Early in the morning, the sky had just broken dawn, but many places were still shrouded in darkness. This was also the sleepiest time of the day for people.
Just at this moment, the water curtain that almost wrapped around more than half of Watatsumi Island suddenly broke open several holes, and then several teams immediately drilled out from it.
"Everyone pay attention to concealment, don't be discovered!"
"You go scout the nearby area, if reinforcements come, fire a signal and retreat immediately!"
"Our enemy's strength is very powerful this time, try to kill the enemy from a distance!"
Among the teams, Gorou led the most elite squad, preparing to take this opportunity to seek revenge for the opponent's actions yesterday, and made arrangements in an orderly manner.
Although this time it was Sangonomiya Kokomi who personally formulated the sneak attack plan, for some reason, Gorou had a feeling of unease in his heart.
Gorou shook his head, constantly comforting himself that he must be overthinking.
The two people who received the scouting mission soon broke away from the team and hurried away, while the rest of the people quickly arrived at the Shogunate Army's camp under Gorou's leadership.
Just at that moment, Gorou and his men witnessed a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.
At this moment, in the Shogunate Army's camp, all the Shogunate soldiers were standing in several square formations, straight and tall. Those deep-set eyes were like demons in the night!
There were no tents for resting in the camp at all. The enemy had actually not slept for the entire night?!
Obviously, this was not a preplanned ambush. On one hand, if it were a trap, it would not be so obvious. On the other hand, not everyone would be standing like walking corpses.
After realizing the abnormality of this matter, Gorou also unhesitatingly issued the order to retreat.
Before they took action, Sangonomiya Kokomi had already told them that life should be prioritized in this operation.
However, their movements still alerted the Shogunate Army. Before long, they felt the whistling sound of arrows passing by their ears.
"Form up!"
Seeing their whereabouts exposed, Gorou directly shouted, and a layer of earthen yellow defensive barrier completely protected everyone in this small squad. Soon, the sound of densely packed arrows colliding against the barrier was heard.
"Go, retreat quickly. They absolutely cannot be the Shogunate Army!"
"Or rather, they absolutely cannot be living Shogunate soldiers!"
Any human being will get tired. Although not sleeping for a day is not impossible for a normal person, poor mental state will greatly reduce the army's combat effectiveness.
No general with a sane mind would let all his soldiers go without sleep when a tough battle is likely to happen the next day. Such behavior is completely meaningless.
Even if they were truly afraid of a night attack, they would at least divide the soldiers into two groups, each guarding the first and second half of the night.
From this, Gorou could deduce that the Shogunate soldiers they saw might not even be living people!
Feeling the movements behind them becoming more obvious, Gorou turned his head and saw those Shogunate soldiers chasing them at an extraordinary speed, as if their bodies had no weight.
Gorou was so shocked by this scene that he couldn't even speak. Because he had chosen a camp with a larger number of people, Gorou had selected the elite of the elite, yet now they couldn't even run faster than ordinary Shogunate soldiers?!
Moreover, they were not simply retreating, but were also firing arrows or setting traps to delay the enemy, yet the effect was not very obvious.
No, if this continues, they will definitely be caught!
If they were entangled by these Shogunate soldiers, the Water Curtain protecting the others would be unable to close again, and then I'm afraid not many people would be able to escape.
Gorou's expression became serious, and he quickly made a decision.
However, just as Gorou was preparing to stay behind to cover the retreat, four figures broke away from the team at this moment.
"Lord Gorou, you go first, we will stay and cover the retreat!"
"Do not slow down, or none of us will get away, do not let our determination be in vain!"
"Damned Shogunate Army, Grandpa will fight you to the end!"
Things happened too suddenly, and Gorou never expected that there would be someone who judged the situation and made a choice even faster than him.
Gorou immediately slowed down, wishing to let himself replace those few people, yet he saw them rushing toward that group of terrifying Shogunate soldiers without looking back.
Gorou's heart shook violently, and he was deeply moved.
To keep these four people from sacrificing themselves in vain, he accelerated again and caught up with the team in front, then saw the fire in everyone's eyes.
Suddenly, two brilliant glows appeared among the crowd, and then an Anemo Vision and an Electro Element Vision were respectively hung from the waists of two of the people.
The wielder of the Electro Element Vision possessed some unknown ability, but at this moment, everyone felt their bodies suddenly lighten, as if a gust of wind were lifting them up and accelerating their forward movement, causing the speed of the entire team to soar by several dozen percent!
Because someone had suddenly awakened a beneficial ability, coupled with the active sacrifice of the four who stayed behind to cover the retreat, Gorou successfully met with the two scouts and returned together to the area protected by the Water Curtain.
Just as Gorou's group returned to the area within the Water Curtain, the Water Curtain behind them, which had originally been broken with a hole, immediately restored to its original state.
However, Gorou did not relax because of this and immediately spoke to the others.
"Quick, let's hurry to help our brothers in the other few places!"
After speaking, Gorou took the lead and charged out, running towards the nearest action point, and before he had run very far, the others also reacted and immediately followed up at full speed.
Soon, when everyone arrived at another action point, they found that this place had already fallen, and the ground was covered with dried bloodstains.
One could see the Shogunate Army continuously walking in from outside the Water Curtain while vigilantly guarding the hole broken in the Water Curtain; to prevent this passage from closing, they had even bound several innocent civilians and thrown them at the hole cruelly. After seeing this scene, Gorou and his group were completely enraged.
"Drive them out and retake this place!"
"Also, rescue the hostages!"
Just as Gorou finished speaking, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky and struck the hostages, sending them convulsing to the ground.
"S-Sorry, I only recently obtained my Vision and haven't mastered its control yet..."
The person who had just received the Vision spoke with a face full of shame.
Hearing this, Gorou didn't know what to say for a moment. Seeing that the hostages were still alive, he could only temporarily set aside the punishment for the culprit.
"Drive them out first!"
With that, Gorou immediately charged forward.
Unlike the previous choice to retreat, this time they had to drive the enemy out to prevent a massacre inside Watatsumi Island, even if it cost them their lives.
Because the Shogunate Army here was not very numerous, Gorou's squad ultimately succeeded in retaking the area, though it came at a heavy cost.
Not only were there more casualties, but half of the survivors were wounded.
After the battle ended and the Water Curtain resealed, everyone collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
Despite having a slight numerical advantage, and despite all of them being the elite of the Watatsumi Army, with even several Vision wielderes among them, they still paid such a heavy price.
They couldn't even imagine what the situation was like elsewhere, but they would soon find out.
Because they had received an order from Sangonomiya Kokomi to retreat to Enkanomiya...
-
"Chief Editor, the novels recently published by the Yae Publishing House are being brutally bashed by everyone!"
"Everyone is saying that our novels have always been the same old formula, lacking any new ideas, and not half as good as the recently popular [ The Overbearing Shogun Falls in Love with Me ] and [ The Matrilocal Son-in-law of Tenshukaku ]!"
After hearing these words, a woman turned her gaze in this direction.
She had long pink hair, bewitching eyes, a faint smile on her lips, and wore a miko's outfit that perfectly highlighted her beautiful figure.
Clearly, she was the Chief Editor of the Yae Publishing House, and also the Chief Priestess in charge of the Grand Narukami Shrine, Yae Miko.
"Alright, I understand."
Seeing Yae Miko throw down these words and then show no other reaction, the Yae Publishing House editor was completely stunned, and then couldn't help but speak.
"Chief Editor, are we not going to take any action?"
"I've read both of those novels. They're certainly unique and really know how to cater to the readers' tastes."
"The author of these two novels, 'Big Pigeon,' is truly remarkable."
"Chief Editor, how can you boost their morale while demoralizing our own?!"
"Rest assured, I will urge our authors to write a masterpiece that will make the Yae Publishing House's name spread all over the continent of Teyvat!"
Hearing the editor's confident guarantee, the smile on Yae Miko's face deepened.
Without saying another word, Yae Miko swayed her charming figure and quickly left the Yae Publishing House, walking straight along the bustling streets of Inazuma City.
Before long, the number of pedestrians on the street grew thinner, and the street gradually narrowed.
After walking for a while longer, Yae Miko turned several corners along a small path before finally stopping in front of a somewhat dilapidated small house, then raising her hand to gently knock on the door.
"Who is it?"
Very soon, a clearly young voice came from inside the room, and after another few seconds, the door was opened from within.
The moment the door opened, Yae Miko directly squeezed into the room before the other person could even react, simultaneously lifting a soft, boneless hand, using her index and middle fingers to hook under the person's chin, her eyes full of seductive charm.
The owner of the house was a young man around sixteen or seventeen years old, who blushed furiously from Yae Miko's forceful approach.
"Big Pigeon?"
"Uh... Miss, you've got the wrong place. I don't raise pigeons here."
"The little guy is quite clever, isn't he?"
Yae Miko gave him a glance, yet she managed to make the gesture feel utterly seductive, causing the boy's face to flush even more deeply.
Then, Yae Miko settled down, poured herself a glass of water, and made herself at home without a hint of hesitation.
"Unfortunately, your reaction was too exaggerated; your acting isn't very good."
"Judging by the recent promotional blitz, there are very few people in Inazuma City today who don't know the name 'Big Pigeon'."
"Yet you pretended not to know anything when I said that name. It was too deliberate."
"Moreover, these manuscripts on the table have already proven your identity."
After hearing Yae Miko's words, the young man was already breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Alright, Miss, since you're so beautiful and charming, I'll give you an autograph."
The young man said as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, regretting that he hadn't been more cautious.
"But as a condition, could you please keep this secret for me?"
"I can see you're the type who hates trouble."
Yae Miko smiled at the young man. After all, with his current fame, if he truly wanted to be in the spotlight, it wouldn't be the case that so few people knew his identity.
"However, I didn't come here for something like an autograph."
"Little guy, do you know that you've committed a crime?"
"Willfully distorting the image of the Raiden Shogun is a serious offense."
"Huh?!"
Hearing Yae Miko's words, the young man was instantly scared colorless. Seeing his reaction, the smile on Yae Miko's face grew even brighter.
Good, good. Teasing a simpleton like this really is the most fun!
"S-surely not, right?"
The young man stammered.
"I completely didn't know about such a thing!"
Seeing that the timing was just right, Yae Miko took a sip of water before stating her real purpose for being there.
"Little guy, this kind of matter can't be solved just by saying you didn't know."
"Of course, we at the Yae Publishing House have special privileges. Why don't you consider joining us and becoming a writer working under me?"
"After all, you wouldn't want to go to the Inazuma grand prison at such a young age, would you?"
The young man: ...
-
In the end, Yae Miko naturally got what she wanted, adding another fierce general to her ranks!
Rather than hoping the original writers could figure things out and create a masterpiece, it was better to directly recruit a writer who could produce such a work.
Thinking of this, Yae Miko felt a little smug.
She hadn't forced the opposite party, she had simply laid out the facts.
After all, Yae Publishing House having similar novels was because of her relationship with Raiden Ei. As for others writing about the Raiden Shogun of Inazuma, even if Raiden Ei didn't pursue it, the Tenryou Commission would still find them for tea.
As for the purpose of bringing him under her wing... Yae Miko's tail behind her couldn't help but appear and waggle like a five-speed electric fan the moment she thought of the expression on Raiden Ei's face when she discovered that her Yae Publishing House had published the novel after finishing it.
"What a truly interesting and talented little guy, it seems I won't be too bored in the near future!"
When Yae Miko thought of that young man's character, who blushed at every turn before, a mischievous smile immediately appeared on her face.
Just as Yae Miko stepped out of the alley and onto the street, a figure suddenly ran this way.
"Yae Miko-sama, I'm your fan, could you please sign an autograph for me?!"
Because Yae Miko was in a good mood at this moment, she immediately agreed.
"I can."
After hearing Yae Miko's words, the other person hurriedly handed over the pen.
However, just as Yae Miko was about to sign, she suddenly raised her eyebrows, looked at the figure in front of her, and said with some surprise.
"You don't seem to be human, do you?"