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

Have you seen Lord Pillar of State?

Has the Pillar of State come to your place?

-

Two chapters will be updated consecutively as usual, and there should be more tonight.

To answer a few points of contention in the comments section:

1. The main character's surname is Kiyono, which makes him easy to expose.

That's incorrect. Only these two generations have the surname Kiyono, and the reason this generation is called Kiyono is simply to obtain the status of an adopted son later. I actually hinted at his name in his previous life a long time ago, and some readers have even guessed it.

Second, the protagonist was supposed to die on the battlefield, but he didn't; he just kept dragging it out, which is a joke.

Keep reading, and by tomorrow at the latest you'll know whether he ultimately died on the battlefield. I've laid the groundwork and foreshadowed this.

-

One last thing, this is just a rant, you can skip it.

Some readers have already reached their limit. I've said it countless times, this is just a new book of 50,000 words, currently only twenty-five chapters. How much faster can I possibly write at this pace...?

If I really wanted to pad the story out, and the beginning said two hundred days, then I would just pad it out for two hundred days until it was published. As for reducing his lifespan to two days within twenty chapters?

And what about those so-called prophets in the comments section? Aside from the very beginning, which was obvious to anyone—the travel plot—what else did you predict? You're quite good at stirring up the narrative, though.

Volume 1: Chapter 26 I've always... loved you

Has the Pillar of State come to your place?

"..Um?"

Ying's first reaction was blankness.

And doubts.

She stared at the unfinished doll in front of her, and for some reason, Ying suddenly had a strange feeling, as if something was wrong...

Something went wrong in a fatal way. She shook her head slightly, trying to dispel the strange feeling, but somehow, Ying felt an inexplicable palpitation.

This was something she had never experienced before.

Kiyono Sara stood guard at the steps of the castle tower. Seeing that Narukami had not answered for a long time, she explained anxiously:

"At dawn today, Lord Kyoji entered the patriarch's quarters, only to find the room empty..."

She took a slight breath and paused for a moment, "The Pillar State's mansion mobilized all its soldiers and searched the entire street, but they couldn't find the Pillar State... The only place I could think of was here. Has the Pillar State come to see you?"

Is the Pillar of State here to see you...?

As Ying listened to Kiyono Sara's words, it was as if she were hearing some unfamiliar language. "He came to find me?"

No.

Perhaps, but she didn't know.

Ying's palpitations grew more and more intense. She vaguely sensed that things were starting to develop in an unpredictable direction. Suddenly, she felt a sense of powerlessness, just like the powerlessness she felt five hundred years ago when her sister died in her arms. The things she cherished were slipping away in her arms, and she was powerless to stop it.

Can't do anything.

Ying hated this feeling of powerlessness.

No.

She clenched her sleeves, as if trying to stop something from slipping away, but she couldn't; it was invisible.

Kiyono Sara waited, gazing expectantly into the depths of the castle tower, hoping to hear the answer she longed for.

but no.

After a long while, only the following came from deep within the castle tower:

"...He didn't come. He's not here."

Didn't come.

Not here.

Saro was stunned. She lowered her head, her mind almost blank, and bit her lip.

Not here.

The castle tower remained quiet and ancient, looking no different from usual.

But the wind began to stir, the bleak winter wind howled through all the attics, the fallen leaves in the courtyard rustled in the wind, the sky slowly darkened, the clouds began to press down, and some emotion stirred deep within the castle tower. Just moments ago it was a clear and bright morning, but now it was completely silent.

"Go find it."

Narukami's voice echoed from the castle tower, as heavy as the sky.

"Use all the shogunate troops in the castle, and also call upon the magistrate of the shrine."

"...Go find it."

His voice was as deep and heavy as dark clouds pressing down on a city.

Kiyono Sara could even hear the sound of her teeth clenching.

---

"Haven't found it yet?"

Kiyono Sara frowned, feeling as if her heart had stopped. She remained in this dazed state until she came out of the castle tower, but she had to stay calm and clear-headed. Now that the head of the family was gone, she was the only one left in charge of the Pillar State Mansion.

Almost all the soldiers of the Pillar State Prefecture were mobilized, and the shogunate army also began to move, searching house to house and street by street. In just half an hour, Inazuma Castle was almost turned upside down.

Compared to the military, the corps was more efficient. They managed all aspects of Inazuma's daily life and had the best information gathering capabilities.

But it still hasn't been found.

Kiyono Raimei seemed to have evaporated.

Sara couldn't imagine how the head of the family had left.

He was already injured and ill. Although he could barely get out of bed, his movements were quite slow. With hundreds of soldiers protecting the area around the Pillar State Mansion these days, how could he possibly leave!

And yet, it's all happening so quietly?

She was extremely anxious and worried. She checked dozens of households along the way and questioned everyone who had passed by the Zhuguo Mansion the previous night, but she came to the same conclusion:

No.

The Pillar of State never came out.

No one saw the Pillar of State.

Sara had considered a few places Kiyono might go: Narukami Shrine, the Kami Sakura Tree, the castle tower... but none of them were there.

"Investigate! Keep investigating! Find it even if you have to dig three feet into the ground!"

She yelled at the soldiers. Kiyono Sara was known for her decisive and calm handling of situations, and she always maintained the most calm and objective attitude.

But whenever the head of the family or Kiyono Raimei is involved, she becomes that flustered little girl again.

The little celestial dog whose mountain forest was destroyed.

"call..."

Don't panic, don't panic.

She slowly calmed down. "Kiyono Sara, you can't panic..." She needed to question the witnesses again.

The person who first discovered that the Pillar of State had disappeared.

...

Miss Fox sat on the edge of the roof, her legs dangling naturally between her legs and the osmanthus tree.

She stared blankly at the distant snow-capped mountains, lost in thought.

She didn't notice Kiyono Sara until she walked up to her.

Her fox ears perked up, her pupils dilated slightly, and she turned her head with a hint of anticipation. But when she saw Kiyono Sara's face, her ears drooped again. Yae glanced away and continued looking at the snow mountain.

"You can't find him. If he wants to hide, no one can find him." Yae no Miko said casually. Miss Fox remained lazy and looked languid, as if her emotions hadn't changed.

“I see…” Kiyono Sara sat down next to the fox, her head slightly lowered. She paused for a moment, then said, “We will definitely find him.”

Snowflakes were falling, but the dark clouds in the direction of the castle tower grew heavier and heavier, as if the entire sky was pressing down.

He lied to me.

Suddenly, the Eightfold Divine Son said.

"Did I lie to you?"

"That old geezer is going to die."

Yae no Miko spoke softly, her pale pink eyes reflecting only the pure white snow-capped mountain. Her voice was as soft as a thin snowflake:

“He told me we would meet again next year, but he was lying to me. He was actually about to die.”

Kiyono Sara listened quietly.

"The kind of person he is is as proud as an old wolf. He will never die in front of you. He will quietly slip away to a ravine where no one can find him, and with a kick of his legs, he will be dead."

Yae no Miko spoke carelessly about Kiyono's death, and as she spoke, she even smiled slightly, as if she felt that her analogy was quite apt.

silence.

Miss Fox hugged her knees, put her feet on the roof tiles, looked at the snow, and said blankly, "But he clearly swore an oath. So I believed him."

"The last time this old guy swore an oath was to Ying, saying he would protect her forever and stuff. It was pretty cheesy, but he kept his promise and protected Ying his whole life."

Yae no Miko smiled, as if mocking herself:

"But why, why does he obey when it comes to Ying, but not when it comes to me?"

"...I just...I just...my demands aren't high," Miss Fox's voice trailed off, her ears drooping.

“I don’t ask for a hundred years, five hundred years, or eternity like a shadow. I just want one year. I just want one last year. I’m not being unreasonable. I’m not greedy.”

"But why? Tell me, Sara, why can't I? I just want him to live, I just want to watch the fireworks with him one last time."