Zhongli raises his hand and points to the space beside Yelan.
Kael sees Yelan snap her head toward his direction.
The dull, lifeless look in her eyes suddenly regains its light.
She carefully lifts her hand and reaches toward Kael.
"Kael…?"
Kael watches as Yelan's hand passes straight through his chest.
He is already in a spirit state, so he feels nothing when her hand goes through him.
Still, watching someone perform a full-on tiger heart strike through his body is a strangely surreal experience.
Yelan cannot see Kael at all.
All she feels is her hand cutting through empty air.
Nothing is there.
Unwilling to give up, she raises her hand again and reaches toward the same spot.
Still nothing.
Yelan lifts both hands and waves them wildly through the air, trying to feel Kael's presence.
"Kael… where are you?"
"Kael… you selfish bastard, come out right now!"
---
Kael lowers his head and sees Yelan's green eyes, which had just cleared a little, slowly being dyed black again by surging negative emotions.
He looks at Zhongli with a desperate, pleading gaze.
"Mr. Zhongli, please stop her."
"She can't touch me. Don't let her keep wasting her strength…"
Seeing the scene before him, Zhongli can only sigh.
"If you have something you wish to say to Miss Yelan, then say it yourself."
Zhongli lifts his hand slightly.
Yelan's movements freeze in an instant.
Her gaze locks precisely onto Kael's face.
…!
Kael startles.
Did Yelan just… see him?
What did Zhongli do? Did he allow Yelan to see his soul?
Kael had only planned to use Zhongli as a mouthpiece to convey his words.
It seems he underestimated what was possible.
Yelan's hand trembles as she slowly reaches toward Kael's face.
"Kael…"
This time, she sees it clearly.
Her hand passes straight through Kael's face without the slightest resistance.
Yelan stares blankly at her own hand, disbelief written all over her face.
Kael forces a bitter smile.
"Yelan, I'm already dead. I'm just a soul now. You can't touch me."
"Dead…?"
Yelan's eyes go vacant as she murmurs those two words.
Suddenly, she feels warmth on her cheeks.
This is the first time Yelan has cried since Kael died.
Her reason knew he was gone.
But her heart had never truly accepted it.
Not until she saw Kael's soul with her own eyes.
Not until Kael himself told her that he was dead.
The deepest sorrow crashes down without warning and turns into tears.
Yelan's entire body trembles as she cries, wailing hoarsely as all her grievance and despair pour out.
At some point, Zhongli quietly leaves the reception hall.
He leaves the space to Yelan and Kael.
Yelan's sobs echo through the empty room, each sound tearing Kael's heart apart.
He wants to lift his hand and wipe away her tears, but remembering his current state, he silently lowers it again.
"Yelan, don't cry."
"After I died, I stayed by your side the whole time. I saw everything you did for me."
"Thank you for taking care of Chenxi."
"Thank you for bringing my body back to Liyue."
"Thank you for remembering what I said."
"Thank you…"
Yelan cuts him off through her sobs.
"You knew… you knew all along… what I wanted…"
Her tear-soaked eyes stare unblinkingly at Kael.
"You knew… what I wanted most…"
Kael feels as if he is about to drown in the overwhelming emotions surging in her gaze.
He instinctively wants to look away.
No.
He cannot.
Kael suddenly remembers.
In every life simulation, whenever he faced Yelan's feelings, he chose to run.
Because of Hu Tao, and because of the hatred buried in his heart.
He never truly responded to Yelan's feelings.
This is the final life simulation.
This time, he cannot run anymore.
He cannot leave regrets behind again.
Kael looks straight into Yelan's eyes.
"Yes. I know."
"I've always known what you wanted."
Yelan never imagined that Kael would respond.
So shocked that even her tears stop, she stares at him with wide eyes.
[Corruption Value -90.]
Just two short sentences almost completely erase Yelan's Corruption Value.
So that is how it is.
For Yelan, the greatest pain was Kael's long-standing disregard for her feelings.
With Kael's death, her love was doomed to never receive an answer.
That was the true source of her corruption.
And now, Kael does not promise her anything.
He simply tells her that he understands her feelings.
Just that alone is enough.
Kael's eyes burn slightly as a faint shimmer flashes through them.
This Yelan, who looks so sharp and brilliant on the outside, is actually the foolish woman in the world.
How could anyone be satisfied so easily?
"Yelan."
"In my current state, I'm not even human anymore. I don't have the right to say much to you now, but…"
Yelan has waited by Kael's side for so long.
This is the first time she has seen hope in his attitude.
She cuts in urgently.
"No. I don't care. No matter what you look like, I will find a way to revive you."
"No matter what obstacles stand in the way, I'm willing to cut through them all for you."
"I'll give everything I have."
"Revival isn't that easy."
Kael lets out a soft sigh.
---
Next Target 350PS :)