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Kamisato Ayaka spent the day guiding the Shogun through Inazuma, showing her the reality of her people's lives. She hoped that by witnessing the struggles of the common folk firsthand, the reclusive deity would finally come to understand their deepest wishes and perhaps, in time, see them with a kinder eye.
As it happened, Raiden Ei held similar intentions, though for entirely different reasons. She wanted to see if her people were suffering. If life were indeed miserable, then her dream world would be all the more necessary. If they were happy, then why not make them even happier by shielding them from the burdens of sickness, aging, and death?
Yoimiya, meanwhile, had much simpler motives. She was merely happy to spend time with her friends, blissfully unaware that she was playing the role of a third wheel.
As the group traversed Inazuma City and the outskirts of Konda Village, many eyes were fixed upon them. Typically, the young mistress of the Kamisato Clan would not warrant such widespread scrutiny, but everything changed the moment a man appeared by her side. Agents from the Shuumatsuban, the ninja organization serving the Yashiro Commission, carefully recorded every gesture and word exchanged between the two. They intended to report back to their clan head immediately, though one could only wonder how Kamisato Ayato would react upon learning his younger sister had formed such a close bond with a stranger.
Then there was the other faction—the Fatui. They had long since received word that a Harbinger had infiltrated Inazuma, yet this was the first time they had laid eyes on their superior. Had it not been for the fact that Su Ran seemed to be busy courting a lady, they would have stepped forward long ago. Still, witnessing their Harbinger growing so close to the daughter of the Yashiro Commission gave the Fatui operatives stationed in Inazuma a headache. They had invested immense effort over the years attempting to infiltrate the Tri-Commission. Subverting the Tenryou Commission and the Kanjou Commission had been simple enough—Kujou Takayuki and Hiiragi Shinsuke were both men driven by profit, and they took the bait the moment a visible reward was dangled before them.
The Yashiro Commission, however, was a different breed. They were impervious to both threats and bribes. It was unexpected to see a solution emerge in such an unorthodox fashion: a Harbinger arriving and immediately capturing the heart of the Kamisato heiress, effectively dismantling the clan from within. It was a brilliant move, one they had never considered. Such was the caliber of a Harbinger.
Both Ei and Su Ran were well aware they were being followed, but neither cared. Ei was simply indifferent to such trivialities, while Su Ran was curious to see how Ayato would react once the news reached him. Would he swallow his pride, or would he lash out? And what would his reaction be once he discovered that the man in question was actually a Harbinger of the Fatui?
By nightfall, the four of them had finally finished circling the area around Inazuma City. They had encountered several people who had lost their Visions, and with them, their ambitions and memories. Ei fell into deep contemplation as she observed them. She rarely questioned her own convictions unless someone forced the issue, but these people had lost their desires and, consequently, their goals. Did that not mean they were finally content with the present?
"It is clear that the people of Inazuma are not living happy lives," Su Ran said, perfectly aware of Ayaka's intentions and willing to play along. But would showing Ei the current state of Inazuma really make a difference? Ayaka underestimated Ei's obsession with eternity. Even seeing the harm caused by the Vision Hunt Decree and the Sakoku Decree was useless, because Ei's current goal was the dream world he had described. Once that dream became reality, all the suffering the citizens currently endured would simply cease to exist. Ayaka had overestimated the goddess's capacity for empathy.
Yoimiya, having accompanied the trio all day, felt satisfied, despite her initial annoyance at the earlier encounter. "I'm home. Uh... Ayaka, aren't you heading back?"
The Naganohara Fireworks shop stood right at the entrance of Inazuma City, and returning there from Konda Village meant she had reached her destination. Seeing Ayaka follow them toward the city center, she couldn't help but feel suspicious. The sky was turning dark, yet Ayaka wasn't going home?
"That's because Ayaka is staying with me," Su Ran said, wrapping an arm around Ayaka's shoulder and catching Yoimiya's eye with a pointed look.
Yoimiya stood frozen. She shouldn't have opened her mouth. Not only was she exhausted, but she'd been fed another mouthful of unwanted romance.
"Well, then... I hope you both have a good rest," she said, her face completely blank, before hurrying inside and shutting her door.
With the only person unaware of the true situation gone, Ayaka looked down at Ei, who she had been carrying all day. Su Ran had considered this during the creation of this combat puppet, ensuring its weight was perfectly balanced, otherwise, even a girl as capable as Ayaka would have struggled to walk with her for an entire day.
"Lady Ei, how do you feel about today's journey?" Ayaka asked, hoping for a favorable response.
"The Vision Hunt Decree and the Sakoku Decree are indeed terrible decisions. The Shogun has done a truly abysmal job," Ei admitted. Having traveled through Inazuma in person, she had finally recognized the reality of the situation. It was clear that a rigid entity like the Shogun was ill-suited to manage the nation. If she had known it would come to this, she should have entrusted the responsibility to Yae Miko from the start.
Ayaka felt a surge of joy. Her plan had been half-successful.
"Inazuma has fallen into such a state that it cannot be recovered in the short term. We must redouble our efforts!" Ei declared. She had abandoned the idea of healing the country. Since the horse was already dead, she might as well continue the treatment on a corpse. In the dream, all suffering would vanish.
Ayaka's joyful smile vanished. In the end, beyond showing the goddess the harm caused by her decrees, she had failed to influence the fate of the eternal dream in the slightest. If anything, she had only deepened the deity's obsession. Had this entire day of guidance been a mistake? Ayaka looked at Su Ran. She felt that her intentions had been transparent from the start. Perhaps he hadn't stopped her only because he knew this would be the outcome all along.
"Let's return to Tenshukaku. The Shogun has likely been waiting for quite some time."