Chapter 3

"Ah~ It seems Mo is going to take Lan away from me!"

A pitch-black crack suddenly appeared in the nearby void, filled with grotesque eyeballs.

The Gap.

Holding an umbrella and a folding fan, Shizuka stepped out of the Gap, crossed her long legs, and sat on the Gap, smiling as she looked at Yagumo Mo and Lan.

Lan, somewhat flustered, pulled her body away from Yagumo Mo's shoulder, stood up, tidied her clothes, and bowed to Shizuka, saying, "Lady Shizuka!"

Because of Yagumo Mo's presence, Lan no longer ran around wearing only a naked apron as she used to.

"Has Elder Sister's hibernation ended?"

Yagumo Mo did not look at Shizuka, who was sitting on the Gap. His long, slender fingers continued to pluck the strings of the zither, and without raising his head, he asked.

"Really, Mo is becoming more and more cold, which makes me very sad..."

Shizuka's figure instantly appeared beside Yagumo Mo. She extended her right hand and gently caressed his elf-like face, then lifted Yagumo Mo's silk-like long hair, moved her wrist, and wrapped it around her arm, feeling the smooth sensation on her skin.

Her movements were熟练,显然不止一次了。

"Why doesn't Mo hibernate like me?"

As a boundary youkai, hibernation is the fastest way for Shizuka to increase her youkai power, which is why she always hibernates.

Similarly, Yagumo Mo is also a boundary youkai, but his desire for power is not great, so he can always suppress the impulse to hibernate that comes from within him.

The extra time he almost entirely uses to learn all kinds of knowledge.

Therefore, besides a certain black and white mouse, the underground library of the Scarlet Devil Mansion has another person who likes to take books without permission.

At first, Patchouli and the others, like Remilia, would suspect the black and white mouse, Marisa, but over time they also noticed something was off.

It wasn't until later, when Yagumo Mo left a note when he opened the Gap to take the magic books he wanted, that everyone realized who was constantly borrowing books.

For this male youkai, who is almost considered rare in Gensokyo, the girls are extremely curious.

After all, apart from the ordinary humans in Human Village, powerful male beings are extremely rare in Gensokyo.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be called the Eastern Lily Land.

The number of books in the underground library of the Scarlet Devil Mansion far exceeds the 130,000 yellow books, cough, 130,000 magic books, in the mind of a certain nun who is actually a pet. So, it naturally became the best place for Yagumo Mo to borrow books.

As for borrowing without permission? Yagumo Mo always returns the books on time after reading them, which is considered very principled in Gensokyo. At least compared to a certain red and white miko and a black and white mouse, Yagumo Mo's principles are full.

Because the books borrowed by Yagumo Mo are always returned after a period of time, Patchouli also let it be.

After all, Yagumo Mo is Shizuka's younger brother.

Everyone in Gensokyo knows how much Shizuka dotes on this younger brother.

Before Yagumo Mo was born, Shizuka almost never participated in Gensokyo's various banquets, let alone hosted them herself.

But because of Yagumo Mo's birth, Shizuka broke the precedent and held a banquet at the Hakurei Shrine.

All the youkai in Gensokyo were crystal clear about this.

Yagumo Mo was also labeled as untouchable by most youkai.

Looking at Shizuka, who was affectionately leaning against him, Yagumo Mo's face was filled with a warm smile.

Perhaps because he had become a youkai, although the memories of his previous life were still clear, they now seemed more like a long movie he was watching from the sidelines. Although he knew it was his own experience, it no longer stirred any ripples in his heart.

Even though only three years had passed.

Now, only when facing Shizuka did Yagumo Mo feel a sense of family.

"Although I also have the impulse to hibernate, compared to meaningless sleep, I prefer to learn more."

Ignoring the gender difference, his voice, full of youkai charm, made Shizuka's heart extremely calm.

The revered youkai sage, who is feared by countless youkai, leaned her head against Yagumo Mo's chest and rubbed it, then said, "Ah, Mo, you have plenty of time in the future, why be so eager?"

As a boundary youkai, Yagumo Mo's lifespan is almost endless.

"The knowledge in this world is vast like the sea, and even with more time, it is impossible to grasp its entirety."

Yagumo Mo's star-like black eyes looked at the zither in front of him, and his fingers danced, producing a light and graceful melody.

"Besides, it's not good for Elder Sister to hibernate for no reason and leave all the work to Lan."

Shizuka lifted her head, closed her delicate folding fan, and tapped it against her bright red lips. Her radiant purple eyes were full of laughter.

"Is Mo blaming me for overworking Lan? Or are you worried about Lan?"

Being teased by Shizuka, Yagumo Mo remained expressionless, but Lan felt a warmth in her heart and her cheeks turned red.

"Lord Shizuka, I..."

"Blue, there's no need to explain, I understand~ I understand~"

Yagumo Mo watched Shizuka, who was laughing and playing, and lightly pressed his hand on the zither strings, stopping the music.

"Elder Sister, there's something I want to tell you."

Unable to bear seeing Lan being teased by Shizuka, Yagumo Mo changed the subject.

"What is it?"

"It's about my ability."

Shizuka's expression became more serious, and Lan also showed a concerned look.

Controlling the boundary, this ability is not only dangerous to others but also to oneself.

Seeing Shizuka and Lan's slightly worried expressions, Yagumo Mo smiled and said, "Don't worry, I just saw some methods for training the mental sea in the underground library of the Scarlet Devil Mansion and tried them out. The result..."

"What was the result?"

Yagumo Mo paused and then said, "How to put it, now there is a light orb in my mental sea that I can't understand, or rather, that light orb has always been there, but I didn't notice it before."

A light orb?

A light orb in the mental sea?

Shizuka frowned slightly, extended her right hand, and gently pressed it against Yagumo Mo's smooth, white forehead, her youkai power slowly probing inside.

Yagumo Mo did not resist at all, allowing Shizuka's youkai power to enter his mental sea.

This behavior, in the eyes of outsiders, is undoubtedly foolish. The mental sea is extremely fragile, and allowing another's power to enter is like putting one's life in the other's hands.

But for Yagumo Mo, Shizuka is his closest family.

And for Shizuka, it is the same. Their trust does not need any words to express.

"A very strange light orb..."

After using her youkai power to investigate the light orb in Yagumo Mo's mental sea, even with her thousands of years of experience and wisdom, Shizuka could not understand what it was.

"I have never seen anything like this."

Her right hand, which was originally on Yagumo Mo's forehead, did not retract but instead rested on his shoulder.

Shizuka's curvaceous, soft body leaned closer to Yagumo Mo, and a peaceful and joyful expression appeared on her face.

Mo's chest is really comfortable...

"But I can be sure that that thing will not harm you. You can try to continue training it with the previous method in the future."

Yagumo Mo nodded, never doubting Shizuka's wisdom.

"By the way, how is your training in controlling the boundary going?"

Yagumo Mo picked up the cup of black tea Lan had served and took a sip, then said, "Most physical boundaries can already be controlled, but conceptual boundaries are still not possible."

Yagumo Mo's current power, in terms of boundary force, is still far from matching Shizuka. He can only control physical boundaries that can be seen and touched, such as the surface of a lake or the edge of a table, but conceptual boundaries like life and death, light and darkness, are still beyond his grasp.

However, Yagumo Mo's abilities are not limited to boundary force. Living in Gensokko, how could he not learn the unique combat style of Gensokko—bullet patterns?