People in Xumi: I am really not the Dragon King

Chapter 527 Lin Feng: Dried fish will expose my identity? Then growing some catnip would be reasonable, wouldn't it...?

"Fear? Ha, that word doesn't exist in my dictionary, Datalia."

"—If you're really that determined, how about we see who can hold out longer before getting caught?"

His tone carried a strength and confidence that the advance team members admired, but the content of his speech left Rosalyn speechless.

Fearlessness is indeed a quality that those who serve the Queen should possess, and being willing to go to Narukami Island is far better than those cowards who hide in the depths of winter.

But this idiot in front of me has probably been unconscious too much and beaten senseless.

For a moment, she had no idea what was so great about holding out a little longer before being sent to prison, especially since it was based on the premise that both of them would be wiped out.

"."

Having argued with this guy too many times during this period, Rosalyn knew very well that the person in front of her was just a idiot whose mind was only on fighting.

Considering the risk of having one's intelligence level drop to the same level as D'Artagnan's if one engages in too many debates,
After a moment of silence, she ultimately decided not to waste any more of her time on this colleague.

"Hmm? No taunts? So you've accepted the challenge?"

"How about we set the stakes at one hundred sparring matches?"

"If you lose, you play a hundred games with me; if I lose, I'll play a hundred games with you."

Rosalyn: "."

His face grew increasingly dark; he felt his intelligence had been insulted.
Just as she stood up, ready to turn and leave, a sentence from behind made her stop in her tracks:

"—There's still a long time to go after we arrive at Narugami Island, so let's not go into the details."

"In the end, even if the two of us choose to leave alone, with the remaining manpower, this Evil Eye Factory no longer has the ability to continue operating."

“From the beginning, I felt this was a pointless plan, and the result of aiding the enemy proved it.”

"Now that we're leaving, if you don't have some strange plan like giving each Inazuma an Evil Eye, how about you just destroy those machines to avoid exposing the technology and everything we've done before?"

"."

He paused slightly, as it was rare to hear a serious question from the eleventh seat.

With a feeling that could even be described as "moved," Rosalyn, after a long time, decided to answer his question:
"—There's no need for it. Although the power of the Evil Eye allowed those civilians to survive a little longer in the face of monsters, it all comes at a price."

"There are still quite a few evil eyes left over from before, which can continue to be distributed to the public."

"Zhi Dong has always had the most authoritative voice on how to alleviate the side effects of evil eyes, and is also the only possible healer."

"There are still some loyal spies lying in wait on Narugami Island. If they can distribute these poorly made and defective products, then they might be able to use these power-craving fools to gain even greater value for Shito."

With collaborators falling one after another and the entire Tenryo magistrate being purged, the situation was so unfavorable that there was no longer any possibility of controlling the entire Inazuma.

But the Abyss invasion is both an unexpected disruptor and a new opportunity.
Unlike the difficulty of distribution under normal circumstances, the Evil Eye, which can enhance combat power, can even significantly increase the probability of survival in this situation.
If enough people are afflicted with the side effects of the Evil Eye, then if Inazuma doesn't want to lose a large number of people after the Abyss invasion, cooperating with Touhou is their only option.

Several days later, Narukami Island, Utsu-tei.

It is unclear what caused the recent rumors circulating in the streets about someone giving away "God's Eyes". Because it is so outrageous, it is simply considered a baseless rumor.

Beyond these unseen and intangible matters, the most heated discussion in the tavern, faced with tangible changes in life, revolved around the series of changes brought about by the arrival of the residents of Umijima Island on Narukami Island.

"So, Mr. Okazaki, you mean that life has become much better after the arrival of the resistance army, which was previously portrayed as committing numerous atrocities?"

"It is quite surprising to hear such words from you."

Beside the table, the crimson-haired young man took off his straw hat, but his samurai uniform embroidered with maple leaf patterns remained unchanged.

After returning to Inazuma, he was forced to stay on Narukami Island due to the surge of monsters from the outside world and failed to join the resistance. Unexpectedly, the resistance came to him on its own.

Kaedehara Manyo recalled the current situation with a touch of emotion.

"Ha, the way people call me 'Master Okazaki' is just something outsiders are making fun of. You don't need to call me that. When you were a child, I visited your home. Just call me 'Boss Okazaki'."

"I have been away from the shogunate for a long time. Now I just want to open an ordinary izakaya here. I am grateful to the customers for being kind enough to chat with me after drinking. That's why I see more people than usual."

He smiled and shook his head, then picked up the sake pot on the table and poured himself a cup of sake.
The white-haired boss looked at the son of his old friend and didn't mind sharing some of his recent observations:
"Judging from your recent behavior, you must have already received a notification from the Heavenly Commander."

"During this special period of Abyss invasion, the pursuit of the holder of the Eye of God has been suspended, and all previously issued arrest warrants have been withdrawn."

"Although it is not something an old man like me should do to speak ill of the gods, it is almost a consensus that the general has become much easier to get along with recently, which is a good thing."

"I remember you once served in the Tianling Enforcer's Office; it was purged from top to bottom."

Recalling the former reputation of the owner of Wuyouting, Wanye remembered that he often heard the name Okazaki Rikuto in the streets when he was a child.

As one of the most beloved officials in charge of the magistrate's office, the reason why some people now call an izakaya owner "Lord Okazaki" is because of the reputation he built up back then.

"Haha, do you think I'd be saddened by the fate of those parasites?"

"No, I retired from there a long time ago. I just don't want to see it anymore."

"Although my few remaining old friends and I felt that the General had acted too hastily and created too many gaps, in terms of the result alone, everyone applauded."

There was not a trace of sadness about the downfall of his former employer in his words; on the contrary, it was all about the satisfaction of getting rid of the corrupt officials.

Looking at Manyo in front of him, Okazaki Rikuto also found the current situation extremely unbelievable:

"To be honest, I had actually met some people from the resistance a few times before, so I never believed the evil reputation spread by the shogunate from the beginning."

"After briefly taking in a few customers who often came to drink at Wuyouting, I also learned that most of them joined the resistance because they were driven to a dead end by the Fools and the Magistrates."

"But not everyone is a tavern owner. Others can't see this much. The vast majority of the public still has a negative impression of the resistance, which is always 'precarious' yet constantly struggling."

"But many of the rebels are young men we've watched grow up, so they're not exactly strangers now that they've returned."

"We were already familiar with each other, and after chatting for a while, we finally found out how many things had been misunderstood between us." "Besides, that young man named Goro has been helping out in the neighborhood lately. A few days ago, when the monsters attacked the edge of Inazuma Castle, it was a few of the resistance fighters who drove the monsters back and saved many lives."

"Although there are some minor frictions, the current living conditions are not spacious to begin with, so the higher-ups have arranged for everyone to live together, and no one has any objections."

I can't completely guess why the residents live together, but I don't think it's a bad thing. In fact, I think it should have been done a long time ago.

He was, after all, an official who left the shogunate.
In order to eliminate the distinction between people from Haigi Island and Narukami Island in the future, Okazaki Rikuto secretly asked many old friends to help mediate the conflict between the two sides.

"But I heard that the joint military operations seem to have encountered considerable resistance, with many people on both sides expressing opposition. It's just that there has been a sudden drop in news in the last couple of days."

Manyo looked up and asked another question he had heard.

"Oh, wow, that little girl who's leading them is quite a character."

"I'm not entirely sure how they settled down, but it's said that one day the general and that 'human-god priestess' from Haiji Island personally arrived and made some promises, after which the two sides began to try to cooperate in combat."

They had vaguely sensed some clues, but still had no way of knowing the full picture of the incident.

If I had to pinpoint the most noticeable experience that young woman had after arriving, it would probably be that the previously piling-up problems were gradually being resolved.
Sitting in Uyu-tei for an entire day, the number of Shogunate soldiers pestering him to go back and work overtime decreased significantly.

These days, the soldiers are more interested in seeking out the shrine maidens who moved from Narukami Taisha to draw fortune slips than in urging this old man to go back to work.
"—Hehe! It's great luck! I knew Paimon's luck would be better than Luminous's!"

Opposite the Tianling Fengxing Mansion, was the original vacant lot.

Since the shrine maiden of Narukami Taisha moved here, she has been building a simple shrine in just a few days using some unknown means.

The shrine staff was already small, and with the army now assembled, there was no need for them to go out alone to perform "exorcisms".
Given the high level of psychological stress among the public, the shrine continues to offer the most popular fortune-telling and fortune-telling services, which are also popular at the main shrine, providing visitors with additional psychological comfort.

"Oh my, this is a rare and auspicious day!"

"—As the oracle indicates, the friendship between the two of you will continue. Go ahead and pursue your goals with confidence, for the gods will protect you."

"Hehe, thanks, we'll come again next time~"

He politely waved goodbye to the shrine maiden before him, preparing to leave.

The white fluffy creature, having proven its luck, stood with its hands on its hips, satisfied, and left the newly built "Narukami Taisha" with Ying beside it.

"Hmm, it seems like the shrine maiden has been much friendlier lately than at the beginning. Even though there hasn't been a change in her, is it just Paimon's imagination?"

"It was probably just because I was in a bad mood on the first day; my attitude was really awful back then."

He shook his head, temporarily putting his doubts aside.
Paimon, who had finally received the best fortune for the first time, decided to temporarily ignore everything and use this rare stroke of luck to do something he had always wanted to do.

"—Let's go, Ying, while we're still lucky, let's go find Fuchigami and ask if he has any news about the Fathom Clan's Executors."

"We've been depleting Mora lately. Although we'll receive supplies after agreeing to join the Shogunate's army, we haven't been able to replenish what we wasted before."

The previous resistance forces were basically fighting the monsters at their own expense, and supplies such as medicine, food, and weapons were extremely scarce.
After overcoming the obstacles posed by the monsters and arriving at Narukami Island by sea, their reserves on Umigi Island were almost completely depleted.

Two days ago, Kujo Sara, Kokoro, and even that general all came over together.
According to the results of the "negotiations" in the military camp, the shogunate promised to provide the rebels with the same level of supplies and equipment as the shogunate soldiers, including military pay and pensions.

The only conditions at present are to accept fighting monsters and to organize more systematically. Although the reorganized team is part of the Shogunate Army, it will still be led by Shinkai and the two of them.

I clearly remember the stunned expressions on everyone's faces when they discovered just how much supplies the Shogunate army was allocated.

It's completely baffling why the Shogunate army, with such superior equipment and logistics, would fight them to such an extent. Faced with a real shortage of supplies, the vast majority of soldiers chose to accept this freebie that had no real impact.

"However, according to Xin Hai, this seems to be just the first step. With so few of us, becoming a 'special operations team' doesn't seem to have much of an impact."

It remains unclear what that divine being's companion said to Xin Hai.
After all, they were too embarrassed to bother their allies who seemed to have left their bodies after leaving the castle tower.

Some people were curious about what Hai had experienced in his so-called "work," and Paimon planned to ask him about it after he finished looking for Fuchigami in Hanamisaka.

Meanwhile, at Hanamisaka, Naganohara Fireworks Shop.

It's been quite a while since I moved here, and I haven't had much time to visit the neighbors.

Faced with Xiaogong's official reason that "familiarity in a crisis would make it easier to overcome difficulties together," Lin Feng, who had agreed to give the two armies some time to adjust, readily agreed.

"—Ha, that's more like it! The grandpas and grandmas around here are all very nice people!"

"They've been asking me for ages when you'll be back, and they'll be so happy to see you this time!"

I finally managed to pull my scholar friend, who's a great baker, out of the farm work, and I felt a surge of accomplishment.

Yoomiya breathed a sigh of relief, completely satisfied.

I looked up, just about to introduce the characteristics of different families,

The blonde girl saw a young man across the table feeding two small white foxes while simultaneously staring at a green-eyed cat outside the door.
".Meow?"

They noticed the gaze directed at them.

The cat, with a slightly darker face, paws, and tail, and a creamy white exterior, blinked and meowed with a hint of confusion.

"Hey? Grandma's cat? Yuan Shang, are you interested in cats too?"

"However, I've petted other people's cats to some extent, but my mother-in-law's cat doesn't seem very affectionate. Lately, even luring it with dried fish hasn't been very effective."

Sighing in bewilderment, Yoomiya, who considered herself to have a fairly good affinity with animals, had no idea why this cat was so resistant to being touched.

"Interested? I am somewhat interested."

"It just so happens that this old lady is one of the people I'm going to visit later, so I'll just grab a small gift from the garden."

I discovered the nearby Kira a long time ago, but I've been too busy with other things to pet her.

Now that he had this rare little bit of free time, although he couldn't bring out the same dried fish as Xiaobai, Lin Feng figured that if it was just a small gift, growing some catnip and bringing it along would be about the same.
(End of this chapter)