Genshin Impact: I, the Winter's Executor, am forced to work.

"Yes. And one more request."

"You said."

"I have...my own plans. Can you trust me?"

The man opposite nodded slightly, without saying a word.

Colombian gazed at the dreamlike view of the Coral Palace and stopped singing.

"I will make everything go smoothly."

-

On the south side of Bayun Island, a figure slowly emerged from the mirror, walking quietly and gracefully on the noisy deck.

"Isn't this Tatiana? Long time no see! How's Qin Ye doing?"

"Yes, Brother Qin Ye is doing very well. Thank you for your concern, Captain Beidou."

(Author's note: The story of Inazuma is nearing its end. Two chapters today. I'm thinking about the plot's direction, organizing the foreshadowing that can be brought up again, and then... planting some new ones. Hehe.)

I anticipate the final chapters will require at least ten, perhaps even fifteen or twenty. My feeling is that there will be several plot twists, but I've already mentioned foreshadowing, and I'll explain each one, whether it's a primary or secondary storyline. I'll do my best to handle it well.

Chapter 97 Duck Vanguard

"Hey buddy, does the design of this car have any special meaning?"

The sky was obscured by dark clouds, thunder roared, and lightning flashed by in an instant, creating a sense of oppression.

Qin Ye sat comfortably on the four-wheeled carriage, his crane cloak billowing in the strong wind.

He waved his feather fan twice behind him.

"Dartaria, you don't understand, do you? A strategist going to the battlefield without this setup is soulless; this is a guaranteed victory set."

The young master scratched his head, feeling that he had never seen such attire before, but his companion must have his reasons for doing so.

"I may not understand all those intricacies... but this vehicle was made by you using elemental power, so it should be easy for you to control, right? Why do I have to push it?"

Tatiana's voice came through, carrying a sense of disappointment and frustration.

“Young Master, if you are unwilling, you can leave it to me.”

Such a special opportunity is rare, and I would never have it even if I wanted it. Yet you look at me with disdain.

“That’s right, if you don’t want to, give it to someone else.” Columbia nodded in agreement.

"I think so too." Qin Ye smiled nonchalantly.

"Let Tatiana push, and then we'll let her lead the troops to fight the first battle."

D'Artagnan, who had been languidly sitting up, straightened up instantly: "What? What first battle?"

"Huh~?" Qin Ye drew out the last syllable: "Didn't I already say that?"

He tapped his forehead with his feather fan: "This is bad, this is bad. As the strategist, I forgot to tell the general about the strategic deployment. This is truly my fault."

"General?! Could it be me, my comrade?"

The young master leaned forward, level with Qin Ye.

"Yes, you will lead my prepared troops to the front and engage the Shogunate army in a direct battle at Nashiina."

"Huh? Actually, you don't need to, do you? I can easily defeat them and make them flee in disarray by charging into the fray on my own."

Qin Ye patted the other person's face with his fan in disgust, signaling him to stay away from him, otherwise his silliness was contagious.

"You can defeat the vice-general of the shogunate army, you can defeat Kujo Sara, but can you kill the eight thousand shogunate soldiers of the Bald Head Army?"

D'Artagnan opened his mouth, mentally comparing the combat strength of both sides.

"Well... it's not impossible if you try, right? Think about it, partner. I'll charge in with my Demon King Armor and cut a gap in the enemy lines. Then you can follow up, fight your way to the front, and take Kujo Sara's dog head."

"..." Qin Ye opened his mouth, looking at him like he was an idiot.

He sighed deeply: "We were able to do these things when we first arrived in Inazuma. The problem is, what will our allies in Inazuma think of you doing this?"

"...I had completely forgotten about that."

"What if they think we cheated them, then turn against us and challenge us to a duel? And we win a Pyrrhic victory, letting the mastermind reap the rewards, and finally luring in General Thunder, who will chase you down like Vulcan?"

The young master remained silent.

"Even if we manage to defeat General Raiden and escape, leaving only the ruins of Inazuma, what will the other five kingdoms think of the Queen and the Fools? Will we still be able to fight them one by one like this?"

Morax can sit there drinking tea and walking his bird; you could stand there and let him chop at you and you might not even get a scratch.

"Haha..." The other party chuckled awkwardly, "It was my oversight. You, my partner, devise a plan, and I'll follow it."

Lightning flashed and thunder roared in the sky, raindrops fell on the soldiers' heads, and the flashes of lightning reflected on Qin Ye and Tadalia's faces. The already low-voiced arrangement was further muffled by the thunder, with the sound only reaching the two of them.

D'Artagnan grinned.

"Understood! Don't worry, partner, I'll handle it. But..."

He looked up at the increasingly severe weather and frowned.

"You don't need to worry about that. The team that goes with you is fully armed, wearing the best armor, and they've even prepared raincoats."

Qin Ye pointed with his fan to the troops beside him, and then gestured for him to look at the archers, whose light armor might not even be fully complete.

The young master pondered deeply...

What I'm more worried about is whether this weather was caused by that lightning general.

"The general won't care about these petty squabbles."

Qin Ye seemed to have seen through the other party's thoughts.

"I feel relieved to hear you say that, my partner."

"Of course, trust me, there will absolutely be no problem."

Seeing that the two were almost finished talking, Tatiana took out two coats from the mirror, first draped one over Columbia and gently tidied her up, then took out the other and covered Qin Ye with it.

"My lords, it's raining heavily. This kind of weather makes it easy to catch a cold. Please be careful not to get chilled."

"???"

D'Artagnan pointed to himself.

Tatiana placed her hands on her lower abdomen and bowed deeply to express her apology.

"Young Master, I'm very sorry, these are the last two items. Besides, you will be leading troops into battle soon, and heavy clothing will hinder your movement."

"???"

Qin Ye reached out and patted the other man on the shoulder: "D'Artagnan, think about it. You're going to the front lines later. If we treat you with warmth and luxury, what's the difference between that and your last meal?"

The young master suddenly realized.

So that's how it is!

Qin Ye gave a helpless smile.

This child is good in every way, except that he doesn't like to use his brain in front of me and believes everything I say.

He looked at the overcast sky and gently fanned himself with his feather fan.

I have to say, even God was helping me out.

-

"Report! The movements of the Haiji Army have been ascertained; they seem to intend to fight us to the death at the Nashii Beach."

Kujo Sara took the simple intelligence map and fell into deep thought.

"Has the identity of the leading general been identified?"

"It is Aranami Kamo Saburo, a young general who has recently become famous in the Kaiji Army."

"...A good name."

It is said that that Aranami... is exceptionally strong, far surpassing the original Sea God General Goro. Given the vast disparity in troop strength between the two sides, having him lead the charge to boost morale is indeed the right thing to do.

After all, with 20,000 regular troops fighting against 5,000 militiamen, including the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled, she didn't know how she could possibly lose.

The vanguard she brought consisted of 8,000 of the most elite troops out of 20,000 men.

"Where is the supply ship located?"

"We are already on our way to the southern waters of Nashiina."

"Have you located Qin Ye and Coral Palace's Heart Sea?"

"No similar news has been reported yet."

Sara stroked his chin: "Set up a defensive formation on Nashii Beach, and send out more scouts, but remember not to go too deep."

She looked up at the rolling dark clouds, and her unease intensified.

-

"Oh? It's starting! It's starting!"

Scaramzi stood atop the mountain, watching the various movements of the troops, a carefree smile on his face.

"Prince, won't you come and take a look?"

"No need, just do your job well."

The blond man's tone remained completely calm. Seeing that things were developing as he had imagined, he stopped paying attention and stepped into the void.

"You've suddenly become so cold..."

The stragglers frowned.

When he's useful, he's called Scaramucci; when he's not, he's called you. He doesn't even bother to joke around with me. It's really boring.

"But you're not really going to take action yourself this time, are you, Dionysus?"

I thought you would say a few words in front of the two armies and make Kujo Sara surrender with courtesy, and the shogunate army would retreat without a fight.

He pursed his lips.

Alright, I should move on to the next step of my plan.