Elsewhere, Xia Ci and Xia Zhen were sipping tea.
Xia Ci teased, "Still spying on your precious little sister through that telescope every day, and you still haven't seen her?"
Xia Zhen sighed. "No. She hasn't stepped outside."
"You could try luring her out."
"How?"
Xia Ci gave her a look and nodded toward Kirara. "Her."
Xia Zhen caught on. "You mean… have Kirara bring a message?"
Xia Ci nodded… then shook her head. "That won't work. Ei's the ruler of all Inazuma—no way a regular delivery girl could stroll into Tenshukaku."
Xia Zhen frowned. "So we'd have to send something back… something that proves it's really me. But I'm just a soul right now—I don't have anything on me."
"You do."
"I do?"
"You've got a bad attitude. I'm not telling you anymore."
"…Beloved cousin…"
"Fine, fine. Here."
Xia Ci placed a small object on the table—a miniature recorder.
Xia Zhen's eyes lit up. "Right, I still have my voice…"
"Idiot cousin."
"!"
"You better think carefully about what you're going to say to her. You know how clingy Ei is about her sister. She might just abandon everything and sail across the sea looking for you again."
"Ahem… Don't call her clingy!"
"Didn't she do exactly that five hundred years ago?"
"…I know."
Xia Zhen stared at the recorder, looking troubled.
Ei's temperament was… not simple.
If she saw her sister in this soul state, who knew what chaos she'd cause?
Maybe she should just forget it.
After all, everyone was going to Inazuma in a few months anyway.
By then, maybe her cousin would've revived her fully—no drama necessary.
But… it had been five hundred years.
Not that she was desperate to see her sister—honestly, it was her best friend's fault. Always gushing about how cute Nahida was.
What, like her sister wasn't adorable too?
Xia Zhen stared down at the recorder, caught in deep internal struggle.
Xia Ci chuckled. "Still haven't decided?"
"No…"
"Then why don't you ask the wisest goddess alive?"
"…Beloved cousin, give me some divine guidance."
"Since you've asked so sincerely… I shall—"
"Cut the crap."
"Yae Miko."
"Huh?"
Xia Zhen blinked.
Right. If she was worried about Ei's reaction, she could just tell the little fox instead.
Miko was cunning and clever—she'd handle it perfectly.
Xia Zhen looked over at Xia Ci.
"Cousin."
"Yeah?"
"You're actually pretty smart."
"…Thanks, but please stop complimenting me like that."
Xia Ci shook her head.
Her bestie's current soul state really was lacking. Even her brainpower had declined—she needed to be reminded of even the simplest things.
Still, a slightly dumber Mokoto was also fun to tease.
She'd better take advantage of this window before she got fully resurrected.
---
That afternoon, Xia Zhi made a brief farewell announcement over the loudspeaker.
The moment the workers realized there'd be no dinner cooked by Principal Xia tonight, their motivation to mix concrete tanked. The entire site was full of sighs.
The foreman frowned and stepped up to rally them. "Come on, people! The project's almost done. You were gonna leave soon anyway."
"But it was nice eating good food a few more days!"
"All you think about is food! Don't you want your names engraved on the commemorative monument?"
"Yes!"
"Then get to work! Look at the other teams—they're grinding hard! There are only so many name slots. You waste time sighing and someone else might take your spot! Move it!"
"Yes sir!"
Just like that, thinking of the engraving spurred them into action again.
The foreman nodded in satisfaction and turned to leave.
A worker wiped his brow and looked up—then suddenly froze.
His teammate tugged him. "Don't just stand there! We gotta hustle!"
"No, wait… look. Where's the foreman headed?"
"Huh? Probably to check on another team."
"But… it looks like he's going toward the cafeteria."
"The cafeteria?!"
Heads turned.
Sure enough, the foreman—who just finished a rousing speech about dedication—was now striding toward the food hall.
Someone suddenly shouted, "Wait a sec—is that bastard going to steal leftovers?!"
The others caught on immediately. "Right! There's still some of Principal Xia's lunch in there!"
One guy tossed his shovel and bolted. "I just remembered something—gotta go!"
"Hey! Wait for me!"
"Are none of you working anymore?!"
"Food first! We can pull an all-nighter later!"
"Dammit!"
In no time, they all dropped their tools and stampeded toward the cafeteria.
Other work teams stared, then scoffed—then paused… and joined in.
The foreman, still strolling, suddenly heard a thunderous roar behind him and turned around in alarm.
"What the hell?! You bastards—who started this?!"
Cursing, he broke into a sprint himself.
Meanwhile, Moon Carver and Mountain Shaper wiped their brows and watched in silence.
"…What do you make of that?"
"…Watching."
"And your thoughts?"
"Mr. Xia is incredible."
"…Agreed."
The two Adepti exchanged a few solemn nods—then got back to work.
Strange as it was, after thousands of years without doing physical labor, it actually felt kind of nice.
Much more satisfying than playing mahjong.
They'd better make the most of it while they could.
---
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