At this moment, El and Kayo continued to pace on the sidewalk, walking leisurely in the crowd towards a restaurant to eat.
The hustle and bustle of people passing around them created a lively atmosphere, although there were some people carrying protest signs, "Kick out the damned Children!" It was a very disgusting sight for El.
Before long, their steps suddenly stopped when they heard a beautiful sound floating in the air. It was without lyrics, just melodious notes that flowed with a grace that El could hardly ignore.
They looked at each other for a moment, then followed the sound. After walking a few steps, their eyes fell on a little girl by the side of the road.
Her skin that should have been pure white was covered in dust and dirt, making her look dull and unkempt. The girl was wearing a dirty and tattered pink robe, with two brown buttons as the only decoration.
Underneath the robe, there was a long, dull purple dress that was torn at the hem.
Her long, dull silver-colored hair flowed wildly until it almost touched the ground, a clear sign that she had never been groomed.
However, what was most striking about her appearance was the whitish gray blindfold that covered her eyes, as if hiding something behind the darkness she had chosen.
El stared at the girl with a silent gaze. Behind her dirty and neglected appearance, her melodious voice seemed to imply something deeper, a hidden story.
El stepped closer with confidence, followed by Kayo who didn't want to be left behind, her eyes full of curiosity. Upon realizing their presence, the little girl slowly stopped her singing.
Without turning her head towards El and Kayo, the girl's lips formed a soft smile that seemed to contrast with her shabby appearance.
"Nice voice. Sing something for me. I'll give you a bonus," El said coldly, but without ill will.
The girl's smile widened even more, revealing a comforting sincerity. She nodded slowly and said, "This is the first time anyone other than my little sister has asked me to sing a song. But, I'll try."
Seeing her response, El took out a few hundred Yen bills from her purse and placed them on the girl's palm carefully.
"I want you to listen to the song from my cell phone, then you sing it. So, please listen carefully," he said in a soft flat tone, a tone that rarely appeared in his voice.
The blind girl fumbled with the money in her hand, a look of surprise on her face. "This amount of money is too much!" she exclaimed, looking hesitant to accept it.
"Take it, no problem. Sing the song I asked for," El replied in a firm, cold tone, as if leaving no room for rejection.
After sighing, the girl smiled gently, accepting El's request. "I'll try," she replied in a smooth, warm voice.
El took out her cell phone, plugged in the headset cable, and carefully placed it in the girl's ear. She opened the music app and selected the song Tanjiro no Uta from the Kimetsu no Yaiba - Go Shiina OST.
However, right before El played the song, Yuri suddenly interjected in her mind. "Wait a minute! Don't play that song. I have something interesting to show you!
'Hmm?' El stopped his fingers, a little confused. 'Is this something unsettling?' he asked in thought.
"Certainly not anything unsettling, but we'd better talk about this elsewhere," Yuri replied in a reassuring tone, making El consider for a moment what Yuri's request really meant.
El turned to Kayo before moving on. "Kayo, wait here for about ten minutes. I'm going to leave for a while."
However, before Kayo could ask further questions, El suddenly disappeared from sight, leaving the blind girl with her cell phone in hand.
Kayo snorted in annoyance, sighing heavily. "That person... always acting on a whim!"
The blind girl, still holding El's cell phone, smiled gently at Kayo. "He's a unique person, huh?" she asked kindly.
Kayo glared at her for a moment, unsure of how to respond. "Unique? Huh, you could say that. He's the unpredictable type."
The girl chuckled, as if amused by Kayo's answer. "I can sense that she's... different. From his voice, somehow he seems to be broken, I wonder what about his face... "
Kayo nodded slowly, her face softening slightly. "I thought so too, but Adrian-san always changed the subject whenever I asked... "
"In fact, Adrian-san can be quite cold, and sometimes I don't know what he's thinking." Kayo looked in the direction where El had disappeared. "But underneath all that, maybe... Adrian-san is a reliable person, at times."
The girl smiled deeper, as if understanding something from Kayo's words. "It sounds like he's someone who walks on a path full of shadows, but never really gets lost."
Kayo was silent for a moment, feeling that the girl's words were quite profound. "Well... maybe so," she finally said, her voice lowered. "He is indeed a complicated person to understand... "
***
After eight minutes had passed, Kayo saw El approaching again, this time with an
The girl had long purple hair that flowed gently, as if shining in the sunlight. She wore a lacy black dress with red ribbon embellishments that gave her a graceful and classic look, making her look like a figure from the elegant past.
But what was most striking were her heterochromia irises, one eye a sharp red and the other a deep blue, creating an alluring contrast.
The girl also held a violin in one hand, as if ready to play a soul-soothing melody.
All the elements on her felt like a blend of mystery and elegance, making her a figure that could not be ignored.
With curiosity, Kayo turned her gaze to El and asked, "Who is that girl? Do you know her?"
Before El could answer, the girl smiled sweetly at Kayo, introducing herself in a polite yet friendly manner. "My name is Lily White... Greetings!" she said, her voice soft yet confident.
{N/A: White Lily was Yuri's second name given by her Master. This name is his cultivation path and the special nickname of his Master, as well as fellow cultivators or people who are not relatives}
Currently, Yuri was using a talisman spell to create the illusion of his real body.
Without the help of this spell, his true existence, as a Spirit Ghost, would probably attract attention and cause strangeness around them.
Kayo nodded, then said her name. "My name is Kayo Senju." Then, with a glance at the blind girl standing next to her, "Can you tell me your name?" she asked a little curiously
The blind girl nodded slowly, "Just call me Blind Girl, they call me that," she said in a soft voice. After a short pause, she added more seriously, "But, if you want to know my name, my name is Sawa Sorasaki."
{N/A: I don't know the blind girl's real name, so I just gave her a name. I hope it fits}
Yuri smiled sweetly, looking at them in turn. "Sawa-chan, Kayo-chan, hello!" she said softly, greeting with a caring gaze.
"Ah, yes. Has Sawa-chan heard the music from the cell phone?" asked Yuri, although she had already guessed that Sawa had not had time to adjust the song.
"No... uhh, can you help me?" replied Sawa in a hesitant voice, holding El's cell phone in her hand.
Kayo immediately helped Sawa to adjust the music from El's phone, making sure that Sawa could listen and memorize the lyrics.
Not long after, Sawa smiled warmly. "Thank you, I've memorized it."
"No problem," El, who had been silent from the start, quickly picked up the cell phone and removed the headset from Sawa's ear.
Yuri, on the other hand, began setting up her violin, looking excited. "I'll show you how music can change people's views," she said enthusiastically. "Sing, Sawa-chan!"