After speaking, Lumine raised another question.
"Tell us about the Raiden Shogun."
"Ah, right! We came here to find the Raiden Shogun, but we've been discussing the Vision Hunt Decree all this time."
Yoimiya was somewhat curious. "Do you have something important to discuss with Her Excellency?"
Lumine said she wanted to ask the Raiden Shogun a few things.
Mu Yang, however, stated, "I'm here to challenge the 'Musou no Hitotachi.'"
His words were spoken so casually that Yoimiya thought she had misheard.
"Did I hear that right? Challenging Her Excellency's strongest slash?!"
Mu Yang nodded, his expression still unfazed.
The Musou no Hitotachi? If she's so powerful, why doesn't she go to Liyue and try splitting Mt. Mingyuan in half?
Yoimiya forced herself to calm down.
"Just what kind of people have I been traveling with...?"
[Yoimiya: LMAO, I should've just stayed home and set off fireworks instead.]
[Why bother trying when you can just lie down?]
Paimon comforted her, saying she'd get used to it.
When it came to the Raiden Shogun, Ayaka didn't know much either. Most dealings with the Shogun were handled by her elder brother, Kamisato Ayato. Ayaka only had the chance to see the Shogun in person during ceremonial occasions.
"From what I remember, aside from her majesty, nobility, and overwhelming pressure, what left the deepest impression on me was..."
"Her emotions seemed extremely detached. Rather than a 'ruler,' she felt more like an emotionless 'executor.'"
"Carrying out the singular goal of 'Eternity' in every possible form."
Mu Yang thought to himself that Kamisato Ayaka was quite perceptive.
That's because she's a puppet without emotions.
"It seems the personalities of the gods are quite distinct..."
At that moment, Thoma walked in carrying several bags.
"My lady, the ingredients are ready."
Paimon, ever quick to pick up on keywords, exclaimed, "Time to eat?!"
Mu Yang, for once, frowned.
Oh no, the dark cuisine is coming.
Is it too late to leave now?
Lumine asked, "What's this?"
Thoma raised the bags in his hands and explained that since they had successfully rescued Master Masakatsu and gained new allies, it was only right to hold a celebration feast.
"You've all been through enough today. Staying too tense isn't good—you need to rest."
"You're quite thoughtful."
In Paimon's eyes, anyone with food was a good person.
Thoma announced that they would be playing a hotpot game.
The rules were simple: each person would prepare different ingredients to toss into the pot. Then, with their eyes closed, they would take turns fishing out food, tasting it, and guessing who had added it.
"Guessing correctly triggers a 'One More Time,' and the highest scorer at the end is said to receive the blessing of the Hotpot God!"
[Holy shit, if someone messes around, how is this even edible?]
[Let me see what's in my backpack.]
[I'd add slime condensate!]
[Ew—!]
[Wuwu, why can't I be the one eating hotpot with Mu Yang...]
[I wanna see feeding scenes.]
[???]
Seeing Thoma's enthusiastic explanation, Mu Yang couldn't help but mutter,
Just how badly do you want to play this...?
Lumine and Yoimiya were excited, so Mu Yang didn't want to ruin the mood and joined in.
Lumine didn't hold back—Thoma's choices were too tame.
If you're going to play a game, you should play it with a smile.
She pulled out:
Devil-level Jueyun Chili
A failed, extremely salty ham
Mist Flower corollas...
No matter who among them ended up eating any of these, it was bound to be hilarious.
Halfway through the game, Thoma, the initiator, was the first to collapse.
"My stomach hurts! It feels like... fireworks are going off inside!"
"As expected of the Queen of the Summer Festival..."
Mu Yang couldn't help but advise,
"Even if you're the one who started the game, you don't have to eat all the dark cuisine..."
Mu Yang knew Thoma was trying to spare the ladies present from embarrassment by taking it all upon himself.
He could've helped share the burden, but Thoma never gave him the chance—he kept guessing right and eating more.
Rules are rules.
There wasn't much Mu Yang could do.
Thoma clutched his stomach. "Sorry, everyone... I think I'm seeing my life flash before my eyes..."
Kamisato Ayaka didn't go easy on him.
"It's your own fault for adding so many weird things in the first place."
Mu Yang was speechless.
You're not much better, Lady Kamisato.
Who the hell puts small cakes in hotpot?
In this game, Mu Yang was the only one who didn't add anything strange—most of what he tossed in were Lumine's favorites.
Just then, Yoimiya also raised her hand in surrender.
"I can't... I can't eat anymore..."
"I need a break too..."
——————
Some time later, everyone finally recovered from the hotpot ordeal—especially Thoma.
"Phew... I'm alive again."
"Thoma... you really didn't have to push yourself so hard," Paimon said.
"You could've just guessed wrong a few times to pass the turn to someone else."
Thoma scratched his head. "Haha, I just felt like my luck's been bad lately. I needed the Hotpot God's blessing to turn it around."
"But I can feel it—after all that, my bad luck's been used up."
"I declare the hotpot game officially over, and the winner is me!"
Mu Yang, who knew what was coming, could only think:
Stop jinxing yourself.
The Hotpot God probably thinks your dark game was blasphemy, so he sent the Raiden Shogun to arrest you...
After eating their fill, Ayaka and Yoimiya left. Thoma then led Lumine, Mu Yang, and Paimon to the guest rooms in Komore Teahouse to rest.
——————
The next day, the three of them came downstairs to find the place unusually quiet.
Takeru was barking wildly, clearly agitated.
Just then, Ayaka rushed in, panting heavily.
"Thoma didn't return to the Yashiro Commission last night. There are reports that he's been arrested by the Tenryou Commission."
["My bad luck's all gone now~"]
[The Hotpot God's blessing, huh?]
Ayaka had rushed over immediately after receiving the news.
The Raiden Shogun would be holding a Vision Hunt Ceremony for the 100th Vision at the Statue of the Omnipresent God.
And the 100th target was likely Thoma.
Ayaka was clearly anxious—it was obvious how important Thoma was to the Yashiro Commission.
However, Lumine and Mu Yang naturally wouldn't let her intervene.
Lumine was worried about Ayaka's identity being exposed.
Mu Yang, on the other hand, declared: This is my moment to shine—step aside.
The three of them hurried to the Statue of the Omnipresent God, where a crowd had already gathered.
Though it should've been sunrise, the sky was now overcast, thick with dark clouds. The air was saturated with intense Electro energy, creating a suffocating atmosphere.
Thoma was kneeling in the center, his hands bound by two samurai.
And then, at last, they saw the legendary Raiden Shogun.
The Shogun stepped before the statue, turned, and summoned Thoma's Vision from his waist with her divine power.
Lumine arrived just in time to witness this. Having already seen the horrors of losing a Vision, she didn't hesitate—she immediately used her newly acquired Electro abilities to intercept Thoma's Vision mid-air.
[HOLY SHIT, MC'S SO COOL!]
[SO DAMN COOL, SIS!]
The Raiden Shogun's expression shifted slightly. Clearly, she hadn't expected anyone to dare interfere.
The soldiers on the field charged to capture Lumine, but she swiftly took them down with two Electro-infused strikes. Then, she teleported to Thoma's side to untie him—only to get shocked by a sudden surge of lightning.
The Raiden Shogun stepped forward, descending from the statue as if walking on air.
"To wield elemental power without a Vision..."
"You... are an exception."
"Exceptions... are the enemy of eternity."
The Shogun's Eye of Stormy Judgment activated, violet lightning swirling around her. The Electro in the air converged into her palm as she spread her arms—a katana slowly emerging from her chest...
[Huh? What kind of sword-drawing technique is this?!]
[It's here! The Dango Milk Slash!]
[That sword's so big—wait, no, it's so white!]
[Just for this scene, I'm pulling for Raiden no matter what! I wanna see it every day!]
"I shall carve you into this statue."
The Raiden Shogun drew Musou Isshin, slashing through the void, ready to drag Lumine into her Plane of Euthymia for execution.
However, the deafening roar of a dragon cut through the tension.
A white-haired youth stood before Lumine, Withering Glory: Snow Burial Over a Thousand Peaks in hand, an ice dragon coiled at his side. His aura was no less oppressive than the Electro filling the sky.
"Mu Yang of Chenyu Vale, here to witness the Musou no Hitotachi."