♧︎︎︎

|| 𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 ||
036

ꨄ︎

third person pov

inoko had himself leaned against the wall as he peeked over the room where makio's currently locked in. he heard from a few ladies having an idle chitchat about makio not leaving the room for a few days now.

he felt chills running down his spine as he can feel a rather enormous presence radiating inside the room. there is no doubt, a demon is currently in the room where makio's in. 

"weird. this feels weird."

"is she in a bad situation now? i can't tell. but that room where makio is feels disgustingly weird, yet-

without continuing his thoughts, he cursed internally before running towards the door and sliding it open only to be greeted with an empty room. the room is filled with large scratches on the walls, the floor is filled with messy objects that are trashed.

"there's wind, but the windows aren't open." thought inoko as he felt the wind breeze upon his skin.

suddenly his eyes snapped open, his gaze landed on the ceiling where the demon must have escaped before grabbing the bowl full with noodles and soup.

"HEY YOU! I KNOW YOU'RE THERE!" shouted inoko as he threw the noodles on the ceiling.

everything went silent for a moment until a noise and movement occurred on top of the ceiling which caused inoko to take action. "you're not getting away!" shouted him as he started running and following the movement of the demon who's on the ceiling. 

inoko had a hard time trying to identify where the demon had went because of the kimono he's wearing, he thought to himself before preparing his fist to punch open the wall and hopefully find the demon lurking. 

"ohh! there's a cute girl over here!" said a drunkard man, he had a faint blush on his face as he look over at inoko who's rushing towards him.

inoko without care, pounced on the wall and accidentally punched the drunk man on the face. the two ladies who had witnessed the scene shrieked in shock and disbelief.

"KYAAAAAH!"

"SHE HIT HIM!"

"DAMN IT! I MESSED UP, IT ESCAPED DOWNWARDS!" thought the angry inoko as he rushed towards the left trails of the demon.

he panted and eagerly tried his best to find where the demon had went but unfortunately for him, he had lost sight of the demon who had took makio. he gritted his teeth, and a grip on his kimono as he cursed at everyone who got in the way of him finding the demon.

meanwhile, in kyogoku house wherein y/n and zenko's currently staying at. y/n is currently locked up in a room with her customer, while zenko mindlessly walk through the hallways not knowing what has happened with y/n because everyone separated the both of them.

he thought at how useless he's been, he was useless in the mugen train battle and now that he's in another important mission, he's turning useless again. he admitted of losing sight of himself, he was suppose to find uzui's wife "hinatsuru" but he can't do much about being really good at playing shamisen and the koto. 

he also thought about two days ago before they arrive that the headmistress of the brothel, named omitsu had passed away and so everyone's feeling gloomy and nobody's been talking. 

without another thought, he raised his hand near his ear as he decided to hear some information that could be helpful in his search. that was until he heard sniffles of a girl which made him turn manly, and onwards his thoughts of rescuing the poor girl.

"WHA-

"WHAT HAPPENED TO THIS ROOM? IT'S ALL MESSED UP!" shouted zenko when he arrived at the scene where he found a small little girl crying to herself.

the little girl turned around, and zenko immediately spotted the bruises on her face. 

"UHH-

"A FI-FIGHT?"

"DID YOU FIGHT?! YOU OKAY?!"

continuous shout of zenko could be heard which intimidated the poor girl causing her to burst out crying once more. 

"sorry, i'm so sorry!"

"i didn't mean to get mad at you, sorry!"

"if you're worrying about something-

before he could continue his sentence, he got cut off when a rather enormous amount of malice filled the room. his eyes widened with the sudden tension occurring in the room and for once his loud mouth was put into silence.

"what're you doing in someone else's room?"

he heard the woman question, he felt his face sweating from the sudden fear occurring within his body as he can't even turn his face to look at the woman who entered the room.

he gulped before his thoughts scattered everywhere in his mind, a demon is behind him because she doesn't have the human sound, he didn't even notice her until she spoke and thus he had concluded that demon they were up to is an upper moon and not just a mere lower ranked demon that is easily decapitated.

"hey, are you deaf over there?"

"wa-warabihime oiran."

"that was the girl who came in yesterday or the day before, so."

"huh? so what of it?"

questioned warabihime, causing the poor girls to cower in fear as they hid behind the sliding door.

"we're sorry for just barging in, the room was a complete mess and there was a girl crying-

"you're so unsightly. you're making me barf, wouldn't the world be better off if you died? and what's with your head, it's just pissing me off!"

"true, the room is a total mess right now. and i told this girl here to clean it up."

said warabihime as she walked towards the little girl, she held the little girl's ear before lifting her up mid-air. the little girl whined in pain as she struggled to get away from warabihime's hold but it only tightened.

"SHUT THE HELL UP! DON'T JUST SCREAM, CLEAN THE DAMN ROOM!"

"I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY! I WILL DO IT RIGHT AWAY, PLEASE FORGIVE ME!"

the little girl cried in pain, her ear started bleeding when warabihime's hold tightened even more. just then a hand was placed on warabihime's wrist, zenko held the woman's wrist with force as he had a shadow cast upon his face.

"please, get your hands off her!"

y/n kamado

"surprise." he said with a dull voice, his eyes doesn't show any type of expression and rather he looked like he got force into this.

i tilted my head in confusion, wondering as to how he knew about which house i'm currently staying in and what's his purpose for showing up. did the pillars thought that we needed help, thus disguising themselves as customers and lending us a hand?

"the pillars wanted to make sure you wouldn't be in danger when working, so they decided to visit this brothel everyday and purchase you." said iguro-san as he sat on the bed.

were they worried about me being inappropriately touched by the customers? they didn't have to come all the way here and waste their money on me, i can always knock the costumers out and pretend something happened within the time they purchased me for.

besides if they constantly come over to purchase me then i'll be stuck in this private room for hours, which means i can't go out to get information about hinatsuru-san. 

"you didn't have to purchase me for two days though, besides i have to go out and find information about uzui-san's wife. if you lot continued purchasing me then i wouldn't be able to do my work properly." i explained while iguro-san merely shrugged at my statement.

"better than getting hurt." i heard him mutter to himself, he probably thought i couldn't hear him but i can since the room is quite small and only suitable for people who're to have sexual intercourse, there isn't much to do in here.

"you should leave tomorrow iguro-san, so i can work." i told him, approaching the bed before sitting by the edge.

"do you not like my presence?" questioned him causing me to freeze in spot.

after his sudden appearance that night, he had constantly avoided me and i thought my presence annoys him. that's why i left him alone in his own little world, and now that we're together in this small room with not much space, he's questioning me if i dislike his presence.

is he stupid?

"please do not misunderstand, uzui-san's wives are missing and we were sent in brothels to find out what happened. i have to do my work." i explained, my gaze landing on iguro-san who's staring on the wall.

"i see." 

"i've bought you for two days, i'm not leaving tomorrow. it's a waste of money, after all you're expensive." said iguro-san before his gaze landed on mine.

the two of us stared at each other in awkward silence, i've heard the room being sound proof which means activities happening inside a room wouldn't be revealed in the hallways. the silence is deafening, the fact that we aren't even that close makes everything worse. it could have been kyojuro, he could have went here himself. why does it have to be iguro-san?

time passes as the both of us sat on the bed, doing nothing in particular. the both of us minded our own business, staring upon the wall directed in front of us while waiting for the time to pass. 

i wonder how zenko's doing. if only i have a keen sense of hearing like him then i would have found out the secret chatters and mumbles these women are talking about. i would also know if zenko's still keeping up, and not in some sort of trouble. 

if i wasn't bought, i would have found information by lurking around certain areas in this house. specifically the demon's room, it might sound risky but that's the only way i'll be able to find out where she took uzui-san's wives or if they are indeed dead already. 

"iguro-san i really think you should leave tomorro- 

"ekKhH-"

i squealed as i was cut off by iguro-san grabbing both my wrists and pinning it on top of my head as he laid me down on the bed, with him hovering above me. my eyes widened in shock, i tried opening my mouth to say a word but nothing came out. i felt my heart pumping faster, and a sudden heat overwhelming my body as i stared at iguro-san who's glaring on top of me.

a knock on the door disturbed us, the door opened revealing a young girl with a tray on her hands. her gaze landed on me and iguro-san, clearly getting the wrong impression when her eyes suddenly widened before letting out a squeak, immediately apologizing for disturbing the moment then running her way out of the room, not without slamming the door shut.

i was about to chase after the little girl and bring her back, but iguro-san's grip tightened. the both of us stared at each other with silence, the snake wrapped around his neck had long vanished and it's just the two of us pressed against the bed.

"i-iguro-san." i mumbled, internally cursing myself for stuttering.

this position is awkward, and he's not letting go of my wrists causing me to heat up. his head is a few centimeters above mine, i could feel the faint breath of his brushing on my lips. he broke the eye contact, and stared lower. i felt his hands intertwining with mine and a deep hum escape his lips causing me to tremble against his touch.

"iguro-san?" 

i felt my breathe hitch when he suddenly tilted his head on the side, leaning forward towards my exposed neck. due to his covered mouth, i could only feel his faint breathing as he leaned closer until his masked lips touched my exposed skin.

then suddenly he released his hold on my wrists, and removed his weight on top of mine before sitting by the side of the bed once more. i blinked in confusion, and done the same as his. i fixed my wrinkled clothes before sitting by the edge of the bed while trying to forget his actions earlier.

"see my point? if it were a different person doing that to you. would you willingly give consent?" iguro-san stated.

so he's proving a point that if the pillars weren't the one with me then i would have been molested by some random strangers that are wanting to purchase me. that was still uncalled for, he caught me off guard that's why i didn't react at all and maybe because it's him that's doing it to me then i don't mind.

wait what?

if he's the one doing it to me then i don't mind?

now where did those words come from, feeling my body heating up from the thoughts circulating inside my mind. this is his fault, if iguro-san didn't do that then i wouldn't have been feeling like this.

"well? are you going to leave me hanging?" said iguro-san. 

today is the only day where he's most talkative, whenever we're together it's always kanroji-san that he's looking for, or talking to. he wouldn't be talkative to the others unless it's the love pillar, so seeing him this nosy and talkative is very unusual.

"i can protect myself." i said while furrowing my eyebrows, i heard a scoff come from iguro-san and i immediately tilted my head to see him mocking me.

"said the one who got herself pierced." 

"that's different, i'm fighting a demon."

"in short you can't protect yourself."

"no, you're short."

"and you're weak."

third person pov

the day goes on with obanai and y/n arguing within themselves, and even the simplest unproblematic problem started becoming problematic whenever they argue. the two of them bickered until the moon rises, when the moon shown itself to the world, the two had stopped their bicker and decided to save their breathes.

y/n who got tired from everything revolving around her had unconsciously fallen asleep while sitting down, she had her back leaned on the wall. obanai who noticed her, sighing to himself, he went to get her then laying her down on the bed to get comfortable.

he thought to himself as to where would he sleep, there is not much space so he decided to just sleep on the same bed with her. laying down next to her, he turned his back not wanting to accidentally hug her while he's sleeping.

then and there the two bickering pillars had fallen into a deep peaceful slumber, the two who had their backs against each other had unconsciously change positions, and they slept snuggling against each other as the bright moonlight illuminated the two pillars.

an hour before the customers were allowed inside the brothel, a room which leads to the demon's room, zenko who had went against the demon had been punched on the face and he flew a few meters, wrecking some rooms in the process. 

"don't touch me so casually. you hotheaded rotten brat."

"looks like you need some discipline, tough discipline." 

muttered warabihime, her annoyed expression staring upon zenko who's lost conscious when he got thrown off the room. 

"warabihime-oiran!" 

"the house will open soon, the customers will come! i will prepare a heavy punishment, so for now please preserve our reputation." said the master of the house as he bowed down at the demon woman, showing respect to her as he plead for the house's reputation and not cause a commotion with the new girl.

"raise your head master, i'm the one who should be sorry. i've been getting ticked off by a lot of things as of late. maybe i was being too rough on the new girl even though she just came in. please treat her wounds." said warabihime, her annoyed expression turned into a smile, her mood suddenly changing.

she looked at the direction where girl who went against her was thrown, warabihime furrowed her eyebrows before coming into a conclusion that the girl she threw isn't as normal as the other girls, she might be a demon hunter.

when her room got cleaned, she sat on the floor while staring at her majestic beauty on the mirror in front of her. putting on a colored-powder on her lips, she smirk to herself while thinking about the humans that she could devour for the night.

"it took a bit of time, but i did a good job baiting them here. i'll welcome them slowly. kill them all, and have a feast."

"and how can i even forget the new maiko who arrived earlier, such beautiful young lady that is about to get devoured by me. y/n was it?"

✰★✰

y/n kamado

the next morning came in a flash, i woke up earlier tangled with iguro-san. thankfully i was able to untangle the both of us without him waking up. the time he had woken up, i was able to convince him to leave the red light district and not worry about me because i can protect myself. he was hesitant at first but gave in nonetheless, he probably got tired of my blabber and bicker. 

"iguro-san please, you have to leave!"

"how many times am i going to disagree with that foolish idea of yours?"

"i have to search for hinatsuru-san." 

"i can help with the search." 

"no! i'm suppose to be the one doing the work, you aren't even assigned in this mission."

"but i am now."

"just go, just go." i muttered to myself as i pushed iguro-san outside the room.

he grunted before finally giving in, before leaving he turned around. staring at me emotionless before sighing to himself.

"here." he mumbled, he held his hand in front of me as he ushered me to accept his tenugui.

information:

tenugui - japanese handkerchief that dated all the way back to the heian era of japan. it's a hand towel made from cotton and is popular for its versatility as well as its attractive appearance. 

"what is this for?" i questioned, tilting my head in confusion.

he said nothing, then grab my hand before placing the tenugui on my palm. 

"a sign that you'll come back to me alive after your encounter with the demon. once you head back, come find me, and return this tenugui." he said before turning around.

i watch him disappear in my line of view, my head looking downwards and towards the tenugui he left. i clutch the hand towel, feeling my heart pumping faster than normal as i tried to hide my face that's heating up from his actions.

since it's early in the morning, we have no costumers to entertain because the brothel is close and usually opens when it's night. while walking in the hallways, i was about to turn the corner when i saw a woman outside the master's room and talking to him.

"it's zenko, the one with yellow hair. we put her in bed since she was unconscious, but now she's not in the room. should we look for her?" said the woman which caught my attention.

what happened to zenko?

"NO!"

"enough, don't look. she's lost her footing. i have no clue!"

"she probably ran off somewhere. leave her be!"

yelled the master of the brothel. he's inside his room but his loud voice echoed through the hallways, and i could hear him clearly.

"but, master-

"SHUT UP!! GO AWAY!!"

"DON'T SPEAK OF ZENKO EVER AGAIN! TELL THAT TO EVERYONE AS WELL!"

"it's because they did something to tick off warabihime-oiran, both zenko and omitsu."

i heard the master of the brothel said causing my eyes to widen from the information i'm currently getting. when i was in the room with iguro-san, zenko had been in trouble and i wasn't there to protect him.

gritting my teeth, i saw the woman bow down before leaving the room in a hurry. without wasting time, i went towards the master's room and slamming the door open causing the master to yelp in surprise.

"with all due respect, where is zenko?" i questioned.

the master trembled before furrowing his eyebrows. he grab a book from the side before throwing it in my direction which i easily dodged. 

"who do you think you are, questioning about zenko." said the man, his hand trembling from the fear of warabihime-sama.

"oi, you think i'm joking around?" my voice going deep, a shadow forming on my face