A little while later, Mina returned to the bathhouse, leaving everyone stunned. Duyen hadn't gone anywhere—she was still standing there, waiting for her.
The moment Mina stepped in, she met Duyen's gaze. Duyen looked at her with warmth and quiet tenderness, just like before—back when their eyes used to meet through the chain-link fences of the tennis court. Mina had always felt it, always known it: no matter what kind of trouble she got herself into, Duyen could see right through her and still choose to be gentle.
Before Duyen could even say a word, the other girls rushed over. One by one, they grabbed Mina's hands without hesitation.
"H—Hey, wait!" Mina frowned in irritation, but she was already being dragged into the bath.
From a distance, Shana watched her with a knowing look, leisurely sipping her drink.
"Alright! Enough—wait!" Mina snapped. Only then did they finally let go.
Mina glanced around. Every single one of them saw her for exactly who she was—and yet, they were still trying their best to treat her kindly. Still, this kind of closeness made her uneasy.
She looked over at Dao and realized the girl was already completely wasted, sprawled out comfortably while a few fox-masked girls fanned her like royalty. Honestly, she looked happier than a king.
And Shana—still wearing that infuriatingly sly expression. This whole setup was obviously her idea. No doubt about it. Finally, Mina's eyes stopped on Duyen.
Noticing her gaze, Duyen looked slightly apologetic, a bit shy. But she still stepped forward and took Mina's hand, giving a small nod.
It felt like someone had just thrown Mina a lifeline.
Almost instantly, Mina felt safe. Warm. Just being near Duyen did that to her.
Duyen leaned in and whispered softly,
"Mina… no matter what happens, you're still you."
"Huh?"
Mina's face flushed when Duyen moved that close so naturally. Meanwhile, Shana snorted in clear displeasure.
Mina knew Duyen might've said that simply because she was a good person—but she wanted to believe it anyway.
She leaned in, pressed a gentle kiss to Duyen's lips, and whispered,
"I love you…"
"Hey—HEY!"
Shana shot to her feet.
But Mina was faster. She pulled Duyen toward her so suddenly that Duyen lost her balance, and the two of them tumbled together into the bath.
"Oh wow!"
"You girls are way too wild~"
Giggles echoed through the bathhouse while Shana's face turned red with fury.
When Duyen lifted her head, she realized—too late—that it was resting right on Mina's chest. Flustered, she tried to move, but Mina immediately held her in place.
"No, Duyen. I already lent you to her all day. Now it's my turn."
"Do you even hear what you're saying…?" Shana looked like steam was about to shoot out of her head.
The fox-masked girls started teasing their mistress.
"Come on, you should learn to share a little~"
"Share my ass!" Shana snapped as she yanked Duyên back toward herself.
Mina wasn't backing down either—she pulled even harder.
The two of them struggled fiercely, splashing water everywhere. Duyen was caught in between like a toy about to be ripped apart.
"G—Guys… please… calm down…"
Duyen, already tipsy, now dizzy from being tossed around, begged helplessly.
Shana bared her fangs.
"Let go of her. NOW."
Mina glared back, eyes burning red.
"You're the one who should let go!"
"Then don't blame me when the sea gets salty!"
"Oh yeah? I wouldn't mind wrecking this entire bathhouse! Bring it on!"
The fox-masked girls panicked and rushed in.
"Stop them! The bath's going to break!"
What followed was pure chaos—dozens of women crammed into what was once a spacious bath, now completely packed.
Only Dao slept peacefully through it all, mumbling in her dreams.
"Mina… come bathe with us… hic… ugh…"
Haru and Hasuko arrived, hearing the commotion—but the sight before them only made them laugh. They didn't even bother intervening. Haru plopped down and poured Hasuko a drink.
"It's not every day our village gets this lively, huh?"
Hasuko chuckled.
"True. I'd say the lady is enjoying herself."
"Enjoying herself?"
The fox-masked girls looked shocked.
"You mean Lady Shigonami?"
"Who else?" Haru winked. "You've served her for years—don't tell me you still don't know what she likes. Relax. She's having fun."
Haru glanced back at the chaos. You'd have to look very closely to notice the radiant smile on Shana's face.
But she wasn't the only one smiling.
Mina was smiling too—so much so that she completely forgot to look at her reflection in the mirror. All of them were enjoying it.
"Let go of her!"
"No, YOU let go!"
Haru couldn't help but giggle.
The laughter and splashing inside the bathhouse melted away the cold outside, even as heavy snow continued to fall. None of them noticed the unfamiliar figure silently watching from afar.
Purple hair swayed gently in the wind, untouched by the cold. A soft violet mist surrounded her—warm, alluring, almost hypnotic. Her purple lashes fluttered as she listened to the laughter drifting up from below.
Something inside her stirred—joy… and a strange loneliness. Because no one could see her.
"Hey, little brother."
The purple-haired woman flinched and turned around. It was Yu—or rather, Ama inside Yu's body.
Those amber-red eyes shone with unmistakable righteousness. Luna would never mistake them for anyone else.
Her voice softened instantly, violet light shimmering in her eyes, as if she'd finally come home.
"Sister…"
Ama laughed lightly, hands in her pockets, standing beside Luna as they looked down at the noisy bath below.
"…Do you have any idea how hard I've been searching for you all this time?"
Luna smiled faintly.
"And you… you were everywhere, sister."
Ama's voice caught.
"Were you avoiding me on purpose…?"
Luna shook her head gently and looked up at the moon—sometimes bright, sometimes veiled behind clouds. Ama followed her gaze.
The sun and the moon could never meet. Wasn't that how humans described them? Still, Ama had never hated Luna. And Luna had never hated her.
Luna smiled softly.
"Our responsibilities are finished now. We can finally meet freely, can't we? I mean—without all this."
"Ah…" Ama suddenly realized she was still in Yu's body. "I know this isn't fair to the girl. I'll return her body by dawn."
"Oh…" Luna studied Yu's face closely.
"She's brave. To be able to restrain your power like that."
"Yes." Ama sighed bitterly.
"And I went too far back then… but those girls—their willpower is remarkable."
She laughed quietly.
"They did what we never could for our mother."
Luna placed a hand on Ama's shoulder.
Together, they watched the village at night.
"Do you think Mother is satisfied?" Luna asked.
"Satisfied?" Ama laughed. "She's enjoying herself."
Luna burst out laughing.
"Then we should enjoy ourselves too. We can't let her have all the fun."
"Exactly."
Ama turned to Luna.
"So—do you want to be called little brother or little sister?"
Luna shrugged.
"I don't know. But right now… I like being Luna."
The two of them laughed together atop the hill, sharing stories they hadn't been able to tell for over a millennium. Below them, the village music played on—joyful, endless, alive.
Amuro paced around the village, standing guard through the night without sleep. When he finally lifted his eyes to the sky, the sun was already climbing higher—but his vigilance hadn't faded in the slightest.
Yu woke up to find herself lying on a woven mat on the floor of a stilt house in the village. Startled, she hurriedly touched her face, then her body.
Ama had clearly returned her body to her. But this time… something felt wrong. There was no trace of Ama left inside her. Not even a fragment.
Had she truly gone… for good?
A hollow emptiness crept into Yu's chest—even though she was someone who had never really shown emotion before. All this time, Ama had been with her. Ama had saved her from danger more times than she could count.
They were opposites in temperament—Ama rigid and uncompromising, Yu quiet and restrained. Yu still didn't even know who Ama truly was. And yet, deep down, Ama had been the one guiding her, teaching her the things she didn't yet understand about life.
Yu stood before the mirror, staring at her reflection.
Now that Ama was gone… where was she supposed to go? What was she supposed to do?
Lost in thought, the door suddenly flew open.
Yu looked up to see Nayeon standing there.
"Ama, you—! …Ah, Yu…"
Yu met her gaze, her voice catching in her throat.
"Nayeon… Ama is gone. I think… this time, she won't be coming back."
Hearing the tremor in Yu's voice—and seeing that vacant, stunned look in her eyes—Nayeon felt something she had never seen in Yu before.
Tears.
Yu's tears—her very first—began to fall uncontrollably as she murmured,
"…Ama won't come back…"
"Oh no, Yu…"
Nayeon rushed forward and pulled Yu's head into her arms. It was only then that Yu realized something unbelievable.
She was crying.
"Nayeon… look… I'm crying."
Nayeon quickly pulled back to check—and then she saw it. Yu was smiling. Nayeon laughed softly, like a mother would.
"Yes. And you're smiling too."
Yu was overwhelmed by emotions she had never experienced before—grief tangled with a strange, unfamiliar joy.
"But listen, Yu…"
"Yes?" Yu looked up at her like a small puppy.
"It's time for us to go back."
Go back?
Right now?
What did she mean by that?
Elsewhere, Amuro was reporting something to Mina. Whatever it was, Mina's expression changed instantly. She fell into silence. Even Duyen, Shana, and Dao felt how abrupt it all was.
"What do you mean?" Duyen asked. "The Kamakiri family is searching for Mina?"
Given that Mina had been missing for weeks, it made sense that her family would be worried. But judging from Amuro's tone—and Mina's reaction—this was clearly not that simple.
"They are here to find Lady Mina, yes," Amuro said. "But I'm afraid it's not to rescue her. There are dozens of helicopters, armed guards, heavy weaponry—and a large number of firearms."
He paused.
"And the one commanding them is…"
"…Haruna."
Mina whispered the name with a peculiar hatred reserved for her own older sister.
Everyone knew the two sisters had never gotten along—especially after what Haruna had done to Mina. But now, their feud went beyond that.
"In a few days, the Ring Ceremony will take place," Mina continued quietly. "She wants me dead—so she can become the sole heir of Kamakiri."
"That's impossible…" Duyen was nearly in shock. Even if they hated each other, they were still blood.
Mina slowly raised the hand wearing her ring.
"…This is what she wants."
All of this—just to kill her own sister over a ring?
This family was insane. Dao shuddered.
"But… isn't your grandmother still alive? Why do they need an heir so urgently? Why now?"
Mina gently shook her head and closed her eyes.
"…It's partly my fault. I was too impatient. I wanted full control of Kamakiri too soon."
"This isn't on you."
The voice came from Shana. She was sitting cross-legged, arms folded, wrapped in a blazing red cloak.
"They've been waiting for this moment for a long time."
Mina frowned and looked at her. "What do you mean?"
Shana's tone suddenly grew serious.
"…That inheritance ceremony is suspicious. Mina, you've changed now. You can see things ordinary people can't."
She fixed Mina with a sharp gaze.
"Look at it yourself. What do you think the Ring Ceremony really is?"
What was Shana implying? Mina felt a chill of confusion.
Amuro, however, seemed to have grasped the hidden meaning in Shana's words.
"I'm afraid we don't have much time left," he said. "They're already here."
Everyone stared at him in alarm.
"They're here already?!"
At the edge of the forest, where an endless white sea of snow stretched to the horizon—Dali's gold-adorned carriage looked no bigger than a black grain of sand against the snowfield. She gazed ahead.
Before her stood a massive armed force—hundreds strong. Their faces were hard and brutal, weapons in hand, all bearing the crest of the Kamakiri family.
And yet, their true master stood out absurdly among them. Dressed head-to-toe in pink. Even her hair was pink. Sunglasses on, lips painted, makeup flawless—dragging along a servant crawling on all fours like a pet dog.
The embodiment of arrogance and excess. Haruna Kamakiri.
"Well then, let's see…"
She said casually as she removed her thick sunglasses. Before her was nothing but a single carriage—and a lone figure in a fur-lined coat, a black beanie pulled low. A girl… or perhaps a boy.
Haruna curled her lips into a smirk.