A few days go by in relative peace. We walked along the road towards Inazuma City, down trodden dirt paths. We came across a few settlements during our travels, though we rarely ever stayed the night there.
It wasn't quiet, of course. As foreign travelers, we often attracted much attention no matter what we did. Whenever we visited a settlement, there'd always be some who distrusted us due to how we looked, or those who were curious as to where we came from. More bandits also appeared to rob us, before they quickly learned why that was a bad idea.
We never did kill anyone—though I was sure some of them wished they were. Lumine were never particularly gentle with them.
While Lumine acted as our protector, I made sure the kids were entertained. I began with retelling some of my experiences, before moving onto the fiction I've read in my spare time. And when I ran out of even that, I just began playing music. I wasn't skilled in the harp by any means, but I've played the lute for years now, and applying some of the skills I leant wasn't too difficult.
I did sing as well, though I only did so whenever we camped for the night. I tried singing in a settlement we visited once, before we quickly left when they began crowding around us in droves.
And now here we were, just about a day's away from Inazuma City, camping at a small clearing just some distance away from the dirt road we'd been travelling over.
Kojirou and Hanami were asleep, tucked beneath the same blanket as usual. I did have extra bedrolls I bought from the [Shop], but neither of them wanted to be separated. Kojirou mumbled incoherently in his sleep, while Hanami remained silent, her forehead pressed into the [Windsail Beacon] she was hugging as she slept.
I smiled wryly as I ate a peach slice. I'd given the [Windsail Beacon] to her on a whim, but I didn't think she'd become so taken by it. Especially after she saw just what it could do that one time. She practically looked at it like some sort of divine artifact, and…well, I guess she wasn't technically wrong.
Lumine was opposite of me, snoring away with half her blanket kicked off. She seemed completely unbothered by anything, but I knew that wasn't true. Even asleep her instincts were incredibly sharp, and she'd return to wakefulness in moments whenever she felt a threat approaching. It was some skill she'd cultivated from that ocean-filled world she described once.
I was the only one left awake, idly munching through a Sublime Peach as I stared at the crackling campfire. Occasionally, I'd be fancy and use my winds to create a slice, but that aside, I was mostly motionless as I sat on a log and watched the flames.
I was still wide awake at this time. Though I couldn't explain it, there was a sense of…waiting? Longing? I didn't know how to describe it, but my heart felt unsettled despite the lack of danger. As if something deep inside me told me that I couldn't fall asleep just yet.
And then, after some more time waiting by the fire, I saw it.
At the edge of my sight, hiding in a small bush was a fox. A fox with snow white fur, and amber eyes too bright to belong to some mere animal. I didn't turn my eyes to it. I didn't need to. I could sense the fox well enough using my enhanced senses, and the fox knew full well that I was aware.
So, as an invitation, I plucked out another Sublime Peach from my Inventory and set it down right next to me. I caught the fox's nose twitch as the peach's irresistible smell reached its nose. Then, without a moment's hesitation, the fox walked out of the bush, sat down next to me on the log, and began eating the peach.
"You are no mere fox, are you?" I began as I took a bite from my own peach. The fox yipped in return, as if to mock me for asking that. But it wasn't hard to see the grin on its face. I chuckled as I began patting its head. It then yipped back sharply, but didn't attempt to move away.
We remained like this for quite a while, silently eating Sublime Peaches while the fire slowly dwindled before us. But it was far from unpleasant. If anything, just being near this fox settled the odd feeling in my heart. That bated sense of waiting had finally passed, and all that was left was a gentle relief.
…
Wait, could this be the whole Fated Meeting thing?
I glanced at the white fox, still busy with eating its peach, and I couldn't help but wonder. I wasn't some expert in Fate or Destiny or whatever, but it almost felt like this fox and I were destined to be together in some way.
I'd gotten two Fated Meetings from my most recent Gacha Pull. One for [Raiden Makoto] and another for [Kitsune Saiguu]. And while I wasn't fully fluent in all the different terminologies Inazuma used, I was fairly certain Kitsune was a fox-like youkai—essentially Inazuma's equivalent to Liyue's adepti.
Which meant-
"Are you a Kitsune by chance?" I asked. The fox froze at my question, before its head whipped towards me. I winked back. "I may be a traveller, but I know full well that mere foxes could never be as intelligent as you are."
The fox huffed. And the fact that it could even do that practically confirmed my guess.
Then, suddenly the fox erupted into a cloud of smoke. I blinked as I waited for the smoke to billow away, and when it did, a woman sat where the fox used to be. Her hair as white as snow and eyes of sharp amber, with a pair of slowly twitching fox ears atop her head. "So I was found out." She said with a small giggle. "How unfortunate~"
"Maybe~" I sing-songed back. We stared at each other for a good moment before we devolved into giggles.
When our laughter faded, I extended my hand out to her. "Name's Wendy. A Traveler from Mondstadt, recently came from Liyue." I smiled. "Nice to meet you."
The woman smiled back as she shook my hand. The action was slightly awkward, but genuine. "Kitsune Saiguu. Just a local shrine maiden from the Grand Narukami Shrine." She introduced.
My smile widened. I knew it. The power of a Fated Meeting was truly incredible. Getting Guizhong's Fated Meeting caused her to save me, and I'd already met Kitsune Saiguu just days after arriving in Inazuma. Though it seemed she actively sought me out instead, which maybe implied that Saiguu could also feel this connection between us.
Huh. Was that why I got along with Guizhong so easily-?
[Detected a significant shift in Destiny of the character -Kitsune Saiguu-. Achievement -Fate Defiance- has taken effect. Rewards have been moved to the Inventory]
…Interesting.
I ignored the Rewards for now and focused back on my new friend. "Say, why have you come down from your shrine?" I asked. "Is your home not atop the peak of Mount Yougou? Was the journey down not perilous?"
The woman huffed. "Oh, it sure was. So many people kept saying that it 'was dangerous' and I would definitely 'cause another national panic', but they were just being obstinate." She grinned. "But I've always been as free as the wind, so I can never be held down."
For a moment, a strange feeling welled in me as I heard her words, but I quickly shook it away. "Well, that freedom led you to us, so I'd say that's a victory on all accounts!'
"That it was~"
I giggled, before my expression turned slightly serious. I wasn't sure about the political landscape, but surely the Grand Narukami Shrine must have some ties with the shogunate, right?
"May I ask something?" Kitsune Saiguu nodded, having sensed the change in tone. "My companion and I recently came to travel with two new charges." I gestured at the sleeping children. "They come to ask for aid from Lord Baal, for her to aid their island during their time of famine and sickness." I glanced at her. "Do you perchance have any news on what the Lord is up to at the moment?"
The kitsune's eyes widened as she heard that, and she cast a shocked glance at the two sleeping kids. Her expression soured not long after, and she looked down at her lap in…shame? "I did not realize." She whispered.
I pursed my lips. "Likely because you never faced the same issues as they did." I offered, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"But I-" She took a deep breath, and let it go. "No, there is no point in being angered at myself." Her expression soured further however. "Alas, I can offer little to your question. Baal has not shown herself to the public ever since she united all of Inazuma." She closed her eyes. "Even her closest friends are beginning to worry."
I nodded. That was what I was expecting. "Then our journey to the shogunate will likely end in failure." I whispered, already planning on what to do next.
It was already an empty hope in the first place, but while that was the case, they couldn't stop their journey yet. As harsh as it sounded, I needed the children to understand that they couldn't always rely on an Archon. That, at times, they needed to take a stand themself.
Then, we'd probably return to the two kids' island. It was clear they weren't natives to this island, since they rode a boat just like we did. And once we went there, I could finally get things rolling.
But that was for later. Right now,
"I have another question, if I may."
Kitsune Saiguu blinked, before she wearily nodded. "You may."
"Out of curiosity, why are there so many dishonored samurai wandering these lands?" I asked, frowning slightly. "I understand that the war has recently ended, but it was a battle between gods, was it not? Why are there so many of them? Were they laid off or something similar?"
She winced. "Baal's unification was…less than peaceful."
"I gathered that." I flatly returned. "How is that any different? Liyue's peace came at the cost of hundreds of gods as well."
"But they were demonic gods, no?" She continued. "Many warriors had pledged themselves to their own gods, and how many would willingly serve the one who had slayed their master?" I hissed as I realized what she meant, and she chuckled tiredly. "As I said."
If what she was saying was true, this was an issue even worse than just an increase in road danger. It was an entire civil war waiting to happen—and with Baal out of commission for the time being, who knew what'd happen without her to enforce her presence.
This was bad.
"That's rough buddy." I said, giving her a consoling pat on the back. Kitsune Saiguu just sighed.
We fell silent for a little bit, before I pulled out another Sublime Peach for her. "Want another?"
"...yes please."
We spent the rest of the night snacking on peaches.