Author's Note: End of mass update!

The tense atmosphere between Xue and Shin disappeared quickly enough when Cecil appeared. 

It seemed like she wasn't just a pacifier for Xue, but as well as Shin now. 

Cecil looked between Xue and Shin, and that's when she noticed the torn and loose grey yukata Shin was wearing, along with the battered wooden slippers. 

Cecil furrowed her eyebrows, walking towards Shin and crouching to meet his eyes. 

Shin jerked back and he found himself unable to maintain eye contact with Cecil, looking away. 

Somehow, the way her clear eyes pierced into him made him inexplicably flustered. 

"Shin."

Shin only looked up for a second, before he hurriedly glanced away. 

"Let's go buy you some clothes," Cecil said, extending her hand towards him, tilting her head. "Hm?"

"...no." Shin answered curtly. 

"Eh, that's no good! Your clothes are all torn, and your shoes too!" Hana jumped into the conversation, crouching down beside Cecil. "Everyone deserves to wear nice clothes and shoes!"

"You are right, Hana." Cecil smiled, nodding. 

"Nice...clothes…" Shin muttered out, frowning to himself. 

He recalled the time he had disappeared from the orphanage, after the man came bearing news about his parents. 

"Shin! Shin! Is there someone named Shin here?!"

Shin remembered standing up and approaching the man. The man wore ragged clothes, and he seemed like someone who had desperately escaped from somewhere dangerous. 

The man broke down upon seeing Shin. 

It was thanks to Shin's parents that he escaped, and the man informed Shin of his parents' perilous circumstances before passing on a letter written by his parents. 

"Sorry, Shin. Looks like mommy and daddy, have to leave you behind on your own. We will love you, always. Please live on, for us."

There were dried tear stains and blood stains on the letter. 

"Your parents wanted me to...to pass you the remaining money they have--"

"No, I want to find them."

“Shin...but your parents might be--” 

“I want to find them.”

Thus, Shin set out on a journey to rescue his parents. There was no way he would leave them behind, not when there was still a chance they were still hanging on.

The man had accompanied him, determined in repaying his debt to Shin's parents. Shin had suspected him at first, but it was only when the man revealed his reason for running away.

"I can't go on any further, I apologise. This is as far as I can help, Shin."

"I'm sorry, my own selfishness and desperate attempts to save myself, cost the lives of the two precious people in your life."

"Don't forgive an old man like me."

He had an illness, and they knew instead of letting him die peacefully, the man knew he would be thrown into an area and be left to rot to death. 

The man feared that outcome, and set his mind to escape. 

"Listen carefully, Shin, you need to find a way to sneak into the heart of the monster. And then, you'll be able to find your parents."

"You are good at painting, aren't you? Your parents said you are gifted, use it. The master...has an obsession with beautiful paintings."

"Go here, show off your painting skills. This man has been trying to gain the favour of the master for the longest time."

"...but Shin, this will be tough. That man is not a good man, he'll hurt you."

"If it is for my parents, I'll do anything."

Hence, with no other way, Shin subjected himself to countless beatings and mistreatment. However, he had succeeded in his objective, to garner the attention of the master. 

Nevertheless, under the horrible care of his caretaker, Shin had learnt something. Whatever he wanted, whatever he desired, he had to obtain it himself. 

"Shin?" Hana questioned, tilting her head. 

"I do not need nice clothes," Shin finally answered. "I have...no money."

"That's okay, we'll buy it for you!" Hana chirped, waving it off. "It's just some clothes and shoes, it won't cost as much as good food!"

Xue, K'xug and Cecil looked at Hana. They remembered how much Hana had splurged on food she deemed delicious, and the three of them looked at one another, shrugging. 

What Hana stated wasn't wrong, but it only applied to her since she had a huge appetite. 

"No." 

Shin shook his head. 

"Hmm?" 

"I'll get it myself."

"Hmm…" Hana frowned. 

Cecil knew that Shin wouldn't be getting new clothes anytime soon on his own.

This soul fragment, Shin...is just like Xue. 

He wants to bear everything on his own.

Cecil sighed with a helpless smile. 

"Shin, how about...accepting this as a gift from us?"

Shin slowly looked at Cecil, blinking in confusion. 

A...gift…?

Why would you give me a gift?

Noticing the bewildered look on Shin's face, Cecil felt a wave of sadness washing over her. 

Don't tell me…

He had never received a gift in this way before?

Cecil reached out, grabbing his hand and this action startled Shin. He glanced up, his eyes widening in surprise when he saw a bright smile on Cecil's face. 

"Shin, let's go and buy you a gift." 

He was momentarily stunned, staring at Cecil dumbly. 

So pretty and cute…

She's so nice too…

At that moment, Shin snapped out from his daze when he felt a chill down his back. 

The feeling was all too familiar now. 

He glanced back, seeing Xue narrowing his eyes at him before he glanced to Cecil, a hint of longing in his grey eyes. However, he glared back at Shin again. 

Shin stiffened, immediately turning back to Cecil. 

"...bu-but money--"

Hana proceeded to grab Shin's other hand, beaming.

"Don't worry about the money! Let's go, let's go!"

Hana dragged Shin away, and Cecil followed as well, pulling Shin away. 

The two men found themselves being left behind and forgotten, and they looked at one another. 

"Cecil...can smile like that in front of my soul fragment too…" Xue murmured gloomily to himself. "But not to me, at all."

K'xug furrowed his eyebrows at Xue. 

Why is Hana so attached to your soul fragment?

Xue noticed K'xug glaring at him, and he glared back. 

"Why are you looking at me like that? I was abandoned as well."

The two men glared each other for a moment longer, before their expression turned gloomy and they sighed heavily. 

They lifted their hands to pat the shoulders of one another, to comfort one another. However, they only sighed again, dropping their hands.  

"What the hell are we doing?" 

K'xug crossed his arms, shaking his head. 

"Let's just...move."

The two men took a few steps forward, staring at the back of the two ladies. 

They seemed to have completely forgotten the presence of the two sad and lonely men. 

The two men looked at one another, sighing one more time. 

"Xue!"

"K'xug!"

Hearing their names being called in familiar voices, the two of them perked up. It was as if they had dog ears that were twitching happily. 

"Hurry, hurry!"

"Don't get left behind!"

It was as if the gloomy atmosphere around them never existed, their aura becoming bright. 

They both wore small smiles on their faces, trailing behind the two women who finally acknowledged their presence. 

***

Stepping into a shop, they were greeted by a salesperson dressed in a light pink yukata designed with simple flowers. 

"Welcome! Please take your time to look around and let me know if you require any assistance." 

The salesperson showed them an amiable smile, and Cecil proceeded to question the staff about the section for children. 

She gladly guided them to the section, even going as far as to explain the quality of the clothing. However, Shin only scanned the clothing with a conflicted look. 

"How about letting Shin choose himself?" Cecil questioned. 

Hana nodded with a smile. 

Xue and K'xug stood at one side, observing the scene.

"Choose what you like, Shin." 

Shin glanced up at Cecil, who was smiling down gently at him. 

Under such a gentle gaze, Shin felt himself getting flustered. 

He did not have the heart to admit that he disliked the designs of the clothing here. Hence, he only pointed to a plain, grey yukata, it was similar to what he was currently wearing. 

"Ah, a great choice!" The saleswoman clapped, beaming before adding on. "There is currently an event in our shop, where customers are allowed to design their own yukata if there were to choose one that is completely plain."

The saleswoman gestured to the plain, grey yukata. The material of the yukata was soft and smooth to touch, and Cecil knew that this yukata was of good quality. 

"This is one of the yukata include in the event, would you like to try a shot at designing your own yukata?"

Hana and Cecil looked at one another, blinking.

"Are you interested in it, Hana?" Cecil asked. 

Hana shook her head. 

Cecil furrowed her eyebrows. 

Allowing us to design the yukata for free...

There is no doubt they would charge a higher price, and since the yukata is of good quality...it definitely isn't cheap.

"How about Xue and K'xug?"

"Hmmm…"

The two of them proceeded to look at Xue and K'xug. The two men only shrugged in response, they had no interest in designing a yukata.

Meanwhile, Shin seemed intrigued at the opportunity presented to him. There was a hint of anticipation in his eyes, like an idea had struck him. 

Cecil noticed his obvious change, bending down.

"It's your clothes," Cecil patted his head, her voice soft. "So you decide, Shin."

She could see how inspired he was from his eyes, that was gleaming in anticipation. 

"I can...do it?"

"Of course."

"I'll do it." Shin looked at the saleswoman, his voice sounding more vibrant. 

"I'll get you a paper and a--"

"A paper is enough," Shin interrupted, whipping out a paintbrush. "And ink."

Everyone raised their eyebrows in surprise. The saleswoman was the first to recover, hurrying to grab a paper for Shin to draw on. 

Cecil began to recall the conversation she had with the little girl. She gradually remembered how the little girl mentioned how Shin has a hobby of painting, looking at him in wonder. 

Shin…

Is he perhaps...the artistic personality of Xue?

The saleswoman came back with a large canvas and black ink, guiding Shin to an appropriate place to work on his design. 

***

Everyone hovered over Shin as he drew on the large canvas, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. The longer they observed his drawing, the more they were in awe. Xue only blinked in surprise, glancing at Shin. 

In the past, he drew in his free time. After all, the Supreme God is supposed to excel in everything, be it from education, fighting or even any form of art. Thus, his training of becoming a Supreme God included drawing as well. 

Strangely enough, he found himself liking drawing as much as fighting. Alas, due to the tension between the heavenly and demon realm, along with the responsibilities of becoming a ruler of the heavenly realm, he could spare no time to draw. 

Overtime, his passion for drawing was long forgotten, especially after what happened to him during the war. 

Xue observed the drawing on the canvas, and noticing how focused Shin was in completing his masterpiece. 

Shin displayed lively expressions as he drew and painted on the canvas, his hand moving the brush adeptly and he stepped back once to admire his drawing, a small, pleased smile on his face. It was unusual of Shin to appear this way, since the entire time they have accompanied him, he wore a gloomy and blank look. 

It was obvious how much Shin was enjoying just drawing and painting by himself. 

Xue deepened his frown, thinking to himself. 

Shin made some finishing touches to the drawing on the canvas as he tilted his head, looking at his drawing once more before he stepped aside. The plain, grey yukata was now decorated with wavy lines on the top right all the way down to the bottom. There were also small straight lines drawn all over the yukata, like bamboo shoots grouped together.  

“Oh wow!” Hana gasped, clapping her hands. “Shin, you draw so well!” 

The soul fragments inside Xue were agreeing with Hana’s words.

Kai: “Who knew we would meet one of us who could draw so well?” 

Alric: “A design like that would sell well…” 

Leonaut: “Oh, that’s right, Alric, you are a wandering merchant.” 

Zasiok: “That he is.” 

Sid: “It can sell well, and you can use that money to buy lots of food…”

Alric: “U-uh no! It’s just a speculation of mine! I-I might be wrong, don’t trust my words!” 

Isleif: “Shut up. Too noisy.”

Isleif was beaten black and blue once again, though he got some hits in as well.

At this point, Xue could not be bothered with his soul fragments anymore. 

On the other hand, K’xug crossed his arms, observing Shin and he nodded to himself. 

Back in the days, when Xue could afford to, his drawings were top notch. 

Just like this. 

Cecil herself was surprised as well. 

The original novel never described what kind of personality Shin was, and she only knew that his element was water. Hence, when the little girl described to her what Shin was, and that he painted a lot, Cecil did not expect his skill level to match that of a skilled artist. 

There were smudges of black ink on Shin’s hands, but he did not seem to care. The small smile remained on his charming boyish face, and he found himself unknowingly looking towards Cecil. 

“Your drawing skills are superb, Shin,” Cecil bent down, smiling softly. “It’s amazing. You should draw and paint more.” 

Shin felt something swelling in his chest, and his smile grew slightly bigger. He glanced away, not saying a word, but anyone could see he was happy. 

It was one thing to feel proud of your own work, but it was another thing if one felt validated from another person’s words. 

Meanwhile, the saleswoman who saw the drawing only inhaled sharply.

“Th-this is a wonderful drawing,” the saleswoman turned to them, bowing hurriedly. “Please give me a moment.” 

With those words, she jogged away, her wooden slippers thudding against the ground. 

They weren’t fazed by the sudden departure of the saleswoman, since they were still busy admiring the drawing. 

Hana hopped from one side to another, praising Shin endlessly, especially how the yukata that he designed himself would look extremely good on him.

“It would look great on you!” 

Cecil nodded along with Hana. 

Shin did not meet their eyes but anyone could see he was glowing with pride and glee. He rubbed at his nose with his hands smudged with black ink, and he finally opened his mouth to respond. 

“Re-really?” 

“Really!” Hana nodded vigorously.

“...” 

Shin did not say another word, though he remained smiling. 

K’xug raised his eyebrows, a brief image of the past Xue appearing before him. 

This is how Xue would react in the past. 

K’xug then turned to look at Xue, realising that Xue was absorbed in his own thoughts. He reached out, placing his hand on Xue’s shoulder. 

Xue was startled from his daze, and he glanced at K’xug, noticing the questioning look in his different-coloured eyes. 

Xue knew what his friend was asking. 

“I’m alright,” he answered with a sigh. “I am just thinking.” 

K’xug tilted his head.

Just then, the saleswoman jogged back and there was someone else accompanying her. It was a pudgy man dressed in a kimono befitting that of a noble. The saleswoman panted, gesturing the man to the canvas that Shin drew on.

“Here it is, sir. The young boy here, drew it all on his own.” 

The pudgy man snatched the canvas away, staring at it intently. His eyes widened and he stumbled towards Shin, reaching out to grab Shin’s tiny hands. 

Shin was sensitive to touch, especially if the one touching him was a stranger. Thus, he avoided the pudgy man, narrowing his eyes and unconsciously shuffling closer to Cecil. 

The pudgy man chuckled nervously, retracting his hands and wiping his sweat on his clothes. “Apologies, dearest customer, the design of your yukata simply made me unbelievably excited.” 

“Do you need...something?” Cecil asked. 

“Sorry, let me introduce myself. I am the owner of this shop, and I would like to know if it is alright with you...to produce more clothing that is of your design.” 

Everyone was shocked speechless at how the situation had unfolded. They all turned to look at Shin, and the boy himself only narrowed his eyes even further, scuttling closer towards Cecil. 

***

《 start 》

Did I really enjoy painting and drawing like that? 

Was this how I always looked? 

How long...has it been? 

When have I stopped learning how to enjoy things like that? 

《 stop 》