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[Genshin Impact] Chapter 393: Schemes (2-in-1 Chapter)
🕑 Added 2025-01-02 09:30:01 +0000 UTCLooking at the notification of increased favorability on the character panel, Nolan felt a hint of satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Kujou Sara was stunned to discover that the general she revered so much was, in fact, a puppet. The real Shogun was hiding in her inner world to avoid "wear and tear"?
But this revelation didn’t leave her feeling lost. No matter what form the Shogun existed in, she would continue to revere her with unwavering loyalty.
Kujou Sara steadied her emotions slightly, then glanced at Yae Miko, Nolan, and the others before speaking:
"Since the clan head is suspected of colluding with the Fatui to push forward the 'Vision Hunt Decree' and disrupt the peace of Inazuma, I will confront him right now, and then report this to the Shogun!"
With that, she quickly stood up, asking Yae Miko to cast a spell for fast teleportation.
The Grand Narukami Shrine was quite far from the Tenryou Commission. Without the spell, even if Kujou Sara summoned her tengu wings, it would still take her half an hour to fly there.
That was far too long—she couldn’t wait that long. She wanted to immediately confront Kujou Takayuki face-to-face and demand an explanation!
"My, my, how impatient~ Well then, let’s go together. Otherwise, Miss Sara might not be able to sleep tonight," Yae Miko chuckled softly, covering her mouth.
"Guuji-sama, this is an official matter! Please refrain from making strange jokes!" Kujou Sara glared at Yae Miko.
"Haha, so amusing... You’re just like that blockheaded Shogun," Yae Miko remarked without restraint.
Kujou Sara clenched her fists in frustration.
Paimon and Lumine, watching this, couldn’t help but feel speechless. How can someone have such a bad personality? Is she really someone trustworthy?
---
Inazuma City, Tenryou Commission Headquarters
Nolan and his group arrived at the Tenryou Commission again. This time, they had additional company—Kujou Sara and Yae Miko. They didn’t have to sneak in anymore, either.
Kujou Sara led the group straight in.
The Shogunate soldiers wouldn’t dare stop the general of the Tenryou Commission, though they were curious. General Kujou Sara seemed quite angry.
What happened next was no surprise.
Kujou Sara barged into Kujou Takayuki’s office and directly confronted him, demanding to know why he had colluded with the Fatui!
Kujou Takayuki, being an arrogant man, didn’t bother denying it when faced with irrefutable evidence. However, he didn’t think his actions were a betrayal of the Shogun.
He believed there was nothing wrong with agreeing to the Fatui’s requests to gain the benefits they promised. To him, the Fatui were just a group of fools to be used.
As for the harm this might bring to Inazuma’s citizens—what did that have to do with him, the esteemed head of the Tenryou Commission?
"Wow, this guy is disgusting! How can he even say that out loud?!"
Paimon stared at Kujou Takayuki, who was speaking righteously, feeling as if her worldview had been shattered. Her brain was about to crash.
"Perhaps he’s so accustomed to being above others that he doesn’t even consider himself the same as the common people," Nolan said, shaking his head slightly.
Despite being just as human as everyone else, Kujou Takayuki saw himself as superior and acted only in his own interests.
He didn’t care at all about how the "Vision Hunt Decree" harmed others.
This was probably what it meant to lose one’s humanity.
In contrast, Nolan felt he was doing quite well. Despite his immense power and the ability to act recklessly if he wished, he maintained his sense of self without feeling superior to others.
Perhaps this was what it meant to have a proper understanding of oneself.
"That fool Ei gave far too much power to the Tri-Commission without any checks. Honestly, the position of the Raiden Shogun would suit me better," Yae Miko said, brushing her pink hair aside with a smile.
"In broad daylight, you’re saying things like that? Really?" Lumine’s fair face showed a hint of exasperation.
"Haha, we’re so close that it’s fine. Forget taking her position; I wouldn’t mind sitting on her lap instead~" Yae Miko said, arms crossed.
Sit on the Shogun’s lap? Nolan imagined the scene briefly and felt a strange pang of envy.
Upon confirming that Kujou Takayuki, the head of the Kujou Clan, had indeed colluded with the Fatui and betrayed the Shogun, Kujou Sara was furious and wanted to arrest him immediately.
However, she needed the Shogun’s approval for that. Kujou Takayuki was the head of the Tenryou Commission—he couldn’t be detained without proper authority.
Thus, Kujou Sara stormed out, heading to Tenshukaku to report the matter to the Shogun. Yae Miko and Nolan decided not to follow her.
This matter was best handled by Kujou Sara.
In the meantime, Yae Miko planned to spend the next two days giving Nolan and the others anti-Shogun combat training.
This was to prepare them in case negotiations with Ei failed and they had to fight. Knowing their opponent would allow them to face Raiden Ei with greater confidence.
Kujou Sara understood this. Matters of the Shogunate’s internal affairs were not suitable for outsiders to meddle in. Before departing, however, she expressed her gratitude to Nolan and the others.
She thanked them for obtaining evidence that revealed how the head of the Kujou Clan had colluded with the Fatui, jeopardizing Inazuma’s safety.
[Kujou Sara Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 360 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv. 3 (60/300)]
"Well, it was a small matter," Nolan and Lumine replied nonchalantly.
After all, this was a commission from the Yashiro Commission.
Kujou Sara nodded, then summoned the black tengu wings from her bloodline, soaring into the sky and flying toward Tenshukaku.
She carried with her the "official report" and some of the correspondence between Kujou Takayuki and the Fatui.
The remaining letters were taken by Nolan to deliver to the Kamisato Estate, as the commission required.
In the original storyline, Kujou Sara also went to meet the Raiden Shogun regarding this matter, but she was knocked unconscious by La Signora, who was acting as a diplomatic envoy at the time.
Would the same happen now?
Nolan doubted that it would be such a coincidence for La Signora to also be there now, but it was better to confirm to avoid any unexpected outcomes.
Thus, the next steps were clear.
Traveler and Paimon followed Yae Miko to the Grand Narukami Shrine to learn techniques for countering the Raiden Shogun, while Nolan, carrying part of the evidence, returned to the Kamisato Estate to complete his task. On the way, he used the “Waymark” to ask La Signora about the Fatui's recent movements.
Rosalyne spoke reluctantly, saying:
"I met with the Raiden Shogun this morning. She’s unwilling to negotiate the transfer of her Gnosis, as expected. Furthermore, 'Scaramouche' and 'The Doctor' have halted their plans.
"They noticed that the Resistance doesn’t seem to have any intentions of continuing their assault on Inazuma City, so they’ve temporarily shelved plans to rebuild the Delusion factory.
"They’re now focused on bribing the Tenryou and Kanjou Commissions, planning to slowly bring Inazuma under their control before finding an opportunity to seize the Gnosis."
Nolan nodded, indicating he understood.
The Fatui had always assumed that the Raiden Shogun still possessed her Gnosis. After their plan to incite chaos in Inazuma using the Delusion factory had failed, they had no choice but to take a slower approach, infiltrating the Tri-Commission through bribery to exert indirect control over Inazuma.
As for creating another crisis in Inazuma themselves, they certainly wouldn’t dare, as they lacked the power to confront the Raiden Shogun directly.
For now, their strategy would remain focused on infiltrating the Tri-Commission.
Previously, due to the administrative nature of the Yashiro Commission, it was less critical to the Fatui compared to the military Tenryou Commission or the financially powerful Kanjou Commission.
Now, however, they would likely attempt to infiltrate the Yashiro Commission as well.
But with Kujou Sara heading to report Kujou Takayuki's collusion with the Fatui directly to the Raiden Shogun, even if the Shogun didn’t abolish the Vision Hunt Decree, she would at least deal with Kujou Takayuki.
In the original storyline, Raiden Ei had already recognized that “ambition” was detrimental to eternity. Thus, even though she was aware of the Tenryou Commission’s collusion with the Fatui, she chose not to address it for the sake of furthering the Vision Hunt Decree.
This time, however, Kujou Sara was presenting concrete evidence to the Shogun herself. It was unlikely she would ignore it—replacing Kujou Takayuki wouldn’t affect the operation of the Tenryou Commission.
With Kujou Takayuki removed, and the Kanjou Commission's leader, Hiiragi Shinsuke, also under suspicion, the Fatui’s prior infiltration efforts would be wiped out entirely.
At that point, the Fatui might resort to other, more unpredictable actions.
Because of this, Nolan continued questioning La Signora about what the Fatui would do if their plan to control Inazuma fell through.
After all, any plans that might harm Inazuma had to be anticipated and countered.
"If things don’t go as planned, another Harbinger will naturally take over," Rosalyne huffed.
"Oh? It seems you’re quite determined not to give up on the Gnosis," Nolan mused thoughtfully.
"Of course. The Gnosis is something we will claim at all costs," Rosalyne replied.
If one Harbinger failed, another would come, and if two weren’t enough, then a third... What next? Should they just summon the Tsaritsa herself? That would certainly save some trouble.
This made it clear: for Inazuma to achieve true peace, as Yae Miko, Ayaka, and Kokomi desired, abolishing the Vision Hunt Decree wasn’t enough.
The Fatui had to be completely driven out of Inazuma.
But with the Tsaritsa of Snezhnaya as their backing, the Fatui would never stop until they achieved their goals. Only the Shogun and Ei stepping in could stand against them to some extent.
That said, neither of them seemed to care much about the Gnosis.
It was possible that, after thinking about it and deciding it wasn’t worth the trouble, they might just let Yae Miko casually hand over the Gnosis to the Fatui to get rid of them.
After all, the Gnosis was useless to Ei. Rather than keeping it and letting the Fatui continue to covet it and cause trouble in Inazuma, it might actually be better to give it to them.
From Raiden Ei’s perspective, that would be a reasonable trade-off.
But giving it away so easily would be letting the Fatui off too lightly. If they were going to give it away, why not give it to me instead? A Gnosis must be quite a high-quality treasure.
If I added it to the “Wonderland,” it might expand the space even further or grant new spatial properties!
Nolan’s mind raced like gears turning at high speed.
Ending his mental call with La Signora, he flew on his sword toward the Kamisato Estate, pondering a way to obtain the Gnosis himself without the Fatui realizing.
Moreover, the method needed to make them believe the Gnosis was no longer in Inazuma.
After all, he had no desire to confront the Fatui directly, and Inazuma needed them gone—not causing trouble here.
This should be relatively easy to manage. He just needed to let them acquire the Gnosis first, then make it disappear without anyone noticing.
In the original story, when Scaramouche acquired the Gnosis, he didn’t follow protocol by immediately delivering it to Snezhnaya. Instead, he went to Sumeru, attempting to ascend to godhood with the help of The Doctor and the sages of the Akademiya.
If Scaramouche obtained the Gnosis again, he would likely make the same choice.
If Nolan could intercept the Gnosis during the "artificial godhood" experiment in Sumeru, that would be perfect.
“Hmph, they wouldn’t suspect me then, would they?”
Nor would they think the Shogun had suddenly changed her mind and taken the Gnosis back.
After all, if the Gnosis was lost in Sumeru, thousands of miles away from Inazuma, accusing the Shogun would clearly be an act of deliberate provocation.
If that happened, Nolan believed the Shogun wouldn’t hesitate to strike them down.
After all, if she wanted the Gnosis back, she wouldn’t need to steal it—she could simply demand it, and the Fatui wouldn’t dare refuse.
Nolan was pleased with this plan, which seemed comprehensive and well-thought-out. However, one crucial component was missing: the ability to conceal his presence, including from spiritual detection.
After all, he would need to steal the Gnosis during The Doctor and Scaramouche’s godhood experiment.
His current stealth abilities weren’t sufficient for the task.
Perhaps he could learn something from Yae Miko. As a great yokai, she might know some relevant techniques. However, yokai spells often required yokai bloodlines or at least yokai energy, which he didn’t have, so learning might not be possible.
Speaking of stealth, the Yashiro Commission’s secret force, the “Shuumatsuban,” seemed to be a group of ninjas, right? Could their ninjutsu include invisibility techniques?
He could ask Kamisato Ayaka about this later.
As the evening’s cold wind howled past, Nolan could already make out the silhouette of the Kamisato Estate in the distance. Just as he prepared to descend, a thought occurred to him.
In the game he’d played before crossing over, the person with the strongest stealth abilities seemed to be Yelan.
For instance, her Elemental Skill allowed her to enter a stealth-like state, moving like a ghost so swiftly that she was nearly undetectable.
In the official character trailer, he distinctly remembered Yelan using true invisibility, leaning against a wall to eavesdrop on a Fatui conversation. He couldn’t recall the exact details, but he was certain it involved stealth.
He should seek her out to learn some techniques—and perhaps earn her affection as well.
With this idea in mind, Nolan nodded in satisfaction. He landed gently at the entrance to the Kamisato Estate. The guards recognized him and, upon learning he was here to see the young lady, went inside to inform her.
Before long…
Nolan found himself in the Yashiro Commission headquarters’ reception hall, facing Kamisato Ayaka and her smiling older brother, the Yashiro Commissioner himself, Kamisato Ayato.
(End of Chapter)
