Here we are. Please come in.
Naotsugu.
Mother?!
Do we have a guest?
Ah! Well, actually...
I'm sorry. Please forgive the rudeness of my sudden visit.
I am known as Jinya.
It's a pleasure.
Naotsugu, care to explain who this gentleman is?
Um, he's...
I hail from the village of Kadono.
Kadono, you say? The one famous for its blacksmiths?
That's right, Jinya-dono is a samurai I recently met who shares my passion for katana,
and I invited him here for a night of drinking.
Is that so?
Let us be on our way, Jinya-dono.
Pardon me.
Jinya-sama.
You have my thanks.
May I ask what for? I'm not sure I've done anything worthy of appreciation.
My son has been going through a rough patch of late, but he looks very chipper today.
And as his mother, nothing makes me more happy.
Your mother seems nice.
Well, she's more embarrassing than anything.
Here they are.
Daffodils, for sure.
Are they some kind of special flower?
No. But these are even smaller than I expected.
Miura-dono. Are you absolutely certain you found these flowers around springtime?
Y-yes.
That girl who Sadanaga-dono said he was going to meet before he disappeared...
Right now, I heavily suspect that she is actually a demon.
Huh?
Sadanaga-dono was likely whisked away to a different plane of existence from our world.
As evidenced by these daffodils.
Are you saying those flowers came from this demon's lair?
I need you to show me his room.
Okay. Please, follow me.
What's the matter?
Nothing. Sorry, but would you go ahead without me?
What? But then you won't know where to go.
It's fine.
All right.
There's a chance that nothing will happen if I'm openly present.
This fragrance...
Daffodils?
H-huh?
One, eyes drawn to the other side.
Father! Mother!
Look! That girl!
Oh my God...
She ain't right.
Oh, I remember now.
I lost my father. I lost my mother.
And I lost my home.
All of my memories were ripped away from me by their very roots.
But it gets worse. Because...
I've even lost my own self.
Now, I can never return to that garden again.
The way back is gone forever.
I want to go back.
I want to go back. I want to go back.
I want to go back... to how it used to be!
My goodness. You have so much energy.
Yes, sweetie, we're watching you.
Mother... and Father...
They grow farther away over time, nostalgic for the olden days.
Wh-what happened...?
Miura-dono.
Jinya-dono?!
It seems that we've wandered into whatever place was connected to your brother's room.
R-right...
But what is this place?
That massive fire. The young girl who became a demon.
And the old house she lived in that shouldn't exist anymore.
Did you see all that?
Y-yes, I did!
That wasn't just a mere daydream, I guess.
Two, the homeland suddenly a long way off.
My brother!
So, what should I make for lunch today?
I like to think I've gotten a bit better at this cooking thing.
You should give up and just leave already.
Okay, sounds like I need to whip up my signature soba!
Listen to me!
You have a family and a home to return to, don't you?
You can't let this silly show of pity cause you to lose it all.
But then...
This is the garden of happiness.
Being here allows me to see my mother and my father.
So, please.
You don't have to stay.
You've got the wrong idea.
Listen to me. Homes aren't what make people.
It's the people who make the home.
So, any place that doesn't bring us happiness is not a home.
How would you know?
You've been here all by yourself for over a century, right?
Deep down, you must have already figured this out.
Whatever...
I'll gladly agree to leave this place, but only if you come with me.
That's impossible.
This garden is the only place where I can belong now.
Then what if we live together?
Yeah, that works!
C'mon, would you like to be my daughter?
I'll quit being a samurai and we can live a carefree life on the outside.
I can't escape from this place.
And frankly, I can't think of you as my father.
Darn, so that's a no?
Ah, well.
I'll just bide my sweet time until you change your mind.
Just so you know, I'm dead serious about this.
Should the day ever come that you think of me as your father,
I want you to promise that we'll leave here together, okay?
That day will never come!
Well, ain't that a shame? Guess I'm sticking around here forever then.
Huh? Where did my brother go?!
There is no one here anymore.
There is no longer anything here at all.
I would like to have my brother back.
Please!
That's not possible.
Why would you say that?!
You saw him, too! My brother was here!
He was certainly here at one point in time.
What are you trying to say?
Flowers bloom in different seasons.
Why does that matter?
Those small daffodils that you showed me are known to bloom early, during the winter.
But Sadanaga-dono disappeared at the beginning of spring.
And right now, it's fall.
Then where exactly did Sadanaga-dono get ahold of those daffodils?
Well, I'm not sure...
The lair of this demon exists outside of our world.
So I had suspected that daffodils were always in boom here.
But I was wrong.
These winter daphnes are the harbinger of spring. It's fall in our world, yet spring flowers are in bloom here.
Which means, in this plane...
The passage of time moves much faster than in the real world.
Time moves faster?
I have the power of "Dreamer."
It allowed me to create this garden of happiness from my past,
which is like a miniature world that replays memories.
But...
My goodness. You have so much energy.
Yes, sweetie, we're watching you.
She's gotten so good at playing with her ball, hasn't she?
That's all it does.
I cannot trap anyone in this little world of mine.
My power is really nothing but a glorified nostalgia trip.
Then where is my brother? Is he already...?
There is no one here anymore.
No, it can't be...
Goodbye. And I'm sorry.
I know that I stole your brother away from you.
But I must thank you.
Because Hyoma brought me salvation.
You'll return from whence you came after you wake up.
So don't worry.
Young lady. What are you going to do now?
I spent all my time just gazing at what I've lost.
But that man spent his life trying to create a special place for me.
And so now, I will...
I see.
You're going to keep the promise that you made with Sadanaga-dono, yes?
I guess we're back now.
I really wish I understood why my brother decided to stay in that demon's world.
The bygone garden of happiness, eh?
Early this morning, I searched through the historical records that are kept in the castle.
The Great Fire of Meireki occurred two centuries ago.
I believe that was the awful fire which stole everything from that poor girl.
This is just a theory of mine, but the land that the Miura estate currently stands on is...
...where that girl's family used to live.
You think so, too?
It would explain why the miniature world she created and our home ended up being connected.
A bond that goes beyond time. Perhaps that's a more poetic way to think about all this...
Please accept my apologies, Miura-dono.
I was of no real help to you in the end.
No apologies needed!
I'm actually very thankful to you.
For better or for worse, my brother was the type of man who strongly stood by his beliefs.
Although I'm not sure what caused him to cast his own family aside,
I know that he was true to his heart until the very end.
That's all it comes down to.
Ah! It's getting late.
I'm sorry, but I must go to fulfill my duties.
Um, Miura-sama?
Your brother is a very wonderful person.
Huh?
Even if nobody remembers him, it doesn't change the fact he risked everything to save a girl who needed help.
Yes. I'm extremely proud of him!
Jinya-kun. Thank you so much for helping.
Yeah, you have my thanks, too.
What's with the long face?
There are still a few issues bothering me about this case.
Oh yeah?
The demon girl referred to Miura-dono's brother as "Hyoma."
However, the only name I've heard him called is "Sadanaga Miura."
It's strange they're different.
Um, hey, pal? That's just his real name.
Or rather, I'm pretty sure it was.
Except, as far as I know, only the lord they serve should know a samurai's real name.
Actually, it's not uncommon for their family members to know it, too.
The fact that girl called him "Hyoma," is just proof that he had embraced her as family.
Which reminds me of something you said before.
You mentioned Miura-dono was often scolded by his mother for his obsession with swords.
Huh? Oh, right.
There was a specific quote you used. Could you repeat it for me?
Well, uh...
I've even heard that his mom chews him out, like "enough is enough, Arimori"!
Shucks! That was just something I happened to overhear his mother say once.
I met her, too. She was a kind and upright person.
She was even respectful to a lowly ronin like me, and made sure to watch how she spoke in front of strangers,
always referring to her son as "Naotsugu."
So... where exactly did you hear "Arimori"?
His real name that only his lord or family would know of?
Gosh, ya know...
The demon girl said that Sadanaga-dono was "not here anymore."
Demons don't lie, but they do disguise the truth.
Here's what I think happened:
After Sadanaga-dono stumbled into that world, he and the demon girl spent well over 20 years living there.
Until he eventually decided to leave.
The end result? He had grown significantly older despite only a month of time passing in the real world.
Which meant that Sadanaga-dono could not simply return to the Miura household as an old man.
So, he went into the city and found a good deal on an old house.
Then opened his own soba shop in Edo.
Feel free to correct me if I've gotten anything wrong.
Well, time moved faster in the demon girl's world, right?
Wouldn't it make more sense for Sadanaga-sama to have simply died from old age?
He can't be dead.
But how do you know that for sure?
Because that girl had a smile on her face.
There is no way Sadanaga-dono died.
That girl was smiling because she had a new dad.
Isn't that right, Sadanaga Miura-dono?
That ain't fair.
How long ago did you figure it out?
The instant everything wrapped up.
Although, there were a number of tip-offs along the way.
Not just the family names, but also this.
I thought it was strange for a soba shop owner to have samurai paraphernalia.
But that's because it's something you were actually given back when you were still Sadanaga Miura, right?
That's right.
Arimori was really bothered by how crass I looked whenever I would scratch my itchy hair in public.
So he gifted me that grooming stick.
You're not going to tell him?
He would be happy to learn you're alive.
My family or that girl...
I stuck with the one that I wanted to protect the most.
From that point on, I lost my identify as a Miura, and have no right to call myself his brother anymore.
But...
Besides, he's not a kid.
I know he'll be fine without me around.
Ah, consider that kogai my gift to you.
I don't need it anymore.
Stubborn, aren't you?
Sorry about that.
Anyhoo, he couldn't understand my reasoning, eh?
What's your take on it, by the way?
Do you know why I decided to become that girl's father?
There was no reason in the first place, was there?
You got me! It's an open and shut story.
I just really hated to see that girl suffering all alone.
So I decided to stay with her.
And once a man settles on a course of action, he sticks to it regardless of who understands him or not, right?
Besides, we all have our own unique way of thinking, so it doesn't even matter if we try to explain it.
Yeah, that's true.
Our personal reasons are meant for us alone, not for other people to make sense of.
I knew you'd understand. You've got the wisdom of old age... my demonic pal.
You realize I've spent more than 20 years living with one, right?
I'm sharp enough to know what vibes they give off.
So tell me, how is that girl doing these days?
Huh? She's right here, ain't she?
Well, that explains why we had no trouble getting into her world.
Yeah, remember what I said? You're still just a kid.
I suppose that I must look like a kid to you, considering you've lived for almost 200 years.
So, what now? You always talk about how slaying demons is your job...
I could go for some kake-soba.
Okay! Dad, one order of kake-soba!
Comin' up!
What's so funny?
I'm laughing because I'm too happy not to, silly!
See? I knew it. There's more to your life than just your purpose.
Kake-soba, order up!
Coming!
Time continues to pass us by mercilessly.
Until even the things that we hold the most dear slip right out of our fingers.
And everything that we lose remains lost.
There is no way for us to get them back. However...
Thanks for waiting. Here is your order of kake-soba.
I made a real masterpiece this time!