Inazuma, Konda Village.
The sky was a brilliant blue, the clouds light and feathery. The quiet, rustic village looked as peaceful as ever.
Until—
Several "unexpected guests" showed up at a farmer's home.
"Lu Chen? What do you think?"
Lu Chen looked at Ei, now dressed in a humble villager's outfit, and couldn't help but laugh.
As the saying goes, clothes make the person—and now, Ei was wearing simple peasant attire with a straw hat hiding her elegant features. She glanced around curiously like someone fresh from the countryside... truly the image of a country girl.
Ei didn't understand what Lu Chen found so funny. She looked down at her newly changed outfit and asked doubtfully, "Does it... not fit me?"
"It fits. Of course it fits!" Lu Chen quickly straightened up.
Miko, on the side, rubbed her chin thoughtfully and gave Ei a squinty-eyed once-over, nodding as if evaluating art.
"Don't worry, Ei~ Even as a country girl, you'd still be the prettiest one for miles~"
Nahida, already disguised as a local Konda Village girl, nodded vigorously. "Ei, you look good in anything!"
"It's not about how it looks..." Ei tugged slightly at the fabric, clearly unused to wearing something so plain. "I'm just worried someone might recognize me."
"Relax," Lu Chen said confidently. "As long as they don't see your face, no one's going to guess you're the Raiden Shogun."
Besides, who would ever imagine that Lord Narukami would be strolling the streets disguised as a village girl?
This wasn't Liyue. There were no folk tales of "the emperor traveling in disguise" or "the Geo Lord's favorite dumpling stand." To most, "Lord Narukami" was eternally distant, enthroned in Tenshukaku.
After speaking with the farmers, Lu Chen realized they didn't know much—just rumors and outdated news. Word had it that the Shogunate was still fighting the rebels, the Vision Hunt Decree had sparked a major crisis, and the world outside was becoming increasingly dangerous, with roaming ronin and bandits spreading chaos...
So, the current situation in the city was still unclear. He also didn't know if the letter he had sent to the Kamisato family had done any good.
After resting for a bit, they all disguised themselves as villagers heading to town to sell goods and set off toward Inazuma City.
Along the way, Lu Chen could clearly sense how much Inazuma had deteriorated. The road from Konda Village to the capital used to be lined with small, bustling villages. Merchants came and went constantly. But now...
Many areas were overrun by monsters and stray Nobushi—wandering warriors turned outlaws.
Several villages were already abandoned, and even those that weren't had their doors tightly shut, afraid to step outside.
"Are we really that scary...?" Nahida asked, tilting her head as she watched villagers hurriedly shut their doors at the sight of them.
"They're just afraid of strangers," Miko sighed.
Lu Chen had taken out plenty of monsters and idiotic Nobushi along the way, clearing the path for others, but his expression remained grim.
He exchanged a glance with Ei—equally serious.
Without a word, they both understood: this conflict had to end, and fast.
...
They finally arrived in Inazuma City. As the heart of daily life for most Inazumans, it remained bustling and vibrant.
From Hanamizaka up through the sloped streets, every stretch was lined with old shops and distinctive vendors. The crowds were thick, and business lively.
Lu Chen bought four skewers of tri-colored dango from the shop at Komore Teahouse, passing them around as he spoke in a low voice.
"Shogunate patrols in the city have tripled. They're hunting for so-called fugitives."
"What's our next move?" Miko asked, accepting the dango she hadn't tasted in ages. "If I recall, the fugitives are those two kids you brought here, right?"
Lu Chen nodded and mentally reviewed the plot.
Lumine and Paimon were likely still with the resistance on Watatsumi Island. Since the Vision Hunt Decree hadn't ended, the storyline had clearly stalled—meaning the Traveler was stuck...
No one would guess that the Plane of Euthymia was now empty—and what the Traveler and resistance faced wasn't Ei, but a cold, unfeeling puppet general whose will couldn't be swayed.
If it had been Ei, she might've been moved by countless prayers. But the puppet would just cut you down again.
"What matters most now is stopping the conflict with Sangonomiya," Lu Chen said seriously. "That's the only way to keep things from getting worse—and to avoid needless bloodshed."
"If you ask me..." Miko glanced toward Tenshukaku, "Why don't we just shut down the puppet general and let Ei take the lead? Wouldn't that be much easier?"
Lu Chen turned to Ei. "Didn't you say the puppet can't be shut down?"
Ei nodded. "When I created the puppet general, it was to withstand wear and guard against the possibility that I'd change over time. She was designed so she couldn't be shut down easily."
"You're so stubborn..." Miko sighed. "Then what if you took back control—like before?"
Ei held her arms out and looked down at her body. "Back then, I gave up my physical form and placed my consciousness within the sword. But after going to Lu Chen's world, this body returned. I think... the system restored it."
Lu Chen thought about it. Considering the system could ignore time and space, it wasn't that strange. But it also meant Ei was no longer a consciousness—and couldn't repossess the puppet's body.
If they couldn't force the puppet to stop, then any rash move might spook the enemy. The capital was already compromised—two of the three Commission leaders were working with the Fatui.
"We need to end this war with minimal cost." Lu Chen looked at Ei. "Only you have the authority to do that in Inazuma. If Lord Narukami appears on the battlefield and calls for a ceasefire, both sides will stop immediately."
Ei nodded slightly. "Kujou Sara is commanding the frontline troops. Compared to the Kujou family and the compromised Tenryou Commission, she's far more trustworthy."
"I agree," Lu Chen said. "That gives us back military control at the front. And with our teleportation abilities, we have a timing edge the Fatui can't match. Once we stabilize the front, we strike back at Tenshukaku, take down the puppet general—and in the meantime..."
He turned to Miko.
"The only trustworthy one among the Tri-Commission—Shogunate Affairs—will coordinate from within and help us neutralize the other two."
"Leave it to me!" Miko finished the last bite of her dango and squinted. "That Kamisato kid owes me one anyway. You guys handle the front—I'll take care of things here~"
"Good. No time to waste." Lu Chen looked at Ei, then at Nahida, who had stayed quietly in the background the whole time.
"Next stop: the front lines at Yashiori Island."