The Fake Legend of Princess Mei Mei - Episode 4.3

Thanks to the Summer Solstice Festival, the town of Harin was livelier than usual.

Not only were the streets crowded, but there were also street performers showing off their skills, and food stalls selling skewers perfect for eating on the go.

Keigetsu, who met up with her friends while walking down the mountain path, joined them in browsing the stalls.

“I’m so jealous, Keigetsu,”

Shoran said as she took a bite of a freshly made mooncake.

“Jealous of what?”

Keigetsu tilted her head, also biting into her mooncake.

“Your new festival outfit. Did someone buy it for you?”

At Shoran’s words, Youka and Shunmei also nodded in agreement.

Hearing that, Keigetsu almost choked on her food, coughing slightly.

“Your old pink outfit was cute, but this color suits you even better,”

Shunmei said with a smile, patting Keigetsu’s back. The others nodded in agreement.

Blushing, Keigetsu thanked them.

Her friends didn’t know that the kimono she was wearing wasn’t a gift from her family but from another man. That secret made her feel both guilty and excited at the same time.

She wanted to scold herself for such thoughts, thinking, I’m so bad, but still, she couldn’t stop her heart from racing.

“Oh my, Keigetsu, your face is all red!”

“You should act more confident, like Gekka!”

“U-uh… Haha…”

Seeing Keigetsu’s embarrassed smile, the three of them sighed and laughed.

“You and your sister are so different,”

Shoran said with a disappointed look. The others nodded.

“Your faces are kind of similar, but…”

“Keigetsu should learn to be bolder like Gekka, and Gekka should learn to be humbler like Keigetsu.”

“If you two were combined, you’d have the perfect personality.”

Keigetsu tilted her head, unsure. But since all her friends agreed, that must be how others saw them.

Even her mother had once told her to be more assertive. Maybe she had noticed the same thing.

“By the way, has Gekka still not come back?”

After swallowing the last of her mooncake, Keigetsu nodded, her expression darkening slightly.

Youka, who had asked, also nodded and looked a bit sad. Shoran and Shunmei were the same.

Realizing that the lively festival atmosphere had turned gloomy, Keigetsu quickly forced a smile.

“I think she’ll come back soon. Knowing her, maybe some rich noble has fallen for her, and she’s enjoying her new life!”

She joked cheerfully, and her friends smiled awkwardly and nodded. That was enough to make Keigetsu feel relieved.

Gekka’s disappearance was well-known in the village. On the surface, people seemed concerned, but Keigetsu didn’t know what they were saying behind her back.

Gekka had always been unpredictable, like a cat, so some people might have expected this to happen. Even Keigetsu’s family had thought so. But now that it had become a reality, they couldn’t help but worry.

Keigetsu held back a sigh and smiled at her friends. It was a festival, after all. No need for gloomy faces.

As they talked about getting more food, they walked over to a stall selling skewers.

There, they saw Yuurin also looking at the food.

When Keigetsu called out to her, Yuurin looked surprised and a little awkward as she bowed her head.

“Are you alone?”

“No, I came with my brother.”

At that, Shoran’s face lit up. She had liked Seishin for a long time.

Since the stall owner said they were making fresh skewers, the five of them waited by the railing. As they stood there, Yuurin nervously tugged on Keigetsu’s sleeve.

“Keigetsu… I said something terrible to Gekka.”

“What did you say?”

“I called her an idiot… and told her I’d never speak to her again.”

Yuurin looked like she was about to cry and lowered her head. The four of them exchanged glances.

“Don’t make that face, Yuurin. Gekka must have said something mean first, right?”

That was how their fights always started. Gekka would pick a fight, they’d argue, insult each other, and then stop talking.

Usually, they would make up after a few days, but this time, Gekka had left.

Tears welled up in Yuurin’s eyes as she whispered,
“Maybe… maybe it’s my fault she left.”

“That’s not true.”

Keigetsu quickly stroked Yuurin’s cheek to comfort her. Yuurin’s young face crumpled as she tried not to cry.

“But… but I saw her leaving the village… I just watched her go…”

Yuurin started crying, apologizing over and over.

So that’s what happened. Gekka had fought with Yuurin and left right after. Since she never returned, Yuurin had been blaming herself, thinking she had caused it.

Seeing how worried Keigetsu’s family was must have made her even more afraid.

Keigetsu pulled Yuurin into a hug.

“It’s okay, Yuurin. It’s not your fault. You two always fight, right? This time isn’t any different. She left for another reason.”

As she whispered reassurances and patted Yuurin’s back, the stall owner called out to them.

“Hey, Yuurin, your skewer is ready.”

“Which one is the biggest?”

“Let’s eat while it’s still hot!”

Her friends spoke cheerfully, trying to cheer Yuurin up.

Yuurin sniffled and wiped her tears with her sleeve before taking the skewer. Seeing her take a bite, the older girls sighed in relief.

Just then, Seishin appeared from across the bridge, holding candy sculptures and paper decorations. He must have bought them to cheer Yuurin up.

He looked surprised to see her eating her skewer so happily but then relaxed a little and handed her a candy sculpture.

“Wow! A butterfly!”

“Would you have preferred a flower?”

“No, this is perfect. Thank you, brother.”

Yuurin smiled. Now that she had let out what was troubling her, she seemed to feel better.

Her smile looked genuine.

Seishin, seeing her like that, also relaxed slightly and smiled just a bit.

“That’s great,” the group said, laughing together. Yuurin nodded and held up the candy to the sunlight, admiring it.

“Keigetsu.”

As Keigetsu wiped the oil from Yuurin’s lips, Seishin suddenly spoke to her.

When she turned around, he looked serious.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

Keigetsu made a complicated face.

Her friends, seeing this, quickly grabbed Yuurin’s hands.

“We’ll go look around for a bit!”

“Don’t worry about Yuurin, Seishin!”

“Let’s meet at the first willow tree when the fireworks start!”

Saying that, they quickly disappeared before Keigetsu could stop them.

Sighing, she turned back to Seishin.

“What do you want to talk about?”

“…Don’t look at me like that.”

He sounded hurt, making Keigetsu realize she had been frowning. Clearing her throat, she spoke.

“If it’s about Gekka—”

“No, it’s not about Gekka.”

He interrupted her and suddenly grabbed her wrist.

Before she could react, he placed a hairpin in her hand.

“Marry me.”

His words were clear, despite the noise of the festival.

Keigetsu stood frozen, eyes wide in shock.