“So, Qianji, what’s your plan next?” Yugami Yuu asked, his voice a steady drum under amber lamplight.

“We’ll prepare elixirs with recovery and healing effects, then set out.” Qianji’s tone was steel under frost. “It’s Xinuo Miss’s first order. We must do it flawlessly.”

“I see. Stocking more elixirs makes sense.” Yuu’s brows furrowed like gathering cloud. “Still, outside forces wanting to topple the Mizumi Clan… envy circles like wolves. They’re jealous we hold the Central Continent alone.”

A splinter of worry pricked him, like a thorn under skin. “After the Worldgate went wrong, Xinuo had you purge Dark Demon across the Eastern Moon Continent. There must be a link.”

“Dark Demon are nothing but capering clowns.” She shook her head like a willow in wind. “They can’t even approach the Central Continent, much less topple us. Still, they’ve been noisy lately.” Her eyes flashed like cold stars. “It’s time to teach them a lesson.”

“Qianji Sister’s right! Dark Demon are clowns.” Nozomi’s anger burst like sparks. “They caused trouble and sent Brother to the Northern Abyss Continent, to seek the Ice Dream Lotus for Hill’s wounds. We didn’t see him for so long. Unforgivable!”

Though FrostyLily Dream kept Yumigawa Sumeragi training on the Northern Abyss Continent, the first domino fell at Egisia Academy. Dark Demon invaded and injured Hill.

“Hey, don’t get too riled.” Yugong Jingyue’s palm was a soft breeze on Nozomi’s hair. “If Dark Demon mean little to you, don’t let them sour your heart.”

“Confidence is good, but caution keeps the boat afloat for years.” It’s a lantern in fog.

He looked at Qianji and Nozomi, brimming with scorn for Dark Demon. Helplessness pooled like rainwater in his chest. Self‑confidence tilts into arrogance, like a blade slipping. Born of the Mizumi Clan, you can ignore most outside powers. But that path invites trouble, like black ice underfoot. An old strategist once said, know yourself and know your enemy. Win a hundred battles without peril, like a hawk that sees the field.

Right now, Qianji and Nozomi haven’t studied Dark Demon much. They’re simply confident about this hunt, hearts beating quick like drums. In short, their mindset isn’t mature yet. Nozomi’s young, barely eleven or twelve, a sapling in spring. But even Qianji shows it, and Yuu’s father’s heart tightened. Across ages, the strong who sneer at foes often slip in a gutter. The lesson repeats like tides.

“Don’t worry, Father.” Her voice was calm water. “Against near‑equal foes, we’ll be careful. Against Dark Demon’s clownery, we’ll crush fast. No need to waste time on dust.”

She knew what Yugami Yuu feared. She wasn’t conceited, nor blinded by the clan’s power. She simply believed different enemies require different blades. It’s like a Sacred Realm mage cleansing F‑to‑D‑rank bandits. If power alone rolls over them, why spend extra breath?

“You’re not wrong, but a touch of caution is always good.” His sigh drifted like smoke. He remembered Qianji was in her twenties, stubborn as a mountain. Preaching would backfire, like pushing a river. Young people need scrapes to grow, like bamboo facing wind. Qianji, the strongest all‑around genius of our young generation, carries a natural pride.

So he shifted the topic like turning a page. “Qianji, Littlesky, when will you depart?”

“After we restock elixirs. Dark Demon’s claws stretch across the world like brambles. Weak overall, but many. This mission will take time.”

“I’ll follow Qianji Sister.” Her nod was crisp as tapping ice.

Yumigawa Ayane suggested, voice like warm tea, “So rushed? You rarely come home. Stay a few more days.”

“A few more days… fine. We’ll leave in three days.” Her acceptance fell like a pebble into still water.

They hadn’t lived in the Mizumi Clan for a long while. Two or three days of home’s quiet feels like a good rest before the road.

“All right, it’s late. Stay and eat with us.” The invitation glowed like hearthfire.

Just then, two maids entered with fragrant dishes, steam curling like clouds.

“Mm.”

…

After dinner and hot baths, it was past nine. Night lay over the manor like velvet. Qianji and Nozomi drifted to Yumigawa Sumeragi’s room without thinking. They planned to stay here these three nights.

They opened the door and found someone had arrived first. Yugong Jingyue, in pink, cute pajamas, sprawled on the bed, reading manga. She treated the room like her own, as casually as a cat in sunlight. The furnishings matched how Sumeragi left them, untouched like a preserved garden. It was very clean, clearly tended often.

“Jingyue, what are you doing?” Qianji’s eyes narrowed like crescents. “Why are you in Sumeragi’s room?”

Nozomi leaned in, curiosity fluttering like a sparrow. “Serenemoon, did you move into Brother’s room?”

They closed the door and sat by the bed, the quilt soft as clouds.

“Littlesky’s half right,” Jingyue said, lips curved like moon arcs. “I didn’t move in. I just come by sometimes.”

“Sometimes… right.” Qianji smirked, a line like knife‑light. “Looks like your days are pretty leisurely.”

“Always leisurely,” Jingyue sighed, a breeze losing its way. “But since Sumeragi left, everything’s dull. At first, his scent still lingered, like pine after rain. Hugging his pillow and burrowing under his quilt felt nice. But as time flowed, his scent faded like snow in spring. It hurt more than I expected.”

Hearing that, Qianji and Nozomi pictured the scene, a lamp‑lit memory like watercolor. The day after Sumeragi left, Jingyue hugging his pillow, sniffing it, rolling on the bed. Nozomi had actually seen it before she left the Central Continent to find her brother, the image bright as a stamp.

“Serenemoon, that’s shameless!” Nozomi puffed up like a small fox. “Brother leaves and you act like that.”

“I can’t help it…” Jingyue’s voice trembled like strings. “I can’t go outside to find him like you two. And playing with Sumeragi is my greatest joy, my sun.” She set down the comic, pages whispering like leaves.

“With my favorite gone, and so few people at the main house, days go hollow. I can’t find things to do. I wander alone across the Central Continent, like a solo traveler. But every place is sparse, footsteps echoing in empty halls. Loneliness bites like winter.”

“The Central Continent’s environment beats the outside, verdant as jade,” Qianji nodded. “But living here is dull. Too quiet.”

“Yeah,” Nozomi agreed, warmth like a small brazier. “Home’s this quiet, and Brother’s gone. I couldn’t stand it, so I went to find him.”

“Mm… I’m glad you understand,” Jingyue murmured, relief flowing like tea.

So Qianji and Nozomi kept Serenemoon company late into the night, then drifted to sleep, dreams settling like snow.

…