After coming to his senses, Elliot slowly opened his eyes. He examined his hands, then scanned his body, and pinched his own cheek. Still uneasy, he cautiously reached out toward a tree.
Seeing his hand not pass through the tree, Elliot froze for a moment before letting out a heavy sigh of relief. A faint smile spread across his face.
"I'm back. Finally back."
Elliot's emotions were incredibly complex right now. In just seven short hours, he had lived through seven distinct lifetimes. Adjusting to this reality would take time.
"I can't carry the emotions from those other lives over here. I need to think this through carefully..."
Elliot didn't intend to seek out Shenhe immediately. He'd endured too much, fearing he might bring other negative influences to her. Therefore, he needed to adjust his state of mind. He wanted to reappear before Shenhe in the same manner as when they were together before.
Though this wasn't entirely realistic, Elliot didn't want to deviate too much, lest Shenhe feel a sense of strangeness.
...
Elsewhere.
A tall, white-haired woman sat lost in thought on the edge of a cliff outside a cave.
"Thinking about him again?" Jean approached from a steeper path.
"Mhm..." Shenhe responded weakly, as if her spirit had been drained.
"I brought you some good food. Want to try it?"
Jean produced a box containing roasted meat still steaming with warmth.
"Mm." Shenhe picked up a piece, placed it in her mouth, and chewed silently before offering a half-hearted, "It's good."
Seeing her like this, Jean's own energy drained away, and she slumped, her spirits sinking.
Shenhe stared blankly at the setting sun.
"Jean, you should go back. Mondstadt needs you."
Jean sighed.
"I can't leave you behind."
"There's nothing to worry about. I'm fine here," she replied.
"Shenhe, come back to Mondstadt with me."
"No."
"Is it because of Elliot?"
Shenhe nodded.
"Why would you not come to Mondstadt just because he left? Mondstadt is wonderful." Jean continued to persuade Shenhe.
"Mondstadt is wonderful—crowded, lively, delicious food, and beautiful at night. But without him, what does any of that matter to me?"
"You have me, Shenhe. You have me."
Shenhe turned her head, looking at Jean before her, and spoke slowly:
"I'll come see you, Jean, but I won't leave here..."
With that, she turned away again. The sunset had now completely faded, leaving only a few thin clouds drifting across the inky sky.
"I'm staying here to wait for him to return." Her gaze was unwavering.
Hearing this, Jean felt a sharp pang in her heart. She bit her lower lip, her mind in turmoil.
"He... won't be coming back."
After a long moment of contemplation, Jean lowered her head and murmured softly.
Yet this faint whisper struck Shenhe's mind like a thunderclap, exploding violently inside her thoughts.
Shenhe's eyes widened, staring at Jean with a gaze of utter, unparalleled shock.
"You..."
"What did you just say?" her voice trembled.
"Elliot... won't be coming back." Jean steeled herself once more.
She hadn't wanted to reveal this truth, but if she didn't tell Shenhe, the girl would wait here for Elliot for the rest of her life. Jean had no choice but to extinguish Shenhe's hope. Only then could she bring her back to the mortal world and fulfill the task Elliot had once entrusted to her.
"Why...?"
Shenhe's voice cracked. She never imagined Jean would say such words.
"He... he was diagnosed with a terminal illness. So... he can't come back..."
"Terminal... illness!?" Her pupils trembled uncontrollably.
Suddenly, she recalled the message Elliot had left her. It sounded exactly like the words spoken when one is truly separated by life and death.
Moon Carver had warned that altering one's fate carried immense karmic consequences, risking sudden demise—which explained Elliot's farewell words.
But that outcome wasn't inevitable.
Deep down, Shenhe believed Elliot was still alive, merely avoiding her to shield her from the fate of the Lonely Fiend. She believed that if she waited long enough here, one day, Elliot would change his mind and return.
Yet Jean's words now crushed that last shred of hope completely.
Shenhe finally understood why Elliot had spoken so harshly, why he had abandoned her, cast her aside, yet still replaced her fate without her consent. He had known his time was short all along, which was why he'd made that choice.
As Shenhe grasped the truth, two crystalline tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Why..."
"Why tell me only now..."
"I was still waiting for him... I was still waiting for him to come back and marry me..."
"How could this happen... How could it be terminal..."
"Jean... you're joking, right? Tell me you're joking..."
Tears streaming down her face, she shook Jean's shoulders desperately, seeking an answer.
But Jean stood frozen, utterly numb. Like a puppet, she stared blankly, wide-eyed, at the familiar face behind Shenhe.
"Captain Jean was indeed joking."
A voice came from behind Shenhe. Her heart trembled, and she froze completely.
For a moment, she doubted her own ears.
Shenhe turned her head stiffly like a malfunctioning machine—then her pupils contracted violently.
"Shenhe, I'm back." Elliot smiled gently.