Just Thinking About Finally Telling the Lame Joke the Author Held In for Thirty-Odd Chapters Makes Me Laugh

Fuck you, Old Feng. Whatever.

If even Scott felt familiar to me, then if I really did something bad to Collei in my previous life, there's no way I wouldn't recognize her at all.

I don't fucking care whether I was a savior or an utterly irredeemable villain in my previous life. Since I've been reborn, I'll fucking do whatever I want now and save whoever I want.

Worst case, once I really get my memories back, I'll make up for all the wrong things I did, one by one.

No more mental self-sabotage. It starts with me.

Yeah, I'll go see Collei once I'm done with everything here. It's been a while since I spent time with that kid.

The sealed interrogation room had not a single window, shutting out all light and sound. Its four walls were cold, rough, dark stone, with only a cool-white lamp hanging in the very center, casting a harsh beam straight down and confining the table, chairs, and two occupants within a tiny space.

The charges were clearly listed on the pages, all deliberately cobbled together and fabricated by Azar:

Suspected unauthorized appropriation of controlled materials, including Akasha radio-frequency chips; unauthorized construction of communication equipment, classified as high-risk experimentation; private collusion with merchants to conduct large transactions involving controlled components and illegally obtain experimental funding, in violation of Sumeru's academic control regulations; incomplete enrollment paperwork and suspected identity fraud.

Cyno sat upright at the table, his expression solemn and stern, his eyes devoid of personal emotion, wearing the detached look of someone impartially enforcing the law. His fingers held a thick stack of charge records, their edges bearing the joint signatures and seals of the Akademiya's higher-ups. Every word was a fabricated accusation against Xingsu.

The chair opposite him was plain and hard. Xingsu sat quietly upright, his back straight, silently submitting to the interrogation.

"You may speak freely, but everything you say will become evidence in court. Now, you can tell me about your Xing-sorrows."

Xingsu: ?

Am I just incapable of meeting anyone normal these days?

"Let's start with your origins. The Akademiya now has reasonable grounds to suspect you're a spy sent from Fontaine, because only Fontaine has plenty of daily Xing-suits."

An eerie silence fell over the interrogation room.

The rainforest is hot and humid every day, so why does it feel so cold in here?

And... isn't this an interrogation? Am I supposed to play along?

"Uh... Mr. Cyno, you really are just as Tighnari described... witty and humorous(?)"

Cyno's eyes suddenly lit up at those words, and he even leaned forward slightly, unable to conceal the excitement in his voice, which grew a little lighter:

"Really? Tighnari actually said that? He finally understands my jokes?"

Xingsu could only nod lightly and go along with it:

"Mm... uh, more or less. There's a very distinctive sort of... wit to them."

The interrogation room's door was gently pushed open from outside, letting in a warm breeze that instantly dispelled the stiff, absurd atmosphere inside.

Tighnari walked in with one hand pressed firmly to his forehead, his ears and tail drooping limply, looking utterly exhausted in both body and mind.

"All right, Cyno. Leave our new friend with a good impression."

Hearing Tighnari's gentle, dependable voice, Xingsu felt the tension that had gripped him all night abruptly ease, and he said delightedly, "Tighnari! You've come to help me!"

Tighnari shook his head. "Cyno is the one who's really helping you. He may seem to have arrested you, but he's actually protecting you."

Xingsu thought for a few seconds, understood the situation, and said softly, "So... the Akademiya finally couldn't resist making a move, right?"

"That's not all." Cyno, who had been standing silently, took over, his tone abruptly growing grave, completely shedding his earlier relaxed manner while telling jokes. "According to reliable information, the Fatui Harbinger, 'The Doctor,' will be arriving soon. And... he seems very interested in you and your research."

"So...?" Xingsu's brow furrowed slightly as a sense of foreboding rose within him.

Cyno took a deep breath and stated the final decision they all had no choice but to accept:

"So now, we must get you out of Sumeru immediately. Right this instant."

"Once The Doctor arrives and joins forces with Azar and the Akademiya's higher-ups, on one side will be the Akademiya, which controls Sumeru's laws and public opinion, and on the other, the Fatui, with cutting-edge experimental capabilities and forces operating in the shadows."

He looked steadily at Xingsu and laid out the cruelest outcome:

"When that happens, no one will be able to protect you. You won't be able to take a single step in Sumeru, and there will be no place left for you here."

The interrogation room fell deathly silent again.

The light was bright and cold, leaving the young man's slender figure nowhere to hide.

Tighnari sighed softly and added:

"This is your only way out right now, Xingsu. Leaving Sumeru for the time being and staying out of this game is your best choice."

Xingsu remained silent for a long time before letting out a soft sigh:

"...I understand. Tighnari, could you pass a message to Collei for me?"

Tighnari nodded lightly. "Go ahead."

"Tell her to take her medicine on time, eat properly, cooperate with the Forest Rangers' treatment, and not overthink things."

He paused, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, then gave one final, weighty promise:

"Wait for me to come back."

Tighnari agreed softly. "I'll tell her every word, and I'll take good care of her. Don't worry."

"Thank you, Tighnari."

"I should be thanking you. You've helped Collei and everyone in the Forest Rangers so much, yet there's so little we can do for you."

Xingsu raised his eyes to Cyno's grave face and asked calmly:

"Mr. Cyno, which way should I flee?"

Cyno put away the case files, walked to the interrogation room's stone window, and gazed into the distance, saying with precision:

"The port has already been sealed off. The Fatui fleet will land here soon, and both inside and outside the port are filled with Akademiya personnel and Fatui soldiers. Going south would be walking straight into their trap."

"The road east to Liyue won't work either. The Chasm is a special zone, and the entire area is sealed under martial law. Inspections at the checkpoints are strict. Without official travel documents, you simply can't get through."

"There's only one route left now-the desert."

"Once you cross the desert interior around the Mausoleum of King Deshret and the Realm of Farakhkert, you'll reach the coastal ferry crossing at the desert's northernmost tip. Take a boat there, and you can enter Fontaine directly."

Tighnari added a timely warning about the dangers along the way. "There are quite a few roaming Eremites entrenched deep in the desert, as well as out-of-control Ruin Guards. Be careful along the way. We do have a friend there, and she'll help you cross the desert. I've also prepared heat-resistance potions and a basic supply pack for you."

Xingsu silently committed the long, lonely route to memory and gazed at the dark night outside the window.

"Fontaine? I don't know why... but it always feels so familiar, as though I ought to go there sometime..."

"Hm? Are you sure it's not because they have plenty of 'Xing-suits' there?"

"Cyno, shut up!"

"Wasn't it funny?"

(Four updates today. I'm fucking awesome.)