Knock, knock, knock…
At 5 AM, Victor Wang hummed a cheerful tune as he tapped on the door across the hall.
"Who is it…? It's way too early…"
"It's me. You two aren't up yet?"
"Do you even hear yourself? It'sfive in the morning…" came Paimon's groggy and powerless protest from inside the room.
"Well, you used to get up early and come back late, so I thought I'd rise early for once and call you myself."
"Ugh… mmm…" Lumine seemed to stretch lazily before murmuring, "Just a moment…"
"No worries. As long as I know you're in the inn, I'll go back to my room and wait."
Victor Wang turned around and headed back into his room. Indeed, just like before, his and Lumine's rooms in the Inazuma inn happened to face each other directly.
After a short while, it was Paimon's turn to knock on his door.
"Early in the morning, open the window, feelin' all nice and fresh~"
"Nice and fresh my foot!" Paimon crossed her arms angrily. "I was this close to eating that slime made out of soft candy in my dream, and then you had to wake me up!"
Rubbing her sleepy eyes, Lumine muttered, "Victor must have a reason for doing this, right?"
"That's right! We're heading to Watatsumi Island to find treasure!"
"Treasure?!" Paimon instantly perked up, her eyes widening. "Th-That's definitely worth waking up early for! Quick, tell us! I'll forgive you for ruining my dream if it's good!"
"Have you two ever heard the shrine maidens on Watatsumi Island mention Enkanomiya?"
"I think so. Something about holy soil, the Kingdom of the White Night, Enkanomiya—it's all supposed to be beneath Watatsumi Island, right? Kokomi even said she might ask for our help someday, but it's been ages and nothing's happened. So, there's treasure down there?"
"Think about it—an ancient lost nation sealed away, an entrance that only opens once every few centuries, and only a few people allowed in each time… who knows how many goodies are waiting to be found?"
"Oh, you're right! But… but Kokomi still hasn't contacted us…"
"That's what puzzles me," Victor Wang said thoughtfully. "Logically, since the holy soilification on Watatsumi Island needs to be dealt with urgently, they should've started preparations to enter Enkanomiya already. But since there's been no word, why don't we go see for ourselves?"
"Holy soilification…" Lumine thought for a moment before asking, "If they want to solve the holy soil issue by opening Enkanomiya… wasn't that something you already resolved?"
"Me? Digging out the silt at best slowed down or delayed the holy soilification," Victor Wang shook his head, ready to deny it—but then realization struck him. "Ah, I see now. Because it's been delayed, Watatsumi Island isn't in a hurry to open Enkanomiya! I—tsk…"
"Guess that's how it is," Lumine said, a bit disappointed that the promise of treasure was slipping away.
"But can that little bit of farmland really delay the holy soilification for long?"
"Victor," Lumine looked into his eyes and reminded him, "that's not 'a little bit'. After the war ended, half of Watatsumi Island's manpower was focused on building farmland. In those few days after you left and before I did, the cultivated area was expanding fast every single day."
"…"
Given that Watatsumi Island only needed to perform the Watatsumi Goryou Matsuri ritual once every few centuries to suppress the holy soilification, if the entire island's surface had been covered with brand-new farmland, even if that only delayed it for a year… he couldn't afford to wait that long.
So much for feeling "nice and fresh" in the morning. Never pop the champagne too early…
Even Paimon noticed his mood shift and tried to comfort him. "Oh well, even so, I won't hold a grudge about you waking me up from my sweet dream."
Victor Wang stayed silent for a moment, then said to Lumine and Paimon, "To tell you the truth, I have to go to Enkanomiya. The Raiden Shogun told me that to cure my illness, I need something called a 'Bloodbranch Coral.' It supposedly only exists there."
"Bloodbranch Coral?"
"Yeah. It's extremely important to Watatsumi Island—it's used for the Watatsumi Goryou Matsuri. So, it's not like I was planning to keep it a secret… I thought I could help solve the holy soil problem for them, help you two find treasure, and help myself find the material I need—a win for everyone."
"But what if Watatsumi Island still refuses to open Enkanomiya? Wouldn't that mean your illness can't be cured?"
Exactly. This is what they call helping others only to end up hurting yourself.
But if he talked things through with Kokomi, surely she'd make an exception given everything he'd done for the island. Helping others could still turn out to help himself after all.
After a brief moment of inner grumbling, Victor Wang said, "The holy soilification problem must be dealt with using Bloodbranch Coral—it's only a matter of time. Let's head to Watatsumi Island first. If Enkanomiya really is open, whatever treasure we find will be all yours."
Lumine nodded. "It's been a while since I was last there anyway. I wonder what it looks like now."
…
To accommodate everyone, Lumine avoided using the teleport waypoints when traveling together, so she joined Victor Wang on the boat.
She thought that since she had stayed on Watatsumi Island longer than Victor Wang after the Vision Hunt Decree ended, she'd be more mentally prepared. But when the ship finally docked, even she was taken aback.
All along the outer shores of Watatsumi Island, in places easy to reach from the sea, large lifting mechanisms had been set up. The islanders were split into organized teams—some diving into the sea to collect silt, others operating the lifts to haul it up.
The lifts carried the silt downward toward the inner island. Though the lower levels were now out of sight, others were clearly waiting there to unload the silt and send the empty containers back up.
In this way, what used to be a slow, exhausting round trip now took barely three minutes.
"They must've optimized every part of the process possible. Let's go see how much of the farmland conversion has been done."
Of course, Victor Wang had already thought of such methods himself—it just hadn't been practical to implement during the war. So instead of surprise, he felt a quiet sense of affirmation.
He took the lead toward the nearest lift, and when he saw the operator's face, a memory resurfaced instantly. He called out, "Yoshida!"
Yoshida froze, then immediately recognized that distinctive half-fox mask. "Advisor! You actually remember my name?"
"You were part of the Herring Second Unit, right? We met once. I remember."
"Th-th-th-this is such an honor!"
"It's nothing. I just have a good memory."
"No, really, it's a huge honor! You have no idea how much you've changed Watatsumi Island! Just the farmland project alone will benefit generations to come! There were even people badmouthing you after you left, but I—I spat right in their faces!"
"Even Lady Kokomi was furious back then and arrested a bunch of them! But when she returned from Narukami Island, she released them all again. And you know what happened next?"
Before Victor Wang could answer, Yoshida continued excitedly, waving his hands. "Turns out the news had spread that you blocked the Musou no Hitotachi three times! Those guys shut up real fast! Lady Kokomi's plan was brilliant—she didn't need to punish them at all. They were too ashamed to show their faces after that! And you're amazing too! People outside still think you started that Duel Before the Throne just for milk tea, but we all know it was because you and the Raiden Shogun had history! Those guys can't find a single excuse to insult you anymore!"