"But you two can return to Narukami Island today, regardless of the outcome."
No matter if that person agreed or refused, Kazuha and Fujiwara no longer needed to stay here and watch.
Arriving at the lowest deck of the ship, Shiki saw the shipwright from the Kujou Clan again. Three days without water had pushed his body to its limit.
"We meet again. I gave you three days to consider, so now it's time for your answer. Of course, I believe you'll make the right choice, won't you?"
The shipwright nodded with an almost imperceptible arc. He actually wanted to nod harder, but he had no strength due to long hours of not eating or drinking.
"Very good. Once everything is concluded, you can live the rest of your life free from worry about food and clothing."
Saying that, Shiki extended her hand and unleashed a bolt of lightning, tearing the ropes while also lightly stimulating his cells so he wouldn't be unable to speak.
"If… possible… I have a request I hope you can grant," the shipwright said in a hoarse voice.
"Tell me."
"On the outskirts of Inazuma City, there's a girl named Atsuko, but she left Inazuma half a year ago. I hope you can help me find her."
"I don't need a worry-free life in my later years. I'm fully capable and can find work and earn money myself. I just want to know how she's doing now and if she's well."
"Alright."
Shiki agreed without any hesitation. There might be many people named Atsuko in Inazuma, but the one whose home was on the outskirts of Inazuma City and who had run away was the one who was always wandering around Liyue Harbor in the game.
To be honest, Shiki could remember this person thanks to Paimon. That line, "The cherry blossoms of Atsuko's hometown have bloomed," was truly memorable.
As for the relationship between the shipwright and Atsuko, Shiki didn't care. Moreover, this condition was nothing to her, because Shiki knew very well that Atsuko was currently lively and looking for work in Liyue Harbor.
She picked up the kettle on the table and handed it to the shipwright. It was not advisable to eat immediately after a long period of not eating, so letting him drink some water first would suffice.
"What's your name?"
"…Saburou."
"Alright, Saburou, I need you to accuse the Tenryou Commission of scuttling the ship in front of General Raiden Shogun. Can you do that?"
Saburou's arm, holding the kettle, froze, and an incredulous look appeared in his eyes.
"Are you saying…"
"That is not within the scope of your thoughts. You only need to tell me, can you or can't you?"
Shiki said, placing her palm on Saburou's shoulder. Although it was a gentle motion, Saburou felt immense pressure.
This was an instinct of all living beings: to feel nervous around stronger beings, and this nervousness would differentiate into fear or excitement depending on the situation.
Evidently, what manifested in Saburou was fear.
He had personally witnessed how the girl had instantly slain powerful ninjas of the Kujou Clan. Ninjas were not cannon fodder like him; each one required significant human and material resources to train, so their strength was naturally much greater than his.
By comparison, one could roughly guess the girl's strength. Of course, the most important factor was the gap between him and her.
"Yes!" Saburou's voice was inevitably low, as only then could he conceal his inner fear.
"Very good."
Shiki nodded in satisfaction, then left the lowest deck of the ship. There would be specialists to tend to Saburou's body, and then this afternoon, he would take a small boat with Kazuha and Fujiwara to Narukami Island.
After explaining these matters to the captain, Shiki went to Xavier's small wooden house. Unlike usual, Xavier was waiting at the entrance today for the girl's arrival, and beside him was something resembling a funnel.
"Oh, Miss Ryougi, I've been waiting for you!"
"You're up early today. What, not planning to sleep in anymore?" Shiki teased.
"Eh, for an engineer, is that really sleeping in? It's called adjusting my schedule!" Xavier waved his hand, then pointed to the funnel-shaped device.
"Let's get to business. Yesterday, I finished the first version of the purification device. Today, we'll test if it works. If it's viable, I'll refine it, and we might be able to get all this done today."
"That's great. Have you chosen an experimental site?"
"Of course, right by the blast furnace. Once I prepare the detector and Thunder calamity protection device, we'll set off."
"Okay."
Xavier was, after all, just an ordinary person. In a high-concentration Thunder calamity area like the Mikage Furnace Core, he would faint within five minutes, and if the time exceeded fifteen minutes, his life would even be in danger.
So, safety measures were very necessary. Although he had great confidence in the purification device he had made, there was always a chance of something going wrong, and he didn't want to die in this cursed place.
Five minutes later, Xavier emerged from his small wooden house, holding something resembling a calculator and a badge.
"I'm ready, Miss Ryougi. Don't you need any protective measures?"
Xavier looked the girl up and down. Besides a sword and a Vision clipped to her bow, he didn't see anything else.
"I don't need those things. This is fine."
Shiki shook her head, then bent down to place the purification device onto a small cart and walked towards the blast furnace.
Seeing this, Xavier could only attribute it to the omnipotent Vision. While feeling envious, he pulled the small cart and followed the girl's pace.
Vision holders could use a special sight called Elemental Sight. The reason Xavier, despite his high ability, was still just an ordinary engineer was precisely this.
It was mentioned earlier that Fontaine's technology was very advanced, and advanced technology often required profound knowledge and supporting equipment.
Elemental Sight was like an infrared camera, capable of seeing light invisible to the naked eye.
Xavier, precisely because he lacked Elemental Sight, could only remain in his current position. He could only be promoted to the next position once he obtained a Vision.
"We're here."
Shiki stopped, then transformed into a bolt of lightning, moving from the suspension bridge to the ground, clearing a space among the scattered rubble.
The Mikage Furnace Core's loss of control caught everyone off guard. The concentrated Pyro element and Thunder calamity in the blast furnace directly underwent an Overloaded reaction, causing an explosion. These rubble pieces were the products of that explosion.
The flames in the blast furnace had long since extinguished, seemingly due to the explosion. Only some coal-like remnants were left inside.
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