Chapter 18: The Wish-Granting Goddess

Winter is the perfect season for hot pot.

Fortunately, this is the world of Inuyasha, where every household has a heated kang bed, so no one freezes to death.

Hanami silently thanked Master Takahashi in her heart.

Hunting posed no challenge for Hanami; she cheerfully caught two of the most beautiful mountain pheasants, tossing one straight into Hana’s yard.

Carrying the other lovely pheasant home, she attracted many envious glances from children along the way.

For Hanami, who had never cooked before and, after becoming a demon, ate food raw and unprocessed, the desire to eat chicken stewed with mushrooms was quite different from actually having it.

But based on her impression of the dish, Hanami considered it a piece of cake.

As Hanami plucked the feathers, a group of little children gathered in the yard, watching her intently and exclaiming in awe.

“Wow—”

“Great Mountain Spirit!”

“Wow, amazing!”

“Even better than my dad!”

Amid their heartfelt praise, Hanami gradually lost herself—not because she got carried away, but because the children's enthusiasm was overwhelmingly flattering.

“Ahem, ahem, you can all have some chicken stew together later,” Hanami said, wanting to show her role as the Mountain Spirit.

The little ones, however, shook their heads in unison, eyes fixed on the beautiful tail feathers. “Mountain Spirit, can we have those tail feathers of the chicken?”

Tail feathers? Hanami was puzzled.

“Can we have these feathers? Mountain Spirit~” The children looked expectantly at the long, elegant feathers on the pheasant’s tail.

Generously, Hanami gave away all the long feathers on the tail, which were few to begin with.

The children cheered and left with the feathers.

So, the recent flattery was just a ploy to get the chicken’s tail feathers? It seemed the tail feathers were more popular than she was. Hanami glanced at her own tail.

Well, luckily she had no fur; otherwise, she would probably be targeted too.

“Deng deng deng~~” Hanami wagged her beautiful tail happily, swaying her waist and hips with joy. The plucked chicken gleamed white. Suppressing the urge to devour it in one bite, she was determined to savor that chicken stew with mushrooms today!

When Sesshomaru woke up, he saw the lively swaying waist, catching a glimpse of fair skin beneath the thin clothes. The blue-and-white snake tail was rarely unwound from him but now swung freely in midair.

The scent of blood filled the air.

Noticing his awakening, the snake tail twisted and curled, playfully teasing the fluffy tail, as lively as its owner.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes but did not stop the snake tail from winding around his own.

Humming a tune, Hanami picked up the prepared chicken and turned her head, meeting Sesshomaru’s gaze directly.

Leaning against the fluffy tail, the handsome man’s eyes focused on her. His silver-white hair spilled over his shoulders, sunlight casting a halo over his deep brows and eyes, amplifying his noble and aloof aura.

“……”

“……”

It had been nearly half a month since Sesshomaru last woke up; Hanami had almost forgotten he could still awaken.

Of course, she mainly wanted to forget that she had harassed Sesshomaru while drunk.

Adhering to the principle that if she wasn’t embarrassed, then others were, Hanami naturally raised her hand to greet him, “Hi~”

But she raised the wrong hand—it was still holding a chicken.

The chicken swung as her hand moved.

Realizing this, Hanami quickly pressed her hand down and looked up to see disdain on Sesshomaru’s face.

Hanami: …

“Ahem, Sesshomaru, would you like some chicken stew with mushrooms?” she attempted to change the subject.

Sesshomaru didn’t know what chicken stew with mushrooms was, but the chicken in her hand was clearly insufficient even to fill a tooth gap. He glanced at the excited Hanami, then at the chicken.

“……” His expression darkened suddenly. His wife could only eat such food?

In the eyes of demons, the finest food was plants infused with the essence of heaven and earth, followed by refined demons, then large prey. If no other options existed, humans with spiritual energy might be consumed, but wild pheasants…

Only the weakest demons would eat such things.

A proud great demon like Sesshomaru would never eat that, even if severely wounded.

Whether demon, human, or animal, males had territorial and mating instincts. Letting their mate go hungry was an insult to Sesshomaru himself!

Hanami sensed something was off; inexplicably, he looked very angry.

At this moment, Sesshomaru had far less of the calm, noble gentleman aura he would later possess. From his furrowed brows, Hanami could tell he was upset.

Unable to understand why Sesshomaru suddenly grew angry, she recalled his volatile temper and figured she might understand after all.

Glancing at the pale, sickly but beautiful man leaning on the fluffy tail, then at the chicken in her hand, Hanami decided decisively, “Once it’s cooked, both chicken legs are yours.”

Sesshomaru looked at the pheasant, then at Hanami’s sincere face.

Her demon power was strong—could it be that she was injured internally and unable to hunt?

Thinking of his own condition, Sesshomaru’s demon power was also abundant but difficult to mobilize within his bloodline.

“Sesshomaru?” Hanami felt something was wrong as his expression worsened.

Could it be that the white dog demon didn’t eat chicken?

The thoughts of this dog-like man were truly inscrutable.

Sesshomaru stood up, the fluffy tail sliding off his shoulder and falling to the floor, blocking the window. His tall figure made the wooden cabin seem cramped.

Hanami’s face was filled with terror: ???

He stood up?

Her mind was overwhelmed with, “The crippled dog stands up! He stood up!”

Oh no, Sesshomaru was just transforming, not disabled. Trying to suppress her miraculous expression, Hanami forced an embarrassed but polite smile.

She didn’t know what he was about to do but already felt the snake tail was uneasy.

His black leather boots stepped on the wooden floor, and Sesshomaru’s indifferent expression and measured steps exuded the commanding presence of a superior being. Hanami restrained the urge to flee at once.

Her mind raced, wondering if she had offended Sesshomaru again.

Tense and muscles taut, Sesshomaru passed by her, leaving behind the words, “Wait for me.”

And then he truly left.

...Really left?

Hmm?

She saw him vanish at the door in the blink of an eye, and looked up to catch a glimpse of Sesshomaru’s figure flashing through the air.

Very Sesshomaru-like.

Hanami scratched her head, puzzled but respectful.

Though she didn’t know where Sesshomaru had gone, it didn’t stop her from continuing to stew the chicken. Chicken stew with mushrooms just needed chicken and mushrooms, after all.

After cutting the chicken into eight pieces, she put them into the ceramic pot.

And then, nothing more.

She added two more bundles of firewood, a pinch of salt, and simmered a while. The mountain pheasant was low in fat; a small patch of yellow oil floated on the water’s surface. Hanami felt something was wrong—it didn’t resemble chicken stew with mushrooms but more like boiled chicken soup.

After much thought, Hanami concluded that the problem was too much water. She added two more bundles of firewood, hoping to reduce the liquid, then added the soaked mushrooms. The broth remained clear and watery.

As a snake with little cooking talent, Hanami toiled for a long time only to produce a pot of mushroom chicken soup.

She didn’t understand it but still happily served herself a bowl.

Drinking hot chicken soup in winter was still quite delightful. Hanami felt pleased, convinced she had some cooking talent after all.

“Mountain Spirit Hanami~ Mountain Spirit Hanami~” voices came from outside the door.

Peeking through the window, she saw not only Hana but also the rarely seen village elder Yuu.

As a snake, Hanami was supposed to hibernate in winter. Although Yuu was a half-demon, she similarly rarely ventured out in winter, mostly sleeping.

Why Hanami, also a snake being, roamed about was something Yuu could only attribute to Hanami being a pure-blooded great demon.

“Come quickly, I just made some chicken…” stew with mushrooms? Hanami glanced at the watery broth in the ceramic pot and changed her words: “I made chicken soup. Come drink it.”

Food was scarce in winter, usually eaten only twice a day. Hana and Elder Yuu came specifically at noon and were surprised to find Hanami preparing a meal.

Elder Yuu patted her head, reasoning that the Mountain Spirit naturally never worried about food scarcity.

Hana cheered joyfully, ready to join the meal.

Hanami’s home was formerly Elder Yuu’s house. Though Elder Yuu assumed there were plenty of bowls, Hanami didn’t think so and quickly fetched two bowls from the adjacent room.

Drinking a hot bowl of soup in the depths of winter, Hanami’s ears twitched with happiness.

“Wow! So delicious.” Hana drank a large bowl with satisfaction.

Elder Yuu’s expression seemed hesitant, as if she had something to say.

Hanami sensed this and knew Elder Yuu had come for a reason.

Having received much care in the village, Hanami was happy to help if their request was reasonable. She cheerfully asked, “What do you need from me?”

Elder Yuu looked at her, hesitating.

Hanami didn’t press further, patiently waiting for her to speak, meanwhile ladling more soup for herself and Hana.

“The demon from the castle below, Slippery Demon, wishes to see you and have you heal his body.”

Hanami burst out laughing: “Pfft—”

“If successful, Slippery Demon promises to grant you any one wish.”

Hanami: “Ahem, ahem, ahem.”

So, she was no longer just the Mountain Spirit but had become the Wish-Granter?