Genshin Impact, I, a mere mortal, cannot accompany you to the very end.

Volume 1: Chapter 23 Perhaps There Is Hope (Two Volumes Combined)

"How so?"

Kiyono opened his eyes and found that he could not move. His body felt heavy and unfamiliar, and his mind was also foggy, with heavy double images all around him.

He closed his eyes wearily and asked himself the question.

"What should I say?"

You were unconscious for three days.

"I only have fifteen days to live, and I was unconscious for three days. Isn't that a huge loss?" he said to himself with a self-deprecating laugh. "I really lost out."

You should be glad you didn't fall into a deep sleep.

Human reason.

How do you plan to die?

They finally brought up the topic.

A person cannot choose their birth, but fortunately, they may be able to choose their death.

"I don't want to die here," Kiyono answered in his heart. "I should have died on that snowfield, but I was brought back. I should have died long ago, I can't delay any longer."

That girl stayed by your side for three days and three nights.

"Can you do me a favor?"

What kind of busy are you doing?

"Let's compress the remaining twelve days of life into three... two days. I want to get out of bed."

Why do you want to get out of bed?

"I don't want to be in such a sorry state, I don't want to be unable to move, I don't want to die like this, it's too shameful and too ugly. Renli, you've asked a lot of questions today."

I was just curious about it; observing your life sparked my interest in humanity.

"Can you do that?"

You can open your eyes now.

Kiyono Raimei slowly opened his eyes. The first thing that greeted him was the blinding light from the window lattice, whether it was the light of snow or the morning light, cut into pieces by the thin window slats.

He squinted slightly and noticed a small, fluffy, pink creature lying on his pillow. It was curled up in a ball, its tail drooping over its body, its paws clenched, and it seemed to be having a nightmare—it was making soft whimpering noises.

There appear to be tear stains.

His heart regained its strength, and his complexion slowly returned to normal, but all of this was an illusion. Kiyono Raimei had withered away from the core of his being, just like a cherry blossom branch that had blossomed, splendid and prosperous, but in reality, it was already dead. The prosperity on the branch was just a reflection of its death.

Inatsumi people are quite interesting; they call it 'mono no aware,' which is an aesthetic.

Now you can answer my question: How do you plan to die?

“I don’t want to die here. If I die here, they will give me a very grand funeral. But it’s almost New Year’s in Inazuma, and everyone will look miserable and ugly during the New Year.”

Where are you going to die?

"I'm going to Mondstadt. Maybe dying at sea is a good choice. I can't let them know I'm going to die, at least not now, otherwise I won't be able to bear leaving."

What should you do?

“I intend to do this—that’s why I’m asking you for help.”

Kiyono Raiming patted the little fox's head heavily beside his pillow. "Get up, you lazybones!"

Miss Fox was startled awake. Her whole body trembled, and her ears perked up alertly. She looked at Qingye, at that long-lost smile.

Yae raised her head in a daze, staring at him blankly, her fox-like eyes clearly reflecting Kiyono's image.

"you..."

“I’m back, I’m perfectly fine, why are you so worried?” He gave that signature smirk again, as if to say, ‘See? I fooled you again,’ just like he had done countless times before.

Kiyono straightened up, the sunlight partially bathing him, and his complexion looked even healthier than before. "I told you I'm very strong, I could live for hundreds of years. I was just injured and passed out from exhaustion."

"I'm well-rested now and in good health."

But Yae wouldn't be fooled.

"How much longer do you have to live?" she asked.

Kiyono paused for a moment, then smiled and said to the fox, "I can live for another year or so."

It was still a lie; he only had two days left.

"Old man, you're lying."

But it didn't seem like a lie, because the Divine Child could feel that Kiyono's vitality was slowly returning. This was not some kind of last gasp before death, as a last gasp before death could not achieve such a miraculous effect.

It seems he really was just exhausted and fainted. Now that he has rested, he has woken up and everything is fine.

The divine child said, "I no longer believe your promises."

As she spoke, she felt her heart trembling slightly, or rather, being torn apart.

It was cut in two.

The fox so wanted to believe, so wanted to believe what he said, but to her pain, she wouldn't believe him.

My heart was throbbing with pain in waves.

"Then I swear, are you willing to believe my oath? I have only made one oath in my life, and that was to the person on the castle tower. Now I will make one to you as well."

"A vow?" The fox perked up its ears. "What kind of vow do you want to make?"

"This time next year, I will still be alive to meet you again. This is my vow."

Qingye Road.

He lied again.

The oath was true, but what he said was false.

He will die tomorrow, and even if we meet again, he will no longer be Kiyono Raimei.

Kiyono told lies his whole life, all for the sake of one person leaving.

I really don't understand humans.

Human reason sighed softly in his ear.

-

Castle Keep.

Kiyono Sara waited.

She kept her head down, her bright golden eyes fixed on the steps.

She wanted to say something, but couldn't utter a word. The words caught in her throat and she swallowed them back down. She knelt on the steps, the katana given to her by the Pillar of State still resting on her knees. She gently stroked the scabbard, her slender fingertips trembling slightly.

She didn't know what to say or what to do, so she could only wait.

It all happened so fast, so fast that there was no time to think it through or to figure out what had happened.

She thought that as a samurai, she was well prepared, but when it actually happened, she was as bewildered as a child.

too suddenly.

It's snowing again now.

Snow fell on her shoulders, forming a thin layer.

I don't know how long I waited.

Her knees were numb, and more and more snowflakes were piling up on her shoulders, but she still waited patiently; it was the only thing she could do.

Before her stood the castle tower.

Today, this ancient hall is eerily quiet. The servants have all been dismissed, and there is not a single person in sight. The hall doors are tightly locked, and the bare branches of the cherry trees stretch out horizontally, their withered bark howling in the cold wind.

She waited, as dusk began to fall, and during the time when snowflakes swayed, a voice finally came from the depths of the palace:

How is he?

A calm, cool voice broke the silence.

"She woke up once... but had a persistent fever."

Shaluo slowly exhaled, adjusting her emotions and trying to make her tone sound normal so as not to disgrace the Pillar State Mansion:

"His body was severely depleted, and he had caught too many colds."

Saro trembled slightly, and she lowered her eyes, her golden eyes dim and lacking luster.

"Perhaps... we only have a few months left."

Another long, long silence followed. After a while, Narukami's voice came from deep within the castle tower:

"Have him hold on for a year."

It remained flat, with no change in tone, as if devoid of any emotion, as calm as an ancient, stagnant pool, without a ripple of feeling.

She was aloof, but that was exactly her usual demeanor. She could filter out all the noise of the world, and nothing in the world could move her anymore.

People call it 'eternity'.

Hearing these cold, almost commanding words...

Kiyono Sara clenched her fists, feeling her nails digging into her flesh, blood trickling down between the lines of her palm.

She raised her eyes, her bright golden eyes fixed intently on the deepest part of the attic.

Kiyono Sara gritted her teeth, her hands resting on her katana.

Anger, or perhaps it should be called the emotion of anger.

Or rather, it's disheartening.

For the first time as a samurai, she harbored such rebellious thoughts towards the lord she served.

Why was the patriarch injured? Why did the patriarch die? Why was the patriarch in pain? It was all for you, the lofty and supreme Lord Narukami.