"Do it myself? Ryougi… what do you mean by that?"
"Of course, I mean literally? Don't you think so, Yae?"
"You really know how to cause trouble for people." Yae Miko looked helpless. The moment she spoke, she knew what was going on.
It was nothing more than entrusting consciousness to an object, thereby achieving the purpose of existing in the world.
"So, do you have a way to preserve his soul?" Shiki asked.
Her plan was slightly different from what Yae Miko had in mind. Although both would involve soul and consciousness transfer spells, it wasn't to transfer them to a weapon.
But to a puppet.
Since Balladeer made a brain in a vat, why not go even further and create a new puppet body for Xavier.
The creator, of course, would be Raiden Ei. With her mastery of Khaenri'ah technology, she could create puppets almost identical to normal humans, even capable of performing male and female acts, though they couldn't bear children.
However, all of this was predicated on Xavier's desire to live. Shiki respected Xavier's choice; if he didn't want to, then all of this would be for naught.
"Preserving a soul is certainly possible, but only for a short term." Yae Miko said.
Shiki nodded upon hearing this, then turned to look at Xavier, who was floating in mid-air, and asked with a serious expression, "Xavier, do you want to live?"
"Live?"
Xavier's soul paused. Ever since he saw his head placed in the cultivation tank, he had never considered the question of living.
It was precisely because of this that he was able to unleash unprecedented power at the last moment, injuring Balladeer.
But now, his friend was asking him if he wanted to live. Of course, he would if he could, but if it meant living as neither human nor ghost, he'd rather just die.
"May I ask, if I were to live, in what way would I continue to exist on the continent of Teyvat?"
"As an ordinary human, of course." Shiki replied without hesitation, "You will have a body almost identical to a normal human, capable of crying and eating."
"You will bleed when injured, and can even engage in male and female acts. Aside from not being able to bear offspring, you will be no different from a normal human."
"If that's the case, then of course I want to live! I still want to make movies that become famous across the continent of Teyvat!"
Xavier was overjoyed. If one could live, who would choose to die? He was able to be so open-minded purely because he was already dead.
Yae Miko, standing nearby, was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected Shiki to want Ei to create a body, which was quite different from her guess.
However, it doesn't matter, she is only responsible for taking Xavier's soul out, and she won't be the one making the puppet then.
"Empty your mind and don't resist."
After Yae Miko finished speaking, she took out a talisman and drew a peculiar pattern in the air with electro element, after which Xavier's soul attached itself to the talisman.
"All done. Remember, this talisman can only last for a week. When the time is almost up, remember to come to me for a replacement."
"I think it's better to keep it with you for now."
Shiki did not accept the talisman. Although she didn't know that Raiden Ei needed to rest due to forging a Sword, she knew that making a precise puppet would definitely require a large amount of precious materials and time.
"Alright."
"Also, when you see the Fatui later, don't attack them first. I have made a deal with them. Soon, they will withdraw all Fatui from Inazuma territory on their own."
Yae Miko felt she had to give a heads-up, otherwise, what if Shiki just sliced Childe in half when she saw him?
"A deal? What kind of deal?"
"Of course, it's a deal about compensation. Since they're going to withdraw anyway, why not extort some Mora from them?"
"That's good. In that case, I'll listen to you."
Shiki didn't say that she absolutely had to kill the Fatui. There was only one Fatui she had to cut down, and that was Balladeer.
As for the others, as long as they didn't cause trouble, she could tolerate them for now.
Moreover, Yae Miko was right. Since they were going to withdraw anyway, it was better to let them withdraw legitimately and extort some Mora for Inazuma's construction work.
Shiki picked up Balladeer's last remaining hat in the world. Hmm, it just happened to go with girl's mask, a souvenir.
Oh, right, and congratulations to Childe Tartaglia for being promoted two ranks, from Eleventh Harbinger to Ninth Harbinger.
After all, the Harbingers' ranks are ordered by their joining time. If you want to move up in rank, you can only wait for your colleagues ahead of you to kick the bucket.
'But then again, the scabbard seems to have turned to dust…'
Shiki looked at Nine Words Thunder and frowned. Where was she supposed to put such a long and sharp Sword?
However, as soon as she thought this, Nine Words Thunder transformed into a bolt of lightning and drilled into her chest.
"Oh, this…"
Speak of the devil, just as she wondered where to put it, it found its own place.
'But that's good. How do I take it out then?'
With that thought, the hilt appeared on her chest, and Shiki couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth.
"No, no, something more low-key."
She couldn't do the whole Sword-from-chest thing. First of all, she didn't have as big a cup size as Raiden Ei, okay?
At most, she was a B+, and when wearing a kimono, she didn't even have a B.
In other words, she didn't have that kind of "scabbard," or rather, her "scabbard" wasn't quite up to par.
In short, drawing a Sword from the chest is a no-go!
Nine Words Thunder clearly understood its owner's words, immediately sinking into the girl's chest, and then condensing the hilt beside her shoulder.
Shiki grabbed the hilt, and then Nine Words Thunder was "drawn" out by her like that.
That's how it looked, but in reality, when Shiki grasped the hilt, the blade gradually condensed, which made it look more impressive.
"Mm, mm, this is good!"
Shiki twirled the Sword in her hand, and then Nine Words Thunder transformed into lightning and disappeared into her chest.
Holding Balladeer's hat, Shiki and Yae Miko returned to the beach where the Evil Eye Factory entrance was located. Of course, there was no Evil Eye Factory anymore.
The aftermath of her battle with Balladeer directly caused half of the factory to collapse, with only the part near the surface remaining relatively intact.
"Shiki!"
"Ayaka!"
Upon seeing the girl's figure, Ayaka immediately ran over and threw herself into her arms.
"I didn't expect you to come too…"
"Of course, I would come if something happened to you! But Xavier, he…"
"He died, I know, but I have a way to bring him back to life."
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