Chapter 110: You Still Have a Chance

After leaving Ritou and arriving in Inazuma City, Lumine first delivered the letter for Chisato. Then, she witnessed a heartbreaking scene of unrequited love. "This... this... why..." Kamaji Kujou looked at the letter, his face filled with sorrow and pain. Paimon asked worriedly, "What's wrong?" "...Miss Chisato said that she suddenly realized her feelings for me aren't as deep as she thought. She wants to take some time to think things over before discussing our relationship again." Lumine: "...My condolences." She instantly understood what had happened. After all, she had watched Chisato gradually become drawn to Ye, though she hadn't known at the time that Chisato already had someone she loved. Now, she couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the man before her. But this could only be described as... an unavoidable force. Although Kamaji's head might seem a bit green right now, Lumine genuinely felt that Chisato couldn't be blamed. After all, leaving aside everything else, just Ye's appearance alone was enough to leave Kamaji in the dust. Men care about looks, and so do women! And that man didn't just have looks—he could have relied on his appearance, but he chose to rely on his abilities instead. So, even though he hadn't deliberately seduced Chisato, the allure of such a "blue calamity" was enough to make anyone understand Chisato's feelings... Lumine felt sorry for both Kamaji and Chisato. After all, judging by the Supreme Bishop of Fontaine's five hundred years of singlehood, Chisato's shifting affections clearly wouldn't end well! Thinking this, Lumine comforted Kamaji, "You still have a chance." Hearing this, Kamaji immediately reacted, "Do you know something?" "Well..." Lumine felt a bit awkward about saying it. Paimon, however, was straightforward. "There's a man named Ye who stole your sweetheart." Kamaji's face turned even paler. "I... I'll challenge him to a duel." Lumine looked sympathetic. "Well... good luck." Paimon whispered to Lumine, "We should find a chance to talk to Ye and ask him to go easy." Lumine nodded. "I just don't know how Ye will feel about this. He doesn't seem interested, does he?" If he were interested, with his qualifications, he would have gotten married long ago in those five hundred years! He wouldn't still be single now! Could it be that he actually likes men? Hmm, thankfully Kiana didn't include Lumine's inner thoughts in the game. Otherwise, Ye would definitely become a meme among Earth players. If he ever showed any hints of a "ship" with Neuvillette or Zhongli in the future, Ye might just destroy the world to prove his innocence. In any case, the letter delivery quest ended here. After delivering the letter, Lumine immediately went to find Thoma. "It's time to go find Thoma, right? I remember it's... the Komore Teahouse!" With Paimon's words, Lumine quickly made her way to the Komore Teahouse. Soon, she arrived at the teahouse. After a brief cutscene, she finally met Thoma... or rather, a dog that looked suspiciously like Thoma. Thankfully, it was just a misunderstanding. Thoma was still Thoma, not a dog, though his way of welcoming guests was a bit... unique. He performed a duet with the dog to welcome the guests. Of course, this was just a minor detail. While amusing, it's not worth dwelling on. What's worth mentioning is the dialogue and animated cutscene that followed Thoma's official appearance. "Why did you leave Ritou in such a hurry earlier? What happened?" "Well..." Facing Paimon's question, Thoma's smile faded as he couldn't help but recall the conversation he had with the head of the Kamisato Clan, Kamisato Ayato, and the young lady, Kamisato Ayaka, when he reported that the Supreme Bishop of Fontaine had come to Inazuma and was the light novel author who went by the pen name "Lumine." At this moment, the screen also cut to that scene. "The Supreme Bishop of Fontaine?" Ayaka's small mouth opened slightly. "Is this true?" Thoma nodded. "Most likely." "This..." If one were to describe Ayaka's current feelings, it would be the kind of bewilderment you feel when a figure who only existed in legends suddenly appears before your eyes. For Ayaka, while the Raiden Shogun wasn't someone she could meet whenever she wanted, she still existed in Tenshukaku. Though lofty, she couldn't be called a legend. But the Supreme Bishop of Fontaine? That was a genuine legend. Before Inazuma's isolation, Ayaka was still young, but she had grown up hearing stories about that man. And now, she had not only become friends with such a legendary figure... but she had also slept with him in her dreams. Well, who slept with whom is another matter, but it makes no difference. However, that's not the point. Calm down. Calm down. Ayaka forced her slightly dazed mind to calm down and finally realized the gravity of the situation. "Why would the Supreme Bishop of the Fontaine Cathedral appear in Inazuma? Does he want to target Inazuma?" Facing Ayaka's question, Thoma remained silent, and Ayato also said nothing. After all, wasn't it obvious? What else could make the legendary Supreme Bishop leave Fontaine and come to another country? The only possibility was that he wanted to target Inazuma, and he was going to hit hard. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come personally. "Ayaka." Ayato called her name and said solemnly: "If he invites you again, just ask him directly about his intentions." Ayaka was stunned. "Ask him directly?" "If he really is the legendary Supreme Bishop, then there's no point in testing him. If you want to know his intentions, asking directly is the best way." Ayato spoke with a serious expression: "If you can't get an answer by asking directly, then no amount of probing will reveal it—that's just the kind of existence the Supreme Bishop is." The Supreme Bishop of Fontaine, who struck fear into nations not with force, but with intelligence that surpassed human understanding. In his presence, playing petty tricks... how many fools in this world would still do such a thing? On Teyvat, there's a common saying: If your opponent is the Supreme Bishop of Fontaine, a smart person would give up and surrender from the start. Only the most foolish of fools would try to struggle in front of the Supreme Bishop. But even then, it's a meaningless struggle. In this world, the only ones who can stand against the Supreme Bishop are not the wise, nor the foolish, but only those with absolute strength. Unfortunately, while Inazuma does have such strong individuals—the Raiden Shogun and Sen'emon—neither Ayato nor Ayaka fall into that category. At the same time, Ayato didn't consider himself a fool. Therefore, he could only be a wise man. —The screen cut back to the present. Thoma pulled his thoughts back from the memory and, facing Paimon's question, asked in return, "Do you know the true identity of that 'Mr. Lumine'?" "His true identity? Isn't he just the Supreme Bishop of the Fontaine Cathedral... Oh! That's supposed to be a secret, right?" Paimon suddenly remembered that Ye had mentioned his presence in Inazuma was a secret, or else the Raiden Shogun might kill him. But judging by Lumine's exasperated look, Paimon realized she had reacted too late. Sure enough, after hearing Paimon's words, Thoma nodded and sighed heavily. "So it's true." "Um... Thoma... you can't tell the Raiden Shogun about this, okay? Ye is our friend. We can't let him be killed by the Raiden Shogun!" Paimon's words made Thoma smile bitterly. "The problem now isn't whether he'll be killed by the Raiden Shogun... Do you two really know nothing about the Supreme Bishop of Fontaine's deeds?" Lumine tilted her head. "I know a little." Paimon crossed her arms and reassured him, "I know what you're worried about, Thoma, but you really don't need to be so concerned. The rumors are clearly exaggerated. Ye isn't as scary as the legends say. In fact, he's quite easygoing and kind-hearted." Faced with such a statement, Thoma didn't know what to say, while Lumine's look at Paimon grew even more exasperated. To be honest, Lumine also thought Ye was someone worth being friends with. She had to admit that in just a few days, Ye had gradually closed the distance between them, breaking down the initial barriers. But Lumine wasn't as easily fooled as Paimon. She didn't believe Ye was some kind-hearted saint. Leaving aside everything else, someone who could poison an entire island was definitely not what you'd call "kind-hearted." Even if it wasn't a lethal poison, most people wouldn't do something like that. However, Lumine could also see that while Ye wasn't a saint, he did have his own moral limit. And with that bottom line in place, Lumine felt he was indeed someone worth befriending. Plus, they had a dream connection, occasionally sharing dreams, which also made Lumine feel an unconscious closeness to him. ...After all, they had been quite intimate in those dreams, reaching "negative distance" more times than she could count. Because of this, while Lumine found Paimon's words exasperating, she didn't feel the need to correct her. And since Lumine didn't correct her, Thoma felt there was no point in doing so either. Instead of correcting her, he just wanted to ask one question. "If you consider him a friend, then do you know what the Supreme Bishop's purpose in coming to Inazuma is? It can't just be to clean up the corruption in our nation, right? He's not that kind-hearted, is he?" "Well..." Lumine and Paimon exchanged a glance, and then Paimon helplessly shrugged at Thoma. "We do know his purpose, but it's not something we can tell you." The whole "defeating the Raiden Shogun to save the stranded Fontaine merchants" thing would cause a lot of trouble if it got out, right? Lumine hadn't decided whether to help yet, but even if she decided not to, there was no need to stab Ye in the back. "I understand." Thankfully, Thoma didn't press further. Instead, he smiled and returned to the main topic. "You want to meet the Shogun, right? Then come with me. I'll take you to the Kamisato Estate to meet the young lady... But before that, there's another place I'd like you two to visit with me."