"Crying... Did I cry?"
Makoto hadn't even realized it, but the tears in her eyes were almost ready to fall.
She was the Archon of Inazuma, and Archons shouldn't cry so easily, but at this moment, it felt as though the dam had opened on its own.
"Promise me one thing, okay?" Yu Xie looked at Makoto, his voice carrying a faint tone of pleading.
Just as he finished speaking, a violent coughing fit hit him again.
"Cough... cough…"
The intense coughing made his body tremble, and Yu Xie involuntarily hunched over in pain.
"Yu Xie, stop talking!" Makoto placed a hand on his back and gently patted it, trying to help him feel a little better.
This time, Yu Xie didn't cough up blood, but it still took him a while to recover.
"Sorry to worry you." After catching his breath, Yu Xie managed a weak smile. "I'm fine now."
"How can you be fine?" Makoto's gaze was now filled with far more complexity than before, her eyes tangled with a confusion she couldn't unravel.
"It's the way of things, something I can't change." Yu Xie smiled faintly. "Makoto, promise me, don't tell anyone yet."
The rain started falling again, and today's weather was quite strange.
In just a short time, the rain became heavier than before.
Large drops of rain hit the roof, making a loud thwack as they struck the tiles.
"I'll find a chance to tell everyone, but until then, please keep it a secret, okay?" Yu Xie's face still wore that faint smile, as if this were just an ordinary matter.
"...Okay." After a long silence, Makoto softly replied.
As time passed, the rain stopped again, and Yu Xie decided it was time to leave.
Normally, Makoto would happily see Yu Xie off from Tenshukaku, eagerly looking forward to their next meeting. But this time, it felt different.
It was as if there was an invisible countdown ticking in Makoto's heart.
Would Yu Xie come back to Tenshukaku again? Could this be their last time together?
She wanted to say, "Why don't you stay here at Tenshukaku? I'll take good care of you."
But she held her tongue. Yu Xie's smile made her rethink that thought.
Even though time was running out, Yu Xie must have things he still wanted to do. She couldn't just keep him here. She couldn't bind him to her side like that.
Makoto instructed two soldiers to escort Yu Xie back, watching as his figure slowly disappeared into the distance. Once again, she thought back to the day on the Khaenri'ah battlefield when Yu Xie had blocked that abyssal beast's strike for her.
Although the two figures belonged to the same person, they were different.
The figure on the battlefield had been resolute, as steady and reassuring as a mountain. But now, the figure retreating into the distance seemed to carry a sense of peace and resignation.
"Sister, the thing we were working on together... we just finished it."
Ei's voice rang out, and Makoto turned to see her walking toward her, holding a delicate pendant in her hand.
The pendant was identical to the true Vision. It was translucent and gleaming, and inside it, the lightning-like patterns seemed to flicker with a subtle, electric glow.
This little object had taken Makoto and Ei two months to create, from scratch. Many sleepless nights, with candles burning long into the night, the two of them had worked side by side to craft this "Vision," infusing it with their own divine energy.
Although they couldn't yet give Yu Xie a true Vision, this pendant would be a keepsake for him. They would continue to think of ways to help him in the future.
"Ei, let's go to Yu Xie's place later and give this to him." Makoto took the pendant from Ei's hand, examining it carefully.
"Isn't that Yu Xie? He was just here at Tenshukaku?" Ei noticed that Yu Xie was still visible in the distance. "I'll go call him."
As Ei began to move, Makoto stopped her with a word.
"Let's wait until evening. Don't call him now."
Hearing her sister's words, Ei felt a little confused and puzzled, but she didn't think too much about it.
Night quickly fell.
The starry sky after the rain wasn't as bright, and the moon hid behind thick clouds, not showing itself.
However, the streets of Inazuma still shimmered with lights.
Makoto and Ei arrived at the headquarters of the Okuzumeshuu.
Dinner time had already passed, and Yu Xie was sitting in the courtyard, trimming a potted plant on the table.
As people age, their appearance may still be youthful, but their interests increasingly shift to these trivial matters.
What had happened today was undoubtedly a sign—his body was warning him that his time was running out.
"Yu Xie." Makoto's voice broke the silence, and Yu Xie stopped what he was doing, turning his head to look.
Makoto and Ei walked into the courtyard and approached him.
Yu Xie remained silent, suddenly unsure of what expression he should wear in front of Makoto.
"Your potted plants are trimmed beautifully," Ei said as she sat down across from him, perhaps unsure of how to start the conversation.
"Only with regular trimming can these plants live longer," Yu Xie said without thinking. The words came out naturally.
It was only after he spoke that he realized he might not have chosen the best words by mentioning "living longer."
As expected, upon hearing those words, Makoto fell silent.
Yu Xie tried to change the subject, but Ei beat him to it.
"This is for you." Ei took out the "Vision" pendant that she and Makoto had made together and placed it on the table in front of Yu Xie.
The exquisite Vision pendant shimmered faintly under the dim starlight, and inside, purple lightning seemed to flow and pulse.
"This is..." Yu Xie wanted to say something but stopped himself.
"I promised you last time that I would give you a Vision," Ei said. "A real Vision might take more time, so my sister and I made this one for you as a little gift. Don't worry, I'll definitely find a way to give you a real Vision in the future."
Ei spoke earnestly. Even though the appearance of the Vision had no direct connection to her and Makoto's will, there was no doubt that she was working hard on this because of the promise she had made.
"Thank you, both of you, Makoto, Ei," Yu Xie said, holding the Vision pendant in his hand, feeling its weight. "Honestly, it's fine even without a real Vision. You've put a lot of effort into making this, and that's already more than enough."
"No, it's not enough," Ei's gaze was firm. "I will keep the promise I made to you."
Hearing Ei's serious words, Yu Xie didn't want to refuse any further and just smiled faintly.
"Yu Xie, are... are you okay?" Makoto suddenly spoke, her tone filled with concern.
"I'm fine," Yu Xie turned to her, smiling gently. "By the way, would you like some tea? I bought some good tea leaves recently. I'll brew some for you both."
"I'll go with you," Makoto quickly replied.
"How can I let guests do that?" Yu Xie got up. "Don't worry, Makoto, I can manage brewing the tea. You and Ei sit for a bit. I'll be back soon."
Makoto didn't say anything more. She knew Yu Xie was a very "stubborn" person.
Yu Xie left the courtyard. After walking around a corner a little farther away, he suddenly covered his mouth as a violent cough hit him.
He lowered his voice, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
End of chapter
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