The next morning, Yuna woke up early and prepared breakfast.
It's rare for me to get up this early. Lumine and Paimon should be grateful.
Just as Yuna finished cooking, Lumine and Paimon woke up. After all, they wouldn't dare laze around in someone else's home, especially since they were already accustomed to waking up early.
"Wow, Yuna, you've already made all this delicious food!" Paimon rubbed her hands together excitedly, but Lumine quickly pulled her away to wash up.
The sight of the little sprite being tugged by her cape was rather amusing. Sometimes Paimon acted as mature as an adult, while at other times she was as mischievous as a child.
After a satisfying meal, Lumine and Paimon prepared to leave.
They had arranged to meet Thoma at the Komore Teahouse.
"Goodbye, Lumine! Goodbye, Paimon! Come visit me anytime! I'll make you more delicious food!"
"Mm-hmm! We'll be back soon, Yuna! Next time, Paimon will bring all the ingredients so you don't have to spend a thing!"
"What do you mean 'spend'? Don't be so formal."
~
Half an hour after Lumine and Paimon left, Second Sister Kuki Shinobu finally returned with the Boss.
"Second Sister, what happened? Did things not go smoothly this time?"
"The Commission Office said the Boss's posters were too outrageous. They're keeping him locked up for a day."
Yuna turned to look at the Boss, who had clearly been reprimanded and was now uncharacteristically quiet. She wondered what exactly he had posted that warranted a full day's detention.
Still, it's only the Boss who could get away with just a day's detention. Anyone else would have faced far worse consequences.
"Damn that Kujou girl!" Itto muttered under his breath. Kuki Shinobu strode over and slapped him on the back, silencing him instantly.
"Have you eaten yet? There's still some I made earlier."
"Eat, eat, eat! Yuna, you won't believe it—those guys locked me up and didn't give me a scrap to eat! I was starving!"
"That's your own fault!"
Itto and Kuki Shinobu moved to the dining table and helped themselves to food.
"Yuna, are we having guests?" Kuki Shinobu asked after a casual glance.
Yuna explained how she had met the Traveler and Paimon, and how she had invited them to stay.
Before Kuki Shinobu could respond, Arataki Itto burst out:
"What?! Yuna, you're making grilled meat?!"
He clutched his hair, his expression a mask of regret.
"No way! I got locked up on such an important day! Damn you, Kujou girl, pay me back for that grilled meat!"
Yuna's grilled meat was an ultra-rare treat; he'd barely had it a few times.
This is a colossal loss...
Itto's booming voice made Yuna's ears ring painfully.
Yuna immediately went to the kitchen, grabbed a potato, and stuffed it into Itto's mouth before turning to Second Sister.
"Second Sister, Lumine and Paimon are foreigners. I brought them out of Ritou, but we still need to complete one procedure. Could you...?"
Yuna felt a rare twinge of guilt for guaranteeing Second Sister's cooperation before even asking her. He wondered if she would be angry.
Kuki Shinobu readily agreed. It was a trivial matter.
Relieved, Yuna turned to see Itto already on his third bowl.
"Boss, how can you eat so much?!"
After watching Boss and Second Sister finish their breakfast amidst the usual chaos, Yuna asked Second Sister,
"Lady Guuji Yae has invited me several times. It's rude to keep refusing. I'm planning to go to Mt. Yougou. Want to come, Sister?"
Kuki Shinobu immediately shook her head.
She couldn't flee fast enough—why would she volunteer to go?
After another glance at Yuna, Kuki Shinobu went to rest, reassured that this girl couldn't be tricked into becoming a miko. If Yuna actually fell for that ruse, it would be a testament to Lady Guuji Yae's cunning.
Last night, while Boss was locked up inside, Kuki Shinobu had been reading outside all night. She was genuinely exhausted.
-
The Narukami Grand Shrine sits atop Mt. Yougou, and reaching it requires scaling the mountain.
For Yuna, a girl overflowing with boundless energy and no outlet to expend it, this was no challenge at all.
Yuna had come to the shrine for two reasons. First, Yae Miko had extended countless invitations, and since her Big Sister was also there, it counted as visiting family. This would prevent her Big Sister from constantly accusing her of favoring Second Sister over her.
Second, something important was happening: the Traveler was rumored to be arriving today, apparently because of that "Greatest Swordsman Under Heaven" nonsense.
A mischievous grin spread across Yuna's face at the thought.
If you're the greatest swordsman under heaven, then what am I?
Her Claymore grew larger and heavier when she activated its Skill. Could anyone withstand a full-powered strike from that?
Still, they must be talking about swordsmanship, right? Otherwise, claiming overall strength is just absurd.
In Inazuma, Yuna had never lost a fight.
Lost in thought, Yuna quickly arrived at the Narukami Grand Shrine.
Looking up, she saw Yae Miko standing before her, her face beaming with a smile.
Yae Miko's long, silky pink hair was tied up at the ends, and her fox ears—symbols of her divine messenger status—were adorned with earrings inlaid with purple gems. The earring on her right ear housed her Electro Vision.
"Little one, you haven't disappointed this sister's long wait. It seems you still hold a place for me in your heart after all."
"Hmph! I'm here to see Big Sister, not to cook for you!"
Yae Miko covered her mouth with a delicate laugh and gently lifted Yuna's chin with two fingers, withdrawing them just as Yuna swatted at her hand.
"No need to be so hasty. Come, let me show you around first. Our shrine is quite beautiful..."
-
The perspective shifted to Lumine and Paimon.
After leaving Yuna, the two headed to Komore Teahouse and met Thoma. Under his guidance, they were taken to see the towering Statue of the Omnipresent God.
From this colossal statue, Lumine sensed the wishes represented by the Visions embedded within it.
A series of images flashed through her mind, prompting her to wonder:
These aren't just simple wishes; many are obsessions. If, as Thoma said, the Visions are being taken away, wouldn't that mean these wishes and obsessions are being taken away too? What would happen to the people who once possessed these Visions?
Afterward, Lumine and Paimon followed Thoma to the Kamisato Estate, where they "met" the "Princess."
However, instead of introducing them to the Raiden Shogun as promised, The "Princess" tried to recruit them to join the rebellion against the Vision Hunt Decree. Lumine immediately grew displeased and angrily prepared to leave.
Having witnessed the terrifying power of the gods during the battle in Mondstadt—where even the normally laid-back Venti, in a fit of anger, had leveled all of Mondstadt's monsters with a single arrow—Lumine knew that resisting the Raiden Shogun, a figure said to be notoriously unyielding, wouldn't be easy.
This Raiden Shogun sounds too formidable to rebel against. I came here to find my Brother, not to join a rebellion.