Genshin Impact: One Hundred Confessions? Just a System Task

It was a long, golden strand of hair that shimmered faintly in the sunlight streaming through the window.

Yura's pupils contracted instantly. Almost instinctively, she reached out and carefully pinched the strand of hair with her fingertips.

The hair is long and brightly colored, clearly belonging to a woman... and this hair color...

The image of Qin's beautiful long golden hair almost immediately popped into her mind.

Could it be... that Qin had already come before her?

And... he sat so naturally on the sofa in the living room?

A strange mix of emotions, both bitter and stifling, welled up inside me, even more intense than when the shop owner had scrutinized me in the clothing store.

Yura pinched the strand of hair, her fingertips applying slight pressure, making even Yichen's cheerful humming in the kitchen sound somewhat jarring.

On the exquisite dining table were dishes carefully prepared by Yichen, their aroma filling the air.

However, Yura seemed somewhat distracted, slowly poking at the food on her plate with her fork.

Yi Chen, on the other hand, was eating with great relish, completely unaware of the unusually low atmosphere opposite him.

Finally, Yura seemed to have made up her mind.

She raised her eyes, casually glanced around the living room, and then asked in an as indifferent tone as if it were just casual conversation:

"Yichen, your new home... looks pretty nice. Except for me..."

She paused slightly, observing Yi Chen's expression.

"...Have you invited any other 'friends' over? Like...the head of the zither?"

She deliberately emphasized the word "friend" with subtle clarity, trying to glean some clue from Yi Chen's reaction.

Yi Chen was engrossed in eating a perfectly grilled, charred steak when he heard this. He looked up, a little sauce still on his lips, his face full of unsuspecting bewilderment.

"Qin? No. She's been working non-stop, how could she have time to visit me? What's wrong?"

Looking at his open and honest expression, which seemed completely genuine, Yura's doubts dissipated somewhat, but the pent-up frustration lingered.

Could it be that I guessed wrong?

"Nothing, just ask."

She lowered her head and continued poking at the food, her voice muffled.

"I just feel... your house is quite big, it's a bit lonely living alone."

"Oh! This one!"

Yi Chen seemed to suddenly understand and immediately gave the answer, completely resolving Yura's doubts.

"Didn't I tell you before? Traveler Ying and her little white floating object are temporarily staying here! It seems like she gets up early every day and tidies up her equipment on the sofa."

"Traveler...?"

Yura suddenly looked up and froze.

That hardworking blond stranger? Not Qin?

Yi Chen was completely unaware of the storm he had just quelled; instead, he started complaining.

"Speaking of which, that little Paimon is always stealing my food. I'll have to hide some next time..."

So it was that traveler...

Yura looked at Yichen, who was still rambling on and on about Paimon, and her feelings were extremely complicated.

The jealousy and resentment from before vanished instantly, replaced by an extremely intense sense of speechlessness and embarrassment directed at myself.

She actually... overthought things for ages because of a single hair... and almost... misunderstood Yichen and Qin...

A surge of intense shame welled up inside her, causing her cheeks to burn uncontrollably.

To cover up this huge blunder and her inner panic, she abruptly lowered her head, almost burying her face in the plate, and viciously speared a large piece of roast pork with her fork, her voice becoming somewhat stiff with embarrassment:

"...I see. Let's eat!"

She chewed her food vigorously, as if the piece of steak had a grudge against her, while inwardly she was frantically examining herself.

Yura Lawrence, what were you thinking just now?! It was so awful!

This grudge... I'll remember it... It actually made me lose my composure twice!

Chapter 22 Paimon, say something!

The next morning, Yichen was awakened by the soft sunlight outside the window. He rubbed his eyes groggily, slipped on his slippers and went downstairs, habitually expecting to see an empty living room and Paimon's "begging for food" note again.

However, the situation is quite different today.

An indescribable aroma, a mixture of burnt smell and a strange sweet fragrance, wafted towards me.

He stood there, stunned, blinking hard. He saw that the restaurant table was covered with... something that we'll call "food" for now.

Ying was wearing an ill-fitting apron, standing by the table with her hands on her hips, her face showing a mixture of anticipation and a proud "praise me" expression.

Paimon floated to the side, his eyes darting around, looking hesitant and troubled.

Yi Chen's drowsiness vanished instantly. He rushed forward, looking at Ying with concern, and even subconsciously reached out to touch her forehead.

"Ying! What's wrong?! Are you sick? Or did you bump your head while doing a request yesterday?! You must tell me if you feel unwell!"

fluorescent:"???"

Ying's initial little expectation and pride were instantly shattered by Yi Chen's outrageous reaction and words!

Her expression instantly twisted from (???) to (╯°□°）╯︵┻━┻!

Why would you say that?!

She almost jumped up, pointing at the pile of "masterpieces" on the table that were emitting suspicious black smoke.

"Is making breakfast some kind of catastrophic event that will cause the end of the world?! Do you think I'm that unreliable?!"

Yi Chen shrank back at her shout, his eyes cautiously glancing at the charred, unrecognizable lumps and the strangely colored, viscous liquid on the table. He swallowed hard and tried to come up with another plausible hypothesis:

"Okay... then... is there a charge? Like, you have to prepay for a month's worth of meals?"

"No—! It's free—!"

Ying roared, enunciating each word clearly, her cheeks puffed up with anger.

"Enjoy this rare, meticulously prepared breakfast as a token of my gratitude, you bastard!"

Seeing Ying's furious expression, and then looking at the ominous "gratitude breakfast" on the table, Yi Chen's survival instinct finally triumphed over his friendship.

His fingers trembled as he pointed to a plate of objects that were particularly dark and shiny, shaped like slime nuclei, his voice trembling with tears:

"No...is this really not a new poisoning plan?! What are these dark, slightly trembling things?! Paimon! Say something! Are you being threatened?!"

Paimon nervously fiddled with her fingers in mid-air, muttering, "Actually, Paimon already warned the traveler... but she insisted on trying..."

Following Yi Chen's horrified gaze, Ying finally confronted her "masterpiece" once more.

That dish... really... didn't look like something you could put in your mouth.

Her high spirits deflated like a punctured balloon; her shoulders slumped, and she let out a long, deep sigh, her voice filled with frustration.

"Oh... forget it."

Frustrated, she untied her apron and tossed it aside.

"Looks like I'm not cut out for this... Let's go out to eat, it's on me."

Looking at Ying's dejected appearance, from being full of fighting spirit to being completely wilted, even her golden ahoge seemed to have lost its luster, and then hearing that she was willing to "bleed big" to treat everyone, Yi Chen felt a complex emotion welling up in his heart.

A mixture of relief at escaping unscathed, a touch of sympathy, and... a strange sense of responsibility not to dampen a friend's (?) enthusiasm.

Anyway... I don't think I'll die from it... At most, I'll just have to go to the bathroom a few more times? Or faint again?

He took a deep breath, as if he had made a momentous decision, and a heroic expression of defiance appeared on his face. He strode to the dining table and grabbed a fork!

"No—! I'll eat! I'll eat, eat, eat, eat, eat!!"

Before he finished speaking, he had already forked up the darkest piece of something that looked like it had been fried pork chops, closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and shoved it into his mouth!

"Yi Chen/Mysterious man who crashed his plane! No!!!"

Ying and Paimon both screamed in terror.

The next second, Yi Chen's chewing motion abruptly froze, his eyes widened, and his expression began to change visibly...

"Wow! Traveler! You really poisoned the mysterious plane crash victim!!!"

Paimon's screams nearly lifted the roof off as she frantically circled around the motionless Yichen.

Ying watched as Yi Chen turned bluish-purple in an instant and began to fall straight backward. Her mind went blank, and she was so frightened that her soul almost left her body!

That sense of frustration was instantly overwhelmed by immense panic!

"Yichen! Hang in there!"

She exclaimed in surprise, and almost instinctively, she rushed forward, displaying astonishing strength, and suddenly hoisted Yi Chen, who was about to fall to the ground, onto her slender shoulder!

The movements were so fluid, as if they had practiced carrying sacks countless times.

"Don't die! I'm going to find Barbara right now! I'm going to find the priest! You hold on!"

Ying's voice was filled with sobs and unprecedented panic. She carried Yi Chen and prepared to sprint through the door and rush towards the cathedral.

With Yi Chen hoisted onto her shoulder like a sandbag, his stomach pressed against Ying's shoulder. This sudden, violent impact and jolting finally forced his throat and esophagus, which had been sealed shut by the terrifying cuisine, to start working again.

"Ugh—Pfft!"

A large mouthful of black, bubbly, and indescribable substance suddenly spewed from his mouth, tracing a graceful arc before landing precisely on the floor, even hissing slightly and emitting a wisp of white smoke.

"Cough cough cough! Ugh—"

Yi Chen coughed violently, finally able to breathe again, and his face slowly returned to normal from bluish-purple.

He weakly raised one hand, his voice barely a whisper:

"Wait...wait a minute...Ying...I...I think...I'm not going to die yet..."

It felt like my soul had gone on a trip.

Ying suddenly stopped, feeling the movement of the person on her shoulder. She carefully put him down, stared at the vomit on the ground that looked like a biological weapon, and then looked at Yi Chen, who was exhausted but seemed to have regained consciousness. She was completely stunned.

Paimon stopped screaming, flew a little lower, wrinkled her little nose, and looked at the pile of stuff with disdain.

"Eek! It looks even scarier than when I ate it!"

Just then, there was a soft but urgent knocking at the door, accompanied by Barbara's worried question.

"Mr. Yichen? Ms. Ying? Are you alright? I think I heard a very loud scream..."

Clearly, the commotion was too loud and alerted the priest of the neighboring church.

Ying and Yichen exchanged a glance, then looked at the still-smoking "evidence" on the ground and the "heart-warming breakfast" on the table that still exuded an ominous aura. Their faces showed expressions of utter embarrassment and despair.

"N-nothing! Barbara! Everything's fine!"

Yi Chen used his last bit of strength to shout towards the door, his voice hoarse.

There was a moment of silence outside the door, then Barbara's gentle voice came again.

"...Really? But your voice sounds terrible. Please open the door so I can see you, okay? It's my duty as a pastor."

Ying covered her face in despair.

Yi Chen looked at the mess on the ground, then at the doorway, and finally sighed resignedly. He mouthed to Ying: Destroy it, hurry up.

He staggered over and opened the door.

Outside the door, Barbara's bright blue eyes widened instantly as she looked at the mess inside, Yi Chen's face as pale as paper, a puddle of unidentified black vomit on the floor, and charred food that looked like the murder weapon on the table.

"By Barbatos above..."

She instinctively exclaimed in surprise, then immediately switched into professional pastor mode.

"Mr. Yichen! Are you poisoned? Let me take a look! Miss Ying, what happened?"

Ying: "..." (Unexplained and in a state of social death)

Yi Chen: "..." (Weak and unwilling to explain)

Paimon: "It was the Traveler's Breakfast that did it!" (Unhesitatingly betraying his teammate)