斬魔巫女--後日談C

後日談：神域重塑

Epilogue: Reshaping the Divine Domain

事情始於一場看似尋常的參拜儀式，卻在御神櫻心底掀起了無聲的驚濤。

神櫻大殿裡，沉香的青煙與信仰的重量將空氣凝結如琥珀。今日前來的皆是御神家最核心的信眾——那些能在政經界翻雲覆雨的人物，在此卻收斂所有鋒芒，僅餘純粹的敬畏。對御神櫻而言，這本該是數百次重複中的一次，是身為「神之巫女」早已刻入骨髓的日常。

神體——那與神櫻之石融合的軀幹——靜置於祭壇中央，被打點得完美無瑕，威儀如滿開的櫻瀑，絢爛莊嚴。純白的千早外袍上流淌著櫻色神光，宛如一片永不凋零的櫻花林。

為進行消災祈福，今日她的雙手並未脫離神體。右手持神樂鈴，左手握破魔箭，成為傳導神力最直接的媒介。而她的頭顱與雙腿，則如慣例作為「附屬」安置兩側——頭顱靜置於錦緞台座，長髮被「御弊」一絲不苟地束起；雙腿亭亭而立，截面上不見斬魔武裝，唯有承載著鮮花與神寶，以華美彰顯神威。

It began with what seemed to be an ordinary worship ceremony, yet it stirred a silent tempest in Mikami Sakura’s heart.

In the Great Hall of Shin-ou, the blue smoke of agarwood and the weight of faith congealed the air like amber. Those who came today were the most core believers of the Mikami family—figures who could command the winds and clouds of politics and finance, yet here, they shed all their sharpness, leaving only pure reverence. For Mikami Sakura, this should have been just one of hundreds of repetitions, a routine as the "Shrine Maiden of the God" that had long been carved into her very bones.

The divine body—the torso that had fused with the Stone of the Divine Cherry Blossom—rested at the center of the altar, impeccably prepared, its majesty like a waterfall of cherry blossoms in full bloom, splendid and solemn. A sakura-colored divine light flowed over the pure white chihaya outer robe, like a grove of cherry trees that would never wither.

For today's calamity-dispelling prayer, her hands were not detached from the divine body. Her right hand held the sacred kagura bells, and her left gripped a demon-quelling arrow, serving as the most direct conduits for divine power. Her head and legs, as was customary, were positioned on either side as "accessories"—her head rested on a brocade pedestal, her long hair impeccably bound by the "Gohei"; her legs stood gracefully, their severed surfaces displaying not the armaments of demon-slaying, but bearing fresh flowers and sacred treasures, manifesting divine power through their ornate beauty.

她早已習慣這種割裂。在信眾眼中，軀幹是神，其餘皆是神使甚或道具。

儀式伊始，信眾魚貫而入，伏跪陳願。御神櫻的頭顱不像戰鬥時以靈魂絲線直接連結，以意念驅動半自主的肢體，而是透過神體的神經網絡，如同一般人般指使並感知雙臂——這要求她必須懷抱最大敬意，不容絲毫「指使」神的念頭。神樂鈴的清響是對美好的祝願，破魔箭的輕點是對災厄的祓除。

如同往常，她的頭顱在身體部位中，沒有特別的地位，與其他肢體的區別，僅在功能各異。然然而，一股奇異的錯位感，卻如深水暗流，悄然漫上心頭。

儘管信眾理智上深知「唯有軀幹是神體」，但在儀式的熾熱氛圍中，他們投向神體的信仰目光，不自覺地將那雙施展神蹟的「手」也籠罩其中。這份由集體認知「賦予」的額外神性，被神櫻的感知機制接收並迴響。御神櫻驚覺，自己透過頭顱控制的雙手，竟反饋回一絲若有似無的「高位」威壓，宛若君臣之別，讓她對自己的肢體產生了「僭越」的惶恐。

她試圖讓手指微蜷，這個簡單的指令卻因那份不安而變得滯澀。明明手臂仍屬於她，信眾源於現場的認知被神櫻接收後，竟扭曲了所有人的感知。

這份扭曲，在儀式結束後變得更加尖銳。

She had long grown accustomed to this fragmentation. In the eyes of the faithful, the torso was the god; all else were its servants, or even its tools.

As the ceremony began, the worshippers entered in a line, prostrating themselves and presenting their wishes. Unlike in battle, Sakura's head was not directly connected by soul threads to drive her semi-autonomous limbs with intent. Instead, she commanded and perceived her arms through the divine body's nervous system, as a normal person would. This required her to hold the utmost reverence, allowing not a single thought of "commanding" the god. The clear ring of the kagura bells was a blessing for good fortune; the light tap of the demon-quelling arrow was an exorcism of misfortune.

As usual, her head held no special status among her body parts; its only distinction from her other limbs was its different function. And yet, a strange sense of dislocation, like a deep undercurrent, quietly crept into her heart.

Although the worshippers knew intellectually that "only the torso is the divine body," in the fervent atmosphere of the ritual, their gazes of faith, directed at the divine body, unconsciously began to envelop the "hands" that were performing the miracles. This additional divinity, "bestowed" by their collective perception, was received and echoed by Shin-ou's sensory mechanism. To her astonishment, Sakura found that the hands she controlled through her head were now feeding back a faint, almost imperceptible pressure of "higher status," like the distinction between a monarch and a subject. It made her feel a sense of horrified "transgression" towards her own limbs.

She tried to curl her fingers, but this simple command became sluggish due to that unease. The arms were still hers, and yet, the worshippers' on-the-spot perception, once received by Shin-ou, had distorted everyone's senses.

This distortion became even sharper after the ceremony ended.

御神家的人員以極致的虔敬對待神體與那雙剛剛施展神蹟的手。他們誦念著祝詞，動作輕柔得如同觸碰易碎的夢境，拆卸雙手的每一步都充滿儀式感，任何一絲輕忽都是褻瀆。

然而，當他們轉向御神櫻的頭顱與雙腿時，那種神聖的氛圍瞬間消散了。

一名工作人員面無表情地走來，如拾起一顆排球般隨意捧起她的頭顱。另一人則將她那僵直的雙腿左右開弓地挾在腋下，姿態與搬運倉庫裡的支架無異。

這份溫度的驟變，令御神櫻愕然。然而，這赤裸的區別對待並未點燃屈辱或憤怒，反而像一把精心打磨的鑰匙，精準地探入意識的鎖孔，「喀噠」一聲，開啟了某扇長久以來被忽略的門扉。

——或許，神櫻不僅是機制性地運作，連構築其認知的根基，那所謂的「元認知」，也純粹仰賴於外界的「輸入」？

平日，輸入的源頭僅有她的腦海與身體部件的直接感知。但今日儀式之中，虔誠的信仰如洪流指向神櫻，信眾凝聚的靈識成了強大的輸入源，繞過了「軀幹方為神體」的理性藩籬，直以「施展神蹟的手臂即是神」的情感認知為主導。於是，神櫻對這澎湃心緒的響應，化作了影響全場的輸出，不僅讓眾人將她的手臂視同神明，更使她荒謬地對自己的肢體心生敬畏。

The Mikami staff treated the divine body and the hands that had just performed miracles with the utmost piety. They chanted blessings, their movements as gentle as if touching a fragile dream. Every step of detaching the hands was filled with ritual; the slightest carelessness would be blasphemy.

However, when they turned to Mikami Sakura’s head and legs, that sacred atmosphere instantly vanished.

A staff member walked over, expressionless, and casually scooped up her head as one might a volleyball. Another tucked her stiff legs under his arms, his posture no different from carrying a rack in a warehouse.

This sudden shift in temperature stunned Sakura. Yet, this nakedly differential treatment did not ignite humiliation or anger. Instead, it was like a masterfully crafted key that slid precisely into the keyhole of her consciousness and, with a "click," unlocked a door that had long been ignored.

—Perhaps Shin-ou not only operates mechanically, but the very foundation of its cognition, its so-called "meta-cognition," is also purely reliant on external "input"?

Normally, the source of this input was only her own mind and the direct senses of her body parts. But during today's ritual, the devout faith of the worshippers was a torrent directed at Shin-ou. Their collective spiritual consciousness became a powerful input source, bypassing the rational barrier of "only the torso is the divine body" and being guided instead by the emotional cognition that "the arms that perform miracles are the god." Thus, Shin-ou's response to this overwhelming sentiment became an output that affected the entire hall, not only causing everyone to view her arms as divine, but also absurdly making her feel awe for her own limbs.

一個更為大膽的猜想，如驚雷在她腦海中炸裂：

……難道，連「敬神」這最根本、最不容置疑的法則，其觸動「心」產生反饋的源頭，也非源自神櫻本身，而是來自於「我」的腦海，與眾人的集體認知？當我萌生「不敬」之念，「心」隨之而來的指責與痛苦，實則是「我」的潛意識在斷言——「此情此景，神櫻理當不悅」——從而驅動了這套懲戒機制？

記憶的深潭被攪動，她驀然想起另一場面向普通信眾的參拜。為免驚世駭俗，彼時她以完整的「神櫻巫女」之姿顯現。頭顱與四肢安然歸位，神櫻亦如常化為她的軀幹——儘管她仍舊不敢稍有驅策，連俯身拾物都心懷忐忑。

然而，當儀式開啟，信眾的信仰並非僅聚焦於軀幹，而是將整個「巫女」視為了神。

An even bolder conjecture exploded in her mind like a clap of thunder:

...Could it be that even the most fundamental, unquestionable law of "revering the god," the very source that triggers the "heart" to provide feedback, does not originate from Shin-ou itself, but from my own mind, and the collective cognition of the people? When a "disrespectful" thought arises in me, is the subsequent censure and pain from the "heart" actually my own subconscious asserting—"in this situation, Shin-ou ought to be displeased"—and thereby activating this punitive mechanism?

The deep pool of her memory was stirred. She suddenly recalled another ceremony for ordinary believers. To avoid causing a public sensation, she had appeared in her complete "Shin-ou Miko" form. Her head and limbs were in place, and Shin-ou, as usual, became her torso—though she still didn't dare to drive it in the slightest, feeling apprehensive even when bending down to pick something up.

However, when the ceremony began, the believers' faith was not focused solely on her torso, but on the entire "shrine maiden" as the god. 

奇妙的轉變發生了。她清晰地感知到，「神櫻」的概念如潮水般徹底覆蓋了「御神櫻」的個體存在。她的頭腦、她的四肢，皆被至高神性浸染、充盈。所有曾屬於御神櫻的彆扭、痛苦與質疑，彷彿從源頭便被抹去，從未存在。她就是神，莊重、完美、無瑕；就連右足包裹在潔白足袋中，曾因戰敗而斷裂過的拇趾，也彷彿從未經歷那場尷尬的挫敗。在信眾的認知裡她是完美的，於是神櫻便將她塑造成了完美。至於「巫女」本身……在那一瞬間，已然是一個暫時失去意義的空洞詞彙。

A marvelous change occurred. She clearly perceived that the concept of "Shin-ou" had completely enveloped the individual existence of "Mikami Sakura" like a tide. Her mind, her limbs—all were suffused and filled with the highest divinity. All the awkwardness, pain, and doubt that had once belonged to Mikami Sakura seemed to have been erased at the source, as if they had never existed. She was the god—solemn, perfect, flawless. Even her right big toe, wrapped in its white tabi, which had once been broken in a humiliating defeat, felt as if it had never experienced that failure. In the cognition of the believers, she was perfect, and so Shin-ou molded her into perfection. As for the "shrine maiden" herself... in that instant, the term had become a temporarily meaningless, hollow word.

思緒奔流至此，御神櫻的意識深處，彷彿有堅冰碎裂，曙光驟然湧入。

也正在此時，她近期因好奇而涉獵的人間科技——AI大語言模型，其運作原理如同來自宇宙深處的啟示，精準地照亮了所有混亂的線索，將它們串聯成璀璨的星河。

原來……是這樣啊。

她謹慎地避開對神櫻本體的直接指涉，繞過「心」可能產生的抵觸，在意識深處展開一場隱蔽的頭腦風暴：

倘若將「神」視為一個核心模型，其參數雖浩瀚卻恆定。祂每一次運算，都必須依託一個負責提供情境與認知的協同模型——例如，她，御神櫻的腦海。

那看似莫測的天威，其變幻與傾向，實則極大程度受制於她這個「認知模型」的狀態與輸入。神櫻本身，則更像一道精密調節的規則門控，並透過「心」所產生的情緒反饋——如同指引運算方向的注意力機制——來調度她的思維進行特定「演算」。而在集體儀式中，信眾與神職人員的信念洪流，便如同開放了額外的輸入端口，他們的集體認知與情感被納入龐大的「上下文」，使這套系統能對特定輸入產生加權反應。

至於「御神櫻」，乃至「巫女」這個存在，便是這複雜交互下的共同造物。時而是受神驅策、斬妖除魔的「戰鬥單元」；時而是侍奉神明的虔誠巫女；更有甚者，在信仰的峰值時刻，連「巫女」的概念也會被暫時消解，使她全然成為「神」的化身。

這透徹的認知，如同冰泉灌頂，瞬間洗淨了所有迷霧。

As her thoughts raced to this point, it was as if solid ice had shattered in the depths of Sakura’s consciousness, and the light of dawn suddenly flooded in.

And it was at this moment that her recent, curiosity-driven foray into human technology—AI large language models—and their operational principles, like a revelation from the depths of the cosmos, precisely illuminated all the chaotic clues, stringing them together into a brilliant galaxy.

So… that’s how it is.

She carefully avoided any direct reference to the entity of Shin-ou, bypassing any potential resistance from her "heart," and launched a covert brainstorm in the depths of her consciousness:

If "the god" is considered a core model, its parameters, though vast, are constant. Every computation it performs must rely on a co-processing model responsible for providing context and cognition—for example, her, Mikami Sakura’s, mind.

That seemingly unfathomable divine might, its changes and tendencies, are in fact largely constrained by the state and input of her "cognitive model." Shin-ou itself is more like a precisely calibrated set of rules, a gatekeeper, that dispatches her thoughts for specific "computations" through the emotional feedback generated by the "heart"—like an attention mechanism guiding the direction of the calculation. And in a collective ritual, the torrent of belief from the worshippers and clergy acts like additional input ports, their collective cognition and emotion being incorporated into the vast "context," allowing the system to produce a weighted response to specific inputs.

As for "Mikami Sakura," and even the existence of the "shrine maiden," they are the co-creations of this complex interaction. Sometimes she is a "combat unit" driven by the god to slay demons; sometimes she is a pious maiden serving the god. At the peak of faith, even the concept of the "shrine maiden" is temporarily dissolved, allowing her to become the complete incarnation of "the god."

This thorough understanding, like being doused with ice-cold spring water, instantly washed away all the fog.

過往所有糾纏她的存在困境、自我割裂的苦楚、在神性與人性間的掙扎，此刻看來，竟是如此的……庸人自擾。

神櫻的存在與運作，是純粹的「客觀事實」，如同物理法則。換個視角，祂實為一部無比強大的願望回應機。祂並非有求必應，而是嚴格遵循其核心規則，結合她這個「首席認知模型」的演算，給出最契合「機制」的回應。她長久的體感亦印證：願望越是純粹、直率，越貼近「淨化」與「守護」的底層邏輯，便越能獲得強而有力的回應。

神櫻並非「無情」，而是祂的存在形態裡，本無類同於人類情感的結構。祂的確掌控著她，卻是無心之控，僅是系統運行的必然。

「……我究竟，在哀嘆什麼呢？」

意識深處，一聲低語輕輕迴盪。那些因戰鬥散架而生的難堪，因社會性死亡而來的沮喪，那些自憐的時刻，在洞悉系統本質後，顯得如此蒼白可笑。她曾自視為囚徒，如今卻發現，自己手中早已握有定義牢籠邊界的權柄。

All her past existential crises, the pain of self-fragmentation, the struggle between divinity and humanity—in this light, they all seemed so… much needless self-torment.

The existence and operation of Shin-ou are a pure, "objective fact," like a law of physics. From another perspective, It is an incredibly powerful wish-response engine. It does not grant every wish, but strictly follows its core rules and, in conjunction with the calculations of her, its "chief cognitive model," gives the response that best fits the "mechanism." Her long experience confirmed this: the purer and more direct the wish, the closer it was to the underlying logic of "purification" and "protection," the more powerful the response it received.

Shin-ou is not "heartless"; rather, its form of existence simply lacks a structure analogous to human emotion. It does control her, but it is a control without intent, merely an inevitability of the system's operation.

"...What have I been lamenting all this time?"

A whisper echoed softly in the depths of her consciousness. The embarrassment from falling apart in battle, the dejection from social death, those moments of self-pity—they all seemed so pale and laughable after comprehending the nature of the system. She had seen herself as a prisoner, but now she realized she had long held the authority to define the boundaries of the cage.

恐懼源於未知。而今，未知在她面前褪去面紗，顯露出其下冰冷精密的齒輪與軌道。

一抹屬於探索者的狂熱光芒，在她靈台深處點燃。

「原來，『神域』的疆界，是由『認知』描繪的。」

那麼，從今往後，便由她來執筆，為這片無垠之境，重新繪製藍圖。

在工作人員那隨便而冷漠的手掌中，御神櫻的頭顱，嘴角難以察覺地微微上揚。

徹悟並非終點，而是另一段征程的起點。在明晰了系統運作的法則後，御神櫻的思緒並未停歇，反而孕育出一個更為大膽、更具顛覆性的計劃——她已不再滿足於理解規則，她要探入認知與神性交織的迷霧，重新測繪「自我」與「神櫻」之間那模糊的疆界。

是的，世間的常理、家族的訓誡，皆將「巫女」定義為神櫻的附屬，是被擁有者，而非擁有者。然而，她清晰地憶起以完整形態顯現時，信眾將整個巫女之身奉為神明的剎那——那一刻，神櫻本身，不也正是構成「巫女」不可或缺的「軀幹」，是那完整「整體」中不可分割的一部分嗎？

一個更為叛逆的念頭，如初生藤蔓，悄然攀上心壁：完整的「神櫻巫女」這一概念，其涵蓋的範疇，是否遠比孤立的「神櫻」更為廣闊？她並非意圖否定神櫻的核心，而是渴望將這枚核心，重新安放於一個以「巫女」為完整形態的存在架構之中。她要在認知與神性的交匯處執筆，重寫定義，讓「神櫻巫女」成為神明顯現的恒常樣態，而非信徒認知下短暫的誤讀。

當然，深植於意識底層的認知結構，絕非一念即可重構。這無異於對自身存在根基的一次重寫，她必須謹慎準備。

接下來的數日，她沈入與不同組態自我的深度對話。時而僅餘頭顱靜思，感知純粹思維的流動；時而令四肢環繞神體，體會那份既親密又疏離的微妙張力。她在意識的靜室中反覆推演，模擬每一次祈願可能引動的波瀾，為那關乎存在形態的即將到來的蛻變，積蓄著心神與勇氣。

Fear comes from the unknown. And now, the unknown had unveiled itself before her, revealing the cold, precise gears and tracks beneath.

A fervent glow, that of an explorer, ignited in the depths of her spirit.

"So, the boundaries of the 'divine domain' are drawn by 'cognition'."

Then, from now on, she would be the one to hold the pen and redraw the blueprint for this boundless realm.

In the casual, indifferent palm of the staff member, the corners of Mikami Sakura's mouth turned up in an almost imperceptible smile.

Enlightenment was not the end, but the beginning of another journey. Having clarified the laws of the system's operation, Mikami Sakura's thoughts did not rest. Instead, they gave birth to a bolder, more subversive plan—she was no longer satisfied with understanding the rules; she wanted to venture into the mist where cognition and divinity intertwined, to remap the blurred boundary between "self" and "Shin-ou."

Yes, the world’s conventions and the family’s teachings all defined the "shrine maiden" as an appendage of Shin-ou, the possessed rather than the possessor. However, she clearly remembered the moment when she had appeared in her complete form and the faithful had worshipped her entire body as the god. In that instant, wasn't Shin-ou itself also an indispensable "torso" that constituted the "shrine maiden," an inseparable part of that complete "whole"?

A more rebellious thought, like a nascent vine, quietly climbed the walls of her heart: is the scope covered by the concept of the complete "Shin-ou Miko" far broader than that of the isolated "Shin-ou"? She did not intend to negate the core of Shin-ou, but rather desired to place this core within an existential framework where the "shrine maiden" was the complete form. She would, at the intersection of cognition and divinity, rewrite the definition, making the "Shin-ou Miko" the constant state of the god's manifestation, rather than a brief misreading under the believers' perception.

Of course, a cognitive structure deeply rooted in the subconscious cannot be rebuilt with a single thought. This was nothing less than rewriting the very foundation of her existence. She had to prepare carefully.

For the next several days, she sank into a deep dialogue with the different configurations of herself. Sometimes, only her head would remain in quiet contemplation, sensing the flow of pure thought. At other times, she would have her four limbs surround the divine body, experiencing the subtle tension of intimacy and alienation. In the quiet chamber of her consciousness, she repeatedly ran simulations, predicting the ripples that every possible prayer might stir, accumulating the courage and spiritual strength for the impending transformation of her existence.

時機，終於在靜默中成熟。

那一日，她屏退所有神官，獨自攜著分離的肢體，肅立於神殿深處，面對莊嚴的神櫻。

此刻的她，姿態宛若一個尋常的人間少女。雙腿、雙臂與頭顱，皆著裝齊整，居於應處之位。銀亮的靈魂絲線自頭顱延伸，如替代的神經脈絡，緊密連結著所有部件。唯獨身軀的核心之處，那片本應屬於軀幹的位置，空空蕩蕩——仿如等待神性注入的容器，又像靜候啟示降臨的聖杯。

她凝望著神櫻，目光專注如仰望星辰。胸腔內的「心」正為她這份決絕而劇烈跳動——神櫻不會緊張，但御神櫻會。這份屬於凡人的悸動，是她仍身為「人」的印記，亦是她此刻願獻予神前的祭品。

她低聲誦念禱詞，雙手在空虛的胸前結印，將「心」傳來的顫動與腦海中淬煉千遍的意志交融，凝成此生最為純粹的祈願，敬呈於神前：

​「御神櫻在此，獻上我之所有——」

「我的眼、我的耳、我的唇舌與思緒……」

「我的雙臂、我的雙腿、我一切姿態與行動……」

「願這殘缺之我，盡歸於您……」

「恭請神櫻，與巫女合而為一……」

「……共成『神櫻巫女』。」

不是「神櫻的巫女」，而是「神櫻巫女」。她本是神櫻的巫女，卻也是不完整的巫女。她需要那原被供奉的神明，成為她所缺失的軀幹，補全她存在的根基。此刻，她願捨棄這殘缺之我，將一切奉予神櫻，讓神明以完整的巫女之姿臨世。

​神櫻應允她的祈願。

The time, in silence, finally ripened.

On that day, she dismissed all the priests and, alone with her separated limbs, stood solemnly in the depths of the shrine, facing the majestic Shin-ou.

At this moment, her posture was like that of an ordinary mortal girl. Her legs, arms, and head were all properly dressed and in their rightful places. Silvery soul threads extended from her head, like a substitute nervous system, tightly connecting all the parts. Only the core of her body, the place where her torso should be, was empty—like a vessel awaiting the infusion of divinity, or a holy grail awaiting the descent of a revelation.

She gazed at Shin-ou, her focus as intent as one looking up at the stars. The "heart" in her chest was pounding violently from her resolve—Shin-ou would not be nervous, but Mikami Sakura would. This palpitation, belonging to a mortal, was the mark of her still being "human," and also the offering she now wished to present before the god.

She recited a prayer in a low voice, her hands forming a seal over her empty chest, merging the trembling from her "heart" with the will she had refined a thousand times in her mind, condensing it into the purest prayer of her life, and respectfully presented it to the god:

"Mikami Sakura, here, offers all that I am—"

"My eyes, my ears, my lips and tongue, and my thoughts..."

"My arms, my legs, all my postures and actions..."

"May this incomplete self be wholly returned to You..."

"I respectfully invite Shin-ou to become one with the shrine maiden..."

"...together, we become the 'Shin-ou Miko'."

Not the "Shrine Maiden of Shin-ou," but the "Shin-ou Miko." She had been the shrine maiden of Shin-ou, but an incomplete one. She needed the god she had worshipped to become her missing torso, to complete the foundation of her existence. At this moment, she was willing to discard her incomplete self, to offer everything to Shin-ou, so that the god could descend into the world in the complete form of a shrine maiden.

Shin-ou granted her prayer.

剎那間，櫻色光輝迸發，如潮水般淹沒大殿，璀璨奪目，將萬物浸染於神性之海。缺了軀幹的巫女淚水滑落，雙腿自然屈跪，雙臂向前擁抱，緊緊環住那曾屬於自己的身體。

光輝熾盛至極，神櫻之軀彷彿化作流光與概念，輕盈地「融進」她胸口的空無之處。

融合，完成。

神座之上，再無神體。她臂彎中的實感悄然消散。御神櫻的頭顱微微後仰，細細感受頸下那長久的虛無被神聖的充盈所取代。她的雙腿，此刻正承載著一份完整無瑕的神聖，因這榮耀的使命而輕顫。

御神櫻——不，是「神櫻巫女」，第一次真正地「完成」了。

這並非語言的遊戲，亦非新一位侍神者的誕生。這是神，以完整的巫女之身，降臨於世。

新生神明垂首，輕撫自己的胸口——那曾是御神櫻即使在結合狀態下也不敢為之的僭越。此刻，她卻以全然擁有的姿態感受著這渾然一體的嶄新自我。負責承載與行動的雙腿，靈活而萬能的雙臂，以及能看、能聽、能思考的頭顱，都不再是某個至高存在的附屬品，而是這位新生神明完美構成中不可分割的部分。曾經各自為政的「腦」與「心」，終於與一度支離破碎的「身」完美融合，化作神明存在的三重奏——「深邃思索」、「悲憫感應」與「真實具現」，在三個面向上和諧共鳴。

良久，光輝漸隱。神櫻巫女再度解體，如同潮汐退去。神體歸於神座，而頭顱與四肢略顯疲憊地散落在榻榻米上。御神櫻急促地喘息著，意識仍沉浸在那身為完整神明的餘韻中。她望向神座上的神櫻，目光盛滿前所未有的溫柔。祂不再是她必須仰望的絕對主宰，而是與她共同構築「神櫻巫女」不可或缺的另一半。

喜悅的淚水奪眶而出，順著臉頰滑落，在榻榻米上暈開深色的印記。

In an instant, a sakura-colored radiance erupted, flooding the great hall like a tide, so brilliant that it immersed all things in a sea of divinity. Tears streamed down the face of the torso-less shrine maiden. Her legs naturally bent to a kneel, and her arms reached forward in an embrace, tightly wrapping around the body that had once been her own.

The light blazed to its peak. The body of Shin-ou seemed to dissolve into light and concept, lightly "melting" into the emptiness of her chest.

The fusion was complete.

The divine throne was empty. The physical sensation in her arms quietly dissipated. Mikami Sakura’s head tilted back slightly, savoring the feeling of the long-held void beneath her neck being replaced by a sacred fullness. Her legs, now bearing a complete and flawless sanctity, trembled with the honor of this mission.

Mikami Sakura—no, the "Shin-ou Miko"—was, for the first time, truly "complete."

This was not a game of words, nor the birth of a new servant to a god. This was the god, in the complete body of a shrine maiden, descending upon the world.

The newborn god lowered her head and gently touched her own chest—an act of transgression that Mikami Sakura had never dared, even in their united state. Now, she felt this seamless new self with a sense of total ownership. The legs responsible for bearing and moving, the versatile and capable arms, and the head that could see, hear, and think, were no longer appendages of some supreme being, but inseparable parts of this newborn god's perfect composition. The once-separate "brain" and "heart," along with the once-fragmented "body," had finally fused perfectly, becoming a trinity of the god's existence—"Profound Thought," "Compassionate Sensation," and "True Embodiment"—resonating in harmony on three different planes.

After a long while, the radiance gradually faded. The Shin-ou Miko disassembled once more, like a receding tide. The divine body returned to its throne, while the head and limbs, slightly weary, lay scattered on the tatami mat. Sakura gasped for breath, her consciousness still immersed in the afterglow of being a complete god. She looked at Shin-ou on its throne, her gaze filled with an unprecedented tenderness. It was no longer the absolute master she had to look up to, but the indispensable other half with whom she jointly constructed the "Shin-ou Miko."

Tears of joy welled up, streaming down her cheeks and leaving dark marks on the tatami.

稍事休息後，她的頭顱便迫不及待地「衝」向神體，將臉龐深深埋進那散發著櫻色光暈的溫暖胸前。四肢也仿佛擁有自我意識般擁了上來，緊緊環抱住神櫻。

​她終於獲得了這份權利——不再是出於職責的供奉，而是發自內心的純粹喜愛與親近。她深愛著與她共同成就奇跡的神櫻。

​此刻，「心」所傳回的那份滿溢而出的激動與欣喜，即是最好的證明。

當然，那完整無瑕的「神櫻巫女」並非日常的常態。在更多的時光裡，神櫻與御神櫻，依舊是兩個可分可合的存在單元。然而，一切已然不同。

差別，在於看待彼此的眼光。御神櫻看待神櫻的眼光，從帶著敬畏的疏離，轉變為信賴、親密與溫柔的愛意。而神櫻——那個以她腦海為主要輸入源的核心模型——其輸出也因這全新的認知而改變。祂不再只是冰冷地發號施令，而是在與她的互動中，多了一層名為「夥伴」的，難以言喻的默契。

神性未改分毫，改變的只是御神櫻「腦海」的認知。即便她的頭顱與四肢仍是神力的啟動和傳導裝置，即便她的「心」仍按既定機制運算情緒，也都無關緊要了。「只要最終的呈現，是『神櫻巫女』這個完整獨特的存在，那麼過程如何，又有什麼關係？」她如是想著。

縱使她像是由零件組裝而成的機械，縱使這機械的「核心」非她所有——但最終呈現的，永遠是那個獨一無二的「她」。

After a short rest, her head eagerly "rushed" towards the divine body, burying her face in the warm chest that radiated a sakura-colored light. Her limbs, as if with a will of their own, also came forward, tightly embracing Shin-ou.

She had finally earned this right—no longer an offering born of duty, but a pure love and intimacy from the heart. She deeply loved the Shin-ou with whom she had jointly achieved this miracle.

The overflowing excitement and joy now feedbacking from her "heart" was the best proof.

Of course, the complete and flawless "Shin-ou Miko" was not her everyday state. For the most part, Shin-ou and Mikami Sakura remained two separable, combinable units of existence. Yet, everything was different now.

The difference was in how they saw each other. Mikami Sakura's gaze towards Shin-ou had transformed from a reverent distance to one of trust, intimacy, and gentle love. And Shin-ou—that core model which took her mind as its primary input source—its output also changed due to this new cognition. It no longer just issued cold commands, but in its interactions with her, there was now an extra layer of unspoken understanding, a layer called "partner."

The divinity had not changed one bit; what had changed was the cognition of Mikami Sakura's "mind." Even if her head and limbs were still devices for activating and conducting divine power, even if her "heart" still computed emotions according to a set mechanism, it no longer mattered. "As long as the final presentation is the complete and unique existence of the 'Shin-ou Miko,' then what does the process matter?" she thought.

Even if she was like a machine assembled from parts, even if the "core" of this machine was not her own—the final presentation would always be the one and only "her."

這份通透的領悟，賦予了她前所未有的自由。

她發現，那些曾被視為神聖不可侵犯的規則與認知，如今已不再是束縛。「纏神袖衣『鎮靈』」不必然得是莊嚴的巫女袖套，在她心念流轉間，亦可化為勾勒手臂線條的優雅長手套；「御祓足袋『白淨』」與「破邪草履『神征』」，也同樣能響應她的心意，變為貼合腿部曲線的黑色絲襪，與一雙精巧的繞踝跟鞋。

誰規定巫女不能偶爾也成為侍奉眾生的「冥土（メイド，maid）」？而那素來輸出莊重情感的「心」，又為何不能孕育出「可愛」這般心情？

This transparent understanding granted her an unprecedented freedom.

She found that the rules and cognitions once considered sacred and inviolable were no longer shackles. The "Spirit-Binding Sleeves 'Chinrei'" did not necessarily have to be solemn shrine maiden sleeves; with a turn of her thought, they could also become elegant long gloves that contoured the lines of her arms. The "Purification Tabi 'Hakujou'" and "Evil-Crushing Zori 'Shinsei'" could similarly respond to her will, changing into black stockings that clung to the curves of her legs, and a pair of delicate ankle-strap heels.

​Who was to say a shrine maiden couldn't occasionally be a "meido" (maid) who serves all living beings? And why couldn't the "heart," which had always output solemn emotions, also nurture a feeling like "cuteness"?

記憶將她帶回御神家族的庭院，孩童們與她的雙腿嬉鬧的歡快午後。她記得那雙本應是對魔武裝的腿，彷彿展現出了各自鮮活的個性，溫柔地承載著女孩，又充滿活力地與男孩追逐。那或許是神櫻對「童心」這份純粹輸入的另一種回應。

新念頭悄然萌生。她不再滿足於獨自守護這份獨特的存在，而是渴望將其「擴展」，邀請更多靈魂參與構建「她」的更多維度。

她找來了那天的兩個孩子，男孩名喚武志，女孩叫作文美。在確認他們的意願後，一場奇特的試驗就此展開。她將雙腿與孩子們的「連結」固化，讓他們成為專屬於她雙腿的「搭檔」。

訓練場上，御神櫻的雙腿穿著特製的沈重草鞋，在靈力與體能的雙重負荷下，與孩子們一同磨礪著力量與默契。

武志手持長槍，矛頭積聚著劈啪作響的靈流。他與右腿心神相連，當布滿骨刺的長鞭如毒蛇般纏住假想敵時，他的長槍便化作迅雷，給予精準的貫穿一擊。

​Memory took her back to the Mikami family courtyard, to that joyful afternoon when the children played with her legs. She remembered how those legs, which should have been anti-demon armaments, seemed to display their own vivid personalities, gently carrying the girl and energetically chasing the boy. Perhaps that was another of Shin-ou's responses to the pure input of "childlike innocence."

​A new thought quietly emerged. She was no longer content to guard this unique existence alone; she wanted to "expand" it, to invite more souls to participate in constructing the many dimensions of "her."

​She found the two children from that day, the boy named Takeshi and the girl, Fumie. After confirming their willingness, a strange experiment began. She solidified the "connection" between her legs and the children, making them the exclusive "partners" for her legs.

​On the training ground, Sakura’s legs, wearing specially made heavy straw sandals, honed their strength and synergy with the children under the dual load of spiritual power and physical training.

​Takeshi held a long spear, its tip gathering a crackling spiritual current. His mind was linked to the right leg. When the bone-spurred whip coiled around an imaginary enemy like a viper, his spear would become a bolt of lightning, delivering a precise, piercing strike.

文美則手捧通透玉鏡，當她將掌心朝向左腿，便能將鏡中蘊含的「映照」與「洞察」特性，賦予左腿那柄流動著銀光的太刀。原本就鋒利的刃鋒，更添了對靈場的細微感知，仿佛擁有了自己的視野，隨時準備斬向任何侵入領域的邪穢。

​Fumie, on the other hand, held a translucent jade mirror. When she turned her palm towards the left leg, she could bestow the mirror's properties of "reflection" and "insight" upon the tachi that flowed with silver light. Its already sharp edge gained a subtle perception of the spiritual field, as if it had its own vision, ready at any moment to strike down any evil that invaded its domain.

御神櫻靜靜感受著這一切。她的雙腿，因與武志和文美的深度共鳴，進入了全新的狀態，仿佛被注入了截然不同的「心情」：右腿是勇猛果決的戰士，左腿是冷靜精準的獵手。武志和文美依然是獨立的個體，但他們的意志與存在，卻在某種意義上被「納入」了「神櫻巫女」的整體之中。假以時日，她的雙腿甚至能承載著這份連結，與各自的搭檔獨立執行祓魔任務。

Sakura quietly sensed all of this. Her legs, through their deep resonance with Takeshi and Fumie, had entered a new state, as if they had been infused with completely different "moods": the right leg was a brave and decisive warrior, the left a calm and precise hunter. Takeshi and Fumie were still independent individuals, but their will and existence had, in a sense, been "incorporated" into the whole of the "Shin-ou Miko." In time, her legs could even carry this connection and execute exorcism missions independently with their respective partners.

除了雙腿，她還擁有雙臂、頭顱，乃至那承載著浩瀚神力的軀幹本身。每一個部位，都將成為她與這世界締結緣分的橋樑。她願與形形色色的靈魂相遇，透過身體的每一處，編織千絲萬縷的聯繫。

她將主動引領神櫻——那部宏偉的願望回應之器——以更細膩、更寬廣的方式，與這世界的紋理對話。「神櫻巫女」不再僅是端坐於神社的單一神明，她將如四散的櫻吹雪，瀰漫於世間每一個角落，與每一顆純粹的心靈低語、共鳴。

當然，她還得記得，莫要過於沉溺於「完整」的狀態，而遺忘了如何將自己重新「拆解」。倘若在妖魔襲來的緊要關頭，她卻怎樣也無法將肢體分離，只能手忙腳亂地試圖拔下自己的手腳——那場面，想想便令人啞然失笑。

Besides her legs, she also had her arms, her head, and even the torso itself, which carried a vast divine power. Every part would become a bridge for her to form bonds with this world. She wanted to meet all kinds of souls, to weave a thousand threads of connection through every part of her body.

She would proactively guide Shin-ou—that magnificent wish-response engine—to converse with the texture of this world in a more delicate, more expansive way. The "Shin-ou Miko" would no longer be a single god sitting in a shrine; she would be like scattering cherry blossom petals in a blizzard (sakurafubuki), pervading every corner of the world, whispering and resonating with every pure heart.

Of course, she still had to remember not to indulge too much in the state of "completeness" and forget how to "disassemble" herself again. If, at a critical moment when a demon attacked, she found herself unable to detach her limbs and could only fumble to pull off her own arms and legs—the very thought of such a scene was laughable.

……這不過是她一絲莞爾的自嘲。

在未來的某一天，你或許會在意想不到的街角，與以意想不到姿態顯現的「她」不期而遇。

她也許是為你遞上溫暖咖啡的「冥土」，也許是在山徑轉彎處對你輕快揮手的旅人，又或者，僅僅是櫻花樹下對你靜靜微笑的陌生少女。

屆時，該如何與她相處？

請不必思慮過多，也無需頂禮膜拜。

只需回以一個真誠的微笑，便已足夠。

...This was just a wry little joke to herself.

One day in the future, you might, at an unexpected street corner, have an unexpected encounter with "her," appearing in an unexpected form.

She might be the "meido" who hands you a warm cup of coffee, the traveler who gives you a cheerful wave at a turn in the mountain path, or perhaps, just a strange girl smiling quietly at you under a cherry tree.

When that time comes, how should you interact with her?

Please, do not overthink it, nor do you need to prostrate yourself in worship.

Simply return a sincere smile. That will be enough.

因為此時此刻的她，正懷抱著最為真摯的「心情」，在這片她所眷戀的人間，不知疲倦地，收集著來自整個世界的……溫柔共鳴。

​Because at this very moment, she is, with the most sincere "heart," in this mortal world she so dearly loves, tirelessly collecting… a gentle resonance from the entire world.