Indeed, given the rules of the Yae Publishing House, especially for publications involving the Raiden Shogun herself, it would be impossible to print and distribute it with such fanfare without that girl Miko's approval.
Thinking of this, the original displeasure and doubt in Ei's heart suddenly transformed into a complex emotion.
Could it be... that Miko wrote this book?
Or did she instruct someone else to make the stories public after giving them a makeover?
Ei's brow furrowed slightly.
And also... acting spoiled? Being petulant? Having her face pinched? Tumbling through the clouds and rain?
These terms had absolutely nothing to do with her or the image of the Raiden Shogun.
This book's imagination was far too wild... Outside, in the main hall of Tenshukaku, Kujou Sara, who was about to take her leave, heard the puppet Shogun's voice ring out again after the pause.
Only, that instruction had been changed: "This matter... shall be set aside for now. No action is required."
Kujou Sara snapped her head up, her face filled with bewilderment: "Lord General? But this book..."
The puppet Shogun's voice remained steady, conveying Ei's will. "Regarding the circulation, observe for now. You are dismissed."
Despite her heart being full of incomprehension and worry, the Shogun's command was absolute.
Kujou Sara could only suppress her doubts and bow respectfully: "...As you command."
She then withdrew from Tenshukaku.
Silence returned to Tenshukaku.
The puppet Shogun closed her eyes once more, as if nothing had ever happened.
However, under the eternal dark purple sky of the Plane of Euthymia, Raiden Ei stood alone, the words from the book involuntarily flashing through her mind again.
Those descriptions of battlefields, of disguises, and of shared victories triggered her deeply buried longing for Makoto, and also left her more confused about Miko's intentions.
But immediately following that, some even more "outrageous" images jumped uncontrollably into her head.
They were the chapters in the book about "insubordination," "petulance over chess," and the "clouds and rain."
[She suddenly reached out and, with the speed of a lightning bolt, gently pinched Ei's soft cheek...]
[The reward is... tonight, I shall be the one to bathe and dress you, how about that?]
[As the final barrier was gently breached, Ei let out a suppressed whimper...]
Boom—!
She hadn't felt it before, but recalling it now, an unprecedented heat suddenly surged up Ei's cheeks and the tips of her ears.
Even in the Plane of Euthymia where no one could see, she subconsciously raised her hand, using her wide sleeve to half-cover her face.
On that cool and ethereal face, a rare flush of crimson now bloomed, hot and vivid.
Her heart seemed to skip a few beats as well.
"How scandalous..." she whispered in rebuke, but her voice carried a slight tremor at the end. It didn't sound like her usual majesty, but rather like some form of weak self-justification.
These... these descriptions!
She and Miko, how could they... how could they possibly do such... such shameless things!
Although Miko often spoke playfully and acted erratically, she would never... But why, when these words were combined to depict scenes so intimate they were transgressive, would her mind be in such disarray?
She could even... faintly see Miko's smiling fox-like eyes in her mind, and smell that faint scent of cherry blossoms that lingered on her whenever she drew near.
Ei was not entirely ignorant of the ways of the world. After the Sakoku Decree was lifted, she also began trying to understand the current world, knowing that various forms of love and bonds existed in the mortal realm.
But those were all incredibly distant from her.
She was the Electro Archon who held dominion over eternity, she was the rules of Inazuma itself. Emotions, especially such hot and private emotions, had long been discarded by her outside of eternity.
But this book, and that fox... Ei shook her head, trying to dispel these annoying images.
She tried to use logic to analyze: perhaps Miko did this to use this method to remind her to pay attention to some things she had overlooked?
Or perhaps, Miko simply thought it was fun to tease her old friend who had been in seclusion for so long?
Knowing that fox, this was likely hidden behind an intention to tease.
Yet in these "ambiguous" stories, there were hints regarding her and her sister Makoto's identities, which added another layer of complex and difficult-to-describe meaning.
What exactly did Miko want to express through this book?
She took a deep breath, trying to calm her surging emotions.
It seemed it wouldn't be as simple as just "asking about the situation."
Ei raised her eyes, her mind flashing to that pink-haired fox who loved to leisurely eat fried tofu and snicker while watching novels become bestsellers.
She must have Miko come here personally.
Immediately.
Right now.
She wanted to ask clearly to her face exactly what kind of messy things this lawless fox had printed in her Yae Publishing House!
And exactly... what her intention was!
With a slight thought, an invisible command was transmitted through the puppet Shogun.
[Summon the Yae Guji to Tenshukaku for an audience immediately.]
"Miko... what are you plotting again?" Ei murmured to herself, her words carrying a hint of helplessness... And at this moment, within the Grand Narukami Shrine.
Yae Miko was leisurely sipping tea, listening to a Shrine Maiden's report about "the various affairs of the raiden shogun and the guuji" being sold out and the enthusiastic response from the public.
Her face was brimming with a joyful smile of a successful scheme, imagining what kind of wonderful expression—even if only for a fleeting moment—might appear on that old friend's face inside Tenshukaku.
"Hehe, Ei, oh Ei, it's so boring to always stay in that gloomy Plane of Euthymia." She took a sip of clear tea and looked toward Tenshukaku, her eyes sparkling with cunning. "It's time you saw the little 'surprise' I prepared for you."
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