"Hehe, hubby, you're the best~" Yae Miko giggled as she hugged Akio tightly, planting soft kisses on him to show her affection.
It was a long while before they finally separated.
"Oh, right, I have two more ladies for you all to meet," Akio said with a smile. He waved his hand, and a portal to the Imaginary Space opened.
Guizhong and Havria stepped out, arms linked.
"Akio~" Guizhong called out as soon as she appeared, but stopped short when she saw the crowd of women in front of her.
"Tsk tsk, so the new sisters are both gods?" Raiden Makoto blinked in surprise. She could sense the divine aura from both women. They were weak, yes—but still gods.
Makoto had thought she was the weakest of the gods. Who would've thought there were two even lower on the ladder?
Neither Makoto nor Ei had ever met Guizhong; they had only learned of her after the Seven Archons had been established, by which time Guizhong had already perished.
Feeling the scrutiny of so many eyes, Havria lowered her head, clearly overwhelmed and shy.
Guizhong, on the other hand, was the picture of social confidence. She tugged Havria forward and said cheerfully, "Hello, sisters! I'm the Dust God. You can just call me Guizhong. And this is the Salt God, Havria."
"So you're Guizhong!" Makoto's eyes widened. At gatherings of the Seven, both she and Ei had heard of this god. But according to Morax, Guizhong had long since passed away.
"Hmm? Sister, could you tell me more about what happened back then?" Guizhong asked curiously, then quickly explained hers and Havria's situation to Makoto.
"I see… So Akio brought you two back through time," Makoto nodded. No wonder.
"I'm Baal, the Electro Archon of Inazuma. You can call me Raiden Makoto," she introduced herself and then gave a quick rundown of the others present.
———
"So that's how it is… And now Morax's land is called Liyue?" Guizhong murmured with a smile after hearing Makoto's explanation of Liyue's current state. Her people were thriving in a land as rich and abundant as Liyue—that was enough to ease her heart.
It seemed Morax had truly upheld their contract. Guizhong felt as if a great burden had lifted from her shoulders. Now, she could fully devote herself to staying by Akio's side.
After all, centuries of companionship had already made him the center of her heart.
At that moment, Furina and Clorinde strolled into the Tenshukaku hall from one of the rooms.
Furina stretched and yawned, while Clorinde gave a polite bow. "Good morning, everyone."
"Oh my, Clorinde, what's with all the formality?" Yae Miko teased. "We're sisters here."
"Come on, say it with me—'Sister Miko!'"
"…Is that so? Apologies, Sister Miko," Clorinde nodded, a bit stiffly. "I suppose I'm just a little too formal."
Furina, meanwhile, ran up to Akio and held out her dainty white hand.
"What is it?" Akio asked, amused by the expectant look on her face.
"Mora! I want Mora! Clorinde and I are going shopping!" Furina declared crisply. "Akio, I'm your woman now. You're not going to be stingy with me, are you?"
"Of course not." Akio chuckled and nodded—then smirked. "But since you're calling me your man… shouldn't we have already done what couples do?"
"Wh-what do you mean by 'what couples do'…?" Furina's cheeks flushed pink. Her mind instantly conjured up steamy scenes from the romance novels she'd read, and she got a little dizzy.
Steam practically rose from her head as she grew more and more flustered.
Tsk. What's Furina imagining? I just meant a kiss, Akio mused, rubbing his chin. Anyway… flirting with a fool—does that count as a crime?
"U-um… okay… b-but Akio, you have to be gentle, I've never… done that before…" Furina looked like she'd made a life-altering decision. Her watery eyes locked onto his as she shyly fidgeted.
"My sweet little treasure, now's not the time for that, but I can collect a bit of interest." Akio pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
"Mm…" Furina let out a soft sound as an unfamiliar but intoxicating feeling surged through her. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, completely lost in the moment.
"Waaah~ I haven't even had my first kiss yet…" Guizhong pouted from the side as she watched Akio kiss Furina. She'd only ever seen him and Yoimiya being affectionate—never experienced it herself.
"Right, Havria?" Guizhong turned to her.
"U-um… I've already kissed Akio…" Havria whispered shyly, her cheeks burning.
"???" Guizhong stared at her in disbelief. Even Havria had kissed Akio?
Come on! She'd known him way longer than Havria had!
Just as Akio pulled back from his kiss with Furina, someone tackled him to the ground.
"Guizhong?" Akio blinked up at the girl sitting on top of him.
"Nope! Not fair! I'm your woman too—I want a kiss! You can't play favorites!" Guizhong huffed, then leaned down and clumsily pressed her lips to his.
———
Furina was in a great mood. She'd gotten a whole million Mora out of Akio!
"Let's go! Clorinde, shopping time!" Furina sang as she linked arms with Clorinde and walked out of Tenshukaku.
Now that they were in Inazuma and both Akio's women, there was no need to maintain any sort of master-servant dynamic.
"What a lively and loving god," Yae Miko mused with a smile. "Her people must never suffer from depression."
"…!" Raiden Ei shot a sharp glare at Miko. That fox was obviously throwing shade at her reign.
"Yeah, back in Fontaine, the citizens even nicknamed her their 'mascot,'" Akio laughed.
"Mascot, huh? That's kind of fitting," Makoto chuckled.
"Still, even with all that, her people genuinely love her. Unlike some nations that try to imprison their gods—or worse, create artificial ones just to satisfy their own ignorant, twisted ambitions." Akio sneered.
Once the Divine Coronation Ceremony was over, it'd be time for Lumine and Paimon to head to Sumeru.
That so-called "Everlasting Lord of Arcane Wisdom," the God of Machines, would be making their move.
Akio was quite curious to see just how powerful this artificial fake god really was. And he also wanted to know—would the little grass god really go out of her way to save the one who had wrecked Sumeru?
A/N: Enjoying the story? Read 60+ chapters ahead on Patreon! Your support helps: Patreon.com/nneol