"Sister Yoimiya, Yuanbao has a friend who also loves making fireworks... ah, no, fireworks!"
"Really? Where is she? I'd love to exchange ideas with her..."
"Yuanbao has already invited her over, she should be here soon."
"That's wonderful! This year's fireworks festival will surely be very interesting!"
Yoimiya suddenly became excited. Exchanging experiences with fireworks makers from other countries, she thought, sounded quite fascinating.
Working in isolation was not the way to go. While the Nagahora family's fireworks-making methods might be excellent now, that might not be the case in the future...
With the fireworks festival drawing near, Yoimiya was very busy and didn't stay at the milk tea shop for long. Once the information was conveyed, she hurried away.
Kamisato Ayaka, leading her retinue, passed by the milk tea shop. After a brief inquiry, Feng Yi learned that Yae Miko had outsourced the venue decoration for Ms. Xina's fan meeting to the Yashiro Commission.
Although Kamisato Ayaka was a native of Inazuma, she had never heard of any Ms. Xina.
This special contributor to "Gossip Monthly" seemed to have appeared out of thin air. Even by mobilizing the Yashiro Commission's intelligence network, no concrete information could be found.
How mysterious!
Kamisato Ayaka found herself intrigued by this Ms. Xina, whom she had never met.
How influential was Ms. Xina?
The frantic fans huddled outside Yae Publishing House, clutching their blankets, were proof of this. They stayed up all night just to secure a good spot, to be closer to Ms. Xina.
Feng Yi, seeing echoes of past celebrity-worship, couldn't help but sigh. He then took Yuanbao back to the Serenitea Pot to rest. Many people would surely be sleepless tonight.
"Brr~ It's so cold, so unlucky, I forgot to bring my blanket. Yuta, Mamoru, Akiteru, let's huddle together..."
Arataki Itto, focused on bringing support banners, had forgotten his blanket and was shivering in the unpredictable sea island night breeze.
As fellow fans, others were too excited to sleep, but Arataki Itto was kept awake by the cold.
The next morning, as the sun rose, everyone was astonished.
Arataki Itto, carrying the banner for Ms. Xina's fan club, his face tear-streaked from being chilled by the wind all night.
Despite this, his spirit remained undiminished. He stared eagerly at the entrance of Yae Publishing House, waiting for the fan meeting to begin.
Arataki Itto's spirit of perseverance moved everyone present.
Fan A: "Even though this loafer usually doesn't do anything right, his dedication to supporting Ms. Xina is admirable. Look, he's so excited he's in tears..."
Fan B: "Indeed. Just for that, I call him a true man. To cry like this, how much must he love Ms. Xina?"
Fan C: "In terms of love for Ms. Xina, I nominate him as the strongest. Why don't we recommend him as the president of Ms. Xina's fan club?"
All fans: "Agreed!"
"..."
Arataki Itto: Huh? What happened?
Fortune favors the foolish. Arataki Itto, who had been chilled by the cold wind all night and caught a cold, was inadvertently nominated as the president of Ms. Xina's fan club.
"Everyone, rest assured, this great me will not let you down, hahaha...!"
Although he hadn't quite figured out the situation, becoming the president of Ms. Xina's fan club sounded amazing. In Arataki Itto's opinion, there was no reason to refuse.
Looking around, facing the respectful gazes of the other fans, Arataki Itto's body trembled. His spirit became exceptionally lively. This feeling of being recognized was something he greatly enjoyed.
The Oni tribe had always desired to integrate with humans and gain their acceptance. A goal that had been pursued through countless hardships and had yet to be achieved, was now accomplished in this matter.
Arataki Itto's eyes lit up, as if a new world had opened before him, and he had found the most suitable direction for his efforts.
'Ms. Xina is truly this great me's lucky star! Hahahaha...!'
Arataki Itto felt an inexplicable connection with Ms. Xina.
..........
Meanwhile, Feng Yi, having woken up early, was preparing to head to the Yae Publishing House venue to see the excitement.
Unexpectedly, Yuanbao disliked such events. After breakfast, he took his red beetle and went out to play. Feng Yi had no choice but to go alone.
Surprisingly, Feng Yi encountered two distinguished guests on the way.
"Kokomi, Gorou, what are you doing here? Could it be that you are also fans of Ms. Xina?"
Feng Yi looked at the two from Watatsumi Island with slight surprise.
"It's Mr. Feng Yi!"
"Feng Yi, it's like this. Last night, Gorou inexplicably received an invitation letter from 'Gossip Monthly,' inviting him to Yae Publishing House to attend Ms. Xina's fan meeting today. When he received the letter, I asked Gorou, but he doesn't know any Ms. Xina, nor does he follow 'Gossip Monthly'..."
Kokomi waved at Feng Yi, happy to see him here.
The person concerned, Gorou, appeared utterly bewildered and extremely confused, wondering why he was invited for no apparent reason.
"The person in charge of 'Gossip Monthly' must have her reasons for doing this..."
Feng Yi's mouth twitched. He suspected this was Yae Miko's mischievous whim, but he didn't expose it, preferring to let things unfold naturally.
"Although I don't know any Ms. Xina, after discussing it with the Divine Priestess, we unanimously agreed that this is a good opportunity to observe Inazuma City. We can then adjust Watatsumi Island's future civilian development strategies based on Inazuma City's post-war recovery policies..."
Gorou stepped forward to add. Attending Ms. Xina's fan meeting was just a pretense; observing Inazuma City's civilian development policies was the key.
After a brief exchange, the three proceeded together towards the Yae Publishing House venue.
"What... what is this?! It gives me a very familiar feeling..."
Outside the Yae Publishing House venue, Gorou was startled by the standees set up. Looking at the woman on the standee, who bore some resemblance to him, Gorou's eyelids twitched, and a bad premonition suddenly struck him.
"Indeed, upon close comparison, she does bear some resemblance to you, Gorou. Could she be a relative of yours?"
Kokomi's gaze darted between the standee and Gorou, her beautiful eyes filled with doubt.
"No... it can't be. I've never seen this person before. It's so strange, even though I've never met her, she gives me a familiar feeling..."
Gorou shook his head hastily. After careful recollection, he found he had no impression of the woman on the standee, nor any such relative.
At the same time, the Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine appeared at Yae Publishing House. Her gaze swept over the astonished Gorou, and a smile of mischievous success lingered on her lips...