Symbol of Trust

Tracing the embarrassed princess' path, it didn't take long for me to spot her figure. I walked towards her without hiding my presence, as I didn't want to complicate it even more.

"I apologize for what happened earlier Ayaka, I hope I didn't overstep my bounds." I said as I stood in front of her, stopping the flustered princess in her tracks.

"...It's fine..." She sighed, calming herself down.

"I heard about your antics from the traveler, but I didn't expect it to affect me too much."

"As I predicted, since I had to resort to harder methods. Lumine also told me about you, so I thought I don't need to be too formal." I replied with my usual smile.

"I doubt thats the case at all. I have a feeling that our meeting will remain the same, whether you know me or not." She countered harshly as she accused me, something I didn't agree with nor deny.

"We should go away from here, before somebody sees us." I suggested, then gestured for her to follow, which she did.

"Where are we going?" She asked warily.

"A place where no one will see us..." I answered with a smirk.

She stopped for a second to think, before continuing to follow me. I felt a dangerous aura coming from her, while we walked silently.

I gestured for her to stop as we arrived at a dead end. Removing the illusion I casted earlier, we are greeted by the sight of the afternoon sky and the calm sea. The bewilderment in her expression didn't last long, as she realized that we were outside the Kamisato Estate.

"How do you want to get there? By flight or withing a blink?" I asked, showing her my tengu wings. She didn't seem surprised at all, giving me more reasons to punish Lumine.

"I'll be picking the faster way. What's stopping you from taking advantage of me if we flew together?" She answered with sharp stares.

"I'm known for being a gentleman, I won't do such a thing." I replied with my usual smile.

"Do you even know where we're going?!" She questioned with a hint of haughtiness.

"Komore Teahouse right?" I answered immediately.

"You ought to know that much if you know Lumine, I guess-" I took her hand and pulled her to me, stopping her smugness from reaching a higher level. I quickly activated my sage arts, before the stunned princess composed herself.

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"You know we will end up here didn't you?" Grumbled Ayaka, as I set the various delicacies I prepared earlier, one at a time. We arrived to see Komore Teahouse reserved, which is probably her reason for the question.

"Stop scowling Ayaka, it doesn't fit your pretty face. Though I have to say, it definitely has a charm on its own." I answered calmly as I sat myself in front of her, with only the table separating the two of us.

"Tch! Did you really need to pull me earlier?!" Exclaimed the annoyed princess.

"Of course! It's the only way for us to go together."

'It isn't, but I'll be keeping that to myself. Just a small punishment for her false accusations.'

"We can talk after we eat, I prepared this carefully myself. Don't hold back, think of it as an apology for everything earlier." I offered sincerely.

"Hmm?! So you do understand the cause of your actions. Here I thought tact is something impossible for you." She replied sarcastically. I only nodded with a wry smile.

Seeing me reflecting on my actions, we started eating silently. I'll just hope my offering is enough to satisfy the grumpy princess. I'll just think of her actions as my success in closing the distance between us.

"So? What do you want to discuss with me, Lu?" It looked like my offering was enough, as she calmed down a bit.

'Still... She really is taking advantage of my request to talk informally. Is this payback for earlier?' I guessed in my mind, while staring at the now cold and calm princess, though not as much as before.

"How about we start with something casual? You know, to get more familiar with each other?" I asked as a test.

"Hmm? Didn't you already had enough earlier?" She replied with a smile, but it's definitely not a warm one.

'Looks like she's still mad about earlier! Abort Mission Immediately!'

"Ehem!... Then you need to listen for a while, I'll keep it as short as I can." Resigning myself to a long discussion, I started narrating the current state of the Shogunate.

I told her everything I could from my perspective. A short summary of the nation known as Inazuma, starting from more than two millennias ago. Of course I hid some private stuff, like the thing about Celestia and Dainsleif. I don't think Dainsleif likes to stand out at all. Speaking of that guy, I still haven't found any signs of him in Teyvat. So I'll be waiting for him to come out of the abyss, like Lumine informed me in our talk.

"I see... The current Raiden Shogun is different from the past one, since the original Electro Archon passed away." She whispered to herself.

"As I said, Makoto is now back and in charge of the Kanjou Commission so you can ask her directly if you have any questions." I suggested to the silent princess.

"I understand about everything you said, but I still have a lot of questions. Like, who will be in charge of the onis now? They are currently scattered right?"

"Yes, but don't worry. Although I don't plan on making Chiyo lead them, I already have someone in mind. You should focus on getting along with the tengus nd kitsune first." I answered the worried Ayaka.

I don't really need to hide anything about the yokais, since even though they are pretty small in numbers now compared to before, they still exist. It's also a part of their reward for their unwavering loyalty and trust.

'Speaking of trust... I think I have a perfect way to show mine.'

"Kamisato Ayaka..." I softly called her name.

"What is it, Lu?" She answered unconsciously, still focused on the information I gave her.

Staring at the absent minded princess, I made my move to stand up and get close to her slowly. I continued moving towards her, to the point that she could hear my breathing, and lifted her chin to look straight at me.

"Eh?..." The bewildered Ayaka muttered weakly, as I forced her to stare deep into my eyes. I did the same and maintained our distance for a few seconds. The silent atmosphere continued, then I moved closer until we were staring at each other face to face. Not knowing what to do, the confused princess closed her eyes and waited for me to take action, which I did.

"What?..." Said the dazed Ayaka while touching her forehead, since I gave it a peck.

"A blessing of a god... Your god. Surely you've heard about archons having the ability to bless an individual?"

"What? Are you thinking of something else Ayaka? How bold of you~."

"I'll be leaving now..."

"I have a proposal for you the next time we meet Lady Ayaka, I hope you look forward to it." Rapid firing everything that needed to be said. I then teleported to Tenshukaku, leaving the dazed princess alone.