The Rakshasa Princess’s Love (1)

Before she knew it, Mei had been living in the Otherworld for nearly half a year.

Word had spread that Mei had healed Jokyo, the chief of the Karasu Tengu, from the brink of death, and even more weakened Aberrations than before had begun coming to Ryoga for help.

By now, Mei had become quite famous as the “Yasha’s Princess.”

“Thank you very much, Princess.”

Mei smiled gently as she watched the dog Aberration she had just finished treating bow deeply before leaving.

What she did here was no different from before, and yet every day she was thanked for it.

At first she had not known how to accept that, but lately she had become much more comfortable doing so.

(—I suppose you could say something good came out of misfortune.)

Remembering what had happened after Kyo abducted her, Mei gave a wry smile.

The commotion when she returned to the estate had been tremendous. Aki had even rushed up to her half in tears, overjoyed that she was safe.

“Oh, thank goodness. When I heard you had been kidnapped, Princess, I thought I would die of worry.”

The smaller Aberrations had refused to leave Mei’s side for quite some time afterward.

Still, that incident had brought about one benefit.

Ryoga and the others had finally realized that Mei was human and knew little about the rules of this world.

There was no problem as long as she remained inside the estate, but no one could say something similar would never happen again. And so Mei was finally taught the fundamentals she needed to live in this world.

She learned that this world, like the human world, was divided into twelve months and followed a roughly similar calendar.

The passage of time within a single day was somewhat vague, however, and there apparently was no fixed length for day or night.

She also learned that there were several special days known as “Shukujitsu.”

Curiously enough, they closely resembled the days used by exorcists when divining good and ill fortune, and thanks to that, Mei was able to understand that time in this world did not differ all that greatly from time on the other side.

By now, life here had become completely natural to her.

One afternoon, while Mei was helping Aki mend some clothes, Gen began speaking excitedly beside her.

“Once the month changes, Kongō Day will arrive. Things will get busy.”

“Kongō is a festival day here, isn’t it?”

“Yes! Skilled Aberrations set up stalls, and it becomes incredibly lively. At the estate, we eat special food and drink sake too. Ahh, I can’t wait.”

Apparently remembering previous celebrations, Gen licked his nose with his tiny tongue.

“You are far too gluttonous.”

Kyo narrowed his eyes in exasperation and shrugged.

“What did you say? There’ll be good food and sake. What’s wrong with looking forward to it?”

“I’m telling you not to get so carried away that you neglect your duties.”

Mei smiled at Gen and Kyo as they glared at one another.

When the two had first begun serving at Mei’s side together, they had clashed over nearly everything. By now, however, they had built a fairly good relationship as bickering companions.

They still traded insults like this from time to time, but they did not actually dislike one another.

Whenever an Aberration tried to force Mei to treat them, the two worked together seamlessly to drive them away.

They were noisy in their own way, but having them at her side made Mei feel safe and reassured.

“Where I lived, Kongō Day was a day of purification. We were forbidden to eat, and we purified ourselves and reflected on our own power.”

Kongō Day came twice a year, on the summer and winter solstices.

Since Mei had not needed to prepare meals on those days, she remembered thinking of them almost like rare days off.

(—I wasn’t allowed to eat either, but at least they were precious days when I could spend my time quietly.)

It was strange to think that here, the same day was one when Aberrations of every rank celebrated boisterously together.

“That reminds me. If there’s a Kongō Day… is there a Rakshasa Day too?”

Mei stopped moving the needle in her hand and asked Gen the question that had been on her mind ever since learning about the Shukujitsu.

For exorcists, Rakshasa Day was the most dreaded day of ill fortune.

If it existed in this world too, what kind of day was it?

Though she had asked the question herself, nervous sweat slowly gathered in her palms.

What if Rakshasa Day was despised here too?

“Rakshasa! Yes, of course there is.”

“There… is?”

“Yes. For us, Rakshasa Day is an auspicious day. Our power increases, and some even rise to a higher rank because of it.”

“Oh…”

Mei had expected its meaning to differ from the human world, but she had never imagined it would be so completely opposite.

“I’m surprised you know about it. Rakshasa Day comes only once every few decades, if that. Some younger Aberrations do not even know it exists.”

“Yes. Even I have only experienced it once. It comes so suddenly that no one realizes Rakshasa Day is approaching until it arrives.”

In the human world, the organization overseeing the exorcists divined when Rakshasa Day would occur, but in the Otherworld, it seemed to be a day whose arrival could only be awaited naturally.

“Everything is different here. Where I came from, Rakshasa Day was considered a day of terrible misfortune.”

Because she had been born on that day, Mei had lived her entire life under mistreatment.

“What a waste. Humans truly are strange creatures.”

“Indeed. If a child were born on Rakshasa Day here, they would be treasured as a symbol of the clan’s future prosperity.”

Could things truly be that different simply because one lived in another world?

“…Maybe I should have been born here.”

The words slipped from her lips even though she had meant to keep them inside.

Gen and Kyo both froze and stared at Mei with puzzled expressions.

“Princess?”

“Ah, I’m sorry. It just slipped out… You see, I was born on Rakshasa Day.”

Unable to bring herself to say that she had been abused because of it in the human world, Mei faltered.

Gen and Kyo exchanged glances, then both cried out in delight.

“That is wonderful! Born on Rakshasa Day, and a Princess besides!”

“Ah, I see, I see. Now I understand why Lady Mei is so special. So that was the reason.”

“Um… you two?”

Mei was bewildered by how delighted they were.

“In other words, Lady Mei is a Rakshasa Princess!”

“Rakshasa Princess! What a splendid name! We absolutely must spread the word.”

Mei could not find any opening to interrupt the two as they happily talked among themselves.1

In this world, being born on Rakshasa Day truly was considered a sign of good fortune.

(—Rakshasa Princess…)

The exorcists of West Suo had called her “Rakshasa” with contempt.

She had no idea how many times she had suffered because of that slur, a name shared with the day of ill fortune on which she had been born.

And yet she could hear the deep affection in Gen and Kyo’s voices when they called her the Rakshasa Princess.

The same words could sound so completely different depending on the feelings placed within them.

Something hot rose in her chest and caught in her throat.

Lowering her face so they would not see her tearful eyes, Mei quietly wiped them.