That night, some slept poorly, while others slept soundly.
Those who slept well were less curious, having guessed that Lin Ze had done this deliberately.
Those who couldn't sleep were driven by intense curiosity. Even knowing Lin Ze's intentions, they couldn't resist wondering what lay beyond the "large," "medium," and "small."
As the mastermind behind this chaos, Lin Ze slept the most comfortably, not waking until midday.
Yae Miko, who had been blocking his door all morning, was starting to feel numb.
The Diary hadn't updated, and Lin Ze hadn't emerged.
Ganyu had already returned to Jueyun Karst, making it impossible for Yae Miko to consult her—which would have been much more convenient.
*Did I come at the wrong time? Is Lin Ze about to slack off again?*
*Is he planning to laze around for a few days before coming out to play?*
*But didn't he just reflect on himself yesterday?*
Yae Miko considered whether she should visit Ganyu first and wait a while longer.
From the looks of it, Lin Ze was indeed preparing to slack off again!
So-called self-reflection: Did I sleep well? Eat well? Play well?
This nap was truly satisfying!
As Yae Miko's mind raced, Lin Ze woke up, his mischievous spirit stirring once more.
He immediately began writing in his Diary, but deliberately skipped the entry that had been interrupted by the broken pen.
"Awake? Then there's still a chance.
But this 'self-reflection'... I doubt the original text was quite like this, was it?"
Yae Miko immediately noticed the update to the Diary.
She breathed a sigh of relief. Lin Ze had finally woken up.
She also realized that the line Lin Ze had written in the Diary was definitely not the original wording.
However, Yae Miko had no time to dwell on such details. The important thing was that Lin Ze was awake.
She hurried to knock on the door.
Hearing the knock, Lin Ze raised an eyebrow.
*Coming over at this hour?*
Muttering to himself, Lin Ze waved his hand to open the villa's front door.
He didn't step outside, choosing instead to freshen up first.
Anyone who came to his door uninvited was likely someone he knew, so it didn't matter who was knocking.
Seeing the open door, Yae Miko entered quietly. When she didn't find Lin Ze, she settled down in the villa's courtyard pavilion to wait patiently.
By the time Lin Ze finished washing up and emerged into the courtyard with two glasses of iced cola, he froze at the sight of Yae Miko.
He quickly recovered.
"I didn't expect Inazuma, the nation in self-imposed isolation, to be the first to come.
Iced cola—I mentioned it in the Diary. Want to try some?"
Lin Ze was genuinely surprised that the first to seek him out wasn't the Fatui, who already had a presence in Liyue.
As far as he knew, Childe had been in Liyue for quite some time.
The Fatui hadn't approached him yet, the Lanarana from the neighboring country were still searching for him, and Mondstadt hadn't sent anyone either.
Instead, Yae Miko, the Fox Priestess from the isolationist nation of Inazuma, had arrived first.
"Your reaction is utterly uninteresting. I thought Mr. Lin Ze would be so astonished by my presence that his jaw would drop."
Seeing Lin Ze merely pause for a moment before recovering, Yae Miko inwardly sighed in disappointment.
She had deliberately struck a graceful pose and adjusted her posture, believing that even if he wasn't shocked by her arrival, Lin Ze would at least be captivated for a few seconds.
But to her surprise, Lin Ze regained his composure almost instantly—no, it wasn't even regaining composure; he hadn't been stunned in the first place.
Her carefully crafted pose had been wasted.
"Just a minor surprise," Lin Ze shrugged casually. "I knew Beidou had returned to Inazuma for business. Besides, you also have a copy of the Diary. It would be stranger if you *didn't* come for something this important. I recall the Shadow has a copy as well, so I wouldn't be surprised if you're here with her authorization."
"I saw Kirara last time. The gift she delivered to Ningguang was likely a State Letter. Could it be that the Shadow herself has accompanied you?"
Lin Ze had pieced everything together the moment he saw Yae Miko.
Why he had encountered Kirara in Liyue earlier.
Why Yae Miko had been the first to arrive.
Lin Ze even suspected that Raiden Ei might have come along as well.
"As expected of Mr. Lin Ze. My little scheme didn't work at all~
I was hoping to see a surprised expression on your face too."
Yae Miko's eyes narrowed slightly, her expression perfectly conveying disappointment, though her tone betrayed no such emotion.
Having her intentions instantly seen through by Lin Ze, Yae Miko wasn't surprised. She hadn't truly expected to succeed anyway.
If Lin Ze could manipulate the System, he must also be able to sense the existence of space itself, right?
It was merely a little experiment. If it worked, all the better—a new amusement. If it failed, well, that was that.
"After all, you're even more of a hedonist than I am. I'm just somewhat hedonistic; you're pure hedonism incarnate.
Where's Raiden Ei?"
"Shadow is within the Pure Land of One Heart. The Raiden Shogun is absent, so Shadow cannot leave the Pure Land for now.
I must ask Mr. Lin Ze to enter the Pure Land for a discussion."
Still smiling faintly with narrowed eyes, Yae Miko's mind raced as she spoke.
*It seems Mr. Lin Ze doesn't know everything after all.*
*His understanding of us remains largely rooted in the Genshin era.*
*Even after freeing the others, he hasn't noticed... Is it possible he still doesn't suspect anything?*
Yae Miko was deeply curious about Lin Ze. In her eyes, he was far from simple or naive. At the very least, she believed he wasn't as straightforward as he pretended to be.
"Let me prepare some sweets first. I remember Shadow enjoys desserts and light novels."
Lin Ze didn't refuse Yae Miko's invitation, but before entering the Pure Land of One Heart, he decided to prepare some sweets.
His impression of Raiden Ei remained vivid, especially that milk-scented blade strike. Based on that alone, he was willing to prepare desserts for her before entering the Pure Land.
Within the Pure Land of One Heart, Raiden Ei remained seated in mid-air, her gaze fixed on a copy of the Diary, lost in thought—no, not daydreaming, but contemplating Eternity.
Sensing the Pure Land had been opened, Raiden Ei swiftly turned her gaze toward the entrance.
Recently, the one entering the Pure Land of One Heart wasn't Yae Miko, but Lin Ze.
This was Raiden Ei's first time meeting Lin Ze, and her impression of him was simply... ordinary.
He was undeniably handsome, but Raiden Ei had been surrounded by handsome men and beautiful women throughout her life. After seeing so many, they all seemed the same. As for everything else about him, he was utterly unremarkable—ordinary to the point of being utterly ordinary.
*He's a master!*
Precisely because he appeared so ordinary, Raiden Ei became even more convinced of Lin Ze's true identity.
"I have long admired your reputation, Mr. Lin Ze. Due to the peculiar state of my existence, I am unable to manifest physically. Thus, I can only meet you within the Pure Land of One Heart."
"Not unable, but inconvenient?" Lin Ze seized on the key distinction.
"Yae Miko refuses to allow me to possess her."
"Oh my~ You mustn't betray me like that~"
....................
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