoke first.

“I came to the Fuji area for a trip, and I thought I’d stop by Fukuen Shrine to pray for a good match.”

“Just you?”

Shinhui’s delicate brows drew together slightly. She remembered that when the junior shrine maiden had reported earlier, she had clearly said there were three visitors.

At that, Anhe waved a hand and explained, “Amiya Sagi and her little sister are with me too.”

“Oh, I see. So you brought your girlfriend here to pray for marriage.”

Shinhui’s expression showed sudden understanding, but her face was full of sarcasm.

After all, a month ago this man had said he wanted to hold a wedding with her, and now he had secretly brought other girls to Fukuen Shrine, a place famous for prayers for marriage.

Shinhui’s expression was too direct, so Anhe had no choice but to divert her attention.

“Why are you here, and wearing a shrine maiden outfit, too?”

“Me?”

Shinhui pointed to herself, then gently shook the bell in her hand, revealing a bleak expression as she continued, “I’ve had it pretty rough, you know. The father of the child in my belly ran off with someone else, so I had no choice but to become a shrine maiden and pray that the gods might grant me a little affection.”

“Speak seriously.”

As he said that, Anhe stepped up to Shinhui and started fiddling with the crown on her head.

She slapped his filthy hand away at once, rolling her eyes before explaining.

After hearing Shinhui’s story, Anhe found himself at a loss for how to comfort her, so he could only joke, “Why are you so opposed to being a shrine maiden? Honestly, you look pretty cute in that outfit.”

When she heard that, Shinhui clicked her tongue and was just about to say something when she suddenly noticed, from the corner of her eye, a familiar figure walking this way in the distance.

Though she had only met her once, Shinhui still remembered the name.

Amiya Sagi.

For some reason, whatever sarcastic remark she had been about to make vanished back down her throat. Instead, she placed one hand on Anhe’s shoulder and lifted the other to his cheek, then blinked and smiled coquettishly.

“Do you really think so, Anhe-kun?”

Though Anhe was puzzled by her sudden change in demeanor, he still nodded.

After all, shrine maiden outfits really did strike at his tastes.

Seeing that, Shinhui’s smile widened. Noticing that Amiya Sagi in the distance had already spotted them, she suddenly stepped forward, wrapped her arms around Anhe, and rose onto her toes to press her red lips to his.

Without giving Anhe time to react, the two parted at once. Then, with a smug smile on her face, Shinhui skipped away alone.

“What was that supposed to mean?”

Anhe still had no idea what Shinhui’s move had been about.

Scratching his head, he decided not to think about it anymore and continued on to the restroom.

He had never imagined that Shinhui would be working part-time here. After all, whenever they chatted, they were either bickering or making dirty jokes, and rarely ever talked about their current lives.

After taking care of business, when Anhe came out again, he felt as though every part of him had come alive.

The winter wind swept past, making him shiver, and he headed back toward the office.

When he pushed open the paper door, the Amiya sisters were still obediently sitting in the living room.

“I asked about it just now, and this shrine does allow meat,” Anhe said as he drew the door shut again, then sat down beside Amiya Sagi.

For some reason, however, he felt that the way Sagi was looking at him had changed greatly compared with before.

Hmm...

It was a little like the look she had had when things with Kurose Nadeko had been exposed.

As if something had happened in between.

When he asked Saori, she didn’t know either, so Anhe simply decided he would ask around privately later.

The three of them sat in the living room for a while longer when suddenly the paper door slid open a crack, and a young shrine maiden peeked in. Seeing that all three were there, she pulled the door fully open, bowed first, and then said, “Please, honored guests, come this way. The kagura dance is about to begin.”

“Huh? That early?”

Anhe was somewhat surprised. The girl looked apologetic and replied, “Because there are only three guests, we don’t need to set up a very large stage for this performance.”

“I see.”

Anhe nodded in understanding.

The three of them stood and followed the girl through the corridor, finally arriving at a courtyard.

There, on a simple stage, a figure stood waiting: Ito Shinhui.

She wore a long white robe with red patterns on it, and beneath it a long red skirt. Her long hair had been arranged into a high coiffure, decorated with flowers and feathers. On her head sat a white cap also adorned with red designs.

In her left hand she held a long wooden sacred staff, its tip fitted with a metal sphere set with a red jewel. The whole ensemble looked mysterious and elegant, as though she were a messenger of the gods endowed with holy power. In her right hand was the sacred bell Anhe had seen earlier.

The moment Anhe looked at her, she noticed him too, but her expression showed no sign of change.

At this moment, Ito Shinhui seemed like the kind of awe-inspiring priestess one saw in films and dramas: cold, graceful, and mysterious.