69novels Chapter 154 Exclusive Game
Chapter 154 Exclusive Game
As night fell, a bright moon hung quietly in the sky, its pale light barely penetrating the clouds and casting dappled shadows on the simple and elegant Japanese-style room.
The paper window was half-closed, and occasionally a night breeze would blow through, making a slight rustling sound as the window frame moved. The air was filled with a faint aroma of tea and the scent of sandalwood. The paper lantern on the wooden table emitted a soft, warm yellow light, casting a gentle, hazy glow throughout the room.
The candlelight danced gently, mingling with the moonlight and casting shadows on the brownish-gray table. Amidst the interplay of light and shadow, fingertips adorned with pale pink nail polish paused on the snow-white paper.
Moko sat quietly at the table, bathed in a warm and hazy glow, as if deep in thought, her eyes profound, her mind drifting to the distant past.
The wind blew the candlelight, causing the paper lantern to sway gently. The candlelight flickered and quietly went out, leaving only a wisp of smoke that rose gently in the hazy night. Mo Ke seemed to wake up slowly from a dream, her eyes gradually regaining their color, and everything around her was reflected back into her hazy yet gradually clearing vision.
After a long pause, Moko sighed deeply, finally sealed the envelope with wax, and put the letter into her cloth bag.
"Mihua, please."
Moko gently rubbed Mihua's head, picked her up, and walked to the windowsill.
"Pfft~"
Mihua's fluffy head nuzzled against Moke's palm affectionately, then, under Moke's gaze, it grabbed the cloth bag containing the letter and flew into the night, leaving only the soft feeling in her palm. Moke slowly clenched her hand and looked up at the gradually fading night and the faint light of dawn approaching.
Hiyori-chan, please forgive me for not being able to see you in person right now. There are too many people watching you, and I don't want to cause you any trouble. You are one of my important family members, and I will never let you be alone in this dangerous situation. Tell me everything you want to do in the future, and tell me what your wishes are. You will definitely be able to understand that letter, because it is a game that belongs only to you.
Hiyori-chan, let's play games together again...
"Xiao Zi, what's wrong? You've been acting strange ever since you came back from the banquet."
A man with a huge blue airplane-shaped hairstyle and wearing a dark blue kimono looked at Hiyori, who was sitting listlessly by the window, and asked her a question. Hiyori, however, kept gazing at the sinking full moon outside the window and did not respond.
"Little Purple, Little Purple..."
Seeing that Hiyori still didn't react, the man sighed deeply, then put down his pipe and said in an extremely solemn voice, "Princess!"
"Huh?" Perhaps the voice was too serious, Hiyori suddenly came to her senses. Looking at the man's serious expression, Hiyori smiled apologetically.
"I'm sorry, Denjiro, I was daydreaming."
"Princess, there's no need to apologize. Did something happen at the banquet? You don't seem to be in a good mood."
"banquet……"
Hiyori lowered her eyes, concealing the sadness within them, and after a long silence, she swayed, "I'm fine, it's just... never mind, let's rest."
Finally stopping her words, Hiyori gently shook her head, got up, and prepared to return to her bedroom. Her sister's identity was an absolute taboo, and she must never let anyone else know, not even her most trusted retainers. This was an ironclad rule that Hiyori had written down the year her Uncle Roger passed away.
Even if she doesn't know what her sister is thinking, or why her sister is in Wano Country, she will definitely protect her sister, because her sister is...
"Yes."
Sensing that Hiyori was unwilling to continue the topic, Denjiro stopped asking questions and prepared to get up and leave. Just then, a noise suddenly came from the window.
"Pfft~"
The soft, familiar voice was as familiar as ever. Hiyori suddenly turned around, and the red, fluffy creature on the windowsill fluttered its wings. Its appearance was so familiar that it made her miss it so much that she wanted to cry.
"male……"
"Puffed rice!"
Before Denjiro could finish speaking, Hiyori suddenly pounced on Mika on the windowsill, embracing her tightly as if she had found a lost treasure. Hiyori kept calling Mika's name.
"Puffed rice, puffed rice..."
Tears welled in Hiyori's eyes as she affectionately rubbed against Mihana's soft downy fur. This was Mihana, the real Mihana, her sister's Mihana.
"Pfft~"
Mika reached out her fluffy paws and gently patted Hiyori's face, wiping away the tears from the corners of Hiyori's eyes, as if comforting her, just like when the big Mika comforted the little Hiyori when she was little. And now, it was the little Mika comforting the big Hiyori.
As for Denjiro standing to the side, he was completely dumbfounded. No, someone tell him, when did his princess get such a pet? No, this isn't the time to discuss that. He's more interested in knowing where this strange creature came from. He's never seen anything like it in Wano Country before!
"Princess, what is this?"
As if she had just remembered that Denjiro was still there, Hiyori quickly raised her wide furisode to cover Mihana, just like a child afraid that her beloved toy would be taken away. Hiyori held back her tears before turning back to look at Denjiro.
"Denjiro, you should go back now."
Although he wondered why Hiyori was hiding it, Denjiro didn't ask any further questions. He knew that the princess must have her own reasons for doing things, and all he needed to do was protect her.
"Yes."
Denjiro bowed, closed the paper door, and left. After the footsteps outside faded away, Hiyori peeked through the crack in the door again. Seeing that no one was around, Hiyori took Mika back to the bedroom, lowered the layers of curtains, and everything in the bedroom was hidden.
"Mika, why are you here? Where's my sister? My sister..." Hiyori hesitated for a moment, then continued with a hint of expectation, "Is my sister here too?"
"Pfft~"
Although they couldn't communicate, Mika could understand Hiyori's words. Mika flapped her wings, shook her head, and pushed the cloth bag she was holding in front of Hiyori.
"This is?"
Hiyori's pupils contracted sharply, and her outstretched hand trembled involuntarily. Just as she was about to touch the bag, her fingers suddenly curled up, as if afraid of disturbing her dream. She knew she would wake up in the next moment, and everything that had happened today was just a beautiful dream.
After a long pause, as if finally ready, Hiyori slowly reached out her finger towards the bag. The jasmine flower pattern embroidered in the corner of the bag was lifelike. The petals were sewn with a special embroidery technique, and upon closer inspection, there was a very delicate flowing halo. This embroidery technique, which uses dozens of kinds of silk threads, is something only Moko would use.
Hiyori carefully picked up the cloth bag and rubbed it against her cheek. Then, she carefully opened the bag. Inside was only a letter. Hiyori pursed her lips, took several deep breaths, and slowly moved to the dim moonlight. By the clear moonlight, Hiyori carefully opened the envelope and unfolded the folded letter.
"Snapped!"
Upon seeing the letter, Hiyori could no longer hold back her tears, which she had been holding back finally dripped down onto the pristine, blank letter. But as she cried, Hiyori couldn't help but laugh, muttering to herself.
"Too cunning, sister..."
"Pfft?"
Mika tilted her head and rubbed it against Hiyori's hand like she was comforting a child. Hiyori raised her hand and gently wiped away the tears from the corner of her eyes, patted Mika's head, and picked up the thin-handled calligraphy brush next to her.
……
"Sister, is it really true that any wish can be made? Will the God really grant Hiyori's wish tomorrow?"
The tiny Hiyori sat in Moko's arms, looking up at Moko. Moko pursed her lips, smiled gently, and patted Hiyori's head.
"Of course, the gods love good children the most. Since the gods like Hiyori-chan so much, they will definitely come to celebrate Hiyori-chan's birthday tomorrow."
"Really!? That's great! I'm going to tell Mom and Dad!"
Hiyori happily jumped from Moko's arms to the ground, but as she was about to run away, she suddenly stopped, as if she had thought of something, lowered her head, and gently tugged at Moko's clothes.
"Sister, sister."
"What's wrong, Hiyori-chan?" Moko asked gently as she looked at Hiyori-chan who had turned back around.
"My Lord God, will you only grant Hiyori's wishes?"
"Hmm, does Hiyori-chan want to grant other people's wishes?"
"Then does that mean Mother, Father, and everyone else can't have their wishes fulfilled?"
Moko blinked, then smiled softly, "So, Hiyori-chan wants to share her wish with everyone?"
"May I?"
Hiyori's eyes sparkled with surprise as she looked at Moko. Children's hearts are the purest and most innocent, capable of softening anyone's heart at first glance. Moko knelt down, cupped Hiyori's chubby cheeks in her hands, and kissed her.
"Hiyori-chan, let's play a game, a game that belongs only to Hiyori-chan."
"game!"
"Yeah, a game, a game that Hiyori-chan will definitely win."
Moko smiled and took a piece of white paper from the table, placing it in front of Hiyori. She also handed Hiyori a pen, saying, "Hiyori-chan, write down your wish."
"Write it down?"
"Yes, Hiyori-chan, write down your wish and fold it into a little boat. The boat that floats the farthest will drift with the waves to the God. The God will surely see Hiyori-chan's wish then."
"If only, if only, little boat, boohoo~ Sister~"
Before she could finish speaking, Moko pinched and kneaded Hiyori's cheeks like dough. Hiyori blinked her big, confused eyes at Moko and called out to her indistinctly. Under Hiyori's gaze, Moko curled her lips into a smile.
"Hiyori-chan's little boat will definitely reach the God, it definitely will..."
"Pfft~"
Mika's adorable voice brought Hiyori's scattered thoughts back to life. A smile returned to Hiyori, ink smeared on her nose, and she picked up a pen to write her wish on the paper. A wish? Her wish had always been simple, always just one: she wanted to be with her family, to be happy together forever…
Will it really drift very far?
Hiyori held the paper boat and looked back at Moko. Moko nodded affirmatively, and the others around them smiled indulgently, gesturing for Hiyori to put the boat into the sea.
With everyone's approval, Hiyori's eyes shone like stars. She crouched down and carefully followed the others to put the small paper boat into the surging sea. The moment Hiyori turned her back, Moko's eyes emitted a faint halo. The almost transparent halo flew rapidly toward Hiyori's paper boat and enveloped it. As the waves crashed again, the paper boat drifted away.
Even after all the other paper boats sank into the sea, Hiyori's paper boat never sank, but disappeared at the boundary between the sea and the sky.
Shanks noticed Moko using his powers to help Hiyori "cheat," and with a look of helplessness and doting in his eyes, he strode over to Moko's side and protected her.
"Hiyori-chan's paper boat went the furthest! That's great! The gods will surely see my wish!" Hiyori-chan jumped for joy as her paper boat drifted away, and the others cheered happily along with her.
"Hahaha, the gods will surely see my Hiyori-chan's wish! What did my darling Hiyori-chan wish for?" Oden excitedly picked up Hiyori and kissed her.
"I hope that I can live happily with everyone forever."
"Really? Hahahaha, Hiyori-chan's wish will definitely come true, hahahaha."
……
"Mihua, please deliver this letter to my sister."
Hiyori took out a new cloth bag, put the letter in it, and handed it to Mika.
"Pfft~"
As dawn broke, Mihua nodded, took flight with her reply, and vanished into the pink sunrise in the blink of an eye. Rihe smiled faintly, her soft, lingering murmurs like a gentle breeze rustling through the treetops; only the wind was known to come, but no trace remained.
"I entrust this wish to you, my divine being..."