How did I, an Onmyoji, become the Lord of Yokai?

While responding with a smile, Reiko seemed to have thought of something and reminded Shimizu Asahi of something.

"Inari Shrine?"

Upon hearing the place name, Shimizu Asahi was taken aback. Wasn't there no Inari Shrine in this era?

Although the Inari god arrived in Yamashiro Province a thousand years ago, the largest shrine in Heian-kyo, Fushimi Inari Taisha, was built more than a hundred years later. Therefore, there should be no Inari shrine in Yamashiro Province today.

Seemingly noticing his confusion, Ye Zi immediately explained, "It's not a formal shrine built by the royal family; it was built and worshipped by the common people on their own initiative... Hmm... calling it a shrine doesn't seem quite right."

At this point, Ye Zi thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "In short, just remember that it's the place where Inari-sama is worshipped."

"Built by the people themselves... I see. As expected of Inari, this treatment is comparable to that of Omikami."

Qingshui Chaoyang revealed a knowing look.

“The shrine of Omikami cannot be built casually. Without the permission of Ise Grand Shrine, even the Imperial Family would not dare to make any moves.”

“That makes sense. But Yoko, I remember that Inari is the god of grains and food, in charge of the harvest. So why not pray to the god of marriage for a marriage proposal?”

In this era where each deity has its own specific role, if you want to accomplish something, you pray to the corresponding deity. For example, if you pray for a bountiful harvest, go to the Inari Shrine; if you pray for a good marriage, go to the Enmusubi Shrine. As long as you are sincere, the deities will grant you the opportunity.

So he should be going to Enmusubi Shrine now.

However, Ye Zi shook her head slightly and said with some helplessness, "Sir, the Enmusubi Shrine is in ruins, and the whereabouts of the Enmusubi deity are unknown. No one goes to pray to the Enmusubi deity anymore."

"As for Lord Inari, with war approaching and the people filled with fear, we wanted to pray to Lord Omikami for peace, but since there is no shrine, we can only pray to Lord Inari."

"Moreover, Inari-sama is in charge of the harvest, and can bring both peace and abundance, so people prefer to pray to Inari-sama."

"The Goddess of Fate... has disappeared so early?"

Shimizu Asahi was a little stunned when he heard Ye Zi’s words. He remembered that the God of Fate would not disappear from everyone’s sight until a hundred years later. Why was he wandering for three hundred years now?

As an Onmyoji, it is essential to have knowledge of yokai and gods. Therefore, they have a great deal of knowledge about both the lord of gods, Omikami, and the wandering god, Enmusubi.

Of course, the more famous the deity, the more information they have and the more they can understand. As for less famous minor deities, they can only have a basic understanding of them.

For example, the Goddess of Marriage, as most Onmyoji know, is a deity born from human marriage, who is in charge of human marriages, and was once famous for this.

As for why Shimizu Asahi knew that Enmusubi was known as a wandering deity, it was because his older sister, Shimizu Mio, had met her while traveling and became one of her friends.

That's why he understood why the God of Fate, who was once revered by countless people, had become a wandering god.

The Goddess of Marriage is a deity born from human relationships. Therefore, her power and the shrine are all linked to marriage. As long as human relationships continue to flourish, her strength will continue to grow. Eventually, she may even become a powerful deity like the God of Inari.

At first, Enmusubi was a little happy, after all, he had such great potential.

However, as times have changed, people's hearts have also begun to change.

The increasingly vibrant colors of the world have dazzled people's eyes, and their vows of eternal love have become things that can be destroyed at will in this ever-brighter world. As a result, one marriage after another is destroyed.

When a marriage ends, the power that the God of Fate gained will also dissipate.

Her gorgeous clothes disappeared, and the once-prosperous shrine gradually fell into disrepair.

Amidst this dazzling temptation, the Goddess of Fate eventually declined, and a century later, her name vanished from the minds of the people.

The only ones who could remember her, besides her fellow gods, were some powerful demons and Onmyoji.

The dramatic changes of the times not only caused her to lose her former glory, but also made her stop believing in destiny. She felt that the promise of a lifetime was something that no human being could ever keep.

Even so, she did not give up. If there was no promise of a lifetime, no destiny, then she would find it herself. She personally helped people to be married, so that they could have a true and everlasting relationship.

She believed that as long as she achieved this, her shrine could return to its former state, and her name could once again be known to the world. Chapter 289: Picking Up Trash...The Goddess of Wandering

Shimizu Asahi admired her perseverance. To wander around carrying a shrine and trying to find a lasting love in this world requires absolute dedication. He would offer his respect to anyone who perseveres on their own path.

Moreover, during her hundred years of wandering, the Goddess of Fate did indeed find several truly lasting and loving couples, which made her very happy. She even wrote a letter to her sister to let her know that humans can have a true life.

However, the disappearance of the God of Marriage happened a hundred years ago in his time. If we put it in this era, it would happen more than a hundred or two hundred years later. The fact that the God of Marriage has now disappeared seems to defy the logic of time.

At this moment, Ye Zi also sighed softly.

"There was nothing we could do about it. In the past, many people visited the Enmusubi Shrine, but as the situation gradually became turbulent, people began to pray for peace instead of marriage. So it was only natural that the Enmusubi Shrine closed down."

With the world in chaos now, who would still yearn for marriage?

Being able to survive is already a blessing from heaven.

"I see. Is it because of the times?"

Upon receiving the answer, Shimizu Asahi exclaimed "Oh!" in realization. Because the common people were worried that the war would affect them, they didn't have time to think about these things, which was why the Enmusubi Shrine had temporarily declined. However, judging from the timeline, once the new laws were fully implemented and the imperial family completely suppressed the nobles, the Enmusubi Shrine would once again flourish.

"If that's the case, then the Enmusubi Shrine should still be standing, right?"

"Sir, are you planning to visit Enmusubi Shrine?"

Ye Zi immediately understood the meaning of Shimizu Asahi's words. She looked at him with great surprise, "Sir, we don't know if the Goddess of Marriage is at the shrine right now. Your prayers may not reach her ears. Although the Goddess of Inari is not specifically in charge of marriage, at least she can hear your voice. Why don't you want to go to the Inari Shrine?"

"Isn't it normal to visit the God of Marriage if you want to find a partner?" The young man chuckled, then stood up and said, "Alright, I'll go out for a walk with Lingzi. You get some rest, I'll come see you again later."

"Yes, spend time with your sister. She'll be your fiancée soon."

"..."

Hearing this, Shimizu Asahi shook his head helplessly again, and finally left the room with a wry smile.

He closed the wooden door between them, looked at the girl beside him, and said, "Let's go, Reiko."

Accompanied by the rising sun, Reiko Tamura walked openly onto the street for the first time.

Although the lives of ordinary people in this era were not as good as they would be three hundred years later, the fact that Yamashiro Province, as the predecessor of Heian-kyo, was chosen by Emperor Kanmu to become the capital was enough to prove the excellence of the city. Therefore, even though the people were somewhat fearful, the city was still very prosperous.

Even if they are all illusions.

Upon arriving on the street, Reiko's gaze was immediately drawn to countless things. She followed beside Shimizu Asahi, her eyes constantly scanning the strange objects around her.

Suddenly, Reiko stopped and walked up to a small stall. Looking at the little thing that was spinning on its own, she couldn't help but ask curiously, "Shimizu, what is this? Why does it move by itself?"

"This is a windmill. It will turn whenever the wind blows."

"A windmill? Does it not move without wind?"

"Hmm, but it moves if you carry it around. Want to buy one?"

Shimizu Asahi smiled and explained, then asked softly.

"..." After glancing at the windmill on the stall for a moment, Lingzi finally shook her head. "Forget it, there's no need to buy such a small thing, and besides, I didn't bring any money with me."

"You didn't bring it, but I did."

As the boy spoke, he took out a copper coin to buy the windmill and handed it to Lingzi.

"Here, take it."

"Is this okay? Use your money to buy me things..." Although it had only been a few days, Tamura Reiko had already understood the importance of money in this human society. Was it a little inappropriate to use Shimizu Asahi's money to buy things for herself?

"This kind of thing is very common in families. After all, human feelings are the most precious thing."

"Just tell me what you want, don't be shy."

"Is...that's how it is..." Looking at the boy's matter-of-fact expression, Reiko felt a warm feeling in her heart...

......

On the other side, in the west of Yamashiro Province, there is a dilapidated shrine covered with cobwebs and dust. This shrine is not large; the overall size of the palace is only about the size of the Imperial Grand Shrine in the inner palace of Ise Grand Shrine. In some ways, it is a very simple shrine.

However, even though the shrine is not large, it still exudes a subtle warmth.

And it was in this dilapidated shrine that a girl dressed in a red and white shrine maiden's outfit, carrying a small, open parasol, arrived...

Although the shrine is now filled with decline and desolation, at least the cute girl carrying the little umbrella can still feel the laughter of the past.

"My shrine has become like this in just one or two years. If it continues to decline, even if the human conflict ends, it will be difficult for my shrine to rise again."

Looking at everything at the shrine, the black-haired girl revealed deep distress and resentment.

She couldn't help but shout, "Damn it, why do other people's shrines have so many shrine maidens, but my shrine only has me!"

"That's so unfair!"

After venting her frustration by screaming and clutching her head, the girl reluctantly began cleaning the shrine.

For a shrine, its facade is extremely important. As long as the facade is maintained, many believers will still come to worship after the conflict ends. However, once the facade is gone, the shrine will be forgotten by the people. Therefore, in order to maintain the shrine's competitiveness, maintaining its facade has become something that the shrine maiden must do.

But don't misunderstand, this girl is not a witch, she is a god, born from marriage, a true god.

She has a name that has not yet been forgotten: Enmusubi.

Yes, this seemingly naive girl is the owner of this shrine, Enmusubi.

As for her purpose in coming here, everyone could see it at a glance—to clean the shrine so that it would still be visited after the war. As for why she didn't send a shrine maiden, she herself had already stated the reason: her shrine didn't have a single shrine maiden. Chapter 290, Part 287: Food...no, fate has arrived!

Although the Goddess of Marriage in this era has not been forgotten by the world, the problem of her having no priestesses has existed from the very beginning. Even three hundred years later, she has not taken in a single priestess.

It's not that she has high standards for shrine maidens, but rather that she simply can't find any. It's unclear whether it's because she's too simple-minded or because the goddess of marriage herself has difficulty finding followers. In any case, over the years, not a single shrine maiden has wanted to join the Enmusubi Shrine and serve her.

She has been troubled by this matter to this day, and has shouted at her shrine several times, "Why is no one willing to become my shrine maiden?!" and "I'm not against shrine maidens getting married, just have one to take care of the shrine!"

It is precisely for this reason that she, a true deity, came here to clean the shrine.

At the same time, although she can easily clean it up with her divine power, because no one worships her and no one is forming a marriage alliance, her divine power is becoming less and less, and it can even be described as decreasing with every use. Therefore, she has to use it sparingly.

Using divine power to clean is too extravagant.

"Phew... There's still a little bit left, but it's almost done."

Although she was reluctant to use her divine power, the hands of the Goddess of Fate were quick to act. In just one or two hours, they had almost finished cleaning the shrine inside and out. She had cleaned countless shrines along the way and had become so skilled at this that it was almost heartbreaking.

Looking at the newly renovated shrine, the somewhat simple-minded deity put his hands on his hips and showed a happy expression.

"Hehe, that's so me!"

"Next up is the courtyard."

After cleaning the shrine, Enmusubi's gaze fell upon the shrine's courtyard. Compared to the shrine palace, the front yard was obviously easier to clean, as all that was needed was to sweep away the fallen leaves and dust. However, there was one problem she needed to solve: the sailors' quarters in front of the palace.

For a proper shrine, everything else can be omitted, but a torii gate and a sailor's quarters are essential.

After all, the torii gate is the gateway that separates humans from the gods, representing the sacred meaning of entering the divine realm, while the sailor's house is for people to cleanse their bodies and minds, and has the effect of helping people to face the gods with the purest and cleanest hearts.

Originally, the water in the sailors' quarters was condensed by her divine power, but now, her divine power is insufficient and she is unable to supply water remotely. As a result, the sailors' quarters have become very dilapidated. Not only is there no water at all, but the water storage and dispensing parts are also covered with very dirty grime.

Without divine power, it is impossible to clean it up completely.