People in Xumi: I am really not the Dragon King

Chapter 549 Hana Sanri: Let me introduce you, this is the sage god Sumeru, the owner of the confectionery shop, and…

At Yuanshang Dessert Shop, next to the main hall, is a private room reserved for generals.

"Please sit down."

"Someone has pre-ordered food here today. Please wait a moment while our staff brings it up shortly."

For certain reasons, the restaurant is temporarily unable to serve other customers.

Calibel, who was enjoying a rare moment of leisure, temporarily took on the role of a waiter and, at his boss's request, led the god, who had been kept in the dark, into a private room.

"Okay, thank you."

The employees here are no strangers.

Knowing she shouldn't let her emotions affect unrelated people, Ying took a deep breath and sat down in her seat.
She had always thought that this invasion of the Abyss was like the Calamity of Kanria five hundred years ago, an unprovoked disaster for Inazuma, at most with some Abyss that was hostile to all living beings.

But what Fox Palace said made her vaguely realize that something seemed amiss.

It's as if she had already met the culprit, or even been posing as someone close to her all along.
"But who would do such a thing? It shouldn't be possible."

"Even the divine child was completely unaware; who could possibly have pulled off such a disguise?"

I just can't figure it out. Normally, it's impossible for there to be a mole hiding among you.

After all, not only did they fail to notice the problem, but even their intelligent family member hadn't pointed out any relevant information.
"Boom boom boom——"

My thoughts were interrupted by a faint knocking sound that drew my attention.
Ying looked up and, as expected, saw the owner of the dessert shop who had been providing special dishes for the castle tower.

"—Please use this. These are some complimentary meals to help you regain energy when you feel tired."

"According to the staff, you seem to have some questions you'd like someone to answer?"

I don't plan to reveal the questions before I start introducing them in Hana Sanri.

Looking at the country girl in front of him, who was racking her brains trying to figure out where the problem was, Lin Feng had a strange feeling that "it would be a shame not to deceive someone so naive."

"."

"I need to wait here for some very important people, but there are some things I can't figure out."

"Oh? Perhaps I can offer some assistance? Please feel free to ask."

This wasn't the first time I'd chatted with this regular customer.

Lin Feng was very curious about what the shadow in front of him would ask after receiving the hint.

"...These are just hypothetical scenarios. If there is a deeply hidden force in Inazuma City, but no signs have been found before, what methods might they choose to conceal their identity?"

"But if there's a mole inside me who knows my every move perfectly well, and can even fool everyone in the castle tower, what clues should I use to deduce their identity?"

It was just a casual question, since I'm actually not good at reasoning-related problems.

Ying vaguely remembered that the owner of the dessert shop in front of her was a scholar from the Academy of Eminence, and she was eager to know if he could offer any valuable advice.

???

"Hidden forces? And potential moles? Hmm, this is a complicated problem."

"I don't have any systematic research in this area either. If you consult me, I can only offer some general methods used in the Order of the Church."

He never expected that Ying would directly ask him, the "hidden leader," for clues.
Although Lin Feng was somewhat surprised, considering that everything was now over, he still decided to give him a little more hint:
"—As you said, if there really is a hidden force in Inazuma Castle that is difficult to detect, then unless the other party chooses to remain completely hidden from beginning to end, there must be a disguise that is completely indistinguishable."

"Considering that there has been no clue so far, the other party's thinking is likely to be beyond common sense."

"There is no evidence to suggest that someone of extremely high status endorsed the identity, so that no one would suspect anything."

"...And the mole within our ranks, well, being able to deceive everyone in the castle tower, that is indeed a bit difficult to deal with."

"The other party may possess extraordinary wisdom comparable to that of the High Priest, and is deeply trusted by the gods."

After glancing briefly at the triple seal left by Thor himself on the signboard, he felt that his hints were quite appropriate.

"Is there someone in a high position to vouch for his identity? And is his wisdom no less than that of a divine being?"

"But the magistrate's office shouldn't have that ability, and besides, I can't think of anyone who can deceive the divine child."

Since the purge against the shogunate, there have been almost no outside forces seen in Inazuma Castle.

Not to mention that even with the reputation of the magistrate as a guarantee, it is impossible to ensure that everyone will not have any doubts.
And simultaneously satisfying the requirements of "wisdom no less than that of the Son of God" and "deep trust from oneself,"
Such conditions were impossible from the very beginning.
"."

I thought and thought but still couldn't figure it out. I realized that I was probably just too exhausted after the fight.

After pausing to think, Ying took a couple of bites of the dessert in front of her and felt a rare sense of comfort.

"Speaking of which, where did that Hana-sanri shop assistant go? I haven't seen her at the shop much lately."

While tasting the tricolor dumplings, Ying suddenly thought of the first time she came to the store and looked up to ask a question.

"Her? No need to worry."

"Inazuma recently experienced an abyss disaster. After all, she is also part of Inazuma, and she has been running around and busy with related matters for a long time."

"However, none of the employees in the store are in any life-threatening danger, and you should be able to see them soon."

Upon learning that the employee who often chatted with her was safe and sound, Ying nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.

I'm so glad that after going through all this, I can still enjoy this dessert.

She found it hard to imagine whether she could have survived those hundreds of deaths without the owner and the shop in front of her.
A moment later, the Void System.

"Um... haven't you told her yet?"

"Your own identity, and the heart of God that was sent to Mount Sumeru."

I tried to connect while we were talking inside, but my sage hasn't responded.

After watching the transmitted images for a short while, they discovered that the God of Thunder even seemed to feel a vague sense of gratitude towards his own sage.

Nasida recalled the identities of the staff in the store and felt that something was wrong with the situation.

"Heh, after all, we're still missing one key person. It's not the right time yet."

"Some questions definitely need to be explained by the people inside Inazuma. After all, we're just here to help, and it's not appropriate for us to overstep our bounds."

There was nothing wrong with Lin Feng's words.
But for some reason, Nasita always felt that this guy had some ill intentions.

"Is that really what you think?"

"But I clearly remember you saying that after today, you'd have enough gifts for me and the Tree King." She had absolutely no idea what the current situation had to do with the gifts.
I don't understand what could be described as both "very Inazuma-like" and "of great commemorative significance".

Recalling the time the two spent together in Sumeru,
Narcida always felt that when she wasn't by her sage's side, her behavior would resemble that of deep-sea fish; lacking a judgmental gaze, she would develop into all sorts of strange and bizarre shapes.
"Huh? What kind of look is that? Am I really that untrustworthy?"

"Don't worry too much, it's just that a certain pink-haired fox hasn't started knitting what she promised yet. She's asked a few times and seems to be trying to renege on her promise, so I'm just trying to speed things up a bit."

I inexplicably sensed a subtle gaze from Nasita.

Somewhat helplessly, they discovered that this little guy, who never doubted himself, had most likely learned some strange things from the Tree King.

After using external perceptions to realize that one of their employees was about to return.

Lin Feng pinched the cheek of the little guy who didn't trust him and extended his invitation:
"—Let's make some preparations, the opening time for the entire Inazuma region is very soon."

"—According to one of my neighbors, the summer festival celebrating the victory will begin soon. After the team from Sumeru sets off to build the branch here, you and Tree King can also come to Inazuma together."

Fireworks, goldfish, hot springs, yukata (light cotton robes), and a food festival.
Unlike celebrations in other countries that often carry some religious connotation,

The summer festival of Inazuma has become extremely pure due to the absence of a certain country girl for hundreds of years.

Together they achieved a victory worthy of being recorded in history, and in terms of the gameplay experience alone, this Inazuma trip will probably be even richer than Mondstadt.

It's clear that the Tree King is in no way inferior to Nasida in terms of love of play.

Recalling their experiences of being immersed in the mess of Sumeru before his arrival, Lin Feng felt that it wouldn't be a problem to let them come out for some fresh air often.

Outside, at Yuanshang Dessert Shop.

A certain introverted girl looked at the two people in the room besides herself, and a lot of little question marks unconsciously popped up above her head.

"I remember you said you would introduce me to the gods who revived the people and the culprits who led the invasion of the abyss."

Even if the cause of everything overlaps with the latter,

Including the kind person who offered to help rebuild Inazuma, there should be at least five people here, but why hasn't anyone come?

He looked at the smiling Fox Palace servant in front of him and the restaurant owner who came to deliver the food with great confusion.

When Ying discovered that none of the people who were supposed to come had shown up, she even wondered if her old friend was lying to her.
"Heh, don't worry, Aying. Although we are indeed missing a key figure, she's already tied up in the castle tower waiting for you."

“I assure you, apart from the culprit who brought about this invasion of the Abyss by Inazuma, everyone else is here.”

Hana Sanri held a fox mask in her hand, seemingly thinking of something amusing, her smile undiminished.

"The person who led the invasion was tied up inside the castle tower?"

Ying blinked, wondering why they would help her like this.

"."

"Yes, although the little guy did a good job of fixing it, it was a lucky accident."

"But after looking at the books and files in the shrine, Chiyo and I both felt that it was absolutely worthwhile to spend some time kidnapping her."

Chiyo had already gone to keep an eye on a certain pink fox after the invasion ended, and she was also busy while waiting for Kage to defeat the Abyss General.

He carefully used magic to examine the memories preserved within the earth's veins.

After seeing the priestess making fried tofu in the precious archives, causing a large number of books to be eaten by insects, and slacking off in her duties as the chief priest.

Although she "promised" that she wasn't angry at all, both the memory from Kitsune-no-miya and Chiyo herself agreed that the little guy needed some extra education.
"Where are the rest of them? Is it because the boss is here that you want to keep it a secret?"

"Then please leave, boss, and put the food on the table."

"—No, I made it very clear from the beginning that the rest of the people are here."

"If you can't understand it right away, Aying, I can explain it to you one by one."

Seeing that Ah Ying still seemed to regard the strongest person on the field as an ordinary person,

Hana Sanri felt both speechless and amused, suddenly realizing that her boss's disguise this time was too successful.

The movement paused slightly.

Hua Sanli pointed to Lin Feng beside him, bowed slightly to his boss, and turned around to speak solemnly:

"—Let me introduce you. This is the owner of this Yuanshang Dessert Shop, a scholar from Sumeru."

"."

Ying blinked in confusion, not understanding why she was saying all this.

"—Ah, let me introduce him again. He is also one of the sages of the Order of the Monarchy, and a collaborator who has pledged to assist Inazuma in rebuilding and to jointly promote education."

???

Slightly surprised, Ying blinked again, looking at him with the expression of someone seeing this boss for the first time.
She never imagined that this scholar, who was so good at making desserts, was actually an important figure no less important than the Winter Executive.
"—Let me introduce it again."

Adhering to the principle of introducing only one person at a time, Hana Sanri continued speaking.

Shadow: "." And what else?
"—This is not only a sage of the Order of the Church, but also one of the two gods who govern Sumeru, the 'God of Authority' who personally reshaped the ley lines of Narukami Island, purified the earth, and gave all the souls of the dead a chance to be resurrected."

!!!

His body tensed instantly, and he abruptly turned his head.
Only then did they realize that the boss in front of them, who had previously seemed like an ordinary young man from Inazuma, was smiling and shaking his head, revealing a trace of divine aura!

The intensity of this aura even surpassed that of the Abyss General, and I hadn't noticed it at all until the other party removed his disguise!
"Let me introduce it one last time."

"."

Complete silence fell, and she stared intently at the "ordinary dessert shop owner" who had just brought her some snacks.
Ying recalled everything she had experienced before, and even began to think it was some kind of strange illusion.
Forcibly suppressing the emotions that were already beyond repair,
I vaguely remembered some of the things that Fox Palace had said at the beginning.
Shadow mechanically turned his neck, as if suddenly realizing something, and stiffly spoke:
"If we exclude the last one who is in the castle tower, and the rest are all here, then the one who created the Abyss General..."

Holding tightly to my dream,
But if this was a trap, she inexplicably felt as if she had been led into the enemy's lair, about to face yet another new defeat.
"Ha~"

"—Ah Ying, you guessed right. This is also the 'mastermind' who replicated your authority, personally created that copy, and single-handedly controlled all the intrusions."

"And the thing you defeated could, strictly speaking, be made countless times."

"."

The scene fell into silence for a moment.

He instinctively tried to draw his knife and slash, but found that the knife in his hand had somehow ended up in the dessert shop owner's hand, who even seemed to have foreseen it and used his hand to disperse the force on the knife.

It's like farmers in a remote village suddenly being impacted by a big city, encountering everything and immediately exclaiming, "Can it really be like this?"
A certain naive, homebody girl who hadn't seen many people in five hundred years was completely stunned, her brain utterly shut down due to this completely unexpected development.

(End of this chapter)