Inazuma.
Narukami Island.
"So something like that actually happened..." Kitsune Saiguu said with a slight frown.
"What a complete idiot. None of this was his fault. I really want to crack his head open and see what's inside."
Chiyo stood with her hands on her hips, fuming, as though she felt Xiu Yuan deserved better.
"Who knows? He always thinks too much about others and never considers himself. I wanted to help shoulder some of his burden, but he's so stubborn that I simply couldn't get through to him."
After returning to Narukami Island, Zebu had explained the entire situation to them.
Their reactions were much as she had expected.
They all felt indignant on Xiu Yuan's behalf, yet struggled to understand his reasoning.
"Everyone knows that nothing in this world is perfect, not even a god."
"He knows perfectly well that he can't save everyone. He knows that better than anyone."
"But even so, he'll still blame himself for failing in his duty."
"Watching the people he was supposed to protect die before his eyes... that grief won't fade so quickly."
"Give him some time. He'll get better."
Baal spoke softly, her gentle gaze filled with conviction.
She believed Xiu Yuan wasn't someone who would be defeated so easily.
It didn't matter how many times he fell. What mattered was how many times he could get back up.
Having lost more than a dozen lives through a failure in his duty, some grief and self-reproach were inevitable.
If someone could recover immediately after going through something like that...
It would only mean that he had felt little guilt or grief to begin with, perhaps even that it hadn't stirred anything in his heart at all.
"That's all we can do..." Zebu agreed with her elder sister.
The Little Pink