Behind The Scenes 1

"How long will this last..." Orihime sighed with little to no energy.

"Just enjoy the show. This doesn't happen often." Lu calmly enjoys his tea and the cooked meal.

The two then delved into complete silence.

"Lu? Do you have something planned for Makoto?" She asked to break the quiet meeting.

"What do you mean?" He questioned back in curiosity. Understanding the mind of an old fox might bring up some surprising benefits.

"Are you planning for a wedding for her? Or maybe something with equal value with that absurd ring perhaps?" The Kitsune elaborated.

"What made you think so? Its also not that easy to create something like that, Orihime. Where would I even find the needed visions for it?" The deity continued on probing.

"Anything is possible since it's you we're talking about... At least that's what both of them believes." Orihime pointed at the twins who recently destroyed the seventh barrier.

"A notion like that is absurd. Even I have my own limits." Lu facepalmed at such unreasonable logic.

"What do you plan to do then?"

"That's a really vague question so I'll just assume that this is about me and Makoto... She said we only need our vows and nothing else so there will be no ceremonies." He stated.

"As for the ring or a symbol of our vows however... Makoto said that she wouldn't refuse it, but only after a month or two."

"The ceremonial stuff makes sense. As for the other one... Just...Why?" The confused lady quizzed.

"She's simply being considerate of Ei as usual. Makoto wants her sister to feel special, even if only for a few months. How envious~, she always finds a way to show off their bond." The deity chuckled mysteriously.

"Hmm?... You better not do something to damage that connection, or I'll be the first to convict you, Lu." Orihime warned with a dangerous tone.

"Uwah... How scary~. But why would I even do that? When I have the two of them in my hands already?" Lu only grinned at the accusation.

"Your audacity is something else." The deity just laughed it off.

Meanwhile, in the background, it seems like we have a victor already. It only took nine of the barriers to be broken for it to be finished.

Not like it would matter much since the schemer was ready to create more anytime...

...

"This outcome was inevitable." Ei proudly announced to her husband.

"You cheated! That gnosis-like ring should be against the rules!" Makoto rebutted.

"I have never heard of such a rule. I won fair and square." The first wife smugly brushed it off.

"I have good news for you, Ei. Lu inquired about the reward to me earlier. And I heard him say that he was willing to do anything for you guys..." Orihime was dying of laughter in her mind.

"Wait, what?-" Lu tried to deny the claim, but it was too late...

"Really?!!" The Raiden Shogun turned to him as swift as lightning.

"How about me, Lu~?" And her sister fitted in with fake tears.

The deity was cornered on two sides. When suddenly...

"Onii-sama... What is the meaning of this?" An angry oni approached the battlefield!

"Seems like you're about to get busy, Lu. I'll be taking my leave then. Have a joyful tea party~." Chiyo's intervention was unexpected, but she improvised nonetheless.

"Wait! At least return the sword to me!" The guy who unknowingly trapped himself, pleaded.

"No thank you. Think of it as compensation for the troubles you caused me." Orihime playfully stuck her tongue out.

(What trouble?) Lu somehow sent the underlying message, even after being cornered by three ladies.

"Everything." The Kitsune left him alone in a good mood.

***

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"It's about time..." Ayaka concluded her job as the Kamisato princess for the day, and called for someone.

"Have a nice day, milady." Thoma waved his lady goodbye as she left with nothing but her treasured weapon.

"I really hope this is the right choice, milord..." He mumbled.

The relationship between the siblings has been awkward after their argument during the new deity's poisoning incident.

The trusted aide to the Yashiro Commission could only hope for the best...

...

"You've been coming here more frequent, Lady Orihime." Ayaka greeted their new companion with a smile.

They were currently at the established dojo that was kept secret by his majesty Raiden Lu.

"I only took an old friend's advice. I'm definitely not as active as those two." Orihime pointed at the ongoing battle at the separate arena.

"Sara and Shinobu have been working extra hard these days. Having a position at the top must be tiring, huh..." Unlike her brother, the princess doesn't mind small talk too much.

"It really is. That's why I'm treasuring my newfound freedom... I can even count all of my aimless ventures in two fingers. Other than our usual tea gatherings, there was really nothing else for me to do..." The former Great Yokai simply indulged her.

"But I doubt they left you all alone at the Grand Shrine, right?" Ayaka attempted to brighten up the discussion.

"They weren't that heartless, naturally. Other than their usual visits, most of us also took in some people to help manage the factions easier." Orihime started recalling things from the past.

"Lu had Reizenbou, Chiyo had her adopted sons, the twins found a capable general, while I also found myself a human priestess to teach... That I haven't heard anything about after she disappeared at the Cataclysm..."

"Umm... There is still the wondrous Guuji, right? Hahaha..." That laugh was more awkward than when I- Nevermind...

"Miko... You're right, Ayaka. Even though she's a troublesome one, I had fun raising that rascal to be a capable shrine priestess." Orihime giggled happily.

...

"Looks like there's only the four of us this time, Lady Orihime. How about a round or two?" Ayaka suggested.

"Seems like it. The others must be occupied with their own agendas. Your challenge... I accept it."

The two flowers made their way to an empty arena and drew their weapons.

Oblivious to the fact that the others were simply late...

***

Genshin Spoilers Alert!*

Done with Sumeru, and I must say that I'm happy that there's no crazy god resetting the world constantly this time.

It still gave a problem though since I planned on making a similar thing for the Mondstadt Arc.

Trapping the people into a dream where they believe that Lu was their god instead of Barbatos.

Of course, Barbatos would be one of the few that wasn't affected by it so it should be the perfect nightmare for him.

Now I might need to think of a possible plot replacement for it...

Other than that, expect chapters like these in the future! The main reason I made this novel is for characters that don't interact in game, interact in this one.

Peace!

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Don't forget the powerstones! I'm currently high on copium...