Genshin Impact: Pool Character, Nirvana of the Demon God

(Missing characters will be added later)

So, it turns out there are people operating within the Order of the Fathers as well.

There's a strange sense of security about these people when they're together.

I inexplicably feel a sense of security with these people.

[I successfully found a sense of déjà vu in Laila...]

[↑You know what, they do look quite alike. Both have blue hair, both are ice-type, and both do high-intensity jobs.]

These people are incredibly reliable.

[The best thing about Sumeru is that everyone is playing their part, instead of just holding others back.]

Hearing Laiira's resounding and confident words, the three of them lowered their eyes and smiled in unison—the smiles were gentle, yet they subtly contained a few imperceptible deeper meanings.

Does this girl really think that "maintaining the status quo" is an easy thing to do?

Little did they know that, with the reformists leaderless and morale low, stabilizing the political situation, upholding the bottom line, and balancing the various forces was akin to steering a massive, riddled-with-holes ship through turbulent waters.

From strategic depth to personnel deployment, from public opinion guidance to resource allocation, every link is interconnected and cannot be neglected in the slightest.

However, even though they knew perfectly well what was going on, the three of them tacitly kept silent.

They knew Laila all too well: in the past, she was always tossing and turning in self-doubt, with anxiety always following her.

At this moment, that long-lost certainty and radiance were quietly rising from the depths of her eyes—like a new bud breaking through the soil in early spring, resilient yet not easily broken.

If the full extent of the burden were revealed at this point, the newly ignited flame of confidence would likely be extinguished by the cold winds of reality in an instant, or even plunge her back into the abyss of self-doubt.

So Zhuge Xun stepped forward, his tone gentle yet powerful: "Laila, go for it."

"Leave the matter of consolidating power among the royalists to me; you just need to calm down and sort out the reformers' administration thoroughly and systematically—we trust you."

"Yes, thank you, Teacher Zhuge."

Laila nodded slightly, her voice clear and bright, a long-lost composure radiating from her brows.

Mingyuan, standing to the side, remained silent, only raising his eyes to look at Zhuge Xun. His gaze was like still water, silently questioning: "Don't you feel any guilt about these words?"

Zhuge Xun glanced back, his eyes calm and resolute: It's better than watching her be trapped in doubt every day, pushing herself to the brink of silence—when that time comes, will you approve those mountains of urgent documents? Will you shoulder those pending political tasks?

Mingyuan remained silent for a moment, then slowly nodded, his eyes resolute as iron: "Then let her continue to believe—believe in herself, believe in the stability of the situation, believe in the trust placed in her by the people, and believe she is worthy of their trust. Until Caesar and Narcida return, and the land is restored."

He then turned to Laila, his tone calm yet solemn: "Ruixi and I will depart immediately to return to Port Ormos. As healers, we cannot leave the wounded without a moment's notice."

"In case of emergency, contact us through the void channel at any time—but be sure to enable the highest level of privacy encryption, otherwise the signal is very easy to be intercepted and analyzed by the royalists."

"Senior Mingyuan, Sister Ruixi, have a safe journey." Laiila stood up to see them off, her voice clear and melodious, her back straight as a pine tree.

After the two figures disappeared at the end of the corridor, Zhuge Xun also bowed and took his leave.

Before Caesar, Narcida, and the others return, he must use his wisdom as a weapon and time as a shield to create a buffer zone for Laira in the turbulent Church, a place where she can breathe, grow, and learn from mistakes.

As the last senior figure faded from view, the entire council hall fell silent.

Laiira stood alone in place, taking a deep breath—her breath was slightly heavy, yet as steady as a rock.

She slowly returned to the large, somewhat empty desk, her fingertips brushing over stacks of files awaiting approval. Her gaze was calm yet bright, as if she could already hear the distant sound of the rising tide, and she was standing in the eye of the storm, quietly picking up her pen.

[An intellectual beauty, this is exactly my type!]

[I need a business casual outfit for Laila here!]

Although this makes the protagonist's side less important, I feel it makes things more realistic. A truly powerful force can be utilized, and there can't be just one wise person.

So, is it true that Zhuge Xun, who seems so capable of strategizing, is actually a lazy bum?

Before becoming a hero, one is treated like a beast of burden; becoming a hero means shedding the responsibilities of one's previous life, and thus beginning to unleash one's true self.

……

Mount Sumeru, a desert, a land of thousands of sand dunes.

The scorching sun beat down on the boundless sea of ​​sand, and heat waves twisted and rose in the air, as if the entire desert was breathing silently.

Under the steady and efficient guidance of Desia, Ying and Paimon traversed the rugged rock formations and treacherous paths fraught with shifting sands, finally arriving at the heart of the desert—a massive stronghold hidden among the folds of the sand dunes.

The reddish-brown coarse hemp tents stretched out in a continuous line, and the flagpoles fluttered with the lion-head pattern unique to the gilded tour group. The sand was crisscrossed with cart tracks, and the camel bells were still warm, exuding a rough yet strict sense of order.

As soon as Dixia approached the camp gate, the expressions of the two guards changed drastically, and one of them turned and ran into the nearest main tent.

A moment later, the tent flap was lifted, and a burly man with a body as solid as a rock strode out—

His bronze skin had a matte finish from years of sun exposure. His left eye was covered by a dark brown leather eye patch, while his right eye was as sharp as a hawk's, slightly narrowed in the blazing sun, his gaze fixed directly on Dixia.

She seemed to casually glance at the two foreign visitors beside her, then indifferently moved away.

"Yo—a rare guest!" He laughed loudly, his voice like thunder rolling across the sand. "Isn't this the most dazzling star in our desert, 'The Lion with the Blazing Mane' Desia?"

He crossed his arms, leaned slightly forward, and spoke with a mix of three parts teasing, four parts probing, and the remaining three parts worldly-wise assessment: "It's rare to see you personally step into this depths of yellow sand..."

"Could it be that you've finally come to your senses? You're planning to put aside your reckless courage and sit down with us to truly discuss 'cooperation'?"

As for Luminous and Paimon standing beside Desia—

One was blond and silent, like the first snow about to melt; the other floated lightly, like a flickering glimmer of light—he didn't even spare a glance for them, as if they were nothing more than two wisps of sand carried by the wind.

Dixia merely shook her head slightly, a faint smile playing on her lips, though it didn't reach her eyes: "'The Lion with the Blazing Mane'? It's nothing but an empty title bestowed upon us by our peers. If we're truly talking about the pride of the desert..."

Her gaze swept across the undulating golden sand dunes in the distance, her voice low and firm, “That should be the land itself, not any particular person.”

The burly man threw his head back and laughed loudly, "Haha, well said, Dixia, I knew I hadn't misjudged you."

Then he looked at Ying and Paimon and asked, "Who are these two...?"

Before she finished speaking, Dixia raised her hand and gestured slightly toward Ying and Paimon with a composed yet tactful manner: "Let me introduce you—this is my employer on this trip."

"My mission is to escort them deep into the desert to retrieve some important relics. They are here today simply because they happen to be going the same way as me, and they have no other intentions."

—This statement had been carefully considered and meticulously crafted before the trip even began.

After all, in the eyes of the Sumeru people, two completely unfamiliar faces suddenly appeared in the Forbidden Sand Sea.

Without a respectable and irreproachable reason, it will only attract suspicion and scrutiny more intense than the scorching sun.

After explaining the reasons she had prepared to Rahman, Dixia said, "Let's get straight to the point, Rahman."

"I've come to see you today for no other reason than to ask you whether you kidnapped a group of scholars in the desert some time ago?"