In Izumo, Making Honkai Great Again

"This is beautiful too."

"You should change into something more suitable if we're going out."

"Mmm, of course, Mei looks beautiful in anything," Kiana praised.

"Kiana looks beautiful too."

Kiana put the knives back, wiped off her sweat with a towel, and waited for Mei at the door.

Before long, Mei, who had changed into casual clothes, arrived at the door and greeted Kiana.

"Let's go."

Kiana skillfully grabbed Mei's arm. "Let's go, let's go! I feel like I have a huge appetite right now, I could eat a whole cow!"

Hearing the exaggerated comparison, Mei couldn't help but smile.

When she was with Kiana, she always felt happy and didn't think about bothersome things.

"No matter how many times I look up, it still feels strange."

This world was fine in every other way, except the night sky was a bit unusual. There was a black sun, not bright at all. Although there was light in this world, it wasn't very bright.

The color palette was a bit oppressive.

"Izumo has always been like this," Mei didn't find anything wrong with it, after all, Izumo had been this way for thousands of years. However, hearing Kiana's sigh, she patiently comforted her, "It's normal for you to be unaccustomed to it since you came from another world."

Kiana had told Mei long ago that she was from another world, but this was the first time she had heard the name of this planet.

"Izumo... is that what you call this planet?"

The name sounded a little familiar.

She was clearly an undocumented immigrant. After transmigrating to this world, she had to work hard to earn money to get a legal identity, as she really didn't dare to activate her system.

For the past few months, she had been working everywhere to earn money, whether it was part-time at convenience stores or delivering food using her extraordinary physical abilities, taking on commissions, and so on.

Life was busy, but interesting.

The technology here was somewhat similar to Earth's. After discovering Raiden Mei, she had determined that this was a parallel world of Honkai. In her free time, she would try to win over Raiden Mei.

The reason...

Love at first sight was only one part of it.

The other part was that she really didn't know what else she should do. She truly didn't dare to use the system that brought her here.

Also, because she was busy working to get an identity, she didn't have enough money to buy a phone, so she didn't know much about this world.

The modern city and Raiden Mei, she had assumed there was nothing else to understand and that this was just a parallel world.

As for the problem with the night sky.

It was normal for parallel worlds to have different developments. How many world bubbles were there in the Honkai Impact 3rd event story?

"You don't know?"

"I haven't paid much attention to it."

Kiana scratched her head sheepishly. She really didn't care about that. Compared to the news she would eventually find out, she was more interested in Raiden Mei, who had inherited the shrine and become a shrine maiden.

"Where we are is Izumo."

"Izumo..."

So familiar.

She had definitely heard this name somewhere before. Was it from an event? No...

"If you're curious, we can find a place to sit for a while and I'll tell you stories about Izumo."

"We can talk about that later," Kiana shook her head. She wanted to enjoy her date with Mei more. Pointing to the other side of the road, she said, "We're almost at the food street. Let's not talk about these things in front of delicious food, okay?"

"I see... alright."

Raiden Mei planned to return to the shrine and then research the historical records of Izumo Province. She would then give the information to Kiana to help her understand Izumo better.

However, with Kiana's earlier mention and looking at the prosperous, peaceful, and lively street, a persistent question arose in Mei's heart once again.

Was the world they were in, the land of Izumo, really as simple as it appeared on the surface?

Father... and the Oni Gods...

After her father disappeared and she inherited the shrine, Raiden Mei had been secretly searching for the reason and truth behind her father's disappearance.

But the clues she could find were very few.

Oni and Oni Gods.

She eventually investigated legends. According to the clues, Izumo Province was not as peaceful as it seemed.

But she didn't have any more information.

"Mei, Mei, try this!"

Kiana's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She smiled and took the oden Kiana offered her. "Thank you."

"And over there, look, it's so lively! It looks like there's a performance. Should we go take a look too?"

"Okay."

No matter what Kiana said, Mei would respond, just as she had thought earlier.

When she was with Kiana, her mood would relax, and she felt very happy being with Kiana.

Chapter 3: The Stolen Narukami

Shopping, well, it's just like that.

Walking, stopping, eating, drinking.

But shopping on a date with the person you're looking forward to, you won't feel bored no matter how long you walk, and you'll gain plenty of fun and happiness.

Kiana held the photo they had just developed, a smile plastered on her face that she couldn't suppress. She held the picture high and said, "I'm going to find a frame for this as soon as I get back, put it next to my bed, and make it the first thing I see when I wake up every day!"

"Huh?"

Mei also held an identical copy. She was equally satisfied with the photo she had just taken with Kiana and planned to keep it.

But Kiana's words...

Putting the photo by her bed, where she could see it first thing every morning?

"Isn't that..."

She felt her face getting hot, wanting to confirm with Kiana again. Kiana was always like this, saying things that made people overthink and misunderstand.

"Mei will do that too, right?"

She wasn't kidding?

Mei felt her face getting even hotter. Wouldn't only couples and family members do something like that?

Seeing a photo of herself and Kiana first thing every morning... if she really thought about it, it wasn't impossible. Even if it was just a picture, seeing Kiana's smile would lighten her mood.

"I'll put it somewhere safe."

Progress again today!

Kiana beamed and carefully put the photo away. Just as she was about to say something else to Mei, thunderous roars of lightning echoed from the overcast sky.

The thunder was incredibly loud, instantly drowning out all other sounds. Streaks of blue-purple electricity could be seen flashing within the clouds on the horizon.

The thunder didn't stop after one clap; it continued to explode incessantly, as if a god who commanded lightning was enraged.

"Mei?!"

This thunder was too loud, nothing like a normal thunderstorm. Kiana's ears hurt from the noise, and everyone else on the street covered their ears in pain, while Mei stared blankly at the lightning in the distance.

Kiana's voice was drowned out by the thunder. She frantically shook Mei's body, pulling her back from her daze.

She looked at Raiden Mei with a worried expression, her eyes constantly darting towards the horizon. Could it really not be a normal thunderstorm, but an unnatural phenomenon?

Mei seemed to be saying something, but Kiana couldn't hear her. She frowned and pointed at the people covering their ears nearby.

She couldn't hear her.

Seeing this, Mei pursed her lips and gazed at the lightning in the sky for a moment longer.

She seemed to be thinking, but Kiana didn't know what she was thinking. After watching for a few more seconds, she suddenly grabbed Kiana and, ignoring her confused look, ran towards the shrine.

Something happened?

Mei's behavior didn't suggest anything good was happening. Kiana kept up with her, not falling behind.

She could feel Mei's hand gripping hers tightly. Her heart was not calm at all.

Because of the thunder in the sky?

Why?

Kiana regretted not having learned more about this world in the past few months. Otherwise, she wouldn't be here now, guessing wildly.

That feeling...

There was no mistake.

When Mei heard and saw the lightning in the sky, she felt something was wrong. It didn't look like a natural thunderstorm, and she keenly sensed that the lightning felt somewhat familiar.

Why familiar?

Mei gritted her teeth and ran towards the shrine at top speed. She needed to verify her guess.

The thunder had lasted for a long time, but it slowly subsided. No, it wasn't subsiding; it was shifting to other areas.

Rubbing her ears, Kiana asked worriedly, "Mei, did something happen?"

"I'm sorry, Kiana, I have to go back to the shrine right now." Mei finally let go of Kiana's hand.

"I'll go with you!"

"...Okay."

Mei wanted her to be by her side, which was why she had instinctively grabbed Kiana when they left.

After crossing several streets, they finally ran back to the area where the shrine was located. Mei entered the shrine without a word, heading straight for the main hall that enshrined 'Narukami'.

However, upon rushing back to confirm something, Mei's pupils contracted when she stepped into the main hall and saw the empty altar.

"Narukami"... it's gone.

"What... Narukami is gone?!"

Kiana, who had been running alongside Mei, also saw the empty shrine and couldn't help but widen her eyes. She had pestered Mei for so long, she had seen the 'Narukami' enshrined there.

This 'Narukami' had been worshipped by Mei's family for generations, with at least several hundred years of history. And now it was gone?

Stolen?!

Looking at the empty shrine, Mei actually calmed down. She stared at the sword stand on the shrine where 'Narukami' was originally placed, and walked step by step towards it.

Kiana was anxious on the side.

Was it because I called Mei out to play today that I gave someone coveting 'Narukami' an opportunity?

She gritted her teeth in frustration, her mood plummeting.

She felt anger towards the thief, resentment towards herself, and guilt and worry for Mei.

"I'll go look around nearby, maybe the thief hasn't gone far!"

Thinking the thief might not have gone far, Kiana angrily chased after them. Without waiting for Mei to say anything, she turned and ran out of the shrine.

The thief...

Mei's thoughts were in a tangled mess. She didn't call out to stop Kiana, because the person who took the sword would definitely not linger here, and Kiana's skills were more than enough to handle ordinary people.

She walked up to the shrine, searching for any clues. On the base of the shrine, she found a very inconspicuous letter.

She reached out and took it. Seeing the familiar handwriting on it, Raiden Mei's breathing grew heavier. "You've returned after all... Father..."

The hand holding the envelope tightened involuntarily. She hadn't expected her father to have been near the shrine all this time.

'Narukami' might not have been stolen just now.

The shrine was closed to worshippers today. She had only visited the main hall once in the morning. 'Narukami' was probably taken by her father the moment she turned away.