Not only had he revived Hanachirusato—

He had also found himself a substitute taste-tester.

Two birds with one stone.

"Is it good?"

Seeing someone eat her cooking expressionlessly for the first time, Raiden Ei felt deeply moved.

Because this was the first.

And possibly the only one.

Ever since she tasted her own flatbread yesterday—

She had nearly fallen into despair.

She thought she would never, in her lifetime, cook something edible.

But now—

Someone was calmly eating her food.

"That question... I cannot answer."

Hanachirusato looked at the small Raiden Ei in confusion.

In her memories, this was the Raiden Shogun of Inazuma.

But why was the Shogun so small?

Was this her child?

With Kitsune Saiguu’s memories, she was certain she hadn’t mistaken the person.

But she never imagined—

The Raiden Shogun would have a child.

Wasn’t she a battle maniac?

Has the iron tree finally blossomed?

Truly incomprehensible.

"Whether you can answer or not, you’re the first person who can eat my cooking."

No matter what—

Ei had decided she approved of Hanachirusato.

"Hey, hey! The first person to eat your food was me, wasn’t it?"

Yae Miko protested.

She had swallowed Ei’s cooking multiple times through sheer willpower.

And now her contributions were being ignored?!

"That’s not fair."

"Mm. And you too, Miko. Thank you for your hard work these past days."

"Heh..."

Miko gave a cold laugh.

That tone was perfunctory.

As if her suffering had been insignificant.

She had been risking her life helping Ei learn to cook!

"Su Ran! Take me away with you! I can’t stay in Inazuma anymore! I can’t sit in Guuji’s seat for another second!"

Hanachirusato grew uneasy watching this.

She had just arrived, and already the Shogun and her familiar were at odds.

That didn’t feel right.

"No need to worry. This is normal. It’ll pass in a couple of days."

Ei understood her familiarity well.

Miko had a strong sense of responsibility.

She wouldn’t leave Inazuma so casually.

After all, aside from her—

No one else could hold the position of Guuji.

Unless...

Saiguu returned.

Ei paused.

Right.

If Saiguu returned—what about Miko? 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Would Miko remain Guuji?

Or would Saiguu resume the role?

That was awkward either way.

But then Ei calmed down.

Because she remembered something important.

If Saiguu returned—

Then her sister, Raiden Makoto, would return too.

If Makoto returned, then she would naturally become the Raiden Shogun again.

Even the puppet Shogun couldn’t object.

After Makoto’s second disappearance,

Ei didn’t feel the same despair as the first time.

Because this time—

She knew Makoto would return.

It was only a matter of time.

And surely—

It wouldn’t exceed the five hundred years she had already endured.

While the Narukami duo sulked—

Lumine approached Su Ran.

The greatest obstacle of her journey.

She had complicated feelings about him.

But one question had long lingered in her heart.

"I want to ask you something. Is that okay?"

"Go ahead."

With Lumine, Su Ran’s attitude was peculiar.

Aside from teasing her occasionally—

He also didn’t wish for her to face excessive danger.

Everything she experienced in the dream had been absolutely safe.

Well.

Physically safe.

Mentally? That was debatable.

There might already be some lingering trauma.

"In your eyes... What kind of person am I? And why do you pay so much attention to me?"

Lumine was curious.

From their first meeting in Liyue—

Until now—

This Fatui Harbinger had always placed her in a strangely important position.

Especially when breaking the Inazuma dream.

Even with Rex Lapis present—

She somehow became the main force.

And in the end, the key to defeating the Electro Archon.

Regardless of the technical outcome—

She won, didn’t she?

Maybe she didn’t defeat Ei outright—

But she shattered the dream.

She shattered the god’s illusion.

"That’s two questions."

"...Then answer both!"

She silently complained.

Was he really nitpicking that?

"For you? Greedy. A bit of a dummy. Human trash..."

Su Ran started counting on his fingers, listing his impressions.

"Stop, stop, stop! Are you sure you’re talking about me?!"

From the moment he opened his mouth, Lumine felt wronged.

Since when did she have that many flaws?

And why start with the bad ones?!

Wasn’t there supposed to be a polite compliment first?

No process at all?

Straight to slander?!

"How is that not you? Why don’t you count and see which one doesn’t fit?"

Greedy didn’t need explanation.

She had doubled the reward he promised her—

And went straight to the Northland Bank to collect it.

That said enough.

As for "dummy"—

That was practically written on her face.

And "human trash"...

"None of them fit, okay?!"

Lumine pointed at her own face and leaned closer to his eyes.

"Look at this face! I’m clearly adorable! How could I be dumb?"

"And I’ve helped so many people in Mondstadt, Liyue, and Inazuma—for free! How greedy is that?!"

As for "human trash"—

She absolutely refused to acknowledge that.

"It seems there’s a deeper misunderstanding between us. You clearly don’t understand me at all."

She sighed dramatically.

But there was still one unanswered question.

Why did he pay so much attention to her?

—------------------------------

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