So what was Rin doing at this very moment?
She was eating without paying.
Nagazora City. Right outside the gates of Chiba Academy, on the same street where they often bought popsicles, there was an unremarkable little noodle shop.
At this moment, Yae sakura, dressed in a white shrine maiden's attire with a pleated skirt and white knee-high socks, sat inside the restaurant. Before her were three bowls of noodles, already scraped clean. In her hands was a fourth.
Her pupils, which should have been pale violet, were now a faint blue tinged with cyan. This was Rin's color.
"Um... hello."
Kiana cautiously poked the shrine maiden sister before her.
Rin cast a cold glance over and found it was just a little brat. She let out a soft scoff. "Get lost!"
In the next instant, her pupils shifted slightly, gaining a hint of pale violet. Yae Sakura forced out a smile. "I'm sorry, little sister. I..."
Kiana's little face went blank. But this familiar malice, it made her feel like she was back in Siberia.
Right. Everyone in Siberia was like this. You're weak? You deserve to be bullied. You're kind? You deserve to be devoured.
The smile Yae Sakura had just forced onto her face instantly turned icy. "I told you to get lost. Didn't you hear me? What are you still hoping for? For me to comfort you?"
Perfect. Exactly like that.
Kiana didn't dislike it at all. After all, she was used to it. On that vast land of Siberia, gentleness earned you no courtesy.
"Hey!" So she put on a fierce act too, hands on her hips. "Do shrine maidens make money or not?!"
Rin had just been about to continue stuffing her face. She cast a cold, sidelong glance, then reached out, ready to ruthlessly grab this brat and hurl her out the door.
"Demon fox!"
Yae Sakura's conscience still couldn't do something like that. Rin sneered twice. "You want to be a shrine maiden?"
Kiana nodded. She knew it. When facing rude people, as long as you were rude right back, you could fully blend in with them.
"Then are you prepared to bear the price?"
Rin crouched down. Yae Sakura's body was too tall, it felt somewhat awkward to her. Her fingertips traced along Kiana's cheek. The smile on her face was somewhat "brilliant."
"Does it pay?"
Kiana was only curious about this one thing.
Rin laughed lightly twice. "Money? How much of that stuff do you want? You can have as much as you want, can't you?"
Even though five hundred years ago, she, the Herrscher of Corruption, had essentially been half a blank slate.
But in this era, so developed, how could that backward, short-sighted shrine maiden possibly understand... the so-called power of Corruption?
Kiana's eyes lit up. "Really? Being a shrine maiden really makes that much money?"
Yae Sakura wanted to open her mouth and explain a thing or two. But Rin, now harboring malicious intent, gave her no chance to resist.
"But you have to be mentally prepared to pay the price."
Rin's laughter was cold and clear. Since it wasn't her own voice, it lacked a certain something.
"What kind of mental preparation?"
Kiana couldn't wait any longer.
She'd searched online during this period and discovered that a shrine maiden's work wasn't even that heavy. Sweep the grounds. Collect offerings. Occasionally help tourists interpret their fortunes. Way easier than working a regular job.
Rin spoke softly, her voice sweet and syrupy. "Do you have any siblings?"
The moment these words left her mouth, Yae Sakura's resistance instantly flared with intensity. But the gap was too great. Rin wouldn't give Yae Sakura the chance to fight back.
In fact, after this incident, Yae Sakura would obediently become her doll. Her dear older sister.
...Though she herself wasn't clear either, whether she wanted to see Yae Sakura broken, or to see her stand up once more.
"I don't have any sisters." Kiana thought for a moment, then added, "But is a good friend okay?"
Rin furrowed her brow slightly. That was somewhat lacking. But it'd have to do.
"Yes. Call them over. I'll teach you how to become a qualified shrine maiden, one that others will acknowledge."
Kiana asked again, "Can it be a boy too?"
Rin went quiet for another moment. This was even more lacking. But hearing "boy," she did let out a small, quiet breath of relief. At least this way, Yae Sakura's emotions wouldn't completely collapse.
"Yes."
Then, under Rin's watchful gaze, Kiana pulled out a very compact cellphone. Not the slightest bit fancy. It seemed this era wasn't all that developed either.
"Shiraha. I found a way to make money. Hurry over."
On the other side, Shiraha stared at the message on his phone and tilted his head.
"Tsk. I should've forced her to join the club. How'd she manage to get scammed at a time like this?"
Shiraha sighed and called back. "Is it 'invest one, get ten back; invest ten, get a hundred back'?"
Kiana's little brain took a moment to catch up. Only after a beat did she belatedly shout, "There's a great path like that and you didn't tell me?!"
Rin couldn't hold it in. "That's a scam!"
Shiraha instantly caught the voice. "Who is she?"
Kiana snuck a glance at the shrine maiden sister beside her and lowered her voice. "A shrine maiden. I asked her whether shrine maidens make money. Shiraha, hurry over. I didn't forget you when it comes to a moneymaking path like this."
"Oh, right. That 'invest one, get ten back' path from before, don't forget to tell me."
Rin: ....
Shiraha: ....
He was quiet for a moment. "Alright. Where are you? Wait for me."
When it came to shrine maidens, Shiraha immediately thought of Yae Sakura.
The odds weren't high. But then, remembering it was Kiana who'd run into her, he felt the odds had just shot up considerably.
Kiana's luck had always been somewhat difficult to evaluate.
Kiana reported her location. "Right outside the school gates. That spot where we always bought popsicles. There's a noodle shop next to it."
After speaking, Kiana hung up.
Beside her, Rin was still stuffing herself. She'd gone far too long without tasting anything, even though this body didn't need to eat at all.
"Shiraha will be here soon."
Kiana sat down off to the side.
Expressionlessly, Rin reached into her sleeve. From somewhere within, a small tanto slid out and clattered to the floor with a crisp sound.
Kiana instantly retreated two steps. Rin kicked the tanto over in front of her.
"Don't you want to become a shrine maiden anymore?"
Rin shot back. At the same time, the power of the Herrscher of Corruption seeped through the surroundings, conveniently driving out the few guys nearby who'd been admiring the beauty.
Kiana hesitated, then picked up the weapon. The blade wasn't heavy. Just now, she'd really thought the person before her was about to stab her.
"I do."
She wanted to make money so badly.
Rin laughed lowly. "But only a qualified shrine maiden can earn money."
Kiana straightened her back and declared in a ringing voice, "Then I'll definitely become a qualified shrine maiden!"
Wasn't it just wearing a shrine maiden's outfit? Who couldn't do that?
Rin pressed on. "Then what if the price of becoming a shrine maiden... was killing your own good friend?"
"Eh?"
Kiana froze. "EHHH?!"
"Don't you want to earn money anymore? It's just killing one good friend."
Rin bent down. Her eyes flickered with struggle. "To become the most outstanding shrine maiden, I endured the pain and killed my own little sister."
She tilted her head, her smile brilliant. "In the end, I truly became the most outstanding shrine maiden."
Kiana retreated two more steps. The small tanto in her hand clattered to the ground.
Rin pressed closer with every step. "What are you afraid of? To fulfill your own dream, you're not even willing to make this tiny sacrifice?"
"You want to earn big money. To earn big money, you have to become a shrine maiden."
"When the time comes, just set up a memorial day for your good friend, won't that be enough? Every year on that day, properly go and remember him."