When Momonga, holding the mature and gentle Greater Lord Rukkhadevata with one hand and with the cute and innocent Lesser Lord Kusanali Nahida sitting on his other shoulder, appeared again in Sumeru City's plaza, like an old father (?) taking his two daughters out for a trip—
The entire Sumeru City first fell into a deathly silence.
Everyone's eyes were wide, and their mouths agape, as if a mass immobilization spell had been cast upon them.
Their gazes swept back and forth between Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's familiar yet unfamiliar benevolent face, Nahida's happy smile, and Momonga's iconic skull.
A few seconds later.
Boom!!!!
A huge roar of cheers and cries, loud enough to rip off the roof of Port Ormos, erupted like a tsunami! The entire Sumeru City was completely boiling!
"Greater Lord Rukkhadevata! It's Her Majesty Greater Lord Rukkhadevata!!"
"Wuwuwu... Lord Rukkhadevata is back! Am I dreaming?!"
"Dendro Archon! Both Gods of Grass are here!"
"Long live the Supreme One! It's him! He must be the one who brought Lord Rukkhadevata back!"
People wept tears of joy, hugging each other, jumping and dancing!
Countless flowers and streamers were thrown into the air, the celebration far surpassing the previous Sacred Rite of Flowering!
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, who had been missing for five hundred years and existed only in ancient texts and legends, had truly returned! This was simply a miracle among miracles!
As for the small remaining portion of people, such as certain scholars and matra who had undergone strict facial expression training, after a brief shock, they began to desperately control their wildly upturned mouths with sheer willpower!
Can't smile! Must be reserved! Must fit the identity of a scholar/matra!
But... but I'm really happy! My mouth has its own ideas! It wants to have intimate contact with my ears!
Thus, a group of people with distorted expressions, half-crying, half-smiling, looking as if they were enduring immense pain, appeared in the plaza.
Among them, the most "painful" and also the "happiest" was Alhaitham, who had just been dragged out of his office by the Wolf King for some air!
When he saw Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's figure, he was first stunned, and then the corners of his perpetually expressionless face began to twitch wildly with an extremely unscientific frequency and amplitude!
He wasn't trying to smile; he was overjoyed! Because Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's return meant that Nahida finally had an elder who could truly manage affairs!
He, Alhaitham! Could finally be freed from that damned, mountain-high hell of paperwork!
He had even started drafting his resignation letter in his mind... no, it was an application for a long leave!
At the VIP melon-eating section on the edge of the plaza.
Elliot comfortably lay on a beach chair, brought from who knows where, wearing sunglasses (drawn on his mask), sipping an iced Sunsettia juice, and watching the grand celebration of the cheering populace, letting out a boisterous laugh:
"Haha! Awesome! I love it like this! All the 'blades' have been pulled out for us! Everyone's happy! Happy ending! How wonderful!"
Jesse leaned on a nearby chair, nodding in agreement, and took a sip of the iced cola in his hand: "Yes, I like Teyvat this way, without regrets, full of hope."
Zane was as calm as ever. He pushed up his non-existent glasses and suddenly threw out a philosophical (?) question: "Speaking of 'blades'... in the games you played, which one made you 'cry' the most miserably?"
The scene immediately fell silent for a few seconds.
The massive Matt first scratched his head, then thought seriously for a while in a booming voice before saying uncertainly: "The one that made me cry the most... I guess it would be 'Final Lesson' from Honkai Impact 3rd... Himeko-sensei, she..."
As he spoke, his massive body seemed to be enveloped in a shadow of sadness.
Jesse shrugged, his tone relaxed: "As for me, I'm not really sure. For 'blades' in Genshin Impact, like 'If you are trapped in a land without wind,' 'Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual,' 'Yoimiya's Story Quest Chapter 2'...
And 'I Am a Clockie' and 'Souldamp Dream' from honkai: star rail..."
He paused, seemingly feeling something was off, but didn't dwell on it.
"They're all too famous, spoilers are everywhere online, so I was mentally prepared and couldn't cry at all."
(Everyone: ??? Did something very strange just slip in there?)
Zane nodded in agreement: "Agreed, known 'blades' are like experiments with a known outcome; the emotional impact is greatly reduced."
Then, he turned to look at Elliot, who had suddenly become quiet.
"Elliot, what about you? You're the most emotional; which 'blade' made you cry the hardest?"
"...Hmph..."
Elliot suddenly let out an ambiguous cold snort, and the juice in his hand no longer tasted good.
"Hmm? What's wrong with you? Don't scare me!"
Zane looked at Elliot, who was suddenly exuding a low-pressure aura, a little worried.
Isn't this guy usually the most boisterous?
"You... should still remember... that 'turtle soup' game I played before... which focused on comedy and memes... right?"
Elliot's voice became unusually low, even carrying a hint of... a tremor?
"I remember, 'Miss Perfect Hasn't Guessed the Ending Yet,' right? What about it?"
Zane was even more puzzled.
"Aren't all the endings in that game pretty nonsensical and funny? What does that have to do with 'blades'?"
He remembered that game as being full of twists and memes.
"It has a lot to do with it!!!"
Elliot suddenly sprang up from the lounge chair, and a teary-eyed cat head expression miraculously appeared on his Hilichurl mask!
"I never expected it!!!"
Elliot clutched his head, his voice tinged with a sob.
"It was such a seemingly harmless, quirky game! At my most relaxed, most unguarded moment! It suddenly stabbed my heart hard!"
"The key is that it's also a relatively niche game with a relaxed art style! I never would have thought! Its true ending would be like that! I was caught completely off guard, brothers!"
He waved his arms excitedly.
"I was playing in bed at the time, and when the ending came out... that plot... that twist... that tragic truth... I cried my eyes out on the spot, snot and tears all over my face! My dorm supervisor almost thought I had a sudden illness and called my advisor in the middle of the night to send me to a mental hospital!"
The more Elliot spoke, the more agitated he became, and he started banging his masked head against a nearby big tree: "Make me forget! I don't want to remember such a tragic ending again!"
Jesse, Zane, and Matt looked at Elliot, who had fallen into a state of self-harm, exchanged glances, and tacitly pulled out their phones simultaneously.
"'Miss Perfect Hasn't Guessed the Ending Yet'... all endings..." Zane quickly searched.
The three huddled together, silently clicked on a full ending guide video, fast-forwarded to the true ending part, and watched quietly... A few minutes later.
The three silently put away their phones.
The scene was dead silent, with only the sound of Elliot still banging his head against the tree.
After a long while, Jesse slowly exhaled and patted Matt's huge arm: "Hmm... it's quite a 'blade'..."
Zane also pushed up his glasses, his tone heavy: "Especially when all the previous endings were funny and meme-filled, making you completely drop your guard... then suddenly comes this ultimate truth revelation... the emotional drop is too great... it's indeed impossible to guard against."
Matt's huge eyes also showed sympathy, and he said in a booming voice: "...No wonder Elliot cried like that... If it were me... I couldn't handle it either..."
Indeed, unknown 'blades' hidden beneath a sugar coating are the sharpest weapons for precisely breaking through defenses!
It seems that even the quartet, who can casually save the world and remove "world-class" 'blades', have moments when they are utterly broken by a small pixel game.
Perhaps this is... the impermanence of life