"Alright, alright, no more teasing, little one. What are you doing out so late at night? By the way, when did you arrive in Inazuma? I didn't receive any news," Yae Miko said, a hint of confusion in her voice. She had been cooped up at the shrine handling affairs, as that troublesome Raiden Ei had dumped all the major responsibilities on her and decided to play the role of an absentee landlord.
To make matters worse, Ei had gone off to Liyue for a vacation. Upon hearing of her return today, Miko had been eagerly anticipating a proper welcome for her best friend. She intended to get back all that she was owed, and had even decided not to return to the shrine that night.
"I only arrived today, so it's normal you didn't get the news. But... why do I sense a bit of resentment in your eyes?" Lu Ze clearly saw the resentment in Yae Miko's pupils under the moonlight, and it seemed quite strong.
"It's all because of that Raiden Ei. Never mind, never mind, I need to go find her quickly. Are you free tomorrow? As the host, I'd really like to invite you to visit the shrine. If you're not free, then forget it," Yae Miko said.
Upon hearing about going to the Grand Narukami Shrine, Lu Ze glanced around. High on the mountain, a massive cherry blossom tree stood out, catching his eye. Lu Ze did indeed have the desire to see it. The atmosphere at home was a bit tense, so perhaps taking them to the shrine for a stroll would help ease the tension.
"Can I bring a few people with me? Would that be alright?" he asked.
Yae Miko smiled slightly and replied, "There shouldn't be any issues, but I am curious, who will you bring? Let me guess, is it Venti... or Sirin? Oh dear, I've almost forgotten the time. See you tomorrow, I'm off now."
Her hurried figure quickly disappeared before him. Lu Ze watched her retreating back, silently lamenting, "Raiden Ei is definitely going to have a tough night."
After seeing her off, Lu Ze headed home. Soon, he entered Inazuma City. Meanwhile, on the other side...
Yae Miko knocked on the door of the Tenshukaku, a terrifying smile plastered on her face. How to describe it? It was a smile, yet it sent shivers down one's spine.
"Ei, hurry and open the door! Why didn't you tell me you were back? I even bought your favorite mitarashi dango, and dango milk. Don't you want to eat them? Hurry and open up!" As she spoke, Yae Miko's expression darkened. Tonight was destined to be a sleepless one.
"Hmm? Miko? It's so late, why don't you go back? If you want to eat, just leave them by the door. Hurry back and sleep, don't tire yourself out," Raiden Ei, inside, silently pressed her ear against the door, listening to the commotion outside. Her heart pounded in sync with the sounds outside, fearing the person outside might suddenly barge in.
"Miko? Leaving them by the door wouldn't be good, would it? Just let me in, I won't do anything. Why are you so scared of me? I won't eat you," Raiden Ei's lips twitched. "Are you sure you won't eat me? Well, you won't eat me, you'll just drain my energy thoroughly."
"It's alright, I'm busy. Just leave them by the door, I'll come out and get them later. It's so late, hurry back and sleep," Raiden Ei said. Outside, Yae Miko seemed to have anticipated this. She knew Ei wouldn't let her in. Fortunately, she hadn't lied and had indeed bought some food on the way.
After placing the items by the door, Yae Miko looked around. There was nowhere good to hide, but she still said, "I've left the items by the door. You can come out and get them yourself later. I'll head back to the shrine to rest. You should also sleep early, don't tire yourself out." The last few words were spoken with an inexplicably heavy emphasis, which even Raiden Ei inside noticed. However, as she heard the footsteps receding, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness she's gone. But how will I face her in the future? I can dodge the initial attack, but not the inevitable. What should I do?" After a moment of thought, Raiden Ei, still without a clue and feeling slightly irritable, suddenly smelled the aroma of mitarashi dango. Her annoyance immediately vanished.
"She must be far away by now, right? Then I'll enjoy this treat." Carefully, she opened the door. The first thing she saw was the food on the ground, emitting a rich aroma. There were even her favorite mitarashi dango and dango milk. Miko truly treated her well. It seemed she would have to find a way to compensate her later.
Perhaps because her attention was entirely focused on the food on the ground, she completely failed to notice a small pink fox slyly slipping in from the corner of the door, its face filled with triumph. "Surprise! I'll turn into a fox and sneakily hide in the corner. How can you refuse me now?" Raiden Ei grabbed the food from the ground and quickly shut the door, then slid down against it, relief washing over her face. There were no unexpected occurrences as she had feared, so it seemed Miko had really left.
"Hmm, it smells so good. Excellent, excellent. I was just hungry, hehe..." Suddenly, a voice came from the corner.
"Does it smell good? Do you really want to eat it? This cost me thousands of Mora! If I don't get it back with interest, I'd be doing myself a disservice," Raiden Ei heard the voice and turned around with some embarrassment. Yae Miko had appeared in the hall at some point, looking at her with a smile.
"Miko... why are you here?" Seeing her so frightened, Yae Miko sneered and said, "Twice! Two whole times! The first time I let it slide, but this second time, you went to Liyue again! And you dumped all the work on me. Do you know how tired I've been lately? And you? You were having such a blast out there. Do you know how unreasonable you are?" Yae Miko's voice grew more agitated, her ample chest even shaking a little. Her face moved closer and closer to Raiden Ei's, almost touching.
"Miko... don't get so worked up. I was wrong, I'm already trying to compensate you. Tell me, what do you want? As long as I can do it, I absolutely will. Don't... move around so much..." Raiden Ei's face flushed slightly. Yae Miko's hands had somehow found their way onto her chest, and were even moving erratically.
"Can't I move? What's wrong with me moving a little? After so many days apart, you're still so slow? Tonight is still very long, we can discuss compensation slowly, but... I don't think I'll agree to just one night~" Yae Miko, without anyone noticing, lifted Raiden Ei into a princess carry and walked towards a room not far away.